Family Lessons 114: Great Grandmothers

When researching one’s family tree, the further back one goes, the harder it is to trace the female lines. Older family records are primarily about proving property rights, so the mother’s forbears are generally neglected; the dowry paid, her family is unlikely to relinquish further wealth to the children. I therefore looked up some of my oldest recorded matriarchs. With two exceptions of Joan Calcott who was from Chester and married in 1449, and Elizabath Walton, who was born in Liverpool in 1460, none of their maiden names are recorded:

Blanche Crosse, who died at Chorley 1552, my 16th great-grandmother

Elizabeth de Walton, born around 1460, Liverpool, my 16th great-grandmother

Joan Calcott, who married at Chester, 1449, my 17th great-grandmother

Eleanor de Walton, whose husband died in 1400, my 20th great-grandmother

Katherine Del Hugh, whose husband died in 1381 at Wigan, my 19th great-grandmother

Anila de Walton who died around 1312, my 21st great-grandmother

Alice de Walton, who died 1315, my 22nd great-grandmother

Juliana de Walton, whose husband died in 1241, my 24th great-grandmother.

Juliana is the oldest female ancestor I have been able to trace, 26 generations ago. Of her mother and grandmothers, no record is found.

It is sometimes said that women are neglected by the scriptural writers. For example, we do not know the name of Noah’s wife, even though she was a second Eve, but without her serpent-listening propensities. In fact, anonymity is given to a great many men, too. The writers’ primary aim was not provide us with a fascinating historical account, but a persuasive call to repent and seek the Living God. Yet Mary, the mother of the Lord Jesus, is given a special prominence. Although Roman Catholicism exaggerates this to a horrible extent, this handmaiden of the Lord was the carrier of the very Saviour of the world. Did Juliana De Walton’s mother and grandmothers believe the gospel, albeit in that imperfect form preached by medieval Rome? If so, they are remembered by God, and shall never be forgotten. Great female personages like Catherine the Great, Margaret Thatcher, Elizabeth I and Cleopatra shall all be forgotten if they neglected or denied the God of heaven.