Welcome everyone! Due to business commitments John Henden (Taunton, Somerset) is unable to perform his usual editorial skills and Graham Steer (Streatham, London) is heavily committed at the present and so at the recent Steering Committee meeting in Brantham (see later) it was agreed that it would be more of a joint effort and that Peter Henden (Brantham, Suffolk) would pull this issue together.

REVIEW OF UK REUNION SEP 2000

The idea of a family reunion had been with the Committee for a number of years. Eventually after much deliberation and planning it became reality on 16 September 2000. However, first of all there were many letters and telephone calls to be made both at home and abroad. All seemed to go splendidly until the fuel crisis – that was all we needed!! It affected about thirty people who were coming long distances and had very little fuel. In our own case five adults packed into one small car, instead of taking two, including food, flower arrangements, family albums etc. Some displays had to be left at home. Having arrived we hoped that we had enough petrol to return home!!

In times gone by Streatham would have been a nice little country village.  Now it is an inner city suburb – and in London would you believe. The church is in the corner of a complicated junction in the middle section of Streatham High Road  which as the Rector pointed out is a main route from London to the coast and has been since the days of the Romans! Streatham HR is one of the roads that we always make a point of avoiding when driving in south London as there are shops, buses and bus stops plus endless side roads with traffic entering and leaving!

At about 12.45 hrs Graham arrived and the hall was opened. Then ensued frenetic activity. Unloading of cars, unstacking tables and chairs putting up other tables around the hall for exhibition material, all according to Graham’s master plan! The  “Committee” members were requested to attend at the church at 14.30 hrs for photographs to be taken. Graham also had arranged  for  a  couple  of  his relatives, Spencer and Tracie Cox, to dress up as Sir John Henden and Lady Northamptonia Hayward who were married at St Leonard’s in 1660. Photos were taken of us around the parish register this being open at the page showing the original marriage entry!

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After this photography session members were rustled up to come into the church. At about 15.10 hrs – slightly behind schedule – when everyone was in place the Committee members processed, behind Sir John and his good Lady, up the centre aisle and then sat in two angled ranks of chairs facing the congregation.  The service was well thought out by Graham who did a splendid job with the Order of Service which was conducted by the Rector of St Leonard’s the extremely helpful Rev. Jeffry Wilcox.  The minister started with a welcome and a history of the church. It had to be redecorated inside because of a major fire in 1975. Charles Henden (Peter’s father’s cousin; unfortunately they had not seen each other since they were children and Harold died 1977) was due to read Psalm 100 but couldn’t attend due to ill health and consequently this was read by  cousin John (Taunton) H ‘s son Edward. Then Pip, Peter’s niece, read a six verse poem by Edward Blunden (1896-1974) who was born at Yalding in Kent (and became Professor of English Poetry at Oxford); it was a reflection on the lives of our ancestors. There were numerous readings including some by our American relatives! At the end a couple of photographs of the congregation were taken from the first floor area.   The service  was impressive – well done Graham!

After this c. 15.15 hrs members then strolled through the church grounds to the hall next door for the exhibition, tea and chin wagging. There was a real enthusiastic buzz going on! We had some interesting chats with various new found relatives including from America. After the service everybody went back to the church hall. Cousins greeted cousins, some meeting after many years, renewing friendships! Strangers introducing themselves, sorting out relationships and their place on the TREE. It was wonderful that so many of our American cousins had come over to be with us and be part of it. We had many greetings and regrets from overseas including Australia and Canada.

Pride of place amongst the refreshments were two cakes with Coat of Arms displayed. These were cut by the oldest living representative of the Hendens present – 89 year old William Weller –

About 18.00 hrs people started to drift off. Shortly after that we started to pack things away as we had to be out by seven o’clock. After loading up we departed from the car park just after seven. We arrived home a couple of hours later after another good journey.

In spite of all the difficulties encountered by the fuel crisis, the day was generally considered to be a great success, judging by the telephone calls that we received and requests for another reunion!

Kath & Peter Henden

Numerous Hendon researchers have attempted to discover the English ancestry of Richard and Josias Hendon. Some, like Olive Stone and Grace Hendon Chancey, started this quest as early as the 1950s. In 1977, Mrs. Chancey authored "The Hendons From Gunpowder River", and some of Mrs. Stone's research was utilized in the book. Theories about the English ancestry of the Hendon brothers were discussed, but the connection was never made.

Thanks to the Internet, many Hendon family researchers in America started sharing their information about 1995. Today, a Hendon Cousins Mailing List, hosted by Art Hendon (ajhendon@aol.com) boasts over 100 members. Additionally, the Hendon-L mailing list at Rootsweb.com has over 75 members. It is hosted by Wayne Hendon (pug8201@home.com). In 1998, The Hendon Family Genealogy Forum (http://genforum.genealogy.com/hendon/) was initiated. That same year, Dr. Rufus Hendon founded the first Hendon family website, The Hendon Archives (http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/hendon). And, my own website, Hendon Family Chronicles, was begun in 1999. It can be viewed at: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~hendon.

[A great deal of work has gone into these web sites and they are excellent – highly recommended – Ed].

Hendon Reunions in America Several regional Hendon family reunions are held annually. The Alabama Hendons gather in Early October at Oxford, Alabama. Some Mississippi Hendons have their reunion in late October. Their last one occurred at Meridian, Mississippi. This year, a national Hendon reunion is planned for early September at Gunpowder River State Park, northeast of Baltimore, Maryland. After migrating from England to Virginia about 1700, our ancestors settled along the Gunpowder River.

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The British Connection

In May 1999, Graham Steer, a Henden family historian who resides in England contacted me. This launched a series of correspondence between us. He and his colleagues: Edward Freathy, John Henden, Peter Henden, Kath Henden, Steven Henden and others, have accomplished some excellent, detailed research on their Henden ancestry, which connects to Richard and Josias Hendon. The spelling of the family name had changed during the seventeenth century.

The Journey To England

We found that Henden descendants in Great Britain are just as passionate about their roots as we Hendons in America are. A Henden / Hendon Reunion was scheduled for September 2000 in England. Graham Steer, John Henden and Kath Henden were the hosts. They did a wonderful job!

Americans Who Attended

Bill Cothren (Colorado), Colleen Cothren Deffren (Colorado), Jean Dughman (Florida), April Durett (Texas), Bill Fitzgerald (Alabama), Pat Fitzgerald (Alabama), Art Hendon (Texas), Cathy Hendon (Texas), Harry Hendon (California), Pat Hendon (California), Wayne Hendon (Texas), Pat Jasmin (Florida), Annette Ledford (Georgia), Karen McClenden (Texas), Jane Mullally (Alabama), Charles Stewart (Illinois), Joan Hendon Stewart (Illinois), Betty Tryor (Alabama), Helen Wall (Texas), and Loretta Walton (Michigan).

Sightseeing Tours Upon our arrival in London, we set off on a walking tour to visit many sights that included the Inns of Court where Edward Henden and several other Hendens studied law. The following day, we journeyed to the Kent village of Hothfield to visit the Church where William Henden was baptized in 1640. Then, on to the charming village of Woodchurch, where a fifteenth century Henden ancestral home (Henden Place) is located. We then traveled to Tenterden, where we had lunch and toured the old church there. Early afternoon found us at Benenden - where the Hendens lived from about 1520. The highlight of the day was visiting Biddenden, where another Henden home (Biddenden Place) is located. Jennie Danczak and her family now occupy it. Jennie graciously hosted a tea for us Americans, which included a tour of the house.

Two days later, we Americans journeyed to Streatham to celebrate the 340th wedding anniversary of our common ancestors, Sir John Henden and Northamptonia Hayward, who were married August 28, 1660. The ancient St. Leonard's Church, where the wedding transpired, was a sight to behold. Over 100 of our British cousins were also in attendance. The ceremony was beautiful and moving and even included costumed actors portraying our ancestors! A reception followed in a nearby hall where we helped ourselves to a lovely buffet and were thrilled to meet and visit with so many of our English kinsmen.

Throughout our stay in London, we were afforded ample time for individual sightseeing. In small groups, we were able to see many fascinating places; the London Museum, the British Museum, Piccadilly Circus, Tower of London, RAF Museum at Hendon, Buckingham Palace, etc. London has an excellent transportation system and we experienced no problems!

Epilogue

Many, many photos of our trip to England and the Henden/Hendon family reunion can be found at: Hendon Family Chronicles - (http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~hendon).

Our journey was really a "trip of a lifetime" and we Hendons in America will always be indebted to our British cousins who made it all possible. Rumblings of another trip (in 2002) have already begun!

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REPORT OF THE HENDEN FAMILY RESEARCH STEERING COMMITTEE

The first full steering committee since the September worldwide reunion, was held at Brantham in Suffolk on Saturday 7 May 2001. A warm welcome was extended to Charles Henden from Hassocks, Sussex and Stephen Henden who was representing the Norfolk branch.

It had been  hoped that this meeting would have been a good opportunity for all to have viewed the video of the recent reunion. However, problems experienced during editing meant a delay of at least another week!

John reported on the latest position regarding the Barrow Gurney research. This research is of most interest to our American cousins, in that as far as we believe, all American Hendons are descended from brothers Richard and Josias Henden, whose parents William and Dinah from Barrow Gurney emigrated from Bristol in c. 1701. Our genealogist who has been investigating on our behalf, had discovered many discrepancies in spelling between the original records and the microfiche slides. It was agreed that John would make another approach in the hope that we can see the original records and have them translated for us.

Graham Steer informed the steering group that he might have made another breakthrough as regards our common ancestor William, born in the early 18th Century. He had discovered a William born in St Margaret’s at Cliffe, near Dover.

Both dates and geographical factors would seem to match. The group were quick to agree with Graham that a further approach should be made to our professional genealogist in Kent, namely, Margaret Lewis (whose presence we were blessed with at the London reunion).

The production of this Newsletter was discussed at length. All agreed that it would be of great interest to all here at home and to family members and other friends overseas. Various steering group members offered to supply material and it was agreed, for the initial period at least, that Peter would collate all contributions.
There was the customary steering group reunion ‘photocall’ – and Kath Henden’s patio seemed an ideal place for snaps of new friends and old.

All of us were well served with scrumptious refreshments throughout the day: our thanks to Kath who was ably assisted in this regard by daughter Julie Revell (Brantham, Suffolk)

John Henden

I was talking to my friend Des Hawgood at work one day and he told me how he was meeting one of his relatives for the first time who was from Australia. I asked him how this had come about and he explained how he had searched into his ancestry, luckily for him one of his relatives whom he had previously not known was a genealogist and had already searched into his family roots and had his ancestry already mapped out.
I decided to search for my own ancestry,

so after getting what information I could from my family I put the name Henden into my computer. I came up with numerous results but one in particular interested me, it was from Wayne Hendon, so I contacted him by e-mail, he replied almost immediately with some very useful information and told me to contact Graham Steer who was searching the Henden ancestry in England. This I did, but unfortunately it was after the September meeting so I failed to meet any of  my other relatives from around the world, so I will take this opportunity now and say hello to all the Hendens and Hendons out there. I have since met Graham Steer, John, Peter, Charles and Kath Henden on the 5th May and look forward to meeting others at a later date.

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My ancestry line joins the above mentioned  family line in the 18th century when William Henden born 1763 married Mary Woodgate born 1760 and they  had 8 children, including my great great great great grandfather James Thomas Henden born 1794.  The other families descend from his brother William born 1785.
Stephen  Henden (Norwich, Norfolk)
Tel   01603 716467
E mail     steve@thehendens.fsnet.co.uk

THE LATEST RESEARCH

Those of you attended the Reunion at Streatham last September may have noted  a large family tree showing the relationship between the Hendens of Biddenden (the aristocratic line), the Hendens of Hothfield (who went to Barrow Gurney in Somerset and later the American Colonies where they became Hendon), and the  Hendens of Tenterden.

Our families all descend from one of those three family groups back in the late 1500s. However, until now it has not been clear as to which of the Henden families produced our first 100% proven ancestor, William Henden of Dartford, who died in 1762, from whom all the English cousins descend. There are several candidates, all born around the same time in nearby places, and so it is quite a task to identify the right one. Despite an exhaustive search of the parish registers during the last six or seven years, we have not found any more clues, so perhaps they were not from the Dartford area at all.

Recently, I found a cluster of Hendens at St Margaret At Cliff on the East Kent coast: a marriage of a John Henden in 1680, with the baptisms of his three children: John (1681), William (1684), Anne (1688). There were other Hendens at Dover (St James), and a new group of Hendens identified at Canterbury. For each of these families the baptisms, marriages, burials and Wills have to be checked to see if the details fit. Perhaps our William was the son of either William or John of St  Margaret’s At Cliff. We also know, for example, that  John Henden (born 1627) was a Yeoman of Rolvenden, but that his mother was from Canterbury. Could it be that the family went to Canterbury because of her, and then a generation or two later moved up the old Roman road to Dartford? ……………………
Are there any Wills in the archives which might help us?

Henden heartland of Kent

To find out a few facts I have employed Mrs Margaret Lewis of Whitstable (who spoke at the Reunion) to search the records for us as I am unfortunately unable to do it in person due to work. By the time I have got myself down to Canterbury and booked into a B&B the cost of the trip is getting expensive. In addition, you cannot research at the weekends, so it has to be done in precious holiday time. Paying an agent is actually the cheaper and more convenient way to do it. In the past, the chief researchers pooled together a few pounds to cover the cost, recognizing that the research would be shared by everyone in the family. If you feel you could contribute something, however modest, we would be most grateful -

Contributions to: GRAHAM STEER,
53 GOODMAN CRESCENT, LONDON SW2 4NR.

DRAWING UP FAMILY TREES No doubt you will all have had a go at sometime or another at the practical aspects of constructing trees. It is a great deal more difficult than one would think at first sight!  Overall there has to be some consistency of approach and presentation and the generations should be on a par to aid comprehension. There is a great deal of trial and error and after many hours work one is left with a great deal of frustration, blotches and scratchings out! The answer to it of course in the modern world is computerisation. There are a number of very good programs about, however, this is not a dissertation on the use of computers in the maintenance of family history as such. The trouble with standard programs is that they tend to be rather inflexible.

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Recently I have had a go at producing trees with the aid of Microsoft Excel, which for those non office   types   who do not know is the leading program for the production of  “spreadsheets”  (computerised analysis columns). The beauty of this approach is that:
* A trail can be produced.
* The lines are straight!
* A tree can be picked and easily modified for a different presentation.
* The record can be preserved / backed up for security purposes.
* The finished product can be e-mailed.

One of the trees that I have worked on is that drawn up manually by Graham for the reunion (mentioned in his article) and shows the descent from John Henden (buried 1544 Biddenden, Kent). For your interest it is shown on the last page of the  newsletter inserted in the form of a picture window.

Please note that if you receive this newsletter electronically the spreadsheet original of the tree has also been sent, for purposes of improved definition and your own use  but you will need Microsoft Excel 95 (or higher) to read it! Another way is to contact a relative near you who can let you have a hard copy! For an even better presentation it would be advisable to take it to a photocopy shop and have the sheet “blown up”. This will help the visually challenged amongst the more senior members!
Further points to note with actual contents of the tree given:
a) The detail should not be taken as sacrosanct as further information from ongoing research is discovered from time to time which throws new light on the presentation.
b) It has been abridged in various places to enable a practical presentation for the reunion.
c) There is no “absolute” style. Inevitably personal preferences will creep in.
Trust you will now go forward with renewed enthusiasm! And …… if anyone has more progressive ideas (but NB realistic for those that are not computer nerds) please let the writer know!

Peter Henden

HAPPY BIRTHDAY WILL!

Our congratulations go to Will Weller of Thamesmead, Kent who will be celebrating his 90th Birthday on 4 July 2001. As many of you can remember [see also page 2], he cut the cake at the Henden / Hendon Reunion in Streatham last year.  Best wishes from us all.

REUNION POSTSCRIPT

The Streatham Reunion was held on an informal basis and there has been some head scratching as to what to present with regard to expenses.  Overall costs were of the order of £400 which included a significant donation to the church of St Leonard. Members taking part in the organisation made distinctive non-financial contributions (food, flowers, crockery etc) so accounts would not properly reflect  this vital and much appreciated input. Aside from donations on the door the significant deficit was covered by the generosity of  several members who underwrote the event.

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Corny Joke Corner – Answers !

Page 3 – Because he is always taking boughs!

Page 4 – In the Ark Hives!

Editor for this issue:
Peter Henden
13 Birch Drive  Brantham  Manningtree  Essex  CO11 1TE  UK
Tel: 01206 395760   Email: helxine@talk21.com

Regular Editor:
John Henden
1 Linden Grove  Taunton  Somerset  TA1 1EF  UK
Tel: 01823 333183   Email: jhenden@aol.com

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HENDEN FAMILY TREE (Page 7)
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