The Gussage Ansteys

by Gary. M. Anstey, chief researcher of the Anstey story project.

Overview of the Gussage Ansteys

The Gussage Ansteys of Dorset are a sub-branch of the Tarrant Crawford Ansteys. Gussage consists of three connected parishes, being Gussage All Saints, Gussage St Michael and Gussage St Andrew, all of which had a church, so when researching this sub-branch, we need to check all three.

In the analysis that follows, we are certainly missing a few early parish register entries which is making connections more difficult as we have to ‘pencil in’ many events such as births and marriages. As such, this pedigree should be considered work in progress, and anybody who can improve it please contact us at research@theansteystory.com.

The patriarchs of the Gussage Ansteys are surely brothers Richard Anstey (b 1624) and Thomas Anstey (b 1626), both of Tarrant Crawford. A major sub-branch of the Gussage Ansteys is the Sixpenny Handley Ansteys, which sprouted in c1750.

Richard Anstey (b 1624 Tarrant Crawford)

Richard Anstey probably married in c1650 or so (though we cannot locate any marriage entry) and likely had a son:

We currently know nothing else of this ‘Richard Anstey (b 1624)’ and are actively searching for clues to fill this deficiency.

Thomas Anstey (b 1626 Tarrant Crawford)

Thomas Anstey married Edith Standen in Henfield, Sussex in 1644 and they returned to live in Gussage, having a single son:

  • Thomas Anstey (baptised in Gussage St Michael in 1649 – note: some sources incorrectly say 1659).

However Thomas Anstey (son) died in 1667 in Gussage (“son of Thomas Ansty“) and thus this family, to our knowledge, became Anstey-extinct.

Richard Anstey (b c1655)

Richard Anstey (b c1655) married Mary in c1688 (we cannot find the marriage entry) and they had the following children baptised in Gussage St Michael [Note: there is a gap in the Gussage St Michael register between 1692 and 1711, so some of the following are tentative connections]:

  • Richard Anstey (b 1690, “son of Richard and Mary Ansty” – see below);
  • Mary Ansty? (b c1693? married William Bursy in 1712 in Chettle);
  • John Anstey? (b c1693?, married Sarah (probably Sarah Compton in Winterborne Whitechurch in 1713) and had children John Anstey (buried in 1721 in Gussage “a child“) and Sarah Anstey (b 1725, died in Gussage in 1769 “age 43“). John Anstey was buried in 1744 in Gussage and his widow Sarah Ansty was buried in Gussage in 1751 a “widow“);

Richard Anstey was buried in 1712 in Gussage; his widow Mary Anstey was buried in Gussage in Jun 1718 “widow of Richard Ansty”

Richard Anstey (b 1690 Gussage)

Richard Anstey (b 1690, though see below) married a total of three times. First, married Mary Hulit in 1713 in Chettle, having children:

  • Ede Ansty?? (died 1713 Gussage)
  • Richard Anstey (b 1713 – no parents are given for this entry. Richard married Joan Wheeler in Tarrant Hinton in 1737 (he was “of [Tarrant] Gunville“). They moved to Tarrant Gunville, having children Richard Ansty (b 1738); and Mary Ansty (b 1746))
  • Thomas Anstey? (b c1715, married Elizabeth Dyet in 1740 in Gussage St Michael and they had children Mary Ansty (b 1741, married John Hiscock in Gussage in 1761); Thomas Ansty (b 1744); Bettie Ansty (b 1746 married John Fryer in Gussage in 1771); and John Ansty (b 1750 – see John Anstey (b 1747)). Thomas Anstey died in 1750 in Gussage and Elizabeth Ansty died in 1751 in Gussage).
  • Mary Ansty (b 1717, twin – no parents are given for this entry)
  • William Ansty (b 1717, twin – no parents are given for this entry, co-patriarch of the Sixpenny Handley Ansteys);
  • Mary Ansty (b 1719, died an infant).

Mary Anstey (“wife of Richard ANSTY, buried with her daughter Mary“) was buried in Oct 1719 in Gussage, so Richard Ansty then married Ede (Idde) Kent in Jan 1719/20 in Chettle. They had a daughter:

  • Susannah Anstey (b Apr 1725 to “Richard and Idde“, buried Jul 1725 “daughter of Richard Anstey“).

Idde Anstey was buried in Gussage in Apr 1725 “wife of Richard Anstey“, so Richard Anstey remarried a third time to Mary Kent (b c1694) in Gussage All Saints in Sep 1725 (presumably Mary Kent was the sister of his second wife Ede Kent). They had the following children baptised in Gussage St Michael:

Richard Anstey (father) was buried in Gussage in 1760, though the age is given as 76 which suggests a birth year of 1784 rather than 1790. Perhaps he was baptised in 1790 as a child rather than an infant. His widow Mary Anstey was buried in Gussage in 1771 “aged 77“

Further Details on the Gussage Ansteys

#1. Quite a few Sixpenny Handley Ansteys had children baptised in Gussage – see the Sixpenny Handley Anstey page for details.

We are actively on the lookout for Gussage experts alive today who are willing to add their findings and knowledge to this project. We are particularly interested in research regarding Gussage Ansteys who fought in World War One, preferably with personal souvenirs such as letters sent by the soldiers or military photos etc. Anybody who has such expertise and inclination, please contact us at research@theansteystory.com.

We have already uploaded bits of information and documentation about the Gussage Ansteys, and continue to upload more all the time (see Project Updates), however it is spread over various segments of the website.

The best way to find said information is to enter ‘Gussage’ in the search box at the bottom of this page and a list of relevant pages will appear.

Anybody who finds any mistakes on this page, please contact us at research@theansteystory.com and we will correct it.

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