The fairly unusual surname Ditchfield comes from a hamlet of the same name near Widnes in Lancashire.  It derives from the Old English words "dic" (a ditch or dyke constructed for defensive purposes) and "feld" (pasture or open country).  The name is recorded from 1332 with various spellings, and our branch of the family is documented at Lymm from the late 1600s.

Note:  While not my direct ancestors, the Ditchfields are cousins who descend from my direct Hinton line and are shown on this separate page for the sake of clarity.

John Ditchfield was christened in Lymm on 10 December 1820, and was the son of John and Ann Ditchfield.  He was a fustian cutter, and married Mary Hinton at St Elphin's Church, Warrington on 3 February 1845.  John and Mary had ten children, all born in Lymm:

John died in Lymm in 1873, and Mary in 1900.

Ellen Ditchfield, oldest child of John Ditchfield and Mary Hinton, was christened in Lymm on 4 April 1845, and by the age of 15 was working as a fustian cutter.  She married James Inglefield, a bricklayer, at St Elphin's Church, Warrington on 2 May 1869, and the couple lived in Lymm for a few years before moving to Didsbury.  James was born in Ince in about 1847, and was the son of Joseph Inglefield, a fishmonger, and his wife Sarah.

James and Ellen had five children:

Ellen died in the Liverpool area in 1914, and James died in Manchester in 1923.

Elizabeth Ditchfield, daughter of John Ditchfield and Mary Hinton, was born in Lymm in 1846, and christened in St Mary's Church on 7 November 1847.  She had an illegitimate daughter named Maria in 1868, before marrying Thomas Abbott, a labourer, in St Elphin's Church, Warrington in 1870.  Thomas was christened in Lymm on 15 April 1832, and was the son of Thomas Abbott, a stone mason, and his wife Mary.

Elizabeth had six more children with Thomas:

Thomas died in Lymm in 1888, and Elizabeth in 1910.

Sarah Ann Ditchfield, daughter of John Ditchfield and Mary Hinton, was christened in Lymm on 7 April 1850, and married George Moore in Warrington in 1868.  George was a fustian cutter, born in Sale in about 1850.

The couple had three known children, all born in Lymm:

George died in Lymm in 1876 aged just 26, and Sarah then married George Frederick Yates at St Paul's Church, Warrington in 1877.  Known as Frederick, her second husband was born in Manchester in about 1855, and worked as a labourer.

There were four known children from Sarah's second marriage, all born in Lymm:

In 1911, Samuel Yates was serving as a private in the Cheshire Regiment.

On the 1911 census, Sarah stated that she had given birth to nine children, four of whom were still living.  She died in in Lymm in 1914.

Alice Ditchfield, daughter of John Ditchfield and Mary Hinton, was christened in Lymm on 2 December 1855, and worked as a fustian cutter before her marriage.  She married William Hornby, a railway signalman, at St Elphin's Church, Warrington on 21 January 1876.

Alice and William had just one child:

John Ditchfield, the only son of John Ditchfield and Mary Hinton,to survive infancy, was christened in Lymm on 4 October 1857, and became a fustian cutter like several of his relatives.  He married Martha Jane Jinks at St Mark's Church, Hulme in 1878, and the couple lived briefly in Didsbury before returning to Lymm.

They had five children:

In the late 1880s, the family moved to Altrincham, where John worked as a mason's labourer before his early death in 1895.  Martha died three years earlier, in 1892, and their oldest daughter Mary seems to have taken care of her youngest brothers for a while.

Joseph Inglefield, oldest son of James Inglefield and Ellen Ditchfield, was christened at St Mary's Church, Lymm on 3 October 1869.  He became a chimney sweep, and married Susannah Farrenden at All Saints' Church, Preston in 1898.  The couple had three sons, all born in Preston:

Susannah died in Amounderness in 1946, and Joseph in 1947.

Mary Inglefield, daughter of James Inglefield and Ellen Ditchfield, was christened at St Mary's Church, Lymm on 5 March 1871, and married Charles Astles in the same church in 1899.  Charles, a labourer, was christened in Astbury on 5 May 1867, and was the son of Joseph Astles and his wife Ann.  The couple lived in Lymm for a few years before moving to Garston, where five of their seven children were born:

The family emigrated to Canada in 1911, settling in London, Ontario, and the three surviving sons, Joseph, Charles and James all enlisted in 142nd Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force in December 1915, even though James was only 15 years old.  (His attestation papers give his year of birth as 1898, subsequently corrected to 1900.) 

Ellen Inglefield, daughter of James Inglefield and Ellen Ditchfield, was born in Didsbury, and christened at St Mary's Church, Lymm on 2 September 1877.  She married Charles John Morley, a labourer, in St Michael's Church, Wavertree on 17 December 1899, and the couple lived firstly in Garston, and then in Manchester.  Charles was born in Widnes in 1874, and was the son of William Morley from Derbyshire and his Irish wife Ann.

Charles and Ellen had eight children:

Charles travelled to Canada in April 1923, and the rest of the family (apart from his married daughter Florence) followed a month later.  Florence's husband Arthur probably made the trip in July 1924, followed by Florence and their two young children in September.  The Morleys settled in London, Ontario where Ellen's sister Mary Astles and her family already lived.

Maria Ditchfield, illegitimate daughter of Elizabeth Ditchfield, was christened at St Mary's Church, Lymm on 1 March 1868, and married Philip Leather at St Peter's Church, Oughtrington on 30 March 1904.  Philip, a labourer, was born in Lymm in 1881, and was the som of James Leather and his wife Emily.  The couple had two children, both born in Lymm:

Philip died in Lymm in 1928, and Maria in 1929.

Mary Abbott, oldest daughter of Thomas Abbott and Elizabeth Ditchfield, was christened at St Mary's Church, Lymm on 5 March 1871, and married John Bradbury in the same church in 1892.  John, a tanner,  was born in Lymm in 1871, and was the son of Levin Bradburn and his wife, Susannah Hamilton.  John and Mary had seven children, all born in Lymm:

By 1911, John had left the tannery to become a railway foreman.

Arthur Hamilton Bradburn enlisted in the Cheshire Regiment on 24 March 1915, claiming to be aged 22, but was discharged on 18 June (after the Army realised he was only 17) as having "insufficient development for his age".

John died in Lymm in 1924, and Mary in 1945.

Thomas Abbott, son of Thomas Abbott and Elizabeth Ditchfield, was christened at St Mary's Church, Lymm on 1 June 1873, and married Elizabeth Ann Williams at St Peter's Church, Oughtrington on 10 April 1895.  Thomas was a gardener, and the couple had two children, born in Lymm and christened at St Peter's Church, Oughtrington:

Sarah Abbott, daughter of Thomas Abbott and Elizabeth Ditchfield, was born in Lymm in 1881, and married John Marsland at St  Peter's Church, Oughtrington on 5 March 1904.  John, a stoker in an engineering works, was born in Lymm in 1979, and was the son of Samuel Marsland and his wife Mary Ann Watkinson.  The couple had two children, both born in Broadheath, Altrincham:

Sarah died in Altrincham in 1945, and John in 1951.

Peter Moore, oldest son of George Moore and Sarah Ann Ditchfield, was born in Lymm in late 1868, and christened there in St Mary's Church on 27 January 1869.  He worked as a labourer, and married Emma Mairs at St Peter's Church, Warrington in 1895.  Emma was born in Lymm on 22 August 1862, and was the daughter of James Mairs and his wife Ellen Wilkinson.  The couple had four children who all died in infancy, but only the names of two are known at present.  They also adopted a daughter:

John Moore, son of George Moore and Sarah Ann Ditchfield, was christened in St Mary's Church, Lymm on 1 December 1872.  He was a carter, and married Catherine Cooper in Warrington in 1902.  The couple lived in Lymm for a few years, before moving to Rusholme where their youngest son was born:

Mary Yates, youngest child of George Frederick Yates and Sarah Ann Ditchfield, was born in Lymm, and christened at St Peter's Church, Oughtrington on 5 December 1888.  She worked as a domestic servant as a young woman, and married Joseph Shakeshaft in Oughtrington on 10 January 1910.  Joseph was born in Warrington in about 1888, and was the son of Sarah Ann Shakeshaft.  Mary had a daughter shortly before her marriage who was registered under the surname Yates, but subsequently used the name Shakeshaft.  Another six children were born after the marriage:

Mary died in 1950, and Joseph in 1964.

Mary Hornby, only child of William Hornby and Alice Ditchfield, was christened in St Mary's Church, Lymm on 6 August 1876, and married Fred Thomason in St Peter's Church, Oughtrington on 30 November 1896.  Fred, a bricklayer, was born in Lymm in 1874, and was the son of Henry Thomason and his wife Sarah Butterworth.  Mary and Gred had six children, all born in Oughtrington and christened at St Peter's Church:

William Hornby Thomason served as a gunner in the Royal Field Artillery during WW1.

Mary Ditchfield, oldest child of John Ditchfield and Martha Jane Jinks, was born in Didsbury in 1878, and married Charles Henry Ward in Altrincham in 1898.  Charles, a labourer,  was born in Ardwick in 1875, and was the son of Robert Henry Ward and his wife Annie Whitehead.  Charles and Mary had three daughters, all born in Altrincham: