My last two posts profiled two individuals who entered into domestic service as a ladies-maid and footman, respectively. Before I leave the topic altogether, I want to pay tribute to many other Casbon family members who worked as domestic servants. I’ve combed through my files to find those Casbon relatives who were listed as servants… Continue reading More Servants!
Tag: Casban
Musings on John, Continued
In the last post, I hope I made a convincing argument that John, baptized Casborn in Orwell, 1721, is the direct ancestor of myself and many of today’s Casbons, Casbans and Casbens. However, I pointed out one inconsistency in the records. John was trained as a cordwainer, or shoemaker. However, the man who was buried… Continue reading Musings on John, Continued
Musings on John
This is a follow-on to an earlier post titled “Stuck on John,” in which I described how my research into the origins of the Meldreth branch of the Casbon family hit a “brick wall.” I had been able to trace the ancestry to a John Casborn who married Anne Chamberlain in 1742.[1] The problem was… Continue reading Musings on John
Croydon
“You never get away from that thing in your hometown that it has over you. You don’t outgrow where you come from." – Brian Fallon As a child of a military family, I never had a hometown. We moved every few years to a variety of locations in and out of the United States. The… Continue reading Croydon
New Homes, New Names
First, let me wish all of my readers a Happy Thanksgiving! ******************************************** I recently documented how the numbers of Casbon ancestors living in Meldreth, Cambridgeshire, dwindled, beginning in the mid-nineteenth century.[1] Today I’ll highlight two brothers who left Meldreth in the 1860s. Not only did they leave the ancestral home, but they also left the… Continue reading New Homes, New Names
A Working Vacation in East Sussex
This story comes from the Sussex Agricultural Express of August 31, 1934.[1] I hope you’ll take the time to read the entire article. The highlighted section refers to “Mrs. Casban, of Croydon,” who has been picking hops at the same farm for 64 years. Mrs. Casban was Margaret (Donovan), the wife of Samuel C. Casban… Continue reading A Working Vacation in East Sussex
Honoring Our Veterans: Leonard Casban (1887–1917)
This article appeared in the July 6, 1916 edition of the Banbury Guardian newspaper.[1] “Private L. Casban” refers to Leonard Casban, son of Samuel Clark (1851–1922) and Lydia (Harrup, ~1852–1924) Casban. Readers may recall that Samuel once worked in Meldreth as a Coprolite Digger, and Lydia worked in a worsted woolen mill when she was… Continue reading Honoring Our Veterans: Leonard Casban (1887–1917)
Jane, William and Edith, Part 2
This is the second post in a series about the three children of John Casbon (1779–1813) and his wife Martha (Wagstaff, 1775–1855). Their second child was William. His birth date is not recorded, but he was baptized in Royston, Hertfordshire on Christmas day, 1805, so he was probably born earlier that same year.[1] William is… Continue reading Jane, William and Edith, Part 2
In Trouble Again
Do you remember John Casbon, the 10-year old boy who was sentenced to 7-years transportation for setting a brush pile on fire (see “The old cow got round it”)? Well, it seems that he got in trouble with the law once more, as reported in the June 12, 1869 South London Chronicle.[1] When we last… Continue reading In Trouble Again
Give me an “a”…
The story of Samuel Clark Casban reflects the social and economic changes that were sweeping England in the mid- to late- 19th century. He was baptized with the surname Casbon in February 1852, [1] the third son and sixth of seven children born to William (b. abt. 1805 in Royston) and Ann (Clark) (b. abt… Continue reading Give me an “a”…