Epilogue
In 1977, I toured England with my niece, Margaret and
her husband, Ronald Platt of Haney, B.C. We visited many historic places and
old churches. Among the latter was Penn Parish Church and graveyard, in Buckinghamshire,
where many of my maternal ancestors, the Garlands, are buried. There was much
of interest in this church where one forebear, the Rev. B. Anderson, was the
vicar from 1802 to 1812, when he died. The present vicar showed us about, and
told us some of the history. The Churchills, the Curzons, the Penns, and the Howes
all attended this church, and are still represented here by their descendants.
Lord Howe sits in the front pew each Sunday. On one wall was a huge plaque with
these words:
God takes the spirit! To the ground He gives
The body — earth to
earth and dust to dust.
But not as they who have no hope we grieve;
Sure is the Christian's faith, and sure his trust
That they who sleep in Christ, in Christ shall live
And, waking, join the assembly of the just!
Nearby is a house where Anne Boleyn was held prisoner, and this present vicar
(been there forty years) pointed out the small window of her room. He also
showed us a large building adjacent to the churchyard which was erected by
using timbers salvaged from the wrecked Spanish Armada. Just beyond that, still stands the home of Oliver Cromwell[1]
from whom the Garlands are descended; therefore, a far distant ancestor!
So the town is just filled with memories of past days.
There are still Garlands living there. We also visited Jordan's Meeting House
where William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania, is buried and ten of his fourteen
children! We also drove past 'Chequers', home of [62]
the Prime Ministers, and made particularly famous by Winston Churchill. A few
miles away, we saw "Whitethorn Farm", once owned by my maternal
grandparents, John and Ellen Birch. My mother was living there with them before
her marriage; in fact, my father, Walter Moores, came down there to visit her,
and they became engaged. A few years ago, I read my mother's diary written in
this very farmhouse at that time in 1882 or 1883. All this was a thrilling
experience for me, and I thank God that he enabled me to go so that I have all
these memories to enjoy now that I live alone.
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[1] Cromwells house in Amersham, near Penn, is now known as Woodrow High House, formerly known as Woodside House. During the English Civil War (1642–1651) Oliver Cromwell, regicide and Lord Protector, housed his wife, Elizabeth and their daughters, Elizabeth, Mary, Frances and Bridget at the house.