10 April 2010

Harriet alert!

With all due respect, there isn't much happening in my family file today so I thought I'd ramble about my recent researchings, brought about by looking for something to ramble about!

So, let me introduce you to Harriet Furniss, the wife of Harold James Culpin who was my 1st cousin twice or three times removed. That's not me being vague, he really was related to me twice - because both of his parents were related to me before they married; for those of you who weren't taking notes, his mother was Lydia Freeman (my gt-gt-grandfather's sister) and his father was James Culpin (my gt-grandmother's brother).

Anyway, back to Harriet. I got mightily confused about this lady because she was also Harriet Braybrook. I know now that she was born Furniss, in Bourn, and married Frederick Braybrook in 1910. He & Harriett had three sons and a daughter before he died in 1916 (during, but not of, the Great War). I believe that F&H's daughter died as an infant, but at least two of the sons grew to old age.

Harriet Braybrook, as she was, married Harold Culpin in 1921 in the St Neots area. Two daughters were begat of this marriage before Harriet died, in the village of Therfield, in 1949. She was buried in Fen Drayton and the report in the Cambridge Independent Press caused me to do a lot more searching.

These subsequent discoveries included the info that Haz and Haz's elder daughter Betty (1921-2002) married Thomas Hays; their younger daughter Marjorie (1924-2004) married Kenneth Hadden. But these marriages paled into insignificance (no offence intended, ladies) when I finally found the Hannah family who were named in Harriet's funeral report. The "children" are still living so I shall give no more details, but I was mighty pleased to lay that conundrum to rest . . . er, so to speak!

But, a few more of that line of the dynasty to find so you'll have to excuse me while I go back into search mode.

More soon.

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