William Blake at Eastontown

I received a digital frame for Christmas. A wonderful gift and I am already putting it to good use. I filled it with images that I have from other people where they can not name the people but I have seen some of them in my childhood. I wondered if glancing at them through the day might just pop a memory chord.

I also loaded on the Visitations that I have and as I watched the Riggs family flash by I noted that William Blake is the father and he is of Eastontown according to their visitation. One William Blake at Eastontown is the son of Nicholas Blake and the father of Richard Blake (I believe this is my line of descent). However the Wiltshire Chart shows a William Blake of Eastontown married to Avis Ripley and lists children John, William, Peter, Margaret (married to John Blake) and Agnes (married to Roger Hyde).

I do not think they are the same William Blake as the will of William Blake (one of them) does not list the daughter Agnes Hyde and she was still living in 1582. Why ever would he leave out his daughter married to the eminent Hyde family? Definitely his daughter Margaret would not have married his son John.

Both Margaret and John have a father William Blake and both of these Williams appear to live at Eastontown according to various visitations. The question perhaps is - Is Eastontown actually East Anton which lay to the north east of Andover? The will of William Blake (son of William Blake and grandson of William Blake (son of Nicholas)) written 1 August 1606 locates him at Eastontown as well. but the will of William Blake senior in 1645 is at East Anton. I need to purchase this will (from the Hampshire Record office) as it would appear to be the grandson of William Blake who died in 1607.

Being able to definitively link this Blake family to East Anton may answer a few questions. If indeed this is referring to the location East Anton and called it Eastontown then there are known to be a number of "farms" in this area and one could then realize that there could conceivably be two William Blake families living in the same area at the same time (and the taxes do show two William Blakes one at Knights Enham and the second at Enham (both of these locations are very close to East Anton)). I do not know of whom the William at Knights Enham is the son although Visitations show him to be the son of Roger Blake as is also shown on the Wiltshire Chart (Pedigree of Richard Blaake). The other William Blake is the eldest son of Nicholas Blake.

The Wiltshire Chart shows a line to be through William Blake as a son of Roger Blake and Mary Baynard. But the extant Visitations do not list a son William in this family. However, I may not have access to documents that might show such a relationship so will have to wait to see what comes forward especially with the marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton this spring. Perhaps a new genealogy will appear for this couple which could lead to interesting discoveries.

Diana Princess of Wales is descendant of the Blake family at Eastontown it would appear through the book published on her ancestry by Richard K Evans that her 12x great grandparents are Thomas Blake and Eleanor Hall. Richard Evans has limited his display to 12 generations back so that parents of this Thomas Blake are not listed. They are however listed on a Visitation where Thomas' father is named as John Blake but no reference to his mother's name. This family is said to have lived at Essington Hampshire. I have not yet located Essington on the map although I think it may be an alternative name for Eastontown as it is mentioned on the Wiltshire Chart.

I think one of my next steps will be to transcribe the wills once I reach the end of Parish Register 7 at Andover. I can also transcribe the Penton Mewsey records at the same time. It will give me a little variety :) As usual, one looks at items differently depending upon the time at which you examine them. The impact of the Visitation for the Riggs Family is quite timely just to keep me looking for answers.