The Fiske ancestral line stretches far back in time, to the Middle Ages, thanks to many surviving probate records.

Hugh Fiske, the earliest proven of his line, was born c1370 and lived in the village of Laxfield, Suffolk, England. Surprisingly, there is a clue regarding an earlier line, as it is thought he was a grandson of one Hugh Fiske of Laxfield, who is found in Laxfield records as early as 1345/46!

Laxfield is an ancient Saxon village mentioned in the Domesday Book.

No further information is found as to who this Hugh Fiske married or when he died.

However, he was the father of four children:

1. (Probably) William the Elder, born c1395; died between 6 March 1462/63, the date of his will, and 21 April 1463, the date the will was proved; married Joan (MNU), but he named no children
2. Simon, born by 1397 (or possibly earlier); died between 22 December 1463, the date of his will, and 26 February 1463/64, the date the will was proved; married (1) Unknown (2) Katherine (MNU). This family lived in Laxfield, Suffolk, England.
3. (Possibly) Daughter, born c1399; married Nicholas Noloth, based on mentions in wills
4. (Possibly) Daughter, born c1401; married John Smyth, based on mentions in wills

This concludes the family sketch of Hugh Fiske, but it’s quite amazing that this post contains factual information about a non-famous person born in the 1300s!

For further details about this family, see A Re-Examination of the Fiske Families of Suffolk, England, Ancestral to Some Early New England Families by Myrtle Stevens Hide, published in The Register 170: 223-232, 339-346 and concluded in 171: 70-77.