Wednesday, December 21, 2011
William Todd I of Pontefract
Where to start with this one. Again, many genealogies state William's occupation as being a miller and baker. I guess someone decided that since Christopher was a miller and baker that everyone else was too. When William first purchased property in Pontefract, he listed his occupation as husbandman. Christopher's father died when he was four months old so there's a good chance they he may have been made a ward of his mother's family, the Wards, who were millers and bakers in the Pontefract area. It's also been supposed that Reginald Todd was William's father. This has never been established as fact. He doesn't appear in parish records for the time that William, John and Christopher were there. While he is no doubt related, there's no proof he was the father of William. William I doesn't appear to have been born in Pontefract. He doesn't appear in parish records until his marriage. I've seen genealogies sprouting up that has William I migrating from Scotland. Really?? NOT! He was a collateral descendant of William I of York, whose family had been there since surnames came into vogue and probably before. Where, oh where do these things get started? Someone assumed long ago that Christopher was a minor member of the New Haven colony initially because he doesn't have a title of distinction, such as Mr., and because he wasn't a church member right away and he didn't sign his name. He was barely 20 years old. He wouldn't have earned the title Mr. yet. He may not actually have been an actual congregant when he arrived. Millers were essential to the formation of colonies and one of the most important people there. Before groups of colonists embarked for the new world, they first made sure to recruit atleast one miller so the colony had a chance to survive. Not to mention that in the case of the New Haven group, all those who joined had to commit 50 pounds of gold towards the colony. A large sum. So that made Christopher a key member of New Haven Colony. So far as not signing his name. He didnt' have to if he used his signet as many people of more important lineage did. He signed with an elegant C. his recognized mark such as would be pressed into a signet ring or a seal.
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ReplyDeleteActually, it would be interesting, if with all your research and all, you would tell us who and what Reginald was, instead of merely blasting the notion that he was the father of William in the absence of any evidence one way or the other.
ReplyDeleteI would tend to agree that if Reginald was the lord mayor of Pontefract he probably wasn't the father of a baker, but it doesn't sound like Reginald was lord mayor of Pontefract, and it oughtn't to be that hard for someone with your obvious resources on the matter to find out what he was. Or do you actually have absolutely nothing but the ability to conradict other peoples' assertions?
There is no record of a Reginald in Pontefract so far as I have been able to ascertain. I have communicated with researchers in Pontefract who haven't found him either. William I appears in Pontefract with his marriage to Isabel Rogerson and his property records list him as a HUSBANDMAN. Perhaps you should learn to read a bit. Christopher Todd was a miller and probably learned it from the Wards who were millers in Pontefract and a very old and respected family.
DeleteNormandy and probably came over about the time of the Conqueror, so it's not surprising that they share Y chromosomes. The Todds in York were there for several centuries before William, Lord Mayor. My grandmother's cousin researched the family years ago, traveling everywhere, and she made the link with William of York but her research was stolen and she was not able to return to duplicate it. I'd be thrilled to have a DNA test done but there are no male Todds left in my line. I have researched the Todds for many years now and contacted the York archives and Pontefract genealogy society and searched the British archives.
DeleteWell, there's been a DNA test done, maybe more than one. I deleted my comment about more than one DNA test since at the moment I can only find one.
DeleteI'm looking for someone of this line to do MORE DNA testing. They appear to be related to Todd families all over southern Scotland and northern England, but the relationship is distant enough that more DNA testing is needed.
If the Todds of Pontefract DO belong to that lineage, they also belong to a Norman era genetic mystery that galloped around Norman Britain and even Flanders leaving babies behind. There is a single Hamilton family that belongs to this group of Todd families, and also a family or two from Wales.
All of other Todds are commoners, though; William of Pontefract had the highest SES of the lot of them. Low level tradesmen/ craftsmen and farmers, when they were anything at all. The real mystery is how such an old Y DNA lineage would be so widespread with a common surname. Mind you, the Y DNA lineage is older still but never attached to a surname for more than five or six hundred years back, and while the Y DNA traveled far and wide people with the same surname didn't.
DeleteThe Todd project has three descendants of William Todd of Pontefract; one from his son John of Rowley, who have done Y DNA testing. Three of them have the same Y DNA, and it is not clear how closely related they are to each other. The fourth is the person I was talking about above. So I don't know which is the real William Todd of Pontefract Y DNA.
DeleteI am suspected as being part of this family Tree.(Reginald Anyways). The records get thin about here so hard to find hard evidence. I will be taking a DNA test shortly. I can post this somewhere if this would help.
ReplyDeleteHe is a suspected ancestor of mine too. I recently did Ancestry DNA. Wonder if it would connect us if were are both ancestors?
ReplyDelete@Rychelle. I am in Ancestory as well. come find me :D
DeleteThere are a number of male Todd descendants of CHristopher in New England and New York.
ReplyDelete