Francis George Yeo 21st August 1924 - 19th October, 2006 This is very sad news, I have had a telephone call from Frank's daughter Elaine to say that he passed away last Thursday. Frank had been battling with cancer for a few months and phoned me to tell me months ago when William was organising the DNA testing as he was very interested in this and knew I would wonder why he hadn't responded. Frank was a fantastic person who kept me animated with his lengthy telephone calls and I know he will be sadly missed by everyone. His funeral in London was a full East End send off which was exactly what he wanted. His eventful life can be viewed on this page and he will never be forgotten.

		Hi Sheila, I have just unearthed these pictures of my grandfather and Ellen at yarmouth. He was a 'ganger' on the london docks and remembers the days when tokens were thrown into the air and the men had to fight each other to get a days work. I am sure he was sent to a training ship for a misdemeanour as a teenager but cannot seem to trace the ship he served in, although I am sure it must be on recorded someware. I do hope that the pictures copy ok, and perhaps you could get them on to my family tree, one of them would do. Ellen Musto I am sure was from the Huguenots, a common name from Turin,Italy, and an intricate needlewoman and quoted many Italian phrases.She was a lovely lady who taught me a lot. Cheers Frank (March, 2006) Thanks to Frank for these delightful photographs of his grandparents.

 

Frank kindly sent me this photograph of his father, Francis William Yeo 1903 - 1991

News from Frank Yeo of London Direct Descendants of John Yeo & Ann Ellis 1 John Yeo 1770 - .. +Ann Ellis 1780 - .. 2 William Joseph Spry Yeo 1813 - ....... +Elizabeth Nicholson ...... 3 George Henry Yeo 1843 - ........... +Sarah Holland 1845 - ........... 4 George Henry Yeo 1876 - 1941 ................ +Ellen Caroline Musto 1877 - 1975 ............... 5 Francis William Yeo 1903 - 1991 .................... +Elizabeth Hariot Nightingale 1905 - 1961 .................... 6 Francis George Yeo 1924 -

Frank started work with W H Smith as a news boy but eventually went on to become one of their top Managers. These two charming pictures show him from the start, as a young newsboy and then at his retirement and I have to say he hasn't lost his sense of humour !!! He also represented the SDP as a prospective Member of Parliament for the Poplar area when Shirley Williams and David Owen's broke away from the Labour Party to form the Social Democratic Party (1981).

From Frank I am also creating my own website with great difficulty,I might add!! at 79 I should know better!!. Any way I have made a start and it is on 'globalnewsboy.mysite.freeserve.com' I am trying to put together a story of my life in WHSmith from a newsboy on L'Pool St station in 1938 at 14 shillings and 4 pence a week!! to General Manager and then retired to do consultancy jobs around the world for the last 22 years including Oz,and the far east. Old Airmen just fade away into the wild blue yonder!!.

During the war, Frank trained as a Nav/B interpretated as Navigator-Bomb-aimer trained in South Africa in 1943, which cured him of any racial prejudice. The regime there was sickening to see.. He married Joan in 1946.

Frank with his daughter Elaine

Frank has a deep love of books, and one of his favourites is The Seven Daughters of Eve by Bryan Sykes, a professor of genetics at the Institute of Molecular Medicine at Oxford University, who made a startling discovery -- Europeans (barring recent immigrants, of course) are all descended from seven women. His research is based on mitochondrial DNA, similar to the research that announced an African "mitochondrial Eve" as the mother of all modern humans, hence this letter. Thought this might be of interest to us all   June Claire Yeo and her Hubby John O'Halloran (Frank's sister & brother in law)   Hi Sheila thank you for your new email address and site.I don't feel that my skills at 78 years would be good enough for the society project, but my constant searching will always be sent to the site. I am stuck at the moment @ my John Yeo b1591abt seems to be as far as I can get and I will keep on trying. I am also getting very interested in the DNA factor, it willI I am sure give us clues for a track of the early origins of Yeo. I am sure that we we are Celtic/Anglo Saxon, probably one of the King Alfred lot, because I still can't cook !!!. I did once mention to you the book by Prof. Bryan Sykes,a leading world authority on DNA the title is The seven daughters of Eve, it is fascinating to read, and he is no nut case,he was called in to the case of the frozen remains of the man trapped in Ice in Northern Italy,you may remember the case in 1994 and found to be five thousand years old!!.He was then able to track down a genetic descendant, A woman in Britain today!!!!. The Book was published in 2001. Perhaps we should enlist his aid as a patron to the society !!, and ecourage ano scientists to join our happy band merging into our little world,it would be great. I am tempted to get the dna test which is offered on their site, I found it as Genetic Genealogy do have a look sometime it is easy to do but a trifle expensive ,but I'm thinking about it, Thank you for all your help I couldn't do it without your help and you have all my support in your endeavours. Cheers Frank ( a navigator trying to navigate through geaology) hopeless!!!

Christine's Tree Dear Sheila, Many, many thanks for your message via genforum. As I think I said in my message, the Yeo's are my husband's family and his grandmother was Clara Louisa May Yeo who married Alfred John Raeburn, her parents were John Thomas and Sophia Yeo. I was able to find George Henry, John Thomas and James on the 1881 census, George Henry and John Thomas on the 1891 census and John Thomas and James on the 1901 census and I am still looking for George Henry. I have found tracking down some of the family in London quite difficult as its a vast area to cover, but later generations came mainly from the Bermondsey/Southwark area. I would be extremely grateful for any information you can give me and would like to take this opportunity to thank you and if ever I can help you in anyway, I will be pleased to do so. I look forward to hearing from you. best wishes Christine   Dear Sheila, Many, many thanks for your email and the Yeo family tree, it has already pointed me in the right direction for finding more information and makes for very interesting reading. I have paid a visit to your Yeo Society website, and I think its brilliant. I don't have any Yeo's in my own family tree ( or at least none that I have discovered so far) but I do come across the name occasionally when I'm researching my families baptisms, marriages and burials in Bristol. I do have a small amount of information about Clara Yeo - she was born Clara Louisa May Yeo on 16th July 1883 at 15 Orb Street, at that time her father John Thomas Yeo was an "ivory turner" and on the 1891 census, he is a "bone turner". On the 1901 census the family are still living at 15 Orb Street, John Thomas is 60 and a "wood turner", Sophia is 58 and Clara is 18 and works as a paper sorter, there are also two lodgers staying with the family. Clara married Alfred John Raeburn on 4th Aug 1901 at St John's parish church, Newington, it was witnessed by A Raeburn and F E Wheeler*. *F E Wheeler is beleived to be the Fanny Wheeler who was lodging with the family at the time of the 1901 census. I'm afraid its not much at the moment but as soon as I get more information, I will certainly let you know. best wishes 1 John Yeo 1770 - .. +Ann Ellis 1780 - .. 2 William Joseph Spry Yeo 1813 - ....... +Elizabeth Nicholson ...... 3 John Thomas Yeo 1841 - 1903 ........... +Sophie Godfrey ........... 4 Clara Louisa M Yeo 1883 -

I was on Teignmouth seafront when I saw a plaque on one of the houses, a doctor's surgery, Dr N Yeo, then by chance I had contact with Dr Nigel Yeo and his brother, Russell. This is Nigel's descendancy from John & Alice Ellis. 1 John Yeo 1770 - .. +Ann Ellis 1780 - .. 2 William Joseph Spry Yeo 1813 - ....... +Elizabeth Nicholson ...... 3 James William Yeo 1839 - 1910 ........... +Mary Jane 1851 - ........... 4 Frederick Richard Yeo 1878 - ................ +Florence Matilda Finch ............... 5 Douglas Raymond Yeo 1917 - .................... +Anita Speedy .................... 6 Keith Yeo 1941 - ......................... +Ms Herrick ........................ 7 Nigel James Yeo 1974 - .........................7 Russell Yeo From Nigel, Sheila, I believe I have met your brother-in-law Colin who has recently been doing some work at our house in Liverton. I understand you may well have some information relating to my branch of the family. My son Ronan (7) and I are keen to get involved in research although we are complete novices. My father, Keith was born 27.06.41 to Douglas and Anita Yeo. Douglas had siblings Lesley, Gladys and Winifred. As far as I am aware there is no recollection in living memory of any connection with Devon, and all of my relations have come from London and the surrounding areas. I have only arrived in Devon last year but would assume that at some point in the past my branch of the family must have originated from the area. If you are able to send me part of the family tree I would be extremely grateful. We also have a question which you may be able to help us with. While clearing out the bungalow of my deceased great Uncle Lesley Yeo and his wife Elsie, we came across a photograph of a gravestone bearing the name Samuel Henty Yeo (note Henty not Henry). We are wondering whether this name has any direct connection with our branch of the family and indeed where he is buried because the photograph does not have any details with it. I have attempted to attach a picture of the gravestone for your information. It looks as though he died in the 1770's but I cannot be sure because the ingraving is not clear in the photo. We look forward to hearing from you Nigel and Ronan Yeo . (Does anyone know where this gravestone is, and who Samuel Henty (could be Henry) was?)   Hello Shelia, My brother Nigel Yeo, now living in Devon, who has been in touch with you, has sent the tree of our line of the family to me. It really makes fascinating reading. I'm sure Nigel has updated you on his family circumstances (ie he's married with four sons) but there is one mistake I know of on the tree. At number 51 Douglas Raymond Yeo (he constantly had letters addressed to Dr Yeo (as oppose to D.R. Yeo) married Anita Speedy, not Spendy as you have it. This couple were my paternal grandparents. Also, as Nigel said, he had three siblings: Lesley (M who married Elsie Lloyd) and also Gladys and Winifred. Just small corrections but thought you might want to amend it. Yours, Russell Yeo Unmarried, as yet!

 

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