Will of Nicholas Blake, Gentleman of Andover, Hampshire, National Archives PROB 11/188 Image Reference 126/114, probated 4 Feb 1642

Nicholas Blake of Eastontowne, Andover, Hampshire is a member of the well known (by me) Andover Hampshire family. Nicholas is the son of William Blake and Margaret Hibberd. William has left his will in 1606 and his mother Margaret Hibberd was buried 12 Sep 1613 at St Mary Parish Church, Andover, Hampshire. Margaret was the daughter of Robert and Alice Hibberd. William and Margaret had five children including Nicholas known by me: William who married Anne Tutt, Dorothy, Peter, and Thomas. The father of William who left his will in 1606 was William Blake married to Elizabeth and the first William Blake of this line to live at Eastontown. His father was Nicholas Blake of Enham (married to Margaret).

This will helped to link together the Blake lines at Andover correctly as he refers to his near Blake family there. Although I blogged this will over a year ago I have decided to repeat it looking at it with respect to the Blake family of Hampshire. Interestingly he makes reference to a kinswoman who lived in Southampton, Hampshire. Nicholas mentions his brother William of Eastontown (they are sons of William Blake and  Margaret Hibberd), He refers to nephew as cousin; namely William the son of his brother William with son William and to his cousin William (he does not mention that he is the son of his Uncle Richard) with son Richard which is my line. He also mentions the children of his nephew William (son of William Blake and Anne Tutt)'s son William's children namely: Nicholas, Thomas, Sara, Anne and Mary.

He asks that William and his son Richard along with Joseph Hinxman another cousin to maintain a legacy for the Hibberd sisters (possibly nieces of his mother but does not state any relationship). This will reinforces the will of his grandfather William Blake married to Elizabeth (unknown) because it verifies the relationships between the children of this couple, their grand children and great grandchildren. How William Blake and Avis Ripley fit into this picture is unknown to me and perhaps part of it lies with the assumption that I have made that the eldest son of William Blake and Elizabeth was the John Blake who married Margaret Blake. My other assumption is of course that the Wiltshire Pedigree Chart of the Blake family has one small error in it. That John Blake who is named as the son of William Blake and Avis Ripley and Margaret also named as a child of William Blake and Avis Ripley but only mentioned in the information in the chart (no linkage shown other than to her husband John) is actually incorrect and that the correct version is that Margaret is a daughter of William Blake and Avice Ripley and John the son of William Blake and Elizabeth (unknown) and that they are indeed two different Blake lines and their mutual ancestry if any is unknown thus far. Unfortunately William in his will of 1582 does not mention his grandchildren with enough detail to determine if I am correct.

Nicholas in his will does not mention his Uncle John at all but then he didn't mention his Uncle Richard, Uncle Thomas or Uncle Peter. All of these men have been dead for at least a generation and in some cases more. his Aunts married Rombold, Jarvis, Kynton,  Beale,  and Rigges and for the most part are somewhat distant from Andover during their married lives although they left very large families in some cases.

The one other clue in this will is the mention of Mary Warberton as his kinswoman along with her children (she is widowed) living at Southampton. I have not yet discovered any information on Mary. Nicholas' also mentions a sister Dorothie Smith and brother in law William Smith who is his executor although I did not find a mention of Dorothie in his father's will. That too is a mystery to be solved in this family.

Nicholas' will is below and I would have estimated him to be in his eighties when he died. The priest does not record an age for anyone dying in the Parish Registers at Andover in the time period 20 Nov to 4 Feb 1641/42. The Register itself is difficult to read and a number of entries have not yet been determined to precise name but rather a few letters here and there.

Transcriber: Elizabeth Kipp
Recorded: 16 February 2011
Source: The National Archives PROB 11/188 Image Reference 126/114
Place: Eastontowne, Andover, Hampshire, England
Testator: Nicholas Blake, Gentleman of Andover, Hampshire
Type of Record: Will
Dated: 20 Nov 1641 and probated 4 Feb 1642
Read: Electronic copy
Condition: scan, smudges, old English writing good, contrast medium

T[estator] Nicholas Blake

1    In the name of the eternall and everliveing
2    God the father the sonne and the holy ghost in whose name I was baptized
3    and in whome only I hope and beleeve to be saved Amen, The twintith
4    day of November Anno D[o]m[n]i 1641 and in the seaventeenth yeare of the raigne
5    of our Soveraigne Lord Charles King of England Scotland Fraunce and
6    Ireland defender of the faith and etc I Nicholas Blake of Eastentowne w[it]hin
7    the parrish of Andever in the County of South[amp]ton gent being at the
8    makeing whereof sicke in body yet in good and p[er]fect remembrance for w[hi]ch as
9    for all the other good blessinges and benefits w[hi]ch yt hath pleased him to
10    bestowe uppon me I doe yeeld and give unto his divine nature most humble
    [Page 2]
11    and hear to thankes beseeching him of his great mercie and goodnes to
12    pardon and forgive me all my sinnes and to receave my soule into his heavenly
13    kingdome And I doe make and declare this p[re]sente to be my last will and
14    Testament revokeing all former wills and Testaments And first and principally
15    I comend my soule into the hands of god the father the sonne and the holy
16    ghost by whose mercifull promises and by the only merrits death and
17    passion of Jesus Christ my only Saviour and Redeemer I hope to be
18    saved and to be made an inheritor of his heavenly kingdom My body yf
19    comend[ed] to be buried unto the earth in the Church of Andever neere unto the place where
20    my Ancestors have beene buried Item I give to the Church of Andever
21    thirty shillings Item I give to the Church of Knights Enham twentye
22    shillings Item I doe make my cosen William Blake of Eastentowne
23    aforesaid eldest sonne of my elder brother William Blake of Eastentowne
24    aforesaid my sole executor of this my last will and Testament Item I give
25    to all my godchildren twenty shillings a peece to be payed w[i]thin six months
26    after my decease they requireing the same Item I give to the poore people
27    of Andever such as are most ancient and have most need fourtye
28    shillings to be delivered to them at my funerall Item I give to Winnifred
29    Hibberd and her foure other sisters tenn pounds to be payed by my executor
30    unto my cosen Joseph Hinxman senior and Joseph his sonne and unto my cosen 
31    William Blake of Andever and Richard Blake his sonne or to some of
32    them whome I doe desire soe to dispose and ymploy the same to at yt may
33    Be p[re]served and kept in stocke to keepe them in worke Item I give to
34    widow Hibberd their mother five shillings Item I give to Nicholas
35    Blake and Thomas Blake two of the sonnes of my cosen William
36    Blake of Eastontowne aforesaid fyftie pounds a peece to be payed unto
37    them when they shall attaine to the age of twenty one yeares Item I
38    give unto Sara Blake Anne Blake and Mary Blake three of the
39    daughters of my said cosen William Blake of Eastontown fyftie
40    pounds a peece to be payed unto them when they shall attayne to the
41    age of twenty one yeares or att such tyme as they shal[l ]be married
42    And my will and meaneing is that yf any of the Children of my said
43    cosen William Blake to whome I have by this last will given my
44    legacie unto shall happen to depart this life before such legacie shal[l ]be
45    growe due and payable then the legacie or legacies of him her or them
46    soe dyeing shal[l ]be paid and equally distributed amongst the survivors of
47    them Item I give to my kinswoman Mary Warberton widdowe of the towne
48    and county of Southampton twenty pounds to be payed unto her within
49    six moneths after my decease Item I give to the five children of the
50    said Mary Warberton now liveing twenty pounds a peece to be payed unto
51    them when they shall severally attaine to the age of twenty one yeares
51    or be married And yf any of them shall happen to depart this life before
52    they shall attaine that age or shall be married And yf any of them shall
53    Then my will and meaneing is that the legacie or legacies hereby given to
54    him her or them soe dyeing shal[l ]be paed and equally devided amongst the
55    survivors of them. Whereas Mrs. Venables of Andever doth owe unto
56    me divers sommes of money as by specialty remayning in my custody and
57    otherwise doth and may appeare. My will and meaneing is that for so much
58    thereof as will discharge the severall legacies hereby given to the children
59    of my cosen William Blake of Eastontowne and to the Children of my
    [Page 3]
60    said kinswoman Mary Warberton shall remaine and continue in the hands of
61    the said Mrs. Venables at six pounds p[er] centum until such tyme as the same
62    shall severally and respectively growe due and payable unto them and either of
63    them she the said Mrs. Venables giving sufficient secureties to my executor
64    before named for the true payment thereof together w[i]th the interest and
65    profite for the only use and benefitt of the said Children Item I give to my
66    Sister Dorothie Smithe peece of gould of twenty two shillings of Queene
67    Elizabeths Coyne nowe in my custody And I give to my brother in lawe
68    William Smithe desireing him as my overseer of this my
69    last will to ayd and assist my executor the best he can All the rest of
70    my goods and Chattles I doe hereby give and bqueath to my said executor
71    requireing and chargeing him to be carefull in the performance of this my
72    last will and testament. In witness that this shall stand and remaine my
73    last will I have hereunto sett my hands the daye and yeare first above
74    written Nich: Blake [signed] And the same daye and yeare first w[i]thin
75    written I the said Nicholas Blake doe hereby further declare my will
76    and meaneing in manner and forme followeing that is to saye Item I doe
77    forgive unto Mrs. Venables w[i]thin named the somme of one hundred
78    pounds of the moneys she oweth me by specialty and otherwise And
79    doe desire that this clause may be counted and taken as part and p[a]rcell
80    of my wish in written last will and testament And in witnes that this
81    is my will and meaneing I have hereunto sett my hands the daye and
82    yeare first w[i]thin written Nich: Blake [signed] Published in the p[re]sence
83    of William Smith The same Legacies given by the Testator wer
84    e desired a little before his death might be subscribed to this his last will
85    Will and be reputed as part and parcell thereof. To Mr Matkins
86    vicar of Andever twenty shillings To his brother Mr. William Blake in
87    gould for remembrance twenty shillings To Tho: Blake the son of the said
88    Mr William Blake fyve pounds To Elizabeth Cload that attended
89    him in his sicknes twenty shillings William Smith [signed]

Blake at Upper Clatford before 1757

Before 1757 the Blake families at Upper Clatford may be descendants of Peter Blake but definitely the Blake family at Upper Clatford from 1757 on at least to 1812 are descendants of Joseph Blake and Joanna King (my 4x great grandparents).

Blake events before 1757 at Upper Clatford (all Blake events after to 1812 are my family)

Baptisms
Blake    Anne    daughter    Blake    John            1635    December    28
Blake    Abraham    son    Blake    John            1637    March    4
Blake    Katheren                        1678    July    2
Blake    Mary    daughter    Blake    Mr. Peter        Ann    1679    March    24
Blake    Peetar    son    Blake    Peetar        Ann    1686    August    10

Marriages
Blake    John    Abbotts Anne    King    Mary    Upper Clatford            1753    December

Burials
Blake    Ann    daughter    Blake    John            1640    August    30   
Blake    Elizabeth                        1660    August    15   

The John Blake who is father to Anne and Abraham is unknown in terms of parentage but property at Upper Clatford was conveyed  to Peter Blake by his father William Blake married to Margaret Hibberd. This Peter would have been born before 1 Aug 1606 (the date of his father's will). He is not referred to as a minor so will be 21 or greater in 1606 giving him a birth date before 1 Aug 1585. He does not mention that any of his younger sons are married and notably he is aiming to advance his younger sons with their access to these properties and presumably that has some reference to them making profitable marriages.

However the earliest Blake entries at Upper Clatford are not until 1635 and 1637. The daughter Ann has died and I have no information at the moment on an Abraham Blake. In the Penton Mewsey register there is a marriage for Peter Blake of Clatford and Ann Noyes of Penton Mewsey.

Blake    Peter    Clatford    Noyes    Ann    Penton Mewsey    1677    June    26

and the baptisms of Katheren, Mary and Peter at Upper Clatford are likely their children.

But is there a line between Peter (b c 1580s) and John (b c 1610s) and then John and Peter (b c 1640s)? Is it the same Blake family? The time frame could make them fathers and sons. Possibly the Manor Books of Upper Clatford will help to answer that question. One of my future transcription projects once I complete the Parish Registers that I have at hand up to 1837 when civil registration began and the census are available. I am also working backwards from the marriages having now managed to link Blake marriage to spouse backward from 1951 to my present 1918. I will continue to use Free BMD and the census to try to do the same back to 1837 plus the Marriage Challenges that are done periodically by the Guild of One Name Studies. I did not think I could be ready to submit yet but did manage to put together files for the two challenges today six for one and twenty one for the other. I have extracted the Blake entries from the Guild Marriage Index for Hampshire and will continue as I work through the various counties (I have only done Hampshire thus far working backwards). There are nearly 30,000 Blake marriages between 1837 and 1951.

I am busy proofreading the Upper Clatford Parish Register transcriptions and I am now working on Parish Register 2 which takes me from 1725 to the mid 1770s. Parish Register 3 then repeats 1725 to the mid 1770s in a much better hand and then finished at 1812 for baptisms and burials and marriages to 1753. Parish Register 4 brings the marriages from 1754 to 1812. I had hoped to finish last week but my eyes can only do so much reading microfiche and then I need a change. Hopefully I will complete them this week. I would like to start Abbotts Ann.

My distraction yesterday with the Tweddle family was quite interesting. I like it when people write to me about my various lines. I never know what sort of information I might acquire from them as they search back. In this case, the individual lives in England which is always very very nice for me because they have access to all those records readily. Although I realize it is not an easy thing to be in the North and want to see the records in the southwest. England is a busy place and the M roads are very very busy (like the 401 all the time). I have sent him a fair amount of information already but do not want to overwhelm so will wait for his response each time to send more. I have been given a lot of information on the Tweddle family and have acquired a little on my own.

The Hibberd family and the Blake family at Andover and Eastontown

Yesterday, I was reporting on the will of Nicholas Blake which was written 20 Nov 1641 and probated 4 Feb 1642 I have now completed the transcription and it is part of this blog. Nicholas is talking about the Hibberd family including Winifred and her four sisters (I can find this family in the Parish Registers of Andover and their father was Christopher Hibberd). Perhaps he was a brother/cousin to Margaret Hibberd who was the mother of Nicholas. He remembers them first of all and sets aside a sum of money that is to be used by Joseph Hinxman senior or his son Joseph or failing their being able to follow up then he passes this request on to William Blake (of Andover) and his eldest son Richard to undertake to ensure that the money is put to use buying stocke that can then provide work for the Hibberd sisters in order that they can continue to take care of themselves.

The will is a really lucky find in that it clearly distinguishes between these families and puts a number of people into family lines (always helpful in these early days of the parish registers). Because he is dying without descendants he has named many many people in his family. You feel sorry for what may have been a tragic life but oh so grateful that he has taken the time to remember so many people. I have not yet transcribed the Probate but it was taken by William Blake of Eastontown. Where to move next is always the question and I shall look through the Hampshire wills to see what would be a good next step. I have a number of wills for the Blake family at Christchurch and it would be interesting to see if this family is descendant of the Andover Blake family or have they come down through Wiltshire and are descendant of the Wiltshire Blake family.

The will of Nicholas Blake:
1    In the name of the eternall and everliveing
2    God the father the sonne and the holy ghost in whose name I was baptized
3    and in whome only I hope and beleeve to be saved Amen, The twintith
4    day of November Anno D[o]m[n]i 1641 and in the seaventeenth yeare of the raigne
5    of our Soveraigne Lord Charles King of England Scotland Fraunce and
6    Ireland defender of the faith and etc I Nicholas Blake of Eastentowne w[it]hin
7    the parrish of Andever in the County of South[amp]ton gent being at the
8    makeing whereof sicke in body yet in good and p[er]fect remembrance for w[hi]ch as
9    for all the other good blessinges and benefits w[hi]ch yt hath pleased him to
10    bestowe uppon me I doe yeeld and give unto his divine nature most humble
    [Page 2]
11    and hear to thankes beseeching him of his great mercie and goodnes to
12    pardon and forgive me all my sinnes and to receave my soule into his heavenly
13    kingdome And I doe make and declare this p[re]sente to be my last will and
14    Testament revokeing all former wills and Testaments And first and principally
15    I comend my soule into the hands of god the father the sonne and the holy
16    ghost by whose mercifull promises and by the only merrits death and
17    passion of Jesus Christ my only Saviour and Redeemer I hope to be
18    saved and to be made an inheritor of his heavenly kingdom My body yf
19    comend[ed] to be buried unto the earth in the Church of Andever neere unto the place where
20    my Ancestors have beene buried Item I give to the Church of Andever
21    thirty shillings Item I give to the Church of Knights Enham twentye
22    shillings Item I doe make my cosen William Blake of Eastentowne
23    aforesaid eldest sonne of my elder brother William Blake of Eastentowne
24    aforesaid my sole executor of this my last will and Testament Item I give
25    to all my godchildren twenty shillings a peece to be payed w[i]thin six months
26    after my decease they requireing the same Item I give to the poore people
27    of Andever such as are most ancient and have most need fourtye
28    shillings to be delivered to them at my funerall Item I give to Winnifred
29    Hibberd and her foure other sisters tenn pounds to be payed by my executor
30    unto my cosen Joseph Hinxman senior and Joseph his sonne and unto my cosen
31    William Blake of Andever and Richard Blake his sonne or to some of
32    them whome I doe desire soe to dispose and ymploy the same to at yt may
33    Be p[re]served and kept in stocke to keepe them in worke Item I give to
34    widow Hibberd their mother five shillings Item I give to Nicholas
35    Blake and Thomas Blake two of the sonnes of my cosen William
36    Blake of Eastontowne aforesaid fyftie pounds a peece to be payed unto
37    them when they shall attaine to the age of twenty one yeares Item I
38    give unto Sara Blake Anne Blake and Mary Blake three of the
39    daughters of my said cosen William Blake of Eastontown fyftie
40    pounds a peece to be payed unto them when they shall attayne to the
41    age of twenty one yeares or att such tyme as they shal[l ]be married
42    And my will and meaneing is that yf any of the Children of my said
43    cosen William Blake to whome I have by this last will given my
44    legacie unto shall happen to depart this life before such legacie shal[l ]be
45    growe due and payable then the legacie or legacies of him her or them
46    soe dyeing shal[l ]be paid and equally distributed amongst the survivors of
47    them Item I give to my kinswoman Mary Warberton widdowe of the towne
48    and county of Southampton twenty pounds to be payed unto her within
49    six moneths after my decease Item I give to the five children of the
50    said Mary Warberton now liveing twenty pounds a peece to be payed unto
51    them when they shall severally attaine to the age of twenty one yeares
51    or be married And yf any of them shall happen to depart this life before
52    they shall attaine that age or shall be married And yf any of them shall
53    Then my will and meaneing is that the legacie or legacies hereby given to
54    him her or them soe dyeing shal[l ]be paed and equally devided amongst the
55    survivors of them. Whereas Mrs. Venables of Andever doth owe unto
56    me divers sommes of money as by specialty remayning in my custody and
57    otherwise doth and may appeare. My will and meaneing is that for so much
58    thereof as will discharge the severall legacies hereby given to the children
59    of my cosen William Blake of Eastontowne and to the Children of my
    [Page 3]
60    said kinswoman Mary Warberton shall remaine and continue in the hands of
61    the said Mrs. Venables at six pounds p[er] centum until such tyme as the same
62    shall severally and respectively growe due and payable unto them and either of
63    them she the said Mrs. Venables giving sufficient secureties to my executor
64    before named for the true payment thereof together w[i]th the interest and
65    profite for the only use and benefitt of the said Children Item I give to my
66    Sister Dorothie Smithe peece of gould of twenty two shillings of Queene
67    Elizabeths Coyne nowe in my custody And I give to my brother in lawe
68    William Smithe desireing him as my overseer of this my
69    last will to ayd and assist my executor the best he can All the rest of
70    my goods and Chattles I doe hereby give and bqueath to my said executor
71    requireing and chargeing him to be carefull in the performance of this my
72    last will and testament. In witness that this shall stand and remaine my
73    last will I have hereunto sett my hands the daye and yeare first above
74    written Nich: Blake [signed] And the same daye and yeare first w[i]thin
75    written I the said Nicholas Blake doe hereby further declare my will
76    and meaneing in manner and forme followeing that is to saye Item I doe
77    forgive unto Mrs. Venables w[i]thin named the somme of one hundred
78    pounds of the moneys she oweth me by specialty and otherwise And
79    doe desire that this clause may be counted and taken as part and p[a]rcell
80    of my wish in written last will and testament And in witnes that this
81    is my will and meaneing I have hereunto sett my hands the daye and
82    yeare first w[i]thin written Nich: Blake [signed] Published in the p[re]sence
83    of William Smith The same Legacies given by the Testator wer
84    e desired a little before his death might be subscribed to this his last will
85    Will and be reputed as part and parcell thereof. To Mr Matkins
86    vicar of Andever twenty shillings To his brother Mr. William Blake in
87    gould for remembrance twenty shillings To Tho: Blake the son of the said
88    Mr William Blake fyve pounds To Elizabeth Cload that attended
89    him in his sicknes twenty shillings William Smith [signed]

Records for the Hibberd family (early 1600s) at Andover (registers begin late 1580s):
Baptisms
Hibard    Winifred    daughter    Hibard    Christophur    1594    June    24               
Hibard    Alice    daughter    Hibard    Christophur        1594    August    14               
Hibard    Fayerned    daughter    Hibard    Christophur    1597    July    30               
Hibard    Philip    daughter    Hibard    Thomas            1591    October    18               
Hibbard    ……ard    son    Hibbard    Christopher            1589    July    16               
Hibbard    Mary    daughter    Hibbard    Christophur        1601    May    2               
Hibberd    Christopher    son    Hibberd    Christopher        1611    August    11               
Hibberd    Christour    son    Hibberd    Christophur        1595    November 26               
Hibberd    Thomas    son    Hibberd    Roberd            1602    December    19               
Hibbert    Margaret    daughter    Hibbert    Christopher    1604    January    26    of Andover
Hibbert    Richard    son    Hibbert    Christopher            1606    August    30               
Hiberd    Amy    daughter    Hiberd    Christophur        1603    April    3               
Hiberd    Dortye    daughter    Hiberd    Christophur        1590    December 16

Marriages
Braye    John        Hibbard    Susana                1587    October    29
Hopgood    Rowland        Hibbard    Elizabeth            1597    January    9
           
Burials
Hibard    Christofer                    1636    July    22   
Hibbard    Alce                        1592    February    24    widow
Hibbard    Christour    son    Hibbard    Christophur    1589    October    2   
Hibbard    Christour    son    Hibbard    Christphour    1596    January    6   
Hibbard    Dorathy                        1657    February    13   
Hibbard    Robert                        1589    April    17   
Hibberd    Susan    daughter    Hibberd    Christopher    1610    June    23   
Hibbert    Margarett daughter    Hibbert    Christopher    1604    February    26   
Hibbert    Thomas                        1604    February    6    died February 3, elder

Robert may be the father of Margaret Hibberd married to William Blake and the parents of Nicholas. Margaret was buried in 1613. Christopher is not buried until 1636 and perhaps that is why Nicholas is remembering the family so kindly (he does not imply close kinship in the will). Given the unusual surname though and the location one might suspect a cousin of his mother or perhaps a nephew.

I have also added a page to my Blog which appears under the title Pages (one can tab back and forth between the regular blog posting on "Home" that I make and this rather permanent addition which stands on its own and can be opened from the side panel "Guild of one name studies").

It is on the Guild of One Name Studies and grows out of a request that I had to do a short writeup on how I value my Guild membership. It was impossible for me to do it in a couple of lines but I allowed for a short quote to be made from the information to be placed on another blog. That inspired me to then publish my own thoughts on the Guild.

Nicholas Blake Will of 20 Nov 1641

The Will of Nicholas Blake of Eastontowne proved to be very interesting. I had him placed as a son of William Blake and Margaret Hibberd and that proved to be substantiated by his will. The children of this couple too proved to be as I had pulled them from other records. They had four sons and one daughter. At the time of the writing of the will three sons and one daughter are living. Their father died in 1606 and their mother was buried in 1613. These Blake men were long living for the most part. I estimate his father was 66 when he died. In his will he does not mention that any of his children are less than 21 years of age which would mean that Nicholas is at least 57 years of age at the time of the writing of this will. His brother Peter must have died as he did not mention him. He mentions only his eldest brother William and his youngest brother Thomas and his sister Dorothy married to William Smith.

He clearly refers to my ancestor William Blake of Andover as his cousin and his eldest son Richard is also mentioned. They are asked to help the Hibberd sisters if need be (perhaps they live near them) and Joseph Hinxman and his son are not available to do so. They do live in Andover whereas Eastontown is closeby but not directly connected to Andover.

He also remembers members of the Hibberd family linking him to his mother's family but his father had identified his mother as the daughter of Robert Hibberd anyway. The mention though also helps to ensure that the linkage is correct. He refers to his older brother William and to William's son William as his cozen (William Blake of Eastentowne) which is somewhat peculiar in that he was his uncle but I have seen that before in these early wills. I have added all the children of William Blake at Eastontown married to Ann Tutt (William, Sara, Nicholas, Anne, Thomas and Mary) into my Legacy file. They receive the largest legacies along with his kinswoman Mary Warberton of Southampton and her five children. Since Nicholas is unmarried I am curious who Mary is. I shall try to investigate that family somewhat.

Nicholas also mentions Joseph Hinxman his cousin. Nicholas' father William is brother to Richard Blake who was the father of Eleanor who married Joseph Hinxman. Hence their children are his first cousins namely Joseph (and others). My William, his son Richard and Joseph, his son Joseph are the only descendants of Nicholas' Uncle Richard that Nicholas mentions in his will.He does not mention Richard though in his will. He does not mention anyone who is not living and again I have noticed that before in these early wills. Perhaps because they are no longer part of the world and have passed beyond worry about wills and such.

A little more work on the will and I will post it tomorrow for anyone who wishes to have it. There are a number of Blake wills in this time period and I will continue to transcribe them for the benefit of other Blake researchers in the Hampshire area. Although I am quite satisfied that I have proven the link Thomas (b 1709) to Thomas (b 1685) to John (b 1649) to William (b 1615) to William (b c 1580s) to Richard (b c late 1550s) William (b c 1510s) to Nicholas (b c 1580s), I will continue to collect material on these Andover Blake families and now for a purpose - my one name study for Blake at the Guild of one name studies.

Once I complete the Hampshire wills I will move on to the London Blake family (moved from Hampshire to Surrey to London) and see what information I can add to the known material for that particular family.

Richard Blake Will of 23 Mar 1643

I completed the transcription of Richard Blake of Tower Ward London's will and I am still trying to resolve the belief of some researchers that Richard Blake lynnen draper is the son of William Blake and Ann Tutt rather than the son of William Blake and Elizabeth the family of whom I have him as a member. This William Blake (married to Elizabeth) is the son of Nicholas Blake and Margaret . One of the reasons for this being put forward is the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Visitation of 1686 by Peter Blake, High Sheriff of the County of Southampton (b c 1620). The Visitation is linear and I think that I and II refer to brothers perhaps just to denote the family to which this Blake belonged. Age wise it does not make sense and I will go into this in the blog today. William and his brother Richard (discussed below) are likely the second child and definitely the tenth child in the William and Elizabeth Blake family of Eastontown respectively. Richard was the youngest son in the family of ten children and William second eldest son. The age difference would be hard to determine accurately but is not likely greater than 16 years. William died in 1606 and Richard in 1622. William in his will of 1606 mentions: sons William (eldest [known to be married to Ann Tutt]), Peter, Nicholas and Thomas.

 http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=blake-andover&id=I250

This World Connect tree will be revised in the next little while with all the will transcriptions available online. I am nearly finished proofreading them. It is five generations of the Blake family at Andover descendant of the marriage of Blake and Jone (Jone leaving a will in 1527 naming her sons Robert and Nicholas and daughter Elizabeth Mylne). 

One of my problems with the William Blake and Ann Tutt marriage is the timing. Going back one generation the parents of the William Blake married to Anne Tutt are William Blake and Margaret Hibberd. Margaret (Hibberd) Blake was buried 12 Sep 1613 at Andover. Her husband William left a will dated 1 Aug 1606. I know that he is the son of William Blake and Elizabeth because of the lands mentioned in the will and I prepared a chart to assist me in that regard. Several distinct pieces of property pass from father to son to grandson. In each will the descendant is named as a son hence I feel that the line is correct from Nicholas and Margaret Blake to William and Margaret Blake and thence to William and Ann Blake. 

Nicholas left his will in 1547 (his mother Jone in 1527 and his brother Robert in 1542). Trying to give a lifespan to these three is helpful at this time. Both sons Nicholas and Robert are named as executors (of their mother Jone's will) and Jone's daughter Elizabeth is married (Mylne). In 1527 Nicholas and Robert are 21 years or greater. In Nicholas' will he mentions that his younger son Stephen is under 21 and his daughter Elizabeth is not yet married (she married Munday before 1558). However William his eldest son is executor so over 21. Working back Nicholas had to be around 20 or greater in 1526 so giving us a possible birth time period from 1500 to 1506.

Moving on to William and Elizabeth's eldest sons John (married to Margaret Blake likely)  and William (married to Margaret Hibberd) just to try and give a physical timeframe to this next generation. William left his will in 1582 and his wife was buried in 1589. They had ten children  one of whom Mary Blake was buried 1 Sep 1612 at Fareham having baptized her last child in 1596. She had ten children (Rigges) with the first recorded baptism Elizabeth Rigges in 1591 at Farnham and she was number 8 child. Giving roughly 2 years between children would take us back to the late 1570s for a marriage date and an approximate date of birth for Mary around 1550. Mary was child number 8 in her family (parents William Blake and Elizabeth ). Moving back from Mary to John (eldest) could give an approximate date of birth for him of the mid to late 1530s. His father then William Blake son of Nicholas would have an approximate date of birth around 1510 and hence Nicholas must have been born in the latter part of the 1400s (1480s to 1490s). This would make him between 40 and 50 when his mother left her will in 1527. 

We then move to the second son (William) of William and Elizabeth Blake and William was the second (or so) eldest so born in the mid to late 1530s. This William is known to have married Margaret Hibberd and it was their son William who married Ann Tutt. William could have married between 1555 and 1565 and their son William was their eldest son. He could have married between 1575 and 1585. Their children would hence be born in the 1570s or 1580s on. One of these children was a Richard Blake and some researchers have him married to Jone Blake (parents of the Richard Blake Tower Ward London - the will writer first mentioned yesterday and subject of today's blog again). However this Richard and Jone (parents of Richard Blake Tower Ward London) were baptizing children before 1589 and until at least 1604. The first baptism recorded at Andover for this couple was Elenor Blake baptized 23 May 1589 and she was child number five. Estimating two years between brings us back to the late 1570s or early 1580s. An estimated birth date for this Richard (married to Jone Blake) would be mid 1550s to late 1550s. Since Richard is not named as a minor in his father's will of 1582 (William Blake married to Elizabeth ) he must be at least 21 and hence born by 1561. It is simply not possible for this Richard (married to Jone Blake) to be the son of William Blake and Ann Tutt and for them to be grandparents of the Richard Blake of Tower Ward London.

As I work through these Blake families though I realize more and more that it is a complex family and that there could be several different Blake lines at Andover or they could all be descendant of the Wiltshire Blake family arriving at Andover in different generations possibly by inter marriage between the Wiltshire and the Hampshire Blake families in the 1500s.

The next step is to place all of the people named in Richard's will as relatives in their family groupings to see if I can figure out the family of his mother Jone Blake. Initially I had thought it was Robert Blake but I am moving away from that thought having now transcribed this will and looked at the Visitation. 

Will of Richard Blake Tower Ward dated 23 Mar 1643.


Transcriber: Elizabeth Kipp
Recorded: 24th October 2010, revised 2 November 2012
Source: The National Archives PROB 11/192/150
Testator: Richard Blake, gentleman
Place: Tower Ward, London, England
Type of Record: Will
Dated: 23 March 1643/44, probated 19 Dec 1644
Read: Electronic copy
Condition: scan, smudges, old English writing good, contrast medium

[Margin]: T[estator] Richardi
[Margin]: Blake

1    In the name of the eternall and
2    everliving god Father Sonne and holy ghost in whose name I was baptized in
3    whome only I hope and beleeve to be saved with a free heart and willing minde I
4    doe yeeld and render my soule into the hands of Father, sonne and holy ghost and I
5    beleeve that the lord will have mercy upon my soule for he first made me; soe this I
6    beleeve that whether I live or dye I am the lords, to whome be all honour and glory
7    power and dominion fore evermore Amen, As concerning my body I bequeath it to the
8    earth from whence it came I Richard Blake of London gent[leman] being sicke and weake in
9    bodye but of good and p[er]fect memory I thanke my god the giver and p[re]server thereof
10    doe make this my last will and testam[en]t as followeth The twentie third day of March
11    one thousand six hundred forty three, Item I give to my sister Joane Baylie twentie
12    pounds To my sister Dorothie Burmingham twenty pounds, To my sister Ellen Hinxman
13    twenty pounds, To my sister Margaret Savadge twenty pounds, To my cozen Richard
14    Blake th[e ]elder twenty pounds; Item I give to my godchildren to whome I gave nothing
15    at their baptizing, To my godson Richard Blake twenty shillings, To my goddaught[e]r
16    Ellen Hinxman twentie shillings, To my godson William Poore twenty shillings, To my
17    godsonne Richard Blake at long parrish twenty shillings, Item I give to Mr. John
18    Barker and his wife each of them an enamild Ring valued twelve shillings six pence
19    To Mr. Jn[o] Glascock, To Mr Laurence Newman, To Mr Jn[o] Gatley, To Mr. Richard
20    Pettingall to each of them to each of them an enameld Ring of twelve shillings six
21    pence price To Mr. Will[ia]m Irat an enameld Ring of twenty two shillings, To Mr.
22    Samuell Edoll one enameld Ring of twenty two shillings Item I give to Mr Laurence
23    Newman my watch and doe desire him to assist my executor on his business at London.
24    Item I give to my brother Peter ten pounds and to his five children my cosens viz[ a vi]z
25    my Richard fyftie pounds To my cozen Dorothie, my cozen Jane, my cozen Mary,
26    and my cozen Joane Blake twenty five pounds apeece, To my old landlady Millicent
27    Price tenn pounds Item I give to my cozen Joseph Hinxman the younger five
28    pounds To my cozen Jone Noyes five pounds To my cozen Alice Hinxman twenty
29    shillings Item I give to my cozen Dorothie Smith forty shillings; And to each her children
30    each of them being fouer twenty shillings a peece Item I give to mjy sister Hinxman a
31    fayre diamond ring Item I give to my said sister Hinxman one faire damask table-
32    cloth a dozen diaper napkins two plane table cloths and a dozen of napkins being
33    at Mrs Prices Item I give to my sister Deborah Blake of Galligar my looking
34    glasse Item I give to my cozen Richard Blake's wife a new Beaker being at
35    Mrs. Price's Item I give to Mrs Price my bed and furniture table and stowler w[i]th
36    the great chest behind the chamber dore Item I doe make and ordaine my
37    brother Nicholas Blake of Galligar my executor and doe give him by way of
38    legacie one hundred pounds There is some residue more of my estate about two
39    or three hundred pounds where if it be gott in bee devided the one half to my
40    executor and his brother Peter Blake, the other half to my four Sisters viz[ a vi]t
41    Joane and Dorothie, Elline and Margaret, And yf any of my legatees doe
42    contend w[i]th my legacie to trouble my executor before the money can be gott
43    in to loose his part More I give to my cozen Alice Hinxman one large bible
44    bound in blue leather and guilded, and my silke grogram cloke and to her
45    brother William my rapier And I desire my cozen Richard Blake to be assistant
46    as an overseer to see the children of my brother Peter not wronged as farr as in
47    him lyeth Item I give my sister Dorothie six poundes which shee owed by debt
48    Item I give to my Executor one Fayre Turke Belt w[i]th greene leather and
49    gould wyer In witness whereof I have hereunto sett my hand and seale the
50    day and yeare above written Richard Blake [signed] Witnesses Richard Blake John
51    Elton

Andover Parish Register 2

I commenced the 2nd Register for Andover Parish and as I had said earlier it is a challenge. I managed 173 baptisms today (completed 6 pages) which was about 2.5 years worth. It is almost impossible to read some of the entries and what helps me is knowing who may be there and piecing the letters together to make the names! I did find a couple of Blake entries that I was looking for - daughters of Richard elder brother to my William. Richard and Joanne his wife had five daughters and three sons with only the daughters and one son surviving infancy. A number of writeups on the Blake family name this Richard as the Richard on the London Visitation. Richard on the London Visitation of 1633-34 is the son of Richard Blake and Jone (Blake) Blake. Jone's father was said to be William of Eastontown (nr Andover). I think it is Robert (brother to Nicholas (father of William))'s son or grandson Richard. Robert was the eldest son and received the larger portion when his father died. Although Robert had six sons which must have diminished his estates somewhat but I suspect that it is his son (fifth) that went off to London. I can not at this time determine who Jone is as I do not have a daughter Jone for William Blake at Eastontown. The other determining factor is that Richard (son of Richard (son of William, son of Nicholas)) does not have two living sons in 1633-34. Reading through this portion of the Parish Register does clear that item up quite a bit.

Two more Hinxman baptisms

28 Feb 1635 Thomas son of Thomas Henxman baptized

28 Feb 1636 Thomas son of Thomas Henxman baptized

I must admit to being somewhat mystified at the exact same date for the two baptisms but perhaps it was in memory of the first one. I haven't looked at the burial portion of this register yet and that may answer the question.

We have a walk over to the Green Belt and back (7.6 kilometres) which was a good hike. The weather is just pleasant for a walk mid afternoon - sun is not too hot.

I decided to check the Hampshire Visitations as well. This was is dated 1634 and so fits in well with the London Visitation at this similar time period. The Hampshire lists William at Eastontown and this is my William but my Richard isn't listed. The only sons listed are: John married to Margaret Blake (daughter of William Blake (Robert Blake's son William (2nd cousins)); William married to Margaret Hibberd and his son William married Ann Tutt and Peter who remained a Bachelor but was a counsellor of the Inner Temple in London. The only daughter listed is Agnes - I have her married to Kynton as per the will but on the Visitation she is married to Roger Hyde. I need to see if I can find an answer to that query!

Tomorrow I will continue to work on the Parish Register for Andover and for Timberscombe.