RIP

A day with my Mum, some of it spent looking at family history.  On my mother's side there are records that take her family name back to 1635.  Norfolk residents through the generations until my Grandfather moved south in 1930.  His Grandfather, William b.1831, lived most of his life as a brickmaker in Norfolk but moved to the NE when the brickworks owner offered work in the mines.  He died in the Hartley Colliery disaster in 1862, trapped underground along with over 200 others for want of an escape shaft that would have cost just £200 (£40,000 in today's terms) but was deemed "too expensive."

His son James, my great grandfather was just two years old.  The famliy moved back to Norwich and James went on to become a successful if somewhat restless shopkeeper/businessman.  He is recorded as having had various businesses around Norfolk, including in Sheringham where my Grandfather was born above the family shop.

So much history, so many stories.  It feels good to know that as I travel around the county that has been my home for forty years, I cross paths with my ancestors.