Histories

William Gardner 1st born 1756

We know from St Deny’s Church Northmoor records that our William Gardner was a basket maker who had seven children over two marriages and died at the age of 79. Two generations of William Gardner lived and worked in Northmoor as basket makers until the industrial revolution introduced new technologies and cheaper products. The families then moved on to Oxford and Windsor.

We know from St Deny's church records that there are two other women with the same surname that were married in Northmoor before our William and might have been of the same family. Perhaps there was only one Gardner family living in Northmoor at the time or that William moved into the Northmoor home of one of his married sisters at an early age. Possible connections could be made with boatmen who plied their trade upstream of Oxford and who used Northmoor – Babcock Hythe, as a staging post; and also a book that details the history of many generations of William Gardner living in Oxford as boatmen. However all these links will need to be explored to make the right connection.

Please look at the family tree and let me know if you have already made that connection.