The Oxfordshire John Carpenter, son of Henry of Locking, seems himself
to have left a will. This John left a will at Culham, Oxfordshire. The
Culham Carpenters are probably the major Carpenter grouping in the West
Country. Their data is not in the IGI, nor are the Abingdon Carpenters
across the river. The Abingdon Carpenters in the mid 1500s appear in the
Abingdon parish records. I am in the process of collecting these as well as
the Culham wills. Culham was just a short ride to Crowmarsh which I
mentioned earlier where Alice the wife of Henry of Locking died and left a
will. The earliest Culham wills were of a John and a Richard in 1571 and
1573. This group is discussed in the History of Berkshire as a prosperous
yeoman family. They had family members in London in the 1630s. A will exists
for at least one member. If I have guessed correctly William of Providence
and William of Rehoboth were descendants of John of Culham.
Bruce Carpenter
Nara, Japan