This book is the result of years of research into one family, tracing back the male and females lines, the mothers as well as the fathers. The work was started by Thorold Penn, my father, and carried on by myself for nearly twenty years. You may find an interest in specific people, maybe to help your own research. It will also be relevant if you have an interest in a specific place (see list below), as a piece of social history, a slice through time. None of the people are particularly important, they occupy the middle class in every generation. The book may also be of interest if you are considering research into your own family history; you could create this kind of thing for your own ancestors, or hire a professional to do the same. In some ways, I have been lucky in my choice of ancestors - publicans are one of the few professions recorded in official documents as far back as the seventeenth century, and I have a lot of innkeepers in my tree. Specific places and families: Bidford-on-Avon, near Stratford, Warwickshire (Penn, Pene, Penne, Shakespeare); The Stag at Red Hill (Penn); Radway and Ratley, near Kineton, Warwickshire (Penn, Sanderson Miller); Minehead, Somerset (Pearse); Swingfield and Dover, Kent (Sayer); Broadwoodwidger and Tavistock, Devon (Bickle, Hunt); Plymouth, Devon (Jarvis, Davies); Whatlington, near Battle, Sussex (Penn); Bedfont, Middlesex (Penn, Pearse); Lambeth (Bailey) and Windsor (Messenger). Other topics: 16th century mills, inns, wills and inventories. Women in c16 business. The Royal Navy, especially HMS Flying Fish, HMS Zanzibar, Petty Officers and Engine Room Artificers; The Battle of Waterloo, the 6th (Inniskillen) Dragoons and the Union Brigade; The Indian Mutiny, the Bengal Artillery, actions at Mungrowlee and Suagar, Madhya Pradesh, India; The Hull and Barnsley Railway, Kirk Smeaton; Canada Lake Steamers at Kaslo, British Columbia, specifically MS Hosmer and MS Nasookin. Whether or not you buy the book, if you have any relevant information, I would be happy to hear from you. If you have read Marjorie's book, 'The Little Nurse, ' you may also find this one of interest, in a different way.
