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Celebrating Hampshire HistoriansWillis, Arthur James16.01.1895 - 26.11.1983It is somewhat ironic that Willis was a leading genealogist, given that it proved quite a challenge to find reliable biographical information about him. This was mainly because he has a fairly common name and initially it was not clear if a quantity surveyor, who published a number of books on the subject, was the same Arthur James Willis as the prolific author of works on genealogy, both general and specific (see below). Eventually it was established that they were the same person. Born in Sheffield, at the time of his marriage to Audrey Isobel Thompson in 1918 he was living in Birmingham. The marriage took place in Middlesex, where the couple were still living in 1939, with the register recording Arthur’s occupation as ‘Chartered Quantity Surveyor’. He was also undertaking ‘Voluntary Canteen Work’ and Audrey, ‘Voluntary First Aid Work’, both ‘for Ealing Town Council’. For much of the post-War period their home was at Lyminge, near Folkestone. Unsurprisingly, Arthur’s interest in genealogy was stimulated by research into his ‘own family pedigree,’ with his most productive decade in this regard being the 1960s (see below). A notice of his death published in The Times (1 December 1983) indicates that he had moved back to Sheffield, with his funeral service being held in St George’s Chapel at the Cathedral, with any donations being for ‘Talking Books for the Handicapped’. He was a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and a Fellow of the Society of Genealogists. Sources
PortraitContribution to county’s historyIn the pre-digital age, Willis played an important part in foregrounding the value of primary source material for not only genealogists but also local historians. His many publications helped to make hitherto little known, or even unknown, material ‘more widely available.’ A press report from 1957 indicates that he was ‘engaged in examining Episcopal records in Winchester’ and was involved with an initiative ‘to revive the Hampshire Records Society’ with encouragement from the Hampshire History Council and the Hampshire Field Club (Portsmouth Evening News, 30 September 1957, p.13). Although this did not come to fruition, Willis’s identification with it was an indication of his standing in the genealogical community at the time. Given that his home was in Kent it is possible that it was this invitation that attracted Willis to conduct much of his research in Hampshire, with the county greatly benefiting from him doing so. Relevant published works
Critical CommentsOther CommentsIn the words of Willis: ‘I look on genealogy as something more than obtaining proof of descent: it is to me an attempt to answer the question ‘Can these bones live?’’ (Genealogy for Beginners, p.11). To provide an idea of the scope of his researches, A Hampshire Miscellany consists of four parts, each previously published separately:
There were undoubtedly considerable logistical issues involved in undertaking the research for this and other publications and he was fortunate in being able to borrow archival sources. As he put it ‘Search Room hours 100 miles from home make any continuation impracticable’ without this kind of access (p.v). In the prefaces to his publications Willis makes many insightful comments concerning the relationship between genealogy and local history ContributorRoger Ottewill (11 June 2024) Key WordsGenealogy, local history, archives If you are able to add anything to this entry, please send your ideas to celebrating@hantsfieldclub.org.uk.
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