I always had a blue eye ring around the outside of the brown area of my eye

 I always had a blue eye ring around the outside of the brown area of my eye but it is more distinct after the cataract surgery (my eyes were very crossed though as a child (strabismus) and that is now gone (it was difficult for me to see anything really close up even with my glasses)). I hadn't really noticed it until this spring and I still think one would think my eyes were brown but definitely that blue eye ring is there as it always been from childhood (just looks larger, bluer and more distinct). The brown area just seemed larger to me through my life. Interesting really. I think maybe we should have our fingerprints on our passport which is perhaps a strange thing to say but it would be a second proof of who we are. 

Yesterday I finished the main floor cleaning but decided to do the basement today because I have to move the rug and under pad back now that the water meter has been changed. That went very smoothly and was accomplished in less than half of an hour. Getting ready for it took considerably longer but it was good to have everything cleared away from the area. So today I will clean the basement this morning and clear away the snow as we got quite a bit actually. 

Worked on the matches and there were a couple of quite good ones so into the databases and painted. I am not able to discover the Blake ancestry of these lines without going into the records of the English databases to search them out. But with hundreds and hundreds of grandchildren and they are my 2x great grandparents so one can only imagine the number of 2x great grandchildren!, John Blake and Ann (Farmer) Blake are a study all in themselves. Their descendants are found around the globe but primarily they remain in England and many in the London area as well as Hampshire. John Blake had died by the time my grandfather was born (John was his grandfather) but his grandmother Ann Blake was still alive and lived next door to him so he knew her very well and learned a lot about his Blake family from her and some of her Farmer family. The Farmer family were from Wiltshire and I believe I have found the correct line (a couple of interesting DNA matches work well) but Ann herself was born at Woodhouse in Andover. It was probably very helpful for my grandfather's mother to have her mother in law next door as she had twelve children! Her own mother lived at Turnworth, Dorset. Interesting how these Blake men through the centuries married outside of their area very often actually. I am still contemplating how far down I will bring the generations. Probably just to my father and he was born in 1904. All of his grandchildren know each other so that sounds good actually.

I watched a show on Netflix "Mary" which is quite good and I am about half way through. One never thinks about the whole story of Mary very often although there is evidence of her in the writings that points to the possibility of the accuracy of this show but it is also based on the knowledge of life at the time.

I haven't been watching Netflix for a while; life has just been busy with the election and I have been watching the candidates but I was annoyed by comments made yesterday by the Conservative leader. It always seems to be money that brings out the accusations and attempts to vilify one's opponent on the basis of money. Perhaps I do not put enough emphasis on money; but money destroys people; destroys their life often enough. I think having sufficient for one's basic needs is good and very necessary that as you work through life you put enough aside to support you in your old age. But being rich has its negative side; you have to protect it unfortunately that is the reality of life. It may look glitzy to be wealthy but it is a lonely place even if you do do all these fun and fabulous looking things. You can still do them and not be so rich and they are more fun I think simply because you are not always having to protect yourself from those who would steal from you. But in this modern world for sure anyone is a target for fraud and one must be attentive to anyone prying into their private affairs. 

But back to the election and I felt that the Conservative candidate had moved beyond mud-slinging but it is still there and I do find it repulsive. I do have my problems with the Liberal party - they do cling to power using whatever means works for them. This last parliamentary period I found to be extremely annoying with mistakes at CRA not being satisfactorily answered and responded to - there should have been people fired but it they did it on the quiet then fine but it would be good to know that a successful conclusion was reached for the huge mistake made. I found the dental and drug plans to be set up incorrectly as money for health belongs to the provinces and is much better managed by them. The Liberals always just throw money at it without being careful with the finances. It is highly likely that Mark Carney would be very efficient with money; I do have to say that. My decision still remains somewhat in abeyance as I listen to the candidates. The Feds should concentrate on improving our trade outreach which means working with the provinces to improve internal trade and increasing our network of trade in the world and other such global issues and not get into people's dental and drug needs. Seeing the NDP well below 10% of the popularity federally is a good thing. Provincially they have worked well in some of the provinces - Manitoba is a good example and possibly others I must admit to not keeping up with the politics of each and every province. Here in Ontario our experience with NDP was not good and I would never want to repeat that for sure. Mind you the Liberals certainly made a mess of it last time they were in power in Ontario. I am reasonably satisfied with Premier Ford although again the money issues that are thrown about are very annoying. Prove it or leave it alone; I get tired of it. My voting card came and it will be a nice walk up to advance polling.

 So next task is to put the rug down and then let the robot do its work vacuuming the rug. Then shovel the snow and back in to finish cleaning the basement. A busy day, breakfast already completed and will have my tea as that was mixed up today.

Looking at Wiltshire Wills

I discovered yesterday that Dad's Cookies sold in Canada are actually made here.  That is good news as they are my favourite cookie.

To the best of my knowledge I have collected all the Blake Wiltshire Wills although will also check to see if there are more available from earlier but I think I have them all. All of these wills have been blogged by me and I generally put in anything that I found of interest when I blogged the will.

 Martyn/Martin/Marten (9.5 miles sw of Salisbury, 32 miles from Calne)

William Blake 1545 / Agnes Blake 1563 - Lived at Marten, Wiltshire. From the two wills their children appear to be John, Elizabeth, Agnes and Alys. Since I follow only the male line John is the one of interest.

John Blake 1582 / Elizabeth Blake 1583 - Lived at Marten, Wiltshire. John is the son of William and Agnes above and he and his wife had daughters so this line daughtered out. Marten is south of Salisbury so it is difficult to say that this is a line coming down from Calne or a line coming across from Hampshire or up from Christchurch/Southampton. But no one in the male Blake line is descendant of this couple. 

South Newton (19 miles WSW of Andover, 30 miles S of Calne).

The Blake family at South Newton continues from the 1500s  to the present. A freehold in Stoford (close to South Newton) was purchased by Henry Blake (between 1693 and 1704) and in 1704 Henry passed it to John Blake and John sold it in 1720 (British History Online). Could this be the Calne Blake family? Certainly Henry was a forename in the Blake family of Calne at the time of the destruction of the family home at Pinhills in 1643. But there were Blakes at South Newton in the 1500s.

Dental appointment interrupted my day and I am getting older as I found that I needed a long rest after that appointment. 

Last night heavy snow which we definitely need but it looks like it could be 40 cm so a fair amount but we are headed towards March when we do get our heaviest snows. 

Today more work on the Wiltshire/Hampshire/Berkshire/Dorset Blake wills. It is a number of years since I transcribed all of the Wiltshire wills and likely the same for the rest. It is good to have the blogs to review though as I put quite a bit of time into each one pulling out available data at the time. 

I am still thinking that I should write an article on the Blake yDNA for the Guild Journal in hopes of attracting more testers as finding one with a proven paper trail back to the Calne Blake family could prove interesting. I still need to find the work I did on the French yDNA. I remember doing it and not that long ago and I did find some interesting details when I did it I recall. 

The new ethnicity reports that My Heritage has created - Ethnicity Estimate v2.5: The Long-Awaited Improved DNA Ethnicity Model are now available and most interesting. There was also an Ancient Report which I did find very interesting as it located my grandfather Blake as a Western Hunter Gatherer in the British Isles very early on. Intriguing really and we do have to listen to these stories by peoples who lived in places for a very long time. Their knowledge base is huge and often so detailed as it was passed down through the families (and I do realize now in my old age that that was exactly what my grandfather was doing - passing it on because we were so far from where my Blake family lived in England).  As my brother next older to me in age and I met through the last 15 years of his life from 2007 on we met regularly (three to four times a year) in London (my home town) where we talked about our family and especially he was interested in the yDNA. It all sort of came together after my mother passed away. She had reminded me of my intense interest in DNA as a child and certainly it did drive me towards Chemistry at University. But she had also talked to him about DNA and that people were testing so the combination came together not long after she passed as we started emailing each other and then I spotted the Sorenson Genomics Testing and mentioned it and he was keen. In all Edward, my brother and I tested our DNA with Sorensen Genetics and I just started to collect all the data that came forward. At that time there were a couple of matches with Doug and other Blake descendants primarily in Australia as I recall but also in the United States. They did not carry it forward into FT DNA as that offer was suggested and I did do that with all three of our tests and then so much testing since on all of the kits. I must go in and have a look at my siblings also on My Heritage and Edward for the new ethnicity reports. It is amazing how differently we all inherited from our four grandparents - me especially as I am totally different from everyone except my brother next in age to me but younger. He and I are the most similar but he still does not match me that closely. Interesting how that happens - I simply inherited a very large percentage from my paternal grandmother and none of them did. I was around 36% ?/Rawlings and they all tend to be in the neighbourhood of 12 to 18% with all of them inheriting strongly in the Blake line. The same in the maternal line with me inheriting quite strongly in the Buller line and a number of them inherited in the Taylor line (which does have Irish matches) and then in the Pincombe they inherited far more than I did with me inheriting strongly in the Routledge/Gray side. I think it is mostly Routledge for me as my Scot percentage tends to look like it is a generation closer than actual. So always very interesting. My Heritage is growing rapidly and I still have not done the work of inserting all my new matches into my database to work on the phasing of my grandparents and great-grandparents which I liked to update every year but it is now three years since I made a big update. The reality is that it was really the DNA (and my cousin wanting the Pincombe Profile for his book) that brought me into genealogy finally in 2003. I did have the experience though through the years of helping Edward at the repositories as he searched for his family's records both in Ontario and then in the New England States. It took us simply everywhere in New England and then to Utah to the Family History Library and to the Allen Country Library in Indiana as well as the Library of Congress in Washington. I have seen so many of these repositories including of course NEHGS and NYGBS where we spent many days going through their collections. Our very first trip to the United States to discover information was in 1973 I think. We had exhausted all the information at the Ontario Archives and Library and Archives Canada by then. Then there was Kew in London, England - a fantastic resource which I occasionally toy with the idea of going and spending a bit of time there. But you can buy scanned records from them which at 79.5 years of age works very well for me.

Tea finished and the day is ahead of me.

 

So what did I learn about the y-DNA of the group

Sunday today and the service is in London. I shall attend in a bit. It is called Racial Justice Sunday. I believe that everyone under the sun is equal and I thank my mother for making me realize this as a young child when I asked her about the first Black person I ever saw when I was eight years old on the bus going to the Dentist with her. I asked if he had been burned and that was why his skin was black. She said  no that people came in many different shades of skin colour and we were all the same. It was so simply put that it remained with me through my childhood and until now at nearly 80 years of age. I treat all people the same (and some might say it is pretty blunt but I do not want to waste their time or mine). I am simply not a really friendly person just me. 

 Yesterday was a busy day looking at various items but particularly the yDNA of the I-M253 group. First and foremost these individuals are not related in the past 1000 years closely although they share the same line back from I-L22 to I-M253 so thinking they are all from Normandy might be realistic but as their evolution continued forward they took different paths. 

Why did so many people have the surname Blake one might ask in the areas I am looking at - namely Hampshire/Dorset/Wiltshire/Berkshire? Well as demonstrated the wills in the Wiltshire area in the 1500s showed individuals with the Blake surname in Calne, Martin/Marten, Warminster, West Lavington, Playtford, South Newton, Erlestoke, Deverill Longbridge. Looking at Hampshire in the 1500s there were individuals with the surname Blake in Andover, Kings Somborne, Quarley, Knights Enham, Dibden, Lockerley, Penton Mewsey, West Tytherley, East Tytherley, Lymington, Winchester, Christchurch, Ellingham, Mottisfont, Romsey, Boldre, Sparsholt, Isle of Wight (Godshill, Brading). Berkshire  in the 1500s there were individuals with the surname Blake in Speen, Didcot, Bucklebury. 

Just in those four counties there are many Blake families in the 1500s. Getting back into the 1300s is more difficult to look at the Blake families and where they were. The land records seem helpful but I find few records prior to 1200, not many in the 1200s but more in the 1300s. The map I put up showing locations of Blake in the Calendar of Patent Rolls which included the 1300s was interesting. 

The frequency of Blake in the areas mentioned Wiltshire, Berkshire, Hampshire and Dorset rather match the frequency of the wills in the 1500s. So is the family lore wrong or it was just that the Blake family at Calne was the best known of all the Blake families in these areas and if your history (which was likely to individual families) included Normandy as being your family home then one might just assume that you had some sort of a relationship with the Blake family at Calne. 

I decided the next step was to look at the remainder of the people in this group and add them to my chart. The other comment is that only one individual in this group names Robert de Blakeland and the original structure was set up by Barrie Blake who did correspond with many of these people and I just carried it on and fitted them in if their haplogroup fitted which was I-M253. A number have Ireland as their designated country. All but one of the testers was at I-M253 as their level of testing and the addition fits in with the rest of the group. I have really learned all that I can given that the number of Blake testers continues to be too small to really make a point with this data other than they all descend from I-M253 which gives them a sort of ethnic origin that tends to point to Scandinavia as their location 1500 to 2500 years ago (CE). Since the history of this part of France points to a Viking settlement of Normandy between 790 and 1030 (CE) that fits with the data. The Latin documents at this time verifies this movement calling these individuals Nortmanni (men of the North). Putting all of these Blake results into one category works very well and I would not make any changes until we have considerably more Blake testers. But are they all descendant of the le Blak family no and we do not have a tester with a proven line back to Richard le Blak of Rouen, Normandy but I did find some interesting French results in another site. Must find that and republish it here as it was interesting. 

Time for breakfast, yoga first.

 

Continuing on with the search at Kew

Yesterday interesting details emerged from the search on le Blake and le Blak. The appearance of a le Blake in Southampton prior to the date on which Richard le Blak of Rouen Normandy received his permit to set up a market in England was a surprise as I had not noted that particular item before. There is a Blake line in the southern part of Hampshire around Southampton/Christchurch that stays pretty much in that area although gradually does appear to move upwards into Dorset and Wiltshire as well as Hampshire and there are a number of wills for the Blake family in this area and they do not appear to link to the Blake family in Andover area nor do you see mention of the Blake family members known to be descendant of the Calne Blake family. But there are a number of distinct lines in the Blake yDNA study. This is perhaps one of those that now has three members (must check on that) or more and an excellent researcher in England on that one. But I am trying not to be subjective; I just found it interesting that there was a Blake present in southern Hampshire prior to 1274 when Richard le Blak received his market permit as shown in the Calendar of Patent Rolls. 

Today I want to continue with that search and will soon be doing that. This next month could prove to be interesting as there are many many Blake documents online and forever available to researchers because they are electronic. That is perhaps the gift of our generation to the future. When I first started into computers back in the mid 1960s who would have guessed how far we would come by the mid 2020s. We must continue to be in charge; to manage AI and to make it work for us as it is not limited by the frailty of Homo sapiens and can endure through the ages. It is our gift to the future and we must improve on it every day that lies ahead of us but always be in charge. 

Why do I think Richard le Blak in particular is the ancestor of the Calne Blake family. It is because he was Norman and that would likely give him a boost immediately on his arrival in England. Going to Wargrave makes really good sense because of its proximity to Windsor. Why move towards northern Wiltshire though? Someone with more knowledge than I have would probably quickly see something that was interesting but it does appear they moved towards Speen prior to finding them in northern Wiltshire. Still following that family lore that has (perhaps) a distant connection between the Hampshire Blake family to the Blake family that was at Calne and served as Parliamentarians in 1381, 1383 and 1384. This was John Blake and his son John Blake was born circa 1388 and can be located at Blacklands (a mile SE of Calne) in 1412 when he inherited some family property (I have blogged on that and must check what I wrote). I did blog it 22 Aug 2022 "Looking at Blake and an Anne Cole who were said to have married circa 1320s" and the land was held from 1262 to 1539 by the Malmesbury Abbey. It then passed into private family hands (eventually to the Maundrell family in the late 1780s). We do know that Robert Blake had a fulling mill at Quemberford which is close to Blackland. Source: https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/wilts/vol17/pp17-27

The actual location of the fulling mill known to be held by a Robert Blake (father of this John and Robert) is not known to me. A google search revealed a couple of hits which could be investigated. A marker on the map (https://www.blacklandsmill.com/contact) does locate a building called Blacklands Mill that is close to the Blacklands estate.

The connection that hints towards a link to the Calne family appears in the Visitations of one line of the Blake family at Andover in the 1600s and in 1690 (with additions into the 1700s) the Daniel Blake family of London working with the College of Arms created the Blake Pedigree Chart I have mentioned a number of times where a more detailed descent was added. The Blake Museum at Bridgwater holds another large Pedigree Chart (principally linking the Somerset Blake family to the Calne Blake family) but it also mentions the Andover Blake family. Neither of them has the correct parents for William Blake of Eastonton who left his will in 1582 clearly establishing the family lines going back and forward. As do the other wills of this family. Five generations are readily established. I postulate that the connection between the Blake family that was eventually at Calne and the Blake family at Andover were related much further back in the early 1300s. That is the purpose of all this searching and I will spend the next month pursuing this idea in order to form a more concrete proof for this connection if one exists; one that makes use of all the records now available to me. 

I do not plan to publish this book outside of my family particularly but will place it into repositories with the embargo that is is available to family members and academic researchers. Because William, Prince of Wales is descendant, by way of his mother Diana, Princess of Wales, of the Blake family of Calne definitely and I propose that he is descendant of the Blake family of Andover going back to Thomas Blake married to Dorothy Mayowe and the son of Thomas Blake and Eleanor Hall with William Blake married to Elizabeth (unknown) the father of John. This Thomas was the eldest son of John Blake and Margaret (Blake) Blake. Like James Sanders I will leave my thoughts to individuals who may in the future continue this research line and I do so humbly as did he! Certainly life can be very interesting in your old age as you read through all these documents from ancient times. 

My interest is primarily in that ancient ancestor of mine who likely arrived in the British Isles 8000 to 12000 years ago and was named Deer-Hunter by Ethnoancestry on the basis of the yDNA results of two of my four brothers (I could not test one as he was deceased and I really didn't need three results all the same) and this name has remained in the discussion but the more common name would have been Western Hunter-Gatherer. No surname through thousands of years and suddenly his surname is Blake. Why did he chose it? It was an established surname by that time with several families having the surname Blake already in England; I think there needed to be incentive to take on that surname personally. Marriage certainly does provide one with that sort of an incentive. That question I cannot really answer but certainly in the 1300s in England with the Duke of Normandy having conquered England and become its King there would be an asset to marrying into the le Blak family or Blake as it was commonly written by the 1300s. This ancestor was perhaps known as John of Enham in the early 1300s (the Blake family were at Knights Enham in the 1400s) so why not become John Blake of Knights Enham. Now I would say that my grandfather did not really buy into that idea that he was descendant of the Blake family at Calne. He didn't actually believe there was any relationship between Robert Blake, Lord High Admiral, of Bridgwater a line that considered itself descendant of the Blake family at Calne. But he did repeat the family lore along with the idea that the original settlers of the British Isles were one of the Lost Tribes of Israel. Family lore being what it is can sometimes have a moment of truth in it but it can also lead you astray so one proceeds very cautiously in this line of thought.

Breakfast is next, tea is drank, solitaire puzzles all done and even a Sudoku whilst I waited for my kettle to boil and my tea to steep. 

I will continue again to add to this blog through the day. Looking at le Blake 1200-1299 and there are 20 entries 12 completed yesterday). 

Entry 13:  Adam le Blake, 1270, Shropshire Archives 465/4, Grant and quitclaim. An interesting family but I do not think they are connected to the Wiltshire Blake family.

Entry 14: Refers to property and is held by Canterbury Cathedral Archives and Library - 'la blake hege', date 27 Oct 1266 (28 Oct 1265). CCA-DCc-ChAnt/G/116

Entry 15: A similar property and individuals to Entry 14 but does mention a Thomas le Blake and I think is related to Entry 8, 9, 10 in 1200-1299

Entry 16: Refers to land belonging to a church of Blake Nhottele in Essex. 1261-1262.

Entry 17:  Roger Blake and his son Henry, 7 Mar 1294, a gift from father to son it would appear in the Blake family, Knyton, Leicestershire. This Roger Blake is perhaps living at the same time as the gift of land to the Knights Templar by a Roger Blake of Herefordshire (these two counties are fairly close). Leicestershire lies in the same area as Shropshire although somewhat distant apart with Warwickshire between them.

Entry 18. A grant in Swalecliffe once again a record in the Canterbury Cathedral Archives and Library, 20 Nov 1284 - 19 Nov 1285. Thomas le Blake again mentioned. 

Entry 19: Quitclaim (Deeds and Papers), Shakespeare Birthplace Trust DR10/254. A Thomas Blake was a witness, c 1290. There was a Blake family in the Midlands that I have mentioned in another blog and I believe the records available eliminate them from being related to Richard le Blak.

Entry 20: Estate papers of the 4th and 5th Earls of Onslow and one line mentions 1320/273 Copy letters of J Jex Blake, Warren Farm. The holdings of the Earl of Northumberland were extensive and this one refers to the Blake family of Norfolk (East Anglia).

1300 - 1399 (with 98 of these I will only really look at the documents that pertain to Berkshire, Hampshire, Wiltshire and Dorset and possibly Gloucestershire)

Entry 1: Northamptonshire

Entry 2: Worcestershire

Entry 3: Warwickshire

Entry 4: Warwickshire

Entry 5: Warwickshire

Entry 6: Somersetshire - Thomas le Blake of Milverton 1340 DD/SF/1595 (Southwest Heritage Trust)

Entry 7: Northamptonshire

Entry 8: Northamptonshire

Entry 9: same as Entry 1 1100-1199, Worcestershire

Entry 10: Roger le Blake, Madebrook and his grant of land to the Knights Templar 10 Nov 1302 - 19 Nov 1303, C 143/41/23 

Entry 11: Lancashire

Entry 12: Gloucestershire, John le Blake as a witness to the land grant made to Margery le Blake and Nicholas le Blake.3 Jan 1318. BCM/A/2/62/2 (Berkeley Castle Muniments)

Entry 13: Gloucestershire, John le Blake is identified as being of Rockhill, 26 Dec 1330, BCM/A/2/62/5

Entry 14: Lincolnshire, John le Blake and his son Gilbert le Blake, 1317, C 241/113/124

Entry 15: as Entry 14, 1317, C241/82/211

Entry 16: Warwickshire

Entry 17: same as Entry 2 1100-1199

Entry 18: Buckinghamshire

Entry 19: Northamptonshire

Entry 20: Robert le Blake to John Malewayn, grant, 1358, Wiltshire and Swindon Archives 1720/154 (his brother Adam Blake is mentioned)

Entry 21: Robert le Blake paying bond to John Malewayn of Echelhamptone, Wiltshire, 1358, Ref: 1720/152

Entry 22: John le Blake, Cam, Gloucestershire, 16 Aug 1332, BCM/A/1/60/54

Entry 23: Hugo le Blake and wife Katherine, quitclaim, Gloucestershire, 1367, D6322/4

Entry 24: Warwickshire

Entry 25: Warwickshire

Entry 26: Gloucestershire, John son of William le Blake of Rockhill, 3 May 1311, BCM/A/2/62/1

Entry 27: Middlesex, Nicholas le Blake, London, 25 Jan 1349-24 Jan 1350, E 40/1733

Entry 28: Warwickshire

Entry 29: Gloucestershire, John le Blake of Cam, acquisition of land, 1332, BCM/A/1/60/55

Entry 30: Middlesex, similar to Entry 27

Entry 31: Middlesex, London, Nicholas le Blake.

Entry 32: Richard le Blake, Haydon, Wiltshire, 25 Jan 1343-24 Jan 1344, Taxes, E326/6618,  perhaps the son of Margery le Blake. similar to Entry 2: 1100-1199.

Entry 33: Warwickshire

Entry 34: Suffolk

Entry 35: similar to Entry 34

Entry 36: Essex

Entry 37: Gloucestershire, Grant, John le Blake 25 Jan 1338 - 24 Jan 1339, E 210/7780

Entry 38: Staffordshire

Entry 39: Worcestershire

Entry 40: Robert le Blake at Stokkelegh, Wiltshire, 1347, Ref: 1720/137. I have mentioned this in another blog.

Entry 41: Roger Blake, Bodmin, Cornwall, 6 May 1344, C 241/118/364. This is interesting as I have done a number of writeups on the Blake family of Cornwall; must check and see if I have this particular item.

Entry 42: similar to Entry 41: Roger le Blake, 3 May 1343, C241/117/256

Entry 43: John Blake, Gloucestershire, 1391, D2762/T5. Also rather interesting and will check to see if I have looked at this one earlier.

Entry 44: Robert Blake, Stokkelegh, Wiltshire, 1347, Ref 1720/139. Also in another blog.

Entry 45: Warwickshire, place name is Blake Furlong.

Entry 46: John Blake at Whetham, Wiltshire, 1387, Ref: 1720/202

Entry 47: Robert le Blake, Quemerford, 1353, Ref: 1720/148

Entry 48: Humphrey le Blake, Margarethis wife, Roger his son, and John le Blake, Shaftesbury, Wiltshire, Inquisition Ad Quod Damnum, 25 Jan 1347-24 Jan 1348, C 143/286/3.

Entry 49: Lincolnshire

Entry 50: Swaffham, Norfolk, Simon Blake, 1474

Entry 51: Robert le Blake, witness; Grant of Land. 1334, Ref 1720/120.

Entry 52: John le Blake of Rockhill, Shropshire, Nicholas le Blake of Stoke. 19 Jan 1321, Ref: BCM/A/2/62/4.

Entry 53: similar to Entry 52

Entry 54: John Blake, witness, 1395, Ref: 1720/213

Entry 55: Henry le Blake, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, 1343, C 241/117/176

Entry 56: Adam le Blake, London, 1330, Ref: SC 8/92/4572

Entry 57: Leicestershire

Entry 58: Suffolk

Entry 59: Herefordshire

Entry 60: Gloucestershire, Alexander le Blake, 0 Aug 1337, Ref: D326/T171/3.

Entry 61: Warwickshire

Entry 62: Cheshire

Entry 63: Buckinghamshire, Yorkshire

Entry 64: Kent

Entry 65: John le Blake and Alice his wife, 1347, Twyverton, Ref: DD/WHb/583.

Entry 66: Warwickshire

Entry 67: Herefordshire

Entry 68: Robert le Blake, witness, 1345, Ref: DD/WHb/1027-1028, East Coker, Somerset.

Entry 69: Murder of William le Blake, Ogbourne, Wiltshire, 1302,  Ref: SC 8/50/2463 (one of the King's Ministers). I did not see this one before, interesting. 

Entry 70: Suffolk

Entry 71: Lincolnshire

Entry 72: Warwickshire

Entry 73: Robert le Blake, of Kemerford (old word for Quemerford), quitclaim, 1364, Ref: DD/WHb/813 (blogged this item earlier).

Entry 74: John le Blake, witness, Quitclaim, Lega, Hampshire, 17 Oct 1331, Ref: 44M69/C/67

Entry 75: Leicestershire/Rutland

Entry 76: Suffolk

Entry 77: same as Entry 3: 1100-1199

Entry 78: Essex

Entry 79: Suffolk

Entry 80: Warwickshire

Entry 81: Robert le Blake, witness, 1363, Ref: 1720/164, Wiltshire

Entry 82: Christine, widow of Roger le Blake, John le Blake their son, Indented grant by the abbess of Lacock and the messuage is at Lacock. 1350 Dec 30, K H Rogers, Lacock Abbey Charters (Wiltshire Record Society, 1979), no 204. This is quite interesting as John is found at Lacock in a later record. Is he the John Blake that was the ancestor of Humphrey Blake, grandfather to the Admiral Robert Blake on the Blake Pedigree Charts? 

Entry 83: Suffolk

Entry 84: Cheshire

Entry 85: West Sussex

Entry 86: East Sussez

Entry 87: Herefordshire

Entry 88: Leicestershire

Entry 89: John le Blake, Stoke, Devon, witness quit claim, 1341, Ref: 1038 M/T/4/15.

Entry 90: Staffordshire

Entry 91: East Sussex

Entry 92: Warwickshire

Entry 93: Staffordshire

Entry 94: Staffordshire

Entry 95: Staffordshire

Entry 96: Warwickshire, Buckinghamshire

Entry 97: Kent

Entry 98: Essex

le Blak

1200-1299

Entry 1: Thomas le Blak, witness, mentioned in a grant of land, Milverton, Somerset, circa 1280. Very interesting to find a record for Thomas le Blak in Somerset. Reference DD/SF/1591. I think this is the first record I have found for a le Blak in Somerset this early.

Entry 2: Thomas le Blak, Swalecliffe, near Canterbury Cathedral, witness, grant, 20 Nov 1294 x 19 Nov 1295, CCA-DCc-ChAnt/T/17.

Entry 3: Thomas le Blak, Swalecliffe, Quitclaim, 19 Dec 1293, CCA-DCc-ChAnt/T/8.

1300-1399

Entry 1: Nottinghamshire

Entry 2: Thomas le Blak, Milverton, Somerset, grant of land from Thomas to Wm. Vycery, 1321-1322, Ref DD/SF/1593.

Entry 3: Nottinghamshire

Entry 4: William Blak, chaplain, Nottinghamshire, 16Aug 1315, C 241/81/147.

Entry 5: John son of Gilbert le Blak, Lincolnshire, 1333 Mar 26. C 241/104/23

Entry 6: Staffordshire

Entry 7: Suffolk

That completes that run through the National Archives looking at le Blak and le Blake.I will do a search on Blake itself as there are a number of records not caught with this search. 

A couple of surprises and I may order them just to see what is in the items. I have looked up records a number of times so have seen some of these already and worked my way through them. I made a map showing the number of hits in the Calendar of Patent Rolls per country for Blake.

 

 The time span for these records is 30 Jan 1230 to 16 Jun 1452. I have a copy of every one of these records and generally have used them looking at the families through the last few years but I decided to pull the records from the National Archives although most of them I have seen but this way I know that I have looked at all of them. 

Finished for the day, yoga done, running done, just weight lifting and that is next. No more work today. 

 

 

 

I do like what PM Stephen Harper wrote in his editorial

I agree with him as I did when he was Prime Minister until I didn't but that was ten years ago and more. Our best friend should ideally be the United States and They have been for over two hundred years; we share a huge border with them. A closer economic and custodial (we need to protect this continent) relationship would be even better and make us both stronger and I do like fresh fruit and vegetables (the American broccoli, cauliflower, and other items that I bought last week were excellent and fresh). Tariffs are a downer on the economy and it will be the farmers/manufacturers of goods and services in the United States who pay the price which is really not very fair to your own people to destroy their market and increase the prices they will pay everywhere for the raw materials that are cheaper to buy across this border than anywhere else. I do agree with PM Stephen Harper that giving the Americans a break on the price of oil being shipped by us to them to refine has always been a bonus for our good relationship. We could get a better price elsewhere but our good friends are right there to the south and we haven't done that (we have finished the pipeline to the ocean now for the surplus but the United States remains our preferred customer); friendship means a lot. It is really up to them to let their government know what they prefer (cheap gas at the pumps and a place to sell their produce/finished goods and we are eager to eat that for sure/buy their finished goods). We would put tariffs on reluctantly if the United States does because we value that great friendship. We will help defend the water border (and as Americans know we were into both World Wars right at the beginning in 1914 and 1939 so we can be counted on to defend Turtle Island as the First Nations refer to this part of North America if a foreign entity attacks this continent). I do think we need to spend far more on our military as I have been saying for a very long time; we need to provide more incentives to get the young people to enlist (free education at the end of their term of years and I understand that is a somewhat shorter period than I mentioned earlier in the United States so we could follow their guidelines on that they have years of experience). The loss of Canada as a buyer for cars and so many other items would be huge; we are after all 41 million people who buy a lot of cars (many people own two) and we continue to drive our wonderful Dodge Caravan made in Canada along with many other Canadians who own cars built by American companies on Canadian soil and they do go back and forth between Canada and the United States as they are built (and we are right next door so the cost of shipping it to us is pretty low comparatively). We are a country of raw materials with 75% of our exports to the United States being just that! We have to buy finished goods and foods during the long cold winter but we also store vegetables and other produce so can eat that but it would be a pity. There is a polar vortex coming just to remind us of how cold it can get here. But we are inventive and innovative and can build a manufacturing economy if we have to but the status quo has suited us as we are the same kind of people and our friendship is long standing.

Cleaning all accomplished and a work day. I shall be looking at the Blake Book once again although it should really be Pincombe but I will get to that next week. I am really very much into this le Blak/le Blake family of Berkshire/Wiltshire. I will be searching British History Online again today to have a look at what I can find.  A John le Blake in Cam, Gloucestershire leasing a house and land in 1332 was most interesting especially given its proximity to Calne. John le Blake is the son of William le Blake of Rockhill. I will pursue this as I could not yet locate Rockhill. In Herefordshire there is a Roger le Blake in the early 1300s as noted earlier. But the coincidence of the Blake family of Calne moving to Gloucestershire after refusing a title and having their manor house destroyed for that by Charles I is a strong memory. The Blake family is stubborn for sure and I do have Blake cousins in the United States with some way back in time actually matching me on Ancestry but I have at least two Blake lines deep in the past perhaps doubling up on the DNA there! I do have so many cousins in the United States (and Canada too).

I will add to this as the day progresses but it is breakfast time. 

Looking at the Parish Wargrave and its history one finds that the Manor of Wargrave was granted to Emma of Normandy (wife of Ethelred the Unready) circa 1061-5. Later Queen Edith held Wargrave. William, Duke of Normandy, later William I of England seized Wargrave and held it in demesne in 1086 and it belonged to the ancient demesne of the Crown. Henry I granted it to the see of Winchester circa 1189. I did not see any mention of Richard le Blak or his daughter Alicia although they appear on the Pipe Roll of the Bishopric of Winchester 1301-2 (Hampshire Record Series Volume 14) at Wargrave along with John Blak. Closeby at Waltham St Lawrence Hamo Blak and Walter Blak (son of Hamo). This area is 56 km NE of Andover by the road (somewhat shorter on horse back if one was so tempted). 

Going to the Discovery catalogue at the National Archives there are for a search term le Blake 287 items but looking only at 1100-1199 (3), 1200-1299 (20), 1300-1399 (98), 1400-1499 (18). If I use only le Blak there are 14 items but looking only at 1200-1299 (3), 1300-1399 (7) 1400-1499 (3) and the timeline does have Robert Blake (married to Avis Wallop) owning a Fulling Mill at Quemerford and his date of death is 1515. There is material on this Blake and I tend to use him as a starting point going backwards. 

I have blogged some of this material earlier but I want to concentrate on items that would show movement from Normandy to Hampshire to Berkshire to Wiltshire as I predict that would have been the movement following 1274 when Richard le Blak was awarded the right to set up a market in England. One had to remember he was a Norman and would have preference in this England conquered by William now replaced in this time frame by King Edward I of England whose attachment to Normandy was probably sufficiently strong to assist anyone coming from Normandy to be successful.

But before I do that I need to look at the documents showing a Richard le Blak along the Hampshire coast earlier. I find it interesting that he is near Windsor (Wargrave is in that area) on a King's demesne in 1301 having received the right to set up a market in England in 1274 as shown by the Calendar of Patent Rolls. One would not necessarily proceed immediately to England but would need to prepare somewhat and then select locations where such a market would be profitable. Certainly near Windsor would be very profitable! But likely one would start along the coast of Hampshire which is right across the Channel. Hampshire was a wealthier area as well compared to the other counties. Hence the search at the National Archives. 

Looking at le Blake

1100-1199

Entry 1: There is a John le Blake in Worchestershire and he was the son of John Blake but the date range is up to 1500 on a conveyance and I do know there is a Blake family in Worchestershire and I do not believe they are related. 

Entry 2: Margery le Blake widow at Haydoneswyke (Haydon Wick is suggested) and it is Tax but the date is 1100-1600. Since she is a widow I usually do not follow these items but Haydon Wick is just north of Swindon so close to the Berkshire border interestingly but one would need to read the document E 326/6191 to see whether the date refers to the land or the family (likely the land).

Entry 3: The third item is for a Roger le Blake and in Wiltshire interestingly enough with a date range of 1100 - 1603 but does not mean that the land was held by the Blake family in 1100. There is a Roger Blake of interest in the Calne Blake family who left his will in 1557. I will keep this as reference if I do indeed trace down the Calne Blake family. The property is at Ricardeston held by the Abbot of Stanleg' and there is a Stanley Abbey near Chippenham Wiltshire at Bremhill. Chippenham to Calne is about 11 kilometres. So an interesting find if I happen to trace this family down. Includes seals and legends so could be interesting. E 40/12128

1200-1299

Entry 1:  A William le Blake is at Southampton, Hampshire in 1289. Interesting and I will keep track of this item. C 241/4/67A Certificate of Statute Merchant and Statute Staple

Entry 2: same as Entry 1 in 1100-1199 search

Entry 3: same as Entry 2 in 1100-1199 search

Entry 4: Richard le Blake, burgess of Shoreham (Sussex) in 1290. The other members on the certificate are noted as Alien merchants in Winchester. I found this item interesting. C241/14/70 (I may already have this record).

Entry 5: Stephen le Blake is named as a merchant of Southampton, Hampshire in 1286. C241/7/288.

Entry 6: Stephen le Blake (same location, same year). C241/6/36

Entry 7: John le Blake of Hatfeld Regis, Essex and a quitclaim in 1295.

Entry 8, 9, 10: Thomas le Blake and he is a witness on a Quitclaim 17 May 1293 at Swalecliffe (likely the County of Kent since the record is at Canterbury Cathedral Archives and Library). There is a Blake family in this early time period in East Anglia, London and down into Kent and Surrey. I suspect they are from The Netherlands as  Blake entries continued into 1330 to 1550s from The Netherlands. The other argument for this are the yDNA results in the Blake yDNA study at FT DNA and more on that once I get into writing up. CCA-DCc-ChAnt/T/6

Entry 11: same as Entry 3 in 1100-1199 search

Entry 12: Robert le Blake of Southorpe, Lincolnshire, Road agreement 11 Apr 1272. This is before the Calendar of Patent Rolls grant to Richard le Blak. It is known that there were other Blake lines in England prior to and coincidental to the presence of Richard Blak at Wargrave in 1301. 

Will complete tomorrow. Interesting day. 

 

 

Decisions

March for my studies became a throw away month whilst I contemplated the path for each of the two books. 

Pencombe became the easiest to resolve as I realized that the data that existed did not lend to the thought that Philip Pynkeham at Tawstock was related to the Pencombe family at North Molton. He is either related to an earlier Pencombe family that came to Devon from Herefordshire (not necessarily the same family which would be anticipated given the difference in y-DNA results) or is actually a member of the Tykenham family closeby but in the same hundred in this time frame. Decision made to not include Philip in the book. I will in each decade make decisions that lend themselves to the accumulated data. 

Blake ended up creating new chapters to look at Richard le Blak in Berkshire on the Pipe Rolls of 1301 and his family as it moved out of Berkshire and into Wiltshire and Hampshire. The Blake family of Calne does appear to be descendant of this Richard le  Blak and was he the Richard who received license to set up a market in England in 1274 (Calendar of Patent Rolls). This is not yet proven but I continue to look at the available data (available to me). I have added a chapter of the Le Blak family of Calne, I have also added a chapter which looks at two major Blake family documents - Blake Pedigree Chart of 1690 requisitioned by Daniel Blake of London, England with additions into the mid to latter part of the 1700s and the Blake Family Chart (additions up to the early 1920s) possibly created by Edward James Blake of Crewkerne, Somerset. This month of review was definitely worth while for the Blake family book. 

There is snow on the ground here but not a lot. Skiing may not happen! But the moisture is good for sure. 

Tea time and Latin next. 

I must continue pulling out the sets of data that I have collected for this family in the North Molton area

Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Magazine - Volume 9

Nearly spring and the snow is all gone pretty much here. The ground looks dry instead of muddy like it usually is. Time will tell. A yellow sunrise in God's world in the east. What is God thinking as He looks at the world spread out in front of Him? He must have wept for Alexei Navalny - one of His children.  The people of Russia deserve so much more than they are getting - a war is always hardest on its people. Those at the top just live in luxury already greedy for more. The Palestinians here have not brought any children to Canada as far as I can see - they could be safe and well fed here and with very little difficulty since they are little and not a worry; They will not cause any problems for our 600,000 + Jewish people. I think the children is the saddest part; they did nothing to bring this on and it is usual to protect the children and I have a hard time understanding why they are not being protected by people who have all the luxuries of living in Canada. Protest marches are a waste of time - feed the children; bring them to safety.

Very busy working this last week as I spend this "throw-away" month looking at two possibilities - one that Richard le Blak was the founder of the Calne Blake family and two that the Pencombe family at North Molton was descendant of the Pencombe family in Pencombe, Herefordshire. Both have interesting possibilities but provable that is the question. I have looked and looked at the Blake Family Chart on the Blake Museum website (Bridgwater, Somerset) and finally I suddenly saw that perhaps Richard and Robert were interchanged at the top of the Chart and the "proof of life" details for Robert (who has a number of items in various records) did perhaps reveal that they are accidentally interchanged with Richard actually being the father of Robert. There were just too many generations between the two Roberts and not enough years. Perhaps I noted that before but I needed more data on Robert to really see it. With the Pencombe family, not finding a lot of new details but I am just getting into that. Still trying to link Philip Pynkeham at Tawstock but I think one needs to look at land documents to really sort him out. That is not going to happen in my study likely; time will tell.

The Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Magazine, Volume 9 (Pages 223-224) which was published in 1866 and is also available from Internet.Archive.org

 http://archive.org/details/wiltshirearchaeo09arch

There is an article in this particular magazine which discusses descent and arms of families and was produced from the notes of the Richmond Herald at the College of Arms about 1693 although he was not appointed Richmond Herald until 1721. The article Wiltshire Arms and Descents was written by Mr. Clarence Hopper and the author of the notes was Robert Dale ( he was perhaps an heraldic painter prior to his appointment is suggested ). The comment is made that the information was principally from the Visitations of 1620 time period.

His notes on the Blague/Blake/Blaake family

Dorsetshire, 27. Blague, alias Blaake, now Blake of Quemberford [Quemerford], Calne and Pynhills - 1st, arg. a chevron between 3 garbs, sab. (this is the usual arms associated with the Blake family). 2nd, arg. on a pile, az. 3 martlets, sil. both by this name. Crest on a chapeau, gu. turned up erm. a martlet, arg. Kent 83.

Blague of Lacock, a second branch from Quemberford. Kent 83

Blague of Hilcot, a third house from Calne. Kent 83

This fits in with the Visitation of 1565 which states that Roger Blake and Mary Baynard had three sons - Thomas at Pynnell, Robert at Lacock and John at Hilcott which matches the information found in the Wiltshire Arms and Descents article mentioned above.

I did review "Index of Persons Named in Early Chancery Proceedings 1385-1467" produced as The Publication of The Harleian Society Volume LXXIX (1928).There are Blake entries namely John Blak, Rawlyn Blak, Richard Blak, Andrew Blake, Edmond Blake, Edmund Blake (6 entries), John Blake (4 entries), Simon Blake (2 entries), Thomas Blake (4 entries), Walter Blake, William Blake (3 entries). 

Name                      Page              Suit#

John Blak                62                 243

Rawlyn Blak          176               345

Richard Blak          62                243

Andrew Blake         3                  69

Edmond Blake      238              174

Edmund Blake     134               319

Edmund Blake     134               325

Edmund Blake     144               240

Edmund Blake     158               606

Edmund Blake     221              164

Edmund Blake     239              204

John Blake           16                 10

John Blake           20               103 

John Blake         204               490

John Blake         295              353

Simon Blake      144              240

Simon Blake      238              174

Thomas Blake   134              329

Thomas Blake   285               74

Thomas Blake   293             307

Thomas Blake   390               13

Walter Blake     154             505

 William Blake   30             131

William Blake    30             148

William Blake  166              88

I will check for Wiltshire, Hampshire, Berkshire in Discovery Catalogue at the UK National Archives for all of these entries.

 John Blak - 13 records from 1300-1499 -  10 are mostly from Norfolk with one from Devon

1. 1400s. Ogbourne St Andrew, Wiltshire C 1/1495/32, grandson William Blake plaintiff. 

2. 1382. Document witnessed by John Blak (dealt with Calne area, Wiltshire).

3. 1489. Thornbury, Gloucestershire E 40/13329-13344. Joan wife of Thomas Pacche daughter and heir of John Blak. Interesting in that the Blake family of Calne is found in Gloucestershire after leaving Calne area.

Rawlyn Blak -  1 record from 1400-1499 - Leicestershire

Richard Blak - 1 record from 1400-1499 - Norfolk

Andrew Blake - 2 records from 1300-1499 - Kent, Sussex

Edmond Blake - 0 records from 1300-1499

Edmund Blake - 12 records from 1300-1499 - 10 Norfolk, 1 Essex, 1 Surrey

To be continued the next Blake day.

Calendar of Patent Rolls and my first task is to check for Robert le Blake and Robert Blake and this is between  1230 and 1452:

1357 21 Oct Westminster  (membrane 12)

Pardon in like terms to John Gosegh merchant of Salisbury on,

his outlawry in the county of Wilts for non-appearance to answer

touching a plea of Robert Blake, Thomas son of Walter de Hungerford

Edward Cokerel and Henry Flemyng,executors of the will of Henry

Russel, citizen of Salisbury, late executor of the will of John

Godhyne late burgess and merchant of Marlebergh that he render

to them 110 l

31 Edward III, volume 10, page 630

One mention only of Robert Blake and it involves a case in Salisbury and Marlebergh which is likely Marlborough and not too far from Calne and Devizes so an interesting find to have a Robert, adult since he is  the executor of a will (although there are exceptions but generally so), in 1357. Continuing proof of life for this Robert and since he is not named at all in the Chancery Proceedings commencing in 1385 he is likely deceased by then as his likely wife Joan and son John were involved in a land transaction in 1386 where Joan is named as a widow. The land mentioned is Shawe by Savernake. I did locate a Shaw in Wiltshire  which is Shaw cum Donnington and of all things it is not too distant from Speen which I mentioned as being another Blake location associated with the Andover Blake family (A genealogical Gazetteer of England, Frank Smith, Baltimore, 1987). It is also close enough to Marlborough which is east of Calne and Devizes. An interesting find perhaps. 

I will have a look for Richard la Blak or Richard Blake in the Calendar of Patent Rolls. The one in Rouen, Normandy,  in 1274 is known as that was his permission to set up a market in England. Any of the references have no connection to Wiltshire. 

So I think Robert le Blake is now verified and the wife of Robert was likely Joan and at least one son John. 

I am tempted though to suspect that Robert is a son of Richard le Blak located at Wargrave, Berkshire in 1301 on the Pipe Rolls of the Bishopric of Winchester. Richard Blague does not bring up any hits on the Discovery catalogue. Is it possible that Robert should come after Richard as his son although not mentioned on the Pipe Rolls at Wargrave but there is a John Blak at Wargrave (although he is not named as a son of Richard in that record). But Robert was not likely born until 1313 or shortly before that and he does name a son John. 

Jumping ahead to Robert Blake  of Quemberford and dates online are 1412-1474 for his lifespan. I was not successful on Wednesday with the middle members of the chart above namely Henry, William and Henry but whipping ahead might be helpful. So if we have a date for the first Robert let us say of 1313 to 1386 then this Robert is born 100 years later approximately. If we eliminate Richard from this line coming down then we are left with Henry, William and Henry. This would have Henry as a son of the first Robert (and I suspect he is born before 1313 so Henry born circa 1330s and a William born circa 1350s and a Henry born circa 1380s and that is likely a reasonable span of years for most generations  (actually short when I consider my own generations). But I am suggesting that Richard le Blak is the father of the first Robert and the two just need to be interchanged. 

Quemberford is rather interesting because a Robert Blake is said to have owned a fulling mill in Quemerford. Looking at the British History website (https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/wilts/vol17/pp17-27 ), and Blackland in particular there is a small map on this page which is rather interesting:

In the writeup about Blacklands the Manor and House both known as Blackland was held by Richard de Canville in 1194 and before that date was part of the King's large estate called Calne. At some point after 1086 the land was part of the Calstone estate and was granted away giving some prehistory to Richard de Canville holding the property in 1194. It then descended in the Canville line with a little bit of interesting history and was given or sold to Malmesbury abbey before 1262. It was then held until 1539 by the Abbey until it was dissolved and the manor then passed to the Crown. It then passed into several families until the late 1780s when it passed to the Maundrell family who apparently held property in Compton Bassett which was called Blake. Somewhat interesting but it does not appear that a Robert (le) Blake held Blacklands at any time. 

Continuing to look at British History Online under Calne:Economic History (originally published by Victoria County History, London, 2002) and Mills, Trade and Industry (Source: 'Calne: Economic history', in A History of the County of Wiltshire: Volume 17, Calne, (London, 2002) pp. 79-94. British History Online https://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/wilts/vol17/pp79-94 [accessed 12 March 2024])."A fulling mill in Quemberford belonged to Robert Blake (d. 1515 (Public Record Office, C142/31, no. 53)) and was on the estate at Quemerford conveyed by Robert's grandson Thomas Blake to Henry Chivers in 1560." 

 Robert Blake married to Avis (Wallop) (Malwyn) Blake's son John named his brother Robert (married to Margaret Englefield) as heir to the property which included the Fulling Mill at Quemberford in 1504. Their son Roger Blake married to Mary Baynard had a son Thomas who is noted above as inheriting the mill and selling it. This is seen clearly on the Blake Pedigree Chart held by the Swindon and Wiltshire Record Office.

The value of these two charts is quite huge even if over time one notes difficulties with the Chart but overall the parts of the chart that can be verified by records are a great addition to this Blake family. The intent of the Blake Family Chart at the Blake Museum Bridgwater is to illustrate the Blake Family in Somerset and it does it very well actually. I have blogged on it in the past. I did not see it but I am sure it is a treasure to do so especially if you descend from the Somerset Blake line. 

So today finding the Robert Blake record near Speen is most interesting and continues my thought that at some point in the far past (I suspect late 1200s early 1300s) the Calne Blake and the Andover Blake families were related on the female side and their friendship is still seen in the wills in the 1500s. Having so much material in one place whether you might not quite agree with all the entries is a great asset to the Blake family. 

But I  have still not actually proven that Richard Le Blak is the progenitor of the Calne Blake family but I think there are not a lot of choices looking at the Blake records in the 1200s/1300s. The 1274 permit to set up a market was a great opportunity for Richard le Blak in England but there is an effigy in the Rouen Cathedral in Normandy and it wasn't possible to determine exactly who this person was. Perhaps a look at the French records might be in order.