William Kenelsby
Died Nov. 7th 1775
Aged 118 Years
Willian Kenelsby was for many years a servant for Lord Henry Beauclerk's family. He retired from service in 1769 at the age of 112 years old.
His wooden headboard stands in the Churchyard of St. John the Baptist, Pinner, Middlesex.
I could find no further information on this gentleman, but only the following on Lord Henry Beauclerk whom he worked for.......
Lord Henry Beauclerk was born 11th August 1701 and was the fourth son of the first Duke of St. Albans, Hertfordshire.
Henry's first commission at the age of 16 was that of an Ensign in the 31st Foot.
Ten years later he became a Captain of the 3rd Foot and went on to become the Colonel of the 48th Regiment at the age of 42.
He returned to his first Regiment two years later when King George II appointed him Colonel of the 31st Foot.
He retired from the Army after an argument with the Duke of Cumberland.
Lord Henry Beauclerk became a member of Parliament for Plymouth 1740 ~ 41 and for Thetford 1741 ~ 1761 on the interest of his kinsman the Duke of Grafton.
In 1759 Lady Beauclerk wrote to the Duke of Newcastle asking for financial assistance.
On the 5th January 1761 Henry Beauclerk died and his widow was granted a pension of £400 per year.
Are there no limits to human gullibility? His 118 years is self certified and based on a very odd list of employers (type skenelsby (not kenelsby) and squire graham 118 years into google). He says he started work at 27years - most went into 'service' before their teens. Three successive periods are of 10 years duration and he apparently began working for the newly wed Beauclerks at age 82! The old bugger must be grinning from ear to ear at his long running jape. Guiness say oldest attested man was 115 yrs old. Lord Henry was a grandson of Nell gwyn and Charles II. It's an interesting factoid but it's main interest is in exposing the monumental depth of human gullibility.
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DeleteDear Richard,
Thank you for your comments and the recommendation to search for William under another surname.
No wonder I had found very little information about him, but with your advice, came up with the following 'Extracts from the Register' which I had not seen before. Hopefully it gives a more reliable account of his working life, which maybe be somewhat more accurate than his mathematical skills regarding his age........