The Atkin family of Ely

The most recent Atkin in my family tree was my 5x Great Grandmother, Ann Atkin of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England.

Ann was one of the eight known children born to John Atkin and his wife Hannah Merry between 1803 and 1825.

Her father John was also from Ely, but he was lucky to survive his infancy. His parents John Atkin and Ann Coatman had at least eight children, but only three of these at most survived their first year of life. It makes for a depressing read when you see their children go from baptism register to burial register at Ely's Holy Trinity Church (part of the Cathedral) in such quick succession.

Building Ely

During the late 1800s, as Ely was rapidly growing, at least two generations of my Atkin family worked as brickmakers.

Their first mention as brickmakers is in 1841, when John and his family are noted as living 'near Page's Brick Kiln', which seems to have been located in the 'New Town' area on the West side of Ely.

John's son Richard Atkin was noted as a brickmaker for 30 years between 1841-1871, before becoming a 'Labourer' in 1881.

It's nice to think that the Atkin family helped to build Ely, and that perhaps some of the buildings they helped to construct are amongst those that I walk through today.

Atkin family connections

The Atkin family are linked to a small number of my ancestral families so far, including: