Name: Richard Fisk97 
   Born: 1781
  Place: Wickham Market, Suffolk, England
Immigtd: 12 Jul 1821
   Died: 1843+
  Place: prob Iowa
 Buried: 
Married: 25 Mar 1806
  Place: Pettistree, Suffolk, Eng

All Saints, Wickham Market, Suffolk, England

The following marriage entry is found online at Fisk Family History. It occurred at Pettistree.

• 25 Mar 1806 Richard Fisk, single draper of Wickham Market, Matilda Kemp of Pettistree

Should this really read "Mahala Kemp"? Is it a transcription error or is it as it appears on the original record?

In his 1915 Memoir, J W Fisk refers to his grandfather as John R Fisk, but virtually every record found for his gives his name as Richard. There are a numbers of errors regarding the early generations of his family which were probably the result of faulty memory due to his advanced age.

My grandfather, John R. Fisk, was born in or near London, England, in 1780 (the month forgotten). His father was Lord Richard Fisk. Said John R. Fisk in 1805 or 1806 was married to Miss Mahola Kemp, daughter Lord Wm. Kemp. To this union was born a family of six sons, to wit: Edward, William H., Henry C., James, George, and John R. Fisk, two daughters, viz. Ann and Susan. All were born in England except John R. who was born in this country.

My grandfather was engaged in the Mercantile business in the city of London, and became involved and it took nearly all his property to pay his liabilities. It will be observed that he was closely allied with the blue blood of the Old County, hence very haughty and too proud to face his friends.

He at once decided to emigrate to America, to which my Great Grandfather Kemp very strenuously objected and went so far as to insist on making up his lost fortune if he would consent to stay in London, but John R. Fisk was not built that way; he would rather face the world among strangers and die in a strange land. Accordingly he took what was left and secured passage to New York City.

Fisk's bancruptcy is documented, at least in part, in the following articles of The London Gazette.

The London Gazette
PDF of microfilmed book at
The University of Iowa Library
Class 052
Book L842
Acc. 281377
Dec ? 1810 to Dec ?, 1811

Page 771

Whereas a Commission of Bankrupt is awarded and issued against Richard Fisk, of Wickham-Market, in the County of Suffolk. Shopkeeper, and he being declared a Bankrupt is hereby required to surrender himself to the Commissioners in the said Commission named, or the major part of their, on the 9th and 10th of May next, and on the 8th of June ſollowing, at Eleven of the Clock in the Forenoon on each Day, at the White Hart Inn, in Wickham Market aforesaid, and make a full Discovery and Disclosure of his Estate and Effects; when and where the Creditors are to come prepared to prove their Debts, and at the Second Sitting to chuse Assignees, and at the Last Sitting the said Bankrupt is required to finish his Examination, and the Creditors are to assent to or dissent from the Allowance of his Certificate. All Persons indebted to the said Bankrupt, or that have any of his effects, are not to pay or deliver the same but to whom the Commissioners shall so appoint, but give Notice to Mr. Henry Gould Day, of Wickham-Market aforesaid, Solicitor, or to Mr. Dyne, Solicitor, No. 59, Lincoln's-Inn-Fields London.

Page 787

The Creditors who have proved their Debts under a Commission of Bankrupt awarded and issued forth against Richard Fisk, of Wickham Market, in the County of Suffolk, Shopkeeper, are desired to meet the Assignees of the Estate and Effects of the said Bankrupt, on Friday the 10th of May next, at Two in the Afternoon, at the White Hart Inn, in Wickham Market aforesaid, to assent to or dissent from the said Assignees putting off or disposing of the Stock "in Trade of the said Bankrupt by Appraisement and Valuation, or by private Contract; and on other special Affairs.

Page 951

The Creditors who have proved their Debts under a Commission of Bankrupt awarded and issued against Richard Fisk, of Wickham-Market, in the County of Suffolk, Shopkeeper, Dealer and Chapman, are desired to meet the Assignees of the Estate and Effects of the said Bankrupt, on the 8th of June next, at Eleven of the Clock in the Forenoon, at the White Hart Inn, in Wickham-Market, in the said County, in older to assent to or dissent from the said Assignees commencing and prosecuting any Suit or Suits at Law or in Equity against certain Persons, for the Recovery of any Part of the said Bankrupt's Estate and Effects; or to their compounding, submitting to Arbitration, or otherwise agreeing or settling any Matter or Thing relating thereto: and on other special Affairs.

The London Gazette
PDF of microfilmed book at
The University of Iowa Library
Class 052
Book L842
Acc. 281282
July 3 to Dec 30, 1813

Page 1548

The Commissioners in a Commission of Bankrupt, bearing Date the 9th of April 1811, awarded and issued forth against Richard Fisk, late of Wickham Market, in the County of Suffolk, Shopkeeper, intend to meet on the 31st of August instant, at Twelve of the Clock at Noon, at King's-Arms Inn, in Woodbridge, in the said County, to make a Final Dividend of the Estate and Effects of the said Bankrupt; when and where the Creditors, who have not already proved thier debt, are to come prepared to prove the same, or the will be excluded the Benefit of the said Dividend. And all Claims not then proved will be disallowed.

The early genealogy as described by J W Fisk hasn't been verified. I have often whether Edward Curtis Fisk's middle could be a clue. I have finally found something of interest from Frederick Hitchin-Kemp, A general history of the Kemp and Kempe families of Great Britain and her colonies, with arms, pedigrees, portraits, illustrations of seats, foundations, chantries, monuments, documents, old jewels, curios, etc., 1866.

The only relative is her brother Robert Kempe, of " F," which may stand for Fakenham, where Anne and William Kempe lived at this time. Around Dallinghoe, at Parham, Wickham Market and between these places and Ipswich, some of this line certainly remained down to recent times, and there seems little room for doubting that the celebrated preacher and author, the Rev. Edward Curtis Kempe, Chaplain to the late Duke of Cambridge (who came from this part), was a representative of this line...

Edward Curtis Fisk is said to have been the son of William Kemp and Anne Curtis, hence his middle name. The names and place match, but it could merely be a false lead. It's something, in any case, to keep in mind.

The following passenger list extract¹⁰⁸ indicates that the head of Edward C. Fisk's (#38) family was Richard. Undoubtedly, J. W. Fisk⁹⁷ knew who his own grandfather was. I suspect, then, that John R. Fisk had gone by the name Richard, presumably his middle name.

The family arrived in New York, 12 Jul 1821, on the ship Caspian, bound to the United States from England:

Richard Fisk, 40, male, Grocer
Mahala Fisk, 38, female
William Fisk, 15, male
Henry Fisk, 13, male
Anna Fisk, 11, female
Edward Fisk, 10, male
Susan Fisk, 8, female
George Fisk, 5, male
James Fisk, 4, male

Richard and Mahala's Family

Several of their children — Henry, Anna, Edward, and Susan — were baptized at Westminster St James, London on 23 October 1814.

William Robert Fisk	1807-1895	He was born, probably in Suffolk, on 21 January 1807 and died 15 January 1895 in Appanoose County, Iowa. He married Hannah J Tompkins.
Henry Charles Fisk	1809-1893
Anna Curtis Fisk	1810-
Edward Curtis Fisk	1811-1895	Married Araminta D Wood.
Susan Fisk	1814-
George Fisk	c1816-
James Fisk	c1817-
John Renwick Fisk	1822-1898	He was born in New York the year following the family's arrival in America. He married Martha J Tolles.

1870 > IOWA > APPANOOSE > CALDWELL TWP Series: M593 Roll: 375 Page: 376

Richard Fisk is found on the 1840, New York census. The following entry was extracted by Lisa Slaski. Richard was 50-60.

Town of Wilmurt, Herkimer County Richard Fisk 0001110100000 0101001000000

Y-DNA

A 12-marker Y-DNA test has been done for a descendant of the Fisks. The results match the markers of those who claim to have been descended from Symond Fiske (1399-1464) of Laxfield, Suffolk. It's amazing to consider that the Fisk patrilineage remained in the same region for at least 400 years.

Only one member of the Fisk DNA Project has done any advanced testing. He is postive for a Y-DNA mutation called P25, which is simply a mutation at position 22840918 of the Y chromosome from a molecule of cytosine to one of adenine, or C to A. This mutation, however, is very old and occurred at the birth of a man about 20,000 years ago, which doesn't make it very useful for genetic genealogy.

From http://www.justinrdodge.com/family-history/individuals/lord-symond-fiske/

Symond's will was dated December 22, 1463 and proved in Norwich, England on February 26, 1464/April 26, 1464 after dying in Stadhaugh in February. He bequeathed his soul to God, the Virgin Mary, and all the Saints in Heaven. Bequeathed to each of his sons, William, Jeffery, John, and Edmund 20 pounds. He mentioned his daughter, Margaret (Fiske) Dowsing. He appointed his wife, Katherine, son John, and his nephew, Nicholas Noleth executors.

Helpful Links

1. Wickham Market Library
2. Wickham Market at Wikipedia
3. "Fiske and Fisk family: being the record of the descendants of Symond Fiske, lord of the manor of Stadhaugh, Suffolk County, England
4. Fisk DNA Project - Few Fisks have tested to date.