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These pages provide access to a small sub-set of the Spurgeons family tree. All photos are clickable, displaying either a larger version of the original, or providing access to biographies, events, additional media, and a variety of stories. Access to in-depth stories for some individuals (especially those still living) requires a password-protected account, for personal privacy. Access to family photo albums are also password protected. To request an account, click here. See also additional info about the Spurgeons family tree and timeline maps.

Spurgeon of the day:

Biography of the day:

Born this day:

Married this day:

Blog

5 December 2023: Added a short biography for Rebecca Winfield, my paternal great-great-grandmother, together with death certificates for her husband Thyne John Carpenter, and their son Charles Henry Carpenter (my paternal great-grandfather).

19 October 2023: Corrected dates & added a short biography for my great-granduncle James High, Attendant & later Chief Attendant at the Royal Naval Lunatic Hospital, Great Yarmouth.

7 September 2023: Discovered my maternal great-grandmother Emma Joyce died in 1917 on Christmas Day. Previously had assumed she died from septicaemia, but the death certificate records cause as bronchitis & cardiac failure. Discovered Emma's husband, my maternal great-grandfather William Joyce died on 16 February 1933, not in January as previously supposed.

31 July 2023: Solved the mystery behind my great-grandmother (Sarah Ann Maria High)'s stay with her 'uncle' Robert Smith, the Railway Gate Keeper at White House Lane, Besthorpe, and his wife Mary Ann: the 1871 census records Sarah as their niece. Found Robert's wife Mary Ann High, daughter of Robert High & Mary Garff; it seems Robert remarried Mary Garff 10 years after after his first wife died. He was 54, Mary was 19: their daughter Mary Ann was born 2 months before they married. They had 4 sons after their marriage.

Visits by Sarah, Mary Ann, & maybe other brothers and sisters to the Gate House at Besthorpe may explain how Robert & Sarah Spurgeon knew about the dry goods shop in Besthorpe that they moved to between 1881 & 1884.

31 May 2023: Clarified the initial relationship between Cecil Spurgeon, my grandfather's oldest brother, & Mary Ann Neighbour. Previous I had thought Mary was a servant for Cecil's parents; now it seems Cecil met Mary through her sister Ellen, who was servant for Cecil's parents (see the 1901 census). Mary was a housemaid for a clergyman, living in Kensington (see 1901 census). Added marriage certificates for Cecil & Mary (30 December 1905), and for Mary & Wilfred Kingshott (23 December 1937), her second husband.

18 March 2023: Scanned Roy Spurgeon's Log of a Cycle Tour To North Wales, a 750 mile trip made by Roy & Leslie Lee, 12-27 August 1944. Roy kept notes during their journey, and on return put together a book containing nearly 30 pages of typed foolscap text, 66 postcards collected at various stops along the way, and a large map. Roy's log contains details of their route, the many towns & cities visited, several amusing incidents en-route, encounters with a variety of military activities, and descriptions of each youth hostel: always at the top of a hill! Some of the pre-war postcards may be of historical interest. Also transcribed & updated Log of a Cycle Tour in the Wye Valley, 1943.

16 February 2023: Scanned some 100 year old postcards that crossed the Atlantic twice! Sent in the 1920s from London to California by Walter Spurgeon to his mother (Sarah Spurgeon), brothers and sisters, and returned in 1968 by Roy Spurgeon. Messages on the reverse of some of these cards are handwritten by Walter, and show he was missing his beloved mother - he never saw her after she emigrated in 1915 (she died in 1943), and she never saw her grandson Roy (my father).

19 January 2023: Added Mary Dawson, my 3rd great-grandmother, mother of Ann Porter (mother of Sarah Ann Maria High, who married Robert Walter Spurgeon, my great-grandfather on 17 February 1878). Part of Mary Dawson's family tree goes back to Samuel Downs (born 10 July 1658) & Sarah Hunt (born ~1684). William Porter, one of Ann Porter's brothers, was landlord at the Star Inn (closed 1969), Rockland St Mary, Norfolk from 1879 to 1903 - his father James Porter was landlord there from 1863 to 1877.

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20 December 2022: Added Joyce Brien, a previously missing cousin of my mother Joan Spurgeon, chief bridesmaid at my parents wedding on 14 June 1947. Added Joan Rothon, another of my mother's missing cousins, also a bridesmaid at my parents wedding.

5 October 2022: Analysed a photo of the Joyce family from the early 1900's using new information about the family, now added to their biographies. Researched & updated Caroline Emily Brooks (nee Joyce), known as Aunt Carrie & who visited our family at Chorleywood during the 1960s. Caroline was a sister of my maternal grandmother Maud Lee. Added birth & marriage certificates for Caroline, & timeline maps for both. Like her sisters, Caroline had a difficult early childhood, being sent to the workhouse several times. A mystery surrounds her marriage: age 27 in the 1911 census she's at home, unmarried, living with her parents in London, then on 22 August 1914 she's suddenly in Sheffield, marrying George Brooks, who used to live near her in London. Why Sheffield: did they elope? Added biography for Willaim Joyce, my maternal grandmother's only brother. Clarified the exact date & place of the death of my maternal grandfather, Jim Lee.

25 June 2022: Added timeline maps for selected people - more to be added soon. Click on info info for details. Use timeline maps to explore geographical relationships - eg how did a married couple meet? Make a guess at a love story:

4 April 2022: Added biography of Ann Spurgeon, William Spurgeon's sister, who emigrated to Michigan immediately after marrying William Rudd. They bought a 40 acre homestead plot in section 26 in Newark, Gratiot, Michigan, a little north from her brother's homestead. After further research added details of all 4 Spurgeon's creating homesteads on land in Gratiot County & Oakland County, Michigan.

31 March 2022: Added biography for William Spurgeon, one of my cousins & grandson of John Spurgeon, my 3rd great-grandfather: William emigrated from Little Ellingham, Norfolk, UK to Michigan, USA in 1853. A topographic map of Gratiot County from 1864 shows William owned two adjacent plots of 40 acres each in blocks 34 & 35 (zoomed map). There seems to be a farm in the middle of the same plot today: S Begole Road, Ithaca, MI. Also added biographies for John & another William Spurgeon, also cousins (sons of my 2nd great-granduncle William Spurgeon), both of whom also emigrated from Little Ellingham to Michigan between 1856 & 1864. Their farms were close together in Oxford County, as seen on a map from 1872 (zoomed.

17 March 2022: Added biography for Gilbert Harding, brother of Martha Harding, my paternal great-grandmother. Added Spurgeon & Biography of the day, & birthdays, to family home page.

31 January 2022: Updated videos - now streamed via YouTube for better viewing. The oldest, Animal Antics, contains shots of my father Roy Spurgeon & his parents Walter & Nellie on a caravan holiday with their dog in the early 1940's, also Roy, Joan & Paul at Potters Bar in the early 1950's (probably 1953). More Caravaning in Australia was filmed in colour in 1957 & has a commentary by Roy recorded in 1968. Some videos require login for viewing. On my home page added a scuba-diving link to dive logs, photos & videos.

8 December 2021: Discovered the grisly tale of Peter Seaman's murder, brother of my 5th great-grandfather Henry Seaman: both were attacked & robbed on 11 February 1785 in Cutthroat Lane, Yaxham, Norfolk. Extended Margaret Seaman's family tree back to Henry & Prudence Seaman on her father's side, and Charles & Alice Machin (aka Meachen), 1660, on her mothers side. Added biographies & wills for Charles Machin (another of my 5th great-grandfathers) & his son Charles Meachen, both wealthy farmers in Yaxham, Norfolk. Corrected Solomon Vince's father & family tree: removed William Vince, replaced by Robert Vince. Added his will, and biographies for him, his son Solomon (my 4th great-grandfather), & Solomon's son William. Found a second wife for Solomon: Susanna Cowles (nee Garrad), a widow, and their 3 children: Ann, Samuel & James Cowles, born after the death of Solomon's first wife. Started adding Google map references, initially for Norfolk & my earlier family homes (eg 9 Vunabere Avenue, Bentleigh, Melbourne, Australia).

8 November 2021: Added biographies for Bob Nichols maternal great-great-grandfather John Tooth & great-grandfather James Tooth, both were armourers & served India. Traced the return from Bombay of Bob's maternal grandmother Phoebe Tooth in 1928, & the return of her sisters Amy Shivlock & Ethel Meade with 4 children in 1910. Found William Nichols, Bob's paternal great-great-grandfather, landlord of the Boot Inn, Great Bealing from ~1871 to 1895. Also William's brother Sidney Nichols, Inn Keeper of the White Elm Inn, Ipswich ~1871 & the Woolpack Inn ~1891. Added biographies for Bob's grandfather George Nichols, great-grandfather Frederick Nichols & wife Jane Gregory.

20 October 2021: Added scanned certificates for my parents: Roy & Joan Spurgeon. Found British Army WWI military medal records for my maternal grandfather Jim Lee; traced his second wife Elizabeth Outlaw & her recent family Jean Nichols. Added family tree for Bob Nichols (Sharon & David's father), including biographies for Bob's parents Charles & Phoebe Nichols, and his maternal grandfather Ernest Daniel - Assistant Secretary in the Army Department of the Government of India: Phoebe was born in Bombay (Mumbai).

11 September 2121: Using Charles (Chuck) Spurgeon's website www.spurgeonfamily.ca, traced our family tree back to our shared 7th great grandfather John Spurgeon, adding Spurgeons from Chuck's tree. Many of Chuck's early paternal ancestors lived in Mulbarton, Norfolk; later generations moved to Norwich, and some (including Chuck's grandparents Percy & Rosa Spurgeon) emigrated to Canada.

22 July 2021: Added family tree for relatives of Harriet Vince (Robert Spurgeon's wife), including a detailed biography for Alice Vince, born & lived at the Swan Inn, Shipdham, Norfolk, married and moved to Suffolk, then emigrated to Salt Lake City, Utah, USA. Also added biography for Alice's father William Vince.

18 June 2021: Traced the Cadywould family tree in Wymondham, Norfolk, including Lydia Spurgeon (nee Cadywould) & her daughter Mary Muskett (nee Spurgeon). Added & transcribed Comfitt Cadywould's will, made 3 February 1773.

20 May 2021: Traced my maternal great-grandmother Emma Joyce's family back to Thomas Gay & Martha Clark in Heigham, Norfolk. Added some videos. Added original & transcribed will & mortgage documents to John Spurgeon and expanded his biography & family tree.

8 April 2021: Traced my paternal grandmother Nellie Spurgeon's family tree back to my 10th great-grandparents Richard & Jacobe Harding, both born around 1545 & married in Exeter on 28 July 1569. Added biographies for Thomas & Mary Harding.

15 March 2021: Found my mothers great-grandfather James Lee, an able seaman from Northumberland. Added & transcribed recordings of Charles & Winifred Spurgeon talking about family ancestors, which explains why Robert Walter Spurgeon's family moved from Norfolk to London. Identified the two brothers (sons of Robert Spurgeon) who were Primitive Methodist preachers: Albert Spurgeon & Joseph Spurgeon. Couldn't find evidence for the Methodist minister mentioned by Aunt Winnie. Added some of Percy Mays family. Traced my paternal grandmother Nellie Maude Carpenter's ancestors in Somerset back to 1600: Thomas Carpenter.

16 February 2021: Corrected parental error for Thomas Spurgeon: will of John Spurgeon held by Wymondham Town Archives includes his son Thomas (a farmer in Hardingham) as a beneficiary. Previous (erroneous) parents of Thomas (Robert & Elizabeth) removed from his tree - all their children were born in Hempnall including Thomas (about 1737). Researched John & Abigail's family in Bracon Ash, Norfolk, back to Jeremiah & An Spurden. Ancestors & descendants of logged in user now shown in bold (default Paul Spurgeon if not logged in).

1 February 2021: Researched & documented parental tree for Sarah Ann Maria Spurgeon, going back 450 years (12 generations) to John Hey, born 1570 in Ludham, Norfolk. Pruned erroneous parental tree for James High: his baptism record shows parents as Robert High & Jane Waller. Researched & documented parental tree of my maternal grandmother Maud Rose Lee, back to Samuel Joyce & Mary Love. Children & siblings now sorted by date of birth.

20 January 2021: Using census, shipping & church records, researched & documented family histories for Robert Walter Spurgeon's children (including my grandfather Walter); found & added over 30 new Spurgeon family members, mostly children or grand-children of John Spurgeon (1768-1850).

30 December 2020: Scanned Walter & Nellie Spurgeon's albums for [1920 to 1940]. Added scanned & captioned slides from Roy Spurgeon's collection to various albums.

29 December 2020: Updated my great-great-great-grandfather John Spurgeon's biography, added Parish marriage documents, & listed his 17 children.

28 December 2020: Updated biography of my great-great-great-great-grandfather Thomas Spurgeon (& his father Robert Spurgeon) with original will & Parish documents; discovered he remarried Sarah Donne after Susanne Read's death. His father also remarried - discovered he had another son Charles Spurgin.