Complete Genealogical Analysis: Walker, Harrison, and Bardsley Families

Manchester, Lancashire to Boston, Massachusetts (1587-1687)

Executive Summary

This analysis documents the genealogical connections between several interrelated English families from Manchester, Lancashire, and their American descendants, particularly focusing on Robert Walker who emigrated to Boston, Massachusetts by 1631. The records span from 1587 to 1687 and include detailed probate records, parish registers, and American colonial documents.

Primary Families

BARDSLEY Family of Over Ardwick

Thomas Bardsley (d. 1587)

• Location: Over Ardwick, Manchester Parish, Lancashire
• Occupation: Husbandman
• Will dated: 1 October 1587
• Wife: Margaret (surname unknown)
• Children: John, Frances, Michael, Robert, Margaret, and Cecily Bardsley

Financial Details from Will:

• Estate divided into three equal parts
• Specific debts owed to him:
  • Raphe & Edward Jepsone: £1-19-0
  • Raphe Shelmerdyne of Chorlton: 6s
  • James Bewardsell (brother-in-law): 6s-8d
  • Thomas Bardsley (brother-in-law): £1-10-0
  • John Bardsley (brother-in-law): £1-8-0
  • Margaret Stringfellow for apples: 5s

WALKER Family of Higher Ardwick

Thomas Walker (d. 26 February 1611/2)

• Location: Higher Ardwick, Manchester Parish, Lancashire
• Occupation: Linen-weaver/webster
• Will dated: 20 February 1611[/2]

First Marriage: Margaret Bardsley (daughter of Thomas Bardsley above)

• Died shortly after 11 February 1609/10
• Left inheritance of £2-13-4 to her children from her mother

Second Marriage: Cecily (surname unknown), married early 1611

• Bore posthumous son Michael, baptized 1 March 1611/2
• Remarried Robert Buersell alias Percivall on 30 April 1614

Children by First Marriage:

1. Thomas - baptized 19 April 1601
2. Elizabeth - baptized 16 January 1602/3, died 22 May 1604
3. Margaret - baptized 27 January 1604/5
4. Robert - baptized 21 February 1607/8 [emigrant to America]
5. John - baptized 23 November 1606, died 7 April 1608
6. John (second) - baptized 11 February 1609/10

Will Provisions (1611):

• Estate divided into three equal parts
• Children under tuition of stepmother Cecily until age 21 or marriage
• If Cecily remarries or misbehaves, guardianship transfers to Robert Harrison (brother-in-law)
• Executors: wife Cecily & Robert Harrison
• Overseers: Ambrose Birch (landlord) & Robert Walker (brother)

Estate Inventory (1611/2):

• Pewter: £2-8-4
• Brass Pots: £2-14-6
• Silver: £12-13-10
• Clothes: £5-17-0
• Property leases and bonds
• Total estimated value: £35-6-8

Property Holdings:

• Lease from Ambrose Byrch: house, barn, orchard, garden, and meadow
• Land in John Bardsley's ground called "the field"
• Various closes: Megshalte, lower blackland, barn croft, rough field

HARRISON Family of Manchester

Robert Harrison (d. 26 May 1639)

• Location: Manchester, Lancashire
• Occupation: Linen-webster
• Will dated: 29 January 1638[/9]
• Wife: Anne Walker (sister of Thomas Walker), married 3 August 1597
• Anne died: 17 January 1644/5

Will Provisions (1638/9):

• Estate divided into three equal parts
• Sons James & George must pay debts owed to father first
• Bequests:
  • Daughter-in-law Anna Harrison (widow): 40s
  • Anna's three children: 40s each
  • Son James's four children: 40s each
  • Godchild John Moore: 20s
  • Elizabeth (wife of Roger Stable): 5s
  • Other godchildren: 2s each
• Property: messuage/tenement and meadow in Manchester to wife Anne
• Executrix: wife Anne Harrison

Children:

• James Harrison - baptized 16 December 1599, died of plague 21 September 1645
  • First wife: Elizabeth Beswicke (married 1 November 1624)
  • Second wife: Margaret Chourton (married 12 October 1630)
• Robert Harrison - baptized 15 July 1604, died before 1638/9
  • Wife: Anna (living as widow in 1638/9)
  • Three children mentioned in grandfather's will
• Elizabeth - baptized 31 January 1601/2
• George - baptized 21 September 1606

American Connection

Robert Walker of Boston, Massachusetts

Identity: Almost certainly the Robert Walker baptized 21 February 1607/8 in Manchester, son of Thomas Walker and Margaret Bardsley.

Critical Documentation Issue: In his 1679 deposition, Robert Walker stated he was living with his "father" in Manchester around 1623. Since Thomas Walker died in 1611/2, this "father" was likely his stepfather Robert Buersell alias Percivall, who married his stepmother Cecily in 1614.

American Career:

• Arrived in Boston by 1631
• Occupation: Linen-weaver/webster
• Church membership: 1632
• Freeman: 14 May 1634
• Founder: Old South Church Boston (1669)
• Death: 29 May 1687, Boston

Marriage: Sarah (likely maiden name Leager), circa 1635

• Probably daughter of Jacob/James and Margaret (Grimwood) Leager
• Sister of Jacob Leager of Boston
• Born: between 1610-1617
• Died: 21 December 1695

Property in Boston:

• House and garden bounded by Thomas Snow (east), common (north), High Street/Washington Street (south), William Brisco (west)
• Additional garden bounded by William Talmage (east), High Street (north), John Cranwell (west), Jacob Eliot (south)

Children:

1. Elishua/Elizabeth (b. 14 February 1635/6)
   • Married Benjamin Thurston, 12 December 1660
   • Benjamin: son of Job and Margaret Thurston, born Dedham 8 July 1640
   • Founder members of Old South Church (1669)
2. Rev. Zechariah Walker (b. 15 September 1637, d. 20 January 1699/1700)
   • Harvard College student (1653-1655)
   • Minister at Jamaica, Long Island (1662-1668)
   • Minister at Second Church, Stratford, Connecticut (1668-1678)
   • First minister at Woodbury, Connecticut (1678-1700)
   • Married (1) Mary Prudden, (2) Susanna Rossiter
3. John (b. 22 September 1639, d. 22 July 1652)
4. Sarah (b. 15 November 1641)
5. Jacob (b. 21 March 1643/4)
   • Lived in Stratford and Woodbury, Connecticut
   • Married Elizabeth (Wheeler) Blackman, 6 December 1670
6. Joseph (baptized 19 July 1646, d. 1687)
   • Died at Stratford, Connecticut
   • Married Abigail Prudden, 14 November 1667

Historical Context

Geographic Movement:

• English origins: Manchester Parish, Lancashire
• American settlement: Boston, Massachusetts
• Secondary migration: Connecticut (Stratford, Woodbury)

Occupational Patterns:

• Consistent linen-weaving/webbing trade from England to America
• Economic continuity suggesting skilled craftsman status

Religious Affiliation:

• Anglican parish origins in Manchester
• Puritan church membership in Boston
• Congregational ministry in Connecticut

Economic Status:

• Thomas Walker's estate (1611): substantial property holdings and £35+ value
• Robert Harrison's estate (1639): significant assets including silver, pewter, and property
• Robert Walker (Boston): property owner, church founder, respected citizen

Source Documentation

1. Probate Records: Consistory Court of Chester (1587, 1612, 1639)
2. Parish Registers: St. Mary's Church (now Cathedral), Manchester (1587-1645)
3. Marriage Licenses: Chester Marriage Licenses (1614)
4. American Records: Boston church records, deposition of 1679, probate records
5. Colonial Documents: Freeman lists, property records, church founding documents

Genealogical Significance

This case study demonstrates:

• Trans-Atlantic family continuity in occupation and social status
• Complex step-family relationships affecting emigration decisions
• Documentary challenges in linking English and American records
• Economic motivations for colonial migration among skilled craftsmen
• Religious factors in settlement patterns and community formation

The Walker family represents a successful example of early New England settlement, with descendants becoming prominent ministers, property owners, and community leaders while maintaining connections to their English craft traditions.