Ponsonby - Family History & Genealogy Message Board

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

timarupars — 2012-05-21 00:51:24Z

Hi It is Chrissy here.
I have just sent for a death certificate in Australia for James Ponsonby b. Abt. 1825, as I think he is a brother to My Patrick Ponsonby. Will let you know the details on this when it arrives. Also got the Death Certificate for Gordon Ponsonby, but don't think he fits into our line as he was born in England. Born to Captain R. N. John Ponsonby and Eliza (Browne). Have two other's also born to Captain John Ponsonby in England and they are: John Ponsonby eldest son, and Alfred Septimus Ponsonby 7th son. Gordon had also been married in England to Miss H Harris, before he came to New Zealand and Married Amy Watts.

This may be of some help.

Cheers Chrissy

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

timarupars — 2012-05-21 00:50:33Z

Hi it's Chrissy here. Have found a couple more Ponsonby's that may be a link. Have not found any more on Patrick Ponsonby b. abt. 1825, but have found a Gordon Ponsonby b.abt. 1820 and a John Ponsonby b. abt. 1831. Assume the latter two came from Ireland the same as Patrick did. Gordon married Amy Watts in New Zealand 1866. Have no marriage for John, but have a birth for parents John Ponsonby and Elizabeth ?.

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

kvm1969 — 2012-05-11 12:46:03Z

sounds GREAT!! I will be looking forward to receiving your email. and I will get together some info for you as well... I have tons of pics I can share with you too... :)
Kim

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

jtliebzeit1 — 2012-05-10 23:34:53Z

Hi Kim,
Okay, I'll get something together for you over the next few days, and email it.
I know Anne Ponsonby in Convoy, County Donegal, she's actually McElchar by marriage now. I also know Eamon Ponsonby, we used to write quite a bit, but he's got some health problems now. I have a photo I can send. He's Anne's uncle, or great-uncle, actually. He's the son of John Ponsonby who was Patrick's younger brother, and stayed in Ireland, had 9 children, and only Eamon left now. He's the youngest, and I know about his family, one son's an airline pilot in the USA. I know quite a few others, I'll tell you about, and maybe you can tell me more about the ones you've been in touch with.
Jane

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

kvm1969 — 2012-05-10 11:50:48Z

Jane,

Yes I would love that information. I am in touch with some of my relitives still in Ireland. The Arbuckles, Joe & Kathleen use to come to the USA to stay with my Grandmother, Isabel Ponsonby (Smith) Augustine. My grandmother was Patrick & Jennie fist of 7. She was conceived in Ireland but born in the USA. My Aunt Anne just passed away on February 20, 2012 it was her 87th birthday... the only living sibling left if my Uncle Richard Ponsonby, still living in McKeesport, Pennsylvania. you can email it to kmalkos69@gmail.com
If you need any current info and any of the Ponsonby's in the USA I may be able to keep you up todate. a lot of us are on Facebook and keep updated that way...Thank you for all your help!!!
Kim

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

jtliebzeit1 — 2012-05-10 11:29:25Z

Hi Kim, did you find the information you were looking for? I believe we're from the same ancestral line, but it looks like you're descended from Thomas Ponsonby & Margaret Monteith, of County Donegal. I have all that information, as Thomas was a brother to my 3x great-grandfather. I'm the "official" Family Historian for my family!!
Your Patrick Ponsonby was born Oct 30, 1892, Tievickmoy, Stranorlar, Co Donegal, Ireland & married Jennie McKnight in the 2nd Quarter 1922 (I didn't pay for the record, so don't have the exact date). They went to the USA, where they had 7 children, one would be your aunt Anne, I believe, born Annie Theresa Ponsonby 1925 in McKeesport, Pennsylvania. I have been in touch with Ponsonbys from that family in Ireland, Scotland, England, and the USA, and have information going way back to Thomas Ponsonby b. "about 1792" in County Donegal, and his wife Margaret Monteith if you're interested.
If you're still interested, let me know, I can email you a summary sheet about that family. William Ponsonby & Annie Kelly had 10 children, 7 went to the USA, I'm in touch with one of the descendants there, you may know her. The other 3 stayed in Ireland, and I've been in touch with their descendants as well.
Best wishes,
Jane

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

jtliebzeit1 — 2012-05-10 11:08:26Z

Hi Chrissy. John Ponsonby is a very familiar name for me, as my 2x great-grandfather was John Ponsonby. He was born about 1817 in the Stranorlar area of County Donegal. However, he went to Scotland with his half-brother James at a young age, in the 1840s, and married Helen/Ellen Doherty there in 1846. As well, his father, my 3x great-grandfather was also John Ponsonby; his 1st wife, however, was Margaret Tonner (that's John's mother, my 3x great-grandmother; she died after his birth). When his 1st wife died, he remarried to Mary Paton, who was the mother of James Ponsonby, who also went to Scotland.
I don't know of anyone in that family named John who had a wife Elizabeth, so may be from a different family. The name Gordon is not familiar either. The time-frame is right, but if they left Ireland at an early date (before Irish Civil Registration started in 1864), it's very difficult to locate any records of births, marriages, and deaths. There are, unfortunately, no Irish censuses until 1901 and 1911; and the Griffiths Valuation, which is used for heads of households, was done in the mid 1800s, across Ireland in the 1850s and 1860s I believe, thought I'd have to check again on that.
However, if Patrick and John and Gordon all went to New Zealand (or left Ireland for anywhere else), it's almost impossible to find old records for the family. I've not been able to locate my 3x great-grandfather's birth, or marriages, as those would only be in church records back in the late 1700s and early 1800s, and that is only in certain churches, in certain areas. I only located his death because he died in 1864, the same year that Civil Registration started, his death reported by son Charles.
He died at Cavan, district of Kellygordon (Killygordon), Union of Stranorlar, in County Donegal, age 80 years.
The name Patrick comes up a lot in that family, yet I don't have any records that show a son Patrick for my 3x great-grandfather, so that's possible, except your Patrick's wife had a differnt surname.
I wish I could help you. I also wish the Irish records went back further, and particularly the Catholic ones, that would make such a difference. I've only been able to get information from death records in Scotland, that gave parents names, and for those who stayed in Ireland, if they died after 1864.
Good luck, and I'll keep watching for you, in case I do find anything about your Patrick, or John,or Gordon. I'm sure it's very frustrating for you!!
Jane

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

timarupars — 2012-05-10 00:13:49Z

Hi its's Chrissy here

Just curious about your post, regarding Patrick Ponsonby (b. Oct,1892) Our Patrick Ponsonby was b.abt. 1825 in Ireland, he was my Great Great Grandfather. His Parents were Mr Ponsonby and Miss Rowan. This is about all we know, any further help would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks

Chrissy

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

timarupars — 2012-04-24 10:31:12Z

Hi there, I have a James Ponsonby Arrived in New Zealand on the ship "Shamrock" 1855. He was 28 and travelled with wife Dorah, Son Pat age 5 and daughter Ellen aged under 1.

Cheers Chrissy

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

kvm1969 — 2011-11-28 19:49:31Z

Hello!! I am the great grandaughter of Patrick Ponsonby (b. Oct 30, 1892)I have some pics of the Ponsonby's one of my GREAT GREAT Grandparents William & Anne Ponsonby. My daughter is doning a paper in one of her immagration classes about the Ponsonbys and would love some information if you have it. We only have the book that my Aunt Anne about 10 years ago that is a family tree, but it has more current info in it than we were looking for.
my email is kmalkos69@gmail.com.
-Kim

Re: John Ponsonby b. abt 1878

jtliebzeit1 — 2011-10-30 23:31:49Z

Hi Chrissie,
It would seem like your Patrick Ponsonby must belong to the Donegal Ponsonbys, who were Catholic. I cannot possibly post here all the information that I have about that family. However I only know of 2 brothers in the earliest records: John Sr Ponsonby b. "abt 1784" & Thomas Sr Ponsonby b. "abt 1791", and children that were theirs, or I assumed to be theirs. It may well be that there were other brothers born in the late 1700s, and that Patrick was a son of one of them. In fact, Patrick may have been a son to either John Sr Ponsonby (my 3x great-grandfather), or to his brother Thomas Sr Ponsonby.
How to prove this is going to much more difficult!!
As to James Ponsonby who traveled to New Zealand, I don't quite know where he would fit. We already have 2 James Ponsonbys, 1 that I know was a son to John "Sr" Ponsonby, from his death record in Scotland; but also one who died in 1890 in Co Donegal, and I "assumed" was the son of Thomas Sr Ponsonby, the only other "early generation" Ponsonby I know of at this point.
However I may well be wrong on that.
James who died in 1890 may belong to another (unknown) brother of John Sr or Thomas Sr Ponsonby. Or, he may in fact belong to Thomas Sr, and James Ponsonby who went to New Zealand may have been the son of another (unknown) brother. I would assume that there would have been several brothers, but can only go on what evidence I find.
If you want to pursue this further, I have a lot of information I can share, just email me at jtliebzeit@shaw.ca
Hope to hear from you, and maybe we can sort some of this out. If Patrick's parents can be identified somehow, it will add a lot more to this family. I have spent many years collecting information and documentation on the 2 lines that I know of. I certainly did suspect, however, that there would be more of the family that traveled elsewhere (other than to Scotland).
Best regards,
Jane

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

jtliebzeit1 — 2011-10-30 22:09:39Z

We are from the same line of Donegal Ponsonbys, they were originally from Stranorlar, Teevickmoy, and Dreenan, but many of the remaining Ponsonbys are now in Convoy (I've been in touch with Anne Ponsonby and her family), Letterkenny, and other places in Donegal and Derry.
I have the marriage of William Ponsonby to Margaret Boyle (not Knoll) 15 Jan 1854 at St Mary's RC, Greenock, Renfrew, Scotland. She was the daughter of William Boyle & Margaret Margaret Linnard. They were parents to 5 known Ponsonby sons, one being William also. This William Ponsonby was born "abt 1857' at Knockagarren Castle, Convoy, County Donegal, Ireland. I have the documentation on all of this. William married Annie Kelly 12 Nov 1881 in the RC Parish of Stranorlar.
I have the family of William & Annie (Kelly) Ponsonby in the 1901 Census of Ireland. Their children were: William (b. 09 Sep 1882), Mary Jane (b. 21 Jan 1884), Margaret (b. 14 Nov 1885), Ellen (b. 20 Nov 1887), Charles (b.13 Nov 1888), Annie (b. 15 Aug 1890), Patrick (b. 30 Oct 1892), John (b. 11 Dec 1893), Elizabeth (b. 28 Feb 1897), and Dennis (b. 07 Oct 1899). All were born in Convoy.
Of these 10 children of William & Annie (Kelly) Ponsonby, all went to America except for William, Margaret, and John.

I have extensive records and documentation on this family, going back to the late 1700s, if you're interested. My information is supported by Ron Ponsonby in Scotland, with whom I have exchanged information.
You are more than welcome to contact me at jtliebziet@shaw.ca, if you would like information, documentation, and advise me of your particular interests.
Regards,
Jane
(By the way, if you are a grandson of John's sister, then we are 5th cousins!! Not exactly "close cousins", but from the same Ponsonby ancestors.)

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

jtliebzeit1 — 2011-10-30 21:47:12Z

Hi Paul ...

As you well know by now, we are descended from the same family of Donegal Ponsonbys. Since 2008 when you wrote this message, I've been in touch, and given you a good deal of information. I am still in the process of locating more information, as the name "Ponsonby" was misspelled very often. I have a very good picture of what the family were like, but due to the lack of records in Ireland, specifically, there are still a lot of "gaps", particularly from the years prior to 1850. It’s like putting a puzzle together, a very large and complex puzzle. It cannot be accomplished in a short time. We do have the ages at death of many of these Ponsonbys, which gives us a pretty good idea of when they were born.
You are correct about Laura's search subject being an older member of the family.
My John "Jr" Ponsonby & her James Ponsonby would have been half-brothers. Your direct ancestor William Ponsonby born "abt 1825" in Donegal married Margaret Boyle 15 Jan 1854 in Greenock, Renfrewshire, but they returned to Ireland to have their family. William was the son of Thomas (Sr) Ponsonby, who was a younger brother to John Sr Ponsonby, and therefore William was a 1st cousin to John & James.
I have a lot of documentation on this family, and have been in touch with Ponsonbys from both Ireland & Scotland, as well as with you. Anyone interested is more than welcome to this information, I can send copies of any documentation that I have, if that would help. I have done serious research, and have located a few more Ponsonbys along the way, of the Donegal Ponsonby family.
Just FYI, and others who may be interested. These Ponsonbys are rather unique in that they all were Catholics, whereas most of the Irish Ponsonbys were Protestant.

Best wishes,
Jane

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

jtliebzeit1 — 2011-10-30 21:27:03Z

Hi Laura,
We've been in touch before, not for awhile though. I've done extensive research on this line of Donegal Ponsonbys, so am willing to help if you let me know what information you need, or are interested in. You're right that the really old records are almost impossible to locate, if they even exist. Certain counties in Ireland seem to have records going back further than others. I've not been able to locate any Ponsonby births, marriages, or deaths before Civil Registration, but many of this family died after 1855 in Scotland, and some died after 1864 in Ireland.
John Ponsonby was married twice it seems, first to the mother of my great-great-grandfather John (Jr) Ponsonby; she would have died not long after the birth of John Jr "about 1817" (based on the ages given in the Censuses in Scotland, and his death record). It appears that John (Sr) must have remarried soon after to Mary Paton, and they had a son James, possibly other children.

John (Jr) and James Ponsonby travelled to Scotland together, about 1842 or 1843, as they weren't in the 1841 Census of Scotland. However when John (Jr) married Ellen Doherty (Docherty) February 23, 1846 in Port Glasgow, Renfrewshire, James Ponsonby was one of the witnesses. Some of their cousins (children of Thomas (Sr) Ponsonby, brother to John (Sr) Ponsonby also went to Scotland, some returned to Ireland, however, while others stayed.

Because his birth mother died when he was likely an infant, or at least a "toddler", John (Jr) would have been raised by Mary Paton Ponsonby, and they would have been close in age.
I'm not sure how much detail you want, whether you are just looking for "straight line" ancestry, or if you are interested in other family members. I have more information than likely anyone else on the "extended family" of Donegal Ponsonbys, who were Catholic.
I have the death record for John (Sr) Ponsonby whose death occurred the same year as Civil Registration began in Ireland.

I can't even begin to put the information here, I've amassed quite a lot over the years, from Ireland & Scotland, from censuses, and BMD records. You're welcome to any or all of same. You can email me at jtliebzeit@shaw.ca

Best wishes,
Jane

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

smiddythediddy — 2011-10-29 06:38:49Z

Hi Chrissy

Unfortunately I don't have any details of a Patrick Ponsonby in my tree...but it's more than likely he is related to my Donegal Ponsonbys. I haven't been able to dig up much informaton on them other than they came from a place called "Stranorlar" in Donegal. Irish records are very difficult to find! If I come across anything though I'll be sure to let you know!

Sorry I can't be of any help now! It's a very frustrating line the Ponsonbys!! :-)

Laura

Re: John Ponsonby / Mary Paton (Donegal, Ireland)

1_the_fox — 2011-10-28 23:37:21Z

Have just read your post and would dearly love to see if you have any information that may relate to my G Grandfather Patrick Ponsonby b. 1825. My line of Ponsonby's was Roman Catholic and it is thought we came from the Donegal area. Patrick migrated to New Zealand where he married Bridget Fitgerald, who was also from Ireland. The only information that I have for Patrick's parents are Mr Ponsonby and Mrs Ponsonby (Formerly Rowan). Bridget came to New Zealand abt. 1858 and Patrick abt. 1856. They married in 1859.

Looking forward to a reply

Many thanks Chrissy

Re: John Ponsonby b. abt 1878

1_thefox — 2011-10-22 07:25:14Z

Hi Jane

It'S Chrissy here again. Just thought I would add a little more info to see if some names may be familliar. Patrick Ponsonby b. 1825, and Bridget Fitzgerald had 12 Children. Ellen, Mary Agnes, John, James, Margaret Mary, Catherine Mary, Elizabeth Mary, David Joseph, Maude Bridget, Emily, Edward and the last was stillborn gender unknown. The children were all born in New Zealand. This may be of little interest to you but thought maybe there are family names amongst them, as from this point on they follow through our family line. It is thought that Patrick's Parents were Mr Ponsonby and Miss Rowan. Have no more than that.

Looking forward to your response.

Thanks again Chrissy.

Re: more info

1_thefox — 2011-10-22 05:14:53Z

Chrissy here.
I am also trying to find my ancesters. My G Grandfather was Patrick Ponsonby b. 1825 in Ireland. He migrated to New Zealand, unsure what year but think it to be around 1850's. There was also James Ponsonby came to New Zealand on the ship Shamrock in 1855, aged 28, Wife Dorah aged 29, son Pat age 5 y and daughter Ellen aged under one. Think these two were brothers. It is thought that Patrick b. 1825 was born to Mr Ponsonby and Miss Rowan. I have very early paperwork from Ireland with Earls etc but have no idea where we fit in. If anyone can help with this information, I would love to hear.

Re: John Ponsonby b. abt 1878

1_thefox — 2011-10-22 03:12:04Z

Well Jane was I pleased to hear from you. Yes My Ponsonby line is most definately Catholic and from Ireland. David Joseph Ponsonby was born in 1872 in Waimate, New Zealand. Not sure which part of Ireland we came from though. I have also found a James Ponsonby whom I think was Patrick's brother. He came to Wellington, New Zealand in 1855, aged 28 years, so his birth would have been 1827. He travelled with his wife Dorah aged 29 years, Son Pat presume may have been (Patrick) aged 5 years and daughter Ellen aged under one. They travelled on the ship "Shamrock". Do not have any more information than that at this stage, but have just sent away for death certificates for both Patrick and Bridget Ponsonby. Will post any further information as I recieve it. Looking forward to hearing back from you.

Many thanks

Chrissy

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

stephenfarrer_1 — 2011-10-21 15:03:07Z

1668 is only an admon, but I'll look at it next time I'm in the RO in Whitehaven. I looked at the St. Bees baptism transcript, but was surprised to find no baptisms of Ponsonbys around the 1660s/1670s. I know the records are bad at that time, but I expected more. If John was father of Thomas, maybe he lived for a time in a different parish. The Haile transcript has a John with children baptized around the right time.

I actually had an ancestor called Ponsonby. Sarah (born 1678) was daughter of William P (c.1649-1706) and Frances Bragg. I know William lived at Town End in Haile, but I've no idea who he was.

Stephen

Re: John Ponsonby b. abt 1878

jtliebzeit1 — 2011-10-21 14:09:52Z

First, was Patrick (b. 1825) from Ireland? if so, he may well be related to my line of Ponsonbys. I've done an awful lot of research since back in 2003 when I posted that last message (forgot about it, even). The name "Patrick" tends to be used by the Catholics, and ours were Catholic Ponsonbys. I've traced back to 2 brothers living in County Donegal, John Ponsonby b. "abt 1784", married twice, only found 3 children for him so far. That's my direct line. Also found a brother for him named Thomas Ponsonby, b. "abt 1791". Have several children for him. Neither had a Patrick that I could find, but if your Patrick left Ireland at an early date, that may be why, and we always “suspected” that there may have been a Patrick at an early date.
I discovered a couple of Patrick Ponsonbys in the USA at an early date that were from Ireland, and likely Catholic, but have no way of connecting them to the Irish Catholic Ponsonbys from Donegal. Catholic Ponsonbys were rather rare, especially in Ireland, where the earliest Ponsonbys from England were all Protestants.
I'm assuming that it was your Patrick born 1825 married to Bridget who migrated to New Zealand? do you know the year? that would make a big difference. Was David Joseph Ponsonby born in Ireland? I have no record of a David Ponsonby around that time at all, and very few Davids in this family, at all.

Hopefully you can tell me at least where the family were from (Ireland? you don't say), and if they were Catholic (which DOES make a big difference, if not Catholic, then they were from a different Ponsonby line), as well as advising whether David Joseph was born in Ireland, and if not, where was he born? if in New Zealand, that would explain why we have no record of him. From 1864 and on all births, marriages, and deaths had to be registered in Ireland, so born 1872 he should have been registered, unless of course born in New Zealand.
I'm quite intrigued by this information, as Patrick b. 1825 may very well have been a brother to my g'g'grandfather who was b. "abt 1817", named John after his father John. We only have him & 2 siblings. He may also have been a brother to the 5 sons of Thomas Ponsonby, cousins to "my" John. They were born between abt 1816 & 1838 (ages only from death records, no births/baptisms available for that time period in Ireland, or at least for Co Donegal Catholic church records, Irish records not the best!!).

However, before "jumping to conclusions" that your Ponsonbys were in fact part of our line of Ponsonbys, I would need at least the information requested above. If you have the date of their migration that would really help, and where your grandfather David Joseph was born. If the information "fits", I will try to find more - if possible.
Glad you contacted me - always trying to find more on this line, hopefully you have a bit more information than you've given, as to places of birth & marriage for example.

Best wishes,
Jane

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

jellybeanjunior — 2011-10-20 09:27:45Z

Hi Stephen

thanks again , i have the book you mention , and was
suprised the rev.William was,nt included in the list of
clergy, i have with your information referred back to that
book , and ther is a will for a wm,punsunby gill 1668 the
william you mention , if all you have said ties up we have
four more generation to add to our family tree , many
thanks to you .

Regards
Stephen

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

stephenfarrer_1 — 2011-10-19 11:26:58Z

A William (d.1668) and Cicely Ponsonby (d.1691)were living at Gill at the time of the Protestation returns, 1641-42. This couple had a John in 1642, and Jane in 1647. John died at Overtown (Coulderton) in 1709. The registers are patchy at this time, but I'm assuming John was father of Thomas (d.1724), of Gill, and later Coulderton.

They are clearly some relation to the Bessborough lot, since they all come from the same family. Major-General Ponsonby's book only mentions well-known branches of the family. He even failed to include William of Burnby on his list of Ponsonby clergy. The trees in the book are very basic; according to the Major, the William (born 1606) who was brother to Sir John died in 1620, so the connection probably goes a generation further back.

Stephen

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

jellybeanjunior — 2011-10-19 11:05:32Z

Hi Stephen

again thanks for your response , which is most helpful
and will hopefully prove fruitfull in moving fowards
( backwards ) it would seem you have moved our family
a generation back and maybe two - the power of the net -
we presume that our branch of the ponsonby family is
related to the ponsonbys of haile and through them the
bessboroughs , ther is strong circumstantial evidence for
this but no direct proven link .

kind regards

Stephen

Re: John Ponsonby b. abt 1878

1_thefox — 2011-10-17 00:56:19Z

This is not really related to your question. My Father was Patrick Ponsonby. His Parents were David Joseph Ponsonby (1872 1952)and Anne Egan. David Ponsonby's parents were Patrick Ponsonby (1825-21 June 1896) and Bridget Fitzgerald (1837-4 December 1884. Patrick Ponsonby migrated to New Zealand where our Ponsonby line has since resided. Im have no more information than this. would love to hear more.

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

stephenfarrer_1 — 2011-10-16 14:52:07Z

Hi Stephen,

The will of my distant uncle, Anthony Moore, of Coulderton (1785), refers to "lands formerly purchased from John Ponsonby deceased & devised to me by the will of my Brother William (died 1773) Moore deceased". That is my link to the Ponsonbys.

I had links to another family from the area who were related to the Borrowdales, and that is how I knew about the will which refers to William Ponsonby of Burnby. I have done more on the family, and it seems the Rev. Ponsonby was born 1739, to William P and Jane Branthwaite. This William's father Thomas was from nearby Gill (today Ghyll), which was also in St. Bees parish.

Regards,

Stephen

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

jellybeanjunior — 2011-10-15 20:29:53Z

Hi Stephen

sorry for the delay in my response ,only just read the
message you posted , very much appreciated .. are you
connected in anyway .

Kind Regards Stephen .

Stephen D. Ponsonby

VeronicaNimmo69 — 2011-09-26 11:41:23Z

Trying to locate the above named who is the son of Sylvia and Gilbert Ponsonby, [nee Hollins]. Stephen being born in 1933.
Stephen had siblings of Frances Noel Ponsonby and Edith R. [Cherry] Ponsonby.
Any info appreciated.
Veronica Nimmo

William "Don" Ponsonby, 73,Born,in Brownsville, son of ,Charles and Mary Marish Ponsonby.

KENNELLYMARKA — 2011-09-20 01:45:04Z

William Ponsonby
McKeesport

William "Don" Ponsonby, 73,
of McKeesport,
died Sunday, Sept. 18, 2011.
Born May 4, 1938, in Brownsville,
he is the son of the late Charles and Mary Marish Ponsonby. He was retired from Ringsdorf and WABCO as a machinist.
He is survived by wife, Edith Zatelli Ponsonby;
children, Diana "Dee" (Mallay) Volpe and William C. Ponsonby, both of White Oak, and Brian (Lois) Ponsonby, of North Huntingdon; grandchildren, William, Amanda, Mallay, Josh, Tyler, Amanda, David and Adam; great-grandchildren, Jordan and Jayden; and siblings, Katherine Lingsch, of Charleston, W.Va., and Patrick (Bernie) Ponsonby, of Raleigh, N.C. He was preceded in death by his sister, Nancy Ponsonby Severino. He was a member of the Eleventh Ward Club and was in the Navy Reserves. He attended all of his grandchildren's sporting events and was their No. 1 fan. Friends will be received from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at STRIFFLERS OF WHITE OAK CREMATION AND MORTUARY SERVICES, 1100 Lincoln Way, White Oak, PA 15131, Sue Striffler Galaski, Supervisor, Services will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday in the funeral home chapel with Father Daniel Straughn officiating.
(Pennsylvania - Pittsburgh Tribune)

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

stephenfarrer_1 — 2011-08-24 00:58:56Z

Hi,

I've been Googling the name of William Ponsonby and have noticed this topic.

I think you should be aware of the will of Jonathan Borrowdale, yeoman, of Upper Coulderton, Cumberland, 1846. He refers to his "late Uncle William Ponsonby of Burnby near Pocklington.....York Clerk".

I believe Jonathan to have been the son of Jacob Borrowdale and Anne Ponsonby (married 1759).

Regards,

Stephen

Re: Ponsonby and Peacocke

roeystarhill — 2011-03-15 23:20:54Z

I am a great-great-granddaughter of Stephen Ponsonby Peacocke, through his son, Reginald, who left New Zealand to settle in Australia. I will be happy to supply you with any information I can about the Australian branch of the family.

Regards,
Rosemary Fitzpatrick.

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

jellybeanjunior — 2010-11-28 20:01:48Z

hi sorry for the delay .... the rev. william ponsonbys parentage is sill unknown .

ragards

stephen

Re: more info

fergusq — 2010-10-08 15:46:52Z

I realise that your post was a long time ago but I was just hoping that you might still be there. Doing some rsearch on my mother's side recently I came up with a 3 times great grandfather named Bernard Ponsonby Jackson. His son names him on his marriage certificate and says that he came from the Clonmel area. It looks likely that these Jacksons are descended from Cromwellian adventurers and had land on the Tipperary/Kilkenny border. I was quite surprised to see the Ponsonby name turn up and can only conjecture that it was his mother's maiden name. Would you have any information on marriages of Ponsonbys around 1790 or so?

Fergus

Re: Mary Ponsonby

davidhiestand — 2010-09-12 10:22:11Z

Hi, my grandmother was Mabel McLeod, one of five children of David McLeod and Mary Ponsonby. I don't know when David McLeod died, but Elsie McLeod, Isabel McLeod, and Mabel McLeod, were born in 1893, 1895, 1896, respectively and Robbie McLeod was born in 1902. Norman died very young; I don't know his birth date.

Mabel and Joseph Redmond had one child, Katherine Lorraine (Redmond) Hiestand. I'm her son, David Fenimore Hiestand. I have a few old pictures, one of aunt Kate with my very young mother and some of aunt Nell ( Mary Ellen Horan ). I never knew my great aunts. They died before I was born but many times as I grew up aunt Nell and aunt Kate's names were mentioned.

Re: Ponsonby/Jackson

fergusq — 2010-08-29 12:12:41Z

My 3 times great grandfather is also Bernard Ponsonby Jackson. Hello cousin. My mother's paternal grandfather was Charles John Jackson, son of Richard C Jackson and Mary Elizabeth Goodland. Charles and his wife Teresa Schusler moved to Drumcondra, Dublin from Bristol in the mid 1890s and the Jacksons have flourished there. Charles was a piano dealer and tuner. His son Leo was my maternal grandfather.

The family have only just found out that the Jacksons originated in Ireland. They assumed that the family came from England. I suppose they did originate from England but some time ago. How do you know that Richard was born in Waterford and what year do you have? I've seen both 1825 and 1827 as dobs.

I, like you, am puzzled about Bernard P Jackson and can't seem to find any more information about him. I was suprised to see the Ponsonby in his name and wondered if there might be some connection to the Ponsonby family in Cork (Baronry of Fermoy).

Feel free to contact me at fergus@breandrum.com

Regards,

Fergus

Leitrim, Ireland

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

AJSmith_13 — 2010-08-25 18:42:39Z

Good Evening,

i have read your thread of post with great interest. I have just started doing my family tree using some information that my mother's cousin Anne gave to my grandmother for her 90th birthday.

From what i have read i beleive i am related to the same William Ponsonby.

Have you ever managed to find out who is parent's were?

Regards

Amadna

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

jellybeanjunior — 2009-12-28 16:53:13Z

Hi Claire

my turn to apologise for my slow response , been very busy
with work and other things , my intent to reply was lost in
the chaos sorry ,did'nt manage to visit sheffield archives
but intend to early in newyear , hope you had a good xmas
and all the best for the coming year.

Regards

Stephen

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

claireirwin1 — 2009-11-06 22:23:37Z

Dear Lynne

Thanks for your message. I don't know who all the children are, but I think Stephen has answered the question! I will print out your message and ask my Mother if she knows anything which could be of any help.

I will be in touch soon - apologies for not having replied before now - I don't log in to ancestry.ca very often and have only just seen what you have written!

Best wishes

Claire

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

claireirwin1 — 2009-11-06 22:18:17Z

Hi Stephen

Thanks very much for your reply and, again, apologies for the delay in my response!

It is my Mother who is in touch with Anne! What a small place Yorkshire is! - Mum was amazed and delighted to meet Anne by complete chance in Burnby, and they get on so very well! Did you manage to visit the Sheffield Archives and get some copies of the letters? I do hope so.

It is very puzzling that the 3rd Earl did not know how he was related to William - I find this hard to believe too!

Well, it seems as if we are all not far from one another geographically, all reunited in our search for our common ancestor! Maybe we will meet one day - I do hope so.

All the very best

Claire

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

jellybeanjunior — 2009-10-29 23:11:15Z

Hi, thanks for the email ,william had nine children to my
knowledge - nancy,elizabeth,emelia,john b.1777 ,mary ,
bridget,william, harriet,charlotte, hope this helps.

regards

Stephen

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

pentodd1 — 2009-10-27 19:32:32Z

I have read with interest your discussion of Rev Wm Ponsonby. I have ran across his name many times while trying to search my own Ponsonbys. Although I am not directly related to the Rev that I am yet aware of!, I am most interested in the Ponsonby's of Cumberland. The earliest Ponsonby in my line is one John Ponsonby b. abt 1780 Cumberland, married Mary Williamson in 1802 at St. James, Whitehaven. This couple, and their children are found throughout Cumbria. I cannot find anything on John, above, beyond what I have at the time of his marriage & after.
Do either of you have the children of Rev William?
Regards and thanks....Lynne Ponsonby

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

jellybeanjunior — 2009-10-25 13:20:12Z

Hi Claire

thanks for your reply and don't worry about not being able
to copy letters, i'm in sheffield tomorrow - off to see
greenday - hopefully be able to take in sheffield
archives aswell, i,ve actually had the letters read out to
me over the phone by my fathers cousin Anne who i think
maybe intouch with your mother, i live in cottingham
east yorks - not quite canada lol - going back to those
letters not quite sure what to make of them - find it a
little hard to believe that the 3rd earl can be in same
company as the rev.william, and the 2nd earl, be told the
rev. william is a relative, but not know how he,s related,
maybe its me, but having been told someone was related
to me, my next question would be how ? perhaps i'm reading
to much into it , anyway have to run, good to hear from
again .

Regards

stephen

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

claireirwin1 — 2009-10-15 22:04:45Z

Dear Stephen

I am really sorry not to have got back to you before now. My Mother has obtained the letters but she has had to sign something to say that she won't copy them. Therefore the only way to get the letters is to write to the Sheffield Archives. The 3rd Earl of Bessborough wrote that William is a relative and that he has met him with his Father (2nd Earl) but that he doesn't know how he is related. Now my Mother is saying that maybe William was from the Ponsonby family of Egremont, who were related to the Earls. Anyhow, the address is: Sheffield Archives, 52 Shoreham Street, Sheffield, S1 4SP, United Kingdom. Further information, and the details about the shelf numbers are:

By phone
+44 (0) 20 8876 3444
Lines are open:
Monday and Friday: 09:00 - 17:00
Tuesday and Thursday: 09:00 - 19:00
Wednesday: 10:00 - 17:00
Saturday: 09:30 - 17:00
We use a speech recognition system on our telephone system. Please follow the prompts when you call.

Textphone/Minicom
(For deaf and hard of hearing people) +44 (0) 20 8392 9198

Letter from Lord Bessborough, Rome, to Fitzwilliam WWM/F/66/76-1 12 Apr 1794

2 Pages

Contents:
Encloses Letter from a relation, Rev. William Ponsonby. Family news.

Letter from Rev. William Ponsonby, Burnby, to Lord Bessborough WWM/F/66/76-2 7 Mar 1794 (with 7 Apr 1794)

1 Page

Contents:
Begs Fitzwilliam to ask the Dean of York for living of Kilnwick for him.

If it is not easy for you to obtain these (I presume that you are in Canada?) I could get them for you. I live in York - I'm not very proud to say that, despite having lived in various towns in the UK, and having spent some time abroad during my studies when younger, I have ended up only a short distance from Burnby!!!

Best wishes

Claire

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

jellybeanjunior — 2009-08-24 07:35:14Z

Hi Claire

i agree with your mother, think Emelia very
unlikely - the letters your mother is sending for sound
right, the 3rd Earl Bessborough was often in debt due to
his habit of gambling, Lord Fitzwilliam married one of
the 2nd earls daughters and was one of the biggest
landowners in the country, so our Williams appeal as been
handed on to him.
I'm also away for a week beggining (sat) till following
(sat).

regards

Stephen .

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

claireirwin1 — 2009-08-23 23:35:20Z

Dear Stephen

I saw my Mother this evening and she thinks the Princess Amelia thing is not possible, since she has managed to borrow a book from another relative and it says the affair happened later on - around 1760, I think. My sister did say that William had appealed for a better parish earlier on, so perhaps these are the letters you mention?

Anyhow, my Mum has written to Richmond (to the National Archives, I think) to ask for the copy of the letter to the Earl of Bessborough, written in 1794, and the letter written by the Earl to Lord Fitzwilliam (?not sure I have got the right name here!), to whom he forwarded William's letter. I am away from next Friday until the following Thursday but I will be in touch when Mum has received the copies.

Best wishes

Claire

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

jellybeanjunior — 2009-08-23 07:17:43Z

Hi Claire

i know what you mean in respect of William , if you want
to hide someone why give him your surname , what i do
know is it was,nt uncommon for the aristocracy of the
time - iligitimate children that is - as far as princess
Emilia goe's she was reputed to be the mother of Samuel
Arnold the composer , he was born in 1740 , what is known
is the first mention of William was Whitewell Derbyshire
there are letters from him to the Duke of Portland i.e
Devonshire appealing for some parish or other ,and
obviously its hard to ignore the connection between the
Devonshires and the Ponsonby's at this time, his patron
for his ordination is recorded as Goerge 3rd , though
his ordination papers don't record his parents - he
seems to have fallen from space -lol - , look forward to
hearing from you again.

regards

Stephen

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

claireirwin1 — 2009-08-22 23:29:04Z

Hi Stephen

Many thanks for your reply. Of course I will send copies of the letters to you. I will let you know when we have got hold of them. I think it is very odd that someone who was possibly illegitimate still kept the family name - not that I know much about what the custom was regarding surnames of illegitimate children in the 1700s! So if the mother was a member of the royal family perhaps this would explain why William had to take his Father's name? I doubt whether we will ever prove that the unmarried Princess Amelia had any children though!

I will be in touch when the copies of the letters reach us.

Best wishes

Claire

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

jellybeanjunior — 2009-08-21 18:12:04Z

Hi Claire

good to hear from you again , and again thanks for your
reply, would love to see copy of the letter you mention,
intrigued to know how your sister speculated on princess
Emelia , the 2nd Earl was romantically linked to her ,
indeed was rumoured to have married her in secret, Rev.
William named his daughter Emelia, the princess had
crossed my mind in a vague sort of way- massive leap to
make though - great to hear from you, and look foward to
hearing from you again.

Regards

Stephen

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

claireirwin1 — 2009-08-21 00:04:17Z

Hi Stephen

Thanks very much for your reply and sorry for my delay in getting back to you (I don't log into our home computer often). We are descended from Thomas Stubbs - I think the Stubbs daughter must have married a Pottage. I will ask my Mother and will let you know precisely how the tree arrives at us!! My Mother did mention the other day that William Ponsonby's wife's surname was Barker. My sister Caroline thinks that he may have been an illegitimate child from an affair which the 2nd Earl of Bessborough had with Princess Amelia (she is just speculating here!!!). She has also found in some archives in the past few weeks a letter from William Ponsonby to the Earl of Bessborough (the 3rd Earl, I think) asking him for a 'better living' (this was written in 1794, the year after the death of the 2nd Earl). The Earl then forwarded this letter to another relative - Lord Fitzwilliam, I think, saying that William Ponsonby is 'a relative' and asking him to help. Apparently William never did get the better parish, but we may have found the evidence that he was related to the Earls of Bessborough. My Mother is obtaining copies of the letters. We could forward copies of these to you. I will be in touch soon.

Best wishes

Claire

Re: the rev. william ponsonby, illigitimate son of the bessboroughs,perhaps.

jellybeanjunior — 2009-08-07 15:34:20Z

Hi Claire
thanks for your reply ,had given up on ever
getting a response to message, my name is Stephen Ponsonby
i'm a direct decendent of the rev. William Ponsonby , his
daughter Elizabeth married Thomas Stubbs , was'nt aware of
of the name Pottage , as far as the rev. William Ponsonby
goes we are no nearer tracing his parents although we
believe his wife Bridget's last name to be Barker , any
information you or your mother might have about them would
be appreciated - family legends, stories that sort of
thing? - once again thanks for reply.

Regards

Stephen .