GREETINGS FROM: An American family genealogy researcher. My name is CLAUDIA NEWELL. I am researching my English FUSSELL ancestors and their allied families born in England. >From time to time I have sent inquiries to England. I find the English researchers who have responded to be thorough, knowledgeable, doggedly helpful, and on a personal level so very kind. Even if they have no idea of how to help me, they invariably forward my emails to everyone they believe may be able to do so. Even more heartwarming, is the fact that they seem genuinely interested in the outcome, and stay in contact.  I am telling you this to let you know in advance, to let you know that I appreciate and genuinely value anything (no matter how small) you can think of, or do, that may lead to solving my English mystery. Although you are probably not researching the same surname, you might be able to point me in the right direction. I do realize that what follows is a lot of information to throw at a total stranger. However, I will make my best attempt at summarizing the necessary details in an organized, easy to read and reference format. WHAT I AM SEEKING I need help in solving a long standing mystery for all American researchers known to me, who are also researching my line. In order to solve the mystery the following questions must be answered: >From where did the earliest known individuals of this Fussell line come? Who were their ancestors? What were their lives like in England? Who are current day English born Fussell relatives, and members of allied familles who married into the family, and how can they be contacted so we can share and compare genealogical files. WHAT I OFFER IN RETURN In order to establish and develop family connections with individuals in England, I will be very glad to share my research with interested parties. This includes: A Genealogy Report of over 1,000 individuals, including direct Fussell descendants, and when possible the allied familles of their spouses. Some include biographies and personal stories. Some of these records also have associated photographs or drawings of the individuals involved.  CONTACTING ME & FORWARDING THIS MESSAGE TO OTHERS Anyone receiving this message directly from me, or via a kind person living in England, is encouraged to use the following email and fax number to contact me. In addition to contacting me, I hope you will forward this email in its entirety, to any as many other people, agencies, or organizations, of whom you are aware, and who may want to share and compare information, or might be able to offer constructive guidance. Because I receive a massive number of Fussell research related emails and other communications on a daily basis, I have to ask that those responding always use both their first and last names in their message. First names are more friendly, but I it is necessary for me to have a method to keep incoming and outgoing communications organized. This is not only for my benefit, but that of you and other respondents, because I may have information to share that could be important to your own research or records. My contact information is: Claudia Newell 5698 Wolf Creek Drive Jacksonville, Florida, 32222 Email: FLASTEP3@aol.com Home Fax: 904-771-9603 SURNAME OF INTEREST & ALLIED FAMILIES FUSSELL A Few Allied Surnames: Longstreth (or Longstroth) Coney Clinkenbeard Dawson Lewis Moore James Gibbon Duff Blanton Cope Coates THE BIG MYSTERY: IS YORKSHIRE THE PLACE IN WHICH THEY LIVED IN ENGLAND? All of the books and records I have access to were written by American descendants of my oldest known Fussells from England, and their allied families. They were published at different times throughout the 1800s. Regardless of the generation in which the authors lived and wrote their books, they all gave essentially the same explanation of the place in England, from which our line of Fussells came. This is usually something to the effect of: They came from Yorkshire - OR - He/She was born in Yorkshire. I cannot know if that means they lived there, or if that was the location from where they departed for the American colonies. Ideally one would find the answer to this question within the English Society of Friends (Quaker) Meeting Records. Unfortunately, since neither the early American genealogists writing about the Fussells in the 1800s, nor my current day American peers, have been able to do so. I understand that the Latter Day Saints may have some of them on microfilm available for loan. I am working on finding out what availability may be offered to American researchers. OTHER LOCATIONS WHERE THEY MAY HAVE LIVED IN ENGLAND Thus far I have not been fortunate enough to locate any English individual who is researching the Fussell surname, much less my specific line. What I have been advised by a couple of experienced English historians and family genealogy researchers is this: In addition to Yorkshire, other locations should be considered, as they had and still have a greater number of persons with the surname Fussell living there. They are: Somerset, South Gloucestorshire, Bristol, or Devon. I assume it is possible that they could have come from additional areas as well. OLDEST KNOWN ENGLISH FUSSELL ANCESTOR WILLIAM FUSSELL Dates & Places Birth-Death for William: Dates unknown. Probably born mid 1600s, died early half of the 1700s. Place, of both is thought to be Yorkshire, but no one in America has English document ation. Marriage: Elizabeth (no known maiden name) Dates & Places Birth-Death for Elizabeth: Dates unknown. Place, said to be Yorkshire. May not be the location. Migration: It is not know if they migrated to America. If so, it is not known if they came over at some other point, or with their earliest known child to migrate in 1721. See Solomon below. Religion: Perhaps they were Quaker. I attribute this possibility to the fact that their oldest known son was a staunch, practicing Quaker in America. Relationship Note: The William Fussell and his wife Elizabeth listed above, are my maternal 6th great grandfather and grandmother. ENGLISH BORN DESCENDANTS OF WILLIAM FUSSELL & WIFE ELIZABETH Note: There are only (2) known children of William Fussell. They are: CHILD # 1: SOLOMON FUSSELL Religion: He was known to be a practicing Quaker in America.  It is unknown, but reasonable to assume that he was also involved in the Society of Friends in England. Dates & Places Birth-Death: b. 1704, Yorkshire? England, d. 1762 Philadelphia, PA, USA Migration: America in 1721 - which would have made him age 17. Ship Passage Record: No one in the USA has any English or American based documentation of the port(s) from which he departed and at which he arrived, nor the name of the ship on which he was a passenger. Documented American Residence & Occupation: >From about 1728 he is documented as having owned a business in what was then named Philadelphia County, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, American Colony. He operated a chair shop there. He is quite famous for his craftsmanship as a maker of chairs, which are today being shown in exhibition, and being sold at auction for large amounts of money. They are also in the private collections of collectors of museum quality colonial furniture. He is known and documented to have designed and manufactured wood turnings for Benjamin Franklin's experiments, and chairs for him as well. In addition, Solomon was the first to mass produce chairs in America, and for being the master of William Savery, who was apprenticed to him at the age of 14. Savery is now famous for his skill as a furniture craftsman, and also for making furniture for Benjamin Franklin. Two of his chairs recently sold at auction for $100,500.00 American dollars. The fact that Solomon Fussell trained Savery was a contributing factor in the selling price. Solomon's American Descendants: His immediate descendants lived and died there and in surrounding New England colonies. Because of splits in dogma among Quakers, and also their stand against the slavery of individuals captured and brought to America from Africa, some of the members of Solomon Fussell's subsequent generations, helped to pioneer and establish a colony of Quakers in the American midwest. Initially, they moved to the area now known as the state of Indiana, specifically Madison County, Fall Creek, Indiana. Many lived and died there. Some moved to surrounding states. In more recent generations they moved to, lived and died in areas throughout the USA. 2 Marriage(s) Note: I have documented the American born children of these marriages and their descendants for a number of generations. This record includes some biographies, and where available some drawings and photographs. # 1 Spouse SUSANNA CONEY b. April 16, 1765, Philadelphia, PA, d. August 2, 1750, same. Father: Joseph Coney Mother: Barbara Clinkenbeard. Note: Solomon or his parents may have known, or been associated with these allied families in England. Relationship Note: The above Solomon Fussell and his wife Susanna Coney Fussell, are my 6th great Uncle and Aunt. # 2 Spouse RACHEL WILSON - widow with 10 children. b. December 12, 1751, d. April 23, 1797. Both occurred in America. Parents: Unknown Note: Solomon or his parents may have known, or been associated with this allied family in England. CHILD # 2: BENJAMIN FUSSELL Relationship Note: Benjamin Fussell and his first wife Elizabeth James are my 6th great grandfather and great grandmother. Dates & Places Birth-Death: b. 1708, Yorkshire, England d. 1784 Duplin County, North Carolina, America  Migration: He migrated to America, between the years of 1721-1735.  This would have made him between the ages of 13-27. The most likely period of his migration would be 1725-1734. This would have made him between the ages of 17-27 when he arrived. At some point Benjamin Fussell found his older brother, Solomon Fussell in Philadelphia, PA. While walking on the street, he noticed Solomon's name on the sign over the door of his chair shop. He entered and they were reunited there. If Benjamin knew his brother was there or not, how long he had been in Philadelphia prior to finding Solomon, or how long he remained in that location before moving south is unknown. It is certain that by 1735 he owned land and lived in the American south, in Duplin County, North Carolina. He lived, died, and is buried there. Ship Passage Record: No one in the USA has any English or American based documentation of the port(s) from which Benjamin departed and at which he arrived, nor the name of the ship on which he was a passenger. 1721-1735. 2 Marriages: Note: I have documented the American born children of the first marriage and their descendants for a number of generations. This record includes complete genealogical data, and some biographies, and where available some photographs. # 2 Spouse MARGARET (surname unknown) She had no known children with Benjamin Fussell. No dates or places of birth/death are known. # 2 Spouse ELIZABETH JAMES She was the mother of all of his known children. No dates or places of birth/death are known. She is probably buried in Duplin, North Carolina, USA where he is buried. Father: Richard James.  NOTE: A potential third spouse of Benjamin Fussell, between # 1 Margaret and # 2 Elizabeth James? One researcher feels that Benjamin Fussell may have returned to England to gather together as many people as possible, before returning with them to America. He claims to have found a record of an additional marriage there, but no evidence that that spouse ever returned with him to America. The researcher feels that the purpose for Benjamins return to England was because the more individuals he could prove were of his household, the more land he could qualify to receive as a grant from England, in colonial America.  If this evidence is true, he probably would have made the trip and returned sometime between 1722-1734. There are American documents showing a great number of people who qualified as part of his household. So the trip back to England has a feasible reason. If this is so, a majority of them had to be persons in his English born family, who returned to America with Benjamin Fussell, and who settled with him in Duplin County, North Carolina. A couple of them are thought to be his nephews through his brother Solomon, and the rest slaves. Religion: If Benjamin Fussell were a Quaker in England, he must have changed his affiliation at some point, after coming to America. I have a copy of his will, in which he left to his wife and children a number of slaves. Documented American Residence & Occupation: Benjamin Fussell is not known to have any particular occupation. Some colonial era records indicate that at one time he may have been a carpenter. However, the large majority of evidence suggested that he was a gentleman farmer. The rationale is the large numbers of land he bought and sold, in numerous locations in the American south. He settled in Duplin County, North Carolina America. He lived there the rest of his life, and is buried there in Rose Hill Cemetery. There are two Fussell cemeteries there with a number of graves. Many of his descendants continued to migrate southward, later to the state of Georgia, and subsequent generations to Florida, where my ancestors, where my three most recent generations of Fussells were born and lived. The last being my mother, who is still alive at age 75.  ATTEMPTS TO SOLVE THE MYSTERY THUS FAR I have done exhaustive searches of the available free online data bases. Because my English ancestors were likely to have been Quakers before coming to America, I seem to be hitting a brick wall. Here's why: They kept thorough records of birth, deaths and marriages, along with Quaker related business. I understand from the Quaker Family History Society Site, where the existing records Monthly Meeting Records are housed for the time period (1600-1735) in which I believe I need to begin my English research. Being Quakers, they did not: Join the military, so searching military records won't be helpful. However, the Quakers kept meticulous records of births, deaths, and marriages, as well as the migration of its active members from one "Meeting" to another. One exception would be that if necessity prevailed, they sometimes married at other types of churches and the marriages/baptisms might be recorded there, as well as in their own "Meeting" In that case there might be some evidence of a marriage or baptism in a regular church parish record. That happened in America because the network of Meetings were initially clustered in the first areas in which Quakers settled at port cities on the northeastern coastline of America. As they began to move to southward and westward, new Meetings had to be approved and pioneered. It may not have been so likely in England, because of Quakerism already being more established within the period in question. I look forward to hearing from anyone in England who may be researching Fussells or allied families. On another more serious and important note: I want to thank England for its committment to fight terrorism, wherever it may be. Blessings, Claudia Newell