The Brownhill Family of Warwickshire.

The following appears on page 92 of The Cheshire Sheaf  published in August 1898, when referring to the Brownhill Family of  Gawsworth, Cheshire, 'The family of Brownell derived its origin from Coventry, in Warwickshire, and among the mayors of that town, a list of which since 1348 is extant, there may be noticed the names of Robert Burnell, mayor in 1477; Thomas Bunwell, mayor in 1523; Edmund Brownell, clothier, mayor in 1565. Burnell is obviously a variant of Brownell, but Bunwell is most likely another name. This information was kindly given to the writer by the Town Clerk  of Coventry, to whom he applied on learning  that it had been a tradition in the family that some of its members had been mayors of the town.' I have checked the list of mayors on the Coventry website. It lists E. Brownhill, clothier, as mayor for 1565. Therefore, this confirms that one member of the family served as mayor, but only one. None of the other names are like Brownhill/Brownell. This also confirms that the family name was Brownhill but sometimes recorded as Brownell. (FCB 13th. March 2011).

There then follows a few pages giving  the genealogy of the family from 1579 to 1826, supported by information from wills and parish registers; the name being spelt sometimes as Brownell and sometimes as Brownhill. I accept that 'Brownell' is  a variation of 'Brownhill' but I have strong reservations about 'Burnell'.  I do not accept that the name 'Burnell' is a variant of 'Brownhill' or that the Burnell family, if it exists - I have not checked, is part of the Brownhill family, but the family tradition implies that more than one member served as mayor!  So it is possible that Robert Burnell was in fact Robert Brownell and the name has simply been misread because the handwriting is difficult to read. It is also possible that non-Brownhill relatives/ancestors served as mayor, hence the tradition would be right! Nevertheless, we have clear evidence that the family existed in Coventry as early as 1565 and was a family of standing, because Edmund Brownell/Brownhill was both mayor and a clothier, at that time a prosperous trade.

So did the family originate in or near  Coventry?  Modern maps show that a few miles north-west of Coventry is the town of Brownhills, Staffordshire. Bibliotheca Staffordiensis  mentions Brownhills as existing in 1796, but before this I have no knowledge of its existence. If it is of ancient origin it is possible that it gave its name to the family but it should be noted that it is called Brownhills, not Brownhill. If the name is more correctly rendered as Brownhill's, denoting possession, then it is equally possible that it took its name from the family and was once, say, Brownhill's Land or  Brownhill's Farm. Yet again there could be no connexion; more research is required.

But what other evidence do we have?  The Guild of The Holy Trinity, St. Mary, St. John and St. Katharine, Coventry, published in 1935 and covering the period 1340 - 1450 mentions: Thomas Brouneale, Thomas Brounehal and Walterus Brounale. This information was given to me by Harold Brownhill of Nova Scotia, but unfortunately he did not provide specific dates. Nevertheless, we know that the family name was associated with Coventry before 1450. On page 190 of the Lichfield Episcopal Registers Vol. IV appears the following entry, '1383. The last of January at Heywood. John Caton, priest, in the person of Roger Bronhul, his proxy, instituted to the church of Gowesworth, vacant January 29th. by the resignation of  Thomas Bateley..'

Prior to 1541 both the County of Cheshire and the town of Coventry, Warwickshire were in the Diocese of Lichfield, and consequently we have a connexion between the two. It is also interesting to note that in 1597 William Brownell  was presented to the Rectory of Gawsworth, Cheshire, where he served for thirty-three years. There is nothing yet known  to connect him with Coventry except a family tradition in the nineteenth century, but there is no reason to doubt that the tradition was rooted in fact. Is it not also possible that in the sixteenth century the family had a tradition linking them with Cheshire and the Parish of Gawsworth and this is the reason why William went there. The records also show that some of  William's descendants lived in Northenden and Bowdon alongside the Cheshire Brownhills. Could it not be that  William simply and knowingly  returned to his ancestral home?  The only problem I have with this is that William had twin daughters, Mary and Alice, born on the 18th. April 1607!

So far I have been unable to detect any definitive evidence of twins in the Cheshire Brownhills (but  on the 7th. May 1593 Robert and Katharine Brownhill were baptised at Northenden together, which may indicate that they were brother and sister, possibly twins!), but I am aware of three sets among the Yorkshire/Derbyshire Brownhills and one set in the Bedfordshire Brownhills, which could imply a genetical  link between these families. It should also be borne in mind that Edmund Brownell of Coventry was a clothier and the early Brownhills of Yorkshire made their fortunes, according to S. O. Addy,  'by sheep-farming for wool'. However, against this, it should also be noted that William was educated at Oxford University, as were some of his descendants, but the Yorkshire/Derbyshire Brownhills received their educations at Cambridge University. So, on the balance of probabilities,  it seems that the ancient Brownhill Family of Warwickshire originated in Cheshire and returned to that county.

Updated 13th. March 2011.