Bury

Bury

Family of Fred Unsworth

Extracts

Bury gets its name from Saxon times when it meant a "stronghold". Probably the area was covered in marsh and moorland inhabited by nomadic herdsmen. It is known that a township and ecclesiastical parish existed from very early times and the evidence of much earlier habitation was indicated by the discovery of a barrow or funeral mound, probably of bronze-age origins, located at Whitlow Hill, Ramsbottom.

The Unsworths of Bury. Written by Fred Unsworth

Starting from my own family, I have obtained copies from the IGI (International Genealogical Index, issued by the Church of Latter Day Saints of Salt Lake City, Utah) of the Unsworths listed for Lancashire, Cheshire, Derbyshire and Yorkshire. Of these the index for Lancashire contains more than 5000 Unsworths going back to 1554. The other counties named having only a few hundred names. I also managed to borrow the registers of Bury Parish Church for the years 1590 to 1696, from which I extracted the Unsworth names. Included in the latter are some additional details of the family from Goshen.

A further 'Unsworth' is near Wigan in Lancashire, but it does not appear excepting on the larger scale maps. There is also apparently a township of Unsworth in the parish of Birstall, three miles from Bradford in Yorkshire.

UNSWORTHS WITH WHOM I HAVE MADE CONTACT.

Over a number of years, I have been in postal contact with a number of people who were interested in tracing their ancestors. Strangely enough, with one exception, they no longer had the surname of Unsworth. It is now over 7 years since I last wrote to them.

They are :-

Lilian R. Malcolm, Townsville, Queensland, Australia.

John Bennet Waller, Alderney, Channel Isles.

Nevill H. Lowe. Poole, Hants. England.

Mrs A.M. Bryden, Eastbourns, Sussex, England.

Mrs. C. H. Cousins, Winchester, Hants. England.

Peter G. Fielding, Ramsbottom, Bury, Lancs. England.

Elizabeth Armour, Oxnard, California. USA.

Lisa Rotherham, Bradford, England.

Harry Molyneux Seel Unsworth, Newton Abbot, Devon, England.

I would be most grateful if anyone can add to the information in these notes.

My address is Fred Unsworth, 56, MOLIVERS LANE, BROMHAM, BEDS., MK43 8LD.