"As a descendant of Nicholas Atwood, I have noticed that information about these early years seems to be jumbled and largely derivative from "Ye Atwoode Annals." I am not sure where this "John Hewson" Atwood comes from. The funerary monument of Nicholas Atwood, in Sanderstead Church, states: "Here lyeth Nicholas Wood, the thirde sonne of John at Wood of Sandersted Corte who served Quene Elizabeth sens the second yeare of her Rayne & deceassed the xiiith of May 1586 ..." (See "Sanderste ad," Victoria County History of Surrey, pp. 241-242.) This sugg ests to me that Nicholas Atwood was the son of one of the two John Atwoods (John the elder and John the younger) of John Atwood who married Dionys. Positing a "John Hewson" Atwood complicates matters by having yet a third son named John, and is, on the face of it, suspicious because middle names were quite rare at this time and place." ?- David Langenberg gallie nus@earthlink .net mailto:gallienus@earthlink.net

--------------------

In 1536, Henry VIII, as head of the church, dissolved the lesser monasteries and confiscated church lands including Sanderstead which contained Sanderstead Manor owned then by John Hewson Wood, or Atwood. The manor was then deeded to Sir John Gresham, uncle of Sir Thomas Gresham, founder of the London Exchange. Although the Atwoods remained in possession of part of the manor, they lived in the parish of St. Martin most of the year.