Correspondents 2011-2013

To make it easier to place people on their branch of the family tree, the keys to abbreviations in the text are: (WmB) branches of the William Barcham of Great Yarmouth and Mundesley; (JnB) John Barcham of Edingthorpe; (BnB); Benjamin Barcham of Sherringham

In 2011 we received information from three new correspondents:

Miriam Halls, great-granddaughter of Amelia (née Noakes) and George Nicholas Barcham (BnB) provided much information about her branch of the family tree. Miriam’s grandmother was their eldest child, Margaret, born 1898 in Chadwell Heath, Essex. Margaret died in 1969, aged 71, at Box Hill, Victoria, while visiting her brother Leslie Barcham (b. 1906 in Romford, Essex) who had emigrated to Australia in 1956 with two of his three sons. He and his family lived at 16 Carcoola Road, on the northern outskirts of Melbourne. Leslie’s occupation in Melbourne is not known, He died in 1950, aged 69, before or during Margaret’s visit; and his wife Doris (née Noakes) died in 1983, aged 79.  

Megan Hitchens, great-great-granddaughter of Matthew Gambell Anthony (BnB), who died 8 January 1852, aged 29, of ‘Java fever’ while on a voyage to Batavia, provided interesting information about his descendants.

Melynda (Myndy) Johnson lives in Kansas. She, and her two brothers Michael and Matthew and married sister Melissa Huckabey, all from Kansas, are first cousins of Jennifer Wills (née Wright). Their grandparents were Ethel (née Barcham) and Herbert Johnson, a Kansas born GI whom she married at Attleborough, Norfolk, in December 1943. When she met him, Ethel was working as a nurse’s aid: he had injured his shoulder in a jeep accident. When WWII ended Herbert returned to the  States and waited in New York until his war bride and infant daughter Carol Ann Frances arrived on another ship [see emigration]. Their son Philip Johnson is Melynda’s father.

In 2012 two persons who are related by marriage to the Barchams contacted us through the website: they have provided a considerable amount of information that shows numerous connections and links with our family. These were:

Lisa Webber was born in Norfolk, went to the North Walsham Girls’ High School for six years. In 1966 she emigrated to New Zealand, where she has recently contacted one of the Barchams who live near Wellington. Her connections and links with William Barcham’s (WmB) and John Barcham’s (JnB) branches are summarized in Connections.

Andrew Holmes lives in the north of England. He is a descendant of Seaman Watts Storey (b. 1837 at Blakeney, Norfolk, d. 1925) whose younger sisters Sophia (b. 1827) and Eliza (b.1833) married Henry Banfather Barcham (b.1826) and Benjamin Barcham (b.1829) respectively, sons of Maria Sunman and Benjamin Barcham.(BnB) This opened up a multitude of connections, links and acquaintances [see Connections]

In 2013 we received information from two new correspondents, and Ken Barcham told us about an inquiry he had from Lost Medals of Australia.

Pauline Davis is the great-granddaughter of Jedidiah Pegg Barcham (1845-1928) who emigrated to Australia in 1874. Her grandfather was Benjamin Henry Barcham (1881-1970) who married Isabella Broadhead in 1909 in Sydney. Pauline has provided detailed information on her branch of the family.

Cameron Brown contacted us about his five times great-grandfather, Joseph Mott from Clare in Suffolk. He married Ann Barcham in Clare, Suffolk in 1831. Ann (b.1792) was the daughter of William Barcham and Virtue Maria Carver of Great Yarmouth. Cameron is working on possible links with the Barchams in Norfolk.

Ken Barcham has been contacted by Vicki Turner who works as a volunteer with Lost Medals Australia. She is looking for descendants of Alan Herbert Barcham, a descendant of Jedidiah Pegg Barcham. This organisation tries to track down relatives of war veterans, in order to find a home for unclaimed service medals. They are  looking for a living relative of Alan Herbert Barcham who served in the Australian Infantry Forces during Wold War II. Alan was involved in fierce combat with the Japanese in New Guinea and was awarded medals for this and other reasons. Alan was born on 1 December 1919 at Enmore NSW, son of Herbert Ernest Oliver Barcham and Mary Frances Barcham nee Barker. He married Phyllis Edna Pearce, a widow in 1950. Phyllis had four children, Robert, Gary, Warren and Peggy, at the time of the marriage. There was a fifth child Kenneth Barcham who may either have been adopted by Alan and Phyllis, or was their natural child. the family resided at Kogarah NSW and Kenneth was employed as a butcher there a a young man. In more recent times it is thought that he lived in the Mudgee NSW area, possibly employed as a truck driver.Then on 30 December a member of the Lost Medals of Australia team spoke to Alan's son Kenneth. He was overjoyed that Alan's Australian Service Medal will be returned to the family. The search was made more difficult because Kenneth changed his name to Pearce, the surname of his half siblings.