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Acts of Genealogical Generosity Article Updated 05 December, 2007 By Janice Kent , contact by email
On one branch of our family tree, the earliest known ancestor was William Heasman. Family history recorded that he was born September 4, 1827 and was from Kent, (near Tunbridge Wells). He immigrated to Canada in 1842 at age 15. We knew that he married Catherine Mckenzie in 1859 in Ontario, had 10 children; 6 of whom had descendents who then settled across Canada and the northern U.S. As we did not know anything of his family in England we went on genealogy websites looking for someone researching Heasmans in England. There were several - but none who had researched this particular Heasman family from Kent. Time passed, researching others and gaining access to England Census records I hadn't seen before. In August 2007, while reviewing England's 1841 Census, I typed "William Heasman", of "Kent" to see if he was listed before he came to Canada in the following year. There was only one boy, age 14, born in Kent in 1827 named William Heasman. Was this likely "our" William from Tunbridge Wells? The Census recorded that he was living in the village of "Bidborough" with his family, his father born in Battle Sussex, his mother and siblings born in Bidborough. I noticed that several of those family members' names were identical to names that William would give his children in the 1860s; a very common practice in the 1800's to name your children after your parents and siblings, a practice not used in Canada as much today. Scrolling through the Census for Bidborough I saw a reference to Tonbridge, which got me to question "Where is Bidborough, England and is it close to Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells"? A little bit of research explained that Bidborough was a village near both. I believed I was on to something here and close to verifying more ancestors. I wondered if these Heasmans stayed in Bidborough or if they moved on as well so I searched the 1851 Census and found the same family, in Bidborough-without their son William, (our William was in Canada by then). On the 1851 Census, it stated that this family in Bidborough lived "Near the church". I found this same family was on the 1861 Census and lived "Near church". I thought, What Church? Was it the only church in the village? I put a query on the Internet and found a drawing entitled "Bidborough Church" by Paul Amsinck and engraved by Letitia Byrne (1809). There was also a link to another website for the Bidborough church, which was the St. Lawrence Church website. I was so surprised to see that it was the same church…still in existence today. Searching the website, taking in all the information I could, I was intrigued as I looked at all the pictures of this beautiful church, imagining that my ancestors lived nearby, perhaps attended this church. I was fascinated to read the history which stated that part of the original church was built in the 10th century, and more had been added over the next several hundred years (Keep in mind - most buildings in Ontario are less than 200 yrs old, so such history is difficult to fathom.)
On the website it stated that the names of the incumbents of St. Lawrence from the start of the 13th century to the start of the 21st were recorded. I wondered if I sent an inquiry if anyone could or would help me research the church records as I was quite sure that THIS was "our" William's family. From the website, I sent a message to Claire Wells, the Pastoral Assistant asking if she knew of anyone who could help me. What happened next is an unbelievable example of people showing incredible generosity to someone they'd never met, who had a desire to know more about their community's history as well as former inhabitants. They certainly put into action the willingness to reach out to others that is portrayed on the St. Lawrence Church website. Claire wrote back right away and told me that she had forwarded my message to others who might be able to help me and in no time an incredible number of emails were sent back & forth from Bidborough, England to Georgetown, Ontario. Reverend Stephen Hills sent messages to say that he had found the grave record for Maria Heasman and that Stephen Snelling (Church Warden) and his wife Deborah (Church Administrator) had started researching the records. He then emailed a picture of the gravestone for William's mother, father, sister and brother-in-law from the St. Lawrence Church graveyard. Claire wrote again, with a wonderful commentary describing the village, church and community, of the beautiful countryside; of the close proximity to London, while still being surrounded by so much history. She told me about the cottages still inhabited today "near the church" and we wondered which one my ancestors lived in. She also directed me to websites about Bidborough where I saw more pictures depicting the character of the village. Shortly thereafter I received an email from Stephen and Deborah who took the time to document their findings in the summary of the church records --- they transcribed several Heasman baptisms, marriages and burials up to 1835. (Records after 1835 have been recorded and are available from the National Archives, BUT for records prior to 1835 you'd have to do more digging and while you may never find an individuals' birth date documented, the baptismal dates are indeed extremely valuable and are often the only record for verification.) The Snellings found a baptismal record for William, son of William & Maria Heasman, October 28, 1827; I would say that's a probable match, 6 weeks following his birth. They also found William and Maria Heasman's marriage date, as well as Maria's maiden name, a valuable record. Stephen and Deborah made the extra effort of transcribing the actual wording of the gravestone for Maria and William and (their daughter & son-in-law) Georgina & Stephen Brooker, which not only gave valuable dates for research but also stated that both William and Stephen were responsible for church maintenance for a total of 90 years. It was also explained that a responsibility of that position was to dig the graves, and with the property being a sandstone outcrop, this was not an easy task in the 1800's, -- as a pneumatic drill is needed today! About this time I went to the Google/Maps webpage, typed in "Bidborough, England", clicked Satellite image and saw the village, from above. I could "zoom in" and recognize the church and graveyard. I could see the rooftops of homes surrounding the church property and wondered which could have been my ancestors' home. Having shared this with Claire she became my "tour guide" and sent another commentary which I printed, then followed her "tour" while looking at the Satellite images of the village, locating these cottages in relation to the church property with her guidance. Shortly thereafter I received pictures from Stephen Snelling of these cottages. This was another unbelievable connection to my ancestors? From looking at the various Census records and where the families lived, we knew that the Heasman parents and children for three generations lived together in one house or next to one another and we pondered which house could have been theirs. Stephen Snelling then asked the "oldest inhabitant" of Bidborough if he knew which house these people would have lived in and HE DID?! It was Sunnyside Cottage! I continue to be astonished with the assistance all of these individuals from St. Lawrence Church gave me. The efforts put forth are incredible. This is not just knowledge I've gained….I feel like I've been welcomed into Bidborough! They were so generous with their time---reading my emails, researching, transcribing, describing points of interest and details that would make "Bidborough" become very real to me and so much more than just a name of a village to type in my genealogy records. Opportunities to learn so much more, when researching ancestors from another country, are very rare and one is fortunate if they can find anything more than "names and birth places". These generous people have provided a gift by uncovering a history which was, until August, unknown to us. This experience has meant so much to me and it all started with the Church website, ---informative, inviting, giving the impression that "We care about others, here". I am so grateful for the opportunity to see, on the internet, the beauty of the Church and the property, unique in its peaceful surroundings of the churchyard and footpaths, lych gates and retaining walls. I'm even more grateful for my "good fortune" to be touched by people who became so involved in my request and responded far beyond any hopes I had. I am very blessed to have "met" them. Perhaps one day I will be able to visit England's Parish of Bidborough. My sincere thanks for all that was done for me. Janice Kent Great, great, great granddaughter of William and Maria (Twort) Heasman of Bidborough
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