Do you see “Dayton?”

I was reminded this week of the excitement of searching registry pages from the St. Mary the Virgin parish in Ashford, Kent. In addition to now well-known entries of Tritton and Dayton marriages, baptisms and burials, many more entries exist that may not have been fully explored.

Among the entries known to us are also examples that appear very similar to “Dayton or Deighton,” but we’ve not seen a reference to them or explanation.  Does this entry say “…baptized Deighton”?

According to the Kent Archaeological Society, this December 1583 entry says “William Austen and Johne Lightfoot.” The name “Austen” appears many times in the parish registry and is easy to interpret as “Dayton.”

An index of Ashford, Kent known births, marriages and burials from c. 1570 – late 1800’s can be found by clicking on this link to the Kent Archaeological Society.  https://www.kentarchaeology.org.uk/Research/01/ASH/01/0.htm

Many thanks to Terry Brown as he continues to sort these things out.