With my new FindMyPast.co.uk subscription, I've been delving into my maternal family, taking advantage of the many Devon records in their databases.

Hibbitt Family Tree section


The Church at Peter Tavy

• Added more notes for my 3 x great-grandfather, Robert Geake (b abt 1797) and added the surname and details of his wife, Jane Dinner. Also added a photo on their family page of a road sign showing Wapsworthy and Cudlipptown, places near Peter Tavy where they lived. Also added a few more children of Robert and Jane Geake together with baptism facts and notes.
• Added Robert Geake's parents, my 4 x great-grandparents, Robert Geake (b abt 1769) and Mary Arscott, with notes, plus a photograph of Wapsworthy on their family page.
• Also added Robert & Mary Geake's other children with notes including Walter and wife Maria with facts, notes and photos of their headstone, Grace who married John Pengelly, and George and wife, Grace nee Walters, with photos of their headstone.
• Placed a photo of a view from Wapsworthy on the family page of my 2 x great-grandparents, George Geake and wife, Maria (nee Dearing).
• Added baptism details for Israel Edward Ball.
• Added Israel's parents, William Ball and Maria Edwards.
(Maria Dearing was born before her parents, Israel Ball and Ann Dearing, married. It is therefore, uncertain whether Israel Ball was Maria's father or step-father. However, there is a possibility that the young Maria was Israel's child, who might have been named after his own mother, Maria nee Edwards.)

• Added the surname of my 3 x great-grandmother, Sarah Sillick, and her marriage details to William Hellier.
• Discovered the baptism of William & Sarah Hellier's eldest daughter, Sarah Hellier, born about 1838.
(Sarah hadn't appeared in the censuses with her family because she was living with her grandmother, my 4 x great-grandmother, Elizabeth Hellier (nee Gale). I'd seen both grandmother and grand-daughter on the censuses before but I wasn't absolutely certain this was indeed my family. This extra information has confirmed the link.)
• Added burial details with notes for Amos Hibbitt & Mahala Hibbitt (nee Newbold), plus for Charles Newbold Hibbitt & Mary Ann Hibbitt (nee Pitcher) and William Amos Hibbitt.
• Also added the marriage of William Amos Hibbitt to Mary Ann Day in All Saint's Church, Hockley, Birmingham. They married in the same church as William's brother, Alfred, but about a week later.
• Added the name of George Day, Mary Ann Day's father.

Place names: Milton Abbot, Marystow, Peter Tavy, Wapsworthy, Cudlipptown, Mary Tavy, Tavistock, Okehampton, Hatherleigh - all in Devon; plus Birmingham and Ireland.

Resources > Family Tree Reports section

Updated the report for the 'Ancestors of William Hellyer Geake'.

[Note: All content on the Hibbitt & Barnes Family History website and blog is copyrighted. Click here for conditions of use.]

Hibbitt Family Tree section

• Added the 1872 Kelly's Directory entry for Charles Newbold Hibbitt.
• Added more facts and footnotes for Benjamin Pitcher, the younger.
• Removed John Pitcher (b abt 1830). I had originally thought he might have been another son of Benjamin Pitcher & Sarah Rice but I've realized he is the same as the one born in abt 1829, the son of John Worgan Pitcher and Hannah. He is mentioned in Benjamin's will as his grandson.
• Added William Worgan Pitcher (b abt 1816), a son of Benjamin Pitcher & Sarah Rice, with footnotes, together with William's wife, Louisa Young, and their son William Worgan Pitcher (b abt 1844).
• Added a few additional facts and notes for Timothy Pitcher.

Place names: Ladywood in Birmingham; Uley, Coaley and Rockhampton in Gloucestershire; Bath, Northwick and Keynsham in Somerset.

Barnes Family Tree section

• Added lots of facts and notes for Arthur William Gardner, together with a picture of him and his wife, Emma Elizabeth Applegate, on their family page.
• Added Hilda May Gardner and husband, Harold Arthur Young, with pictures and notes.
• Added Cecil Arthur Gardner and wife, Beatrice Holt, with notes.
• Added a wedding photo of Cyril Norman Ellen & Gladys Lily Gardner to their family page.
• Added small photo of Blanche Maudlyn Byden to her family page.

Place names: St Saviour, Southwark in Surrey; Islington and Holloway in London; Bedford in Bedfordshire; Manchester; Edmonton and Muswell Hill in Middlesex; Penzance in Cornwall; Reading in Berkshire; Seaham Harbour in Durham.

Resources > Hibbitt Family Tree Biographies section

Added biography page for Benjamin Pitcher (abt. 1775-1857) .

[Note: All content on the Hibbitt & Barnes Family History website and blog is copyrighted. Click here for conditions of use.]

The Deed is done! What Deed...I hear you say. The Deed Poll, that's what!

No this isn't a riddle or a joke and it's not a hypothetical either. For some time now, I've been considering incorporating my maiden name back into my name. My interest in family history, together with a strong desire to identify with my heritage, has spurred this decision on. So I ordered a pack from UK Deed Poll Service - and now I'm officially called Anne Mary Hibbitt BARNES.

I'm an advocate for the institution of marriage and have no desire to have a different surname to my husband so Hibbitt is now my second middle name, although it was my surname at birth. For any married women out there who don't want to completely abandon their maiden name, a Deed Poll is an excellent way of keeping hold of it.

As to my Christian name, although informally I like to be known as Annie (and I shall continue in this vein), I decided that I should still formally be known as Anne. This is, and always has been, my proper name (given to me at birth and the one I was baptized with) and therefore, I don't think I should want to change it now. In effect, all I have done is put back what was mine in the first instance, not altering or adding to it.

Of course, most people won't notice anything different but I will know and that's important to me. From now on, I can put Hibbitt on official forms. I've yet to complete the task of changing all my official documents - for some this could be laborious and is what has made me hesitate until now. However, getting ones documents changed is part of the point of it, as well as being a legal requirement, so I've finally bitten the bullet and gone for it.

Once more, I have that connection with my blood line reflected in my name. Who knows, maybe a descendant will stumble across my headstone in 200 years time, or discover me in the paper trail (or digital footprint), see the name and make that connection too!

[Why Surname Saturday? This phrase has been included in the title in order to take part in Blogging Prompts at Geneabloggers]

[Note: All content on the Hibbitt & Barnes Family History website and blog is copyrighted. Click here for conditions of use.]

Resources > Biographies (Hibbitt Family Tree) section

I've created a new biography page for my 6 x great-grandfather, James Smale. The biography mainly consists of a transcript of James' will which he wrote in October 1811. James died within the year and probate was granted to two of his sons, Edward and Richard Smale. The value of the estate was under £200, a tidy sum in 1812.

You can access James' biography from the Hibbitt family Biographies index page or by clicking on the Biography link on one of James' family pages; here or here. I've also placed a photo of Shebbear on his family page with first wife, Thomasine.

[Note: All content on the Hibbitt & Barnes Family History website and blog is copyrighted. Click here for conditions of use.]

Hibbitt Family Tree section

I've been doing a little more digging on my 3 x great-grandfather, Joseph Dando, the younger, and as a result, I've added more facts and updated his biography. Here are the latest findings:

• I found a marriage licence between Joseph and Helen Shirreff [probably Sheriff] in Dublin in 1829. I knew that Joseph had been in Dublin before moving to America but I hadn't considered that he and Helen, who was his 2nd wife, might have married in Ireland before travelling to America. They divorced in New York.
• Joseph's 3rd wife was Jane Clark. I now know the date of their marriage in Philadelphia - 7 September 1836. Jane died a little over 3 years later.
• I discovered that Joseph's 4th wife was Sally Ann Bell Clark, rather than Sarah Clark, as previously thought. It's worth noting that Sally can be a nickname for Sarah. I discovered they married in Philadelphia on 7 August 1841. Sally might have been related to Jane (perhaps sisters) as both Jane Dando and a Sally Clark were parties to an act in February 1939 to confirm the title of both of them to certain lands situated in Baltimore. Sally's fate is unknown.
• Other details include Joseph's church membership and Confirmation which took place on 28 February 1841 in Pennsylvania. Listed as Communicants in 1844 were Joseph, his 5th wife Harriet Catherine Williams (my 3 x great-grandmother), and a Harriet Richards. This was probably the same Miss Richards who was described as a servant and accompanied the Dandos on the journey to England in August 1844.
• I found a death notice for Joseph in the Belfast Newsletter which confirmed he died at his home in Carlisle Street, Belfast. It also stated that he was to be buried in the Shankhill Burying Ground.
• I've added details of Joseph's will, which was straightforward: he left everything to his widow, his 6th wife, Sarah, nee Walker. Sarah and her sister, Martha Walker, were appointed to be his executors. Only Sarah obtained probate although Martha reserved the right if the need arose.
• I discovered yet another child, Joseph and Sarah (Walker's) first child was a son called Alfred, who was born in 1867. Their middle son, Samuel John, died as an infant. In 1873, Sarah travelled to New York with her second husband, John Hamilton, her sister, Martha Walker, and her 4 year old son, George Dando, the youngest of Joseph and Sarah's three boys. I've yet to learn what happened to Alfred though.

Place names: Dublin and Belfast in Ireland, New York and Philadelphia in USA.

[Note: All content on the Hibbitt & Barnes Family History website and blog is copyrighted. Click here for conditions of use.]

Hibbitt Family Tree section

Additions include:

• My 5 x great-grandparents, Abraham Woodall snr. & Martha Lee, with notes.
• Abraham's first wife, Mary Rusby, with notes.
• Further details and notes for James Smale and his first wife, Thomasine French.
• James Smale's second wife, Mary Cooper, with notes.
• Richard Derrick William Fryer, 4th child of George & Mabel Fryer.

Place names: Hatfield (near Doncaster) & York, both in Yorkshire, Black Torrington & Shebbear in North Devon, Chepstow, Monmouthshire.

Barnes Family Tree section

Recent changes:

• The name of Harvey's great-grandmother, Emma Elizabeth Applegate.

Resources > Dynamic Family Trees section

Both family databases in the Dynamic Family Trees section have been updated.

Picture Galleries

Altered the order of the links in the navigation bar on the main site. The old Gallery link is now called 'Pictures' and is the entry point to two separate photo galleries. Added new Barnes Family Picture Gallery with the following albums:

• Graves & Memorials > Paul, Cornwall - The Cholera Field Churchyard.
• People - (Individuals) > Ellen - this album contains photographs of Harvey's maternal grandfather.

[Note: All content on the Hibbitt & Barnes Family History website and blog is copyrighted. Click here for conditions of use.]

I've been avidly watching the BBC series 'Wartime Farm' and loving it. Some might remember my blog about the 'Edwardian Farm' - the latest series features the same three presenters but is set in World War II. So far, there have been two episodes which, if you missed them, are available to UK residents on the BBC iPlayer. Well worth a watch!

[Why Follow Friday? This phrase has been included in the title in order to take part in Blogging Prompts at Geneabloggers]

[Note: All content on the Hibbitt & Barnes Family History website and blog is copyrighted. Click here for conditions of use.]

Barnes Family Tree section

After recently taking another trip with Harvey to the depths of Cornwall, I've made the following additions to some of Harvey's Cornish family lines.

• A few more details and notes for Phillis Tregurtha Harvey, nee Keigwin, who was Harvey's 3 x great-grandmother.
• Phillis's parents, Thomas Keigwin & Ann Tregurtha (1784-1864) with notes, plus photographs on their family page.
• Ann Tregurtha's (1784-1864) parents, William Tregurtha & Jane Paul, with notes.
• Jane Paul's parents, Thomas Paul & Katherine Trenwith, with notes (Harvey's 6 x great-grandparents). Also Thomas & Katherine's other children with notes.
• Thomas Keigwin's parents, Richard Keigwin and another Ann Tregurtha (1743-1815), with notes for Anne. It's possible that this Ann Tregurtha might have been William Tregurtha's (above) sister but I need to undertake further research before I can commit to this. If so, then their children who married each other would have been first cousins.
• The names of Ann Tregurtha's (1743-1815) parents, Thomas Tregurtha & Ann Hutchen. Also, Thomas & Ann Tregurtha's two sons, Edward and William, with notes. There may be more children in this family but I need to study this in greater detail.
• The name of Thomas Tregurtha's father, Edward Tregurtha - (Harvey's 7 x great-grandfather).
• Photograph of the grave of Ann Barnes (nee Dawes) on her family page.
• Additional information for John Barnes (1830-1895) plus photograph of St Peters Hill, Newlyn, on the family page of John and his wife, Mary Ann (Reynolds).
• Photographs on the family page of Thomas Barnes (1864-1939) and Sarah Elizabeth (Wright).

Place names: Newlyn and Paul near Penzance in Cornwall.

Resources > Dynamic Family Trees section

The Barnes family database in the Dynamic Family Trees has been updated, most notably, try beginning with Harvey's grandmother, Lizzie Annie, nee Harvey, by choosing her from the Database menu (top left of the screen).

[Note: All content on the Hibbitt & Barnes Family History website and blog is copyrighted. Click here for conditions of use.]

Resources > Dynamic Family Trees

NEW! I've added a brand new facility to the main website called Dynamic Family Trees. They're not a substitute for our standard FAMILY TREES which contain a great deal more information and are always the most up-to-date. After viewing our Dynamic Family Trees, I recommend you explore our standard FAMILY TREES if you haven't already done so.

Our Dynamic Family Trees provide a way of displaying our families in an interactive Pedigree format, offering quick and easy navigation through the generations but contain basic birth, baptism, marriage, death and burial details only.


The Dynamic Family Trees page can be accessed in a number of different ways:

• The Home Page under the Resources section.
• The Resources Page itself.
• The Sitemap Page under the Resources section.
• The standard Family Trees introduction page underneath the two trees.
• Every page within the standard Family Tree pages, just below the navigation bar (see image below).

My thanks to Michael Horey, author of the Dynamic Family Tree Compiler, for creating and making available this Freeware program.

[Note: All content on the Hibbitt & Barnes Family History website and blog is copyrighted. Click here for conditions of use.]

Home Page

I've updated the front page of my website with some new graphics in order to highlight the various sections and make it easier to read.

My thanks to VintageKin.com for making many of these graphics available.

Resources > Family Tree Reports section

Updated the following family tree reports for Annie's HIBBITT family.

• Complete Paternal Family Tree (single and multi-page).
• Complete Maternal Family Tree (single and multi-page).
• Ancestors of Charles George Hibbitt.
• Ancestors of William Hellyer Geake.
• Ancestors of Phyllis Grace Weaver.

The main Family Tree web pages will continue to be the most up-to-date information for our family trees.