Peck Family of Milston and Blake one name Study

Martha Peck married George Lywood 26 Oct 1817 at Milston Wiltshire and the wedding registration shows the name Martha scratched out and Rebecca written in. In the census that follows (1841, 1851, 1861) George's wife is always listed as Martha. The baptisms of the children (1818, 1822, 1826 and 1832) always shows the child as the infant of George and Martha Peck. Why Rebecca was written in is a mystery. Martha was buried 17 Feb 1867 at Milston (75 years of age). After all that George had been through in the Peninsular Wars he outlived Martha although he was buried 15 Apr 1868 at Milston (82 years of age).

Martha was baptized 1 Jul 1792 at Milston the daughter of Elizabeth Peck. No notation on the father is recorded in the original register. Elizabeth Peck was the daughter of Joseph Peck and Ann Holmes and baptized 15 April 1758 at Milston. Elizabeth was buried 1 Jan 1830 at Milston. Martha was Elizabeth's only child. Looking at the parish registers Elizabeth was the daughter of Joseph Peck and Ann Holmes. Her father Joseph was baptized 4 Apr 1718 at Milston and he died 7 Oct 1791 at Milston (10 months before Martha was born). Her mother Ann Holmes was possibly baptized 17 Jul 1712 at Figheldean and buried 5 Jul 1778 at Milston (the Holmes family lived principally at Figheldean with a few members at Milston (about 2 kilometres apart). My project for this particular surname is to pull all the Holmes and Peck entries from the Milston and Figheldean Parish Registers transcripts that I hold and put them into family groupings. The parents of Joseph are Thomas Peck and Joanna Holmes. Learning more about the Holmes family will be part of the Peck family project.

Children of Joseph Peck and Ann Holmes (married 26 Jul 1740 at Milston).

 John baptized 28 Apr 1741 at Milston
Thomas baptized 15 May 1744 at Milston
Samuel baptized 26 Apr 1747 at Milston
Jane baptized 9 Feb 1751 at Milston
Jonah baptized 27 Mar 1753 at Milston
Anne baptized 30 Apr 1755 at Milston
Elizabeth (as above)
Mary  baptized 15 May 1761 at Milston

If the Ann Holmes baptized 17 Jul 1712 is their mother than she would have been 49 years old when Mary was born. Since my great grandmother Blake had her last child at the age of 44 it does not seem too far fetched that she may have had a last child at 49. She was 46 when my ancestress Elizabeth was born. On the other hand there is another Ann Holmes baptized 7 Mar 1726. She would have been only 15 when the first child John was baptized so I have tended to regard Ann baptized 1712 as a better possibility.

Carrying on with the Peck family the parents of Joseph

Thomas was baptized 19 Dec 1676 at Milston and buried 22 Jul 1730 at Milston the son of Thomas and Mary Peck.

Joanna Holmes his wife may be the Joanna Holmes baptized 8 Jul 1767 at Figheldean and the daughter of George and Ann Holmes.

At this point we have to look at Thomas (father of Thomas baptized 1676) and his likely baptism is in the late 1630s or early 1640s because the first child of this family at Milston was Mary baptized 28 Jan 1674. However if this Thomas Peck is not the son of William Peck and Elizabeth who baptized six children at Milston then I need to continue searching out Peck families in this area. There is only one Peck family at Milston and William Peck was the only surviving son of William Peck and Bridget Lawes. This William left a will which is a fascinating read. William Peck and Bridget Lawes married 1 Nov 1603 at Milston.

Will of William Peck

Recorded: 23 Sep 2008, Elizabeth Kipp

Source: Microfiche

Type of record: Will – William Peck, Milston, Wiltshire

Dated: 14 Feb 1610; Deceased 1610

Holding Library: Wiltshire Record Office

Pecke: In the name of God Amen

The fourteenth day of February in the yeare of our

Lord god one thousand six hundred and nine. I William

Pecke of Milston, in the Countie of Wilts Shepherd

being sicke of bodie but of  perfect mynde and memorie, doe ordayne

and make this my last will and testament in manner and forme

followinge visit. First I bequeathe my soule into the hands of

Christ Jesus my saviour  trustinge to have redemption through his

merits and my bodie to be buried in the parish Churchyard of

Milston aforesaid, and as touchinge my worldly goods I give

and bequeathe them in manner and forme following vizit Imprimis

I give unto the Cathedrall Church of New Sarum the some of

fouer pence. Then I give unto Cecely Woorte, daughter of John

Woorte of Amsburie in the Countie aforesaid wheeler, one childe

sheepe. Then all the rest of my goods and chattels moveable

and not moveable not given and bequeathed my debtes legacies

and funeralls discharged I give and bequeath unto Bridgett my

wife and William Pecke my sonne, whome I make my full

and whole executors ioyntly the one as _ar_orth as the other
and further my will is that my said wife shall have the use
of all towards the keepinge of my said son until he shal[l b]e
of the age of twentie and one yeares, and I request Roger
Pinckney of  Milston and William Lawes of the same to be
my overseers to see this my last will and testament p[er]formed
accordingly Those being witnesses John Pecke, William
Lawes, Thomas Lawes, and Roger Pickney.


Still working on the Probate but it looks like it may have been given the 25 February 1610.


William and Bridget baptized only two children:


William (unknown)

John baptized 20 May 1608 at Milston; deceased by 1610.


Bridget was baptized 8 May 1580 at Milston and the daughter of Thomas Lawes. 


Pulling out this information out of the transcription will assist in looking at the Peck, Holmes and Lawes families. 


I worked on the Blake one name study as well this morning and I am still trying to pull the spouses' names out of the census. It is a slow process. 


I want to start looking at writing a short article about the Blake yDNA as descendants of the Theophilus Blake family have now found sufficient evidence to show that their line is not descendant of the Jasper Blake line where it appeared to be a non paternal event. Indeed their Theophilus emigrated from England directly in the mid 1700s.