My Chesney Roots

Research of our Barkwell, Bowhey, Copeland and Hannigan Trees has resulted in following the main trunk of the tree to the branches and twigs. These families are an integral part of understanding the entire family history and a continuation of the stories and events that shaped their lives. This is of course not an all-inclusive list of families but those of which research has resulted in documenting several generations. Browse through the information by clicking on the name below that you would like to follow and discover the branches and twigs of the Barkwell, Bowhey, Copeland and Hannigan families.

Barkwell:
Armstrong, Bigelow, Bullied/Bulleid/Bulhead, Butterworth, Cooper, Davis, Demoe/Demond, Gilroy, Greer, Grozelle/Groseillers, Hole, McKee, O’Brien, O’Connor, Oke, Palmer, Parker, Parkin, Perkins, Rettie, Sired, Smith, Stephens/Stevens, Thompson, Walter/Walters, Wicks, Woodcock

Bowhey:
Abernathy, Bowins, Courtemanche, Dallyn, Day, Dunn, Eades, Fielder, Geeza/Geese, Glover, Hughes, Ingle, Lowery, Martin, Quibell, Rumney, Scott, Sillivant/Sillifant, Suggitt, Wakelin, Ward, Washington, Wicks, Wilson, Woodcock

Copeland:
Brown, Davies, Etherington, Graham, Ryder

Hannigan:
Allen, Cooper, Green, Swayze

Please Note: There may be variances in the information based on the records and family histories available. If you find anything that you feel should be corrected, please feel free to email the website contact. Additions are always welcome.

Over the years my goal with genealogy has been to add some textual content to the collection of names, dates and places so that others will be able to understand the stories and histories of individuals and the life events that shaped their lives. Seldom does any family historian ever come across an ancestor that was famous or of high nobility unless you already know your heritage but this is the “Holy Grail” when you find that link. Continue reading »

Yours truly, Don Chesney, born to Kenneth Nolan Chesney and Dorothy Mae Blaschke, grew up in Brantford Ontario with sibling’s; twin brother Cameron, Edward and Karen. After college, I found employment in Hamilton Ontario with Beaver Lumber Company and this is where I met my wife and best friend, Janie (Jane) Margaret Copeland, daughter of Robert Lawrence Copeland and Lois Corinne Barkwell.

My father, Kenneth Nolan Chesney, born in Guelph Ontario, son of Edward John Francis Chesney and Sarah Rachel Colwill, lived most of his younger years with brother Reginald Arthur Chesney in the cities of Galt and Preston. Kenneth, followed his father working with his hands in various machine shops working the better part of his career as a toolroom lathe hand at the Steel Company of Canada. Edward John Francis Chesney was born in the little village of Wolverton, to William Edward Chesney and Mary Anne Nolan. Wolverton was the location of the Chesney family homestead and the William Chesney Cooper Shop and Cider Mill. As mentioned before, my father and grandfather always thought that we were of Irish descent, however my research finds that in1851 William’s father Henry Chesney immigrated to Canada from Letheringsett, Norfolk County, England. Our Irish heritage comes from Mary Anne Nolan who was born in Westport, Mayo County, Ireland. Sarah Rachel Colwill, born in Arthur Ontario to Robert Andrew Colwill and Sarah Rachel McLean also lived most of her younger years in the Galt and Preston areas. The Colwill family emigrated from England to Lanark Township, near Ottawa, and in 1862 went to Erin Township, settling near the village of Arthur. Continue reading »

Since the confirmation that my Canadian CHESNEY family originated in Norfolk England in and around the parish of Letheringsett, near the village of Holt, I have found some interesting facts.

Letheringsett
Letheringsett is set in the Glaven Valley and dates back to the Domesday Book and beyond. The present day St. Andrew’s Church dates from about 1300 is one of 124 existing round-tower churchs in Norfolk and was restored in the late 19th century by William Butterfield. Several CHASTENEY family members are buried in the churchyard of St. Andrew’s church including Francis CHASTNEY, b. 1808, d. Feb. 1882. Many inhabitants of the parish erected a cross as a mark of respect to the memory of Francis Chastney who for 30 years filled the Office of Clerk of this parish.
The Glaven is spanned by an iron bridge (dated 1818), designed by William Hardy. Letheringsett Brewery watermill which stands on the west side of the river next to the A148 road bridge is now disused but Letheringsett Watermill which lies 150 yards to the south is the last working watermill in the county of Norfolk, and has won several prestigious awards for its flour production and as a tourist attraction. Next to the Brewery watermill is the village pub, it is called the King’s Head and was built in the Georgian period. The pub has two bars and a restaurant and has a good selection of real ale.
In a book of The History of Letheringsett, section XVIII – Inhabitants Through The Ages, we find amongst a list of employees of the Brewery in 1855:
Cooper – William (Punch) CHASTNEY 4 1/2 feet high. Mrs. Byford the ironmongers wife of Holt is his daughter. Continue reading »

After almost 16 years of research, I am confident today that my gg grandfather Henry Chesney, born Feb. 2, 1834 in the parish of Heydon, Norfolk County, England was the son of Hammond Chasteney and Elizabeth Ewing. For many years I could not connect them, causing in genealogy terms a “brick wall” and now due to the understanding of when census records were recorded in England and Canada, along with several others facts, I can say that this is true. Continue reading »

Almost 15 years ago I started researching my family history for two reasons. One being because I am a twin and I wanted to know if there were any others twins in my family line, not realizing until much later that identical twins as a rule are not hereditary. The other reason was because I was genuinely interested in the little village of Wolverton in Ontario where my great, great grandfather, Henry Chesney, operated one of several cooper shops in the village, during the early 1860’s, that made butter tubs or firkins of white oak staves with lids. In 1879 Henry’s sons William, my great grandfather, and Thomas built an addition on the Cooper shop and went into business making apple cider and apple butter. The shop had a Steam whistle on the roof that announced the beginning of the cider season and the start of each days work in the village.

While I was growing up my dad and grandfather always mentioned that our family came from Mayo County, Ireland. They celebrated St. Patrick’s Day for as long as I can remember. My conviction was strong when I started to gather family information because I found a copy of my dad’s birth certificate that showed his father’s racial origin listed as “Irish”. Once I started to dig deep into census records I found that Henry Chesney was not born in Ireland but in fact Norfolk County, England.

Through out my childhood and most of my adult life, until I started genealogy research, I believed that the spelling of my surname has always been Chesney. I spent almost a year trying to locate my ancestors in Norfolk England until another genealogist suggested that I search for different spellings. My family name has been written as Chesney/Chestney/Chastney/Chasteney.