{"value"=>"<p>This series contains George Willis' correspondence with other genealogists and researchers regarding the English ancestry of Henry Willis. Additional correspondence of this nature can also be found in the research files in Series III.</p> <p>One of Willis' correspondents, Eileen Tennent was the resident genealogist of the Bowne House Historical Society at Bowne Street and 37th Avenue in Flushing. John Bowne (1627-1695) was an English Quaker, known for his uncompromising stance on religious liberty and as a conscientious objector during the Revolutionary War. He was a contemporary of Henry Willis, and photocopies of the Friends records in the Henry Willis folders mention that in 1674, both men were each fined 10 pounds by Governor Andros, then governor of the \"Province of New York and the Jerseys,\" for conducting Quaker marriage ceremonies for their daughters in their homes.</p>"}