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............Introduction

This is the 250 year history of an ordinary London family. The authors John Harris and Dave Wilson both share common great grand parents George and Emily Musgrove. The early part of this story has largely been forgotten.

Separating fact from fiction has been an interesting but time consuming exercise. We have been able to trace most of George's life through public available sources such as Census returns, Birth, Marriage and Death Certificates, local directories etc.

George was born in 1845, christened in 1851 and married twice, in 1869 and 1871. Firstly to his cousin Christiana Musgrove and secondly to Emily Harris, a daughter of friends of the family. George inherited a large fortune following the death of his first wife who had inherited it from the wealthy Musgrave family.

His good fortune enabled George to remarry and raise a family with Emily over the next twenty years. During this period he lives as a man of independant means supplementing his income from his first wife's trust fund firstly as a money lender and then later a career as a publican. The family moved during this period from Kennington to Balham and out to the Essex villages of Hatfield Peveral, Navestock, Writtle, Great Baddow, and Danbury. They also spent a short while in both North and South London. His wife Emily died in 1897 when the family were running the Rose and Crown Inn at Dunton Green near Sevenoaks Kent. George died three years later at the family home in Broomfield near Chelmsford.

Our researches show that with the resourses of the twenty first century, in particular records now available on the Internet (if you click on contacts on the home page we have listed the best sites), have proven invaluble for family research. Without access to the Census and BMD records it would have been an almost impossible task to piece together these details. However only a fraction of records are available online. The majority of records are still stored in archives around the country. Finding precise details relating to the family has entailed much travelling and will continue for the foreseeable future.

There are still many aspects of our families history which still remain a mystery. Precise details of George's parents and the mysterious circumstances of his first wife's death may never be known.

On the following pages 'George's Story' is told in three parts. First his early years up to 1871. Part two covers the period from his second marriage to his death in 1900. and part three covers the period of the twentieth century and what has happened to George's descendants.

Please click on each link throughout the story to see the details of each event. We have shown original documents wherever possible which are supplemented with photographs and maps from the period to present day.

There are over 2000 photos, certificates, directories, electorial records etc. To which we are continuing to add to and update. There are over four hundred pages in total.

We would like to thank Robbie Buck (grandson of Adelaide Musgrove) Susan Ratclife, Cindy Bennett (grandaughters of Herbert and Ivy Musgrove) and many other family members who have lent us old family photos and documents.

We hope you find our little story interesting. Any comments, information or suggestions are welcome.


.............. ......................John Harris and Dave Wilson

................. ...davewilson@blueyonder.co.uk

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We have now added update information to the 'News & Updates' link on the Home Page.

George's story updates show the latest additions to the story. The updated details are not listed in any date order as this information is added only when new details are discovered and reseached.