Charles Darwin (1809-82) suffered from a chronic debilitating illness for much of his adult life. Many different diagnoses have been proposed for this illness but the most fitting is that of the Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome. He also had symptoms of the MELAS syndrome. Both these syndromes may be caused by the one mitochondrial DNA abnormality termed A3243G mtDNA mutation.

Mitochondria are entirely maternally inherited; Darwin inherited his abnormal mitochondria from his mother Susannah (Wedgwood) (1765- 1817) who in turn inherited it from her mother Sarah (also a Wedgwood, 1734-1815). Susannah's brother (Darwin's uncle) Tom (1771-1805) was affected and Sarah had two other children who most likely had the disorder. One died in infancy (Richard, 1767-68) and one died at the age of eight ( Mary Ann 1778-86). In later adult life, both Susannah and Sarah were known to be chronically unwell. Three, probably four of Sarah’s children were also afflicted; Sarah must have been carrying the abnormal mtDNA.

Sarah's mother was Susan Irlam (1704-59); she married Richard Wedgwood (1701-80). They also had a son John (1732-1774) who was apparently well and a daughter Mary (1736-) who must have died in infancy. Susan also had a sister, Hanna, who married Matthew Wright on 30 April 1720 at Astbury. Their mother was Sarah Travis and their father Thomas Irlam, a Presbyterian minister in Congleton.

I would appreciate any information on the Irlams and the Wrights or their descendants. The information that I have has come from Phillip Richards, The Exciting Wedgwoods (https://www.familyhistorian.info/exci...ood/index.html).