Anstey Researchers

G. M. Anstey (Gary)

Gary is the overseer and chief researcher of this ‘Anstey Story‘ project; he is also the coordinator of the Anstey One Name Study at the Guild of One Name Studies. Gary is a member of the Stoke Gifford Ansteys and he can be contacted at research@theansteystory.com. See Gary’s biography and research pages for more.

T. J. Anstey (Tom)

Tom (SG 30) is Gary‘s great granduncle, also a member of the Stoke Gifford Ansteys. Tom’s early 20th century research and findings form an integral part of this project and as such, he has been posthumously awarded title of overseer and chief researcher of the ‘Anstey Story‘ project.

See Tom’s biography, research and correspondence pages for more.

Rev. Martin Anstey

Rev. Martin Anstey (JU 14 – M. A. B. D.), son of John Walters Anstey (JU 12) and brother of John Anstey (TM 1) of the Timaru, New Zealand Ansteys, is a member of the Juryhayes Ansteys and author of ‘The Romance of Bible Chronology: An Exposition of the meaning and a Demonstration of the Truth of every Chronological statement contained in the Hebrew Text of the Old Testament’ published in 1913. Rev. Martin Anstey performed much research on his Anstey ancestry, connecting many Devon Anstey families. He began communication with Tom in April 1911 and they met up on 2 May 1911. Communication continued between them throughout Tom’s research where they exchanged much information and advancing many Anstey research threads.

Major R. H. Raymond Smythies

Major R. H. Raymond Smythies is a member of the Rugby Ansteys, a sub-branch of the Blewbury, Berkshire Ansteys. He was a Commissioned Officer in the Prince of Wales Volunteers and an ardent and enthusiastic genealogist of both the ‘Anstey’ and ‘Smythies’ surname. In 1912 Major Smythies authored ‘Records of the Smythies Family’, which contains numerous Anstey references. He corresponded with Tom from January 1911 to February 1912 and between them they exchanged much information, advancing many Anstey research threads.

Hubert Hall F. S. A.

Hubert Hall is somewhat of an ‘accidental’ Anstey researcher, in the sense that when he decided to write ‘Court Life Under The Plantagenets’ (published by Swan Sonnenschein & Co 1890) he originally intended to research another medieval gentleman. Fortunately for us, he changed his mind and switched his attention to Richard de Anstey, the victor in the 12th century ‘Anstey Case’ and eldest son of Hubert the Anstey patriarch. Hubert Hall spent his working career at the Public Records Office and as such had unrivalled access to public record archives; the detailed notes and references to each chapter in the appendix to his book provide a wealth of medieval Anstey information, including source citations and explanations. To have somebody as obviously knowledgeable and expert as Hubert Hall writing in detail on the early medieval Ansteys is indeed a stroke of good fortune; his other works include editing the three volumes of the ‘Red Book of the Exchequer’, as well as many other invaluable historical works.