One of the organisations from which we gather research material is the Family Origin Name Survey. This is an excellent service, which has set out to collect all types of documentary material and to search documents for occurrences of particular names. Among the recent references we have received from FONS, are several which we are still trying to identify. If anyone can help, or would like to research these mysterious Lin(d)fields further, do please let us know. Continue reading Recent Discoveries
All posts by Alan G Lindfield
The Early Linfields
We have often referred in this journal to the work of Harry Stanford Smith, the Brighton estate agent who researched his Linfield origins during the 1950’s. He left us with some fascinating pieces of information, but since he failed to include records of his sources, we cannot readily see what is fact and what is merely conjecture in his extensive findings. Even if all the names and dates which he quoted were in fact correct, the relationships between individuals are unlikely to be confirmed by documentary evidence and some conjecture is therefore inevitable. Continue reading The Early Linfields
Sands of Time
“Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime,
And, departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sands of time.”
When Longfellow wrote these famous lines, I doubt that he was thinking of family history; however, there is no doubt that we all leave some “footprints on the sands of time”, whether or not our lives are sublime! Some of these footprints only come to light after we have departed this life, and amongst the more useful are the contents of wills and administrations. For this reason, one of our first tasks on setting up the Group, was to transcribe the probate records held at Somerset House, which cover the period from 1858 to the present. We have now published the contents of the Calendar of Wills for the Linfield and Lindfield surnames from 1858-1920, which number 62 entries, or an average of exactly one for each year. (Ref 1) Continue reading Sands of Time
Longshot Vol 4, No. 1
Serendipity, or The Corporal of Abu Klea, by Alan M Linfield
Don’t Forget the Ecclesiastical Courts, by Malcolm Linfield
Henry Gordon Linfield (1889-1975), by Peggy Champ
The Caesar Connection
Part 1: Ann Caesar, by Mary Ellmore
Part 2: The Origin of the Caesars, by Malcolm Linfield
The Sands of Time, by Alan G Lindfield
The Linfield Library of Humour, by Malcolm Linfield
The Early Linfields, by Alan G Lindfield
Recent Discoveries, by Alan G Lindfield
Front Cover: William Linfield, 1822-1892, who married Ann Caesar in 1850. See articles on pages 13 and 15
Unto every purpose there is a program
Some thoughts on software for family history.
[This article first appeared in Forum, the newsletter of the Council of Family Societies, of which the Lin(d)field One Name Group is a founder member.] Continue reading Unto every purpose there is a program
The Monks Gate Murder
by Kairen Bright, Malcolm Linfield & Alan Lindfield
One of the questions frequently asked of family historians, is whether they have found any murderers in the family. Quite why we have this morbid fascination with murder is a mystery, but the fact remains that most families have at least murderer lurking somewhere in the genealogical cupboard, and the Lin(d)field families are no exception. There are in fact several instances of murder in our records, in which either the perpetrator or the victim is a Lin(d)field. Elsewhere in this issue, NICK LINFIELD tells the story of WILLIAM DE LINDFIELD, who was walled up alive in Bramber Castle. Definitely a case of malice aforethought! Continue reading The Monks Gate Murder
Longshot Vol 3, No. 2
William Penn and the Quaker Linfields of Sussex, by Malcolm Linfield
The Storrington Linfields & their Poor Relations of Sullington and Washington , by Eric Linfield
The Monks Gate Murder, by Kairen Bright, Malcolm Linfield & Alan Lindfield
For the Record, by Malcolm Linfield
Unto Every Purpose There is a Program, by Alan Lindfield
The L.O.N.G. Database, by Alan M Linfield
An Inn Spectre Calls, by Malcolm Linfield
Front Cover: This picture of the memorial plaque at the Blue Idol Meeting House, commemorates the Quaker William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania. The 350th anniversary of his birth was celebrated last October. An article about the Linfield Quakers will be found on page 42.
Roots and Cuttings
In a previous issue of LONGSHOT, Malcolm showed how much useful information can be gained from articles in old newspapers, which can give a fascinating insight into the characters and way of life of our ancestors, in a way that official records can never do. The article reproduced on the right of this page, for example, gives us not only the addresses of the business premises of FREDERICK CAESAR LINFIELD in 1886, but also an impression of the innovative and progressive character of this prominent local businessman. Continue reading Roots and Cuttings