Hi Phil, The West Sussex Records Office has an excellent website - very well organized and easy to navigate. I sent them an email last night to first confirm that they have a baptismal record for Rebecca. If they do, I will probably make use of their research services (for the tidy sum of 18 pounds per hour) to get photocopies of whatever records they have relating to pre-1650 Balcombe Sherwoods. If the John that you mentioned is a brother of Rebecca, then I agree that they are probably not my direct Sherwood line. But I like to gather information on all Sherwoods from that era so that I can keep track of which can be ruled out and which are still potentially my line. It's also a good excuse to visit the British and Irish websites and educate myself on all the wonderful local history and folklore. Thanks for pointing out the location of Somerset. I became so enthralled by the West Sussex Records Office website that I didn't have a chance to search for Somerset myself. > In the absence of information to the contrary, I incline to the view > that Thomas came from the Ipswich area, and certainly not from Nottingham > Forest as entries on the IGI suggest! Goodness only knows where the IGI came up with Nottingham Forest as the English home of Thomas. Certainly some, maybe all, of the earliest (11th century) Sherwoods took their name from the "Shire's Woods" of Nottingham, but there is no evidence that I know of to indicate that Nottingham can claim Thomas as a native son. I have also heard of another possible etymology of "Sherwood" from "Scire wood/wode", which means "bright woods." If that is true, then some of the earliest Sherwoods could have come from virtually any forested area of England. What inclines you to the view that Thomas came from the Ipswich area? Do you think he could be a son of Esdras and Dorcas who lived in the Parish of St. Nicholas, Ipswich? Kind Regards, Geoff Geoffrey Sherwood demidave@juno.com Towaco, NJ, USA ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj.