My New Great Grandfather

[poliphilo]

My sister and nephew have been researching the family tree and I've just acquired a great grandfather.

Charles Grist, obit 1897, aged 38.

He died shortly before or after my grandfather was born. I wish I knew the story.

What I'd like now is to establish a link between my Charles Grist (who lived in Erith) and the nest of 19th century Grists (somes of them called Charles) who fill the churchyard at Brookland on Romney Marsh, about fifty miles to the south.

I would love to find I had my roots in Romney Marsh- A "won'erful odd-gates place" according to a character in Puck of Pook's Hill, with "steeples settin' beside churches, an' wise women settin' beside their doors, and the sea settin' above the land, an' ducks herdin' wild in the diks"

"I've heard say the world's divided like into Europe, Ashy, Afriky, Ameriky, Australy an' Romney Marsh."

Comments

[halfmoon-mollie.livejournal.com]

I read a book years ago, and I think it was a Disney 'serial', the Scarecrow of Romney Marsh.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Yes, yes, yes! I remember the film. It was based on a series of novels by Russell Thorndike. The hero or anti-hero is a clergyman by day and a notorious smuggler (known as the Scarecrow because of the disguise he adopts) by night. His name is Dr Syn

[halfmoon-mollie.livejournal.com]

Played by Patrick McGoohan, or at least that's who I remember in the role (could be I remember it wrong...)

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

No, that's entirely right.

I remember finding aspects of the film quite frightening- especially the bit at the beginning where they're riding around in scarecrow masks.

[halfmoon-mollie.livejournal.com]

Yes...that was pretty scary, even for Disney.

Now I have to go find it again.

[lblanchard.livejournal.com]

Which tale in Puck of Pook's Hill? I have the book and might look at it tonight. Odd-gates indeed...

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Dymchurch Flit. :)