2008

Orson Duncan Lucas & Mike Forryan

THE LUCAS & FORRYAN LINKWITH THE “HEDGES” OF

WYTHAMResearching the link between the Hedges family of Wytham, Oxfordshire and the Lucas and Forryan families of Wigston Magna, Leicestershire.

Circa 1900

2008

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Pre-Amble

William Goodwin Forryan had a spinster sister Clara who travelled widely, she wrote to her brother saying “ I have met a family in Wytham which has six daughters. I’m sure one would be a suitable wife”. So off popped William and the rest is history.

I inherited via Aunt Gladys, youngest daughter of William Goodwin Forryan, part of her mothers, my grandma, trousseau,viz a pair of decanters, a pair of pillow cases, dated and an unbleached calico sheet plus many yarn, stories and photos.

On my travels I’ve stopped off many times at Wytham, on the way to Portsmouth to visit my wife’s mother and had a meal, looked at the church and wondered. Then this July my sister Marion called in, saw the vicar in the church, looked at the church register, saw the wedding signatures, told me and set me off.

So when we came to Bletchington nearby on a Caravan Rally, I contacted the vicar, Rev. Anthony Rustell and met in the All Saints Church Wytham.

Firstly I took photos of the 1823 series Church Register of the wedding records, Nov. 17 1885 felt quite a thrill that my Grand Father, who died before I was born, was around. Then photos of the two Hedges plus the bride & groom regrettably taken in the 1920’s plus the pillow, one sewn by Louisa Hedges in 1885, very nostalgic!

Then we noted the previous wedding was

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Louisa’s’ sister Elizabeth July 14 the same year to a Tom Farnell, memories certainly flew then, as my mother spoke so often of Farnells & Burdons, her relations at Oxford.

Outside in the Churchyard lies Andrew Hedges and I realised that my brother Andrew had inherited his name from the Hedges family. Also a Burdon lay nearby and I thought of my mother’s cousins we visited as children, Ethel and Muriel, school teachers. A Farnell came from New Zealand to visit my mother so after much research of the Lucas and Forryan family in Leicestershire I got the twitch for the Oxford side.

Who better than cousin “Andrew” Michael Forryan a wizard in the genealogical world and his works will follow.

Kathy Day Dawson came into my visit, I met her and her husband showing them a series of photos of houses circa 1900 one showing a house with a pair of dormerwindows, the “Hedges family home”. It could be the “Laundry” house I was told so along I went, similar but not it; eventually I followed a dead end road up to the University buildings.

Bingo, there was the Hedges home of 1885,

the farm buildings still there encircled by modern buildings. A hedge in front spoilt my photo but I felt great. Back to Kathy and told her of my joy and promised to advise her of my findings for the Wytham Historical Society.

P.S. Memory – Mr Hedges gave each daughter a considerable sum as a dowry, a substantial sum in those days. My Grandmother loaned / gifted her husband monies to purchase 8� acres in Wigston Magna. Her son Herbert inherited it and his daughter succeeded him to the title. I purchased it from her, built the house I now live in.

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Research

The Hedges family, six girls and four boys lived at Abbey Farm, Wytham, Oxford with father Andrew being a butcher and farmer or some substance it would seem.

The actual reason for Clara Forryan’s travel and visit to Wytham has been lost in time but we can assume that it was connected with her father, William Forryan’s butchers business in Wigston Magna Leicestershire.

The firm link was established with the marriage of Louisa Hedges to William Goodwin Forryan at Wytham on 17 November 1885 at the local church of All Saints. The link lasted for many years until the death of Ethel and Muriel Burdon. As a child in the late 1950’s I can remember the days outings to Oxford, by car, to meet the scary (to me age 10) retired spinster school teachers.

Louisa came to live in the centre of Wigston Magna over the butchers business and alongside the farm building know as Forryan’s corner.

Forryan’s House and shop circa 1900

Forryan’s House and shop circa 1950

Newspaper Cutting of Wedding

Forryan’s Corner circa 1950

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In the 1950’s photos above you can see the sun blinds over the butcher’s shop where William and his wife Louisa lived. Forryan’s corner was re-developed in the 1970’s, which was a shame as the farm buildings and a row of houses and the butchers shop were lost.

Below is a drawing of the farm as it was circa 1920. The whole property was enclosed by a high wall with posters on the outside.

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William and Louisa had six boys and 2 girls all born and lived at Forryan’s corner until after school age. William died in 1924 but Louisa went on to her eighty third year, passing away in 1946.

William Goodwin and Louisa Forryan Wigston Magna circa 1920

Birth Certificate of Louisa Hedges

William Goodwin and Louisa Forryan – Oxford circa 1885

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Grave stone of William Goodwin Forryan and also

Louisa in Wigston Cemetery.

Andrew HEDGES

Ann RUSSELL

Mary Ann Andrew James Thomas Horn William Emma Jane Elizabeth Rathbone Louisa Sarah Ann Florence

Frank BURDON

Muriel Ethel

m

m

Tom FARNELL

Walter Charles Lynda Mavis

m

William Goodwin FORRYAN

m

Gladys AnnMargaret LouisaPercy GeorgeHerbert GoodwinLeslie HedgesArnold FrankCecil AndrewErnest William

Orson LUCAS

m

AndrewBrian HenryOrson DuncanJose ForryanAudrey MargaretKathleen Marion

Hedges of Wytham

Drawn by Mike Forryan Nov 2008

The name “Andrew” had been passed on through the generations down to myself Andrew Michael Forryan but known as Mike. The name can also be seen in the attached Descendants of Andrew Hedges list.

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Thanks to Fiona Hedges of Hillview Oxford who, in 1997, provided much of the background and photo’s on the Hedges side of the family.