Ewhurst, London, Canada ~ Rural, Urban, Rural

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2025: Week 44 (RURAL)

My 4th great grandfather was from Ewhurst, Surrey, England.

"Ewhurst is a village about 35 miles south west of London on the Surrey Sussex border. Close by is the larger village of Cranleigh and the nearest towns of Guildford, Dorking and Horsham, are each about 10 miles away." 1

In looking at DNA Ancestral Journeys and matches there is a solid connection back to Ewhurst.

My 4th great grandfather

Daniel Dendy

Birth 1819 • Ewhurst, Surrey, England
Death JAN 1893 • England

His parents were James & Elizabeth (maiden name unknown) Dendy.

This is as far back on this line I have found records for to date.

BUT we know the family was in the Ewhurst area as far back as the Tudor timeframe.

"The Weald became a centre for glass working. The industry centred on Chiddingfold and Wisborough Green and the two sites at Ewhurst, at Ellen's Green and Summersbury, are the most northerly. The names of Huguenot families known to be involved in glassmaking are found in the Ewhurst Parish lists for the Surrey Musters of 1583/4. (The purpose of the Muster lists was to identify able bodied men available to fight if the Spanish invaded)

During this period a new social class emerged. Yeomen were prosperous farmers, who owned their own land, but were below the status of gentlemen. The Rydes of Oldhouse were a typical family of yeoman farmers in the parish. At various times different branches of the family were in possession of Bildens, Longhurst Hill, Coxlands and Mapledrakes. Other prominent local families included the Dendys who were associated with Somersbury, Breach, Woolpit and Downhurst; the Knights of Isemongers, High Edser, Bramblehurst and Slythehurst; and the Hills of Hillhouse, Pollingfold and Rumbeams." 2

The Surrey Index of Names (sourced below) lists 721 records for Dendys in the Surrey area, 217 of them are in Ewhurst specifically.

When I first began researching this Bramble Bush I had thought our Canadian roots were very deep. I was surprised to find how shallow they are in various parts of the tree. Via this line I am a 4th generation Canadian. When the Dendy family immigrated to Canada in 1903 from London they immigrated to rural Manitoba. 

Daniel was married twice
I descend through 1st wife

Mary Mitchell

Birth 1821 • Wotton, Surrey, England
Death 29 MAY 1856 • Wandsworth, Surrey, England

his 2nd wife was his daughter-in-law's sister (making her my 3rd great aunt as well as my X2 step great grandmother).

Christiana Gunnell

Birth abt 1816 • Hambleden, Buckinghamshire, England

Death Jan 1892

My X3 great grandparents

William James Dendy

Birth ABT. 1841 • Ewhurst, Surrey, England

Death 1909 • Horsham, Sussex (formerly Surrey), England

and

Honor Gunnell

Birth ABT 1832 • Hambledon, Buckinghamshire, England

Death 12 JUL 1882 • Hambledon, Surrey, United Kingdom

My X2 great grandparents

William Herbert (Herbert) Dendy

Birth 27 JUL 1866 • Balham, Surrey, England

Death 25 DEC 1929 • Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

and

Amy Louisa Baker

Birth 18 MAR 1875 • Ealing, Middlesex, England

Death 23 DEC 1949 • Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

My X2 great grandparents
William Herbert & Amy Louisa (nee Baker) Dendy
My immigrant ancestors

My great grandmother was their first child born in Canada

Rose Honor Dendy

Birth 14 APR 1906 • R.M. of Pipestone, Bardal, Manitoba, Canada

Death 17 SEP 1974 • Nelson, British Columbia, Canada
married to my great grandfather

Earnest (Ernest) Helmer (Elmer) (Hap) (Ernie) Bayes

Birth 17 JUL 1903 • Campbellford, Northumberland, Ontario, Canada

Death 19 OCT 1986 • Nelson, British Columbia, Canada

How the family went from rural England to urban England to rural Canada is a story I am still researching!!!

This is why I search - 

Cause ... 

You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!

***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of this blog post***

Footnotes:

1  A brief history of Ewhurst. Ewhurst – the Village and Parish. Ewhurst Historical Society. Retrieved Oct 29th 2025 from
http://www.ewhursthistory.com/about-ewhurst/a-brief-history-of-ewhurst

2  A brief history of Ewhurst.Tudor Ewhurst. Ewhurst Historical Society. Retrieved Oct 29th 2025 from
http://www.ewhursthistory.com/about-ewhurst/a-brief-history-of-ewhurst

Sources:

A brief history of Ewhurst. Ewhurst – the Village and Parish. Ewhurst Historical Society. Retrieved Oct 29th 2025 from
http://www.ewhursthistory.com/about-ewhurst/a-brief-history-of-ewhurst

A brief history of Ewhurst.Tudor Ewhurst. Ewhurst Historical Society. Retrieved Oct 29th 2025 from
http://www.ewhursthistory.com/about-ewhurst/a-brief-history-of-ewhurst

Dendy. Surrey Index of Names. West Surrey Family History Society. Retrieved October 29th 2025 from
https://www.wsfhs.co.uk/pages/sindex/siList.php?sisurname=dendy&siforenames=&siplace=&btn=Search

Ewhurst. Exploring Surrey's Past. Surrey Heritage. Retrieved October 29th 2025 from
https://www.exploringsurreyspast.org.uk/themes/places/surrey/waverley/ewhurst/

Ewhurst St. Peter & St. Paul. Surrey Churches Index. Surrey Graveyards. Retrieved October 29th 2025 from
https://www.surreygraveyards.org.uk/waverley/ewhurststpp.shtml

Ewhurst, Surrey. Britain Express. Retrieved October 29th 2025 from
https://www.britainexpress.com/attractions.htm?attraction=3325

Free Resources. West Family History Society. Retrieved October 29th 2025 from 
https://www.wsfhs.co.uk/pages/freeresources.php

Some Memorials of the Dendy' Family. By Sir William J. Collins, K.C.V.O." M.P. Transactions of the Baptist Historical Society. Retrieved October 29th 2025 from
https://biblicalstudies.gospelstudies.org.uk/pdf/tbhs/volumes/05-3.pdf

Photos:

Ancestry DNA Ancesteral Journeys Clip. Retrieved Oct 29th 2025. 

Google Maps Clip. Retrieved Oct 29th 2025.

Links:

Amy Johnson Crow, 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge
https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/52-ancestors-in-52-weeks/

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