Aquila Ginn the elder of Great Hormead d. 1687

There are a number of Ginns that I have researched that I would have liked to have met, and Aquila and Grace here are two of them.  They are not my ancestors, although Aquila's brother Edward is.  But I have always had an affection for this couple and would love to have sat in their parlour and had a pewter tankerd or two of small beer with them.   

Aquila was a yeoman.  As his father's eldest son he stood to inherit the family farm known as Margery Smiths, later Mutton Hall but it is clear that he never actually had it in his own right, because his grandmother died in 1625 (before Aquila was 21) and the lease of "Margery Smiths" would have ended with her which is a great pity.  

He was certainly a Yeoman however and was not poor.  We know this because he was eligible for jury service and is mentioned as a Yeoman in other surviving records.  He attended as a juryman on an inquest at Ware in 1659.  My suspicion is that he held a little free and copyhold land and a great deal more by lease.

He is also mentioned twice in the Lay Subsidy (National Archives).  In both 1625 and 1642 he was taxed on Lands.  This is a sure sign of some substance as most people were not assessed by this time.  My assessment is that he was a middling farmer of his class, with perhaps 50+ acres.

Grace was born to a Robert and Susan Milton of Newport in Essex, she was born in 1607.  Robert was a prosperous Yeoman farmer.  Robert and Susan (who may have married at Long Melford in Suffolk in 1602 – this needs research) had a number of children, William, Bridget, Mary, Elizabeth and our Grace.

Robert Milton died in 1625 or so, leaving a will the original of which survives (see ERO ref D/ABW/46/890 a page of which is below). He left his land to his son and a capital sum of £60 to each of his children, nearly all of whom were underage at his demise.  William and Bridget died young but the three surviving daughters clearly married (Boyds Marriage Index) and Susan (a youngish widow, probably in her forties) we are told married Robert Spark (at Newport in 1626).   Unfortunately neither  Susan or Spark were allegedly too forthcoming in giving the children their money and during the English Civil War period Aquila and Grace launched a lawsuit to get the money which did not actually come to court until 1659 - see C3/445/95 at the National Archives. It appears that Robert Spark (possibly a formidable figure who was said to not be badly off) was now dead and Susan, a widow again, was perhaps more vulnerable to an action.  The result of the case is unfortunately not known

Aquila died in 1687, at the great age of 82.  In a deed at the HRO, (ref 21656)  with her original signature Grace disposed of 17 acres of land after Aquila's death.  This land was at Furneux Pelham, right next to "Margery Smiths" and obviously Aquila also held lands in Great and Little Hormead of which I am unaware.

Grace died in 1700 – the old girl was 93 – truly incredible

Aquila and Grace had a good number of children:

Priscilla - married William Harslaw in 1655

Aquila the Younger - see post of 6th January 2024

Philip - moved to Bishop's Stortford with his brother Richard - see later post

Ann - married Thomas Barker at Sawbridgeworth in 1678.  Thomas lived in Little Hormead and in 1671 married Susanna Grave of Sawbridgeworth there, thus indirectly  introducing the Grave family of Sawbridgeworth into this branch of the Ginn family.  They had Susannah (1671) Thomas (1673) and Elizabeth (1676) and then Susannah died.  Thomas remarried Ann Ginn who was probably well known to him.  They had at least one child (Edward 1679) and a good number of descendants have corresponded with me.

Richard - moved to Bishops Stortford - see next post

John - married and had eight sons live to adulthood - blimey ! - see later post