TREWHELLA FAMILY:
The first three generations of Trewhellas represents a time when some of
the necessary parish registers are non-existent or only partially extant.
A certain amount of analyzing is necessary to piece together the early
generations. The following summery, although in my own words, represents the
careful analysis of Ian Trewhella, Pearcedale, Victoria. Ian and I took his
ideas and rehashed them thru email, until a reasonable picture of the early
Trewhellas emerged.... The information on the early generations is still open
to additions and corrections.
SUMMERY FOR THE EARLY GENERATIONS (1. thru 3.)
The records of the parish of St. Erth, Cornwall, go back into the mid 1500s,
and contain numerous references to Trewhellas. Most of the Trewhellas found
being christened and/or married at St. Erth continued in that parish. One of
the exceptions is James Trewhella, s/o John, who is christened in 1582.
James marries at St. Erth in 1606, and has two daughters christened there,
Ann in 1607 and Dorothy in 1608. Dorothy dies a few months later and is
buried in the parish. No later references are found for James; there are
no more children, nor is there a burial of a wife of James or a burial of
James himself. The inference is that James removed elsewhere.
Almost 20 years later the St. Erth parish records the christening of a
daughter, Philipp, to James Trewhella in 1626. This James comes out of
nowhere--there being no earlier marriage or christening to support this
entry, save for that of the earlier James of 1606-8. No burial of James
or a wife of James follows the 1626 entry.
In 1658 Philipp Trewhella married Roger Bynye at Ludgven (a neighboring
parish), and she is referred to as "of Towednack" (another neighboring
parish). Philipp Bynye was buried at Towednack as a widow in 1694.
The Towednack Parish Register does not begin until 1676, and although there
are extant Bishop's Transcripts to help fill the gaps back to the 1500s, they
are very sparse, and contain many missing years. Two christenings are found
in the Towednack B.Ts. for children of a James Trewhella, Joane in 1623
and Cheston in 1630. Joane was married in 1654 at St. Erth. There now appears
to be a definite St. Erth/Towednack connection for James Trewhella. The will
of a known grandson of James (more on that later) leaves money to both the
poor of Towednack and the poor of St. Erth.
In 1623, and also in 1641, James Trewhella of Towednack was known to be the
churchwarden for the parish. This being a position of some authority, it is
likely that he was in Towednack for some time prior to 1623.
James Trewhella apparently was born at St. Erth, married there and had 2
children, then moved to nearby Towednack. He returned to St. Erth for the
christening of his daughter Philipp in 1626, and his daughter Joane married
a St. Erth man in 1658. There will be yet more St. Erth connections for
this family as this narrative continues.
As there is a large gap between the birth of Dorothy in 1608 at St. Erth,
and Joane in Towednack in 1623, there must be other children born to
James at Towednack during the time of the missing registers. A younger James
Trewhella of Towednack gave a deposition in 1680, and stated his age to
be 65, which would put his birth to 1615. Both James the Churchwarden
and this younger James appear on the Protestation Return of 1641 at
Towednack. The younger James can be assumed to be another child of James
the Churchwarden.
This younger James had his first child christened at St. Erth in 1644, though
later children were all born at Towednack. A Thomas Trewhella was married
at St. Erth in 1651, and had his first child, Matthew, christened there a year
later. This Thomas subsequently moved to Towednack and died there in 1686.
His widow died in Towednack in 1693. Two of Thomas' sons are named in the
will of James Trewhella of Scilly (son of the younger James), so a close
relationship can be assumed; therefore Thomas would appear to be another son
of James the Churchwarden. As he is not listed on the 1641 Prot. Ret., he
would have to be born after 1623, as one had to be 18 to be included.
Since he was married in 1651, he would fit nicely in the gap between Philipp
and Cheston, putting his birth at about 1628.
We now have Ann 1607, Dorthy 1608, James 1615, Joane 1623, Philipp 1626,
Thomas ca. 1628 and Cheston 1630. There is still a considerable gap in the
earlier years. A third Trewhella, Matthew, is listed on the 1641 Prot. Ret.
at Towednack. Since James the Churchwarden is the son of a John Trewhella
(already deceased at St. Erth), and James had no brothers called Matthew,
this Matthew is assumed to be another son of James. The fact that Thomas
Trewhella named his eldest son Matthew gives a bit of extra support to the
inclusion of Matthew in this family. He may have been the eldest son, possibly
born about 1611.
In the same year as the marriage of Joane Trewhella at St. Erth (1654), an
Honor Trewhella was also married there. There are no Honor Trewhellas
recorded prior to this at St. Erth. Since the next generation of Towednack
Trewhellas includes an Honor, we can assume that the Honor Trewhella who
married at St. Erth was another daughter of James the Churchwarden, and
sister of Joane; and that the later Honor was named for her.
The above referenced will of James Trewhella of Scilly (son of the younger
James and grandson of the Churchwarden) mentions a legacy to "William
Kalensoe living at Penzance." This William Calensow was a son of Thomas
Calensow of Madron and his wife, Katherine Trewhella. Thomas and Katherine
were married at Madron in 1638. So Katherine must be another daughter of
James the Churchwarden, and her son William would therefore be a first cousin
to the testator of the will. Since Katherine was married in 1638, we can
place her birth at around 1613. Katherine also had among her children a son
named James and a daughter named Philipp.
****************************************************************
Each generation of siblings is represented by the same number. The person
who is the direct ancestor (and the parent of the next generation) is given
in CAPITALS at the end of each generation, regardless of his birth order
in the family. Letters in ( ) are coded to notes at the end of the info.
1. JOHN TREWHELLA bur. 14 Dec 1625, St. Erth, Cornwall
m. 1580 ________ ________ (a)
..................................
2. John Trewhella chr. 11 Feb 1584/5 m1. 1 Jun 1607, St. Erth,
________ ________ (a) (issue) m2. 1617 Mary ________ (issue)
2. William Trewhella chr. 30 May 1587 m. ? (issue)
2. JAMES TREWHELLA chr. 20 Sep 1582, St. Erth d. Towednack, Cornwall
m. 10 Aug 1606, St. Erth, ________ ________ (a)
..................................
3. Ann Trewhella chr. 16 Dec 1607, St. Erth (b)
3. Dorothy Trewhella chr. 20 Mar 1607/8 bur. 5 Aug 1608, St. Erth (b)
3. Matthew Trewhella ca. 1611 (c)
3. Katherine Trewhella ca. 1613 (d) m. 16 Sep 1638, Madron, Thomas
Calensoe (issue)
3. James Trewhella b. 1615 (e) bur. 9 Mar 1697/8, Towednack
m. Blanch ________ bur. 28 Nov 1686, Towednack (f) (issue)
3. Honor Trewhella m. 25 Apr 1654, St. Erth, Gilbert Davye (issue)
3. Joane Trewhella chr. 26 Feb 1623/4, Towednack (g) bur. 16 Jul 1662,
St. Erth m. 26 Feb 1654/5, St. Erth, David Thomas (issue)
3. Philipp Trewhella chr. 24 Apr 1626, St. Erth bur. 14 Nov 1694, Towednack
m. 1658, Ludgvan, Roger Bynye (issue)
3. Cheston Trewhella chr. 7 Nov 1630, Towednack (g)
3. THOMAS TREWHELLA ca. 1628 (h) bur. 2 Sep 1685 m. 28 Feb 1651/2, St. Erth,
KATHERINE BOSWIN bur. 25 May 1693, Towednack
..................................
4. Matthew Trewhella chr. 29 Dec 1652, St. Erth m1. ? (issue) m2. 7 Nov
1690, Gulval, Philipp Bennetts
4. Honor Trewhella (i) ca. 1655, Towednack (j) bur. 11 Nov 1732, Towednack
m. 14 Aug 1680, Towednack, John Woolcock (issue)
4. Thomas Trewhella (k) ca. 1662, Towednack bur. 10 Oct 1729, Towednack
m. 17 Sep 1686, Towednack, Phillis Hosking (issue)
4. ?Christopher Trewhella? (q)
4. MARTIN TREWHELLA (l) ca. 1658, Towednack bur. 13 Feb 1726/7 m. 10 Nov
1688, Zennor, ALICE PHILIPS (bur. 30 Sep 1731, Towednack)
..................................
5. William Trewhella chr. 27 Oct 1689, Towednack died young (m)
5. Thomas Trewhella chr. 28 Sep 1690, Towednack died young (m)
5. Mary Trewhella chr. 29 Dec 1691, Towednack m. Dec 1723, Phillack,
William Canarthen (issue)
5. Martin Trewhella chr. 1 May 1694, Towednack bur. 4 May 1694, Towednack
5. Alice Trewhella chr. 22 Aug 1697, Towednack bur. 1759
m. 13 Jan 1733, Madron, Hanniball Harry (issue)
5. Jane Trewhella chr. 13 Jul 1700, Towednack m. 29 Sep 1725, Ludgvan,
Matthew Trewhella (n) (issue)
5. Christopher Trewhella chr. 5 Apr 1702, Towednack bur. 2 Sep 1779,
Towednack unmarried
5. Catherine Trewhella chr. 30 May 1705, Towednack died young (m)
5. Catherine Trewhella chr. 28 Mar 1708, Towednack d. St. Ives bur.
13 Mar 1788, Towednack m. 6 Mar 1738, Towednack, John Baragwanath (issue)
5. MARTIN TREWHELLA chr. 26 Mar 1695, Towednack bur. 15 Sep 1763, Towednack
m. 29 Dec 1724, Towednack, CATHERINE BARAGWANATH (bur. 10 May 1799,
Towednack) (see BARAGWANATH FILE)
...................................
6. Catherine Trewhella chr. 30 May 1725, Towednack bur. 24 Jan 1725/6,
Towednack
6. Catherine Trewhella chr. 14 Mar 1727/8, St. Ives m. 3 Nov 1748, Zennor,
James Quick
6. Martin Trewhella chr. 29 May 1733, Towednack bur. 6 May 1774, Towednack
m. 12 Jan 1758, Towednack, Joan Lembrey
6. Christopher Trewhella chr. 27 Jun 1736, Towednack bur. 27 Feb 1824,
St. Ives m. 29 Jan 1766, St. Ives, Jane Mitchell
6. Alice Trewhella chr. 30 Apr 1739, Towednack m. 26 Dec 1769, Towednack,
John Freeman
6. Matthew Trewhella chr. 30 Oct 1742, Towednack bur. 6 May 1774, Towednack
unmarried
6. WILLIAM TREWHELLA chr. 27 Apr 1730, Towednack bur. 28 Jan 1811, Towednack
m. 31 Dec 1767, Towednack ANN COCK (bur. 13 Feb 1820, Towednack)
(see COCKTREE)
.......................................
7. Ann Trewhella ca. 1768 (o) m. 1 Jan 1791, Zennor, Richard Morrish
7. Alice Trewhella chr. 29 Apr 1770, Towednack bur. 11 Mar 1850, Towednack (p)
m. 12 Jan 1793, Towednack, Matthew Trewhella
7. William Trewhella chr. 2 Jun 1771, St. Ives bur. 8 Feb 1846, Ludgvan (p)
m. 10 Jun 1797, Lelant, Ann Glasson
7. Catherine Trewhella chr. 3 Jan 1773, Towednack bur. 1 Jan 1842,
Towednack (p) m. 29 Jan 1792, William Trewhella
7. Mary Trewhella chr. 28 Dec 1774, St. Ives m. 27 Sep 1796, Samuel Mitchell
7. Jane Trewhella chr. 18 May 1777, Towednack m. 5 Jun 1797, Towednack,
Robert Mitchell
7. Matthew Trewhella chr. 14 Mar 1779, Towednack d. 22 Mar 1859, Phillack (p)
m. 2 Aug 1801, Towednack, Martha Daniel
7. Phillis Trewhella chr. 23 Nov 1783, Towednack d. Brunion, Lelant bur.
13 Jan 1864, Lelant m. 22 Dec 1804, Towednack, Christopher Trewhella
7. ELIZABETH TREWHELLA chr. 29 Apr 1781, Towednack d. Wheal Kitty, Lelant
bur. 27 Apr 1865, Lelant m. 1 Mar 1800, Lelant, JOHN GLASSON
(see GLASSON FILE)
________________________________________________
SOURCES AND NOTES:
Most of the above records were taken from the following sources:
* Towednack, Cornwall, Parish Register transcripts, 1676-1813, baptisms
and burials only, LDS film #254222.
* St. Erth, Cornwall, Parish Register, LDS film #1595497.
* Madron, Cornwall, Parish Register, LDS film #1595913.
* Ludgvan, Cornwall, Parish Register, LDS film #1595868.
* St. Ives, Cornwall, Parish Register, LDS film #1595570.
* St. Uny Lelant, Cornwall, Parish Register, LDS film #1595781.
* International Genealogical Index, Cornwall, Abstracts of various
Cornish parish registers (for Towednack, Zennor and misc. marriages).
Notes coded to letters () in the body of the above information:
a. St. Erth Parish Register. Name of wife not given.
b. Ann and Dorothy were christened 3 months apart. Since James married in
August 1606, it is possible that Ann was born 9 months later and
christened late. There was also another James in St. Erth, having children
from 1584 thru 1604; it is possible that Ann was his last child, and
not the daughter of our James.
c. Matthew appears on the 1641 Protestation Return for Towednack.
This Matthew disappears from the records, and nothing further is known
of him. Apparently he died unmarried and without issue. So far he is
the earliest Matthew Trewhella documented, and may be the Matthew whose
disappearance spawned the "Mermaid of Zennor" tale, which features a
"Mathy" Trewhella being lured away by a mermaid.
d. Year of birth estimated from marriage year.
e. John Hobson Matthews, "A History of the Parishes of Saint Ives, Lelant,
Towednack and Zennor, in the County of Cornwall" (London: Elliot Stock,
1892), p. 130, deposition taken at Newlyn in Paul parish, Michaelmas, 1680,
includes as one of the deponees "James Trewhela of Towednack yeoman age 65."
f. Towednack P.R. "Blanche, wife of James Trewhella" was buried in 1686.
Because none of James' known children named daughters Blanch, and most
named daughters Elizabeth, it is plausible that James MAY have had an
earlier wife named Elizabeth as mother of most of his children.
g. Original Bishop's Transcripts, Cornwall County Records Office, Truro.
h. Since Thomas does not appear in the 1641 Protestation Returns, he must
have been born after 1623, as one had to be 18 to be included. The only
comfortable place to fit him in the family would be in the 4-year gap
between Philipp and Cheston.
i. Honor was married at Towednack and resided there; it is logical that she
would be the daughter of either James or Thomas. She is the only known
Trewhella female in the area who is not included in the will of James
Trewhella of Scilly (son of James), so she is assumed to be a daughter
of Thomas. Honor's first son was named Thomas. The second was named James,
but her husband John Woolcock had a brother named James, and was possibly
the son of an earlier James Woolcock who resided at Towednack.
j. All of Thomas' children are presumed to have been born at Towednack, since
only Matthew is christened at St. Erth, and the early Towednack P.R. is
missing.
k. The will of James Trewhella of Scilly names "Elizabeth, d/o Thomas
Trewhella." Thomas and Phillis had one child christened at Towednack, a
daughter Dorothy. It is possible that there may have been two Thomases;
or perhaps Thomas had a daughter Elizabeth with an earlier unknown wife.
Thomas is assumed to be the son of Thomas and Katherine; but he could
just as easily be a son of James Trewhella II.
l. The will of James Trewhella of Scilly leaves bequests to two persons
known to be cousins, rather than siblings of James (Matthew Trewhella
and William Kalensow). A bequest is left to the eldest son of Martin
Trewhella. Martin does not appear to be a brother of James, and there-
fore son of the elder James; he does not name a son James, nor a daughter
Blanch or Elizabeth (see note f). He would rather appear to be another
cousin of James of Scilly, and a son of Thomas and Katherine Trewhella.
Martin named a son Thomas, and named two daughters Catherine. Also,
Matthew Trewhella, proven son of Thomas, was one of the witnesses to
the will of Francis Phillips, Martin's father-in-law.
m. Martin's sons William and Thomas do not appear in later records of the
parish and would appear to have died young. William is still living in
1699 when he is left a bequest in the will of James Trewhella of Scilly.
Martin's first daughter Catherine obviously died in infancy, since the
next daughter is given the same name. No burials are recorded for these
three. The Towednack P.R. is missing for the years 1707-1720. This gap
is partially filled by the extant Bishop's Transcripts, but these are
missing the years 1706, 1707, 1709, 1710, 1713, and 1714. Catherine would
have died during the 1706-7 gap, and I would suggest that the two boys
also died at this time, possibly from a shared illness. Had they died
earlier, it is very likely that one of the next sons, Martin or
Christopher, would have been christened Thomas.
n. Jane married her cousin Matthew, son of Matthew Trewhella. He was about
20 years her senior, and the couple had a son, Thomas, christened three
years before their marriage. Thomas is listed in the Towednack P.R. simply
as the son of Jane Trewhella, but is referred to in the will of his uncle
Christopher Trewhella as the son of Matthew Trewhella.
o. Ann's christening is not recorded. When she married at Zennor, she was
listed as "of Towednack." The only Towednack Trewhella family that she
fits comfortably into is that of William and Ann, who have a 2 1/2 year
gap between the time of their marriage and the christening of their
daughter Alice. It is logical that William and Ann would have had a
daughter called Ann, but there is no christening of such a daughter for
them found in the various parish registers. The first son of Richard and
Ann (Trewhella) Morrish was called Richard; the second was named William,
presumedly after her father.
p. These burial dates provided by Ian Trewhella, Pearcedale, Victoria,
Australia.
q. Davies Gilbert "Parochial History of Cornwall" Vol. 4, p 55, gives a list of
persons who take the oath of homage at the Manor of "Amyll and Tillie" in
Towednack on 27 April 1688. A Christopher Trewhella is included among the
oathtakers. This may be the Christopher who has several children in Wendron
in the early 1690s, including a son named Thomas. Since Martin Trewhella,
son of Thomas and Katherine is the first Towednack Trewhella to utilize the
name Christopher in his family, it is possible that this is his brother.
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