Randall-Farrington

As children, my siblings and I were all told stories about our mother’s heritage. Our maternal family included ancestors that were English, Irish, Scot and Pennsylvania Dutch. There were many stories recounted through the years and some of them were useful in helping to trace of our ancestry. One in particular, was that the Randall’s were somehow related to Oliver Wendell Holmes. Searching through the data I learned that, indeed, our mother, Martha Florence Randall, was the sixth cousin twice removed of Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. Although a very distant relationship, her family was technically correct in this story. Mom’s memory that her grandfather was probably born in Boston, however, was not so helpful. Fruitless hours were spent on trying to trace the Randall’s back to Boston. Eventually the proof showed no Boston connection for the Randall’s.

Material currently available on this site deals only with the maternal lineage through the Randall and Farrington families. Evidence has been found to trace our English, Scot and Pennsylvania Dutch lineage. In addition, evidence has been found of Dutch heritage from Holland. We have also finally traced the Irish heritage which Mother believed to be in the Randall lineage. Documentation from "Massachusetts Soldiers, Sailors in the War of the Revolution" documents not only the extensive service record of John Madden, but the fact that he was born in Cork, Ireland. John's daughter, Elizabeth Madden, married Zebedee Randall, parents of our great-great grandfather, John Randall

Those who have visited the site before will find significant changes. The entire site is being revamped and the updates will not be complete for some time.