Anne Barsham

WARNING: Some show this William who m. Anne Yelverton immigrated and died in Massachusetts. We have seen no real evidence for this. LDS Ancestral files can be notoriously inaccurate and apparently are in this case. Many show this couple as the parents of the immigrant William Barsham of Watertown. Again, this is apparently bogus.

Researcher James C. Barton has identified a book, which may be the source of the misinformation, that shows this William Barsham as the son of William Barsham who m. Ann Yelverton tited, "Samuel Richardson (1602-1658) and Josiah Ellsworth (1629-1689) Some Descendants" compiled by Ruth Ellsworth Richardson. Ms. Richardson has no documentation for the claim. As Barton says, "No references, sources, or authorities are shown... Regarding this, the NEGHS wrote to me in answer to my specific question as follows: "It didn't take very long to establish that the book makes no documented and reasonably reliable case. In fact, it makes no case at all. It simply makes the statement; the relevant pages are enclosed. The book lists some five pages of research sources, essentially a bibliography, but there are no footnotes, and only a few source attributions."

Furthermore, The Great Migration Begins, by Robert Charles Anderson, a highly respected source, says Barsham's origins are unknown.

Barton notes "It strikes me as amazing that people like Anderson (Great Migration), Faris (Plantagenet Ancestry), and Richardson (Magna Carta Ancestry), all in the past several years, were not able to find the connection to Watertown that Ruth Ellsworth Richardson found over 30 years ago. One might reasonably conclude there is no known record of any such connection."

Citations

1. 68. Douglas Richardson, Magna Carta Ancestry, Kimball Everingham, Genealogical Publishing Co.

Links

• http://www.cyberancestors.com/cummins/ps11/ps11_165.htm
• The Ancestry of Overmire Tifft Richardson Bradford Reed