(1) Welcome
(2) Death of Ray S. Bassett and Bassetts Dairy of Florida
(3) Bassett Heraldry
(4) New family lines combined or added since the last newsletter
(5) DNA project update
Thanks to the following who made donation's toward the project this month:
3 people donated a total of $110 towards the Bassett DNA project
Section 1 - Welcome
I hope to meet some of you in just a few weeks at the Bassett family reunion
in Boston. I will be arriving late in the afternoon on Friday, August 3rd.
Several dozen Bassetts will be there Friday evening to share their Bassett
family information.
Bassett presentations will begin about 9 am on Saturday morning. In addition
to the people staying overnight at the hotel, several dozen others from New
England have told me they will be joining us to learn more about Bassett history
on Saturday.
We hope to have a group tour of the USS Constitution at 3pm on Saturday afternoon.
We will also have a group dinner at a local restaurant on Saturday evening
for those wishing to join us.
On Sunday, several people plan on visiting Plimouth Plantation in Plymouth,
Massachusetts. This is a recreated village of 1627. If you descend from William
Bassett of Plymouth, come see how his family was living in 1627.
If you can't join us this year, I will be sharing a few pictures in next month's
newsletter for all to see.
Is there any interest from our Bassett family members in England or Wales of
hosting a small reunion in the next few years? If so, please let me know.
* * * * *
Section 2 - Featured Bassett: Bassetts of Monticello, Florida
Ray Simpson Bassett descends from #1B John Bassett of Connecticut as follows:
John Bassett of Connecticut and wife Margery
Robert Bassett and wife Mary
Robert Bassett (b. 1640) and wife Elizabeth Riggs
Robert Bassett (b. 1699) and wife Eunice Clark
Daniel Bassett (b. 1742) and wife Elizabeth Bassett
Lemuel Bassett (b. 1788) and wife Julia Bennett
Bennett Ebenezer Bassett (b. 1822) and wife Matilda Wheeler
Wheeler Amasa Bassett (b. 1858) and wife Agnes M. Thomas
Wilmer Wilson Bassett (b. 1885) and wife Ruby Henry Burt
Ray Simpson Bassett (b. 1925)
Ray S. Bassett, one of my Bassett contacts for many years, died this past month.
Two years ago, Ray S. Bassett put together a history of the Wheeler A. Bassett
family which included many pictures. The following is the introduction from
the two volume CD.
Here are some of the many pictures included in the Bassett history done
by Ray S. Bassett.
Ocala Star-Banner, 20 May 2007
Ray S. Bassett
Ray S. Bassett, 81 of Ocala, FL, passed away on Thursday, May 17, 2007 at
St. Luke's Hospital in Jacksonville, FL. A native of Monticello, FL, he had
made Ocala his home since 1971, moving from Tallahassee, FL. He was part
owner of North Florida Transport in Summerfield, FL and stock holder of Bassett
Dairy in Monticello, FL. He served in the U.S. Army Air Corp during WWII.
Survivors include: daughter, Cile MacKinnon of The Villages, FL; two sons,
Ray S. Bassett, Jr. of Okeechobee, FL and Robert A. Bassett of Tallahassee,
FL; three brothers, H. Burt Bassett of Tallahassee, FL, Curry J. Bassett
of Punta Gorda, FL and James C. Bassett, Sr. of Perry, FL; seven grandchildren
and two great-grandchildren. Visitation will be held from 2-5 p.m., with
a service at 4:30 p.m., Sunday, May 20, 2007 at Hiers Funeral Home. A Graveside
Service will be held the following day, Monday, May 21, 2007 at 12 p.m. at
Roseland Cemetery, Monticello, FL. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made
to National D-Day Museum at 945 Magazine Street, New Orleans, Louisiana 71301.
Arrangements by Hiers Funeral Home, 910 Silver Springs Blvd., Ocala, FL.
* * * * *
Section 3 - Featured Bassett: Bassett Heraldry
This is a brief introduction to the Bassett Heraldry that will be presented
at the Bassett family reunion on Saturday morning, August 4th, 2007.
Bassett Heraldry
A Brief Introduction by James R. Terzian
Bassett families in the British Isles and northern France began to adopt
Coats of Arms between 1190 and 1232 (the surname Basset does not appear
elsewhere until several centuries later). Though many knew they
were related by blood, the families chose a mix of related and unrelated
heraldic designs, ensigns that have evolved and become more varied over
time.
The arms borne by Bassets fall into at least nine distinct groups. The
following is a brief summary of the arms and the families known by them:
“The Basset Arms” Barry wavy
Or and Gules. Attributed
to Ralph Basset the Justiciar, contemporary and close friend of Geoffrey
Ridel (both were noble servants of Henry I). Borne by the Bassets
of Heddington and of Wycombe in the Angevin period (ostensive cousins
of Ralph). Readopted by the Bassetts of Umberleigh and of Tehidy
just before the English Civil War, who continue to bear them today.
“The Ridel Arms” Or, three
piles Gules (points to center base). Attributed to Geoffrey Ridel, and borne with
differences by the descendants of his two older grandsons through
his daughter Maud and Ralph’s son Sir Richard Basset, the Ridels
of Great Weldon and the Bassets of Drayton (and cadets).Many
other Bassett branches adopted variations on these arms in the 14th
through 16th centuries.
Basset of SapcoteBarry
wavy Argent and Sable. Attributed
to William Basset of Sapcote, third son of Maud Ridel and Sir Richard
Basset, and borne by William’s senior and cadet lines into
the 14th century.
Bassett of Blore Or, three
piles Gules, on a canton Argent a griffin seagreant Sable. Adopted by the junior-most
of the Sapcote cadet lines after the Bassetts of Blore inherited
representation and the lands of most other Sapcote cadet lines. This
family’s arms are typical of many Bassett branches that adopted
variations on the Ridel coat in the 14th and 15th centuries, whether
descended from Geoffrey Ridel or not. (The Bassetts of Hints
are a cadet branch of Blore.)
Bassett of Fledborough Hall Or, on
three pales (palewise) three hunting horns stringed Or, a chief
Vaire. Thought
to be a cadet branch of Sapcote that lost connection to the rest
of the family, the Bassets of Fledborough existed prior to the Civil
War. At this time they bore the Ridel coat with a canton Vairé of
Argent and Sable. Like so many others they had to sell their
estates during the Protectorate. A century later a branch of
Bassetts emerged with a new estate called Fledborough Hall claiming
to be this family. Unable to prove to the satisfaction of the
College of Arms that they were the re-established line, these Bassetts
were granted new arms.
Basset of IpsdenDancettée Argent
and Sable. Borne
by the descendants of Osmund Basset who held Ipsden, other lands
in Oxfordshire and lands in Gloucestershire. The senior line
became the Bassetts of Tehidy and of Umberleigh.
Basset of NorthumberlandArgent,
two bars Azure and in chief three chaplets Gules. Borne by a line that might have
descended from Osmund Basset, and about whom (after the 14th century)
little if anything is known. Members of this line may have
fought with the Lancastrians in the Wars of the Roses.
Basset of GloucestershireErmine,
on a chief Gules three mullets Or. Borne by a line that also might have descended
from Osmund Basset and which held lands in Gloucestershire, but which
today would have very different Y Chromosome DNA. Two sons
took part in the siege of Carlaverock, and their arms are described
in that poem. The line continued into the 18th century. Descendants
in cadet lines may still exist.
Bassett of BeaupréArgent,
a chevron between three hunting horns stringed Sable. Borne by a line that family
legend says descended from Osmund Basset’s grandson. The
Bassetts of Beaupré and their many cadet branches are part
of the Advenæ that took over southern Wales.
Most Basset families that were armigerous prior to the English Civil War
are thought to have living descendants who can bear their Coats of Arms
today. To learn more of these families, what contemporary documents,
genealogy and genetics can tell us about them, and who might bear these
arms today, attend the talk on Bassett Heraldry and Early Basset History
at the 2007 Bassett Family Reunion.
* * * * *
Section 4 - New family lines combined or added since the last newsletter
The following family lines have been added since the last newsletter.
391B. The Bassetts of Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, England
392B. Henry Bassett of Nova Scotia, Canada (born 1860 in England)
393B. James Bassett of Bigbury, Devonshire, England (born 1786 in
England)
* * * * *
Section 5 - DNA project update.
DNA test results are back for kit #89495, a documented descendant
of Walter Sanborn Bassett of Minnesota. These results prove that Walter
Sanborn Bassett shares a common ancestor with Alfred Bassett of Iowa
and also the Bassetts of Cahaba, Alabama.
One new kit that was sent out this month was for a Bassett from Randwick,
Gloucestershire, England. This will be our first test result from Gloucestershire
Bassetts. We expect they will match the Bassetts of Staffordshire and
Cornwall.
Donations of any amount can be made to the Bassett DNA project by clicking
on the link below. Any funds donated will be used to fund select Bassett DNA
tests that will further our project as a whole and benefit all Bassetts worldwide.
