52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 31

 Week 31:

The theme for Week 31 is “Earliest Ancestor.” Who is the earliest ancestor you have identified? Of course, you don’t have to interpret the prompt that way. How about: the first “new” ancestor you discovered, the earliest one to arrive in a certain location, or even one with a surname like Earl(e)y.

For this prompt, I researched the maternal side of my family tree. I chose to follow the line of my maternal grandfather, Clair Edwin Gross. I was able to trace the line back to William Gross who was born 6 September 1512 in Kelsale, Saxmundham, Suffolk, England.

Kelsale was a smaller agricultural village, while Saxmundham was already a market town. Kelsale had a parish church, St. Mary's and St. Peter's Church, which played a central role in community life. The Kelsale Church is probably a thousand years old being first mentioned in the Domesday Book circa AD 1086. 

"The Domesday Book was created in the historical context of the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. Following his victory, William the Conqueror needed to consolidate his power and understand the extent of his new kingdom to establish control and levy taxes. The Domesday Book, completed in 1086, served as a comprehensive survey of land ownership, resources, and population, providing William with the information necessary for effective governance and taxation."

https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/domesday-book/#:~:text=Domesday%20Book%20is%20the%20oldest,the%20Domesday%20Book%20by%20scribes.

In the Kelsale village center, there is a former Guildhall built in 1495 that is now used as a training center.

William married Margery Charles in 1531. In 1532 she gave birth to their first child, John Gross, my 13th great-grandfather. They had one more child together, a son named Valenttyne, born in 1549. He would only live to be 9 years old, dying in 1558. Margery died on January 22, 1565, when she was 55 years old. William Gross died in Kelsale, on October 28, 1587, when he was 75 years old.

His son John Gross / Grosse was born in 1532. He married Susannah Coupland in 1555 in Cornwall, England. Together they had four sons - William, Ezekiel, Thomas, and Edward. 

Susannah died in Cornwall, England in 1600 at the age of 65. John died the same year, at the age of 68. 

Meet my long line of Gross ancestors-

William Gross

1512–1587

14th great-grandfather

John Gross

1532–1600

13th great-grandfather

Edward Gross

1564–1623

12th great-grandfather

John Gedion Gross

1586–1666

11th great-grandfather

Gebherd Gross I

1609–1689

10th great-grandfather

Gebherd Gross II

1632–1692

9th great-grandfather

John Henry Gross

1664–1710

8th great-grandfather 

Phillip Gross

1696–1763

7th great-grandfather

Theobald Dewalt Gross

1716–1759

6th great-grandfather

Samuel Gross

1749–1831

5th great-grandfather

Daniel Gross Sr.

1790–1868

4th great-grandfather

John Henry Gross

1817–1866

3rd great-grandfather

Samuel Gross

1850–1931

2nd great-grandfather

Walter Gross 

1886–1964

great-grandfather

Clair Edwin Gross 

1929–2009

maternal grandfather

Gail Lee Gross Miller 

1955-

mother

Dominish Marie Miller 

1994

Me! 


Surrey, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1538-1812


















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