Minchinhampton

I visited Minchinhampton this month, first time in 40 years. I didn't remember the town, but I recognised the graves of my relatives from a photo my father took those years ago. If I can find the original photo, I will try and reconstruct what it said on the tombs. One is Anne Sheppard, the one on the left. I think that my father's aunts, Minnie and Bobo (probably not their real names) were buried there too.

There is still a Sheppard Way in Minchinhampton (but I didn't find that). There used to be lots of plaques in the church, but they were taken down many years ago. I didn't get to go in, but it was still interesting and strangely moving to see the graves of these long-ago relatives.

More info on Minchinhampton on their Parish website: http://community.stroud.gov.uk/general.asp?pgid=122&pid=5

Can they marry? A diary excerpt

This is an excerpt from one of the journal entries in the family history which quotes the author’s mother’s own journal too. As you can see – many places referred to and the fact that in the 19th C £500 a year was not considered a suitable sum for the keeping of a lady. Interesting, because the intended was a member of the Thynne family, still resident in Longleat to this day. I couldn’t read all the handwriting clearly, but I’ve done the best interpretation I can.

“March 2nd they reached “Becca” and were “warmly received by William Markham.” Thursday 7th they arrived at Kenwood, on April 2nd our dear mother returned to Swanswick, the entry in her journal shows with what pleasure she came back “most thankful to have such a home to come to. Wednesday 3rd .... I was welcomed by the poor people most hastily. The dear Mauds dined with us and we like themselves all kindness”. Later in the year another visit was paid to Longleat. At this time our ...... had been engaged for two years. The marriage had not taken place, so our mother’s guardians considered it prudent to impost a time of probation in consequence of their youth and inexperience and the very limited income (not more than £500 per annum) that was secured to them. Writing from Halifax, Nova Scotia where he was quartered, to Mr Jervis on May 1834 our uncle Captain Markham says “I should hope that our guardians will ... their objections to their.... they certainly must see that it is a well grounded .... and their feelings are just the same after .... separation of two years”

A nice story. He was stationed overseas but after two years, they were still determined to marry and to convince their guardians to allow the wedding.

Elsa May Sinclair

Elsa May was my grandmother - and a singer. She was in the very first performance of J M Barrie's Peter Pan. She recorded many Gilbert and Sullivan shows that she performed in and I have her on 78 and CD. It was an amazing treat to discover the CD - exactly 100 years after she sang.

Elsa May married Philip Neville Freme Sheppard, my grandfather. Now I had heard that she was a 'disgrace' - in other words she had been married before (divorced? widowed?) and for a gentleman to marry a theatrical performer! I don't think the aunts (Minnie and Bobo - who must have been Philip's sisters) approved at all.

Now I knew nothing about the first marriage, and indeed I am sure the Sheppard family were not interested either, but then, out of the blue, I got an email. From the descendants of Elsa's first husband. So, I have a distant cousin in Australia to whom Elsa May Sinclair is great grandmother, as well as being my grandmother.

My 'new cousin' told me all about it:

"Elsie May Sinclair married Achilles Sapountzakis on 11/5/1908

They had a child Peter Gilbert Dwight Sapountzakis born 27/3/1909 (My Grandfather)(Don't ask me how to pronounce name Greek I think)

By 1911 Elsie was living with her widowed mother Emily,her son Peter and her brother John Morris Sinclair at Whittingstall Rd Fulham,Elsie stating she was a professional singer.

Elsie must of separated with her husband Achilles by 1911

Elsie married Philip Neville Fream Sheppard on 19/6/1917, on their marriage certificate it says Elsie was a widow living at Curzon School House and Philip was a gentleman living at 27 London Rd,Neath, South Wales.Also on marriage certificate her name is Elsie May Sapountzakis.(A widow I wonder or did Achilles take off and went back to Greece,no records of him in England only marriage certificate to Elsie.Achilles was 21 and Elsie 29 when they married.

I am also wondering why Elsie would name her child Peter Gilbert Dwight, a Sheppard family name, when she was married to Achilles Sapountzakis, only she knows, and something I would like to know.

Peter Gilbert Dwight Sapountzakis took the name of Sheppard at some time,as he left the Port of London in 1925 and came to Australia under the name of Sheppard. He was only 16."

My mother knows about 'Uncle Peter' - Peter was in fact my father's half-brother, not his uncle, but there would have been quite an age difference. Somewhere my mother has a photo of Anthony (my dad) and Peter (his half brother) on a beach playing cricket. She is going to try and find it.

Now the interesting thing is I have Elsa's nose (not her exact one of course, but mine looks like hers). I wonder if my Aussie cousin has too?

Oh - and did I mention I'm a singer too? My dad was as well; he played trumpet too.

But back to Elsa/Elsie. She had two children by Philip, my father and his sister, Angela. And she had one son - we assume from Achilles. Sally said the Aunts didn't like that Peter took the Sheppard name - but I sort of feel that although they sent Peter to Australia at the age of 16 (he went to work on a passion fruit farm that failed) I think it looks like Philip took him on when he took on Elsa, which is admirable in those very uptight Edwardian times.

Sally says my dad talked about not knowing what happened to Uncle Peter - being sad that he lost touch. I wonder if they looked alike at all? My brother looks like my dad, for sure.

I have, somewhere, letters from J M Barrie to Elsa. She was looking for more work, and he had nothing for her, but it was nicely written I seem to remember. I'll see if I can find them and scan them in for here.

The photos I have of her show her as a pretty lady, but the thing I never realised until I got the CD and there was a picture of her and the cast of HMS Pinafore on the cover, is that she was not very tall.

I don't know where she is buried, but I guess I could find out. I would imagine in Bath, where the family lived. My father is buried in Bath, in the cemetary in Horseshoe Lane. I was only 13 when he died so I didn't go to the graveside. When in 1981 my husband and I visited Bath as part of our honeymoon, we visited the cemetary. I'd never ever been there. We looked over the huge cemetary - no maps, no guide, no idea where my father was. My husband said 'follow me'. He walked down, turned left, then up a small path. 'Here he is'. He said. He led me straight to him. No - neither of us have the slightest idea how he managed it!

More family history

I don't know a lot about the family, mostly because all the people who could tell the stories have passed on. But I can tell what I know - and I'm doing this because folks have started to contact me who want more information on the family.

That's great! I am going to try and get the family trees scanned - if I could make them available as an on line resource I am sure it would be very helpful to researchers.

Meanwhile - here's where I sit in the world:

My father, Philipa Anthony Sheppard, married (don't know who first time round) and then married my mother (picture above - 3 friends, then 'Bones' Long, Sally's father, then Sally, then Anthony, then Peeps, then Peeps' Mother - Granny Arthur). He had one sister, Angela, who had one son, Nick.

So my family was Mum, Dad, Auntie Angela, Cousin Nick and my brother, Phil. When I was very small there were Lance and Emmie - I will have to track them down in the family history book, can't quite work out where they came from. Cousins? Second cousins? Not sure.

My father's parents were Elsa May Sinclair and Philip Neville Freme Sheppard. I know there was some controversy over Philip marrying a singer/actress (can you imagine? An Edwardian gentleman marrying a stage performer?!) but also some mention of her being divorced as well. I don't know who she was married to first time round either.

And I don't know if the first marriages - my father's or my grandmother's - had any offspring.

If you think that's starting to get complicated - my mother's side of the family is even more complex with two sets of step parents: Charles Keller, from a German family and an amazing history, but all I have left is a 1st world war Military Dress Sword; and Primrose (Mary) Long - known as 'Peeps'. She was one of the founding members of the Church of Scientology but she got fed up with Ron L Hubbard and left. I have her scientology bracelet - weird what hierlooms get handed down, eh? A sword and a bracelet. Sounds like a bad fantasy book plot coming up, eh?

Enough! There is a reason for this post which, I hope, I will be able to elicudate on further in the near future. Meanwhile if you want to contact me about the Sheppard family history, you can email me at

cjcauston at yahoo dot co dot uk

Sally April Long

Costumier, milliner, designer, Dr Who monster maker - wife to Philip Anthony Dwight Sheppard and daughter of Alexander F Long and Margaret Goddard (daughter of the famous pianist, Arabella Goddard).

That's my mum! She's 77 next week. She deserves a much longer post, but for now I will tell you she went to school in South Africa during the war (in Durban - the film 'Cry the Beloved Country' was filmed in the farmhouse she lived in with her uncle and auntie).

She went to art college in Oxford (now known as Oxford Brookes) and worked with many famous people in the theatre and film including Vivien Leigh, Sir John Gielgud, Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor, and many, many more. She worked on Dr Who in the 70s with designers Jim Acheson and John Bloomfield (I noticed John's name at the end of Spiderman 3!).

My parents met at my father's divorce party. His sister, my aunt Angela, invited her (Angela was a costumier too). I have no idea who my father's first wife was, Sally said he married her because it was 'the gentlemanly thing to do'. In other words, they had - ahem! - relations, and therefore he thought he should marry her.

Sally married Anthony in 1955 and my brother Philip was born in 1956. Sally had many miscarriages between my brother and myself, and at least one after I was born.

Sally will have more posts, because her life is an interesting one too (as you may guess from the above 'taster'). I have not pursued her family history - the Longs or the Goddards. I will ask Sally what she remembers. Her cousins are still alive, I believe, they will have more stories too I am sure.

The Birth and Death of Mr P A D Sheppard

From the Barnet Press, 12 January 1974

The funeral of Mr Philip Anthony Dwight Shepaprd, of Athenaeum Road, Whetstone, took place in St Mary Bathwick Church, Bath Somerset, yesterday, Thursday. He died at his home last Thursday aged 53.

Mr Sheppard, whose family moved from Swansea to Bath when he was three, was educated at Christ's Hosptial, Sussex. He joined the RAF as an apprentice in 1937 and during the war he was commissioned as an officer and was responsible for maintaining electrical equipment. he served in different parts of England and in Nigeria.*

After leaving the RAF, he opened a club in Bath. He became the Young Conservatives' organiser for the south-west but left the post to join the Barnstaple Repertory Company. He went on from this to form his own repertory company.

In 1955 he married his wife, Mrs Sally Sheppard, who is a milliner, property maker and designer. They moved to Whetstone in 1963.

Mr Sheppard appeared in a Blackppol prodution of "The Blue Lamp" with Jack Warner and in "Maigret" with Rupert Davis in the West End. He did a lot of television work including commercials and "Z Cars". Recently he appeared in the Danny la Rue Film "Our Miss Fred" and played Mr Knibbles in a Children's Film Foundation production that has won a number of awards.

Mr Sheppard is survived by his widow and two children, Philip and Carolyn."

* I have two albums of photographs from those days in Nigeria. He brought back two native knives too, which I donated to the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology in Cambridge.

This is from a newspaper cutting, and in the same envelope is the following announcement (newspaper unidentified):

SHEPPARD - on 29th January 1920, to Mr and Mrs P N F Sheppard, 86 Eaton-grove, Swansea, a son.

Places and names

As well as the pedigrees, many places and names are mentioned. To help geneaologists find this site through search engines, here are some of the other family members and places mentioned. For many of them I have illustrations and photographs:

Peasmarsh Church, Sussex
Tetbury, Gloucestershire
Avening Church
Colesborne
Balsham
Archbishop Markham
York Minster
Mary Markham
Scone Palace
Lady Jarvis
Martha Jarvis
Mrs Ricketts
Honora Lysons - nee Jarvis
Madmoiselle Choisy
The Earl of St Vincent, First Lord of the Admiralty
Midford
Swainswick
Fed Markham
Jack Markham
Maria Markham
Mrs Rice Markham
Rice Markham
Miss Rice Markham
Whitfield Monument, Tenterden Church
Swainswick Church
Swainswick Rectory 1836
Longleat
Llandough Castle
Coytrahen
Haynes, Bedfordshire
Bettws Church near Coytrahen
General Blackwell
Nurse Paul
Mrs Blackwell
Lady Elizabeth Murray
Mrs Palmer
The Abbey House, the Seat of Miss Masters
Hamswell House
Bathampton Church
Bathampton Church and School
Bathampton Manor House 1846
Mrs Primatt Maud
Revered John P Maud
Bouchier Maud
Mrs London
Mr C J Maud
William S Maud
Miss Jane Garrett
Lady Charles Thynne (pictured)
Lady John Thynne and her daughters
Revered Lord Charles Thynne (pictured)
The Rectory, Longbridge Deverill
Reverend Edward Ferryman
Mrs E Ferryman nee Bessie Maud
Revered Lord John Thynne
Longbridge Deverill Church
Reverend Francis Ashpitel
Mrs F Ashpitel
W Lelewellyn of Courh Colman (?)
Mrs Lewellyn of Courh Colman
Miss Rhodes
Reverend E D Rhodes
Mr N Hurst

Contemporary name include Long, Goddard, Causton and Richer.

These are from Volume I. Already I am intrigued to know how these people all interacted. I can see how some married in (one of the Sheppard girls married into the Thynne family, hence the Longleat connection) and all those Reverends!

These pictures are all pre 1889 - so they may be of interest to regional historians as well as geneaologists.

I haven't even begun to list the many Sheppards, but I will. They can have a post all their own!