The Hollyman English Ancestry Quest 2019, Part 11

by Glenn N. Holliman

Our 9th Stop

The Holyman Farm

Cuddington, Buckinghamshire

Here stands the English thatch cottage that for centuries housed the English cousins of the American Hollymans.  Constructed in 1699, it is today the home of a most welcoming couple, James and Carolyn Stonham.  This generous couple graciously opened their home (and not for the first time) to visitors from America.  The interior retains elements of early centuries with all the 21st Century amenities.

The back garden with lovely flower beds in bloom beckoned to us.  There we posed for pictures and reflected on great grandparents who half a millennium called this property their home.

Below, Rob and  Mary Holliman Fenske in the Hollyman garden in Cuddington, May 2019. 

Below front row, three children of the late Walter O. Holliman, premier Hollyman genealogists - Paul Holliman, Ann Holliman Krueger and Brian Holliman.  Behind them, their children,  Matthew Holliman,  Elisabeth Krueger Ahrens, Kimberly Holliman and Alison Holliman Marlowe.

Below, grandson Marshall Cocke and his grandmother, Marcia Holliman, both now of Texas.

Above the group on a Sunday afternoon, May 2019, some five hundred years after Hollymans worked the farm, never dreaming half a millennium later their descendants would search them out and pay them honor!

And these are the ancestors!

John Holyman, d 1521 of Cuddington begat

John Holyman, d 1533 of Cuddington who begat

Thomas Holyman, d 1558 of Cuddington who

with Dorothy Clark begat

Christopher Holyman, d 1589 of Sherington who

with Margaret Lee begat

Thomas Hollyman, d ca. 1650 of Bedford who

with Helena Poynard begat

Christopher Hollyman, 1618-1691 of Bedford

and Virginia who begat four sons and two daughters

The Hollyman English Ancestry Quest 2019, Part 9

by Glenn N. Holliman

Our 7th Stop
Cuddington, Buckinghamshire

May 19, 2019

Our coach arrived in Cuddington, Buckinghamshire at lunch time, and we soon overwhelmed the local pub, The Crown.  Standing outside, left is Jim Holliman from Alabama, USA, Rod and Andrew Holliman of England (brothers) and far right, Lindsay Holliman, now of Scotland.  The lassie is Kathleen Holliman, Jim's wife.

Below, The Crown, thatched roof and whitewashed, dates from the 17th Century, approximately the time Christopher Hollyman left Bedford for Virginia.  Christopher's grandfather, the first Christopher, probably left Cuddington for Sherington in the early 1580s if not before.

The pub management is not without humor.  The picture below reminds visitors that dogs on leash are welcome in English pubs, an arrangement that especially seems cozy on cold, long winter nights in the British Isles.

Below, we have a map of Cuddington, a village of perhaps 900 souls, similar in size for a millennium.  Bottom center, #17 is the pub.  We walked a block or so to St. Nicholas Parish Church, #1, where Holymans were baptized, married and buried for centuries. 

At the top of the map, the Holyman's farm is labeled, the home of the family for hundreds of years.  We walked there after the church visit and later back to the pub area as the streets were too narrow for our coach.

                                                   QUICK REMINDER FAMILY TREE BOX

John Holyman, d 1521 of Cuddington begat

John Holyman, d 1533 of Cuddington who begat

Thomas Holyman, d 1558 of Cuddington who

with Dorothy Clark begat

Christopher Holyman, d 1589 of Sherington who

with Margaret Lee begat

Thomas Hollyman, d ca. 1650 of Bedford who

with Helena Poynard begat

Christopher Hollyman, 1618-1691 of Bedford

and Virginia who begat four sons and two daughters

Next, a visit to St. Nichol's were Holymans were interred not only in the grave yard but on occasion in the church itself, an honor reserved for a few.

When We Were English, Part XII

The Holyman Farm of Cuddington has Secrets to Reveal

by Glenn N. Holliman

To the left is a typed family tree of the Holyman farm prepared by its present owner, Caroline Stonham.

Below is an 19th century description of the farm from the Buckinghamshire County Museum. In the 1800s a Mr. Scott owned the property. Double click to enlarge. Photos by Barb Holliman.

Below is a wing of the 1698 thatched cottage on the Holyman Farm.

Next post, we say good bye to our eventful visit to Cuddington....