August 2005-My name is Nicola Anne Drury and my interest in my family tree came about after my mum found a golden wedding anniversary card belonging to her grandparents in a beautiful old bureau that her mother gave to her, some 25 years ago now. I began to ask my grandparents about their families which appeared to be rather small then. Two and a half years ago I decided to look at a couple of online pages and became obsessed in no time at all. I have found out an amazing amount about my family and got back to 1810 in many branches. It is really a large family except that contact wasn't maintained and I'm trying to find anyone that could be a relative. I've found a few people although none are blood relatives, including Jenny, the lovely lady who introduced me to this site. My family is basically from four areas. The Drury side from Rochdale, Lancashire. The Coleman side from Trowbridge, Wiltshire. The Britton and Phipp side from Leeds, Yorkshire and the Wardle side from Bradford, Yorkshire. I would love to hear from anyone who might be related to me however distant it may be.
March 2006- I now have a few "real relations" who have found me through different web pages. Some of these photos have been provided by them, e.g. Jacquee Say, my fourth cousin and David Britton, my third cousin once removed.
August 2007- I have recently been found by Nancy Cutler from the USA, my half cousin, and at the same time I found Patricia Cole, whose son John is a 5th cousin once removed, both are on the Coleman side of the family, my living grandmother. Needless to say, my tree is growing in such a way that I am really finding it hard to keep up to it, but wouldn't have it any other way.
October 2007- This week has been very active in the Cawthra area of the family. There was an article published in the Leeds Weekly News and the Pudsey Free Paper about my 4th great grandfather Joshua Cawthra. Richard Wilcocks was looking for information about him, which I find very exciting- a famous ancestor! (It turns out his son was pretty well known, too) Several people have been kind enough to email me and tell me. A lot of the information I have has been confirmed and added to by Sue Longbottom, Lance Matthews and David Cawthra, Sue's daughter Ellen is my 5th cousin. Thank you, Sue, Lance and David. November 2007- I've got a new cousin! Nicky Curtis is my 5th cousin 2x removed. Our common ancestor is Joseph Curtis born c1760. This is also my living grandmother's side of the family, so I shall have a lot to tell her at Xmas when I see her.
December 2007- Looking quickly through my tree just a few hours before we leave for the UK, I discovered there are a few cousins who have helped me that I haven't mentioned. Pauline Drury- her husband is my 2nd cousin once removed, Stephen Waugh- my 3rd cousin, Phil Aveyard, related to a half cousin of mine. I don't know how I came to miss putting them on here, sorry! January 2008- What we've been waiting for has finally happened!!!! I've been "found" by the descendants of one the long-lost Wardles!! We're all so excited. Mandy, my second cousins, is one of Leslie Wardle's grandchildren and we will hopefully soon be exchanging all family information and maybe even get to meet them- who knows? Mum's really thrilled as she doesn't remember ever meeting her cousins.
February 2008- Yet another cousin, a 5th cousin twice removed, Richard Reynolds is related to me through Joseph Curtis and is Nicky Curtis's 3rd cousin, who is also my 5th cousin twice removed. My second cousin Mandy, from the long-lost Wardles, has also been in touch, and has told me quite a lot about them all, although there is still much to know!!! She has also sent me a lovely, recent photo of her mum and herself (and the dog Sophie) and also a few more of Leslie's family, which are now on here, brilliant!!
April 2008- Thanks to Darren Martin I have now been able to confirm another generation of Wardles; my 4th great grandparents. It seems my 2nd great grandfather and his brother were born out of wedlock and my 3rd great grandmother married William Beverley, which is where Darren descends from.
July 2008- In May I was contacted by my second cousin once removed, Leslie Bentley, who has sent me some family photos, including one of my 2nd great grandparents, Michael Thomas Drury and Eliza Hannah Bentley, admittedly it's not a good photo, but it is a photo of them both which I greatly appreciate, thank you, Leslie.
August 2008- This month the active family name has been Gration. I have had a few contacts and one has turned out to be my 5th cousin, Brian. Our common ancestor is Thomas Mann, my 5th great grandfather. This was through Genes Reunited and then again through Lost Cousins!!! September 2008 - A new cousin!! Perry Vincent contacted me through Genes. Our common relative is Nathaniel Fraley b 1757 (my 5th great grandfather). He is my 5th cousin once removed. December 2008 - Stephen John Wardle has now been in touch, he's Eric Wardle's son, my 2nd cousin, which means I have a lot more information on the Wardles and a lovely photo of his family.
January 2009 - I have been on the 1911 census page and have downloaded some images. Interesting as it's their actual handwriting, but not discovered anything I didn't already know. March 2009 - I've got yet another cousin, Martyn Gore, George King is our 4th great grandfather, so he is my 5th cousin. I descend from Fanny and he from Eliza. April 2009 - Just doing a bit of updating and trying to organize things and whoops! I found a cousin whose name I haven't put on here. He's Peter Loftus and he's my 3rd cousin once removed and he contacted me back at the end of 2007. I'm really sorry Peter. More good news! I have found 2 more cousins today, Heather Buttle, my 4th cousin once removed and Jan William Bentley and his wife Nicola who both descend from Thomas Bentley.
September 2009 - Sadly my 96-year-old grandmother passed away in August, but no-one can deny she hadn't had a good innings! Diane Sweeney (related to me in some way) gave me some info about Evelyn Clapham, who married into the Cutlers, including a photo of her 100th birthday, thanks, Diane. Also, Judy from the US about the Avons, who are also related to the Cutlers. And Jean Wardle about my 2nd great grandfather's family. Brilliant! I have also uploaded some scanned photos from Westbury in Old Photos by Michael Randall (which I know about thanks to Judy Langton,) of Mr Arthur Cutler, my great grandmother's brother. February 2010 - I have recently joined Facebook because I thought it could be a useful tool to find and contact downline in my tree, and although I haven't as yet set to work I have found a few of the younger generations of the Wardle family, and am now friends with them. September 2010 - Facebook has produced a few contacts with cousins, who like me had no idea I existed! I've also been contacted by Cathryn, my 2nd cousin once removed, who is Eileen Mary Drury's daughter, cousin of Leslie Bentley. Albert Edward Wardle has kept me very busy with his 2 wives and the mysteries they brought with them, seemingly now solved. Most information I have on the Gullon line, I have to thank John Brooking for, whose wife is related. So, all in all, hope to have a few new photos soon.
October 2010 - A new 2nd cousin, Tim Wardle, has sent me a photo of his grandfather Leslie Wardle as a POW in a propaganda photo the Japanese sent to the Daily Mail. He looks well in the photo, but they were all tortured later on. Despite Leslie having privileges because he was a great pianist and entertained the Japs, he had very severe scars on his back which my grandfather and Uncle Raymond Wardle saw, and although he lived a long life, he had been left with mental issues, and quite understandably so. Thanks, Tim. April 2011 - Have uploaded a lot of photos, from Cathryn and Pauline, from the Drury side of the tree. Enjoy!
July 4, 2011 - Today our mother, Christine Wardle, passed away, something we were really not expecting and certainly not prepared for, although I was fortunate enough to have time to get to see her just before she left us, having to travel urgently from Spain to the UK. She will be very much missed by Jane, Steve, Dan, Tash, Matthew, me and Ana Maria. We will always love you mum and think of you often. There was so much left to do, but sadly now we'll have to do it without you. RIP.
August 2011 - On holiday and using as much time as possible to catch up on so much updating on my tree. I have just attached all the names to Nikki Coleman's wedding photo, information which Jonathon Wilkins gave me ages ago. This month I'm going to meet Jacquee Say and her family when they come to nearby Denia on holiday, so exciting. I'm also now in touch with Meg, 2nd cousin once removed and her family, she is Joan Drury's daughter. August 16th, 2011 - Have just said goodbye to my 4th cousin Jacquee Say, her mum and dad, Janet and Terry - my 3rd cousin once removed, Jonathon - my 4th cousin once removed and his friend Jack. They came yesterday and we had a thoroughly good time, such nice people. Jacquee was the first real cousin I found and the first one I actually met. Brilliant! I have been in touch on and off over the last 7 years with Janet (another one), we have met on various different sites! Her family is the Gudgeon family and my great grand uncle Alfred Moore married Mary Eliza, who was born in Russia, as were many of her siblings. I was very intrigued as to what they were doing in Russia, and it turned out that cotton working was big business out there from the 1840's to 1890's, and her father was a cotton carder. Janet also sent me a copy of Albert Edward's death certificate as my Alfred was present at the death and also the informant, probably because his father was the registrar. Thanks, Janet. Sept 2011 - I'm in the process of inviting all my family to visit my site and see any updates. I didn't realise quite how many cousins etc. I have now!! I also have some new photos from Molly, thanks. Next August I have decided we will visit Wiltshire for a week, before my nephew Daniel'swedding, to see the various towns where the Coleman family etc. comes from, I can't wait!!
October 2011 - A new cousin!!! Francis Gration is my 3rd cousin twice removed and our common relative is Samuel Gration.
January 2012 - Another new cousin! Brian Cook is my 3rd cousin once removed and our common ancestor is Joseph Britton.
April 2012 - The trip to England is coming along a treat. We have our week in Wiltshire quite well planned out now. I want to visit Trowbridge, Melksham, Atworth, Bradford on Avon, Westbury, Warminster and Hilperton (where we are staying) and our itinerary is a bit tight! Let's hope for good photo weather!!!
June 2012 - I now have a visit to the Atworth Museum organised and local family historian David Webb has kindly looked up the Yorks in the Kelly's and West Wiltshire directories for me. September 2012 - We had an absolutely brilliant week in Wiltshire and absolutely exhausted ourselves walking around various towns looking for relevant addresses and taking photos, some of which will go on here soon. We also met up with David Webb and he showed us the Atworth Museum and Church and then took us by car around to various places of interest, it made our day because in the morning we went to Melksham and it rained torrentially and totally spoiled our plans. We also went to Trowbridge, Westbury, Warminster, Bradford on Avon from our lovely little cottage in Hilperton.
October 2012- I have recently found some new cousins. Allison from Adelaide, Australia, we are 5th cousins. Ron Gration who is my 3rd cousin twice removed. November 2012 - Found 2 new downlines! Elizabeth Coleman and William Fraley! Elizabeth's son Albert Edward Feltham married William's daughter Mercy Elizabeth- 1st cousins once removed!! I signed up for a month with Ancestry and got loads of interesting things like Wills and Probate. April 22nd, 2013 - Oakley Thorne was born, I'm his great aunt!! And a whole week later - mum's furniture arrived from England!! It all belonged to her parents, and it is beautiful!! August 5th, 2013 - I've been looking at the Daniell family and today made an amazing discovery. I googled Hannah Crouch Daniell, who I suspected had gone to the USA, but I had no idea what I was going to find. One thing led to another and many American newspaper pages later, I've discovered John Daniell, an incredible man, plus an awful lot of very interesting family history which will be going on here little by little, a truly inspiring day's work! I would also like to thank David Knights, yet another person unfortunately not mentioned before, for lots of useful and interesting information, not to mention being able to confirm what you already have, however incredible it may seem. His wife Jeanette is my 8th cousin. July 22nd, 2014 - Harvey Francis Frost was born! Congratulations Katie and Simon! April 5th, 2016 - My great niece Ruby was born yesterday evening! Congratulations Dan and Tash! I can't believe I haven't written on here for so long - I've recently updated the Drury, Wardle, Phipps and Coleman families with information from the 1939 register, quite a lot of birth dates, addresses and a few new people too! Lots of elusive and impossible to find people too though, perhaps because they were still alive in 1991.
August 2017 - Sadly not had very much time to work on my tree this summer, although I did manage to do quite a lot on the Gration family, from the Find a Grave website. Hopefully, I shall find a bit more time to use my subscription after I go back to work on Friday.
August 2018 - A short visit to Manchester and surrounding area is planned, it's only a week, but I'd like to meet up with some of my cousins I have never met in person!! Rochdale and Blackpool for sure!
PS. We did actually meet up with cousins Meg and Cathryn, both in Rochdale! and had a thoroughly enjoyable time.
April 2019 - Had my first DNA match via My Heritage! Thrilled! It turns out I have a 3rd cousin 3 times removed, Arthur Knee (the Coleman side) in Australia who is 94 years young! I'm hoping to get a few photos soon to illustrate the new family members.
August 2020 - new cousins! Angie in the UK, a second cousin, and Claire in Australia, a 6th cousin once removed!!
September 2020 - I've finally got round to adding more generations (and lots of new information) of Cawthra ancestors thanks to David Cawthra and his One Name Study, which he's now written the Cawthra Story with, information he spent years collecting from other Cawthra family members around the world. A big thank you, David.
May 2021 - New 5th cousin once removed - Grant!
December 2022 - New 1st cousin 4 times removed -Katie Drury!
November 2023 - yet another new cousin, a 6th cousin - Kirsty Nichols! The Fraley branch.