These research notes are provided as-is and contain supplementary working research.
Finding
Entry E is probably John Gurney-1's baptism
Entry E is probably the baptism of John Gurney-1, making him the eldest known child of Francis Gurney by Margaret Rybett, born at East Dereham before the family moved to London. The reading is the strongest single link between the Massachusetts emigrant and the Norfolk Gurney line, and it is an inference from letterform comparison, not a legible entry.
Why this conclusion
- Supported by Evidence Francis Gurney's East Dereham child cluster, c.1611–1633The confirmed Gurney entries in the same register and hand are the comparator set for Entry E.
- Supported by Negative result No John among the seven St Benet Fink children of Francis and Anne Browning, 1619–1637The absence of a John in the second family means any son John must belong to the first — which is where Entry E puts him.
- Supports Identity hypothesis Candidate B: John was probably the son of Francis Gurney and Margaret RybettA baptism of John son of Francis at East Dereham is the strongest single link in the argument.
- Supported by Evidence Entry E, East Dereham image 00715: "John the sonne of ffrancis Gurnie," c.1609/10Entry E as re-read is the record the finding interprets.
Qualifications and conflicts
- Qualified by Open question Open: Entry E awaits professional examination of the original registerThe reading is AI-assisted paleography awaiting professional confirmation.
- Qualified by Analysis The baptism date sits a year or two before the parents' marriageThe estimated baptism date may precede the parents' marriage.
Sources
- Parish register, East Dereham, Norfolk. Norfolk Record Office, PD 86/41 (microfilm, 69 images)., Norfolk Record Office, PD 86/41, image 00715, Entry E, as re-read
Topic file location: Identity — Candidate B: Norfolk parentage
Technical details
- Research item:
G13-RI-000157 - Graph revision:
244 - Machine-readable JSON:
/assets/g13-graph/findings/G13-RI-000157.json
This is one research item from the John Gurney research graph; the fuller narrative treatment is in the linked topic above and the research library.