Not that Orm, the other one

I mentioned that one branch of  Sharon's part of the family tree extends back to 10th century England and ends with a fella named Orm son of Gamal. Because he shares a first name with that of the Viking Orm, who legendarily tossed his severed leg onto the shore of Scotland to become the leader of the Viking settlement there, I thought that perhaps he was a descendant of the legend. 

That is wishful thinking because we have no good records that link Orm the Viking with Orm son of Gamal. And standard last names weren't in wide use at the time of his birth Perhaps his parents simply chose to honor the legend by naming their child for him. 

While investigating to find a link, I discovered an annoying complication. Finding an Orm son of Gamel in history isn't all that complicated, I found that our Orm may be the same person as Orm Gamalson, who had a son he named Gamal, after his father. This son is often referred to as Gamal Ormson through the creation of last names using the father's name and adding son. This leads to sons having different last names than their fathers. 

And it's possible that Orm son of Gamal's grandfather was also called Orm. It's enough to give you a headache. In fact, give me a minute while I hit the medicine cabinet. 

OK, let's plow ahead. As I mentioned last time, sources give various dates for his birth and death with varying explanations for picking the approximate year. One researcher pegged the date at about 994, while others set the date in 965, 1022 or 1035. His birthplace is believed to be in Northumbria, a northern England area that abuts Scotland and is generally the same as Northumberland County. (C'mon acetaminophen.)

All this is to tell you, dear reader, that the tale which follows may have nothing to do with Sharon's possible ninth great-grandfather. But that's OK.

Orm and his son Gamel (Gamal) appear in the Domesday (or Doomsday) book commissioned by William the Conqueror after the Norman invasion. We'll look at this book next time, but for now you need to know the book listed landowners and their holdings. The Orm of the Domesday Book held extensive lands and manors, some of which he lost to Norman nobles as they settled in after the invasion.

Down in North Yorkshire, a church had been established back in the mid-8th century but over the years it fell into disuse and ruin. At some point Orm son of Gamal bought the property and determined to rebuild the church on the original site in about 1055. He named it honor of St. Gregory. It became St. Gregory's Minster, meaning it was an important church in the region and may have also housed a monastery. 

It is still in use as a historic site open to visitors and an active church that holds weekly services.

In 1771 a renovation uncovered a panel above what used to be the front door of the church. The panel shows a sundial between two sections with inscriptions written in Old English. 

The inscriptions have been translated as: 

"Orm son of Gamal bought St. Gregory's Minster when it was all broken down and ruined and he had made anew from the ground for Christ and St. Gregory in the days of Edward the kind and in the days of Tosti the earl."

The sundial has an inscription that translates to, "This is the day's sun-marker at every tide."

Underneath the sundial is an inscription that translates to, "And Haward wrought me and Brand priest." The meaning of this inscription is disputed but seems to who actually crafted the sundial. 

Image: The sundial uncovered during a renovation of St. Gregory's Minster in the 18th century. The hole in the middle held the gnomen -- a pole or some such that cast the shadow showing the time. Retrieved from www.britainexpress.com/counties/yorkshire/churches/kirkdale-st-gregory.htm.