HISTORY OF THE BATTEN NAME :

The ancestors of the Batten family first reached the shores of England in the wave of migration after the Norman Conquest. Their name is derived from the Old English given name Batte, a pet form of Bartholomew. Population increases and the feudal system of government that began during that period made it necessary for people to adopt an extra name to remain distinct from others with the same first name. Often, as in the case of Batten, people merely took the name of their father or an older male relative as a surname.

Variations of the name include Baddin, Baddon, Battyn, Battan, Battent and many more.

The earliest evidence of the name Batten was found in Somerset. They were granted lands in this area by William the Conqueror for their assitance at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The Batten family name gained great eminence in Britain's wool trade. John Batten acquired the estates of Dunsland in devon from the Cohans around 1500. By 1660, the Battens had branched to North Hill in Cornwall. They also moved to Upcerne, in the county of Dorset.

Examination of manay early immigration records reveals that people bearing the name Batten arrived in North America very early including Robert Batten who landed in New England in 1658, William Batten who landed in Virginia in 1654, and Mary Batton who landed in New England in 1759.





Our Batten family

including Gregorius Johann (Gregory John) Wenzlick

Small numbers by a name refer to personal number in listing eg RICHARD 2 BATTEN – See 2.



GENERATION ONE:

1.~ ~ ~ ROBERT BATTEN and his wife SARAH were living in Menheniot, Cornwall, England in the early 1800s and all of their children were born there. They included:

GENERATION TWO:

2. ~ ~ ~ RICHARD BATTEN (ROBERT) was born 06 November 1803 in Menheniot, Cornwall, England. He married ELIZABETH WEARNE on 24 May 1824 in St Germans, Cornwall.

Children of RICHARD BATTEN and ELIZABETH WEARNE were:

GENERATION THREE:

GENERATION FOUR:

4. ~ ~ ~ EMMA SELINA BATTEN (ROBERT > RICHARD > ROBERT) was born on 15 October 1884 in Huntly, New Zealand. Emma settled in Auckland in 1891 and married GREGORY JOSEPH WENZLICK on 23 December 1907 in St Matthews in the City, Auckland. Gregory was the son of GREGORY JOHN WENZLICK and MARIA SCHOTT and was born on 19 August 1880 in Puhoi, North Auckland, NZ.

Notes from youngest daughter Beverley : Gregor's sister Annie was Emma's great friend and introduced her to the Wenzlick family. Emma had "gone out" with Frank - his sandshoes put her off she said!
Greg noticed her rich auburn hair and neat ankles (naughty boy!) He told her he had no money but she said "You are not afraid of work and neither am I" or words to that effect.
Emma was Methodist and Gregory was Catholic so they decided to marry in the Anglican Church and bring up any children as Anglicans. They had a big wedding - bridesmaids dressed in pastel rainbow colours, white horses to pull their carriage etc. Emma's brother Robert was her groomsman.
After they married they lived at Manganai where Greg worked in the bush bullocking - a big change for a fashionable lady. Their first born, Gregory Alexander, was born in Auckland. Lived at Raurima and shifted to Kakahi in April 1911. Everyone to build their new house with timber from Govt Mill. Greg worked for Dick Barnett there bullocking and as a bushman. Gladys and Minnie were born there. Left for Thames Coast in 1919. Audrey, Mavis & Beverley were born there. Emma was very firm. She was a great cook and kept the house like a "new shilling". The children were always neatly turned out. she was an excellent nurse when the children were ill.


5. ~ ~ ~ ROBERT BATTEN (ROBERT > RICHARD > ROBERT) was born on 3 January 1886 in Huntly, New Zealand. He married EILEEN MAY WATSON on 8 November 1909 in Newstead, Hamilton, NZ. Ronald died on 19 March 1990 in Tauranga, NZ.

Children of ROBERT BATTEN and EILEEN WATSON were:

GENERATION FIVE:


Please note that in keeping to genealogy publishing protocol I have not included information about later generations including living persons. If you have a family connection please contact me for further information.

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