(Last Update - 08/23/2000)

What a Weekend it was!...
... at the world-wide Stockton gathering in Cheshire on July 28th to August 1st. Focal point of the reunion was the historic city of Chester at the mouth of the River Dee in northwest England near the Welsh border. Most of the social events were hosted at the beautiful Queen Hotel.

With its imposing walls and massive harbour, Chester was a strategic outpost of the Roman Empire during the occupation of Britain. Today, so much of its ancient history has survived, and it is still one of the most famous tourist attractions in the world.

We Returned to Our Roots!...

Several Cheshire villages, such as Bunbury, within a few miles of Chester, were also important venues, as many branches of the English family trace their direct roots to these areas. Other events took place in or around the ancient town of Malpas, near the Welsh border, where the first inhabitants to carry the name "de Stoctun" resided in that ancient barony. Many of the North American Stocktons trace their roots to the early Stocktons of the parish of Malpas. An important feature of the Stockton family "homecoming" were the commemorative church services at St. Boniface, Bunbury, and St. Oswald's, Malpas, where the Stockton name appears frequently in parish records and on gravestones and church memorials.