Whether your name is spelt Muzzell, Muzzall, Muzzelle, Mussell, or any other variation, makes little difference, they probably all have the same French roots. In the past, many were illiterate and everyday communication was mainly by the spoken word. The variations are simply accounted for by the name being written phonetically by officials,  and in response to different pronunciations.

In his book 'Billions and Billions', expounding upon his theory of exponential increase, Carl Sagan, Scientist, reckons that in the year 400 each of us had eighteen-and-a-half quintillion ancestors - but that is far more than the total number of humans who have ever lived, so he reasons that each ancestor must be related to us by many different routes: that we are repeatedly connected with each of our relatives.

My family is an example of this theory ... Thomas Muzzall, born 1709, is my maternal ggggg-grandfather, while his sister, Sarah Jeffery (nee Muzzall), born 1714, is my paternal gggggg-grandmother. Thus Thomas is also my paternal gggggg-uncle; and conversely, Sarah is also my maternal ggggg-aunt!

This site will initially concentrate principally upon the Muzzell family of Ashurst (in Sussex, England), but will also deal with other 'colonies' of the family within Sussex. The results of my research are drawn mainly from primary sources here in Sussex (research is likely to be on-going for some years). This site should be read in conjunction with another site (published by David Muzzall, of the USA), which will deal with Henfield Muzzalls (of Sussex), and emigrant cousins in America. David's grandfather, Ernest Linwood Muzzall, published a report in 1965 concerning the Muzzalls, and his publication has been invaluable as an initial point of reference. Hopefully, this site will not duplicate any details already published by David, but there might be some slight cross-over.

Photogaph of my late mother,. Ruth Elizabeth Ann Muzzell, about 1947, in Land Army Uniform

My late mother was the last Muzzell (or Muzzall) born in Henfield, although technically she was descended from the Ashurst line.

Ernest Muzzall's research in the early 1960s was primarily concerned with the descendants and ancestors of Abraham Muzzall, emigrant from England in 1834. While Ernest also identified two other Muzzall immigrants, he was unable to establish their lineage. I can now confirm that Thomas Abraham Muzzall, who arrived in Indiana in 1852, was in fact a half-nephew of Abraham. Another branch of the family settled in  Virginia/North Carolina in the mid-18th century or earlier, but any connection here has yet to be confirmed.

Another emigrant from the Henfield family was Thomas Richard Muzzall (born Catsfold, West End Lane, Henfield 1841), who sailed from London (on a vessel called The Lancashire Witch) on the 4th July 1863, reaching New Zealand in October. His descendants (now known as Mozzell), are  settled in Australia.

An interesting fact concerning this passage by Thomas Richard Muzzall  is that the Superintendent Surgeon on board The Lancashire Witch was a Dr. Duncan McLean born Glasgow 1840. Dr. McLean's great-grandson, Dr. Malcolm McLean,  is now a GP ... in Henfield.

It has  puzzled me why there were no known 18th/19th century emigrants from the Ashurst Muzzells, given that they suffered total poverty as, unlike Henfield, there were no benevolent Manor Houses offering regular employment. However, I have recently discovered that John Muzzell from Ashurst, and his children, arrived in Utah in the 1850s. I believe that his descendants are now living in California, but this research is still ongoing.

Today, few Muzzalls remain in Sussex, but 150 years ago the census returns indicate that the story was very different. When checking facts against the International Genealogical Index, Ashurst Muzzells, and those from other 'colonies', may not be found. The 1992 edition of the IGI for Sussex contains the registers for approximately five-sixths of all the ancient parishes of West Sussex, and only half of the parishes for East Sussex. In actual numbers that means that over 70 parishes for the whole of Sussex are not included in the IGI. Within the IGI, baptisms and marriages in the Henfield Parish are covered only  during the period 1810 to 1876.

PAGES CURRENTLY AVAILABLE ON THIS SITE include the following. Please click on the blue writing to enter:

• Ashurst Family Tree

• Ashurst Muzzell Family and Wills

• Photo Album

• Muzzell Miscellany

• Mozzell Family of Australia

• Bolney/Horsham Muzzells

• Commemorative Information

• Henfield Family Tree

LINKS TO OTHER SITES. Please click on the blue writing to enter:

• Descendants of Abraham Muzzall, USA

• The Lancashire Witch

• Virtual Tour of Henfield

• West Sussex Record Office

• East Sussex Record Office

• Sussex Family History Group

• FamilySearch Internet Genealogy Service (IGI)

• Steyning

• Henfield History Group

I have resisted the temptation to write of any possible Huguenot connections. Realistically, we may never discover which of our ancestors made that journey from France to England, nor why.  While the family obviously has its origins in France, I  feel unable  to speculate on what those origins might actually be, and prefer to concentrate on the rich sources of primary evidence available.

Topics to be covered in future will include other Sussex 'colonies', and hopefully some information on wills and inventories, and occupations - and anything else I can find in my note books!

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Acknowledgements - Obviously the very important research carried out by Ernest Linwood Muzzall in the 1960s has been inspirational. Information from the West and East Sussex Record Offices and Library Services has been invaluable, and help from the Henfield, Steyning and Horsham Museums is greatly appreciated. I am also very grateful to  the Ashurst Local History Group for its assistance. Family members and friends have also  been very kind in dealing with my barrage of questions.