Introduction

Tracing his family's roots was a life-long interest of (William) Eric Fretwell (WEF), my late father-in-law and his father, Ralph Traun Fretwell (RTF), before him. While their principal quest was to trace back through their main line, they accumulated a great deal of relevant, and (for them) less relevant, ancillary information. At this stage work has been done on the Cawthorne and Maltby Fretwells. At some future time it is hoped to also upload information on the Penistone and Emley Fretwell families.

I have a particular interest in those people who, like me, have become linked to Fretwells by marriage. To date, the records, as far as is known, of those listed below have been included on the site.

Researching women can be a challenge, so I was delighted to find that when bachelor and well-heeled John Fretwell (1763-1855 - Fifth Generation) drew up his detailed will, it was the the children and grandchildren of his sisters who were the chief beneficiaries. Through the will I have been able to follow up on the families I refer to as the Fretwell Offshoots.

From the fruits of the research undertaken by RTF and WEF there are also notes on numerous 'miscellaneous' Fretwells whose status in the family lineages above is uncertain. They have been classed as Fretwell Orphans, until and if these can find a 'home' within the 'Origins' groupings.

An interesting collection of notes found in the Family Papers, and yet to be properly deciphered, relate to various legal proceedings involving Fretwells. A check on the Hull University Manuscripts and Archives Database has unearthed some additional legal "goings-on" and these can be found at :