Notes:

Moved to Ohio prior to 1824.

Newenden, Kent, England

James married ??? Sarah in 1824. ??? was born WFT est 1788-1813; died WFT est 1848-1903. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Ewhurst, Sussex, England

William married ??? Mary WFT est 1776-1810. ??? was born WFT est 1748-1773; died WFT est 1801-1862. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Various publications provide accounts of Rye, Sussex County, England.

Encyclopaedia Britannica (London: William Benton, Publisher, 1958), Page 779:

"Rye is a picturesque market town, built up a hill by the Rother river, with cobbled streets and timber-framed and Georgian houses. Ypres tower (12th century), which stands on the cliff, was its only defense until Edward III walled the town, but Landgate (1329), one of the three original entrance gates, is all that remains of the 14th century fortifications. The Norman to Perpendicular church of St. Mary has a notable quarter-boy 16th-century clock and in the churchyard is a Georgian reservoir....

"As part of the manor of Rameslie, Rye was granted by Edward the Confessor to the monks of Fecamp by whom it was retained until resumed by Henry III in 1247. The town became a full member of the Cinque Ports c. 1350 when, with Winchelsea, the other "ancient town," it was added to the confederation. It was then a flourishing port but declined in the late 14th century, partly recovered its prosperity with the decay of Winchelsea in the 15th and 16th centuries and then sank again when the sedimentation and consequent receding of the sea, which had been going on slowly since the 14th century, made the use of the harbour impracticable. By the mid-20th century the Rother's mouth was 2 mi. from the town. Rye was twice burned down by the French in 1377 and 1448. The town was incorporated in 1289."

Frommer's England (New York: Prentice Hall Press, 1988), page 228:

"Rye flourished as a smuggling center, its denizens sneaking in contraband from the marshes to stash away in little nooks (even John Wesley's firm chastisements couldn't stop an entrenched tradition). But the sea receded from Rye, leaving it perched....out of water 2 miles from the Channel. Its narrow, cobblestone streets twist and turn like a labyrinth, with buildings jumbled along them whose sagging roofs and crooked chimneys indicate the town's medieval origins. The old town's entrance is Land Gate, where a single lane of traffic passes between massive, 40-foot-high stone towers. This is long been considered a special place, having attracted any number of famous persons, including Charles Lamb (who considered the smugglers "honest thieves") and Henry James, who once lived in the Lamb House."

These accounts certainly paint Rye in a very quaint, perhaps even romantic light, and should not be taken as an indication that our ancestors were smugglers. We know that Ambrose Boots was a carpenter, and that he probably came from a family of carpenters, although what they were in earlier generations is anybody's guess. Some of the baptismal records list the occupation of the father (James Boots occupation is not so listed), and "Carpenter" and "Labourer" appear frequently. The Baptismal record for his son Samuel lists Ambrose's occupation as Carpenter and Joiner.

Bodiam, Sussex County, England

James married Mary Ranger on 25 Dec 1753 in Northiam, Sussex County, England. Mary (daughter of James Ranger and Elizabeth ?) was born WFT est 1716-1742; died WFT est 1775-1831. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

The Will of James Ranger, carpenter of Northiam, is dated 4 May 1770. In it is mentioned his wife Elizabeth Ranger; his two sons Thomas Ranger and Jasper Ranger; his daughter Elizabeth, wife of William Lemon; his daughter Mary, wife of James Boots; his son Josiah Ranger; his son James Ranger; his grandson Thomas Ranger, son of William and Martha Ranger; his grandson Joseph Boots; his son George Ranger; and his son Christopher Ranger.