Just introducing myself to the roots chat family!
I have quite an extensive family tree going on with the Ancestry site, doing both my side and my husband's.
My side of the family, from my mum's half, her dad (obviously my grandad) claimed that the famous cricketer Frank Woolley was his cousin - yet to verify!
On my hubby's family, his biological father's surname is Burgoyne - apparently connected to General John Burgoyne but still working on that. Via his mum, her grandmother was called Kate Kensit which makes him a cousin of some sort to actress Patsy Kensit (this goes back to something like gt x 3 grandparents).
Have found all sorts of obscure family members - my cousin in Australia (we share the same grandad, me from grandad's 1st marriage, he from the 2nd marriage) put me in touch with a cousin who lives only an hour away from where I live. Turned out my grandad and her grandad were brothers. We've met up a few times and there is a definite family resemblance with the Woolley nose. This world is getting smaller!
I started my tree back in 1991 when I lived in London and used to go to Catherine's house to search through the microfiche to look at census records - my dad was interested in finding out more about his father and grandfather.
The info I started off with was my dad's name and date of birth 22/7/1932, his father's name Albert Francis Neal and dob 1/2/1876 , his father's name John and that they came from Horsmonden.
Searched the 1881 census, found the names easily enough but Albert wasn't an only child as dad had always thought but one of 5. 2 sisters died very young, 2 other brothers found no trace of where they died but calculated they would have been enlisted in the first world war by their ages.
10 years later I had communication from someone else that shared the same great grandad - turned out the 1891 census showed another 2 sons leading to further extended family!
So if anyone out there is connected to the Neal family from Horsmonden, Woolley family from Stockport, the Kensits of Derbyshire and London, anyone Burgoyne - do please get in touch!
You can find me on Facebook - just look for Jo Dee Burgoyne-Neal.
