Much of the reason for this Web page is to publish a small genealogy about "my" branch of the Western family tree.
This genealogy starts with Richard Western (1798 - 1888) of Thorverton, Devon, England, and traces down through the generations to the present day descendants.
Most of the credit for getting me started on my family genealogy belongs to my late uncle Charles Henry Western who passed on a lot of family pictures and wrote down a lot of family folklore from many of the older relatives. My contribution has been to pester distant relatives for additional information, photographs, and their personal recollections. A great deal of this information has been corroborated by my research into the UK Census, birth, death, and marriage records.
The picture on the left shows William Davie Western (1865 - 1909), in his Royal Engineers uniform along with his South African medal with clasps for "Cape Colony" and the "Orange Free State", along with the Kings medal with clasps for 1901 and 1902.
Also in the photograph above is W.D. Western's first son, named after himself, William Davie Western (1904 - 1917). Unfortunately young William died of meningitis on 16 September, 1917.
William Davie Western, senior's youngest son was my grandfather, Albert Edward Davie Western (1909 - 1981), shown here on the right, relaxing around 1935.
Albert Edward Davie Western ("Bert") was born shortly after his father died in 1909, leaving his mother Bessie Western to cope with raising five young children on a small pension. With generous financial assistance from her brother-in-law, Richard Davie Western, a successful Baker and Master confectioner (with a bakery at 38 Bridge Street, Exeter, and elsewhere), young Bessie was able to get by. She ran R.D. Western's bakery in Ide, Devon, and later had a small income from a cottage, also in Ide, inherited from her mother-in-law, Ann Western, upon her death in 1921. Bessie and family continued to reside at 114 Regent Street, Exeter, for many years afterwards.
Bessie Western lived to see
Bert Western get married to Olive Amy Eastmond
in 1933, shown in the photo to the left. Olive was the middle child of five born
to Charles Eastmond and Jessie Capener.
Bert and Olive had 3 children, Anthony (1934), Anne (1937), and David (1940). Bert started his career as a Clerk in the Treasurer's Department of the Exeter City Council, and by 1940 he had risen to Chief Auditor's Assistant on the Exeter City Council. Bert was a very active member of the Belmont Chapel, Exeter.
My Western Family Tree
My Western family tree can be browsed here. A few of the better known descendants of Richard Western (1798 - 1888) are highlighted below.
Kenneth and George Western ("The Western Brothers")
Kenneth and George Western were second cousins and great-grandsons of the aforementioned Richard Western. Kenneth (more formally known as Kenneth Alfred Western) was the first son of Charles Western and Emily (nee Westley). At the time of his birth in September, 1899, the family was living in Islington. Kenneth was starting a career as a civil servant when he turned to the world of entertainment in 1925, after meeting his cousin Ernest George Western.
George Western, as he preferred to be known, was also born in Islington, in July, 1895. By the late 1920's, "The Western Brothers" as they named themselves, had begun to gain national fame. A small biography and more pictures of the famous duo can be found here.
Henry Western, Miniature Portrait Painter
Henry Western is mentioned in "A Dictionary of Contemporary British Artists, 1929", p 488
"WESTERN, Henry; miniature and portrait painter; b London, 10 Oct 1877; s. of Richard Western, Butcher; married Flora Elmes. Educ. London; War Service. Exhibited at Royal Academy., Paris Salon. Principle works Andres C. Lucchesi, Margaret Herbert, L'Echo dans Les Bois. Recreation: Bowls. Address Woodlands, 37 Nelson Rd, Crouch End, N8. Signs work "Henry Western" (with flourish from final 'n' beneath surname)."A fuller biography of Henry Western is available here.
Charles Western,
Victorian Landscape Painter
Charles was considered the finest of the painters in this branch of the Western family. Charles was a well-known Victorian landscape painter and he had pictures accepted by the Royal Academy (1893 – 1900), the Royal Society of British Artists (1885 – 1893), and the Royal Institute of Oil Painters (1894 – 1899). More details about Charles Western can be found here.
Other Western Family Trees
I also have a small collection of family trees composed of unrelated Westerns. They can be viewed here , and they are available to browse or download.
I have also transcribed a few Devonshire wills from people with the Western surname. They can be browsed here.
Probably the best place to start looking is the large GenUKI site in the U.K. This site has the most useful information on general British genealogy. Each county is represented including my area of interest, Devon, and even specific villages and towns, such as Thorverton, and Witheridge. Both villages have had large numbers of Western families throughout the 17th and 18th centuries.
More to come ....
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