Thomas Thursby
Thomas Thursby (died 1510), was a merchant, three times Mayor of King's Lynn and the founder and benefactor of Thoresby College. He was the son of Henry Thursby, four times Mayor of Lynn and Burgess for Lynn, in turn son of John Thursby, Mayor of Lynn Regis 1425 and Deputy-Mayor 1435. Thomas' brother, Robert Thursby, was Burgess for Lynn 1462–3, 1482–3 and 1487, holding the manors of Ashwicken and Burg's Hall in Hillington before his death, 29 October 1500. In his will he leaves 'my special good lord of Oxenford' a tabernacle of our Lady  of gold. At the time of his death, he was married to Elizabeth (d.1518), the widow of Robert Aylmer (d.1493) Mayor of Norwich. There were four Thomas Thursbys in the same geographical area in the same time period, which has through the centuries made unambiguous identification challenging. These were in addition to this Thomas Thursby (d.1510), his son by the same name (d.1543), a grand-nephew Thomas Thursby (1498–1532) and his son a great-grand-nephew Thomas Thursby of Bocking (d.1541). Both Bruce Bannerman and E.M. Yates identify the notorious land-encloser by the same name as the son of  Thomas Thursby (d.1510), Mayor of King's Lynn. Children. In his will, he mentions the following children: Thomas Thursby was married several times, so there is some uncertainty as to who the mother of his children was.