George Edward Spindler, R.A.F

Most people will be familiar with the surname Spindler. Nellie Spindler, a QAIMNS nurse during WWI, is a name that resonates with many. However, her brother, George Edward Spindler, is a lesser-known figure whose story awaits discovery.

George Edward and Nellie were the children of George Kealey Spindler, a police inspector, and Elizabeth nee Snowden. The family lived at 104 Stanley Road in the parish of St Andrew’s.

We know about Nellie’s time as a nurse, training in Wakefield, then moving to train in Leeds at what is now St James’s Hospital and her time as a military nurse. But her brother George Edward seems to have been overshadowed by his sister.

George was born in June 1901, too late to be included in the 1901 census. However, he was there as an 8-year-old student in the 1911 census. George attended the Cathedral School and, according to the Wakefield and West Riding Herald of 12th March 1910, received a prize from Vicar and Mrs Welch along with many other students.

Following his education, George worked as a general fitter. His place of work is still being determined.

In September 1919, the 18-year-old, 5′ 2″, George Edward, joined the RAF. It is relatively short in height for an 18-year-old to join the services, but there may have been no objection after the last few year’s events.

George Edward had dark brown hair, grey eyes, a pale complexion, and no wounds, scars, or marks. In 1923, according to his record sheet on Fold3, a subsite of Ancestry, he was transferred to the RAF Reserve.

What happened to George Edward?

In 1924, George Edward was living at 35 Prospect Street, Rothwell.

Yorkshire Post August 1928

The Yorkshire Post of 14th August 1928 has a small piece of information. ‘Motor Cyclist to Blame – After a lengthy hearing at the West Riding Court, today, a charge of driving a motor-lorry negligently against William Rex Dodsworth, of Woodlesford, was dismissed, the Chairman remarking that in the opinion of the Bench, the fault lay with the motor-cyclist, whose machine collided with the lorry. The evidence showed that the lorry came out of a side road at Cranberry Hill, Swillington. George Edward Spindler, an electrician of Wakefield, was coming along the main road on a sports model motorcycle. He was thrown off and received injuries to his left leg.’

When George Edward enlisted, he said his address was 104 Stanley Road, Wakefield and that his mother, Elizabeth (Lizzie) Spindler, was to be informed if anything happened to him.

336746, Leading Aircraftsman Spindler was Discharged from service in May 1930 after nearly ten and a half years of service.

The years passed, and on 8th April 1936, George Edward married Annabella Roberts (a spinster) in Wakefield. The same record that gives information of George Edward’s discharge also includes, written on the border, information on two children – George Laurence, born on 24th June 1931, and Margaret Rose, born on 30th October 1934.

The dates of his marriage and his children’s births are not consistent. That doesn’t always matter, but in this case, it might. George had been married previously to Hilda Davies, who died in 1935. With two young children, what should George Edward do? So, in the summer of 1936, he married Hannah Bella (Annabella) Roberts, who, in April, had been living at 403 Aberford Road, Rothwell. Two short years later, he enlisted in Section II, Class ‘E’ Reserves, for four years from the 29th March 1938 at Thornaby. Hence, the reason his service record had been updated. However, one child should be mentioned on the updated record and isn’t.

I did one last search for George Edward and his family. I suspected that as he was now back on the reserve list, and we were talking early 1939, George Edward would not be on the Register – he wasn’t. His family, well at least his wife, would not be redacted. Hannah Bella Spindler. I looked for her in various search formats – her full name, birth year and Wakefield; her surname plus birth year. I had spent quite a while looking for her, and she was nowhere to be found. After a short break, I decided on one last look for Hannah Bella. The search criteria were just ‘Hannah Bella’, ‘1903’, and ‘Yorkshire’. I’d even widened the city search to a county search. I was ready for another long and fruitless search. Then, there she was, ‘Hannah Bella Skindler’. Hannah Bella lived close to 104 Stanley Road, at 11 Tavora Street. There were, as I thought, two redacted entries. At least I found her.

After the war, family life regained some form of normality for George Edward, Hannah Bella and their children.

George’s father. George Kealy Spindler died in June 1940. His wife, Elizabeth, nee Snowden, followed shortly after in December 1941.

George Edward died in 1983, and Hannah Bella died in 1995. The couple and one of their sons rest in what is locally known as Sugar Lane Cemetery.

A Wedding in Barbados

Alice Jackson married James Wigglesworth, a soap maker, in the Parish Church, Wakefield, on August 12 1884. James was 28 years old, and Alice was 20. James was the son of James, a Gentleman, while Alice of Guisley on the Hill (?) was the daughter of Hugh William Jackson, also a Gentleman.

Alice gave birth to a daughter, Violet, in 1888.

Before her marriage to James and children, Alice, aged seven (1871), lived in St John’s. A governess is one of the inhabitants. Was Ellen E Turner the governess of Alice and her two siblings? By 1891, and now a married woman, Alice lived at 25 Market Street; in 1901, the family and a servant lived at Holme Field, Denby Dale Road.

June 28, 1888, was a memorable day for the Wigglesworth couple, as Alice gave birth to a baby girl, Violet. James Alice and probably family and friends attended Violet’s baptism on September 9, 1888, in All Saints Church, now Wakefield Cathedral.

James died in 1907.

1910, Alice and Violet set sail from England. They arrived in Barbados just in time for Violet’s marriage (later the same day) to Commander William Heron Coombs, widower, in the Cathedral and Parish Church of St Michael, Barbados.

Marriage in newspaper

William was born in 1851 in Stoke, Devon, the son of James Martin Coombs, a banker, and Frances Augustus Evans Griffiths. At the time of his marriage, he was living at “Short Hall”, S Anns.

Entry in Parish Register

In 1916, William was living at The Little House, Waltham St Lawrence, and a newspaper article detailing his career was published in honour of his 65th birthday. “He entered the Royal Navy in 1866, and from 1876 to 1884 served under the Government of India as Assistant Superintendent of Marine Surveys, being principally employed on the harbours of Madras, Colombo, and Goa. He retired from the naval service in 1894 with the rank of commander, but afterwards held the office of Protector of Immigrants in the colony of Trinidad and Tobago, where he was also a member of the Legislative Council and a J.P. Mr Coombs is an Associate of the Institution of Civil Engineers and a Fellow of the Royal Geographical and Astronomical Societies.” Extracted from Reading Mercury, Oxford Gazette, Newbury Herald, and Berks County Paper April 1 1916.

During WWI, William was a Shipping Intelligence Officer. In August 1918, an application was made for his appointment as Companion of Imperial Service Order—the request was refused even though he had served the required time on Overseas Duty.

He died in Pension Leighton, West Park, Jersey, on April 28 1931. Probate was granted a few months later.

Pension Leigh, West Park, Jersey, after 1931, was a small hotel

A few lines in a newspaper with a couple of names and dates now tell a short story of a couple. Both had been married before and came from good families. One travelled the world, while the other stayed in Wakefield. How did William and Alice meet? Did they have a friend in common? Did their parents know each other? Were they penpals?

Can anyone fill in the gaps?

Wakefield’s Honoured Soldier

If you hear the name Andrew Moynihan, what is your first thought?

Andrew was born in Saw Yard, Wakefield, at the beginning of 1830, the son of Malachi and Ann nee Scott. A few months later, his parents took him to St. Austin’s Catholic Church, where he was baptised.

He joined the army when he was 17 years old and, by age 25, was a sergeant in the 90th Foot – a Scottish Infantry regiment raised by Thomas Graham in the late 1700’s. The Regiment has seen action in many well-known wars: French Revolutionary Wars, Napoleonic Wars, Crimean War, Sepoy Revolt (India), Xhosa Wars (South Africa) and the Anglo-Zulu War.

The Regiment set sail from England, heading for Balaklava, and saw action at the Seige of Sebastopol. There was then a return to England before heading to India to join other regiments with the Indian Rebellion and later in the hear the relief of Lucknow. A t total of six Victoria Crosses were awarded while the Regiment was based in India. He was promoted to sergeant major while in India and, in 1856, was commissioned into the 8th (King’s) Regiment of Foot. The following year, he was promoted to lieutenant and, in 1863, promoted to captain.

With another return to England to train more recruits, they headed off to fight in the Anglo-Zulu War. In 1866, he left Kingstown, Ireland, for Malta, where he was based for just over a year.

Victoria Cross

While the 90th Foot was in Crimea, Andrew Moynihan was awarded the Victoria Cross on the 8th of September 1855 at Sebastopol. The London Gazette of the 24th of February 1857 has the following citation: Sebastapol, Crimea, 8 September 1855, Serjeant Andrew Moynihan, 90th Regiment (Perthshire Light Infantry). When Serjeant, 90th Light Infantry, at the assault of the Redan, 8th September 1855, he encountered and killed five Russians. He rescued from the Redan a wounded Officer under heavy fire. He was awarded this great honour by Queen Victoria at Hyde Park on the 26th of June 1857.

Moynihan, while living in Floriana, Malta, died on the 19th of May 1867 (aged 37) after contracting typhoid fever after drinking unsterilised goat’s milk. He rests in Ta Braxia Cemetery, Malta, under a raised chest tomb with a prominent cross covering the entire length of the stonework.

Andrew married Ellen Anne Parkin in 1853 in Ashton under Lyne, Lancashire. Ellen followed her husband to Malta, where their son Berkley was born in 1865. Now a widow, Ellen returned to England – Leeds, where she raised Berkley and his two sisters.

The family home by the harbour via Google Maps

Berkley Moynihan became an eminent surgeon and lecturer in Leeds and a Baron in 1929 (Berkley George Andrew Moynihan, Baron Moynihan). Berkley was a surgeon, while my relative was in charge of the Leeds Infirmary. Upon his retirement, my relative had the honour of having the hospital renamed in his and one other’s name – but that is another story. 

Another Walk Around Sugar Lane

William Jepson Rhodes was born in Wakefield in 1876. He was the son of Ezra Rhodes and his wife Hannah. By the time William was 15, his father, Ezra, was a widower looking after two teenage boys who both worked as joiner labourers with their father, a joiner. Home for the small family was Rhodes Yard, in the Primrose Hill area of Wakefield. Both Rhodes boys had been born in Wakefield, while Ezra had been born in Morley. Next door was widow Elizabeth Rhodes, who was living on ‘Own Means’ also from Morley – could she have been his mother? And could her husband have been responsible for the building of Rhodes Yard?

William, now 25, lived in Epsom Place in the Parish of St Mary, Wakefield, and was a cabinet maker.

Just short of ten years later, William was now the father to three daughters and one son. Home for the family was Mollacree’s Yard, Kirkgate, Wakefield. He had married Mary Ann nee Ward in the summer of 1898. William’s father, Ezra, was on the marriage certificate as a Master Joiner. He was also a witness on the happy day. Mary’s father was James Ward of Sun Lane, Warrengate, Wakefield, a foreman railway waggon shunter.

In 1939, William and his wife Mary were together in Duke of York Street, Wakefield – William was now a joiner and shopfitter.

Between the census dates, another set of documents tells another side of the Rhodes family – passenger lists. In 1908, mum Mary and three children were on SS Etruria bound for Middlesbro’ Kentucky from Liverpool. Why? The passenger list tells that the nearest relative was an aunt who lived in Northgate, Wakefield – no name of the aunt, but something maybe to research later. Where was William Jepson Rhodes? Had he died? No, I have seen the headstone; William was still alive. Did he stay in Wakefield? No. William, aged 32, travelled on SS Lusitania in February 1908. His wife Mary was living in Zetland Street, Wakefield, probably preparing for her upcoming journey.

Why did the family leave the country? They only stayed briefly, as they are in the 1911 census. All eight of the Rhodes’ are living in Mollacrees Yard. William, a shopfitter, works for George Blakey on Back Lane, Westgate, Wakefield.

Family headstone in Sugar Lane Cemetery ©

William died in May 1945. His wife, Mary, followed in October 1958. The headstone gives the reader one valuable snippet of information – Mary was the sister of Thomas Ward. Thomas, included on the memorial, died in Boston, USA, in November 1946. There is now a link to America. In modern-day traffic, the journey from Boston to Middlesboro, Kentucky, is over 14 hours and a longer and more arduous journey during the first decade of the twentieth century. A visit to Mary’s brother could be the reason for the short stay.

Although I am curious to delve a little deeper into the Rhodes / Ward families, I must tell myself to stop and leave any further digging to the family or someone with another connection – not me!

CENTRAL WEST RIDING OF YORKSHIRE

AT THE OPENING OF XX^th CENTURY

Contemporary Biographies

I bought this book quite a few years ago, even though it was in a rather sad state. I seem to recall that it was on a stall at the York Family History Fair – I can’t remember how much the asking price was; however, I do remember parting with £5 after some bargaining. The front and back covers were, and still are, separate from the rest of the book; the spine is damaged, and the front fly cover is also loose. Saying all that, there is only one loose section – one piece of paper folded in two with the names – The Right Hon. the Earl of Scarborough; Mr Alexander Wentworth MacDonald Bosville, JP; The Most Rev. William Dalrymple Maclagan, PC., DD., DCL., and Sir John Austin, Bart., JP., pages 103, 103a, 104 and 104a. Considering the outside condition, the other pages are in very good shape.

It seemed such a shame to leave such a once handsome, large and heavy book to an unknown future. I knew it would come into use one day. The following are extractions with a Wakefield connection.

Bruce – Samuel Bruce LLB., JP., St John’s House, Wakefield: only son of the late Thomas Bruce, gent., of Wakefield: born at Leeds, July 10th, 1829: educated at the West Riding Proprietary School (now the Grammar School), Wakefield and University College, London. Barrister-at-Law; graduated 1851 and a member of Convocation; student of the Middle Temple (1851-55); called to the Bar, November, 1855; has practised in Wakefield; appointed Stamp Distributor in 1874, and is one of three only in the United Kingdom allowed to receive death duties; appointed a Justice of the Peace n the first grant of a Commission of the Peace for Wakefield, 1870; a Governor and Treasurer for the Crowther and other local charities; has long taken a prominent part in public affairs, especially in educational and political matters.

Fernandes – Charles Bathurst Luis Fernandes, JP., Wakefield; son of Joze Luis Fernandes, the elder, of Wakefield, and his wife, Catherine Mary, only daughter of George Hutchinson, of Whitton House, near Stockton-on-Tees, in the county of Durham, and of Wet Brunton, in the county of Northumberland; born at Porto Bello House, Wakefield, November 27th 1833; of Portuguese extraction, being descended, on the paternal side, from the Marquis de Tavora, the political opponent the Marquis de Pombal; educated at Christ’s Hospital, London, and Wakefield Grammar School. Admitted a Solicitor in 1857; is Solicitor to the Governors of the Wakefield Charities; Clerk to Normanton Urban District Council;Clerk to the Normanton and District Joint Hospital Committee; Clerk to the Trustees of Lady Hutchinson’s Charity, etc.,;acted as Solicitor in promoting a scheme for supplying Wakefield with water from the Penistone Hills, instead of the water which was then drawn from the River Calder; was also engaged as Solicitor either for or against nearly all the schemes propounded for supplying pure water to Wakefield, which culminated in the present supply from Rishworth Moors, takes a deep interest in agriculture and the breeding of horses, particularly thoroughbreds and draught horses; owner and breeder of Middlethorpe, Yorkshire Lad, and Chief Baron; owns and maintains the Sturton Stud Farm, near Gainsbro’; Lincolnshire. Married Francis Sarah, daughter of Thomas Bayldon, of Hollinghurst, near Wakefield, who was the proprietor of a large landed estate at Mowthorpe, in the East Riding of Yorkshire.

Kingswell – William Henry Kingswell, 95 Northgate, Wakefield; son of William Henry Kingswell, silk merchant; born at Wakefield, December 29th 1874; educated at Wakefield Grammar School. Articled with H Plews, of Wakefield; admitted 1899; was Managing Clerk with Messrs. Clements, Williams and Company, 11 King Street, E.C.; returned to Wakefield, 1901, and acquired the practices of Messrs. Brown, Wilkin and Scott, and Mander and Company; Steward of the Manor of Crigglestone, and of the Manor of Newland-cum-Woodhouse Moor.

Ottley – John Bickersteth Ottley – 1, Hatfield Street, Wakefield, eldest surviving son of the late Rev. Lawrence Ottley, Rector of Richmond and Canon of Ripon, Yorkshire, who was the eldest son of sir Richard Ottley, late Chief Justice of Ceylon; his mother was Elizabeth Bickersteth,, was daughter of the late Rev. John Bickeresteth, of Sapcote, Leicestershire, and sister of the late Bishop Bickersteth, of Ripon, and Dean of Bickersteth, of Lichfield, and niece of the late Lord Langdale; born at Acton, Suffolk, February 5th 1845; educated at St Peter’s School, York, and afterwards a Foundation scholar at Charterhouse, London; in 1864 he obtained an pen Exhibition at Trinity Hall, and afterwards an open Scholarship at Emmanuel College, Cambridge; graduated Second class in the Classical Tripos in 1868; articled to the late Mr Octavius Leefe, of London; admitted solicitor, Trinity term, 1871; succeeded, in 1874, to the practice of the late Mr Charles Oriel (also an old Carthusian); appointed, after the passing of the Bancruptcy Act, 1883, Official Receiver in Bankruptcy at Wakefield, the Bancruptcy district of Barnsley County Court being added to his jurisdiction in 1895, on the death of the late Mr Clegg, of Sheffield. Married August, 1896, Margaret Wray, of Newmillerdam, near Wakefield, and had two children living.

Beverley – Christopher Beverley, JP., West Royd, Farsley, near Leeds; son of the late Christopher Lodge Farsley, of Wakefield; born at Wakefield, November 22nd 1847; educated locally. Justice of the Peace for the city of Bradford; head of the firm of C Beverley and Company, commission wool combers, Albion Works, Bradford, Chairman of Beverley Bros., Ltd., Eagle Brewery, Wakefield. Married Evangeline, daughter of the late Israel Roberts, of Westfield, Stanningley Club: Bradford and County Conservative.

Fawcett, Joshua Swallow, JP., Ashleigh, Ossett; son of Frederick Fawcett, of Horbury; born at Thornes, near Wakefield, March 28th 1842; educated at local school, Leeds and Dewsbury. Extract wool, merino, and mungo manufacturer, and oil extractor, Caldervale Mills, Healey, Ossett; started business in 1872, in partnership with Messrs. Firth and Jessop; formed company, 1898, as Fawcett and Firth Ltd.; is Chairman of the Company; was member of Ossett Borough, 1893. Married Mary, daughter of the late Jeremiah Fisher of Horbury.

Rhodes, William, Fern Bank, St John’s North, Wakefield; son of the late Joseph Rhodes; born at Wakefield in 1844; educated at local schools in Wakefield, and at Almondbury, near Huddersfield. Engineer and ironfounder; proprietor of the Grove Iron Works, Wakefield which were established in 1824, by his father, whom he joined on leaving school; for the last nine years member of Wakefield Corporation, formerly member of the Board of Guardians; Chairman and Vice-President of Wakefield Liberal Club; Chairman of the Engineering Employers’ Federation (Wakefield Association); Governor of Wakefield Charities; member of the Society of Freemasons, Sincerity Lodge, No. 1019, Wakefield.

note – ironfounder is one word in the book.

Wade, Henry, Redville, St John’s North, Wakefield; son of the late Walter Wade, of Wakefield; born at Stanley, June 17th 1866. Cloth manufacture; entered his father’s business, 1881; became partner, 1895; in 1897 the business was turned into a private company, of which Mr Wade is one of the Managing Directors; a Governor of Clayton Hospital; a member of the Council of Mechanics Institute, Wakefield; Treasurer of Wakefield Cricket Club. Married Emma, daughter of John Northcote, of Newton Abbott, Devon.

Ward, Joseph, Bottomboat House, Ossett, Yorks; son of the late Samuel Ward; born at Ossett, in; educated locally. Mungo manufacturer at Bottomboat Mill; started business in 1854; for the past forty years has been interested and associated with all Ossett improvements and advances; served on the old Board of Surveyors, then on its successor, the Local Board, and finally a member of the Corporation; Mayor, 1898, member of the Finance Committee; was Chairman of Gas-works Company, now Corporation property.

Married Elizabeth, daughter of the late James Benson, of Liverpool.

Childe, Henry Slade, Homegarth, Wakefield and Holbeck Hill, Scarboro’; son of Joshua Childe; born April 4th, 1861, at Eccleshill, near Bradford; educated at Wakefield Grammar School. Member of the firm of Messrs. Childe and Rowand, mining engineers, 59, Westgate, Wakefield and Barnsley Union Banking Company Ltd., and of the Yorkshire Railway Waggon Company Ltd.; returning as a member of Wakefield City Council, representing St John’s Ward, in 1898; Mayor of Wakefield, 1901-02; a Freemason. Past Provincial Grand Registrar in West Yorkshire Freemasonry, and Vice-Chairman of the Charity Commission of that Province. Married in 1890, Kate, only daughter of Henry France, of Thornes. Clubs; St Stephen’s. Leeds and Wakefield.

Note- Rowand – spelling as in the book.  It could be Messrs. Childe and Rowland, mining engineers. Reasons- Childe history pages and one of Childe’s children using the middle name Rowland.

Another Walk Around Sugar Lane Cemetery – Rhodes

William Jepson Rhodes was born in Wakefield in 1876. He was the son of Ezra Rhodes and his wife Hannah. By the time William was 15, his father, Ezra, was a widower looking after two teenage boys who both worked as joiner labourers with their father, a joiner. Home for the small family was Rhodes Yard, in the Primrose Hill area of Wakefield. Both Rhodes boys had been born in Wakefield, while Ezra had been born in Morley. Next door was widow Elizabeth Rhodes, who was living on ‘Own Means’ also from Morley – could she have been his mother? And could her husband have been responsible for the building of Rhodes Yard? William, now 25, lived in Epsom Place in the Parish of St Mary, Wakefield. He was working as a cabinet maker.

Just short of ten years later, William was now the father to three daughters and one son. Home for the family was Mollacree’s Yard, Kirkgate, Wakefield. He had married Mary Ann Nee Ward in the summer of 1898. William’s father, Ezra, was on the marriage certificate as a Master Joiner. He was also a witness on the happy day. Mary’s father was James Ward of Sun Lane, Warrengate, Wakefield, a foreman railway waggon shunter.

In 1939, William and his wife Mary were together in Duke of York Street, Wakefield – William was now a joiner and shopfitter.

Between the census dates, another set of documents tells another side of the Rhodes family – passenger lists. In 1908, mum Mary and three children were on SS Etruria bound for Middlesbro’ Kentucky from Liverpool. Why? The passenger list tells that the nearest relative was an aunt who lived in Northgate, Wakefield – no name of the aunt, but something maybe to research later. Where was William Jepson Rhodes? Had he died? No, I have seen the headstone; William was still alive. Did he stay in Wakefield? No. William, aged 32, travelled on SS Lusitania in February 1908. His wife Mary was living in Zetland Street, Wakefield, probably preparing for her upcoming journey. Why did the family leave the country? They only stayed briefly, as they are in the 1911 census. All eight of them are living in Mollacrees Yard. William, a shopfitter, works for George Blakey on Back Lane, Westgate, Wakefield.

William died in May 1945. His wife, Mary, followed in October 1958. The headstone gives the reader one valuable snippet of information – Mary was the sister of Thomas Ward. Thomas, included on the memorial, died in Boston, USA, in November 1946. There is now a link to America. In modern-day traffic, the journey from Boston to Middlesboro, Kentucky, is over 14 hours and a longer and more arduous journey during the first decade of the twentieth century. A visit to Mary’s brother could be the reason for the short stay.

Although I am curious to dig a little deeper and delve further into the Rhodes / Ward families, I must tell myself to stop and leave any further digging to the family or someone with another connection – not me!

Gomersal Cemetery

While wrestling with what else to include in this issue of Cameo, Morley & District Family History Group magazine, I came across a few photographs taken in Gomersal St Mary’s cemetery while on the hunt for a family headstone. In the slightly overgrown grounds, I came across the headstone of T. H. Ellis, a CWGC memorial.

Ellis CWGC headstone Gomersal Cemetery © C Sklinar 2020

The first website I must visit to find out who T. H. Ellis is is the CWGC site to input some of the information I already know. T. H. Ellis – the search gave six results. It was the first of these results that was of interest and confirmed by his burial place. And so it was that Private 68624 Thomas Henry Ellis of the KOYLI Reserve Garrison Battalion who died on the 5^th of December 1918 aged 19; Thomas was the son of Mrs Sarah Thrippleton, formerly Ellis, – well, that last bit of information certainly gives one clue, but I’ll come back to that later.

Thomas Henry was born in Liversedge in the 1^st Quarter of 1899. By the time of the census in 1901, Thomas Henry was two years old and living with his 13-year-old sister, Lily, his father, Micklethwaite, aged 45; his mother, Sarah, and Henry, Micklethwaite’s father, aged 73 – Some family trees on Ancestry have Henry dying in 1869, if that is the case, how is he listed in the 1901 census? In 1903 Micklethwaite died. With two children, Sarah had two choices – to marry again or muddle through. She chose the first choice, and in the December Quarter of 1903, Sarah married William Thrippleton, a woollen weaver, in the Dewsbury Registration District.

The 1911 census shows that William and Sarah had been married for eight years and had no children, but Lily and Thomas Henry were each ten years older and still living with their mother. There was one addition, though, Ivy Ellis, a three-year-old classed as granddaughter-in-law. William called Sarah’s children by the term in-law, not stepdaughter or son. The family live on Moor Lane, Gomersal, in a two-roomed house. That sounds like it was a little on the ‘cosy’ side!

Back to Thomas Henry. As we know from his headstone, he enlisted in Bradford into the KOYLI. The Service Record relating to Thomas Henry does not appear to have survived. I don’t think Thomas Henry served abroad, as he has no Medal Card either, so I’ll work with what is available.

The Army Register of Soldiers’ Effects 1901-1929 includes Thomas Henry and his mother, who was beneficiary to the £3 11s 8d owed to him by the army. The next record set, which includes some interesting information, is the Fold3 collection – a sister site to Ancestry but with an added fee to view. If you are a member of the Western Front Association, they can be viewed from their website for free, as the WFA have the care of the original cards. The faded pink card shows that Mrs Sarah Thrippleton was the Dependant but was superseded by William Thrippleton, who now says that he is the stepfather. Home for William is Burnleys Cottages, Hill Top, Gomersal nr Leeds. But most importantly included is the reason why Thomas Henry rests in a Gomersal cemetery. He died ‘at home’, meaning in the UK of pneumonia.

Sarah, whose maiden name was Brewell, died in February 1926 at Hill Top, Gomersal. William, born in 1869, was included in the 1939 Register along with Lily and Ivy – could this prove that Ivy was Lily’s child? Another question, but one I’m not going to attempt to answer.

William died in June 1945, aged 76 and was buried on the 29^th of the same month in plot 644 in the extended graveyard.