The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-10-30
FATHER OF SIXTY-TW0.
Record Claimed by ScotIand-Large
Families in Various Countries

In these DAYS of declining families II
is quite reassuring to read in the same
column of a newspaper of one lady who,
In fourteen years has contributed twenty
to the population. and of another who
boasts as many descendants as there are
days In a leap year, says Tft-Bits-
But one need not search long among
family records without discovering many
that were stin more remarkable 1t Is
only a few months since we read OF a
woman at Antwerp who actually gave
birth to six sons last year-three making
their entrance together into the world In
January and three others following In
December. Perhaps more interesting sun
was the achievement of bakers wife
in Paris who added twenty-one members
to her family at seven births and in as
many years.
There have. however. been many par
ents who would have considered twenty
one quite small family. There was. for
instance that Scottish weaver. of whom
the Harleian MSS. tell us, who had no
fewer than sixty-two children by one
wife all of whom were born alive. and
of whom forty-six sons and -FOUR daugh-
tiers (half a hundred in alb lived TO be
p and upward. Thomas Greenhill, the
Duke of NOrfolk's surgeon, was the
thirty-ninth child OF one father and
mother; there was a French lawyer, &C
cording to Boyle. who had fOrty-five
olive branches; and Mrs Agnes Mel
bourne. who died in 1913 at the age OF
l05. left thirty children to wear mourn
ing for her.
In very recent years. too Mrs. Mary
Jonas of Chester was the mother of
thirty-three children: an old man who
applied to the Oulton Guardians for out
relief had thirty children to call him
father: and one. Anthony Clark, quite
shocked his honor Judge Edge, at the
Clerkenwell county court, by pleading
guilty TO thirty-two sons and daughters.
Even the record of the lady who boasts
3e6 descendants has been eclipsed more
HnnpN WOnd
Charing. in Kent. died in 1920, IL was said
that her descendants comprised l6 chill
dren, ia grandchildren, rs great grand
children and s great-great-grandchil
making the creditable total of 1861 per-
sons who owed their existence to her.
But a much more wonderful old lady was
Lady Temple of Stow, who actually lived
to pat her seven hundredth descendant
on the head.
Even this does not constitute a record.
for in the Annual Register of l776 we
read; Not many years ago there died
in the neighborhood of Festiniog. in
Merionetshire. Wales. an honest Welsh
farmer who was 1O5 years of age. BY his
first wife he had thirty children: by his
second. ten: by his third, four. His
youngest son was eishty-one years
younger than his eldest. and 500 persons
descended from his body attended his
funeral.
If we come down, to recent times we
also find records which are calculated to
make one marvel OulN Il lew years ago,
for example. there was buried in Hutton
Bushel churchyard. near Scarborough,
Mrs Ursula LightfOot, a farmers widow,
who left no fewer than 163 descendants Il
mourn her loss These included six
daughters and three sons. seventy-nirls
grandchildren, seventy-three great
grandchildren and two great-great-gr grand
children
The late Dowager Duchess of Abercorn.
it may be remembered. lived to nurse
more than go of her descendants; and
William Meaking of High Wyconbe, be-
fore he died at the age of 81. could count
his descendants up 10 nearly the same
number.
Beyond all question the most prolific
family on record is that of man called
Webb. who settled century or so ago in
Kentucky. His eldest son was father OF
nineteen children. and before he was y
saw three later generations totaling e;
members. Of whom two were great-grand-
children. Webb's second son also has
more than 100 descendants, while his
daughter Polly, beginning with ten chill
dren. lived 10 see her two hundred and
thirtieth descendant. and TO raise the
family Of Webb senior above the LOO
mark.
Another daughter. Sally by name
ranks fourth in order of contribution tc
the census with 2os descendants: Their
total of 301: while Webb's youngest son
according to the latest family enumera-
ton. had eleven children. seventy-sis
grandchildren and eighty of the two sue
ceeding genera tons Thus the accident
of one mans emigration to America has
already added more than leo to Cousin
Jonathan's family.