George Ward was the son of James Ward and Maria Willoughby of Aston and Cote in Oxfordshire. George moved to Mortlake in Surrey, where he married his Irish-born wife Bridget McCann. George and Bridget left for America in 1863, after their leaving-shop was investigated in a sting at the Woolwich Police Court. The Ward Family settled on a 40 acre farm in Mundy, Genesee County, Michigan. **Updated with new images and references**
Mary was baptized in Bampton, Oxfordshire on 10 Jul 1702. Her arrival was clearly not an occasion of joy for whoever recorded it. Illegitimate children are nearly always noted as such in parish records. The terms vary but include bastard, base child, or filius populi, “son of the people.” Describing a mother as “that incestuous whore” definitely was not standard terminology.
James Ward was born in 1771 in the hamlet of Aston and Cote, Oxfordshire. He fathered at least 16 children between 1800-1838 with two wives: Maria Willoughby (1774-1817) and Teresa Howson (1797-1850).
Our 3rd great-grandfather Thomas Ward was born about 1813 near Witney, Oxfordshire, the son of James Ward, a labourer. Thomas moved to Mortlake, Surrey and married Mary Ann Maria Walters in 1838. They had 11 children. 2-3 years ago, I started looking for Thomas Ward’s family of origin in Oxfordshire. This is a summary of my research so far.
