I am a desendent of the Selmes family - my mother was born into the Selmes family at Guildford NSW Australia in 1954. She was 1 of 10 siblings. I'm very interested in getting into contact with any Selmes from any country. I know that my great grandparents were from Germany and Netherlands.

Hello Not sure if my space is relavent .My name is Tony Selmes and my father was Thomas William Selmes who's history is very illusive. He we think was born in London, was in the Army and served as a radio technician in WW2. Married my mother Barbara nee Porter in Chiswick on 25/4/1942
Any help?
Cheers
Tony

Hi
My great grandmother was Maria Elcey SELMES. She was born at Mountfield, Sussex in 1851. She married and moved to Surrey, where my grandmother was born,and then to Watford, Herts. My grandmother and her sisters were still in touch with their cousins in Mountfield until they died during the 1970s, but I never knew any of them.
Maria and my great grandfather, along with two of their daughters, are all buried at Vicarage Rd cemetery in Watford, a couple of miles from where I live in Croxley Green.
All the SELMSESes worldwide originate from Sussex right back at least to the mid 1600s, so if your name is SELMES we will be related at some point in the last 150-200 years.
If you can trace your way back to the late 1800s, I will probably be able to fit you into the tree.
I am back to about 1710 at the moment, and just looking for a link back to the 1690s, where there are more SELMESes, but I have not yet found a definite link.
I am in touch with quite a few SELMES descendants here, and several SELMES descendants in Australia too.
Regards
Phil HOW

Thanks for that info .I obviously need to do some work on the parents of jerimiah selmes who was my seafaring predcessor of 1870's arrival in Australia.
Will be visiting the UK in late Sept and intended if time permitted to have a sticky beak in the records.
Tony S

I have 2 Potter ancestors who married Selmeses, Mahala who married James Potter in 1858 Battle Sussex, Mahala died Pre 1880. James Selmes married Elizabeth Potter in 1834 Battle Sussex. James Potter and Elizabeth Potter were siblings. James Selmes was a Policeman in Seaford Sussex. In Censuses James always says his birthplace was battle. Do you Know if James and Mahala were related?
Regards
Steve Arnold

Hi
Mahala was the daughter of Solomon SELMES (the brother of my ggg grandfather Samuel) and Eliza GOODWIN. She was born 19 Oct 1828 at Mountfield, Sussex, as were all her siblings. There are 7 siblings, but not a James in sight as yet!
I have around 100 SELMESes in my tree if you are interested in any others.
Sorry not to have been more helpfull.
Regards
Phil HOW

I believe my direct descendants are from the UK approx 1880's but it not easy finding english heraldic traditions which leads me to think of other possibilities. My postal address is po box 941 runaway bay qld 4216.

Hi. I'm a Selmes and my family thinks that we came from France because my great-great-great grandfather was born there and he told my great-grandfather stories of when our family was, and I quote, "rich and powerful."

But I was wondering where we do actually come from.

My grandfather Alfred George Cyril Selmes was in the army.

Hi, my name is Kim. My mother was a Selmes. I have traced my ancestors back to a James Selmes & wife, Maria (?) Campbell who came to Australia in 1838 from England. Any other info appreciated.
Regards Kim.

Hi. Can I take you up on the offer to see if we have some Selmes family connections please?

My Grt. Grt Grandmother was Jane Elizabeth Selmes who was the second wife of Stephen James Smith, b. Peasmarsh, Sussex in 1833/4. Allegedly he eloped with her and they married in Rye, 1875, then lived in Folkestone. The 1881-1901 censuses claim she was born at Rye Foreign in 1851, but I've not been able to check this through. They had children:
- Stephen James Smith, who married Fanny Black, 1899
- John T. Smith who allegedly married Fanny's elder sister
- Charles and/or Alfred, b. 1890
- Earnest Smith, b. 1892
and also rumours of a daughter, born and died 1876.

Information from my Great Aunt suggested Jane Elizabeth (or also noted as Elizabeth Jane! ) had several brothers and sisters, but info on these is also hard to track down. However, they are supposed to be:
- Charles Ernest Selmes, died at sea 1899?
- Sister, married ? Wood, who has children Kate, b. Selby, Yorks 1890 and Agnes b. Leeds 1897/8
- Ruth (Emma) Selmes ? who married Edwin Dalby in 1885. She was supposedly born in Rye 1863. Their daughter, Ruth Victoria Dalby married Reginald Spicer, a Folkestone fisherman.
- brother George, born Rye 1875 ??

We think that all these are connected to J.E.Selmes of Peasmarsh, a farm labourer who died aged 93, but I can't verify that connection either.

Any help with any of this would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Will