W.I.S.E. Event

The WISE Family History Society (Wales, Ireland, Scotland, England) meet on the 4th Saturdays of January through June, September, October and the 1st Saturday of December at the Gates Conference Room at the Denver Public Library.

I was invited to speak at one of the meetings about my book Extraordinary Places…Close to London. The presentation included excerpts from the book including information on Reverend Lawrence Washington, great, great grandfather to our first president. Washington was ousted from the church in 1643 because of his royalist leanings. His sons, John and Lawrence left England after their father’s harsh treatment and began their lives in the New World.

Also presented and discussed was the home of the Sherman family, six members of whom helped with the building of America and Christopher Martin from Billericay who sailed on the Mayflower.

An Ancient Custom

(An excerpt from Extraordinary Places…Close to London)

Little Dunmow lies about eight miles south of Thaxted. It is an ancient village rich in history. Domesday Book records of 1086 show Ralph Baynard as Lord of Little Dunmow. In 1104, either Baynard’s wife or sister built a priory and started a custom that is still in effect today: giving a flitch (side) of bacon to any couple who can swear to marital harmony for twelve months and a day.

The custom began with the idea of promoting marital harmony to a couple by offering them a prize and jubilant praise from the village folk. To qualify for the prize, the couple had to swear by means of reciting a rhyme while kneeling on two pointed stones in the churchyard. If the couple could convince the congregation of their commitment to each other, they were awarded the flitch of bacon and carried through the village seated on a chair. The custom has been revived and one can still witness this event.

The following Ancient Rhyme describes the ceremony:

You shall swear by custom and confession,
That you ne'er made nuptial transgression,
Nor since you were married man and wife,
By household brawls, or contentious strife
Or otherwise, at bed or board,
Offend each other in deed or word:
Or, since the Parish Clerk said, Amen,
Wished yourselves unmarried again;
Or in a twelvemonth and a day,
Repented, even in thought, any way;
But continued true, in thought and desire,
As when you joined hands in holy quire.
If to these conditions, without any fear,
Of your own accord, you freely swear,
A whole flitch of bacon you shall receive,
And bear it hence with love and good leave:
For this is our custom at Dunmow well known,
Tho' the pleasure be ours, the bacon's your own.

The church in Little Dunmow is quite small and narrow. It was formed from the south aisle and several arches from the nave of the original priory church. There is a chair in the church, which is said to have carried the winners of the Flitch of Bacon, although this has yet to be validated.

An Ancient Craft

Where else would one find an authentic mask maker but Venice? Brothers Sergio and Massimo Boldrin continue this ancient and creative art at one of their shops La Bottega dei Mascareri located at the foot of the Rialto Bridge. The brothers have been at this location for over 20 years. Here one can find a fantastic assortment of authentic Venetian papier mache masks, such as the “Bauta” the classic mask worn by Ventian nobility, or the “Moretta” a small oval mask worn by women of all social classes. Unable to contain myself as I entered their shop on the Rialto, I purchased four masks and carefully transported them back home.

The brothers opened a second shop located at S. Polo 2720 that has an even larger selection of masks, costumes and capes. At both locations one can see the masters continuing a profession that originated in 1268. I highly recommend a visit to either location.

Memorial Weekend Book Signing Event

Barnes and Noble hosted a successful book signing event for me on Saturday, May 26th. The weather cooperated with a beautiful blue sky and temperatures about 70 F – perfect for a Saturday afternoon stroll. Many people appeared to be purchasing a book or two in anticipation of Father’s Day on June 17th.

It is always a pleasant surprise for me to see so many people in a store milling about, enjoying the books, stopping for a cup of coffee and listening to the live music – not a bad way to spend an afternoon!

Eternal Love or Eternal Misery

The locals tell of a legend that if a couple kiss as they float under The Bridge of Sighs, or Ponte dei Sospiri to give it its proper name, on a gondola at sunset – they will experience eternal love.

The other, less romantic legend associated with the 16th century bridge is that of misery and unhappiness. The bridge passes over the Rio di Palazzo and connects the old prisons to the interrogation rooms in the Doge's Palace from whence the guilty walked across the bridge to their ultimate fate.

In the 19th century, Lord Byron gave the bridge the ominous title of The Bridge of Sighs because he believed many prisoners sighed as they crossed the bridge assuming this would be their last view of their beautiful Venice before they were taken to the dungeons below.

The bridge was designed by a famous family member Antoni Contina. It was Antoni’s uncle Antonio da Ponte who designed the Rialto Bridge.

Transatlantic Brides and Parents Association (TBPA)

Seen here Louise Moore (left) Chairman and Theresa Pearston (center) Secretary. Two members from the Denver South Transatlantic Brides and Parents Association.

The Association was founded in 1946 in Great Britain by the parents of British girls who, during World War II, married American and Canadian servicemen. In March 1947 the exodus of approximately 70,000 British war brides began and the first ships arrived in New York carrying the brides to meet their GI’s. Some already had children and all had left their homeland and loving families behind. Over several months, 20 converted warships and cruise ships, including the Queen Mary, carried the brides to their new lives.

Many of these women were very homesick and the USA and Canada Division of TBPA, provided the opportunity for them to meet other British women all of whom shared a common heritage. Today the Association functions as a British Heritage Association with membership open to anyone of British birth and their descendants to future generations. There are branches throughout the United States and members meet as a group monthly, and every two years a National Convention is held, hosted by one of the many Areas or Branches throughout the US.

Jean McKinney
National President
www.members.cox.net/brit-place

The Village of Dedham

The Domesday Book reports that in 1086, Dedham had a population of over two hundred people and various livestock. The book was prepared by William the Conqueror after his invasion of England in 1066. His scribes were sent into the countryside to assess the population and livestock of each village so a tax could be levied against all the wealth in the land. So feared were the Britons of this inventory, they named the book after God’s final Day of Judgment.

Dedham is a delightful village. The name probably originated from the Saxon, Dydda’s Ham or possibly the name of an original family called Dydda. Dedham lay on a main road later to be known as The King’s Highway that linked Colchester and Ipswich. There are three ancient tracks in the village: Pound Lane, Manningtree Path and Pig Lane. Later, Pig Lane would become East Lane during the reign of Queen Victoria.

The Sherman family of Dedham, Essex, is located across the road from St. Mary the Virgin church. The Sherman’s were an influential family in the area and when at least six members of the family immigrated to America (1633-1640) they became the co-founders of Rhode Island, signatories of the Declaration of Independence, as well as becoming other notable dignitaries. Note the Freemasonry sign in the apex of the roof. (Extraordinary Places…Close to London. Page 22.)

Evidence of the importance of the Sherman family can be seen in St. Mary the Virgin church. There are pews in their name and also a tiny section of stained glass bearing the initials E.S. (Edmund Sherman). This is the last remnant of what must have been a beautiful stained glass window before Cromwell’s men let loose their cannons. They destroyed all that was beautiful in the churches of England preferring a more somber place of worship rather than the extravagant royalist’s way of life.