Page 2 of 2
Re: John Lewis
Posted: Thu Feb 24, 2011 3:51 pm
by snoopysue
Antie Em wrote:Isn't Nigela Lawson related to the Lyons family - I saw her on Who do you think you are
I think so, that was my first thourght!
Re: John Lewis
Posted: Thu Feb 24, 2011 10:35 pm
by MarkCDodd
My soon to be Sis In Law has a closer connection to the Whittards of Chelsea than the Lyons.
http://www.whittard.com.au/store/product_info.php?products_id=637&osCsid=683454c9c33a89b829609c5ed6c690d9They went belly up a few years ago but seem to be recovering and still trading.
I think what happened is that members of the family went over to the sub-continent as missionaries and came back impressed with the possibilities of the rich soil.
After the English abolished slavery in the West Indies they needed a place where they could more economically grow tea.
Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and surrounding countries provided the chance and without having to exploit the locals.
Looking through her tree you can see the children of the missionaries appearing in census as being born in Ceylon and then later on, whole households of Ceylon born British Citizens.