THE BIGGS FAMILY of Bedfordshire

THE BIGGS FAMILY
of Bedfordshire, Kent & Sussex

ABRAHAM BIGGS

The name BIGGS means Large, Strong or Stout. The Biggs family came from the County of Bedfordshire. Our earliest ancestors found are ABRAHAM BIGGS and his wife SARAH. Very little information has been found so far. They must have been born circa 1710 as there are records in Kempston parish Register of three sons: WILLIAM, born 1735; JONATHON, born 1737; and JOHN, born 1740. For some reason the children were not christened until they were adult. ABRAHAM BIGGS was buried at Kempston on September 1, 1760, and his widow, SARAH BIGGS, survived him by thirty years and was buried at Kempston on January 27, 1790, when she must have been about 80 years of age.

Their son, WILLIAM BIGGS, was born on March 13, 1735. On January 3, 1758, at the age of 22, he married ANN BARRATT, also 22, at Kempston. On July 16, 1758, their first son, JOHN BARRATT BIGGS, was born and on September 1^st. Both he and his father, WILLIAM BIGGS, were baptised at Kempston parish church. Seven more children followed: ELIZABETH, born May 2, 1760, baptised May 11, 1760; THOMAS, born October (date not known) 1761, baptised October 28^th; WILLIAM, born April 20, 1763, baptised May 8^th; SARAH, born January 29, 1766, baptised February 14^th; ANN, born March 27, 1768, baptised November 17^th; ALICE, baptised July 29^th, died aged 9 months, buried May 30, 1771; ALICE, baptised February 16, 1772.

WILLIAM and ANN BIGGS were able to see all their children, except for ALICE who died in infancy, grow up and marry. ANN BIGGS died April 5, 1798, and was buried on 8th April at Kempston. WILLIAM BIGGS died 10 months later on January 11, 1799, and was buried on January 13^th at Kempston. There is a gravestone for them in Kempston. In the parish register against their burial entries is recorded "of Bromham Mill". This is a water mill and their eldest son, JOHN, was a Miller here and also subsequent generations into the nineteenth century and WILLIAM BIGGS was a Miller. Their third son was WILLIAM BIGGS. He was born on April 20, 1763, and christened on May 8^th at Kempston. On December 30, 1784, at the age of 21, he was married at St. Cuthberts, Bedford, to a girl of 19, SUSAN KENWORTHY, which is how the name of Kenworthy came into the family. A daughter, ANN, was born in 1786. In 1787, they were living at Goldington, a village near Bedford as WILLIAM appears as surety on his brother, John's, application for a marriage licence. A son, WILLIAM, was baptised at St. Cuthberts, Bedford, on January 6, 1788.