There are several early baptisms for the children of John Parker of Weetlands, Norton in the parish records. Can anyone tell me where Weetlands is or was please? I grew up in Norton and have no idea, I have never heard of it before.

Susan

Hi Susan,

It appears Weetlands was a family home in the Norton area and that it may have been one of three owned by the Parker family:

"Given that the Parkers were one of the largest family networks in Norton at this time, and were recorded in the area with a scythesmith amongst their number by the fifteenth century, it is perhaps surprising that its members were concentrated as heavily as they were in the ranks of the yeomanry and gentry. There were six Parker yeomen as well as four gentlemen: the different yeoman branches are a little difficult to disentangle, but there was certainly one at Little Norton, another at Okes, and perhaps a third at Weetlands."

If you wish to read the full piece you can use this link and search within the document:

http://joskingston.org/LDEN/CHAP3.html

I can't add any more than that as I found it simply by doing a Google search rather than any particular knowledge of the place.

Hope it helps.

Nigel

thankyou Nigel and well done as my google searches came up with nothing apart from "wetlands"

Susan

The difference in results was possibly down to me using a Boolean search i.e
Weetlands AND Norton -wetlands

Weetlands was always likely to produce results which included wetlands hence the modifier to stop them at beginning and of course the most important element...
luck!

Thanks again Nigel,

this bit of research is for a friend who doesnt know the area at all, I have a copy of Armitage's Chantry Land which gives an explanation of one John Parker's marriages and says that they were kinsmen of the gentlemen of Lees.

Historically I would think that in the C16th as there were so many Parker families within the same parish all naming their children similarly close together in time that there was a relationship amongst them although it might have been in the pre-registered past.

I also have another place problem from the register; one John Parker is referred to as living at "CY". Again I havent a clue despite having known the area intimately, the only place that springs to mind is Cowley but that is too far away as well as being in a different parish. None of my maps has revealed anything either, so any ideas?

Susan

I wonder if Geoffrey White would be able to enlighten on this query?

Regards,
Marlene C.

Hi Susan,

I have just had a look at some early baptisms at Norton.
One is of a Susan Biggen dau of Thomas of Cliffield Yate, this could be your CY.
Even today there is a Cliffield Road off Derbyshire Lane at the top end of
Meersbrook Park.

Many years ago I did a lot of work on the 'Parkers' as one of my ancestors
Richard Atkin married Elizabeth Parker in 1607.
Sheffield Archives does hold quite a lot of information on the Parkers.
There is a Bond dated 1599 that mentions George Parker of Weetelandes, yeoman.

Moira.

Hello,

This is doubly home territory for me. Weetlands, the oldest property associated with the Parkers in our parish registers is -I think- the same as Wetlands, the first house on the right as you enter Lightwood Lane from the roundabout, so always on the eastern extremity of the parish. The Parker relatives at Lees Hall were slightly grander, being gentry rather than yeoman, but one of my ancestors -John Green- fathered an illegitimate child with a Mary Parker (of which branch of the family I don't know) in 1594.

Some of these Greens (ancestors of my mother, who were not necessarily related to the Greens of Totley Bents on my father's side) were associated with Cliffield Yate; they are the first family to be mentioned in the parish register. My early Biggin ancestors -scythemakers, who were later involved with Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet- also lived at Cliffield Yate, which was presumably near Cliffield Road, where my mother was born, but probably referred to the road towards Sheffield via Heeley Bridge.

Best wishes,

Geoffrey :relaxed:

Thankyou all

Geoffrey, you confirmed my guess about Weetlands/Wetlands but I didnt know that it is still there as I havent visited the area for rather more years than I wish to admit to. I shall pass your answer on to my friend and i know she will be delighted by the information.

Susan

Moira, thank you for this, this is only something that local knowledge can pass on. Now you mention it I think I can remember Cliffield Road, but only just.

Susan