Surnames covered in our DNA project:
APPLEBY, APPLEBEE,
APPELBY, APPELBE
plus any other variants
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The current banner shows Alnwick Castle, in Northumberland - a county in the far north east of England, bordering Scotland. This region is home to a number of Appleby lines - and our DNA project has confirmed genetic connections between several of these, which also match lines in Canada, USA and Ireland.
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We have traced this line back to Joseph Appleby (born about 1781 and died in1849) who was a farmer in Ellingstring, a beautiful part of the North Yorkshire Dales. Several generations of his descendants remained in Ellingstring, where a number became blacksmiths.
Two of Joseph's great grandsons, Samuel Hedger Appleby and his brother Frederick Appleby emigrated to New Zealand in the 1920s, where they settled. We have contacted two living descendants of this line living New Zealand, and would love tohear from any more, particularly any living in the UK - please do use the Contact form to get in touch!
We have also now received a set of yDNA results from one male descendant of this line, but they are NOT a match to any of the Yorkshire lines as expected, nor to any other line.
Click on the image to view Ellingstring on the 1771 Jeffery's Map of Yorkshire - reproduced by permission of Digital Archives Association
Ellingstring is to the north west of Masham, and just to the south of the historic Jervaulx Abbey
If there is a second male descendant, perhaps from one of the branches that remained in the UK, who would agree to take a yDNA test, that may help to resolve the puzzle. Please contact me using the form to the left of this page.
Joseph was buried in nearby Masham in 1849 at the age of 78 years, and there are four other Appleby burials in Masham which could be linked to Joseph's family. Unfortunately the baptism and marriage records for this parish do not appear to be available online. If anyone has access to the Masham Parish Records held at North Yorkshire County Record Office, I would be most grateful for your assistance in searching for Appleby baptisms, marriages and burials.
Joseph's son (also Joseph) married Mary Ann Hedger - and it seems likely that her father was the Samuel Hedger, blacksmith) who appears in the clip from White's Directory of 1840:
Anderson Nita Ann Stella 1921-2000
Appleby Amy 1916-1933
Appleby Beatrice A 1890-1901
Appleby Beatrice Margaret 1913-1995
Appleby Editha 1886-
Appleby Elizabeth Alice 1895-
Appleby Ernest 1884-
Appleby Frederick 1885-1948
Appleby George Hedger 1921-2001
Appleby Herman R 1912-
Appleby Hilda Margaret 1891-
Appleby Jane 1823-
Appleby Joseph 1855-1911
Appleby Joseph 1774-1849
Appleby Joseph 1817-1897
Appleby Joseph Thomas 1911-1994
Appleby Margaret 1859-1859
Appleby Margaret E 1914-
Appleby Mary Ann 1865-
Appleby Mary Jane 1860-1864
Appleby Samuel 1857-1911
Appleby Samuel Hedger 1883-1964
Blithe Minnie Mary 1890-1972
Brown Thomas
Hall Margaret 1855-1911
Hardy Selina
Hedger Mary Ann 1824-1890
Lowe Zelma Doreen -1979
North Margaret 1861-1911
Rodwell Thomas 1830-
Scouller Clifford Ewen
Tate Isabella 1895-1971
So it looks as if Samuel Hedger the blacksmith, was responsible not only for setting up a whole line of Appleby blacksmiths, but also for all those Applebys who carry 'Hedger' as their middle name!