Tag Archives: Ancestry

W Epps, PNR

A few weeks ago a set of medals was posted on a Facebook groups page.  The ribbons looked a little unloved, as though they had seen better days and a little on the sad side.  I contacted the person who had posted the photographs, asking would they mind if I blogged about the medals.  The reply came back…………….Yes, I could.   There has been a week or two gap since the positive message, but here goes!

The back of one of the medals bares the information  –   11658, PNR. W. EPPS. R.E.

As search of Soldiers who Died in the Great War with that service number came up with nothing.  The same with the Medal Cards and a few other sources.  A different route was needed.

wickhamTrying again, with renewed vigor, I looked at the Medal Cards, as I knew there was one as we had pictures of the medals to prove it.  This time I entered EPPS and Royal Engineers, and there he was – EPPS, William, Pnr., 116158 and his list of medals.  What I now knew was that he also served as Pte., 292069, in the Labour Corps., and had entered France on 28th August 1915.  But, what is more important is that we know he is called William.

Why is it that you can find Service Records for every one else, but not the ones who you are related to…………….it is some kind of law but whose, Sods or Murphy’s?  More information about William from his Service Records –  William was living at The Square, Wickham, Hampshire.  Leaving his military records for a while and back to Civil Records.

HMS Vulcan

HMS Vulcan

In 1911, William was 38 years old and had been married to Eliza Jane for five years and they had two children, George Thomas, 2 and Dorothy Alice aged eight months.  William had bee born in Portsmouth and earned his wage as a bricklayers labourer.  Ten years earlier in 1901 there is an entry for William Epps as a Royal Marine, as a crew member on the ‘Vulcan’ in the Grand Harbour Malta.  His place of birth varies slightly, so not completely sure this is our man.

Back to his service records – His Short Service Attestation is a Duplicate and the service number 116158 has been struck through and over written with 292069.  His Regiments also have multiple entries, starting on the line with Royal Engineers, written above is Labour Corps and then atop them all Pioneer Corps.  His address, we know as The Square.  He is a British Subject aged 43 and is married – this we know from the 1911 census.  He has also given previous service – this could have been him in the 1901 as there are the initials RMLI – cold this this be Royal Marine Light Infantry as seen in the census? He is also willing to serve for the duration of the war and he signed these papers at Whitehall London on 19th August 1915.

The next page. brings William more alive, as he is 5′ 8″ tall, with a fully expanded chest of 36″ and a 2″ range of expansion.  His wife Eliza Jane also added information to his records – that they were married on 14 of July 1906 at the Register Office, Portsmouth.  Her maiden name is not all that clear, therefore, a quick look at FreeBMD tells her maiden name was Hatton and she was a spinster at the time of their marriage.  Eliza also gave information on their children:  George Thomas was born on 2nd January 1909 and Dorothy Alice followed on the 9th of July 1910, with both children being born in Fareham.

William embarked for France, as a Private on 28th August 1915 as part of the British Expeditionary Force.  He was transferred to the Labour Corps on 31st of July 1917.

Epps, William, medals 2

Epps, William, medals 2

Epps, William, medals 1

Epps, William, medals 1

Also among his service records is the Discharge Documents.  It is so nice to write about a soldier that does not have a grave in a foreign land, a man who came home to his family, friends and neighbours.  After enlisting on 15th August 1915, William was Demobilised on the 15th of March 1919 in Nottingham.  In among the service records is a small slip of paper, the slip of paper is signed y William as a receipt for his British and Victory Medals.  There is also a receipt for another medal, as he only had three, this must be for the 1915 Star. which he duly signed for on 28th (?) October 1920 and he gives his details as 202069, 5th Labor Batt. R.E.

William, in February 1919, was issued a sheet of paper – his ‘Protection Certificate and Certificate of Identity (Soldier not remaining with the Colours’ which he would have had to carry with him.  it gives his regimental details, year of birth and where he would rejoin in case of an emergency, plus his occupation and address, and that was issued at Shorncliffe on 16th February 1919.

Further into the collection of his records is his original Attestation Paper.

There is a death entry for a William Epps aged 51 in the summer of 1925, which fits in with his birth being around 1874.

Sources

Jay Hewitt for allowing me to use the photographs

Ancestry

Wikipedia – HMS Vulcan

Royal Engineers Museum – click here 

Royal Pioneer Corps Museum – click here 

Find my Past

Freebmd

Younie Brothers in Arms

This is a blog I started a couple of weeks ago and saved as a draft, with it being late in the evening.  In the meantime I, after having a chat with a fellow researcher, did the long awaited entry for Alexander Riach who had an accidental death.

It has been a while since I have touched anything connecte to my family history, I’ve been too busy researching for a couple of projects I have on the go.  But tonight I took the bull by the horns and transferred my family tree from my pc to my laptop.

So I have been having a mooch around and seeing who is there, been looking through the pictures I have added to the many people and I came up with a piccy of a headstone, my friends will say ‘well what a surprise, a headstone!’  I had totally forgotten taking this one on a visit to Forres, Morayshire, years ago – I think it could have been one of those I’ll do a little research on that one at a later  moment…………………the moment has come!

Isn’t it wonderful what a headstone can tell you, and especially a Scottish headstone as they nearly always have the wife with her maiden name for all to see – a woman keeps her name from cradle to grave…………wouldn’t that be wonderful if that was done in other countries!

This simple headstone is to William Younie who died at Bank Lane, 1926 aged 77.  His wife, Mary MacDonald died in 1935 aged 80.  But there are another couple of entries to their children.  Two of these entries I will go into further detail in a while, but now I will name Leslie, Alexander and William who die din infancy.

So, to the other children, namely, James and Thomas. 1891 sees the family living at 34 St Leonards Road, Forres, where William is a mason.   In 1901 the boys, were living at 3 Bank Street, Forres, with their parents, William Younie and Mary Ann MacDonald, and siblings – Donald, John and Emma.  In 1901 James McAndrew Younie and his brother Thomas P Younie were 12 years old – yes, they were twins!

I had some left over credits on Scotlands People, not a place I like to spend money as I wish they would do an annual subscription, but hey ho!  The William and Mary are living at 3 Bank Lane, Forres, with two of their children – James aged 23 and Emma aged 13.  Also in the household is James Munro aged 25, a boarder, who speaks both Gaelic and English.  William and Mary had bee married 33 years and had had eight children born alive, but only five had survived to be in the census of 1911.   William was still a mason, but this census specifies house building.  James was aged 23 and employed as a grocers assistant. Just for interest James Munro was employed as a law clerk.

During the Great War both James and Thomas fought for their country.

Lets look for James first.  He had been living in Glasgow, so it was there that he enlisted, joining the Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders, with the service number S/2469 and rising to the rank of Lance younie james mcandrew kiaCorporal in the 6th Battalion.  And son it  was that  on the 16th of July 1917 that James McAndrew Younie died of wounds received in action aged 29.  He rests in Dozinghem Military Cemetery, near Krombeke, north west of Poperinge, in the West Vleteren region of Belgium, along with 3239 other casualties from  the  Commonwealth, the Chinese labour force and  Germany.

Westvleteren was outside the front held by Commonwealth forces in Belgium during the First World War, but in July 1917, in readiness for the forthcoming offensive, groups of casualty clearing stations were placed at three positions called by the troops Mendinghem, Dozinghem and Bandaghem.

The 4th, 47th and 61st Casualty Clearing Stations were posted at Dozinghem and the military cemetery was used by them until early in 1918.

A book about the War Memorial Unveiled in the United Free High Church has the following entry for James McAndrew Younie.

younie james moray n nairn fhs

Now to James’s twin, Thomas – while looking for James in the 1911 Scottish census, there was not one entry that I could 100% say was him.  Looking for Thomas has been a lot harder going than his brother, but we got somewhere in the end.  Thomas enlisted at Fort George in 1906. During the Great War, Thomas Petrie Younie served in the Seaforth Highlanders and became, Company Serjeant Major, 9500.  He served in France and on 2 July 1919, nearly 2 years to the day since his brother James died, Thomas died as the result of a gun shot wound to his leg.  As the war had ended Thomas had been sent back home and he rests in Cluny Hill Cemetery, Forres.

Younie Cluny hill cem forresThomas had been awarded the Military Medal and a similar article to his brother tells more about his life and war.

younie thomas moray n nairn fhs

 

So it was that three brothers went to war, Mary’s twins both died and  one came home. But one question still remains – which other brother went to war, was it Donald or John?

Younie Cluny hill cem forres

Sources

Ancestry

Commonwealth War Graves Commission

Find My Past

Find a Grave

Soldiers who Died in the Great War

Moray and Nairn FHS click here 

Alexander Riach, 1828 – 1900

The blog about Alexander, seems to have been so long in the making.  It seemed only a few months ago I was asking for information from libraries, archives and companies. The truth is that I started enquiring in January of 2014…………….dosn’t time fly when you are having fun!  I must have been having too much fun…..but then I can’t remember enjoying myself that much last year!

My quest for information about Alexander had started many years ago, and like many other researchers, have put certain people on the ‘back burner’ ready for another day……….well they are not going anywhere, are they?  It was during  a long weekend in Lossiemouth, while visiting my aunt Gladys that my husband and I trawled the kirkyards in the area looking for Riach, Hay, Younie, Petrie and other names connected to mums family.  The weather was sunny, but a little bit cool as I scanned the headstones, three rows at a time, looking for family connections or something of interest on the family markers.  Although, the headstone to Alexander and Helen was interesting due to the family name, it was how and where Alexander died that struck me as interesting and quite surprising.

Who is Alexander?  Well, he is the husband of my 2nd cousin, 3 x removed. But saying that his wife’s grandmother was also a Riach.

Rothes map - Vision of Briain.

Rothes map – Vision of Briain.

Alexander Riach was born in Dallas in 1828, and being baptised in Rothes on 18th October 1828. He seems to have  spent most of his time in Rothes, the son of James Riach and Annie Innes – James was from Rothes, but not sure about Annie.  In the census of 1841 and 1851 he is living on New Street, Rothes and working as a mason.

Alexander Riach, on Friday the 18th of January, walked up the aisle of Rothes kirk as a married man, after marrying Helen McKerron.  Wet and unsettled conditions had set in a few days before their wedding day and did not turn for the better until April – I hope they had a reasonably fine and clear day for their nuptials.

The census came around in 1861 and the couple, now with two young children were living at Kirton Street, West Side, Marnach, Mortlach. Alexander, still working a a mason, was now working on the railway.   Ten years down the line in 1871, the family has grown and Alexander is now father to four children, aged between 13 and 5 month old Margaret.  Home is now Easter Ardchyle Hut, 2, in the Perthshire village of Killin, where Alexander is aged 42 and a mason.

Alexander and his family seems to be quite elusive in the 1881 census but a bit of a tea break, finds the family not together.  Helen is living with 2 of her children in the home of Margaret McKinnon, the widow of a mason, at Station Street, Rothes.  Where is Alexander and the other children?   After searching through the census for Scotland, with knowing  where he died………….you will have to wait a little longer for that  information! I looked in the England census and there is an Alexander Reach, aged within reasonable ‘give or takes’ from the last census and born in Scotland. living in Barden in Skipton, working as a contractor manager for the new reservoir………..could this be him, living on his own and stating he is married?

Ten years later in 1991, there was quicker success – Alexander and Hellen are now living back together at Cressbrook Cottage, Queens  Road West, Old Machar, Aberdeenshire and now employed as a manager at one of the local granite quarries.

You now know a little about Alexander up to 1891 but what happened to him later………..?

I did the usual quick research by Google, looking for anything that could be remotely connected with how he died.  You know the things, confirming his death on the GRO, just incase the headstone was wrong – it would not be the first time.  I looked for any notification of any thing connected with his death that might have been in a local paper and scanned for online research……….nothing, but I did come up with a place that could be worth a visit sometime.

It was some years later while visiting our daughter who lived in Chiswick at the time, we were staying in a very nice pub opposite Kew Green.  We were due to meet her for lunch where she worked but had a while to kill, so we had a little drive around the area and drove past a building that woke the old grey matter and a eureka moment came.  It was after lunch and on our way back to our lodgings that we called in.  The place was closed but a few of the workshops were open.  The one I called in at, was a blacksmiths, a lady blacksmith and her work was fantastic.  After asking if this was Kew Bridge Works, she said yes, but everything was closed for the day….another visit was called for.  The next day I had found myself in a small, cluttered office, talking to one of the curators, who knew nothing of my man and his demise but she took my details and would pass them on to a volunteer researcher who went on a regular basis to the Metropolitan Archives……………I should wait! Waiting is not a thing I am known for where family history is concerned when I have bitten the bullet, but sad to say I am still awaiting their reply, probably six years down the line.

Kew Bridge Works, now London Museum of Water and Steam

Kew Bridge Works, now London Museum of Water and Steam

So it looks like I would have to continue something I started years ago, but on my own terms, with this new vigor, I rang the Registry Office for a death certificate but which office to contact would it be Richmond or Brentford.  I said I would tell you later about how and where he died – it looks like now is a good time to tell you.  Alexander Riach died on 31st of March 1900, as his epitaph tells ‘accidentally killed at Kew Bridge Works’.  I tossed a coin and came up with Richmond as my first port of call, as I was convinced he had died in an accident at what is now the Museum of Water and Steam, Kew.  The very nice person at the Richmond office, assured me that if I had the wrong office, I would, of course, get a refund.  Five long days later I had the certificate in my hands and although saddened by how Alexander met his maker, for a family historian, the way in which someone leaves their mortal coil, can mean there is more information to be found.

In 1900 he was living at 14 Bushwood Road, Kew and although, 71 years of age, was te Contractor’s Manager at Kew Bridge Works – as per his headstone, and still had me thinking about the steam museum building.  I had the impression, that with this information being marked on his headstone, for all the world to see, well those who visited the kirkyard, that te family were upset, annoyed and probably felt that it was someones fault, but whose?

The death certificate, as you know, gave me the date of death, his age was 71 years and we know his occupation but it was the cause of death that came as a shock.  He died of ‘Syncope from shock due to fractured ribs crushed by crane toppling over whilst being moved from barge to landing stage’.  There was a post-mortem and a verdict of Accidental Death was given by the Coroner for Surrey, A Broxton Hicks after an inquest held on the 4th of April 1900.

I felt surely that this would have caused a ripple through the Kew community at the time, so a telephone call to a wonderful man at Richmond Local Studies, who turned out to be the head of the department.  After a quick tale of who, where and when, I was promised he would let me know if anything was in the local papers.  He was very true to his word and in less that 24 hours I had a scanned copy of the entry in the Richmond Herald, which told me

‘An inquest was held in Richmond on Wednesday, touching on the death of Alexander Riach, manager of the Kew Bridge Works, who was killed by the falling of a crane.  Mr Gibb, the contractor for the works, was represented by a solicitor.  Evidence as to identity having been given by Margaret Riach, daughter of the deceased.  William Watson, a labourer, 2 York Villas, Kew, said that for the purpose of assisting in taking down the old bridge they had a steam crane on runners on a barge.  On Saturday, the manager asked witness and three others to remain behind to take the crane from the barge on to the wharf.  It was quite steady in the barge, but (the crane) had not been used in it, only being there for the purpose of moving.  The deceased came to the wharf about 2 o’clock, and they began to move the crane a few minutes later.  The top of the barge was level with the wharf, and they were going to move the crane on to the wharf by means of rails.  They had begun to move it,  ad it was half-way across, going by steam, when some steamers came up river,  and the wash caused the barge to rock.  Deceased was standing on the wharf near the crane, when it suddenly toppled on to him.  As it swung back, they managed to get the deceased out, and assistance having been called, he was conveyed in a cab home.  

Henry Kennison, a labourer in the employ of the firm, corroborated the evidence of the previous witness.  He was on the barge, and the crane as it was tilted, caught the witness by the clothes, but did not injure him.  Thomas Graham Menzie, 17 Bushwood Road, Kew, engineer to Mr Gibb, said he was o the crane on the barge on the Surrey side, and it was then quite steady, standing so for several days.  Deceased had had over fifty years’ experience with cranes.  After the accident happened, witness had the photographs produced taken.  In answer to Mr J T Mackie, factory inspector from the Home Office, the witness said he thought the crane was safe with the jib on.  The crane was not in steam at the time of the accident.  Dr Ernest Payne, who saw the deceased, said about eight of his ribs were fractured, and he was considerably bruised on the side of his body.  He died from syncope, following upon the shock of the accident.  A verdict of ‘Accidental Death’ was returned’.

Kew Bridge

Kew Bridge being demolished

It was this article in the paper that told me where the accident occurred, I had wrongly thought that he worked at the Kew Bridge Waterworks, but no it was infact, Kew Bridge, works.  It was a very nice man at, yes, the Steam Museum, formerly, Kew Bridge Waterworks, that confirmed a few points.  Firstly, that Mr Gibb, the contractor, at the inquest, was in fact the contractor for Kew Bridge, when the new bridge was built between 1899 and 1903.  The dates fit with Alexander being in Kew and Mr Gibb, also fits in.  It looks like Alexander was involved with the building of the new Kew Bridge and the demolishing of the old bridge. Kew Steam Museum, came good in the end!

After years of waiting to find our why ‘accidentally killed at Kew Bridge Works’ is written on Alexander’s headstone, I now know.  But, this information make me want to ask more questions, such as:- How long had he been in London, and were his family with him.  We know Margaret, his daughter identified the body. But, was that as she was the only family member with him and was basically, his housekeeper. Or, had his wife Hellen, been too upset to view her husband, or had she stayed in Scotland?

The inquest tells that he had worked with cranes for fifty years, was that because his job as a mason involved moving heavy stones and he had gained his experience there.

I may never know the answers to some of the questions, but my family tree certainly has more information about Alexander and his family now than it did.

The third Kew Bridge opened in 1903

The third Kew Bridge opened in 1903

As I have said I know more about Alexander than most people now.  There are many trees on Ancestry that include him, but some have his birth details, some have his death details, and some don’t even have his parents, but although the odd one, and I do mean the odd one, has his death but nothing else.  Could it be that none of these people have seen his headstone?  It is possible that his demise is not common knowledge as many researchers could be from America, Canada or Australia and have not ventured to Morayshire.

I looked for a Will in the English records but nothing, so I took my ‘plastic’ in my hand and I might add it took some prizing out of my purse, but eventually, I paid a fee to Scotlands People, now that breaks my heart – why will they not do an annual subscription?  Wills are free to search, and there he was, confirmed by his wife Helen McKerron, also being in the index.  I now have his will and can see that he had property in Rothes, its proximity given quite clearly on the written pages and how after both his and Helen’s death, which occured in December of 1909, what should happen to their property.

Sources:-

London Museum of Water and Steam – click here

Ancestry

Find My Past

Scotland’s People

 

Frederick Cooke and the Gyme

east ardsley mapFrederick Cooke was born in East Ardsley in 1880/2 as when looking at documents there is a slight variation, but there is an entry on Freebmd for a birth registration for a Frederick Cook in the March Quarter (January, February, March) of 1881 in Wakefield – so that looks like him but with a spelling variation in his name.

He was born to Arthur William Cooke and Martha Hardaker along with two other children between 1879 and 1883.  Arthur William was originally from Cheverell in Wiltshire, while Martha was from Bishop Auckland – I bet that was a fun household with the variation in accents!  The couple married in St Michaels church, East Ardsley on  the 15th of September 1877.  Sadly, Martha died in the spring on 1890 and with young children to look after Arthur William remarried Emma Wright, when on the 3rd of February 1891, he again walked down the aisle of St Michaels church.  The couple went on to have more children.

But, back to Frederick – In the census of 1891 Frederick is living at Allinsons Buildings, East Ardsley, with his father, a furnace keeper;  his step-mother, Emma; his brother George;  sister Margaret and Emma’s nine month old baby boy – written in the census as ‘William Wright, son of wife’.

The Christmas of 1903 must have been a busy and exciting time in the Cooke household as within the next few weeks a family event was to take place.  On the 16th of January 1904 cook fleming marriageFrederick would be found standing with his family and friends in St Michael’s church, East Ardsley, waiting for Ethel Fleming to walk down the aisle and become his wife. Fred’s father, Arthur William, was now a lamplighter, while John Fleming, Ethel’s father was a miner.  The two witnesses to this event were Edmund Lee and Jane Hunt.

Life, does not always deal the cards we would wish, and like many others Frederick, seemed to have been given a few ‘duff’ cards.  He had already seen his mother die, his father re-marry and the 1911 census told of another ‘duff’ card.  The census shows the couple living at 6 Mary Street, The Falls, East Ardsley, a house with 3 rooms.  It tells that he was 30 years old and Ethel was 26; that they had bee married 7 years – we know that from the Parish Register entry, but the paper from 100 years ago also tells that the couple had had one child, and that it had died – died between their marriage and the date of the census.

Before I continue with Fred’s life, curiosity was getting the better of me, and it dosn’t take a lot for me to go off on a tangent looking for another story…………..here I go again!

Who was this child? When was ‘it’ born?  Was it a boy or a girl? How old was he/she when it died?  Questions, lots of them, and they seem easier to come up with than answer.  Let the questions stop and the answering begin.

What do I know, not a lot really apart from his surname would be cook(e) and death occurred between 1904 and 1911, which is too early for a mother’s maiden name to be entered.  A search of Freebmd with the search criteria being  Cooke and West Riding, brings up a lot of entries  – do you know how many there is to search through?  A lot!  I need to lessen the number of entries.  The Ancestry website has very considerately scanned West Yorkshire Parish Registers for certain periods, what can that come up with?  Straight to the West Yorkshire section for deaths and burials using just Cooke and East Ardsley came up wit five possibilities, but by the dates of burials I could eliminate three straight away, leaving two to have a look at.  After viewing the first I could also now eliminate that entry as the address was Morley.  One remaining, a John Arthur Cooke.

John Arthur Cooke was buried on the 23rd of March 1904, his address was given as Whitaker’s Fold, he was five days old and the entry states there was no service.   Without purchasing a birth certificate and death certificate John Arthur seems to be the most likely candidate, along with  both his grandfathers being Arthur and John.

Back to Fred.  Life carried on for him and Ethel until 1914 when events took place that would not only shock the world for years to come but would also impact greatly on East Ardsley. But the passing of time and the generations that followed would mean that events locally, would be forgotten sooner within the community.  The Great War, the war to end all wars, had begun and men were enlisting inn villages, towns and cities all over Great Britain.  Fred enlisted

Fred, platelayer, on the Great Northern Railway and  being an old Territorial, re-enlisted, some sources say August, while other state September and November, but all agree on the year of 1914.  He became Pte., 2425, F. Cooke, in the 1/4th King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry (KOYLI).  The 1/4th’s were training near Malton, but bad weather was continuing they, (about 4000 of them) were moved to Gainsborough and be billeted within the community.  Training continued while some of the men moved to the coast, other stayed and on one particular day, the 19th of February, 1915, they were in the village of Moreton at a place called the Gymes.  The men were training on an enclosed pond to build rafts, readying themselves for crossing the Belgian canals. A Dewsbury man, Captain Harold Hirst, was in charge of the operation.  The rafts were constructed from rope, straw, tarpaulins and a wooden platform.

The Gyme, with the remains of the pontoon

The Gyme, with the remains of the pontoon

20150226_125332

Reverse of the Gyme photo

 

It was at 12:10 on Friday the 19th of February 1915, that as men from ‘D’ Company boarded their raft. As the raft started to leave the bank, their ‘vessel’ crowded with soldiers (some say up to 40) in their heavy kit and boots seemed stable for a while, but Pte., Punyer, who was in charge of a very long pole to push the raft forward, was soon, even with his arm fully in the water, could not reach the bottom of the gyme with his pole.  The raft was beginning to become unstable and tragedy soon struck and the men were very quickly fighting for their lives.  Those who were closer to the bank dragged men out of the water, others gave artifical respiration.  Higher ranking officers were called for, Field Ambulances were on their way and a roll call was sounded but seven were unaccounted for.  Five men were found and later in the afternoon, the final two soldiers were accounted for.

Their bodies were taken to stables behind the Crooked Billet pub in Morton.  An inquest was held the following day in Morton School, presided over by Philip Gamble, a local solicitor with a local builder, Mr Fox, being the foreman of the jury.  The jury viewed the bodies and visited the Gyme.  After the jury had viewed the bodies they were placed in coffins and taken by Army Ambulance to Holy Trinity Church Hall, Gainsborough, from where they would be taken the next day for their journeys home.  Some of the families of the seven men made the journey to Morton for the inquest, where after hearing various statements a verdict of Accidental Death was given but the Officer was criticised for his lack of experience and the lack of adequate safety precautions i.e. life buoys and trained first aid staff.

Within days the regiment had been moved to York and were sent to France on the 13th of April and were soon in the trenches at Bois Grenier.

The seven soldiers were all given full military funerals in their own villages, towns or cities, where family, friends, neighbours and many others paid their respects.

And it was that on 23rd February 1915, from 23 Cardigan Terrace, Frederick made his final journey carried aloft the shoulders of his fellow soldiers and followed by many more, with many carrying floral tributes.  The streets were lined as the courtage walked slowly passed, up the hill on its way to St Michael’s church.   The party would have been met by the Rev. John H D Hill, who years before had married Frederick and Ethel  in happier times, but today was a very sombre occasion as over 2000 from the military and surrounding area paid their respects.  The Rev. Hill in his parish register wrote the required information in the set columns and lines but he also added ‘military funeral drowned on pontoon’.

We now know how the Fred’s life ended and where he rests, but what happened to Ethel, well, early in 1918 she married Peter Humberstone.  She died on 29th of November 1947 and rests within the walls of St Michael’s Parish Church, East Ardsley, along with her first husband and her son.

Batley Cemetery 100 years on

Batley Cemetery 100 years on

100 years on to the day …………. a  group of people gathered at the graveside of Private Batty, one of the 7.  They were there to remember the tragedy by laying a wreath for each one of those men an eighth wreath was laid by people from Gainborough.  The following Sunday over 20 people travelled from Yorkshire to Morton for a service and plaque unveiling.  It was a wonderful service and a visit to the Gyme followed, braving the wind, rain, bitter cold and the mud, where the wreath laid in Batley,  was laid in what remains of a now filled in Gyme.  I can’t say that walk was pleasant but having gone that far it seemed only fitting to go and complete the circle.

Tony Dunlop, PROJECT BUGLE and D Bedford, great niece of Fred Cooke lays a wreath

Tony Dunlop, PROJECT BUGLE and D Bedford, great niece of Fred Cooke lays a wreath

During the following day and weeks, the wreaths to the 7 have now been laid at the foot of each DSCF4764of their

 

 

 

headstones with a small information plaque.

The names on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission headstones in most cases bare the name, regiment, service number and age of the casualty, but what they do not tell is the story, so when you see one of those headstones, stop and think if only you could tell your tale.

We Will Remember Them

Additional information :-  Captain Harold Hirst was the youngest of the officers within the regiment.  He was the son of Mr & Mrs Joseph Hirst of Ravensleigh, Dewsbury and a member of the firm of Messrs. G H Hirst and Co., Ltd., woollen manufacturers of Dewsbury and Batley.  He was an ‘old boy’ of Rugby School and it was on 24th of June 1915 that Harold was killed by a German sniper. He had previously killed two or three German snipers and this had been mentioned in dispatches.  He left a widow and a child which had been born two weeks after he left for the front.

So, it was that during the the war many of the men who were at the Gyme on that fateful day also lost their lives.

There has been an 8 page booklet produced as a joint project by various local and Lincolnshire groups – if anyone wishes a copy the cost is £2 plus postage – email gyme @ wakefieldfhs.org.uk

Sources :-

Ancestry, Find My Past, Freebmd,

Gainsborough’s War Years early 1914 – mid 1915 by P Bradshaw

Tony Dunlop

A letter of Thanks dated 1916

Some of you that know me will be aware that I have a box that  has a lot of newspaper snippets and notes all ready for the day when I will get around to telling the world their story. I also have a folder in my email and a file on my laptop that has something similar, but sometimes the donor of photographs after being saved to the laptop gets separated and I am unable to acknowledge the sender or owner of the photographs…………yes, I know, but none of us are perfect!

A while ago I was sent a set of three pictures – one was of an envelope, and the other two were pages of a letter.

The letter, by a little ragged, was franked and had two one penny stamps on the top right hand corner. It was not written in a style I would have thought was used in that time but a style that was more rounded and with rounded loops on the high letters. The envelope was addressed to Nurse Howell, The Asylum, Wakefield – followed by a full stop and a confidently underscored stroke. I will leave Nurse Howell for a while and concentrate on the sender, one Elizabeth Rudd.

Elizabeth Rudd on the top right of her letter gave her address as 32, Westcliffe Terrace, Harrogate and dated it March 5th 1916. Who was Elizabeth and why was she writing to Nurse Howell?

To find who Elizabeth was we have to pry into her life by reading her words of thanks. Elizabeth was thanking Nurse Howell for looking after her sister during her last hours of life, which as she says ‘I did not know the end was quit so near….’ The nurse was thanked for her kindness for being at her patients side while her sister was not. But Elizabeth was glad that the nurse had been spared any painful suffering – Elizabeth’s sister having a peaceful end. Elizabeth went on to say that Nurse Howell was doing ‘noble work, one which required much patience and endurance…..’

Let’s go and find these two ladies!

Firstly, Elizabeth. We know where she lived in 1916, so a look at the 1911 gave an Elizabeth Rudd living at 81 Skipton Road, Harrogate, who was 28 years old and working as a draper’s clerk. Her parents were John William Rudd, a joiner and Mary Ann, and five other children in the house. Elizabeth had one sister, Maud Mary aged 23 – could this be the sister whose life had ended with Nurse Howell by her bedside?

Back in time 10 years to 1901 the family have now swelled their ranks and are living at 4 possibly Ashworth or Charlesworth Place, Harrogate. But there are still no clues as to the missing sister.

Back to the drawing board and a cleared Ancestry. I have set up the quick links and one of the links is directly into the UK Collections, but could not find the collection I wanted. So back to the home page and ‘see all new records’ Bingo, there it was, the UK, Lunacy Patients Admission Registers, 1846 1912. My main fear was that the date of the letter was just four years after the collection date, but hey-ho, in for a penny!

I did not know Elizabeth’s sisters name therefore a general search for Rudd and Wakefield. One entry stuck out and that was for a young lady called Hannah Jane Rudd. Hannah had been admitted on the 16th of September to the W. Yorks Asylum with no year given at the top of the page and no years on the previous pages, but her date of discharge of death on 14th February 1916, does seem to lend itself to being the lady we need.

So, if Hannah Jane is Elizabeth’s sister and she is not on the 1901 of the 1911 census, will she be on the 1891 and link her to her sister? Let’s go see!

The Rudd family in 1891 were living off Grove Road, Harrogate. John William was a joiner and builder and there was a Jane A Rudd, in the house. Could this be our Hannah Jane, who was three years older than Elizabeth?

Do you know any different?

Nurse Howell, now this could be a little trickier! Presuming, a thing I know you should never do, but where needs must…………as a nurse I presume she would have been a mature person, so over 21. I know during 1916 she was working in the Asylum, and possibly living in the Wakefield area. But, was Nurse Howell, 21ish in 1916 or older?

Back again to the 1911 census and a very, very broad search for Howell, Wakefield and female………and more ladies to search through than I cared for. I selected the search to about 1870 to 1895. I hate the new search on Ancestry, the searching does not hold the same ‘chase effect’ that it used to, but we got there after what seemed like an age – I could have made a Christmas cake quicker, or it felt that way!

One entry out of all of them stood out! Harriet Margaret Howell, aged 21, giving her year of birth around 1890. She was born at Bowes Park, Middlesex but was living in Seacroft seacroft hospitaland her occupation was Hospital Nurse. Harriet was one of many nurses and ancillary staff working at Leeds City Hospitals for Infectious Diseases, Seacroft, Leeds, Mr A E Pearson, MRCS, Medical Superintendent was in charge. The hospital cared for patients with scarlet fever and diphtheria and provided care for 482. When the need for isolation hospitals lessened Seacroft was changed to a children’s hospital.

Harriet  must have moved to work in the Asylum by 1915/16 to have nursed Miss Rudd. 

Seacroft Infectious Disease ward c1900

Is the Nurse Howell I am looking for or do you know better!

Sources:-

Leodis

Ancestry

Find My Past

Did you know that ……….was now online?

Every day more record sets are added to online family history websites – mainly the pay per view sites.  Gone are the days of having to go to a specific town to visit a church who still held their own records or an archives – well that is unless you want to!

I have just clicked on Find My Past to see what is new there and here are a few of their newbies – some may be of interest and help you with your research.

South Yorkshire Asylum Admission Records 1872 – 1910, later known as Middlewood Hospital and contains over 17,000 records.  The information revealed not only gives names and dates of admission but some records give details of the persons insanity and if they recovered or not.

 Sheffield Cathedral Church of St Peter and Paul burial index 1767 – 1812 – these records contain over 44,000 transcripts from the registers with the information including:- deceased’s name, date of burial, occupation and next of kin.  The next of kin is wonderful when trying to work out if a person is yours or not.

Still in South Yorkshire, the Sheffield Quarter Sessions 1880 – 1912. The transcript gives details of the person being tried and their offences and of course, the sentence.

North West Kent, Westerham Burials 1686-1981 and Greenwich Burials 1748-1937  a collection of over 40,000 transcriptions to get your teeth into.

Venturing further north Lanarkshire, the People of New Lanark 1785 – 1953, contains a collection of transcriptions from church records, Sheriff Court and High Court records and the Lanark prison register

Leaving the UK, New South Wales Deaths 1788 – 1888. The index from three districts gives details of full name, birth and death year, plus parents first name.  New South Wales Marriages and New South Wales Births 788 – 1914, both giving useful information if you have family living in the area.

So now to what’s new on Ancestry –  Firstly, Perth, Scotland, Burgh Burial Index 1794 – 1855. Scotland Prison Records and the 1851 census  index for Scotland. 

Uk, Coal Mining Accidents and Deaths 1750 – 1950 and includes over 12,000 from the Scottish coal fields.

So, looks like there may be something of interest for a lot of people, especially as the 2 sites mentioned may have some offers going around this time of year.

The Missing Constantine

During my stint helping to man a local family history stant at the Ridings Centre during Heritage Weekend a few years ago. I was asked had I seen the family bible on display – no I hadn’t and I’m a sucker for old bibles and books as you never know what secrets or forgotten things you find when turning the pages.

I don’t like lists of names or entries in bibles that are unknown, they should belong now as they did when their name was so tenderly written.  That could be why I’ve taken to transcribing war memorials – a name on a plaque or on a carved stone means nothing unless you know who they were in life.

So who were the Constantine family mentioned in the bible that had been given to the group and was put on display over Heritage Weekend ?

There were names and dates but sadly, no places and in one case just initials.  The names and dates were a start and I copied the names down to try and solve the mystery after tea.  After tea…….no now, while the curiosity juices are flowing…………Tea will wait !!!

The first entries in the bible were for William Henry Constantine born on 28 Sept 1823 and below the entry for his wife Ruth Elizabeth Constantine born 26 Sept 1855, followed by their children Martha Ann 22 Apr 1879 ; Nellie 1881 ; Lissey 1888 ; Wilfred 1890 ; Sarah 1883 ; Sam W 1885 ; Annie 1895.

The 1881 census filled in a few gaps.  Firstly, the family were not from Wakefield but Wortley or Armley – depending on which census you looked at and that William was a Sanitary Tube maker or worker. The other members of the family stated they were from Armley. Secondly, Nellie was Ellen and thirdly, Ruth could possibly be an Appleby as James Appleby, brother in law, was living in the household along with a Martha Ann aged 9 and giving relationship as niece.

A look on the Freebmd website confirmed the Constantine / Appleby link when William Henry and Ruth Elizabeth (Appleby) married on 31 Aug 1878 in the Leeds Registration District.

Going back to the 1861 census, hoping to find William H’s father revealed that William Constantine (1821) and Ann (Lockbottom) (1822) were the parents of William H. William like his son was a Sanitary Tube Maker and was born in Leeds. As well as William H the children were Joseph 1848 ; Sarah 1850 ; John Edward 1856 and Mary Ann 1859.

Further back to William’s parents – Samuel Constantine b 1788 and Ann Jackson b 1778.  The couple married at St Peter’s Leeds on 3 Jan 1809 and they went on to have 8 children.

But back to William Henry and Ruth Elizabeth in 1881 the family lived at 35 Parsonage View, Armley by 1891 they had moved just down the road to 23 but his employment had changed to that of labourer and all his children attended school except the Wilfred the baby and Elizabeth aged 2.  You may not remember Elizabeth from the list of birth but you may remember Lissey.

By 1901 they were now living at….. well on the census it looked like 13 Bowlingate Terr, but that did not give me a good feeling.  A visit to the Leodis website and search for Bowlingate revealed nothing.  But a manual search of Wortley itself and bingo …. Bowling Garth Terr.  I had a address so why not look at what it was like – no’s 7 – 13 looked to be decent enough houses with steps leading to the front door.  The oval fanlight was surrounded by two stone quadrants with a centre support/decoration.  The windows also had stone decorations above and below.  Partially below ground level was the cellar that looked to have two windows letting in light to what was probably the kitchen.  Back upstairs and there was a large window by the front door.  Upstairs was another large window and a smaller window over the door.  A picture of houses 3 – 5 gives a description of them being back to back, if no 13 an end terrace was back to back I don’t know.

We now know a little more about the family but the children in the bible – what happened to them.  Martha Ann  died in 1965.  Ellen married Ernest Boston on 24 December 1904 and had Harry in 1905 and Wilfred in 1915 (d 1960), again these entries were in the pages of the bible.

Samuel died on 3 August 1960, Elizabeth – did she marry or didn’t she only the people in the bible know.

William married Louisa Bannister and a search on Freebmd for a Constantine/Bannister child came up with Fred born in 1918 and Annie, she  married J H Marshall on 17 July 1920 in the Bramley District.  Who was J H ?  A look on Freebmd came up with no hits for his marriage but a search of the GRO on Ancestry came up with 50% of the answer – John H Marshall, well it was a start ! Back to Freebmd and a look at their birth transcripts and a possible hit for him of John Hemingway Marshall.

Now, J H and his wife are the people that have the Wakefield link.  John was born in Alverthorpe around 1880 and by 1901 was living with his siblings – his eldest sister, Ethel aged 22 was the head of the house, Elden House, Alverthorpe  and was the ‘parent’ to her other 9 brothers and sisters.  I suppose you could say she was helped by a 22 year old servant.  The previous census told that their parents were Charles H  and Annie S Marshall who lived at Silcoates, Charles being employed as a Mill Manager (woollen cloth).

Back to J H and Annie, they went on to have three children, Reginald b 1921 ; Ruth b 1922 and Harry in 1924 all being registered in Wakefield.  Both John and Annie must have stayed around the Alverthorpe area as Annie died in West Ardsley in the 1970’s

We now arrive at the third child of William and Ruth, Sarah born in the summer of 1883.  It was the year that a rumour spread around New York that the BrooklynBridge was going to collapse – resulting in a stampede crushing 12 people.  The year of the Victoria Hall disaster – a rush for treats resulted in 183 children being asphyxiated in a concert hall in Sunderland.  It was the year that the Zulu king Cetshwayo barely escaped a rebel attack and the year that the volcano Krakatoa erupted and it was the year that the Boys’ Brigade was founded in Glasgow.  It was also the year that little Sarah died – 8th June 1883 in Armley, Leeds.

As this was not my family tree I did not want to delve too far back or get too curious as to what else they got up to with their lives but there was one more question I wanted to answer and that was did anyone else have them in their family trees ?  I normally check our Ancestry World Tree but this time just checked them via the trees on Ancestry and a couple of trees came up.  I was pleased that by just checking through the census, Freebmd and the GRO that I had everything they had BUT!!!! I had one thing more than any of them – I had Sarah.

Sarah being born in 1883 had missed the census, simply been and gone and only recorded on her birth and death certificates and in her local parish register when she was christened and buried on 30th June of the same year at St Bartholomew’s, Armley.

St Bartholomew's Church from Wikipedia

St Bartholomew’s Church from Wikipedia

 

 

 

 

 

How can she be forgotten, when we all know her name……………….SARAH

Sources

http://freebmd.rootsweb.com

www.ancestry.com

www.leodis.co.uk

 

 

To check woodkirk MI

St pauls alverthorpe pr’s

York Family History Fair June 2011

What a fantastic day and well done to the organisers.  The day was nice and breezy outside but where I was on the Morleyfhg stand it was quite warm and sometimes a lack of a breeze made it a little overpowering – but saying that the group had a good day and promoted their new booklet, East Ardsley Monumental Inscriptions complete with the burial listings, so every grave has an entry regardless of whether there is a marker or not……..now isn’t that good, you can now find the plot without disturbing any of the church staff.

Morleyfhg @York ©C Sklinar 2011

Morleyfhg seemed to be busy most of the day with people seeking us out to buy publications, ask questions or just a known face saying ‘hello’ – that is so nice.  I sold quite a few of my ‘Family History Diary’s’  both in the A4 and A5 formats and a few of the ‘Interview Diary’s’.  It was so nice that people who had bought them at previous events stopped by and said how useful they were with all the information you had at your fingertips and more important, you could see what was missing !

Wakefield & D FHS © C Sklinar 2011

So who else was there, well next to us was another local group (with whom I also have a connection), Wakefield & D FHS, who also seemed to have a good day. Huddersfieldfhs was also present along with many other local societies.  There were also many businesses selling maps, old and new books, family tree items, family tree printing and transcriptions.  There was also a company that I have had a connection with for many years – Parish Chest and are a lovely couple – you will probably seen them at your local event.  There company is for want of a better explanation a ‘shopping centre’ for all your family history needs.

One of the stands opposite Morleyfhg was FINDMYPAST who were such a friendly bunch of people, always helpful and smiling.  They were promoting their website and offering tips on how to get the most of your searches.  They also had a competition which I entered, won’t win but went through the process of entering.  It was nice to meet you all.

FindMyPast @York © C Sklinar 2011

Around the corner from us was Ancestry, they were a little late setting up and when I snapped them first time were not ready at all to be photographed, but I did anyway!  When I caught them later they were in full swing.

Ancestry @ York © C Sklinar 2011

Upstairs there was The Western Front Association, The Metcalfe Society and more, then up onto the next floor to find Family Search, the website of the LDS Church again, a very friendly, helpful and smiley bunch and willing to take time from setting up to ‘pose’ for a snapshot.  Oh ! if you need to know anything about a regiment, battle or uniform contact the Western Front Association, or better still become a member, they are very helpful and nice and it’s not just a man thing, there are lots of women members too.  Go along to one of their meetings as a guest and see!

Well a good day seemed to be had, but we did think that numbers were down a little from last year, but that did not dampen our spirits or the enjoyment of a good day had by all

WDYTYA & Find My Past Discount

Good News, Find My Past, like many others will be having a stand at the Who Do You Think You event which opens its doors next the  Friday, 25th February 2011.

To promote this FMP they are offering,  for a limited period 10% discount – valid from 21st February to 4th March 2011.

To take advantage of this discount click on the Find My Past link below and enter the discount code when prompted in the payment section.

discount code     WDYTYA11


As well as Find My Past there will be lots of other well known faces there including :- The Society of Genealogists ; Ancestry ; Alan Godfrey Maps ; Archives for London ; Commonwealth War Graves Commission ; Parish Chest ; Scotlands People ; Various magazines and Publishers + over 100 workshops.

Tip :-  Take smaller denomination notes (£5 & £10) and £1 coins, don’t weigh yourself down with coins but it does make it easier for those smaller purchaces.

Tip :- Take copies of documents, don’t risk the chance of losing the originals.

Tip:- Make notes of the names, places, dates etc that you may need or put it all in a Family History Diary and have all your information in one place and at hand for those excursions i.e. a day out at WDYTYA or a visit to the Archives or Local Studies Centre.

Have a wonderful day

Family History Diary – click here to get your diary in a choice of sizes and colours – making it easier to follow your family.