No evidence of his parentage exists. The parents on this profile have been removed several times, as there is NO proof of his heritage and what does exist is conflicting. Lee-5956 10:02, 3 June 2016 (EDT)
Some have suggested he was born in Southwold or Reydon, Suffolk, England. Were there likely other Yonges families in Suffolk? Would a vicar in this era typically be from a local family?
Selah Youngs claimed the surname was of Welsh origin.[1]
Biography
The following note was posted via email a while back to LI-Rooters by Patricia McCabe , editor,"REV CHRISTOPHER YONGES FAMILY NEWSLETTER":
"Rev. Christopher Yonges was born in 1575 - not 1545 (in old English script a 7 could easily have been construed as a 4). This was proven - by me (Patricia McCabe) - when I found the records of his ordination in the Norfolk Public Record Office, Norwich, Norfolk, England. Rev. Christopher was ordained an Anglican Deacon in 1599 "in his 24th year" and the following year ordained an Anglican Priest "in his 25th year". Both these ordinations took place in Norwich Cathedral and can be found in the book in which they were originally written. I have a copy of this - it was done by the staff at the record office. The original was in old Latin. I sent copies to Debretts in Winchester (Engl.) and they translated them into English."
Adult Life
"Rev. Christopher Youngs, born say 1575, entered Emmanuel College, Cambridge, 25 April 1593. He was ordained as a priest in 1600, serving for a time as curate of Carlton-by-Keshall, Suffolk, before becoming vicar of Reyden and Southwold, Suffolk in 1611. He died 14 June and was buried in Southwold, 16 June 1626. Rev. Christopher Youngs had a wife Margaret___, who made her will 27 October 1630, and was buried at Southwold on 5 November 1630; her surname is unknown."[2]
Christopher Yonges attended Cambridge University, obtaining a BA (1596) and a MA (1599).[3]
Between 1611 and 1626, Rev. Christopher Yonges was the curate of a chapel in Southwold which was annexed to the vicarage of Reydon.
Robert Williamson of Southwold, mariner, will written October 25, 1617 & proved Feb. 6, 1617 bequeathes ten shillings to Mr. Christopher Yonges preacher of the word of God at Southwold, Eng.
Family
His wife's name was Margaret and they were the parents of the following children (all 6 survivors named in their parents' wills in this order)
John, b. Eng. 1598; m. Joan, widow Herrington m2 Mary Warren[6]
Joseph b. Eng. m. Margaret Warren
Christopher b. Eng. m. Priscilla Elvin
Mary b. Eng. 1609, d. s. p. Salem, Mass., abt. 1638 m. William Brown
Martha b. Southwold, Eng., July 1, 1636; d. Southold, L. I abt. 27 June 1671; m. bef. July 1636 Thomas Moore b. abt. ??, d. Southold, L. I., 27 June, 1691. baptised 1613 not 1636
Edward b. Eng., drowned 25 July 1616. [citation needed]for his existence
Elizabeth b. Eng., drowned 25 July 1616, buried 31st. Married Peter Hallock [citation needed][8]
Southwold Register, 1616
While vicar, Christopher recorded the loss of his eldest and fourth children by drowning in the Southwold Register as follows[9]:
"The names of those who were drowned and found again. They were drowned in the haven coming from Donwich fayer, on St. James's day in a bote, by reason of one cable lying overwharf the haven, for by reason the men that brought them down was so negligent, that when they were redie to come ashore the bote broke lose, and so the force of the tide carried the bote against the cable and so overwhelmed. The number of them were xxii, but they were not all found. The widow Robson, Johne Bates, Mary Yewell, Susan Frost, Margaret Blackbourne and the widow Taylor, were all buried on the 26th day of July, being all cast away, coming from Donwick fayer, on St. James's daye."
"Widow Poster was buried the 27th day of Julye. Bennett Allen was buried the 30th daie, Goodie Kerrison same daie. Edward and Elizabeth Younges, daughter and son to me, C. Younges, vicar and minister, was buried the 31st Dae of Julie."
"All these were found again in this towne and buried."
Death and Legacy
Abstract of his will
"Christopher Yonges, clerk, minister of Southwold 21 November ___ proved July 5, 1626. To wife Margaret all lands, etc., for life. Then to my six children John, Joseph, Christopher, Mary, Margaret, and Martha. To eldest son all my books except some English books as my wife or my chidren shall choose out for their use, one or two apiece. To John and Thomas Yonges my grand children, to each a silver spoon. Wife Margaret and John Smith and Thomas Elliot of Southwold to be executors."[10]
Burial
Christopher was interred in the chancel of St Margaret of Antioch Church in Reydon, Suffolk. The inscription set in a brass tablet reads:
Per the discussion on G2G, we will be merging duplicate profiles for Christopher into LNAB of Yonges.
Rev. Christopher Young was a character in a short story by Agnes Strickland published in in the Atlantic Monthly Magazine, January 1851.[12]
Move this source to profile for Benjamin Yonges of Southold and family:
Lucy Akerly. "Southold, N. Y., Town Records, Vital Statistics from Libers D. and E., in the the Town Clerk's Office." New York Genealogical and Biographical Record 39 (Jan 1938): 59. Google Books
Sources
↑ Selah Youngs, Jr. Youngs Family: Vicar Christopher Yonges, His Ancestors in England and His Descendants in America: a History and Genealogy. (New York: privately published, 1907), pp. 1-6: The Name and Nationality - Welsh Ancestry Archive.org
↑ Bradley, Hal. (2016, Jan). "William Brown of Salem, Massachusetts, and the Youngs Family of Suffolk, England, and Southold, Long Island: Additional English Sources on Their Connection. The American Genealogist, vol. 88, no. 1, pages 73-77
↑This note says she married Capt Joseph Youngs of Salem and Southold - who he? - and was the executor of her brother Rev Christopher jr's will (1647). An alternative theory here would make Margaret's brother the Captain - in which case the "sister" in the 1647 will would have to mean sister-in-law
↑ Some sources give the date as 11th July, but the register quotation says St James's Day.
↑[citation needed] for this transcription. Daniel Kelsey Youngs' Rev. Christopher Yonges and Pastor John Youngs: Thomas Youngs of Oyster Bay and his descendants : the 250th anniversary of Pastor Youngs' settlement. (Oyster Bay: Charles Welling (printer), 1890), 14, Archive.org, and Selah Youngs's book, Archive.org, both give a different version in which Edward becomes "Mistress Ward" and the words "daughter and son..." don't appear. Agnes Strickland's story gives the version quoted here.
↑ "Genealogical Gleanings in England." NEHGR 52 (April 1898), 245. Retrieved from AmericanAncestors.org
Judy Jacobson. Southold Connections: Historical and Biographical Sketches of Northeastern Long Island. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1992). On Ancestry.com or Google Books
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I believe Christopher Yonges is buried in St. Edmunds Church, Southwold. He is alleged to have saved the medieval screen from the efforts of Cromwell's soldiers to destroy it. Also, I believe "Yonges" is a very old Welsh name and that Christopher's family were Welsh from the Welsh Marches. The name was modernized to "Youngs when most of the children went to Salem MA. It was changed again to eliminate problems with the plural of "Young." Yonges is from Salop (Shropshire, England).
I would love to see you source for the burial. Per the sources on this profile and the biography, there is a plaque at St Margaret of Antioch Church that indicates he was buried there.
I see you have the Cambridge University record, citing ancestry.com. There are four volumes of the Alumni Cantabrigienses available on-line through Google Archive. Authorities cited and abbreviations used in this work are found in the front matter for Part 1, Volume 1. I have taken the liberty of embellishing the database record to eliminate the abbreviations (including some which were not listed in Volume 1.) A full citation for the original source is also provided below. I added notes afterward which may be helpful for historical, ecclesiastical, and geographical understanding.
YOUNG, or YOUNGS, CHRISTOPHER. Admitted sizar at EMMANUEL (College), April 25, 1593. Matriculated circa 1593. B.A. 1596-7; M.A. 1600. Ordained deacon at Norwich December 21, 1599. Ordained Priest, April 25, 1600. Curate of Carlton-by-Kelshall, Suffolk. Vicar of Southwold and Reydon, 1611-26. Buried at Southwold, June 16, 1626. Will proved at Norwich C. C. (Consistory Court) July 5, 1626. Father of John YOUNGS (Admitted to Cambridge University in 1620). All his family emigrated to New England.
SOURCE:─
Venn, John, Sc.D. F.R.S., F.S.A., and Venn, J. A., M.A., compilers of Alumni Cantabrigienses, A Biographical List of All Known Students, Graduates and Holders of Office at the University of Cambridge, etc., Part I (From the earliest times to 1751), Volume IV, Cambridge at the University Press, 1927, p492. (Citing J. G. Bartlett.)
Bartlett, J. G: Not shown in the list of authorities; but believe this may be J. Gardner Bartlett [1872-1927], a prominent American Genealogist.
Notes. . In 1620, Cambridge University had 16 colleges. Emmanuel College was founded in 1584. Look up "Sizar" in Wikipedia for definition. Norwich is a major city in county Norfolk. A Curate is a person who temporarily holds a "living" (as Rector, Vicar, etc.). For example, if a Vicar suddenly died, a Curate would be appointed to his "living" until a permanent Vicar could be seated. The parish called "Carlton-by-Kelshall" in Suffolk was actually the parish of Carlton. It is adjacent to the parish of Kelsale-cum-Charlton in the East-Central region of Suffolk. The parishes of Southwold and Reydon are adjacent parishes on the North Sea coast in the East-Central region of Suffolk. They are about 13 miles from Carlton. (The references made to parish names and locations reflect their pre-1832 status.)
The way I read it he wasn't at Reydon and Southwold, Suffolk till 1611. Looks like his children should be born in Carlton near Kelsale, Suffolk where he was curate.
I found a few of his children baptized at Ubbeston, Suffolk, England. 7.4 miles from Carlton.
Name: Mary Yonges
Gender: Female
Baptism Date: 7 Aug 1607
Baptism Place: Ubbeston,Suffolk,England
Father: Christopher Yonges
FHL Film Number: 919634
Name: Margarett Yonges
Gender: Female
Baptism Date: 28 Nov 1608
Baptism Place: Ubbeston,Suffolk,England
Father: Christopher Yonges
FHL Film Number: 919634
Name: Josephe Yonges
Gender: Male
Baptism Date: 22 Oct 1605
Baptism Place: Ubbeston,Suffolk,England
Father: Christopher Yonges
FHL Film Number: 919634
The will of their son Christopher Yongs can be found here [1]. He mentions his in-laws mr. and Mrs. Elwin in Great Yarmouth in Norfolk. The executors were granted permission sometime after probate to place the children in this country. Found in the probate records.
Youngs-259 and Yonges-9 appear to represent the same person because: Same spouse. Use data in Yonges-9 and merge into that spelling. Detach father of Youngs-259.
Sir John Rous of Henham Hall was the patron of Southwold and Reydon & his direct descendants the Earls of Stradbroke are still the patrons. I didn't see any interconnection between these two families. See [1] and [2]
"Would a vicar in this era typically be from a local family?" I think this is a clue to status. People from all over England and different backgrounds attended Oxford and Cambridge to become priests of the Church of England at this time. A rector received both the greater and lesser tithes, while a vicar received only the lesser tithes. The gentry family of the local manor almost always owned the advowson for the parish, and possibly a prebendiary at the cathedral. It seems to me that they would have selected a rector from their own family, and assign or possibly purchase him a prebendiary, otherwise a vicar was appointed who was on his own. The latter seems like the situation with Christopher, vicar, no prebend mentioned in his ordination.
The fantasy parents of Christopher should detached, unless people want to believe that a 70-year-old man had a son who lived on the opposite side of England! Just because somebody in Shropshire had a son Christopher DOESN'T mean that his son was the same as the much younger Christopher of Southwold, Suffolk.
Re: RJ's comment on Margaret's LNAB. It's been repeated as Elwin/Elvin in many databases but not with sources. Supposedly there is a baptismal record for her (see her profile).
Youngs-112 and Yonges-9 appear to represent the same person because: part of a large mixed up branch of the family that I am trying to merge into the real branch
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YOUNG, or YOUNGS, CHRISTOPHER. Admitted sizar at EMMANUEL (College), April 25, 1593. Matriculated circa 1593. B.A. 1596-7; M.A. 1600. Ordained deacon at Norwich December 21, 1599. Ordained Priest, April 25, 1600. Curate of Carlton-by-Kelshall, Suffolk. Vicar of Southwold and Reydon, 1611-26. Buried at Southwold, June 16, 1626. Will proved at Norwich C. C. (Consistory Court) July 5, 1626. Father of John YOUNGS (Admitted to Cambridge University in 1620). All his family emigrated to New England.
SOURCE:─ Venn, John, Sc.D. F.R.S., F.S.A., and Venn, J. A., M.A., compilers of Alumni Cantabrigienses, A Biographical List of All Known Students, Graduates and Holders of Office at the University of Cambridge, etc., Part I (From the earliest times to 1751), Volume IV, Cambridge at the University Press, 1927, p492. (Citing J. G. Bartlett.)
Bartlett, J. G: Not shown in the list of authorities; but believe this may be J. Gardner Bartlett [1872-1927], a prominent American Genealogist.
Notes. . In 1620, Cambridge University had 16 colleges. Emmanuel College was founded in 1584. Look up "Sizar" in Wikipedia for definition. Norwich is a major city in county Norfolk. A Curate is a person who temporarily holds a "living" (as Rector, Vicar, etc.). For example, if a Vicar suddenly died, a Curate would be appointed to his "living" until a permanent Vicar could be seated. The parish called "Carlton-by-Kelshall" in Suffolk was actually the parish of Carlton. It is adjacent to the parish of Kelsale-cum-Charlton in the East-Central region of Suffolk. The parishes of Southwold and Reydon are adjacent parishes on the North Sea coast in the East-Central region of Suffolk. They are about 13 miles from Carlton. (The references made to parish names and locations reflect their pre-1832 status.)
I found a few of his children baptized at Ubbeston, Suffolk, England. 7.4 miles from Carlton.
Name: Mary Yonges Gender: Female Baptism Date: 7 Aug 1607 Baptism Place: Ubbeston,Suffolk,England Father: Christopher Yonges FHL Film Number: 919634
Name: Margarett Yonges Gender: Female Baptism Date: 28 Nov 1608 Baptism Place: Ubbeston,Suffolk,England Father: Christopher Yonges FHL Film Number: 919634
Name: Josephe Yonges Gender: Male Baptism Date: 22 Oct 1605 Baptism Place: Ubbeston,Suffolk,England Father: Christopher Yonges FHL Film Number: 919634
Ancestry.com. England, Select Births and Christenings, 1538-1975 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.
edited by Alexandra Schaefer
edited by Anne X