The Journal of the Huntingdonshire Family History Society featured my letter to the Editor – A Satisfied Member – I joined the HFHS in Dec 2004 hoping to make use of the Society records and member services to further explore the origins of the Dodsons of Yaxley. Little did I think that, when my family interests were printed in issue 51 of the Huntsman six months later, I would get an e-mail from Margaret Long of Yaxley alerting me to the research she had carried out some years ago for James Dodson of Bath. I was astounded to find that his grandfather Samuel Dodson(1868-1946) was a brother of my great-grandmother Florence Dodson(1871-1904). We are both descended from their father George Dodson, landlord of the ‘Bluebell’ inn at Yaxley and his wife Margaret (Smith). Following an exchange of e-mails we met in Bath in Sept. last year and James opened a bottle of champagne in honour of the occasion. My wife Theresa and I spent a very enjoyable day with ‘cousin’ James exchanging family data. James is coming to visit us soon in Ireland.
This is all due to the HFHS and Margaret Long of Yaxley whom we also met on our trip. We plan to be in Yaxley again soon and hoping it will coincide with a Society meeting in Huntingdon.