Christening of my 2X great grandfather, William Hartley, and his daughter, Eleanor

The following image depicts two Anglican churches of County Durham in northern England which are pertinent to this entry. The page is copied from a booklet entitled, "Churches of the Diocese of Durham", which I purchased in the Durham Cathedral shops in 1996. I did not know at the time how they would precisely fit into my family's history.

While I still have the tourist map of County Durham, England, at hand (see previous entry), I want to pinpoint a few other places which are significant to my HARTLEY Family Line. On the bottom, right-hand quarter of the map (enlarge by clicking on image), and just to the west (left) of Darlington is a small village called Gainford. It is the namesake of a larger ecclesiastical region known as GAINFORD PARISH. Slightly north-east of Gainford, I drew a small red-colored circle marking an even smaller village named Summerhouse (indicated by "Su"). If you search for Summerhouse, Durham County, England, on Google maps you can zoom-in for a wonderfully detailed view of this small village especially on the so-called Satellite view. While there, look just slightly east (to the right) of Summerhouse, across a major highway and you will see Denton. The Anglican Chapel at Denton of the Gainford Parish is located there and is the place where my 2X great grandfather, WILLIAM HARTLEY, was baptized in April 1821 by Thomas Peacock, Curate. William's parents were William Hartley, Laborer, and Ann Longstaff, residing in Summerhouse.

About 24 years later, in the same chapel of Denton, which is called St. Mary's, William and his wife, ANN ROBINSON, baptised their 3rd-born child who was my great grandmother, ELEANOR HARTLEY. Eleanor was baptised 21 Jun 1845, by John Birkbeck, Curator.

The following description is taken from "Keys to the past":
"Denton, St. Mary's church."
"This small church was built in 1891, replacing an earlier church built in 1836. The church is built of sandstone and has a small porch and side chapel to the south. A stone coffin is used as a drinking trough for animals in the churchyard, and the remains of some medieval gravestones can be seen in the porch."

William Hartley and Ann Robinson baptised two other children in the nearby church of St. John the Baptist, at Low Dinsdale: Jane Elizabeth Hartley, on 23 Mar 1851, and Thomas Hartley, 14 May 1852.

REFERENCES AND LINKS:
Christening of William Hartley: England, Diocese of Durham, Bishop's Transcripts, ca. 1700-1900 (FamilySearch.Org Pilot), Chapelry of Denton pg 110 of 287. Includes images of Parish Registers. "Pg 15, No. 126 (bottom of page). William, s/o William Hartley, Laborer, and Ann Longstaff, residing in Summerhouse. Baptized 20 Apr 1921, by Thomas Peacock, Curate."

In my Picasa album, I have pinpointed on a map the location of the village of Denton and its Chapel. You can follow the link here. Reminder: I have used Picasa's mapping feature to locate many of the images which appear on this blog.

Birthplace of my great grandmother, Eleanor Hartley, and other famous persons

If I had not researched my genealogy and family history, I believe I would have missed out on many things in my Life's Journey that were worth knowing about. It has made my life ... well ... more ENLIGHTENED. Take for example the birthplace of my great grandmother on my father's branch. She was born in Cockfield, County Durham, in northern England (go to the center of map below).

Image (click to enlarge): Map from tourist brochure of County Durham, England

On my family research trip to the British Isles in 1996, I picked up several tourist brochures and guides in Durham City. In the guide, "Teesdale and Barnard Castle", it was written, "... Cockfield [in County Durham], a peaceful village based on the coal industry and the birthplace of JEREMIAH DIXON, known for the Mason-Dixon Line [the official border between Maryland and Pennsylvania]". More research indicated that Jeremiah was actually born in Barnard Castle and went to the John Kipling school there. He died in Cockfield. Jeremiah Dixon and his colleague, CHARLES MASON, were astronomers who indeed were called upon by Thomas Penn and Frederick Calvert to survey the border between the two American colonies. The survey was completed in 1766. Jeremiah died in Cockfield in 1779, about 66 years before my great grandmother, ELEANOR HARTLEY, was born in the same village in 1845.

It so happens that I re-read this brochure a couple of years after I bicycled a portion of the Heritage Trail which runs from York, Pennsylvania, for a distance of about 30 miles, across the PA/MD border, and through Gunpowder Falls State Park. As I passed the Mason-Dixon line, I took a picture of a concrete pillar which apparently was one of several marking the Mason-Dixon Line (and posted it on my blog). A nearby historical marker presented several more facts on the Mason and Dixon team and its survey.

Image: Historical marker on the Heritage Rail-Trail detailing the history of the Mason-Dixon Line. It reads, in part, “Since the Civil War it has served as the boundary between the North and the South …”

I will never again cross the Mason-Dixon Line without thinking of Eleanor Hartley. Incidentally, three members of my immediate family now live north of the Line, while I live south. I cross the Line at least 6 or 7 times a year.

Another thing comes to mind when I look at the tourist map above. Eleanor Hartley was enumerated in the 1861 census of England as a "House Servant", age 16 years, born at Cockfield. She lived in a household which was located in Hurworth upon Tees, south of Darlington (bottom, right corner of map). There were only two other persons enumerated: RICHARD NEWTON, age 83, and his wife, MARY, age 90. I knew of a younger Richard Newton, who married Isabella, or Margaret, Hartley, who was the sister of Eleanor's father, in other words, her uncle. So, I suspect that Eleanor's employer was the father of this uncle. Furthermore, Richard Newton, the elder, was a "farmer of 160 acres, employing one man" according to the census. This was a real find because it took me a while to find Eleanor. The rest of her family, that is Eleanor's father, William Hartley, and four of his other children, were enumerated in the same year in a different location- in the parish of Hunwick and Helmington, Durham.

So, I look at Hurworth upon Tees on the map and think of my great grandmother, only 16 years of age, and working hard as a servant girl on a farm of many acres taking care of a very old couple and their hired hand. By the way, The River Tees marks the boundary between County Durham and Yorkshire in the south. Matter of fact, County Durham is often referred to as "the land ‘twixt the Tyne and the Tees".

Handel's Messiah- a gift to Robert Heseltine

Just in time for Easter, I received an email attachment from a distant cousin which included an heirloom of our family. The image above shows a book of sheet music of George Frideric Handel's "Messiah" which was given to Robert Heseltine from his church choir at Station Town, County Durham, England. Inside the book's cover was written,

"Presented to Robert Heseltine, Oct 1, 1887, by the choir of the Primitive Methodist Society of Station Town as a token of their appreciation of his faithful service in the choir"

The musical score must have been a treasured gift for the rest of Robert's life as it is even mentioned in his obituary. Apparently he became a noted choir singer and was invited to perform in several churches in the area.

Before the turn of the century, Robert Heseltine immigrated to Barnesboro, Cambria County, Pennsylvania (now, Northern Cambria). In 1894, Robert married Elizabeth WEST, daughter of William and Temple West. They raised 7 children in the Methodist church of Barnesboro. The family is buried at Northend Cemetery, Barnesboro (see image above, click to enlarge).

Robert Heseltine's father, William Heseltine, married Mary Ann Hartley, who was the younger sister of my great grandmother, Eleanor Hartley (married Thomas W. Russell). Thus, Robert was the nephew of my great grandmother.

Source of "Messiah" image: Merelyn M. Davis of CA