Bygod , and Eggleston
Don Murphey
William L. "Toby" Dills
I assume you are referring to the clained descent of Bygod Eggleston
through the Harker family from the Bigod (or Bygod) family. The
abcestory of Bygod Eggleston is discussed in the following places and
others:
> 1. Eggleston, R.J., "The Eggleston Family in Yorkshire," in Burton W. Spear
(ed.), "The Search for the Passengers of the "Mary & John" 1630", vol. 15, pp.
53-57.
> 2. Eggleston, R. and McBroom, L.E.. "The Mother of Bygod Eggleston of Windsor
Connecticut" TAG, Vol. 69, pp.193-201.
In no case is there any reason to connect the Egglestons of
Connecticut and Settrington in England with the noble Bigods. The
connection most often claimed is through Dorothy, the wife of Miles
Harker. In my own ancestral chart I have the following comments,
extracted from the above sources:
> Miles Harker's wife was named Dorothy but she was not Dorothy Bigod,
> the daughter of Sir Francis Bigod. There is no evidence that
> Dorothy Bigod married anyone other than Roger Radcliffe. She was
> apparently dead by 11/18/1566, when her mother's will was proved and
> Roger Radcliffe was granted administration of her goods until the
> Radcliffe children should attain majority. Both Roger Radcliffe and
> Miles Harker were alive at that time and she could neither have
> married first one and then the other nor would she have been married
> to both at the same time. It is possible either that one of the
> many Bigod family members in and around Settrington may have been
> the godfather of young Bygod Eggleston or that he was named in honor
> of Sir Francis Bigod, a respected Puritan martyr of the time.
Hope this is useful to you.
Happy hunting,
Toby Dills