The AVERY line

Here is the summary of compiled information on the AVERY line of mine. Several researchers have covered this line extensively so I am not attempting to do any research on this family line. I do hope I will get to go and visit Devon in England one day to say 'hiya' to my ancestor Francis AVERY and possible his parents Nathaniel AVERY and Mary COLLINS.

This is what one of the AVERY researchers have come up with:

Francis AVERY was born in Devon in 1713 and died on 14th July 1775 aged 62 years. He married Grace DEWSTIN whose birth details remained unknown, however her death occurred on 22nd July 1781 in Devon.

It is generally assumed that Nathaniel AVERY was Francis' father and that Mary COLLINS his mother, however there are a few doubts due to the year differences.

Nathaniel AVERY was born around 1669 in the northern area of France and was in the Huguenot army of William of Orange which landed England in 1689. Nathaniel would have been 20 years old when he arrived the shore of England that the members of the army of William the Orange were allowed to stay in England for 8 years after their arrival. If by that time they had not married or taken a trade (the latter being difficult due to the guild restricitions on apprenticeships) they were expected to leave England. Hence his marriage to Mary COLLINS on 4th March 1697 in Devon (Wembury). Mary Collins was a spinster running her aged parents farm and was probably a convenient person to marry at that time when it became necessary to leave England for Nathaniel.

The COLLINS Tenement, a small farm have had became the AVERY Tenement in the records (which records??). The issue arose on the parentage of Francis was Mary's age. It was believed that from probability on the ages of marriages, it could means Mary would have been 56 when she had Francis which is very unlikely, so she could be the grandmother?

Anyhow, all are assumptions for above meaning there are no certain evidence.

This leaves me wondering if we are really directly related to Nathaniel AVERY - time will tell I suppose.

So far many websites and researchers indicated that this is how it goes...

Lineage as from the earliest known for five generations only:

1. Nathaniel AVERY - b. c. 1644, m?, d. ? to ?
2. Nathaniel AVERY - b. 1669, d. 1752, m. 4/3/1697 to Mary COLLINS - b. ?, d. 1729
3. Francis AVERY - b. 1713, d. 14/7/1775, m. 7/7/1738 to Grace DEWSTIN - b. ?, d. 22/7/1781
1. Nathaniel AVERY - b. 5/3/1739, d. 12/8/1781, m. 1/3/1767 to Ann WEBB - b. 1749, d. 1/10/1781
1. Nathaniel AVERY - b. 10/10/1767, d. 1/3/1848, m. ? to Elizabeth COUCH - b. 1768, d. 1848
2. William AVERY - b. 9/4/1769, d. 5/7/1850
3. Sampson AVERY - b. 17/5/1771, d. 12/5/1810, m. 4/4/1800 to Sarah Mary ALGATE - b. 1782, d. 26/10/1830
4. Grace AVERY - b. 11/3/1774
5. Francis AVERY - b. 1/9/1776, d. 21/3/1811, m. 12/7/1798 to Jenny POST/POET/POTE - b. ?, d. ?
2. Grace AVERY - b. 27/12/1741, d. ?, m. 12/5/1765 to John CROCKER - b. 1766, d. ?
1. John CROCKER - b. 1766
2. Betty CROCKER - b. 1767, d. ?, m. ? to Samuel BUNKER/BONNKER - b. 1792
3. Sampson CROCKER - b. 1770
4. Walter CROCKER - b. 1772
5. Mary Waldron CROCKER - b. 1774
6. William CROCKER - b. 1777, d. 1778
7. William CROCKER - b. 1780
8. Tamzin CROCKER - b. 1783
3. Robin AVERY - b. 10/8/1746, d. ?, m. 1775 to Eleanor ? - b. 1750, d. 1827
1. John AVERY - b. 1778
2. Robert AVERY - b. 1783
3. Susanne AVERY - b. 8/6/1785, d. 28/11/1821
4. Sampson AVERY - b. 3/5/1749, d. 1808
5. Francis AVERY - b. 10/10/1753, d. 7/9/1801, m. ? to Sarah ? - b. ?, d. ?
1. Richard AVERY - b. 1783, d. 29/6/1792
2. Mary AVERY - b. 1785, d. 18/3/1787
3. Francis AVERY - b. 1787, m? to Alice ? - b. ?
4. Samson AVERY - b. 1791
5. Richard AVERY - b. 1793

The names in bold are my direct line of ancestors.

The big difference in years between Nathaniel II and Francis makes me wonder if there is one more Nathaniel between them which means there'd be Nathaniel III... ?

Anyway, the area where the majority of AVERYs lived and buried is called Wembury, in Devon England. The photos I copied from other websites shows the island off the shore - this island is called the Great Mew Stone Island, a National Trust property now. Apparently many AVERYs have been christened or buried at Mewstone Island, and probably at the church - 'St Wemburgh's' with its striking 14th century tower - the tower was the landmark for mariners when they make course for Plymouth Harbour nearby.

 Here is the brief history of Wembury: (from Wikipedia, of course) "Wembury is a village on the south coast of Devon, very close to Plymouth Sound. Wembury is also the name of the peninsula in which the village is situated. The name 'Wembury' may derive from a place name containing the name Woden and John Mitchell Kemble notes that it was called "Wódnesbeorh".
Wembury was visited by Mesolithic man as evidenced by flint implements found on local sites. Some Roman coins are also found. Saxons colonised South West Devon during the 7th Century, and founded agricultural settlements here. There was also a church to Saint Werburgh, a Saxon saint, in the area.

Wembury is mentioned in The Forsyte Saga by John Galsworthy. Galsworthy visited Wembury as part of his research for the book, he was intensely interested in his own origins and descent through a long line of Devon farmers who farmed in Wembury for three hundred years from the 17th century to the late 19th century. Wembury was used as a location in the filming of the Comic Strip's parody "Five Go Mad on Mescalin". In the film the Mewstone can be clearly seen.

The parish of Wembury was divided into four manors: Wembury, Down Thomas, Langdon and Alfelmeston. According to Lyson's 'Devonshire', published in 1822, the manor of Wembury originally belonged to Plympton priory. After the dissolution of the monasteries in 1539 it went into private ownership. Wembury House, the (rebuilt) mansion on the estate, remains in private ownership. Wembury House is an elegant Georgian mansion, originally an Elizabethan House stood on the site now occupied by the current house built in the 17th Century. It was rebuilt by Major Edmund Lockyer.

A distinctive feature visible from Wembury Beach is the Mewstone. This is a triangular island which is currently uninhabited. However, it has served as a prison and a private home, as well as a refuge for local smugglers. Its most infamous resident was Sam Wakeman who avoided transportation to Australia in favour of the cheaper option of transportation to the Mewstone, where he was interred for 7 years. After his interment on the island he remained there paying his rent by supplying rabbits for the Manor House table. It is said Sam Wakeman is responsible for carving the rough stone steps to the summit of the Mewstone. The Mewstone and Little Mewstone is now a bird sanctuary and access is not permitted to visitors.

It is believed that Nathaniel AVERY was a Huguenot, which indicated the use of biblical names, eg. Nathaniel, Sampson, Francis, etc. So my AVERY line, the Wembury AVERY, originated from the main AVERY ancestor from Exeter.

There was a cottage which was viewed as recent as 1990 with a sign named 'Shoe', located at Down Thomas. This was the birthplace of many of the AVERY children. A Leonard AVERY was still running the shoe shop in 1937. I cannot find this cottage online now but it doesn't mean that it has gone.

One interesting note about the AVERY and its' connection to the story of Long John Silver. Apparently Nathaniel AVERY had a brother named John AVERY (Long John Avery) and the character of Long John Silver of Treasure Island was based on this John because he was very tall and had snowy white hair!

From an inscription on a tombstone of William AVERY (b. 1829 - d. 1895) - "Watch, for ye know not the hour."

For now, I am leaving this as it is. Next time I will focus more on my Sampson AVERY and his family. Perhaps if I can find more noteworthy details, I'd include more on the rest of AVERY family mentioned above.

Family Surnames: ALGATE, AVERY, BUNKER/BONNKER, COLLINS, COUCH, CROCKER, DEWSTIN, POST/POET/POTE, WEBB