The first record from the Bristol area is for William Trubodys marriage to Ales (Alice?) Warren on 4th June 1579 in Wickwar which is about 12 miles NE of Bristol. This seems to be a one-off. Nothing else is recorded in this area.

The next record is for the marriage of Francis Truebody to ‘Jones’ on 29th July 1622 in Hanham. This sets the pattern for the Bristol area over the next centuries. It is clear that Abson, Wick, Bitton, Oldland, Hanham, Kingswood, Upton (Cheyney) is where we lived. All these areas are listed as in Gloucestershire but are now in South Gloucestershire. It is also on the border of Somerset and some Truebodys are listed for the nearby towns of Keynsham and Bath.

The spread of the name through the above areas is easy to understand but the question remains as to where William and Francis came from. I suppose it was from Devon or Cornwall but we will almost certainly never know.