Recently we were contacted by Wesley Johnston, whose family research has led him to Crediton and Shobrooke.
"Finding your web site was a very pleasant surprise. Alas, I missed the chance to visit in 2013 when I brought my grandson from California for a family history trip as his high school graduation present. We stayed 3 nights in Exeter and spent 1 day driving to see the Butson locations near Uffculme. But at that time I had not yet done much on the Butsons of Shobrooke and vicinity.
The Guild of One-Name Studies Butson Study is my study. It began from my own Cornish-Canadian-American Butson ancestry many years ago. And I have done a great deal of research in Cornish records. But I am much less adept with and aware of Devon and Somerset records.
At the moment, I am working on a research note on "The Ancestry of John Rowden Butson" who was born about 1793, either at Shobrooke or at St Johns Exeter, depending on which census you believe. He married at Sandford and raised his children at Shobrooke, where he appears in the 1841-1871 censuses.
Working on this from California is not an easy task. FamilySearch's index and FindMyPast's less-complete coverage (but with images of the actual records) have helped a lot. But the very meagre information - or the complete absence of any information - in records in the 1700's makes it very difficult to connect all the Crediton area Butsons with each other, much less with those from Kentisbeare or further afield."
Unfortunately we couldn't find anything relevant in the CAHMS archive, and weren't able to help Wesley with his research. If anyone thinks they have any information which would help, please
contact us and we will put you in touch. Researchers into the Butson family are advised to visit Wesley's website on
http://www.wwjohnston.net/famhist/celtic-roots-tree/