Sorry for the confusion – i am using terminology wrong. I believe it is “sidebars” I should have been referring to instead of widgets.
I just found the problem. For some reason on the front page the settings I had in the “Sidebars” settings at the bottom of the front page Edit page were reset and all were selected as “[None]”. WHen I reselected the sidebars I had created in Appearance -> Widgets in the Sidebars settings on the front page, my features returned!
Thanks for your help and patience.