The ancestry of the Dew family of Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire extends back to a Thomas Dew (d. 1821), whose name first appears in Gamlingay in 1776 when he married Ann Paine (d. 1813) there. Although his parents are unknown, there is record of his wife's ancestry, she being the granddaughter of John Paine (1695-1774) of Gamlingay. Although Ann's grandfather was born illegitimate, he is almost certainly the biologic son of George Downing IV, a baronet with land holdings in Gamlingay, and whose ancestry extends back a few more generations to another George Downing, who was born in the early part of the 16th century. The lineage that follows begins with this early Downing ancestor.
George Downing I of Beccles (d. 1564) was born in the first half of the 16th century in England, probably somewhere in or near the village of Beccles in County Suffolk, as he states that Beccles was where he dwelled when he wrote his will. What little is known about him comes from this will, which was written on Dec. 12, 1561, and proved on June 26, 1564 by his wife Cicely. He mentions in this document "Cicely my wife ... Barnabe my sonne ... John Downing my sonne ... George Downing my sonne ... William Downing my sonne ... [and] Margaret Downing my daughter". He also implies that his sons are listed in order from oldest to youngest, and he makes special provision for John and George that they should "to go the grammar schole, and then to the University of Cambridge" to continue their education. Furthermore, the language of the will implies that all of his children were minors at the time, younger than 25 years of age. His and Cicely's son George Downing II follows.
George Downing II (c.1553-1610), the son of George Downing I of Beccles and his wife Cicely, was born in the mid-1500s, possibly in Beccles, Suffolk, where his parents lived. He entered Queen's College at the University of Cambridge in 1569, probably as a teenager of 15 or so, as provided for in his father's will, receiving a B.A. there in 1573/74, and going on in 1574 to be awarded an M.A. degree. He was married, probably shortly after his graduation, to a woman whose surname is shown in Downing family history charts as Bellamy (e.g., Muskett, 1894, p. 99). However, an original source to verify this has not been found. He and his wife settled at some point in Ipswich, Suffolk, which is located some forty miles, or so, southwest of Beccles. It is known that he was living in Ipswich in 1589 as a teacher at the Grammar School in Blackfriars Refectory, but it uncertain when he started there. When the head schoolmaster James Leamon was discharged in 1608 for some unknown reason, Downing was nominated to take his place, and Downing was definitely was the headmaster at Ipswich in 1610/11 when he died.
George's wife predeceased him, and was buried as the "Wife of George Downing" on December 21, 1610 at St. Lawrence Church in Ipswich (Hyde, 1999). When, just three weeks later, her husband wrote his will, which is dated Jan. 17, 1611, he makes no mention of her, which confirms her prior decease. He does mention their three daughters - Susan, Nahomie, and Abigail - who were unmarried at the time, and he mentions a son Joseph, who was a student at Cambridge. He makes no mention of his sons Joshua, Emmanual and Nathaniel, who were all alive at the time, and successful in their careers. He was buried in St. Lawrence parish in 1610/11, with the day and month left blank in the record, which means that he must have died sometime between the January 17th writing of his will, and the March 24th end of the year for the Julian Calendar that was in use back then in Britain. His will was then proven 9 months later on Oct. 3, 1611 in Suffolk by his daughter Nahomie. There is an excellent Wiki-Tree article on George Downing II. His son Emmanual Downing follows.
Emmanual Downing (c.1585-1660), the son of George Downing II and his wife, was born about 1585, probably in Ipswich, Suffolk, as he was baptized there on Aug. 12, 1585 at St. Lawrence Church. He matriculated in 1602 at Trinity College, Cambridge, and became a barrister of the Inner Temple, going on to practice law in Dublin, Ireland. He married his first wife Anne Ware in 1614, probably in London, but certainly not in New England as claimed in many family histories, and they lived in Dublin, where their three children were born. She died in October 1621 in Dublin, and Emmanual soon after married wife Lucy Winthrop (1600-1679) on April 10, 1622 in Groton, Suffolk.
Emmanual was a devout Puritan, who became interested in helping to establish a Puritan colony in the New World. This led him to join the Massachusetts Bay Company, where Lucy's brother John Winthrop was helping to organize colonists to sail to New England to found the Massachusetts Bay Colony. However, Emmanual chose initially to stay in England with Lucy, and they sent his and first wife Anne's son James (c.1616-1647) instead in 1630 to sail with Winthrop. Emmanual and Lucy waited until 1638 to sail with their son George on the ship Thomas and Francis to Salem, where Lucy's brother John was now Governor of the colony. Emmanual became very prominent in affairs of the colony. He Lucy built a grand mansion on Essex Street in Salem, and here they resided for many years, before returning in 1654 to England. Although Emmanual died in 1660 in Edinburgh, his body was returned to London to be buried on Dec. 14, 1660 at St. Martin-in-the-Fields Church in Trafalagar Square in Westminster. Lucy survived her husband by many years and died on April 19, 1679 somewhere in England, probably in London. She is generally assumed to be buried with her husband in London, but this is not known for certain, and she may also be buried in Groton, Suffolk. There is an excellent Wiki-Tree article on Emmanual Downing. His and Lucy's son George Downing III follows.
A c.1819 sketch from the Peabody Essex Museum of Emmanual Downing's mansion on Essex Street in Salem. Downing soon after his 1638 arrival in Salem, purchased 300 acres of land and built a house there that he called "Groton", after the English home of his wife Lucy. Said to be the finest home in Salem, it was later occupied by Gov. Simon Bradstreet. This house in the late 1700s or early 1800s, some say 1753, either burned to the ground, or was demolished. The Peabody Museum now occupies the site.
Portrait of Sir George Downing, 1st Baronet by Thomas Smith.
George Downing III, 1st Baronet (c.1524-1684) was the son of Emmanual Downing and Lucy Winthrop. There is some doubt about the details of his birth, which is believed to be either 1624, or earlier, in Dublin, Ireland, when his father was practicing law there, or in or about 1625, after his father had returned to London.
George is incorrectly identified in Burke (1838, p. 298-300) as the son of of the clergyman Calybute Downing (c.1606-1643), and as such a descendant (according to Burke) of the Plantagenet King Henry III, and as well as Henry's son King Edward I. The British antiquarian Anthony à Wood (1632-1695) is the ultimate source of this error, which is oft repeated in some form in many family histories. Most notably Downing and Wilberforce (1901, p. 12-14), which incorrectly shows Calybute as the father of George's father Emmanual Downing (d. 1660). Although George is not descended from Henry III, he did marry a woman who was, as will be discussed in the section below.
Downing, while still just a young man in his teens, came with his parents in 1638 to North America, where he received an education at Harvard University, and was the second in 1642 of nine students in the first graduating class. He began his career after Harvard as a preacher, and sailed in that capacity in 1645 for the West Indies, arriving in England some time afterwards. Then starting in about 1647, he abandoned preaching to pursue a brief military career under the dictator Oliver Cromwell, serving mainly in Cromwell's Scottish campaign. Then moving on from the military to politics, he served in 1654 in Cromwell's parliament as the representative for Edinburgh.
Although born a commoner, and considered by some to not even be a true Englishman, Downing rose in social status where he was able in 1654, his first year as a Member of Parliament, to marry Frances Howard (c.1633-1683), the sister of the Earl of Carlisle. The wedding probably took place at Naworth Castle, which was the seat of the Howard family, and was located in Cumbria, near the Scottish borderlands. Frances was also a great-granddaughter of the third son of Thomas Howard (1536-1572), the fourth Duke of Norfolk, and through that line she is a descendant of King Edward I of England. Thus, although Downing may not have been descended from royalty, his wife was (Burke, 1858; also, please see the genalogical chart in Appendix I). She is said to have been a great beauty, and his marriage into the powerful Howard family certainly would have aided his rise in politics.
Oliver Cromwell died in 1658, and Downing subsequently became an advisor to King Charles II, with the 1660 restoration of the monarchy. His first-hand knowledge of colonial affairs served him well, and he is said to have been more responsible than any other man for arranging the acquisition of New York from the Dutch. He was knighted for his services to the crown in May 1660 by Charles II, and then elevated on July 1, 1663 to a baronet.
Sir George through shrewd business dealings and investments became extremely wealthy in a very short amount of time, which made him many enemies. The diarist Samuel Pepys (1633-1703), who worked for Downing in the Exchequer and knew him well, characterised Downing's conduct as "odious... though...of service to the king". He also calls him a "perfidious rogue" and records Downing's "miserliness" in detail. It seems to be popular these days to portray Downing as a spy of Oliver Cromwell who betrayed the republican cause after Cromwell's death, and switched sides during the subsequent restoration to become a confidant of the king.
Among the many properties that Downing invested in was a lease purchased in 1654 for some land near St James's Park in London that was a short walk from parliament. He planned to build a row of two-story town houses here "for persons of good quality to inhabit", but constuction was delayed, and it was not until 1684 that the houses were completed. The street where they were built became known as Downing Street, and the largest house in 1787 became part of "Number 10 Downing Street", which today is the residence of the British Prime Minister.
Sir George's wife Frances died on July 10, 1683 somewhere in England, and he died in Cambridge a little over a year later, around July 19, 1684, when his will was proved. Both are buried in a family tomb that Sir George constructed under the chancel at All Saints Church in Croydon, Cambridgeshire. There are both Wiki Tree and Wikipedia articles on Sir George Downing, 1st Baronet. His and Frances' son George Downing IV follows.
Shown on the left is All Saints Church in Croyden, Cambridgeshire where George Downing, 1st Baronet directs in his will of August 24, 1683 that "My body to be interred in the vault which I have made under the chancel at Crawden, alias Croyden, in the county of Cambridge, by the body of my wife Frances." On the right is a memorial plaque to the Downing family that Downing College in 1962 placed on the north wall of the chancel.
George Downing IV, 2nd Baronet (c.1656-1711), the son of George Downing III and Frances Howard, was born about 1656 in England. He became one of the deputy Tellers of the Exchequer in 1680, serving at first under his father, who was 1st Teller. The king had earlier elevated the elder Downing in 1663 to a baronet, and when he died in 1684, the younger Downing succeeded him as 2nd Baronet. He also inherited a vast fortune from his father, who is said to have been the largest landholder in Cambridgeshire. The younger Downing next served from 1686 to 1687 as Sheriff of Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire, concurrent with his position at the Exchequer. Resigning from the Exchequer in 1689, when King James II left England and forfeited the throne, Downing more or less retired to his estates in Cambridgeshire, where he did little else but enjoy his inheritance.
Sir George the younger was still serving at the Exchequer when he married Lady Catherine Cecil (c.1664-1688), the daughter of the Earl of Salisbury, on July 12, 1683 in Canterbury, Kent. He and Catherine had one surviving child, a son also named George (c.1684-1749), before Catherine's premature death on Aug. 13, 1688 at the age of just 24 years. Stanley French (1978), a former archivist of Downing College, writes on page 1 of his History of Downing College Cambridge that "Catherine was so badly treated by her husband, Sir George Downing, the second baronet of East Hatley, Cambridgeshire, that when she died in 1688 the gossips said it was his conduct which killed her." The nature of George's ill conduct is not specified, but one can speculate based on the events that followed.
French (1978) then adds on page 9 that Sir George in February 1700 failed to attend the wedding of his 15-year old son George to Mary Forester, a 13-year old cousin of the younger George. The author then speculates that the elder George "was probably far away in his manor at East Hatley, presumably contented with the company of Priscilla Payne, the woman with whom he was 'living incontinently' in 1695 when he was ex-communicated [from the church] for immorality, and by whom he had a son" - 'living incontinently' being a 17th-century term for leading an immoral life. This illegitimate son of the elder George Downing is also mentioned by Rev. H.W. Pettit Stevens (1899) in an earlier History of Downing College He writes on page 19 writes, "The episcopal records at Ely show that he [the elder George] was excommunicated for leading an immoral life, and there is evidence given by a lay contemporary of an illegitimate son." Although none of these sources actually name this illegitimate son of Sir George Downing IV and Priscilla Payne, there is a wealth of evidence to confirm his identity, and he is almost certainly the John Paine, Sr. who follows in Lineage 2 -- the most compelling piece of evidence for this being the undisputed fact that John Paine, Sr. had a younger sister named Priscilla (1698-1762) whose baptism record identifies her as "Priscilla Daughter of Priscilla Payn by Sr George Downing".
Sir George in the last two years of his life began building an elaborate family manor in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire that he named Gamlingay Park, but died before construction was complete. This left the task to his son and heir, also named George, to bring Gamlingay Park to its full grandeur. Sir George Downing, 2nd Baronet died in June 1711 at Gamlingay Park, and was buried in the family tomb at All Saints Church in nearby Croydon (Findagrave incorrectly places him in St. John the Baptist Church in Croydon, London). His wife Lady Catherine is also said to be buried in Croydon, though the tomb marker there identifies only his father and his son, and names neither him nor his wife. His mistress Priscilla Payne died in 1700, and was buried on May 16, 1700 at East Hatley, Cambridgeshire. She is probably the Priscilla Payne, daughter of Thomas Payne, who was born on Jan. 10, 1670 in Gamlingay, and baptized there the next day. If so, she was 30 years old when she died. Sir George left no will and his son and heir George V did not obtain admininistration of the will until six months later, while living in Italy. There is also a Wikipedia article on George Downing, 2nd Baronet. His known children follow.
children - DOWNING (Legitimate Issue)
George Downing V, 3rd Baronet (c.1684-1749) was probably born about 1684 in Cambridgeshire or London, and was later baptized on Oct. 24, 1685 at the parish church in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire, where his father had properties. His mother Catherine Cecil died in 1688 when George was a small boy, and his father sent him to live with Catherine's sister Mary Cecil and Mary's husband Sir William Forester (1655-1718), who was the Member of Parliament for Wenlock in Shropshire.
Because the younger Downing stood to inherit a substantial fortune upon his father's death, his guardian and uncle Sir William had the boy secretly married at age 15 in February of 1700 to William's 13-year old daughter Mary (1687-1634), but the marriage was never consumated. George soon went abroad for several years, and he refused upon his return to live with or acknowledge Mary. Then, after inheriting his father's title and estates, first Mary, and then George jointly with Mary, in 1715 and 1717, made petitions to the House of Lords to have their marriage dissolved, but these were refused, and the House granted them only a legal separation. This left George without any hope of producing legal heirs, so he directed in his will of Dec. 20, 1717 that his title and estates should pass first to his new-born cousin Jacob Downing (c.1717-1764) and then to three other cousins in succession; but if they died without issue, then the estates were to be used for the establishment of a Downing College at the University of Cambridge.
George was probably a lonely man, as his separation from his wife left him estranged from his mother's side of the family. Also, most relatives on his father's side had either died by the time George was an adult, or were living in the American colonies. He did have a half-bother named John Paine, who was the illegitimate son of his father from the latter's affair with Priscilla Payne. George was ten-years older than John, and though the two would have lived under the same roof together for no more than 4 or 5 years, George must have felt some responsibility for John, as he kept him in his employ beginning in at least 1747 or earlier, and made a slight provision for John in his will.
An artist's rendition from Brown (2011) of Gamlingay Park in the time of George Downing, 3rd Baronet.
George's father, the 2nd Baronet had begun construction shortly before his death on a palatial mansion in the village of Gamlingay, intending that this should be the manorial seat of the Downing family. When the younger George inherited his father's fortune in 1711 and became the 3rd Baronet, he undertook completetion of this manor, which he called Gamlingay Park. Denied being able to marry another woman as long as his legal wife Mary Forester was living, a Mary Townsend (1694-1765), who had been his "housekeeper" at Gamlingay, became his mistress, and their daughter Elizabeth was born in May 1722 at the manor. George also held an estate in the borough of Dunwich in Suffolk, and managed to get elected in 1710 as a Member of Parliament for the borough, but was not returned to office when he stood for election five years later. Nonetheless, he acquired the borough in fee in 1718 for a 99-year lease from the crown, which enabled him to get elected again in 1722 and stay in office until his death. Although described as an "uninspiring politician", he was always loyal to the king, was created a Knight of the Bath in 1732 for his service to the crown.
Sir George is said by his contemporary, the Cambridgeshire clergyman and historian Rev. William Cole to have led "a most miserable, covetous, and sordid existence" at Gamlingay Park in his final years. Although his wife Mary Forester died in 1734 in Hampton, Kent, he did not marry his mistress, nor dare entertain the idea of marrying another. He died on June 10, 1749 at his decaying mansion, some say of the gout, and was interred in the family vault that his grandfather had built at All Saints Church in nearby Croydon. As his heirs more or less held Gamlingay Park in trust for Downing College, they did not move into it and spent little on its upkeep, allowing much of the manor to fall further into decay.
Sir George's title and estates passed to his cousin Jacob Downing (a grandson of the 1st baronet) as directed in his will. He also provided an enormous dowry of £20,000 for his daughter Elizabeth that was paid out in 1750 when she married John Bagnall. Provisions were also made for Elizabeth's mother Mary Townsend, but she and her daughter subsequently became embroiled in a costly legal dispute with Jacob Downing that was still unresolved in 1765 when she died. When Sir Jacob and the other heirs died, Jacob's widow Lady Margaret Downing refused to give up Sir George's estates for the building of Downing College, as his original will had directed. Likewise, when Lady Margaret died in 1778, her second husband, and her sister's son tried to retain the estates as well. However, Gamlingay Park was not among them, as Lady Margaret had the manor dismantled three years earlier to keep the trustees for Downing College from getting control of the estate. Legal proceedings continued for years until the Court of Chancery in 1800 ruled in favor of George Downing's will of 83 years before, resulting at long last in the building of Downing College. There is a Wikipedia article on Sir George Downing, 3rd Baronet.
Portraits, from left to right, of Sir George Downing, 3rd Baronet; his cousin Sir Jacob Downing, 4th Baronet; and Jacob's wife Lady Margaret Downing by Thomas Gainsborough.
James Downing (1686-1686) was baptized on Jan. 20, 1686 at St. Mary Church in the Hornsey District of London, and buried soon after in the family vault under the chancel at All Saints Church in Croydon, Cambridgeshire.
Priscilla Payne (1698-1762) was born on July 8, 1698 probably in London, and baptized on July 20, 1698 at the Church of St. Mary in the Horney district of the north London borough of Haringey, which is near Charing Cross. The baptism record identifies her as "Priscilla Daughter of Priscilla Payn by Sr George Downing", which leaves no doubt that she is Downing's illegitimate daughter. She married a shepherd named Edward Webb (c.1708-1790) on March 1, 1728 at St. Botolph's Church in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, and they had a son named Edward (b. 1734), but it is not known if he survived. Priscilla died mnay years before her husband, who was a few years younger than her, and she was buried on March 24, 1762 in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire, where her husband was also buried on June 14, 1790 in the parish churchyard.
Lineage 2 - The Paine Family
John Paine, Sr. (1695-1774), the illegitimate son of George Downing IV, 2nd Baronet and his mistress Priscilla Payne, was born in 1695 in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire, and baptized there on July 18, 1695 in the parish church of St. Mary the Virgin. Although the register records only "Johannes Filius [son of] Pricillae Pain baptizatus fuit 18° die Julii anno domini supradicto", there is little doubt as to the identities of both parents. He married Anne Apthorp (b. c.1699) on Oct. 20, 1715 at St. Edward Church in Cambridge, and they had at least three children, all of whom were born and baptized in either Gamlingay or Great Gransden.
Not surprizingly, John was closely associated with the estates of the extremely wealthy Downing family of Lineage 1, who had extensive land holdings throughout England. John apparently served as an agent at times for his half-brother Sir George Downing, 3rd Baronet, specifically overseeing his brother's interests in an estate at Dunwich in County Suffolk. There is a document dated 1747 at the Ipswich Branch of the Suffolk Record Office in which Sir George Downing directs that John Paine should live at Dunwich to take care of his house there, and act as his business agent at a salary of £12 per year, with Paine getting use of said house, and some land. When Sir George died in 1749 he was succeeded by his cousin Sir Jacob Downing, who appears to have kept John Paine employed in the same capacity. Another document from the Suffolk Record Office, this one dated 1762, is a communication from Sir Jacob in which he directs John Paine to continue living at Dunwich, increasing Paine's salary to £40 per year, and making Paine his Steward so that he never pays any rent.
John Paine's position as an agent for the Downings was placed in jeopardy in February 1762 when Sir Jacob died, and left the Downing estates to his widow Lady Margaret Downing (d. 1778). This was in defiance of an earlier 1717 will by the previous baronet Sir George Downing, which directed that the estate should have gone to the University of Cambridge for the building of Downing College, and not to Lady Downing. Nonetheless, she took immediate possession of the Dunwich estate. She also made a short-lived provision for John Paine, who in addition to his position as an agent for the Downings, was also the Dunwich town clerk. However, John became trapped the following month in the middle of a dispute between Lady Downing and Miles Barne M.P. over the legal status of the Dunwich Borough, which resulted in Paine, at the age of 69, losing both his position as town clerk, and his salary from Lady Downing.
Paine appears to have then retired to Gamlingay, where he had been born, and where his oldest son Nicholas was by then probably the wealthiest farmer in the village. John Paine, Sr. died at the age of 79 in Gamlingay, likely in the care of this son, and he was buried on May 13, 1774 in the village, probably in the parish churchyard. He probably had several children, but we only know of the three below.
children - PAINE
Nicholas Paine (c.1723-1796), presumed to be the oldest son, was born about 1723 (according to his age at death), probably in Great Gransden, Huntingdonshire, as this is where his marriage record states he came from. He became a baker and married a woman named Anne Malden on April 17, 1753 in Gamlingay, afterwhich he apparently turned to farming. He also became a devout member and benefactor on Sept. 12, 1746 of the Old Meeting Baptist Church of Gamlingay, which had been founded in 1710 as an offshoot of a congregation founded 40 years before in Bedford by the famouse John Bunyan. Then in 1773 Nicholas became a deacon of the church. Three years before he died he built a large farmhouse opposite the church, proudly placing his initials ANP and the date 1793 on the gable end. This house and those initials survive today. He died at the age of 73 on Nov. 19, 1796 in Gamlingay, and was buried there two days later, his passing being noted in the Baptist Church Minute Book of Gamlingay. The Baptist Annual Register of 1797 also notes that when Nicholas died he was the most senior deacon of the congregation. Although the register of the parish church of St. Mary, which was Anglican, contains the record his November 21st burial, it would seem more likely that he was actually buried in a Baptist (i.e. non-conformist) cemetery. His will, which he wrote in 1793, shows him to have died a wealthy man, possibly the wealthiest in the village. A local historian of the time, probably William Cole (1714-1782), is said to have written that "an old inhabitant of Gamlingay said that when [she was] a girl, [the brothers] Nicholas and John Paine were old men, and it was generally known that they had blue blood in their veins."
Elizabeth Paine (d. 1797) was probably born in Great Gransden, Huntingdonshire, as her marriage record states that she came from here. She married John Facer (c.1717-1792) on Oct. 18, 1751 in Huntingdon, Huntingdonshire, her husband's trade being listed as a watchmaker and clockmaker. They settled in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire, where John on Nov. 20, 1760 bought a pub named the "George", and renamed it to the "Wheatsheaf". A pub of this same name still operates today at 92 Church in the village in a largely 19th-century building that has some possible 17th-century elements. Her husband John died in 1792 in Gamlingay, and was buried on Sept. 18, 1792 in the parish cemetery. Elizabeth subsequently sold the Wheatsheaf on Oct. 6, 1792 to her brother John for a paltry five shillings, stating in the deed that the price was "in consideration of natural love and affection." She died five years later, and was buried on Nov. 30, 1797 in Gamlingay.
John Paine, Jr. (d. c.1812), the son of John Paine, Sr. and Anne Apthorp, may have been born in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire, as this is where his marriage record says he came from, and this is where he lived when he wrote his will many years later. However, the marriage records for his brother Nicholas Paine, and his sister Elizabeth give their place of origin as Great Gransden, which is located only three or four miles from Gamlingay in the Huntingdonshire district of Cambridgeshire. There is also record of a John Paine who was baptized on June 6, 1725 in Gamlingay to parents John and Mary, but this may not be the correct John Paine, as the mother's name does not seem to be correct. Then there is also record of a John Paine who married Mary Kidman (c.1730-1797) on Feb. 10, 1752 in Great Gransden. The wife on this record is likely the same Mary Kidman who was baptized on Sept. 13, 1730 in the Great Gransden parish church to parents John and Mary. This is probably the correct man, as the John Paine we seek married a woman named Mary and settled in Gamlingay where they raised a family of several children.
John's wife Mary is said in an unreferenced online family history to have have been listed in 1760 as a member of the Old Meeting Baptist Church of Gamlingay, which her brother-in-law Nicholas Paine is known to have joined 14 years earlier. This church, which still meets today in the same building, dates back to 1710, when it was founded as a daughter church of the Bedford Meeting that John Bunyan of The Pilgrim's Progress" fame had started 40 years earlier. If the 1760 date is accuratte, then it explains why Anglican infant baptism records only seem to exist for two of John and Mary's children - Ann in 1753 and John in 1756 both in Gamlingay. The reason for this is that baptists believe that baptisms are reserved for those who give their life to God of their own free will, not that of their parents, and hence they do not do infant baptisms. Indeed, we know of at least one of their children, their daughter Charlotte, who bas baptized in 1799 as an adult into the Old Meeting congregation.
John's occupation is given as a blacksmith on the two known baptism records of his children that we have found, but he may have decided on a career change in his later years when he decided to buy the Wheatsheaf Pub on Oct. 6, 1792 from his recently widowed sister Elizabeth Facer. This pub had been purchased by Elizabeth and her late husband 32 years earlier, and afer John acquired it the pub remained in the family for at least another 18 years. His recorded purchase price for the pub was only five shillings, which was certainly a bargain, but the deed notes that the sale was made "in consideration of natural love and affection." The Wheatsheaf, under the same name, still sells beer in Gamlingay, from its original location at 92 Church Street, which is right across from the Church of St. Mary.
The Wheatsheaf Pub in Gamlingay, as it looks today. This inn was owned for a time by John Paine, who had purchased it from his sister Elizabeth, and he passed it on to his son William.
John's wife Mary predeased him, when she died in 1797 in Gamlingay. He wrote his will ten years later on June 1, 1807 in Gamlingay, and in it he mentions several children, but not his deceased wife. He also left the Wheatsheaf pub to his son William, and this same pub sells ale in Gamlingay today under the same name, and in probably what is the same building. John's will, like that of his brother Nicholas, portrays him to have been a fairly wealthy man. He died in Gamlingay prior to Dec. 30, 1812, when this will was proven to the benefit of his many children. A local historian of the time, probably William Cole (1714-1782), is said to have written that "an old inhabitant of Gamlingay said that when [she was] a girl, [the brothers] Nicholas and John Paine were old men, and it was generally known that they had blue blood in their veins", referring no doubt to John's almost certain descent from the Downing Baronets. His eldest daughter Ann follows.
children - PAINE
Ann Paine (c.1753-c.1812) was probably born about 1753 in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire as she was baptized there on April 1, 1753 at the parish church of St. Mary the Virgin. She is the first of five daughters mentioned in the June 1, 1807 will of her father, which leads us to suspect that she is the oldest of the sisters. She is also identified in this will as "my daughter Ann the wife of Thomas Dew", her husband being the Thomas Dew (c.1756?-1821?) who follows next as Generation VIII in Lineage III.
William Paine (d. c.1834) is the first of four sons mentioned in the June 1, 1807 will of his father, which leads us to suspect that he is the oldest of the brothers. However, no baptism record had been found to confirm this. His father also left him £150, which was a lot of money in those days, a cottage, and the adjacent Wheatsheaf Pub, which had been in the Paine family since 1760 when William's Uncle John Facer acquired it. These items represent far more than what was left to any of William's brothers or sisters, which supports our suspician that he is probably the eldest son.
William married his first wife wife Elizabeth Peters (d. 1829) on Jan. 22, 1790 in Gamlingay. The minutes of the Old Meeting Baptist Church for May 9, 1794 announced four years after their marriage that "Elizabeth Paine Wife of Willm Paine both of the Village ... [and others] gave an account to the Church of the gracious work of God upon their souls, and it was unaimously agreed that when baptized [she] should be received into fellowship with the church." William and Elizabeth also had at least five children, born from 1795 to 1814 to Gamlingay. Elizabeth predeceased her husband, her passing noted in the minutes of the Old Meeting as, "May 21st 1829 our friend Mrs W Paine aged 5-?. She was buried on Lord’s day May 26th when her death was improved from Rev VII 14-17". From this mention we can deduce that Elizabeth was probably born in the early to middle 1770s, which would mean she was several years younger than William.
Soon after his first wife Elizabeth died, William married Hester "Ester" Rowell (c.1778-1850) on Nov. 9, 1829 in Gamlingay, the church register noting that both were widows of the parish. William, who by now was probably in his 70s, wrote his will in 1828 as "William Paine the elder of Gamlingay yeoman", and died about 1834 when this will was proven at Ely to the benefit of his children by first wife Elizabeth. William had inherited the Wheatsheaf Pub from his father in 1812, and this pub passed to his surviving family, who continued to run it. Hester died in Gamlingay, while residing at the pub, and was buried on Aug. 31, 1850 at the Gamlingay Meeting Yard.
John Paine (b. 1756) is the second of four sons mentioned in the June 1, 1807 will of his father. He was born on Sept. 26, 1756 in Gamlingay, and baptized there on Jan. 16, 1757 in the parish church of St. Mary the Virgin. He was married in the same church on July 19, 1780 to Elizabeth Careless.
Mary Paine (b. c.1760) is the second of five daughters mentioned in the June 1, 1807 will of her father. She was probably born about 1760 in Gamlingay, and she married there on Dec. 16, 1763 to a likely cousin of hers named John Paine.
Elizabeth Paine (c.1763-1787) is the third of five daughters mentioned in the June 1, 1807 will of her father. She was probably born about 1763 in Gamlingay, and she married there on Dec. 26, 1787 to John Atack (d. 1798). She was buried on Jan. 10, 1787, aged 64 years, in Bedford, Bedfordshire.
George Paine (1769-1846) is the third of four sons mentioned in the June 1, 1807 will of his father. He was born on Dec. 4, 1769 in Gamlingay, and baptized there as an adult on Dec. 9, 1796 in the parsh church of St. Mary the Virgin. He married Sophia Peak on Nov. 26, 1799 in Gamlingay, and was buried there on Sept. 25, 1846, aged 77 years, in the local baptist cemetery.
Ulysses Paine (b. c.1770) is the last of four sons mentioned in the June 1, 1807 will of his father, which leads us to suspect that he is the youngest of the brothers. He married Mary Reynolds on June 1, 1813 in Gamlingay, and he was still living in Gamlingay in 1828, when his name appears in a Juror's Book.
Sarah Paine (b. c.1773) is the fourth of five daughters mentioned in the June 1, 1807 will of her father. She married William Wells on Jan. 7, 1818 in Gamlingay.
Charlotte Paine (b. c.1776) is the last of five daughters mentioned in the June 1, 1807 will of her father, which leads us to suspect that she is the youngest child. She was born about 1776 in Gamlingay, according to the 1841 and 1851 census returns, and she was baptized there as an adult on Oct. 15, 1799 in the Old Meeting Baptist Church. She died a spinster in 1851 Caxton, Cambridgeshire.
Lineage 3 - The Dew Family
Thomas Dew (c.1756?-1821?), the husband of Ann Paine, was probably born in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire, but we have no records to confirm this. His occupation is unknown, but Dew (1985) states that in 1798 he is shown as a landholder in the parish. We do know that he married his wife Ann Paine (c.1753-1813) on June 24, 1776 in the Gamlingay parish church, Ann being the daughter of John Paine (c.1725-1812) and Mary Kidman (b. c.1730) of Gamlingay. Thomas and Ann had at least five surviving children, all of whom were baptized on the same day in 1803 in Gamlingay, the elder children being in their 20s at the time. Ann is probably the same Ann Dew who died in 1813 at the age of 60 in Gamlingay, and was buried on Nov. 14th of that year in the parish cemetery. If correct, this makes 1753 the approximate year of her birth.
We next see an entry in the parish register for a Thomas Dew, widower, who on Nov. 14, 1814 married Dina Fickess, widow, which, if this is our Thomas, indicates that he married his second wife exactly one year to the day after his first wife Ann was buried. He is probably the same Thomas Dew who died at age of 65 in Gamlingay and was buried on Oct. 7, 1821 in the parish cemetery. If correct, this makes 1756 the approximate year of his birth. Interestingly, the Dew Family Birthday Book has a listing for a Grandfather (?) Dew with a birthdate of June 19, 1722, which might imply the father of Thomas Dew?
children - DEW (all baptized June 6, 1803 Gamlingay)
James Dew (c.1777-1853), who was probaby the eldest child, was most likely born in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire, as he was baptized there on June 6, 1803 in the parish church, on the same day as five of his siblings. Some documents indicate that he was born about 1777, whereas others indicate that 1781 may be his birthdate. He may or may not have had C for his middle initial, but there is no evidence other than unreferenced family tress that he did. He is said by Dew (1985) to have emigrated to the United States, where we have record of a James Cromwell Dew (1785-1822), who married Henrietta Maria Stansbury (1785-1819) on Sept. 29, 1807 in Baltimore, Maryland. However, there is a problem here, as we also have record of a James Dew in Gamlingay, England, probably the same man baptized in 1803, who on Oct. 24, 1804 married Catharine Arnold and had a son named Samuel, who was baptized in 1813 in Gamlingay with five of his cousins. Is the James Dew we seek the man who married Catharine Arnold in Gamlingay, the man who married Henrietta Stansbury in Baltimore, or are these two men somehow the same person? It seems more plausible that James Dew of Gamlingay lived and died in England, having never visited America. Furthermore, it seems likely that James Dew of Gamlingay never met any members of the Stansbury family, contrary to what is written in Dew (1985).
There are several family trees on the internet these days that show what are almost certainly incorrect lines of descent beginning with the Dew family of Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire. Some of these incorrect trees show Thomas, the father of James, being born in Gamlingay, but then immigrating to Fairfax, Virginia, and subsequently marrying a woman named Ann Gatch, with whom he had a son James Coleman Dew, born in Baltimore, Maryland. Others, along with Dew (1985), show James Coleman Dew being born instead in Gamlingay, and then being the one to immigrate to America. Unfortunately, these trees seem to confuse two entirely different Dew families, the members of which have similar names. The first family is that of Thomas Dew (c.1756-1821) of Gamilingay, who married a woman there named Ann Paine (c.1753-1813), with their son James Dew (c.1777-1853) being born in Gamlingay. This Thomas, his wife and son all lived and died in England, without ever setting foot on American soil. The second family is that of Thomas Dew (c.1740-1794) of Fairfax, a completely different person, who married a woman named Ann Gatch (1747-1846), probably in Baltimore, where their son James Coleman Dew (c.1785-1822) was born. This second Thomas, his wife and son, all lived and died in America, without ever setting foot on British soil.
One source of this confusion is Dew (1985), which is a 63-page booklet on the genealogy of the Dew family that was self published in 1985 by Clarice Dew (1910-1997) of Australia. Her late husband Keith Thomas Dew (1906-1978) was a descendant of Thomas Dew of Gamlingay (Keith's grandfather Philip Dew, 1816-1863 being Thomas Dews's grandson). However, Mrs. Dew presents an incorrect lineage for her husband's family. Although this booklet is an important resource that lists many family relationships and dates, some accurate and some not, Mrs. Dew provides absolutely no evidence whatsoever to back up any of it.
An important piece of background information is that in 1931 a wealthy heiress named Ella Wendel died childless in New York, leaving no will nor close relatives. Ella was related to fur trader and real estate tycoon John Jacob Astor, the first multi-millionaire in the United States, and she left behind a fortune of over $30 million. A search ensued for heirs, resulting in some 2,302 people claiming to be distant cousins, and hoping to inherit some of this fortune (see Pincus, 2012). The Australian family of Clarice Dew's husband may have been was one of these hopeful claimants. Indeed, the lineage that she published many years later incorrectly shows the Wendels of New York descending from Thomas Dew of Gamlingay. If true, her husband might have been entitled to some of the Wendel fortune. However, the reality is that the Wendels of New York descend not from the Dew Family of Gamlingay, but from Thomas Dew of Fairfax, whose immigrant ancestor Colonel Thomas Dew was born around 1600 or earlier in England and immigrated sometime prior to 1634 to America, where he settled near Jamestown in the Virginia Colony (see White, 1937, p. 73-75 & 149-156).
The American courts, after much litigation, rejected most claims to the Wendel family fortune, after invalidating the family trees put forth by rejected claimants. The only person of Dew family ancestry receiving part of the inheritance was an elderly spinster named Rosa Dew Stansbury (1859-1952), who like Ella Wendel was a great-grandaughter of Thomas Dew of Fairfax (c.1740-1794) and his wife Ann Gatch (c.1747-1826). The lesson to be learned here is that just because a lineage appears in print does not mean that it is accurate, and the one published by Dew (1985) showing that Thomas Dew of Gamlingay married Ann Gatch and begat James Coleman Dew of Baltimore is not true. His correct wife was Ann Paine of Gamlingay, and their actual son was James Dew of Gamlingay.
James Dew of Gamlingay listed his occupation as a shoemaker on the baptism record of his only known child Samuel, and he is found living with Samuel during the 1841 and 1851 U.K. census returns. As his wife Catharine is not named on these records, she is likely to have died before the 1841 Census was taken. James is probably the James Dew who died in 1853 in the Caxton, Cambridgeshire registration District, and there is little doubt that he is the James Dew who was buried on March 17, 1853 at the supposed age of 76 in Gamlingay parish. There is no evidence that James had any children other than the one son who follows.
Samuel Dew (c.1807-1890) was baptized on March 10, 1813 in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire with 5 of his cousins, but census returns indicate that he was probably born about 1807 or earlier. He was living from 1828 or earlier to at least 1841 with a woman from Gamlingay named Maria (c.1802-1873), with whom he had at least four sons. However, we find him during the 1851 census living with a woman from Tetworth, Huntingdonshire named Naomi, then back again with Maria during the 1861 and 1871 returns. Although both women are listed at one time or another as his wife, it is not known if he actually married either one. It should be pointed out that his residence always appears as Gamlingay, but there are no records in the Gamlingay parish register of a marriage for him. Maria is likely to have died in 1873 in the Caxton registration district, and Samuel probably died during the 4th quarter of 1890 in the same district.
Elizabeth Dew (c.1789-1858) was probably born about 1789 (estimated from age at death) in Gamlingay, as she was baptized there on June 6, 1803 in the parish church with five of her siblings. She married James Sarll / Searle (c.1786-1839) on July 29, 1812 in Gamlingay, and they had several children. She died in 1858, and was buried at the age of 69 on Jan. 28th of that year with her husband in the Gamlingay parish.
Hephzibah Dew (c.1795-1814) was probably born about 1789 (estimated from age at death) in Gamlingay, as she was baptized there June 6, 1803 in the parish church, and then married James Norman on Jan. 14, 1813 in Gamlingay. She was buried on Feb. 3, 1814 at the age of just 19 in Gamlingay, just a little more than a year after her marriage, and also after the birth of a daughter named Ann, who was subsequently baptized on Aug. 28, 1814 in Gamlingay, seemingly after the death of her mother if the dates are correct.
Samuel Dew was probably born in the 1790s in Gamlingay, as he was baptized there on June 6, 1803 in the parish church on the same day as his five siblings. Alas, we have no record of his birth, but the church register does record his marriage to a woman named Mary Ann, along with the 1813 baptism of a daughter named Hannah, who is shown below. This would likely place his actual birth in the 1790s, after the births of his brother's John and James. He also signed as a witness at the 1803 wedding of his brother John. The baptism record of Samuel's daughter Hannah lists his trade as a carpenter.
Hannah Dew was baptized on March 10, 1813 in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire with 5 of her cousins, and her baptism record shows the occupation of her father as a carpenter. Four of the cousins she was baptized with are the children of John Dew and Lucy East, but the fifth one is a Samuel Dew, who is shown to be the son of James Dew, shoemaker and his wife Catharine. Further digging shows that there is a James Dew who married one Catharine Arnold on Oct. 29, 1804 in Gamlingay. This leads to some interesting speculation on Hannah's uncle James who is discussed further on in this lineage.
William Dew was probably born in the 1790s or early 1800s in Gamlingay, as he was baptized there on June 6, 1803 in the parish church on the same day as his five siblings. We have no record of his birth, which may been much earlier than his baptism.
John Dew (c.1786-1856), the son of Thomas Dew and Ann Paine, is said by Dew (1985) to have been born on Feb. 28, 1774 in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire. However, the 1841 census, which lists him with wife Lucy and four of their children, shows that both he and Lucy were born about 1786 in Gamlingay. Given the many errors that seem to be associated with Dew (1985), and her lack of documentation for the dates she gives, the public record of the 1841 census is probably more reliable. John was not baptized until June 6, 1803, when he and all of his surviving siblings were baptized on the same day in the St. Mary Gamlingay parish church. He married Lucy East (c.1786-1861) of Meldreth, Cambridgeshire, a few months later on Oct. 14, 1803 in Gamlingay, with his brother Samuel as one of the witnesses. If he was indeed born about 1786, then he was only 17 or 18 when he married, which is young, but certainly possible. His trade is listed in the baptism records of his children as a mat maker.
John and Lucy appear in both the 1841 and 1851 U.K. census returns, with their granddaughters Ann Dew (daughter of David Dew) and Hephzibah Bunyan (daughter of Mary Ann Dew) listed as members of their household during the 1851 census. John left a will, probated on July 2, 1857 in Gamlingay, in which he names his nine surviving children. This means he almost certainly is the John Dew who died on December 10, 1856 in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire (Caxton registration district), and whose wife Lucy Dew died on October 10, 1861 in the same village. They had at least the nine, possibly ten, children who follow. Interestingly, Lucy and her siblings had been baptized in batches in Meldreth, Cambridgeshire, rather than individually, and she followed the same practice with her own children. Thus, it is quite possible that more children were born, but did not live long enough to be baptized.
children - DEW (baptized March 10, 1813 in Gamlingay)
David Dew (1804-1871) is said by Dew (1985) to have been born 1811, but this is contradicted by the Dew Family Birthday book, which gives March 30, 1804 as his birthdate. Given that the 1841 U.K. census lists a David Dew, with a birthdate of about 1806 and a wife named Ann (b. c.1801), it would appear that the 1811 date is not correct. He was baptized on March 10, 1813 with three of his siblings in the Gamlingay parish church. He married Ann Cartwright (c.1801-1866) on Dec. 25, 1828 in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire, and they had at least four children. David is almost certainly the David Dew who died at the age of 67 in the 4th quarter of 1871 in the Caxton, Cambridgeshire registration district, and Ann is probably the Ann Dew who died in 1866 in the same district. David is mentioned by name in the 1857 will of his father.
Jabez (Jabesh) Dew (1808-1888) is said by Dew (1985) to have been born 1812, but this is contradicted by the Dew Family Birthday Book, which gives June 20, 1808 as his birthdate. Given that the 1841 U.K. census lists a Jabez Dew, with a birthdate of about 1806 and a wife named Ann (b. c.1811), it would appear that the 1812 date is not correct. He was baptized on March 10, 1813 with three of his siblings in the Gamlingay parish church. He married Ann Savill (1810-1881) on April 12, 1833 in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire, and they had at least three children. Ann died on July 9, 1881 according to the Birthday Book, which is in agreement with Dew (1985) on both Ann's birth and death dates. Jabesh is almost certainly the Jabez Dew who died at the age of 79 in the 2nd quarter of 1888 in the Caxton, Cambridgeshire registration district. He is mentioned by name in the 1857 will of his father.
Moses Dew (1810-1874?) is said by Dew (1985) to have been born 1810, and the Dew Family Birthday Book, which assigns him with a date of Dec. 16, 1810, is in agreement with this. He was subsequently baptized on March 10, 1813 with three of his siblings in the Gamlingay parish church. He married Mary Paine (1814-1900) on Feb. 28, 1835 in Gamlingay, and they had at least seven children, including their eldest son Ulysses Paine Dew (1839-1900), who has several descendants. Moses is probably the Moses Dew in the British BMD Index who died at a supposed age of 60 in the 1st quarter of 1874 in the Cambridge, Cambridgeshire registration district, but if so, then the age at death given in the index is certainly incorrect. He is mentioned by name in the 1857 will of his father.
children - DEW (baptized March 5, 1816 in Gamlingay)
John Dew (b. 1815 or 1819) is shown by Dew (1985) on page 3 of her book to have been born 1815, but she then shows July 1, 1819 to be his birthdate on page 9 of her family histgory. Also, there is no record of a baptism for him in the parish register, and there is no listing for him in the Dew Family Birthday Book, which would seem to indicate that he died young. However, the U.K. Census of 1841 does show a son named John Dew with a birthdate of about 1826 living in the household of John and Lucy Dew. This leads us to conclude that there may have been two sons of the name John Dew, one born in 1815 or 1819 who died an infant or a child, and a second son born several years later. It would appear that neither were baptized. The flaw to this reasoning is that there are no Gamlingay burial records between the years of 1815 and 1826 for a John Dew, so whether there was one or two sons of the name is a mystery.
Philip Earle Dew (1816-1863) was born on February 11, 1816 in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire, and baptized there on March 5, 1816 in the parish church. He married Sarah Elizabeth Heathcoate (1820-1907) on Oct. 1, 1844 at Heathcoate Hall in Southill, Bedfordshire, which is located only a few miles to the east from where Philip's relatives the family of Henry Hare and Ann Bunyan lived in Upper Gravenhurst. Philip and Sarah lived at first at Woodside Farm, which was probably located between Southill and Upper Gravenhurst, but they left England in 1852 with their four sons and sailed to New South Wales, Australia. Here at least two more children were born, and today Philip and Sarah have many Australian descendants, including Geoff Hindmarsh who generously provided several of the sources for this family history.
Philip died on May 26, 1863 in the Manning River District of the City of Taree in New South Wales, Australia, and he is shown in an online genealogy to be buried in Woodside, which is near the coast about 20 miles south of Taree. Although it is not known for sure how he died, the "New South Wales Police Gazette and Weekly Record of Crime" (No. 24, 17 Jun 1863, p. 180) reports that he "left his home, Upper Manning on [May 26, 1863] on horseback for the puropose of proceeding to the Tinonee Township, and who has not been heard of. It is feared that he has been drowned." Sarah survived Philip by many years, and she died on Nov. 10, 1907 in Wingham, another district of Taree. She is said to be buried with Philip, but it is uncertain at exactly which cemetery. Philip and Sarah's son George Henry Dew (1858-1953) is the father-in-law of Clarice Ola Dew (neé Turner), who is the author of the reference Dew (1985), which is listed in the references section at the end of this history. Philip and Sarah are also the parents of Elizabeth Martha Davies (1855-1914), who probably started the Dew Family Birthday Book, which is the source for some of the dates in this lineage. Philip is mentioned in the 1857 will of his father, which left him some money, but stipulated that he would need to visit England to claim his inheritance.
Dew (1985) writes in her booklet on the family history that Philip Dew is a descendant of the famous John Bunyan, author of the Pilgrim's Progess. She may be right, and Philip Dew appears to have believed this himself. However, no documentation is provided in Dew (1985), so it remains an interesting family legend that perhaps merits further research.
children - DEW (baptized Oct. 3, 1823 in Gamlingay)
Ann Dew (c.1816-1883?) is said by Dew (1985) to have been born Nov. 8, 1823, probably in Gamlingay. However, census records consistantly show her to have been born in 1815 or 1816, and Dew (1985) is in error on many facts relating to the family. That said, we would surmise that Ann was likely born just after the Mar 5, 1816 baptism of her brother Philip. She married William Fairey (or Farey) in 1840 in the Caxton, Cambridgeshire registration district, and they had at least at least three children - Jane (c1845-1930), William (c.1848-1926) and John (c.1850-1925). Because Ann is mentioned in the 1857 will of her father as a widow, her husband died before then. She is probably the Ann Farey who died in 1883 in Caxton, Cambridgeshire, with her age given as 69 years, which make would 1814 or so the approximate year of her birth. However, a later birth is more consistent with the other available records.
Lucy Dew (c.1820-1908?) is said by Dew (1985) to have been born 1820, which is consistent with the 1841 U.K. census. She was baptized on Oct. 3, 1833 with two of her siblings in the Gamlingay parish church. She married Charles Stephen Swain (c.1821-1896) during the 4th quarter of 1866 in the Caxton, Cambridgeshire registration district. There is no evidence in any of the census returns from 1871 to 1901 that they had any children. Charles died on Nov. 28, 1896 in the Caxton registration district, and Lucy is probably the Lucy Swaine who died at the supposed age of 90 in the 4th quarter of 1908 in the same registration district. If so, then the age listed for her at death is incorrect. She is mentioned by name in the 1857 will of her father, which identifies her by her maiden name, as she had not yet married.
Samuel Dew (1821-1894) is shown by Dew (1985) to have been born in 1821 on page 3 of her book. Although Dew (1985) next gives June 1, 1822 as his birthdate on page 9, the 1841 census indicates that the earlier date is probably the correct one. He married Susannah Norman (c.1822-1904) on Nov. 11, 1845 in Gamlingay, and they had at least six children. Samuel is almost certainly the Samuel Dew who died at the age of 73 in the 2nd quarter of 1894 in the Caxton, Cambridgeshire registration district. He is mentioned by name in the 1857 will of his father.
children - DEW (born after 1823 with no known baptism record)
John Dew (c.1826-1911), second of the name, was born about 1826 in Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire, but to date we have found no baptism record for him. However, he does appear in all of the U.K. Census returns from 1841 to 1911, which covers all of the available returns over the course of his life. He married his first wife Sarah Jane Gray (c.1829-1868) in 1852 in the Caxton registration district, most likely in the town of Gamlingay. They had at least seven children, who from 1853 to 1864 were born in Great Gransden, Huntingdonshire. Sarah died in 1868 in the Caxton, Cambridgeshire registration district, possibly in Gamlingay, and John married his second wife, a widow named Jane Lowe, in 1887 in the Royston registration district of Hertfordshire. He and Jane moved at some point to the town of Hitchin, Hertfordshire, but they later moved back to Great Gransden, which appears as their residence in the 1911 census. John is probably the John Dew who died at the age of 88 in the 4th quarter of 1911 in the Caxton, Cambridgeshire district, which might imply that he died in Gamlingay. He is mentioned by name in the 1857 will of his father. We do not know what became of his second wife Jane, nor do we know her maiden name.
Mary Ann Dew (c.1806-1874), the daughter of John Dew and Lucy East, was probably born about 1806, according to census returns, at Gamlingay, Cambridgeshire. However, Dew (1985) gives Mary Ann's birth date as 1813 and her name as Mercy Ann, both of which could possibly be transcription errors. In any event, Mary Ann was baptized March 10, 1813 in Gamlingay with several of her siblings. She and James Bunyan (c.1803-1875) of Campton, Bedfordshire announced their intention to marry by filing a marriage bann on Nov. 19, 1826, and they were wed on Nov. 24, 1826 in Gamlingay, with Mary Ann's brother David as a witness. Interestingly, Dew (1985) shows that her Mercy Ann married a man named James Burgan, which obviously is a close match to Mary Ann and James Bunyan, which we believe are the correct names. Mary Ann after her marriage moved with her husband to Campton, where the two of them for most of their married lives ran the New Inn at Campton Turn, which was a popular tavern on the road to Ampthill that was probably built in 1803 or so by James Bunyan's father James Bunyan, Senior. Mary Ann and her husband appear to have run the New Inn until 1869 or so, afterwhich they retired, and they also appear at the same time to have owned Bury Farm, which is located close by on Campton Road on the southwest side of Meppershall. Mary Ann died on July 21, 1874 in Campton, and James died there on Aug. 15, 1875, Campton being in Biggleswade registration district, which is the location given in the government death index. Both are probably buried in St. Mary's Churchyard in Lower Gravenhurst, but this is not certain, and needs to be confirmed, as it is also possible that they are buried in the All Saints Churchyard in Campton. Mary Ann is mentioned in the 1857 will of her father, which identifies her as "Mary Ann Wife of James Bunyan".
James and Mary Ann Bunyan had two daughters, who follow in the Bunyan Genealogy that is elsewhere on this site.
by Mike Clark & Family
This history is an evolving document.
Despite our best intentions it probably contains mistakes.
Please let us know if you spot any by sending an email to Mike Clark
APPENDIX 1: Pedigree of the Family of Frances Howard, wife of George Downing III, 1st Baronet
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James Brown also maintains a website at www.gamlingayvillagers.co.uk that contains excerpts from his book. An excerpt that mentions Nicholas Paine (c.1723-1796) can be viewed by clicking here. Portions of the book also discuss the Downing family and Gamlingay Park.
Burke, John (1858), Royal Descents and Pedigrees of Founders' Kin, Harrison (Bookseller to the Queen), London, Pedigree CXI (3 p.). This source shows the descent of Frances Howard, the wife of George Downing III, 1st Baronet from King Edward I of England.
Dew, Clarice Ola (1985), Philip and Sarah Elizabeth Dew: A History and Record of Their Lives and Descendants 1816-1985: Privately Published, Wauchope, Australia, 63 p. Available from the Salt Lake City Family History Library. Call Number 929.294 D51. Clarice's husband Keith Thomas Dew (1906-1978) is a grandson of the Philip Dew (1816-1863) in this lineage. Clarice (b. 1910) died in 1997 in New South Wales, Australia.
When the wealthy Ella Wendel died in 1931 in New York, an international search ensued to find the next of kin to inherit her fortune. She was traced back to a Mary Ann Dew, who had been born in 1810 at Baltimore, and married a Wendel. Keith Dew (1906-1978) of New South Wales, Australia, who may have believed that he was a distant cousin of Ella Wendel, gathered information on the Wendel-Dew lineage, and his papers served as the starting point for the above booklet, which was written in 1985 by his widow Clarice. Although, this booklet contains numerous errors and must be used with caution, it nonetheless remains a valuable resource on the history of the Dew family of Gamlingay.
The Dew Family Birthday Book was most likely started by Elizabeth Martha Davies (1855-1914), the daughter of Philip and Sarah Dew, and eventually passed down to her daughter Alice Ethel Nelson (1883-1936), who added more dates. Ethel died in 1936, and the book was probably lost or destroyed many years later after the death of her husband John Benjamin Nelson (1884-1966). Fortunately, Ethel's son Geoff Nelson and his wife transcribed the contents of this booklet by hand, and their nephew Geoff Hindmarsh about 2004 made scans of their handwritten transcriptions. A typed version of the Birthday Book also exists that was prepared by Geoff Nelson and his wife, in which they grouped the entries by surname, and re-ordered them by year of birth. Where entries in the Birthday Book can be cross-checked to public records, almost everything seems to be correct.
Hyde, Myrtle Stevens (1999), "A Study of the Downing Family in England, with Connections in Early New England" inThe American Genealogist, v. 74 p. 161-174 & 299-308.
"John Gottlieb Wendel" in The National Cyclopedia of American Biography, James T. White & Company, New York (1918), v. 16, p. 99.
Muskett, Joseph James (1897), "Downing of Ipswich" inEvidences of the Winthrops of Groton, co. Suffolk, England, and of families in and near that county, with whom they intermarried, Privately Printed, p. 96-99.
--- (1900), "Downing of Ipswich" inSuffolk Manorial Families, Being the County Visitations and Other Pedigrees, William Pollard & Co, Exeter, v. I, p. 96-99.
Bernard O'Connor also maintains a website at www.bernardoconnor.org.uk that contains excerpts from his book. Excerpts that mention members of the Downing family can be viewed by clicking here.
Parish Registers of St. Mary Gamlingay Parish, Cambridgeshire Family History Society. Available by online purchase from the Parish Chest and other Family history and genealogy suppliers.
1933: Thousands rejected as heirs to a fortune by Adam Pincus
A Manhattan surrogate court judge threw out the claims made by 2,302 people 79 years ago this month that they should inherit a piece of a vast New York City real estate fortune owned by the wealthy but low-profile Wendel family.
The judge’s action cleared the way for the bulk of the $36 million family property fortune — which included the 22-story 525 Seventh Avenue, the 23-story 1385 Broadway, and scores of other buildings around the city and East Coast — to be given to charities, following the 1931 death of the last remaining family member, Ella Virginia von Echtzel Wendel.
The $31 million valuation for the 161 New York City, Westchester and Long Island properties was substantial, although less than the $60 million holdings of William Waldorf Astor when he died in 1919.
The Wendel estate grew over three generations, in part because its founder, fur trader John Wendel, told his son John D. Wendel to “Buy, never sell, New York real estate.”
By 1914, the bulk of the estate was held by John D. Wendel’s son, John Gottlieb Wendel. He died that year and passed the fortune on to his sisters, five of whom reportedly never wed, partly because of his efforts to keep them single in order to keep the estate whole.
The vast bulk of the estate was turned over to charities. But in June 1933, $2 million was given to nine distant relatives.* That same year, one person, Thomas Patrick Morris, was sent to prison for falsely claiming to be the son of John Gottlieb Wendel.
*All nine of the claimants who ultimately received a settlement from Ella Wendel's estate were Americans, and only one, an elderly spinster named Rosa Dew Stansbury (1859-1952) was actually a member of the Dew Family, both Ella and Rosa being great grandaughters of Thomas Dew of Fairfax (1740-1794) and his wife Ann Gatch (1747-1826).
by Mike Clark & Family
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Ancestry of the Dew Family 
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A Manhattan surrogate court judge threw out the claims made by 2,302 people 79 years ago this month that they should inherit a piece of a vast New York City real estate fortune owned by the wealthy but low-profile Wendel family.