By John Slaughter
This article was published in the December 2020 edition of Soul Search, the Journal of The Sole Society
We were saddened to hear that member John Amos died this year after being ill for some time. John had been a member of the society since 1998 and was secretary from 1998 to 2007. We would like send our sympathies to his wife Irene and his children. We would also like to thank his Irene for giving John’s research material to the society.
John was a descendant of Elizabeth Saul who was born at Stubbs Walden, Yorkshire in 1805 and who married Isaac Hirst. The earliest ancestor that we have for these Sauls is a Charles Edward Saul (born ca. 1745) who married Catherine Heptonsall. It is thought that Charles’s father was Joseph Silvester Saul but primary evidence is lacking. These Sauls were Catholic and the Catholic records at that time were patchy and lacking in detail. There was a family tradition that claimed descent from Sir Thomas More but, as far as I know, was never proved.