William SQUIRES was born in unsettled times with the change of the first day of the calendar year from 25 March to 1 January and the introduction of the Gregorian Calendar.    William was baptised on 24 March, 1750.    However one year later, 24 March was in the year 1752, not 1751!!   In fact the dates 1 January to 25 March 1751 do not exist at all.

William was born in Warwick, Warwickshire, into a typical family of the time where the father was a labourer on the land. Like many before him, William followed in his father's footsteps but exceptionally, through hard work and loyalty to his eventual employer he became a prominent member of the community: a Yeoman and a Gentleman.

For most of his mature working life William was the land steward for the Guy's Cliffe estate near Warwick, which was owned by the GREATHEED family.

When William died in 1837, aged 86 years, his Will gave details of the cottage he owned, several good quality possessions to be passed on to his family and also a sizeable sum of money to be distributed.

Along the way William had married three times, outliving his first two wives, and had numerous children. His eldest son, Samuel, followed him into the stewardship of the estate and a family dynasty was established.

During his lifetime William came into contact with people from all walks of life, including the aristocracy, gentry, farmers, actors and playwrights. William achieved much during his lifetime and his story deserves to be told, so ... please read on