Descendants of Emigrant British Worthies.
Glancing the other day over the lives of our most distinguished English celebrities, we were struck with the suddenness with which the race of such men has come to an end. The subject is one which is worthy of more careful liquiry than it has yet met with, although the circumstance has before been adverted to Let us, however, in the meantime merely fourth this curious subject, in the hope that it may lend others a little into a most interesting course of inquiry.
We may put
Shakespeare at the head of the list.
His eldest daughter, Susanna was married at
Stratford, June 6th 1607 to
Mr. John Hall.
There was only one child by this marriage.
The youngest daughter married to
Thomas Quincey.
At
Shakespeare's death, inisle, the family consisted of his wife has daughter.
Susanna, and her husband
Dr. Hall.
Judith and
Thomas Quincey, and Elizabeth and laughter.
Judith Quincey had several children who were all dead in 1639.
The poet's grand daughter Elizabeth Hall, was married in 1628, to
Thomas Nash who died in 1647 without issue; and secondly, in 1649 to
John Bernard, of
Abingdon, county of
Northampton, by whom she bad no family, and died in 1670.
Thus in fifty years
Shakespeare descendants, both male and female, came to an end.
Milton, the poet, left female descendants only, whose family are believed long since to have ceased to exist.
A poor woman, named
Clarke, some years ago claimed to be the last descendant from
John Milton.
The male line of
Sir Criatopber Wren was speedily extinguished, and was sometime since stated the belief that the female line had also ceased; a correspondent, however, mentioned that, at the time be wrote, (a few years ago) and old lady descending from the great architect was still living.
Sir.
Joshua Reynolds,
Cowper, the poet,
Pope,
Locke, Seldon,
Thom as
Campbell,
Thomas Moore,
Oliver Goldsmith,
Wilkie, Dan,
Swift, Sir Isaac New on,
Hogarth,
Turner the landscape painter,
Sir Humphrey Davy,
Edmund Burke,
Patt — left no descendants
Robert Stephenson ended the line of his
father George.
Notwithstanding the anxiety of
Sir Walter Scott to establish a family inheritance, his direct race have perished, and those of but slight relationship inherit his land and title.
We believe that with the sons of
Robert Burne, the family of the national poet of
Scotland will expire.
Lord Byron to only represented on the
feni de le side.
It would he easy to prolong this list to a great event.
We have not omitted to look at the reason and circumstances which may be supposed to argue against the facts to which we allude; but we bell we that a more careful and extensive research would show that, in cases out of ten, the race of those of mighty intellect has, with remarkable and denness come to an end.
