Walter Fox (abt. 1690 - abt. 1735)

Descendants

Died about 27 Jun 1735 at about age 45 in Minterne Magna, Dorset, England

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Maria Castro [send private message]

Biography

14 Oct 1716: Counterpart lease, between 1. Sir Nathaniel Napier and 2. Walter Fox, Upcerne. Premises: cottage and garden in Minterne Magna [with detailed recital of Fox family involement with premises from 1680]. Rent: 6s 8d.^[1]

Walter Fox married Mary Curm, a widow from Cerne Abbas, in Minterne Magna on 25 May 1719.^[2]

Walter was buried in Minterne Magna on 27 Jun 1735; a note in the parish register reads: "Killed by Farmer Woods wagon".^[3]

Research Notes

Dorset History Centre holds a number of documents concerning the Fox family in the area around Minterne Magna, mostly property leases, for the 17th and 18th centuries.

The Fox Y-DNA Surname Project on FTDNA has found that "a descendant of Richard Fox Sr. (1641-1708), of Glastonbury, CT, matches ... a descendant of Vaniah Fox (-aft.1790), who married Abigail Cadwell in Glastonbury, CT, in 1748." The exact connection is however unknown. Most interestingly, both of those Y-DNA tests also closely match a descendant of Francis Harry Fox (abt.1849-), who has now been traced back to the Walter Fox of this profile. As the majority of 17th century emigrants to Massachusets and Connecticuts came from Dorset, Somerset and Devon, it is not particularly suprising to find a connection to a Dorset Fox. Further research is currently ongoing to trace this line further back to possibly identify the common ancestor and the emigrant. It would also be helpful to identify living descendants of the Dorset Fox family still in the area for further Y-DNA testing to confirm the connections.

Sources

1. ↑ Reference number D-CRI/A/23/1/14 Dorset History Centre.
2. ↑ Parish register of Minterne Magna, transcript online at Dorset OPC.
3. ↑ Parish register of Minterne Magna, transcript online at Dorset OPC.