Previously I had reported that a kindly lady from Australia
sent me pages of all the Carpenters in Berkshire for the early
1500s to 1650. She sent me the remaining pages and the following report
should be
of interest.
Firstly a William Carpenter b. 1576 in Great Coxwell, Berkshire
as the son of a Henry Carpenter was found. I sent away to the London Society
of Genealogists of London for the Great Coxwell parish records and confirmed
this.
As I went through the Coxwell records it was very obvious that the surname
Carpenter and Barfoote were sometimes used interchangeably. Barfoote in
slight variations goes back to Barford or Berford. The earliest
Carpenter/Barford
was a 'William Berford alias Carpenter, of Coxwell, carpenter' for 1493-1499
in the Bishop of Sarum's register for Lollard heretics. In the Berkshire
Muster Rolls
a 'William Barford of Little Coxwell' is found for 1522.
Barford seemed a place name alias used occasionally by Carpenters in the
Coxwell area
from 1500 to 1600. Alias use in old England is a difficult subject and the
above
data for William could be interpreted various ways.
This still seemed to me a valuable clue to this particular Carpenter line's
geographical
origin.
The following will is here quoted from the Carpenters' Encyclopedia of
Carpenters:
"J44 - Record Book No.9 (Arch Sarum 1-64. - Registers of the Archdeacon of
Salisbury Cathedral) 1547 John Carpenter, Thelder (the elder), Barford.
husb:
Dated 12 July 1545. Bequests to churches, etc. Mr. Otteryll Toppyng my
goortly father. to pray for me Xll 3. To the marriage of Edith my
daughter:-
(pound) 13-6-8 Eliz, wife, residue, exor: Mr. Willm. Greme or Grewe of
Hale, & John Carpenter my brother,
executors.
Witnesses: Thomas Stede, Wm. Carpenter & John Selwyn."
The Carpenter CD goes on to attribute a Henry as a son of the above John
born
about 1510, although no sources are cited for this. Another sibling quoted
for Henry was
a Robert Carpenter said to be christened about 1520. The other very early
Carpenter
in the Coxwell area was a Robert Carpenter who had a son Robert in Locking
in 1550.
Henery and Robert seem siblings.
There thus exists the real possibilty that Rohoboth William Carpenter
descended directly
from Town Clerk of London John Carpenter's older brother. A Happy New Year
present?
Bruce E. Carpenter
Nara, Japan