The Meatyard - Meteyard - Holden - Lofy - Ackerman - Eddy Families
of Southwark, England to Wisconsin, USA

Contributed by Michele Krietenstein

From research of Caroline Meatyard, England: The first known "Meatyard" would be Richard Metiarewe in the tax lists of 1327 and 1332 living in the village of Stour Provost in East Dorset. The majority of surnames came into being from the mid-1250's so think he was probably the first person to hold this surname and it appears to be completely exclusive to this part of Dorset.

I will skip sown the centuries, although if anyone is interested, I do have the line from there down, although sketchally, as records were scarce. ROBERT MEATYARD was apprenticed into the cloth trade when he was around fourteen years old and went to live and work with his master in the City of Salisbury in Wiltshire,England. Most apprenticeships lasted seven years and this seems to have been true for Robert as the following year when he was twenty two, he married MARTHA RILEY at the FRIENDS MEETING HOUSE in New Serum, just outside of Salisbury. Possibly ROBERT'S master has been a QUAKER and he had converted during his apprenticeship. They were to have ten children, sadly only four surviving to adulthood. There are no christening records for their children, but their births were registered at the MEETING HOUSE in Ringwood, Hampshire, although they were living in the village of Fisherton Anger which is now a suburb of Salisbury:

  1. Amey 25 Apr 1791 - 23 Feb 1796
  2. Martin Riley 25 Jun 1792 - 26 Jul 1792
  3. Francis Cartwright 25 Jun 1792 - 4 Aug 1792
  4. Eliza 19 Jan 1795 -
  5. CHARLES 19 Oct 1796 -
  6. Robert 14 Oct 1798 -
  7. Alexander 6 Nov 1800 - 6 Dec 1800
  8. Sarah Ann 24 Mar 1802 - 6 Apr 1807
  9. Ellen Cartwright 4 Jan 1805 -
  10. William Ghost 18 Jan 1807 - 5 Feb 1807

The family moved to Castle Street in Salisbury by 1799. In 1824, Both CHARLES and ROBERT were married. They married twice, one at the Friends Meeting House in Longford, Surrey ( now under Heathrow Airport) and then later in the year ar the Friends Meeting House in New Sarum, Wiltshire:

From later records, itis known that Mary STORRS was born on 16 Jan 1797, in Tottenham and I ts assumed that Sarah was her younger sister though at present this hasn't been confirmed. Robert and Sarah had five daughters: Elizabeth, Emma, Mary ann, Rachel, and Martha. Only Elizabith and Emma married, Elizabeth to George PALMER having two sons: Alfred and Eustace PALMER.

    Charles and Mary MEATYARD had 7 children:
  1. Mary 22 Feb 1825 in Southwark, Eng.
  2. Catherine 5 Jul 1827 in Southwark,Eng
  3. CHARLES 27 Jan 1830 in Southwark, Eng.

    4. In 1827, Robert and Charles' mother Martha died and is listed in the Friend's register for that area: Martha MEATYARD buried 25 Mar 1827 (Poole, Ringwood Quaker) age 56. So far no record has been found of their father's death, but it is known that he was alive in 1829, as he was named as of the legatees in his sister Mary' will.

    In the 1830 KELLY'S Directory, both Robert and Charles are listee as living at 22/23 Bridge Street in Southwark, London and wre employed as brassfinders. By 1832, Robert was settled in the town of Basingstoke in Hampshire with his family where he worked as a chemist.

    CHARLES and MARY emigrated to the USA in 1830/31 and Settled in East Hamburg, Erie Co., New York, where their other children were born:

  4. Robert 8 Jul 1833 E. Hamburg
  5. Phoebe 5 Jun 1835
  6. Joseph 3Mar 1837-Aug 1838
  7. Henry 31 Oct 1840

I do have 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, etc. If anyone is interested, contact me.

Robert bought land under the land patent in Chippewa Co. Wis. in 21 May 1859, under the name Meteyard. I am assuming Charles went with him at the time, as he was not on the 1860 census for NY, and his obit. said he went to Eau Claire, where he was in the "lumbering business" Robert evidently returned to New York as he was in the 1860 New York census. By this time official records were slaughtering the name! 1860 Census listed them as MEACHARD. By 1860, Mary, Charles' wife was not on the census, so I assume she died between 1850 and 1860. Haven't gotten transcription for ORCHARD PARK QUAKER CEMETERY yet where most of them are buried in ERIE CO. NY.

CHARLES (2) bought land in Wis. in Eau Claire Co., 10 Jan 1868, Rusk, and Barron Co. in 11 Jan 1872. Did find out most of the land was forest, probably for lumber.

By 1869, Charles married ANGELINE NANCY CANFIELD in Eau Claire and had daughter RETTE. Haven't found marriage or birth certificates yet. Believe they may be registered with Friends. Believe son Forest was also born in Eau Claire he was born in 1872 and Charles bought the land in 1872.

By 1880, Charles and Angeline and family had moved to White Creek, Wisconsin. as they are in the 1880 census, living at Dwelling 6.

CLAUDE BYRON MEATYARD was born in 1880 after the census was taken.

FOREST married Etta ACKERMAN , I believe possibly in Eau Claire. As there is an obit for her Father THEORUM ACKERMAN, dying in Eau Claire. ( For those resarching ACKERMAN, there is the birth announcement in White Creek, of the birth of his son CLARK with his first wife.

Etta was the daughter of THEORUM'S 2nd wife.) ( For those reseaching the EDDY line, Henry, Charles' brother, married RUTH EDDY in Erie Co. NY. Have census and live relatives that area descendents from that line) I noticed there are several EDDY families in White Creek area. I believe they may have come from New York and came to Wisconsin at the invitation of the Meatyard and Ackerman families.

Rette MEATYARD died in 1887 at age 17.

Charles died 7 Oct 1898. His wife Angeline Nancy Meatyard moved to Easton with son Claude Byron. I understand that Nancy was a mid-wife as I have her book on Obstetrics. She is also listed as delivering Ruth Holden in 1906 daughter of John and Ada Holden. John would be the brother of her daughter-law Mary Grace.

CLAUDE MEATYARD married MARY GRACE HOLDEN daughter of JOHN and ELEANOR LEWIS. Mary Grace was born 2 Dec 1882 in Racine. It was neat to note that the HOLDENs and MEATYARDs lived only 3 houses apart in the 1880 census in White Creek.

    Claude and Mary Grace had four children:
  1. Glenn Leslie 26Jan 1903-1972 married Evelyn ? 4 children Mary Lou, Glenn, David and Richard. All still living with children and grandchildren.
  2. Alma 1905-1906
  3. Mary Grace 1906-1907
  4. Ruth Wilma 6 Jan 1908- 1993 Married Matthew Joseph LOFY 2 Dec 1924
    1. Matthew Glenn 2 Sept 1925-28 Mar 1965
    2. Richard Henry ?

Claude was the clerk of courts for many years . They lived in Friendship. He died falling out of bed after kidney stone surgery in Rochester.

The Holdens and Meteyards are buried in White Creek Cemetery. Ruth Lofy and her Husband and son Richard are buried in St. Leo's in Friendship. Ruth's other son Matthew died in a car accident near Tomah, Wis. He and his wife Phyllis Fuerst Lofy Csuti are buried in Cumberland, Wis.

As far as I know, if your name is Meatyard, Meteyard, Mitchard, etc., Lofy, Lofey, Lofye, you all related! The two family names are quite unique and go back to 1300's and 1600's respectively. The Lofy family is from Germany from Belgium and began with Longfils, Longfay, Loffi, Lofi, Lofy. The Holden is from England, I think possibly Yorkshire or Manchester. Lewis is from Wales. Have more details if you think you are related, please contact me at: michelestitch@aol.com

I am in contact with the English, Wisconsin, and New York Meatyards. Am also researching Illinois,Michigan, and another set of NY Meatyards. Also some of the Lofy's. I am still researching descendents and ancestors of the Holdens and Lewis'.