The Wyles Family in 1700s Duddington
By Adrian Chan-Wyles PhD
Plaque: John Wyles 1745
The graveyard of St Mary’s Church, Duddington, has no observable graves for the 1500s, and only two (containing four individuals) for the 1600s. We knew the Wyles family had been in Duddington since the first quarter of the 1500s (1523 to be exact), from extant tax records. The Parish Records began in 1558 but were destroyed in Duddington due to flooding. There is little if any Parish Records between 1558 – 1720 for the Duddington area, and so we have had to rely upon tax records, court records and gravestones, as well as Wills and what can be ascertained from the ‘Bishops Peculiar’ (where available). A family crypt in St Mary’s contains the bodies of Catherine Wyles (d. 1785), James Wyles (d. 1785) - the son of John the Elder (d. 1731/32), George Wyles (d.1799) and James Wyles (d. 1809). James and Catherine are our direct ancestors, and as James lived 84 years (b. 1701), and Catherine lived 82 years (b. 1703), their existence spanned virtually the entire 18th century, with their children taking our lineage into the much better represented 1800s (19th century). For the Wyles family at least, the 1700s was a time of extraordinary long lives (for the time), and the survival of a greater number of children than would normally be expected. James and Catherine sired at least nine (9) children that survived into adulthood, James, Sarah, John, Susanna, Suzannah, George, Rose, Mary and Rebecca. George is our direct relative and he married ‘Mary’. One of their children was ‘Thomas Wyles’ (1787-1853) who married Elizabeth (1804-1863), etc., again, one of our direct ancestors. A nephew of James – William Wyles (b. 1737) son of John the Younger (d. 1770) - would eventually move to Kings Cliff and start a new branch of the Wyles clan which still exists today.
We have 76 Index Cards gathered from the Northamptonshire Record Office (NRO) which record what is known as the ‘Copy Court Rolls’, or extracts of key Court decisions for the time period of 1530 – 1936. Focusing upon the 1700s, we find the record beginning with the daughters of James Wyles (d. 1688). James appears to have had no sons, and left his considerable fortune of money and land to his four (4) daughters, namely Elizabeth, Rebecca, Sarah and Mary. In 1705, the Copy Court Rolls record Rebecca as living in ‘Norwick’, which could be ‘Norwich’ (Norwich is 106.6 miles east of Duddingon). Rebecca (described as a ‘Spinster’) is negotiating with ‘John Buxton’ of East Dereham (Dereham is 72.1 miles east of Duddington situated in Norfolk). This land deal is described as a ‘Mortgage’, with John Buxton appearing to purchase ‘one-quarter’ of all the land Rebecca owns in Duddington and Collyweston to for £560. In 1708, Rebecca Wyles mortgages back the land for £588 - with a note suggesting John Buxton ‘defaulted’ on a payment. Rebecca had inherited this land from her father – James Wyles – in 1688. There are two mentions of ‘Mary Wyles’ for 1710 and 1719 – explaining she is a ‘Spinster’ and is associated with East Dereham (with no other details included – but in 1696 Mary Wyles is listed as living in ‘Polebrook’ which is situated 16.2 southeast of Duddington). In 1710, the Copy Court Rolls appear to state that ‘Elizabeth Wyles’ is married to ‘John Buxton’. A note for 1720 records ‘John Wyles – tailor of Duddington – Apprentice Master’. In 1745, a cottage is built with an identity plaque which reads ‘John Wyles 1745’. Frances Wyles – daughter of John Wyles – inherits land in Duddington at the death of her father in 1762. In 1775, John Wood (Farmer) marries Frances Wyles (both of Duddington) on the 12th of January. John Wood dies and is buried on the 22nd of February, 1775 – they were married for 41 days, or 5 weeks, 6 days. In 1777, the Militia List records George Wyles – tailor – as enlisting (I suspect this is ‘George Wyles’ - son of James Wyles – b. 1749, our direct ancestor).
There is a mention of a James Wyles’ dying in 1794 – with no other details. John Wyles (d. 1762 – father of Frances), Frances Wyles (1762) and James Wyles (1794) appear to represent other lineages of Wyles people living alongside our own lineage of James and Catherine. Of course, we already know about ‘John the Younger’ (d. 1770), who did have a daughter ‘Frances’ (b. 1757), but until proven otherwise, it looks like there were two men called ‘John Wyles’ who both had daughters named ‘Frances’. I say this as ‘John the Younger’ is called such in most of the records associated with him, and he would have left his land to ‘William’ - his oldest son – rather than his youngest daughter who was only 13 years old in 1770. If ‘John Wyles’ - the father of Frances Wyles – died in 1762 and his daughter was a child under 12 years old, the Court Record would have noted that she was a ‘minor’ - but no such note was made. This is why I doubt that the ‘Frances Wyles’ who is the daughter of ‘John Wyles (d. 1762) is the same ‘Frances Wyles’ (b. 1757) who is the daughter of ‘John the Younger’ (d. 1770). An interesting question is to which ‘Frances Wyles’ is the Index Cards referring when they record her short-lived marriage to ‘John Wood’ in 1775? The daughter of ‘John the Younger’ would have been 18 years old – an average age for marriage at a time when girls could get legally married at 12 years old (the age of majority for women). If the daughter of ‘John Wyles’ was 12 years old (for sake of argument) in 1762, and therefore considered an ‘adult’, then by 1775 she would have been at least 25 years old – but I suspect she was considerably older when her father died. More research is required concerning the other lineages of the Wyles family in Duddington.
There is one (1) visible burial in the graveyard of St Mary's Church, Duddington, dating to the 1700s, but it is highly significant. It is the 'Family Crypt',or 'Family Tomb' of the Wyles family which is rectangular in shape and contains a skull & cross-bones emblem engraved upon its south-facing end. The two elongated side panels record the following four (4) occupants which are Jams Wyles aged 84 (d. 1785), his wife Catherine Wyles aged 82 (d. 1785) and their two male relatives (possible grandson and son) George Wyles aged 18 (d. 1799) and James Wyles aged 74 (d. 1809). James and Catherine had a son 'George Wyles' (1749-1828) who is our direct ancestor but is not buried in this grave. It was common not only for different generations of the same family to share a grave over-time, but also for 'different' (but close) families to allow people with different surnames to be buried together.
Duddington Burial Records 1741-1799 (19 Entries) – St Mary’s Church
1) Sarah Wyles, Widow, Fee Paid, 24.1.1741 (Old Calendar) 1742 (New Calendar)
2) Susanna - Daughter of James & Catherine Wyles, Fee Paid, 3.7.1745
3) John Wyles, Fee Paid, 16.6.1746
4) John – Son of John & Mary Wyles, 6d Paid, 10.8.1756
5) Bethia – Daughter of John & Mary Wyles, Fee Paid, 21.9.1758
6) John – Son of Thomas & Elizabeth Wyles, 29.4.1760
7) Thomas – Son of Thomas & Elizabeth Wyles, Fee Paid, 26.1.1761
8) Hannah – Daughter of Thomas & Elizabeth, 14.3.1762
9) John Wyles, 15.7. 1762
10) John Wyles, 31.12.1762
11) Mary Wyles, Fee Paid, 30.5. 1764
12) Thomas – Son of Thomas & Elizabeth, Fee Paid, 27.9. 1764
13) Susanna Wyles, Maidan, 4.4. 1766
14) Frances – Daughter of George & Mary Wiles, 9.8.1780
15) George – Son George & May Wiles, 28.9.1780
16) Catherine Wiyes, 15.6.1785
17) James Wyles, 29.6.1785
18) James Wyles, 23.6.1785
19) James Wyles (Aged 18 years), 22.8.1799
©opyright: Adrian Chan-Wyles (ShiDaDao) 2019.
We have 76 Index Cards gathered from the Northamptonshire Record Office (NRO) which record what is known as the ‘Copy Court Rolls’, or extracts of key Court decisions for the time period of 1530 – 1936. Focusing upon the 1700s, we find the record beginning with the daughters of James Wyles (d. 1688). James appears to have had no sons, and left his considerable fortune of money and land to his four (4) daughters, namely Elizabeth, Rebecca, Sarah and Mary. In 1705, the Copy Court Rolls record Rebecca as living in ‘Norwick’, which could be ‘Norwich’ (Norwich is 106.6 miles east of Duddingon). Rebecca (described as a ‘Spinster’) is negotiating with ‘John Buxton’ of East Dereham (Dereham is 72.1 miles east of Duddington situated in Norfolk). This land deal is described as a ‘Mortgage’, with John Buxton appearing to purchase ‘one-quarter’ of all the land Rebecca owns in Duddington and Collyweston to for £560. In 1708, Rebecca Wyles mortgages back the land for £588 - with a note suggesting John Buxton ‘defaulted’ on a payment. Rebecca had inherited this land from her father – James Wyles – in 1688. There are two mentions of ‘Mary Wyles’ for 1710 and 1719 – explaining she is a ‘Spinster’ and is associated with East Dereham (with no other details included – but in 1696 Mary Wyles is listed as living in ‘Polebrook’ which is situated 16.2 southeast of Duddington). In 1710, the Copy Court Rolls appear to state that ‘Elizabeth Wyles’ is married to ‘John Buxton’. A note for 1720 records ‘John Wyles – tailor of Duddington – Apprentice Master’. In 1745, a cottage is built with an identity plaque which reads ‘John Wyles 1745’. Frances Wyles – daughter of John Wyles – inherits land in Duddington at the death of her father in 1762. In 1775, John Wood (Farmer) marries Frances Wyles (both of Duddington) on the 12th of January. John Wood dies and is buried on the 22nd of February, 1775 – they were married for 41 days, or 5 weeks, 6 days. In 1777, the Militia List records George Wyles – tailor – as enlisting (I suspect this is ‘George Wyles’ - son of James Wyles – b. 1749, our direct ancestor).
There is a mention of a James Wyles’ dying in 1794 – with no other details. John Wyles (d. 1762 – father of Frances), Frances Wyles (1762) and James Wyles (1794) appear to represent other lineages of Wyles people living alongside our own lineage of James and Catherine. Of course, we already know about ‘John the Younger’ (d. 1770), who did have a daughter ‘Frances’ (b. 1757), but until proven otherwise, it looks like there were two men called ‘John Wyles’ who both had daughters named ‘Frances’. I say this as ‘John the Younger’ is called such in most of the records associated with him, and he would have left his land to ‘William’ - his oldest son – rather than his youngest daughter who was only 13 years old in 1770. If ‘John Wyles’ - the father of Frances Wyles – died in 1762 and his daughter was a child under 12 years old, the Court Record would have noted that she was a ‘minor’ - but no such note was made. This is why I doubt that the ‘Frances Wyles’ who is the daughter of ‘John Wyles (d. 1762) is the same ‘Frances Wyles’ (b. 1757) who is the daughter of ‘John the Younger’ (d. 1770). An interesting question is to which ‘Frances Wyles’ is the Index Cards referring when they record her short-lived marriage to ‘John Wood’ in 1775? The daughter of ‘John the Younger’ would have been 18 years old – an average age for marriage at a time when girls could get legally married at 12 years old (the age of majority for women). If the daughter of ‘John Wyles’ was 12 years old (for sake of argument) in 1762, and therefore considered an ‘adult’, then by 1775 she would have been at least 25 years old – but I suspect she was considerably older when her father died. More research is required concerning the other lineages of the Wyles family in Duddington.
There is one (1) visible burial in the graveyard of St Mary's Church, Duddington, dating to the 1700s, but it is highly significant. It is the 'Family Crypt',or 'Family Tomb' of the Wyles family which is rectangular in shape and contains a skull & cross-bones emblem engraved upon its south-facing end. The two elongated side panels record the following four (4) occupants which are Jams Wyles aged 84 (d. 1785), his wife Catherine Wyles aged 82 (d. 1785) and their two male relatives (possible grandson and son) George Wyles aged 18 (d. 1799) and James Wyles aged 74 (d. 1809). James and Catherine had a son 'George Wyles' (1749-1828) who is our direct ancestor but is not buried in this grave. It was common not only for different generations of the same family to share a grave over-time, but also for 'different' (but close) families to allow people with different surnames to be buried together.
Duddington Burial Records 1741-1799 (19 Entries) – St Mary’s Church
1) Sarah Wyles, Widow, Fee Paid, 24.1.1741 (Old Calendar) 1742 (New Calendar)
2) Susanna - Daughter of James & Catherine Wyles, Fee Paid, 3.7.1745
3) John Wyles, Fee Paid, 16.6.1746
4) John – Son of John & Mary Wyles, 6d Paid, 10.8.1756
5) Bethia – Daughter of John & Mary Wyles, Fee Paid, 21.9.1758
6) John – Son of Thomas & Elizabeth Wyles, 29.4.1760
7) Thomas – Son of Thomas & Elizabeth Wyles, Fee Paid, 26.1.1761
8) Hannah – Daughter of Thomas & Elizabeth, 14.3.1762
9) John Wyles, 15.7. 1762
10) John Wyles, 31.12.1762
11) Mary Wyles, Fee Paid, 30.5. 1764
12) Thomas – Son of Thomas & Elizabeth, Fee Paid, 27.9. 1764
13) Susanna Wyles, Maidan, 4.4. 1766
14) Frances – Daughter of George & Mary Wiles, 9.8.1780
15) George – Son George & May Wiles, 28.9.1780
16) Catherine Wiyes, 15.6.1785
17) James Wyles, 29.6.1785
18) James Wyles, 23.6.1785
19) James Wyles (Aged 18 years), 22.8.1799
©opyright: Adrian Chan-Wyles (ShiDaDao) 2019.