Status Report

The Heyward genealogy database now includes 2,354 individuals. Most of the 400 individuals added in recent months are in the C-branch. That is to say, they are descendants of Nathaniel Heyward (b. 1766).

An intermediate goal of the database development is to bring all nine branches of the family to Generation 10, where Daniel Heyward (c. 1640 – 1684), the immigrant and progenitor, is defined as Generation 1. His children and their spouses make up Generation 2, his grand-children and their spouses make up Generation 3, etc. The nine branches of the Heyward family–labeled A through I–descend from the immigrant’s great-great grandchildren, in other words, from Generation 5.

Living Heyward descendants today are mostly in Generations 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14. As an example, my grandfather, a Heyward descendant born in 1883, is in Generation 9. My mother, born in 1921, is in Generation 10, so I am in Generation 11.

The C-branch is now well-developed through Generation 10, thanks mostly to the work of Tom Furman (1915 – 2008). The E-branch (descendants of Margaret Heyward (b. 1753)) is also in excellent shape through Generation 10, thanks to research by Jim Glover. The other branches are generally complete through Generation 8.

The main effort in the immediate future will be to extend those remaining branches to Generation 10. The work will start with the A-branch, headed by Thomas Heyward (b. 1746). The source of descendant and spouse names will be Tom Furman’s charts, which many Heywards will remember from past reunions. Unfortunately, the charts don’t have birth and death dates, but in many cases, I will be able to obtain those dates from other sources, such as the Findagrave web site.

The Problem with “Living” Descendants

At present only 114 of the 2,354 individuals in the Heyward genealogy database are flagged as “Living”. No one but the administrator (that’s me) can see the names, pictures or vital data for individuals so flagged. At some point in the future the HFA hopes to allow its members to see the living descendants via HFA site login.

Determining whether a descendant is living is difficult when no death date is available. If a birth date is known but a death date is not, then a person will be flagged as “living” if his current age would be under 105. This will result in a lot of dead people in the database being shown as living. Please don’t be alarmed.

If both birth and death dates are unknown, then some judgement must be applied. I may flag all members of Generation 11 for whom I have no death date as “living”.

How to Suggest Changes and Submit Corrections and Pictures

To suggest a change or correction to information about an individual in the genealogy database:

1. Go to the individual’s web page.
2. Click on the “Suggest” tab. You will get a screen that will ask for your name and e-mail address and will offer a space for you to type in your message.
3. Fill in the fields and click on “Submit Suggestion”.
4. I, as administrator, will get your message and respond to you.

To make a general comment or to offer new information, go to

https://www.heywardgenealogy.org/index.php

1. At the bottom of the screen is a tab that says “Contact Us”. Click on it.
2. Fill in your name, e-mail address and your message.
3. Click on “Send Message”
4. I, as administrator, will receive your message and respond to your e-mail address.

If you have pictures to contribute (pictures are welcomed!), indicate who or what they show and whether they are digitized. If they are digitized, I will instruct you how to e-mail them to me. If they aren’t digitized, I can advise you on getting them digitized or I can tell you how to mail them to me such that I can scan them and then return the original images to you.