A Minor Mystery Solved

A more appropriate title for this post might have been “The Many Wives of James Casbon.” However, I’ll stick with the current title because it was finding the answer to the “minor mystery” that prompted me to write the post. This is a cautionary tale. The caution is that one should be very careful about… Continue reading A Minor Mystery Solved

The First Family of James Casbon in England

I have written about James Casbon (~1813–1884) many times, but most of my focus has been on his later years in England, his emigration to the United States, and his children who grew up there. However, he lived most of his life in England and had a large family there by his first wife, Elizabeth… Continue reading The First Family of James Casbon in England

Committed

The Cambridge Chronicle of 26 April 1862 contained this brief report. Commitments to the Castle. … George Casbon, Meldreth, and John Reed, Whaddon, running away from the Bassingbourn union with the clothes, 21 days each. What does this mean? The report gives quite a bit of information, providing you understand some of the terminology and… Continue reading Committed

The White Plague

The arrival of two death certificates from the General Register Office in England has helped to fill gaps in the life stories of two Casbon ancestors and also serves to highlight a topic I’ve touched on before—tuberculosis. The certificates are for two sisters-in-law, Lydia (Burgess) and Elizabeth (Waller) Casbon. Lydia was married to Joseph Casbon… Continue reading The White Plague

Going, Going …

The sister villages of Meldreth and Melbourn in Cambridgeshire are my ancestral homeland. Records of Casbon ancestors in these villages go back to the mid-sixteenth century. Families occasionally moved from one village to another, or to other nearby villages, but there was little reason or incentive to go further. The situation remained stable for over… Continue reading Going, Going …

Did James Casbon (~1813–1884) Use an Alias in the 1861 Census?

OK, I’ll admit it – it sounds a bit fantastic. But hear me out, it’s not totally crazy. Why would I think this entry from the 1861 census of England might be James Casbon? For starters, here is a little background. James was my fourth great uncle, the youngest brother of my third great grandfather,… Continue reading Did James Casbon (~1813–1884) Use an Alias in the 1861 Census?

James Casbon of Meldreth, England and Porter County, Indiana

Since I started this blog, I’ve been trying to lay down a framework showing the origins of the major Casbon lines, i.e., those lines from which most of today’s Casbons are descended. So far I’ve covered the Littleport/Peterborough Casbons, the descendants of Thomas Casbon of Meldreth, a little bit about the Australian Casbens, and the… Continue reading James Casbon of Meldreth, England and Porter County, Indiana

Frederick Ernest Casbon, 1889-1957

Kudos and a bit “Thank You” to Michael Casbon, my distant cousin in the UK, for contributing this obituary of his great uncle Fred.[1] (Click on image to enlarge) Michael says the obituary is from an archive his late uncle, Brian Albert Casbon (1937-2013), put together. Michael says, “apparently Fred was a local Luminary.” That… Continue reading Frederick Ernest Casbon, 1889-1957

What’s in a Name?

Our name wasn’t always Casbon. What I should really say, is that our name wasn’t always spelled ‘C-a-s-b-o-n.’ As you go back into our early family records, the ways our name is spelled varies dramatically. The earliest I’ve traced my ancestors is the marriage of William Casbolde to Margrett Saybrocke in 1577.[1] Here is a sampling… Continue reading What’s in a Name?