United in Death

This book contains amazing stories from years gone by. From the rich and powerful Pargeter family living in England whose daughter Amy married Lawrence Washington from another well-to-do family, I have researched the Washington family back to 1193, to where they originated, in Northumberland in England - generations later Lawrence and Amy's seven-times grandson George would make history by becoming the first president of the U.S.A. We hear of the glass pioneers in the Dudley area of England and about their remake of the amazing Portland Vase. There are stories of churches, including one that was burned down by order of the suffragettes - the whole church along with the registers and irreplaceable items lost forever. From power and riches through to poverty and destitution, all human life is here. Some of my ancestors ended up in the dreaded workhouse with absolutely nothing. There are stories from WW1 and WW2, and stories of Germany and of my mother who, thankfully, avoided the death camps whilst others including her friends did not. At the end of the book there is a host of wills, obtained from all over England, from so many different places from so many different people