John Tompkins was born on November 1, 1834 at Looke in the parish of Abbotsbury, Dorset, England the fifth of eight children of Richard Tompkins and Ann Churchill. Despite being born in Abbotsbury, John was baptised in the parish church at Puncknowle, which was physically much closer to the family home.
John Tompkins (1834-1908)
June 30, 2008 at 4:00 am (Biography, Genealogy)
Tags: Abbotsbury, Burton Bradstock, Chideock, Compton Valence, Eyers, Matthews, Puncknowle, Shipton Gorge, Symes, Tompkins, Wynford Eagle
Harbour memories
June 29, 2008 at 4:00 am (Genealogy)
Tags: Hayward, Weymouth
Visitors from Amherstburg, Ontario, Canada Ian and Helen Hayward trod in the footsteps of Ian’s late father on their recent holiday to Weymouth, Dorset, England.
Full story by Nicola Rayner in the Dorset Echo
Charles Herbert Mayo (1845-1929)
June 28, 2008 at 4:00 am (Biography, Genealogy)
Tags: Charles Herbert Mayo, Dorset, Folke, Longburton, Mayo
Charles Herbert Mayo was born in 1845 at Folke, a village in north west Dorset, England, situated in the Blackmore Vale 3.5 miles south-east of Sherborne. He was the third of three children of William Mayo, the rector of Folke, and his wife Charlotte Dyer.
Criminal ancestors: trial records at The National Archives
June 27, 2008 at 4:00 am (Genealogy)
Tags: National Archives
In this podcast from the National Archives, Nigel Taylor take us through a short introduction into the records that can be used to trace criminal ancestors.
Letter from C.B. Phipps to Henry Moule
June 26, 2008 at 4:00 am (History, Location)
Tags: Balmoral, Fordington, Moule, Phipps
The following letter was recieved by the Rev. Henry Moule of Fordington from Prince Albert’s private secretary The Hon. Colonel C.B. Phipps in response to his letter concerning the conditions at Fordington and the Cholera ourbreak.
Letter from Henry Moule to Prince Albert (1)
June 25, 2008 at 4:00 am (History, Location)
Tags: Cholera, Dorchester, Fordington, Moule, Prince Albert
In 1854 Cholera had broken out in the Dorset parish of Fordington which was part of the Duchy of Cornwall. The Rev. Henry Moule, Vicar of Fordington wrote a series of letters tp H.R.H. Prince Albert, president of the Council of the Duchy. The eight letters were published in 1855. This is the first letter in that series.
There’s a war on!
June 24, 2008 at 4:00 am (Location)
Tags: Maiden Newton
Maiden Newton, Dorset stepped back in time and was transformed into a 1940s Second World War scene complete with tanks, air raid sirens and a battle re-enactment.
Read the report by Miriam Phillips in the Dorset Echo
Tracing pre 1914 army ancestors
June 23, 2008 at 4:00 am (Genealogy, Podcast)
Tags: Army, National Archives
Covering the period from 1760 to 1913, this podcast from the National Archives by William Spencer discusses the service records of army officers and other ranks.
Sherman Tank at Maiden Newton, Dorset
June 22, 2008 at 4:00 am (Location)
Tags: Maiden Newton, Sherman Tank
A short vido clip by Daniel Wisbey from the Maiden Newton @ War weekend held at Maiden Newton, Dorset, England this weekend.
Frederick Aloysius Weld (1823-1891)
June 21, 2008 at 4:00 am (Biography, Genealogy)
Tags: Chideock, Weld
Frederick Aloysius Weld was born on May 9, 1823 into the well known Dorset landed Roman Catholic family at Chideock and was educated at Stonyhurst and the University of Fribourg, Switzerland.
