The ASHDOWN Wills of East Sussex (1578 – 1858)
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The ASHDOWN Wills of East Sussex (1578 – 1858) By Geoffrey Barber Version 1.03 Will Transcribers: Claire Wickens, Geoffrey Barber, Rosie Ansell, Ann Dalton, et al. BIOGRAPHY GEOFFREY BARBER Geoffrey Barber has been researching his English family history since about 1983. He maintains his family history web site www.nynne.org as a means of making the results his own research more widely available. Geoff also enjoys writing articles for journals and has given talks on topics such as manorial records, tithe maps, DNA and self-publishing. He has a passion for quality and accurate research and on publishing to preserve our work for the future. In addition to books related to his own family history, Geoff has published “Manorial Records for Family Historians” (Unlock the Past, 2017); “The Akehurst Wills of East Sussex” in 2018 in association with the Akehurst one-name study group; “The Ashdown Wills of East Sussex” and “The Latter Wills of East Sussex” both in 2020. Geoff is also a long-time member of the Sussex Family History Group and a supporter of their Wills Depository project which has over 13,000 Sussex wills transcribed. Title: The Ashdown Wills of East Sussex (1578-1858) 1st Edition published October 2020 Revised 2 June 2021 by: Geoffrey Barber (1953- ) Perth, Western Australia [email protected] www.nynne.org © Geoffrey Glenn Barber 2020 ISBN: 978-0-6450662-1-0 All Rights Reserved Permission is granted for this book to be freely distributed in electronic form for personal use in family history research. i Dedicated to the memory of Ann Ashdowne of Rotherfield and John Ashdowne of Rotherfield who were burnt at the stake at Lewes for their protestant beliefs during the reign of “Bloody Mary”, Mary I (1553-1558). ii iii Table of Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................................. 6 Chapter 1 - The Ashdown Martyrs of Rotherfield ................................................................................ 9 Chapter 2 - The Ashdown Family Trees ............................................................................................... 10 Tree 1. Ashdowns of Waldron, Chiddingly and Hellingly (1700s-1800s) .................................... 10 Tree 2. Ashdown & Ovendens of Rotherfield c1600/1700s ......................................................... 17 Tree 3. Ashdown, Morley & Elliotts of Rotherfield (c1620- )....................................................... 21 Tree 4. Descendants of John Ashdown of Rotherfield, c1500s .................................................... 24 Tree 5. Descendants of William Ashdown of Rotherfield (c1520-1578) ..................................... 25 Tree 6. Descendants of Nicholas Ashdown of Eastbourne ( -1638) ........................................... 28 Tree 7. Descendants of Nicholas Ashdown of Sedlescombe ( -1750) ......................................... 29 Tree 8. Ashdowns of Ditchling (1700s-1800s) ................................................................................ 31 Tree 9. Ashdowns of East Grinstead and Chiddingstone (Kent) (1600s-1700s) ....................... 36 Tree 10. Ashdowns of East Grinstead (c1725-1834) ...................................................................... 37 Tree 11. Ashdowns of Peasmarsh and Brenchly (Kent) (1700s-1800s) ....................................... 38 Tree 12. Elliotts of Rotherfield (1600s-1700s) ................................................................................. 40 Chapter 3 – The Ashdown Wills ............................................................................................................ 44 1. Will of John Ashedowne of Rotherfield, 1578 ............................................................................ 44 2. Will of William Ashedowne of Rotherfield, 1579 ....................................................................... 46 2. Will of Nicholas Ashedowne, Yeoman of Rotherfield, 1603 .................................................... 48 3. Admon of Isaac Ashdowne of Rotherfield, 1608 ....................................................................... 50 4. Admon of Thomas Ashdowne of Rotherfield, 1608 .................................................................. 51 5. Admon of William Ashdowne of Wivelsfield, 1609 ................................................................... 52 6. Will of Abraham Ashdowne, Yeoman of Frant, 1627 ............................................................... 53 7. Admon of Thomas Ashdowne of Eastbourne, 1634 ................................................................. 57 8. Will of Nicholas Ashdowne, Carpenter of Eastbourne, 1638 ................................................... 59 9. Will of Richard Ashdowne, Husbandman of Buxted, 1649 ...................................................... 61 10. Will of William Ashdowne, Pail Maker of Battle, 1653 ............................................................ 63 11. Will of William Ashdown, Yeoman of Rotherfield, 1692 ........................................................ 67 12. Will of Richard Ashdowne, Jurat of Winchelsea, 1713 ............................................................ 69 13. Will of Robert Ashdowne, Shoe-maker of East Grinstead, 1714 ........................................... 71 14. Will of John Ashdowne, Yeoman of Buxted, 1714 .................................................................. 74 15. Admon of William Ashdowne of Wadhurst, 1722 ................................................................... 77 16. Admon of James Ashdown of Mayfield, 1734 .......................................................................... 78 17. Will of William Ashdowne the elder, Yeoman of Rotherfield, 1737 ..................................... 79 iv 18. Will of Thomas Ashdown, Flaxman of Bodiam, 1739/40 ...................................................... 86 19. Will of John Ashdown, Yeoman of Rotherfield, 1766 ............................................................. 88 20. Will of Thomas Ashdown, Yeoman of Rotherfield, 1788 ....................................................... 90 21. Will of William Ashdown, Husbandman of Mayfield, 1799 .................................................... 94 22. Will of James Ashdown, Yeoman of Heathfield, 1800 ............................................................ 96 23. Admon of Nicholas Ashdown of Westfield, 1806 .................................................................... 98 24. Will of John Ashdown, Farmer of Hartfield, 1809 ................................................................... 99 25. Admon of Elizabeth Wimble Ashdown of Heathfield, 1830 ................................................ 102 26. Will of William Ashdown, Yeoman of Hellingly, 1830 .......................................................... 103 27. Will of Alexander Ashdown, Wheeler of Forest Row in East Grinstead, 1834 ................. 105 28. Will of James Ashdown, Farmer of Heathfield, 1835 ............................................................ 107 29. Admon of Robert Ashdowne, Accountant of Lewes St Thomas at Cliffe, 1839............... 113 30. Will of Thomas Ashdown Senior, Butcher of Peasmarsh, 1848........................................... 115 31. Will of William Ashdown, Farmer of Chiddingly, 1853 ......................................................... 117 32. Will of David Ashdown, Labourer of Ditchling, 1866........................................................... 120 Chapter 4 - Other Related Wills and Documents .............................................................................. 121 33. Will of John Ellyott, Yeoman of Rotherfield, 1681 ................................................................ 121 34. Will of Anne Elliott, Widow of Mayfield, 1699/1700 ............................................................ 124 35. Will of Richard Ashdowne, Tanner of Bermondsey, 1714 .................................................... 126 36. Will of John Standen, Yeoman of Hastings, 1796 .................................................................. 129 37. Will of William Holland, Yeoman of Ninfield, 1812 .............................................................. 132 INDEX OF WILLS BY LOCATION ............................................................................................... 138 INDEX OF NAMES ............................................................................................................................. 139 INDEX OF PLACES ............................................................................................................................ 148 v Introduction This book assembles together all the known wills of the Ashdown families of East Sussex before 1858, after which the Church of England probate courts were replaced by the Principal Probate Registry. It cannot be guaranteed that this is the complete set and future revised editions will be needed to incorporate new discoveries, including non-Ashdown wills that contain valuable Ashdown information. These wills have enabled many of the Ashdown family trees in Sussex to be verified and further developed. Each will in this book includes a family tree which places the will in context and highlights how other wills are connected. The trees are based on many years of research using primarily the Sussex Family History Group baptisms, marriages and burials indexes and are also based on the information gleaned from the Ashdown wills. I hope that the wills and family trees published