Ellen Elizabeth Armitage (1904-43), mental patient.

Ellen was a cousin of my mother, Grace Evelyn Taylor nee Ivall (1921-2006). Ellen’s father was Robert Melton Armitage (1881-1916), the elder brother of my grandmother Emma Ivall nee Armitage (1883-1970). There is an article about Robert’s life on this blog.

Robert Melton Armitage married Ann Maria Godfrey on 8 February 1903, at St Matthias Church, Stoke Newington. Robert (occupation given as cabinet maker) was aged 22 and Ann was 25.

Ann and Robert’s children were Ellen Elizabeth (born 27 Feb 1904 in Stoke Newington), Florence Annie (born 1906 in Edmonton, died in 1906), Doris Winifred (born 1912 in Hackney, died in 1914) and Marjory (born 12 Dec 1915 in Edmonton). Robert’s daughter Ellen Elizabeth was baptized at St Matthias’s Church, Stoke Newington on 3 April 1904. The register gives Robert’s address as 85 Shakespeare Road.

Robert was a soldier in WW1 and was killed fighting in France on 24 May 1916. Ann, his wife, received a pension of 21 shillings a week from December 1916. Ancestry has a transcript of the WW1 Pension Ledger listing the names of Ann Maria Armitage (born 11 July 1877) and her daughters Ellen Elizabeth and Marjory.

In 1920 Ann married Frederick Francis Taylor in Edmonton. The 1921 census shows them living at 119 Fairview Road, South Tottenham. Frederick was aged 33, born in New Cross (in S London), a shipping agent. Ann was 43, occupation “home duties”. There were no children are listed in the household.

My mother told me that one of Robert and Ann’s children (who was known as Dolly), was mentally disabled. A family story was that visitors took her a rice pudding and she put in on her head ! The 1921 census shows Ellen Armitage aged 17, as a patient at Napsbury Mental Hospital, St Albans. The 1939 Register lists Ellen Armitage, born 27 February 1904, as a patient (incapacitated) at Napsbury Hospital, St Albans. The date of birth shows that this is Robert and Ann’s daughter.

Napsbury Hospital was a mental health facility near St Albans in Hertfordshire. It was initially known as the Middlesex County Asylum. Following the construction of the numerous buildings and extensive grounds, Napsbury opened on 3 June 1905 and was in continuous use as a hospital until its official closure in 1998. The site has since been redeveloped for residential use.

The death certificate of Ellen Elizabeth Armitage says that she died on 16 July 1943 at Napsbury Hospital, St Albans, aged 39. The  address recorded for her was 119 Fairview Road, South Tottenham. She was a spinster of no occupation, daughter of Robert Melton Armitage, a postman, deceased. Cause of death was 1(a) Bronchopneumonia 1(b) Status epilepticus. The informant was A. Taylor, mother, in attendance. Her address was The Lodge, Tottenham High School for Girls, High Road, Tottenham.

Status epilepticus is a medical condition consisting of a single seizure lasting more than 5 minutes, or 2 or more seizures within a 5-minute period without the person returning to normal between them. Previous definitions used a 30-minute time limit. Status epilepticus is a life-threatening medical emergency, particularly if treatment is delayed.

Ellen is buried in Tottenham Cemetery. Records show that she was in Napsbury Hospital in 1921, 1939 and 1943. It was quite common at this time for mental health patients to be in hospitals or asylums for long periods. Ellen's death certificate shows that she was epileptic. Her two sisters and father died before she was 13. Perhaps this also affected her mental health ?

The 1933 Electoral Register shows Frederick Francis and Ann Ellen Taylor at Tottenham High School, High Street, Tottenham. This is the address given for her mother on Ellen's death certificate. The 1939 Register lists them there with Frederick (born 8 December 1887) shown as a school keeper. Ann's date of birth is given as 11 July 1876. Electoral registers show both of them at the address in 1945 and 1949. Ann uses Ellen (instead of Maria) as her middle name in all these records.

Death of Ellen Armitage nee Pinnuck

Ellen (born in 1855) was my great grandmother. She married Robert Melton Armitage in 1876 and they went on to have 12 children, of which 7 (3 boys and 4 girls) survived into adulthood, including my grandmother Emma Ivall nee Armitage (1883-1970). The article about Robert on this blog contains information about their lives together and his suicide in 1910.

It has recently become possible to order a digital image of a death register entry from the General Record Office website for only £2.50. This covers deaths in England and Wales from 1837 to 1957. I used this service to obtain information about Ellen’s death.

The death register shows that Ellen died on 12 May 1913 aged 57 at 92 Milton Road, Stoke Newington. She was the widow of Robert Melton Armitage, a milkman. The cause of death was asphyxia due to oedema of the larynx. A post mortem was performed and the death was certified by R Guthrie, Deputy Coroner for North East London, after an inquest held on 14 May 1913.

Oedema is a build-up of fluid in the body which causes the affected tissue to become swollen. Laryngeal oedema is a common feature of acute inflammation, but it is particularly important because swelling of the epiglottis and vocal cords can obstruct the laryngeal orifice, resulting in asphyxiation. Laryngeal oedema can be caused by trauma, improper endotracheal tubing, inhalation of irritant gases (e.g., smoke), local inflammation and allergic reactions.

I looked for a newspaper item reporting the inquest, but did not find one.

Ellen was buried in Abney Park Cemetery, Stoke Newington. This is a large cemetery opened in 1840 where about 200,000 people are buried. The section of the cemetery where her grave is located was overgrown when I went there and I did not find a headstone with her name on it. It is quite likely that her grave is unmarked. The grave of William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army, is nearby.

The mourning card for Ellen.

Hugh Gater Jenkins (1908-2004), Baron Jenkins of Putney.

Hugh Gater Jenkins was a Labour MP and government minister, who later became a member of the House of Lords. His biography is on Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Jenkins,_Baron_Jenkins_of_Putney

This article contains information and text from the Wikipedia biography. I am grateful to my second cousin Val, who told me that we are related to him.

Hugh was a grandson of Jessy Pinnuck (b1846), who was a granddaughter of Richard Pinnuck (1759-1841), via his son George Pinnuck (1808-1858). I am also descended from Richard Pinnuck, but via his son James Pinnuck (1799-1836).

Jessy Pinnuck married John Edward Gater in 1871. They later had 6 children (5 girls and boy). One of their daughters was Florence Emily Gater, who married Joseph Walter Jenkins in 1903. Their son Hugh Gater Jenkins was born on 27 July 1908 in Enfield.  The 1911 census shows Joseph Walter Jenkins (aged 31, a dairyman, born in Aberystwyth), Florence Emily Jenkins (aged 32, assisting in business, born in Enfield) and Hugh Gater Jenkins (aged 2) living at 161 Lancaster Road, Enfield. Hugh later went to Enfield Grammar School. In 1930 he got a job working for Prudential Assurance, who were his employers until 1940.

On 18 July 1936, Hugh married Ethel Marie Crosbie at St Andrew’s Sudbury (between Harrow and Wembley, in NW London). The marriage certificate shows that Hugh, aged 28, was an insurance official and that his father Joseph was a tobacconist. The bride, who was known as Marie, was also aged 28. Her father was Ernest William Crosbie, a RAF Squadron Leader. The 1939 Register shows the couple living at 2 Holtye Crescent, Maidstone.

During World War II Hugh served with the Royal Observer Corps and the Royal Air Force from 1941, becoming an air traffic controller and flight lieutenant, mainly based in Nottingham (2). After the war he worked at Rangoon Radio until 1947, where he was director of English language programmes.

Hugh Gater Jenkins (1)

An ardent left-winger, Hugh was active in the Prudential Staff Association, the National Union of Bank Employees and the actors' union Equity, of which he was assistant general secretary 1957–64. He and his wife, Marie, became active in the politics of his local community in Croydon, Surrey. Hugh chaired his local Upper Norwood Labour Party and stood for the council. Marie was elected to Croydon Council in 1949. He stood for Parliament without success in Enfield West in 1950 and Mitcham in 1955. Hugh was involved in the Victory for Socialism group opposed to the 1956 Suez War and had been a supporter of CND and nuclear disarmament since its foundation in 1957. In 1958 he became a London County Councillor for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, serving until 1965, and he served on the London Labour Party executive in 1962.

Hugh became MP for Putney, where he and Marie had moved, in the 1964 election and became involved in the Tribune Group of MPs. He was made Shadow Arts Minister in 1973 and became the Arts Minister in 1974, being sacked in 1976 by the Prime Minister James Callaghan. While in office, he abolished museum charges, sought to shift the emphasis of subsidy away from minority interests, like opera and ballet, in favour of improving majority pursuits such as film and television, and tackled the thorny issue of authors' public lending rights (2).

He lost his seat in the 1979 General Election to David Mellor of the Conservative Party, and became Chair of CND in the same year. He was made a life peer as Baron Jenkins of Putney on 14 May 1981. He attended every day at the House of Lords when it was in session and he was in good health. Jenkins was highly active in the House of Lords. So skilfully did he exploit the informal procedures of the Upper House that a limit had to be imposed on the number of questions a peer could ask each day. He circumvented the government's ban on the publication of Spycatcher by reading lengthy extracts from it to ensure it was on public record in Hansard.

Hugh Gater Jenkins, Baron Jenkins of Putney (1)

Hugh was a long time anti-nuclear campaigner and supporter of CND. His anti-nuclear activities before the formation of CND led to rightwingers within the Labour Party attempting to block him as a parliamentary candidate. He was CND Chair from 1979 to 1981 and vice-chair from 1981. As a Member of the House of Lords, he was chair of the Lords CND group. This was the period in which CND underwent a major revival known as the 'Second Wave'.

Hugh’s wife Marie died in 1989 aged 82. In 1991, when aged 83, he married Maria Helena Pavlidis, who was 65. She died in 1994.

Hugh continued to write pamphlets and radio plays, serving on the board of the Royal National Theatre. His later plays were typed on an early Amstrad 256. He said he became 'computerised' late in life. His parliamentary correspondence and speeches continued to be typed on the same Amstrad 256 until he entered a care home near the end of his life in 2004. He died on 26 January 2004 aged 95 in Richmond upon Thames.

Hugh lived in Kenilworth Court, Lower Richmond Road, Putney. This is a block of flats near Putney Bridge. On the building there is a blue plaque that is inscribed

“Lord Hugh Jenkins, 1908 - 2004, Putney MP, 1964- 1979, Minister for the Arts, lived at Kenilworth Court. The Putney Society.”

Notes 

1. The photos in this article were licensed from the National Portrait Gallery website.

2. Info from obituary in The Guardian

https://www.theguardian.com/news/2004/jan/28/guardianobituaries.obituaries

Ernest Henry Armitage (1879-1942)

Ernest was the youngest child of Edward Armitage (1839-80), who was an elder brother of Robert Melton Armitage (1846-1910), my great grandfather. There is an article about Edward’s life on this blog. Edward’s children were first cousins of my grandmother, Emma Ivall nee Armitage (1883-1970).

Ernest’s birth was registered in Q1 1879 in Hackney. There are no other Ernest Henry Armitage births in FreeBMD. His father Edward (then a police constable) died in 1880, when Ernest was aged 1. The 1881 census shows Edward’s widow Mary (aged 42, a laundress) with her children John (6) and Ernest (2) living at 5 Gainsboro Square, Hackney.

I can’t find Ernest in the 1891, 1901, 1911 or 1921 censuses. However, he is listed in Metropolitan Police records as a Constable (warrant number 91064) who joined on 5 Sep 1904 and left on 20 May 1919.

Freemasonry records show that Ernest, a Constable in the Metropolitan Police, was initiated into the Carnavon Lodge, Havant on 1 Oct 1912 age 33 and continued to pay his annual subscription there until 1921.

Ernest married Frances Carey on 1 Jun 1913 in Southsea.

The First World War began in August 1914. Ernest volunteered to join the army on 23 Apr 1915. He gave his address as 8 Peel Terrace, Stoke Road, Gosport and his occupation as motor lorry driver. He was assigned to the Army Service Corps, 268 Company and was sent to France arriving on 21 Jul 1915. Ernest was seriously injured in an accident on 8 Mar 1917 and invalidated to the UK on 12 Mar 1917. A Court of Enquiry into the accident decided that Ernest was in no way to blame. Ernest was sent back to France after he recovered and demobilised on 10 Feb 1919. He was assessed as 5% disabled and assigned a payment of 6s a week. He gave his address for this as 48 Cambridge St, Victoria, which is where Ernest’s sister Mary Emma Armitage lived.

Ernest married again in 1924. His second wife was Elizabeth Jones and they were married in Steyning (in Sussex). Electoral registers show them living at 58 Woodville Road, Hendon between 1929 and 1934. In 1938 and 1939 they were at 636A Finchley Road, Hendon. Birth records indicate that Ernest did not have children with either of his wives.

I can’t find Ernest in the 1939 register. He died in 1942 in Hendon aged 63. He doesn't seem to be listed in probate records.

Car crash involving George Henry Armitage

George Henry Armitage (1898-1936) was a passenger in a car that collided with a tram in May 1935. One of the other passengers (Florence E Beale, aged 36), died in the accident. The following item was published in the Reynold's Newspaper (5 May 1935) :

This incident must have been upsetting for all those involved in it. Perhaps it was one of the factors that resulted in George's suicide "while of unsound mind"  some 15 months later in August 1936.

Frances Elizabeth Weiste nee Paul (1874-1959)

Frances was a cousin of my grandmother Emma Ivall nee Armitage (1883-1970). The mother of Frances was Sarah Sophia Paul nee Pinnuck (1854 – 1916), who was an elder sister to Ellen Armitage nee Pinnuck (1855-1913), Emma’s mother. 

Sarah Sophia Pinnuck married Luke Paul on 8 June 1873 at St Andrew’s, Enfield. She was aged 19, he was 27, a labourer. Their only child, Frances Elizabeth Paul, was born on 3 February 1874 in Enfield. Luke joined the Metropolitan Police in 1875.

The 1881 census shows Luke (aged 34, born in Thetford, Norfolk, a police constable), Sarah (26, born in Enfield) and Frances (7, born in Enfield) living at 34 Catherine Street, St Paul Covent Garden, Strand in London. Also listed at the address were Luke’s brother William Paul (30) as well as Sarah’s brothers Alfred (18) and George (14) Pinnuck.

In 1891 Frances (aged 17, a milliner’s apprentice) was living at 3 Tenison Street, Lambeth, which was a lodging house run by her mother. Also listed at the address were Frances Pinnuck (67), mother of Sarah. There were 8 lodgers (including 3 actresses) staying there. Tenison Street no longer exists. Its site (near Waterloo Bridge) is now occupied by the Hayward Gallery. The census shows that Luke Paul (44) was a patient in Charing Cross Hospital. He left the Metropolitan Police in 1896 and moved to Hitchin, Hertfordshire with his wife Sarah, where he ran The Highlander pub, 45 Tilehouse Street.

Frances Paul married Diedrich Franz Felix Weiste on 9 January 1899 at St Mary’s Hitchin. She was aged 25, he was 28. He was born in 1871 in Tulse Hill, Lambeth. He is listed in the 1881 census, living in Beckenham with his father John Diedrich Weiste (aged 44, a warehouseman, born in Germany), mother Clara (38, born in Germany) and siblings aged 12, 11, 7 and 1, all born in London. Diedrich was initiated into the Freemasons in 1898, when his occupation was “manufacturer’s agent”.

Frances and Diedrich had a daughter Helene Clara Selma Pauline, born 22 November 1899. She was baptised at Holy Trinity, Penge on 3^rd February 1900. The record shows the family’s address as 29 Honley Road, Catford and Diedrich’s occupation as manufacturer’s agent. They had a second daughter, Dorothea Eileen W, born in January 1901. The 1901 census shows the family (with a domestic servant) living at 65 Byne Road, Sydenham, a pleasant suburb of South London.  The house still exists and looks to be quite spacious.

In 1911 the family, still living at 65 Byne Road, consisted of Diedrich Weiste (aged 40), Frances (37), Helena (11) and Dorothea (10). Diedrich’s occupation is hard to read, but it seems to be “Rope turner, yarn and mat agent”. He is shown as an employer. The house had 7 rooms. Also listed was Frances Pinnuck (18). She was a daughter of Alfred Pinnuck, Sarah Paul’s brother. Alfred died in 1897 and his wife Harriett died in 1901, so Frances Pinnuck was an orphan. She had gone to live with Sarah and Luke Paul in Hitchen in 1901 and married George Henry Kemp in 1914. An item about the life of Frances Elizabeth Kemp nee Pinnuck is on this blog.

The 1914 Kelly’s Directory for London lists Diedrich Weiste & Co, Twine and mat agents, 30 Little Trinity Lane, City of London. Electoral Registers indicate that Diedrich and Frances were living at Blair Gowrie, South Benfleet (a village in Essex between Basildon and Southend-on-Sea) between 1918 and 1922. The 1921 census shows the family living at this address, which had 7 rooms. Those listed in the household were Diedrich (aged 50), Frances (47), Helena (21) and Dorothea (20) Weiste, also Ethel Mott (27, a domestic servant) and Gladys Mott (4). Diedrich and Frances are both shown as manufacturer's agents, with their place of work being 30 Little Trinity Lane.

Electoral Registers show that Deidrich and Frances moved to Orchard House, Oak Road, Green Street Green, Farnborough, Kent in 1923. This is now in the Borough of Orpington, on the SE edge of London. Deidrich’s business address changed to 63 Queen Victoria Street in 1925.

A 1930 passenger list shows Dorothea Weiste, aged 29, on board a ship travelling from Liverpool to Rangoon in Burma. It gives her occupation as lecturer and says that she intends to reside in Burma. I can find no more British records relating to Dorothea, so it seems that she did not return to the UK. Burma was a British colony until 1948.

The 1938 Kelly’s Directory shows that Frances was running a shop (listed under Domestic Stores) at 1 The Parade, Poverest Road, St Mary Cray, Orpington.  

The 1939 Register shows Diedrich (born 17 March 1871, a twine and carpet manufacturing agent), Frances (born 3 February 1874, a shop manager) and Helena (born 22 November 1899, a shop assistant) living at Orchard House, Oak Road.

Diedrich died on 27 January 1955 aged 83. Probate records give his address as Orchard House, Oak Road. He left £933 and the executor was his daughter Helena, who was a spinster. Frances died on 9 January 1959 aged 84. She had the same address and executor, the estate was £319.

Helena died on 7 February 1985 aged 85. She was living at Isard House, Glebe House Drive, Hayes and left £53,415. I don’t have a record of Dorothea’s death.

Photo of Frances Elizabeth Kemp nee Pinnuck

This blog contains an item on the life of Frances Elizabeth Kemp nee Pinnuck (1892-1930). Her great grand-daughter Val has recently found a new photo of her, which she has kindly sent me.

The photo, taken in 1915, shows Frances with her first child Elsie Lilian Kemp.

Patrick James Armitage (1926-2018)

Patrick James Armitage was a grandson of William Armitage (1841-1926), who was a brother of my great grandfather Robert Melton Armitage (1846-1910). The information about Patrick’s life comes from the eulogy written by his daughter Joanna for his funeral this year.

Patrick was born on the 7th of August (his mother’s birthday) 1926 in Colchester, Essex. His father was John James Armitage (born 1881), a retired officer in the Royal Artillery. His mother was Clara Margaret Armitage nee Moss (born 1891), a trained tailoress. When Patrick was born he had a sister Clara (12), and a brother John, known as Jack (10). Patrick’s mother was one of 9 siblings so Patrick was always spoilt by the family. His mother’s youngest sister, Auntie Ivy, was his favourite.

Patrick with his mother Clara c 1928

Patrick’s father was a soldier who joined the Royal Field Artillery in 1900 and later served in South Africa and India. He fought in the First World War and was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal, was Mentioned in Dispatches three times as well as being injured at least twice. He was promoted to Second Lieutenant in 1915 and retired from the army in 1920 with the rank of Captain. Patrick’s brother Jack gave up a good career as a design engineer and according to Patrick “ran away to war“, going to Palestine, Egypt, India and other interesting places. Even when he was at school, Patrick desperately wanted to follow his father and brother and join the Army. His father sent him to Colchester High School, and being in a garrison town, he spent a lot of time surrounded by the military. On getting his first bicycle, he was able to bike through the garrison every day rather than taking the bus to school !

Patrick’s family moved to Worcester, where his father worked for the Sandeman port and sherry company. Patrick went to school there. Later his father was appointed as district manager for the Eastern Counties and Midlands region and the family moved back to Colchester in about 1935. Patrick remembered a happy childhood in Colchester and Worcester doing lots of things with his mother such as going to the cinema, tea rooms, pantomimes, visits to the Essex coast, picnics and watching the troops parade in the Lower Castle Gardens on a Sunday after church. His mother was very important to him, however, larger influences in his environment formed his future. He joined the Local Defence Volunteers, later known as the Home Guard, and was a very active member during his school years. He also joined the Air Training Corps, learnt about planes and how to navigate. He became a motorbike dispatch rider, meeting the Duke of Kent before he was killed in a plane crash.

At school Patrick was taught how to dress smartly, present himself well and how to behave. These early lessons stood him well when he finally entered the army. Throughout his life, Patrick was a gentleman, well turned out, with short-back-and-sides, ready for parade. Patrick left school at 16, apparently “because he was wasting his time and his father’s money” and had various jobs such as bicycle mechanic. He then started as an apprentice laboratory technician at Colchester Hospital, but because it was a reserved occupation, vital for the war effort, he did not get his call up. Therefore he resigned and worked as a meter reader, which got him his long desired papers! Like his father, he joined The Royal Regiment of Artillery and in 1946, at the age of 20, he was stationed in Germany, near Kiel. Sixty years later, as an 80th birthday present, he revisited the area, finding places he had seen as a young man.

Patrick in his army uniform

Patrick met Julia Ann Todd-White, a midwife, in Colchester and they married in 1956. They had two children, a girl and a boy, who were born in Colchester. Patrick worked for Sandeman, a position he took over from his father, living in Lexden, a suburb of Colchester. In 1963 he moved to Fyfield, Essex and in 1971 the family moved to Framlingham, Suffolk. Patrick worked for various companies in the wine trade, retired from Adnam’s, and spent the rest of his life in this old market town.

Patrick in later life

Patrick loved driving, cars and travelling. He had many European trips with friends to Belgium, France, Germany, WWI and WWII memorial sites with yearly visits to Switzerland to see his family and grandson.

After Julia’s death in 2015, Patrick moved into the newly renovated Mills Meadow care home in Framlingham, where he thrived and blossomed with all the attention of the staff, the excellent food and wine and regular church services. He enjoyed visiting friends from the community and his new friends in the care home, in particular, Joan, a lady 10 years his senior, with whom he found many things in common to discuss.

At the end of 2017 Patrick developed a lung infection, was admitted to Ipswich hospital and when he returned to Mills Meadow he had lost all his strength to sit and ride around in his electric wheelchair. Unfortunately Patrick did not recover from the setback of Joan’s death and further infections. He died in Framlingham on April 14th 2018 aged 91. His funeral service was held at Ipswich Crematorium.

More Armitage photos

I have added photos of William Armitage (1841-1926) and John James Armitage (1881-1953) to the items about their lives on this blog. The photos were kindly supplied by John's grand-daughter Joanna.

Finding the Grave of William Armitage (1841-1926)

This blog contains an item on the life of William Armitage (1841-1926) a soldier, who later became a gate keeper in Kensington Palace Gardens. The website Deceased Online lists a burial at Kensal Green Cemetery which seemed likely to be his. The burial register gave the grave number as 48425 and I decided to visit the cemetery to look for the grave.

The following information comes from the website of The Friends of Kensal Green:

The General Cemetery of All Souls, Kensal Green, is one of England's oldest and most beautiful public burial grounds, and certainly its most prestigious. One of the world's first garden cemeteries, and doyen of London's Magnificent Seven, Kensal Green received its first funeral in January 1833, and still conducts burials and cremations daily. The cemetery was innovative in having most of the site consecrated by the Church of England, but reserving the eastern spur for Dissenters and others to practise their own rites. Today, people of many faiths and denominations are buried throughout the cemetery. Uniquely among British cemeteries, Kensal Green has been managed by the same private joint-stock company since its inception: the General Cemetery Company (est. 1830) still has its offices by the Main Gate. The cemetery now covers some 72 acres (29 hectares) between the Grand Union Canal and Harrow Road in west London, and is open to visitors every day of the year.

Many famous people are buried in the cemetery. Its notable personalities include some 650 members of the titled nobility and over 550 individuals noted in the Dictionary of National Biography. Kensal Green is the resting place of the engineers Sir Marc Isambard Brunel and Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the mathematician Charles Babbage, and the novelists Wilkie Collins, Anthony Trollope and William Makepeace Thackeray; Lord Byron's wife, Oscar Wilde's mother, Charles Dickens' in-laws and Winston Churchill's daughter; a cross-dressing Army doctor and the surgeon who attended Nelson at Trafalgar; the creator of Pears' Soap, and the original WH Smith; the funambulist Blondin and the Savoyard George Grossmith; the first man to cross Australia from south to north; and the last man to fight a duel in England.

The graves are not arranged in order of their numbers, so I visited the cemetery office to ask where grave 48425 is located. The man there was very helpful. He looked up the grave in the cemetery register. The entry showed that the burial rights were purchased on 9 July 1926 for £10:10 by Ellen Elizabeth Armitage of 225 Cornwall Road, Notting Hill. This was the name of William Armitage’s daughter, thus confirming that the grave was that of my relative. The burial took place on 12 July 1926. A monument, described as “marble kerbs on concrete ledge” was place on the grave on 24 March 1927. Grave 48425 is in Square 123, Row 4. The entry showed that no other people are buried in this grave.

The man in the office gave me a cemetery map showing the location of square 123 and directions on how to get there. He explained that newer graves in the cemetery often have a code on them such as 65234.110.2, which corresponds to the grave number.square.row. This is helpful in locating the square that you are looking for. He also gave me a detailed plan showing the positions of graves within square 123, with the surnames of those buried in them.

Cemetery map

Plan showing graves within square 123

The cemetery is large so it took me a while to walk to square 123. I was able to locate William’s grave by comparing the names on gravestones with those on my detailed plan. William was not a wealthy man, so I was not surprised to find that his grave monument is a simple one. It is inscribed “WILLIAM ARMITAGE died 7^th July 1926 aged 85”.

Grave inscription

William’s grave

William’s grave and those around it.

Angelina Fildes nee Armitage (1868-1949): Tried at the Old Bailey

Angelina Armitage was born in 1868 in Saltash (near Plymouth), Cornwall. She was the second of seven children born to Edward Armitage and his wife Mary nee Willcocks. Edward (1839-1880) was an elder brother of my great grandfather Robert Melton Armitage (1846-1910). A profile of Edward’s life is on this blog. Angelina was a cousin of my grandmother Emma Ivall nee Armitage (1883-1970).

Angelina’s family moved to London in late 1870 / early 1871. The 1871 census shows Edward, aged 32, a police constable, living in Tottenham with his wife Mary (34) and children Angelina (3) and Thomas (7 months). Around 1875/6, Edward and his family moved to Hackney. In 1880, Edward died suddenly from a ruptured blood vessel, when Angelina was aged 12.

The 1881 census shows Edward’s widow Mary (aged 43, a laundress) with her children John (6) and Ernest (2) living at 5 Gainsboro Square, Hackney. His daughter Angelina (aged 13) was an orphan scholar at Cumberland House Orphanage, Greenleaf Lane, Walthamstow.

Angelina married Stuart Gladstone Fildes on 20 June 1889 at St Mary the Boltons Church, Kensington.

From the church marriage register

I wonder if they got married without telling their families, as the witnesses were not family members ? The occupation of Angelina’s father is given as “Inspector of Police”. He was actually a police constable. 

Stuart Gladstone Fildes was born in Chorlton, a suburb of Manchester. He is shown in the 1881 census aged 13, the only child of Thomas Fildes (41), a member of the Manchester Stock Exchange, and his wife Jessie Macblane Fildes nee Mackie (32). They were living at a house called Fairlawn in Lytham, Lancashire. Also listed at the address were a butler, a cook, a kitchen maid, two housemaids, a nurse, two grooms and a coach man. Thomas Fildes died in 1887 aged 47. His personal estate was declared as £25,660 for probate purposes. This is equivalent to about £12,000,000 now (estimated in relation to the earnings index). The house Fairlawn was advertised for sale after his death. It was clearly a large property with 4 entertaining rooms, 11 bedrooms, stabling for 8 horses and 4 acres of grounds. Thomas was a wealthy man!  His widow married Edmund William Birley in 1888.

It is perhaps surprising that Stuart, a man from a wealthy family, married Angelina, who was from a lower social class and must have been quite poor. They set up home at 15 Redcliffe Street, South Kensington but the marriage was not a success and Stuart left Angelina on 7 October 1889, only 15 weeks after their marriage. Angelina asked him to return but he refused. Later that year she applied to the courts for “restitution of her conjugal rights”. Such a case could be brought against a husband or wife who were living away from their spouse without a good reason. If the suit was successful, the married couple would be required to live together again. The case papers can be read on the Ancestry website. The Lichfield Mercury dated 7 November 1890 reported the outcome of the case (Angelina was the petitioner and Stuart the respondent).

A PRESTON MATRIMONIAL CASE.

The case of Fildes v Fildes was heard in the Divorce Court. It was a suit instituted by the wife, praying for the restitution conjugal rights. Mr. Middleton, who appeared for the petitioner, said the parties married on the 28th June, 1889, and after that they lived for some time in Redcliffe Street, South Kensington. The respondent, on the 7th of October last year, left the petitioner, and went to his mother's house at Preston. In the following November there was an interview between the husband and wife, and on the 5th of last December the petitioner went down to Preston and delivered into the hands of her husband the final notice required before the suit for restitution could be commenced. Upon its being served, the respondent disappeared, after which application was made for substituted service. There was an appearance under protest, but it was overruled by the learned President of the Divorce Division. The petitioner said that when she married Mr. Stuart Fildes she believed him to be a gentleman of independent means. On 7th of October last year he left home and she had never lived with him since. The last time she saw him she asked him to return to her, but he refused to so.

Mr. Justice Butt: What reason did give for leaving you?

Petitioner: He never gave any.

Mr. Justice Butt granted a decree as prayed.

Stuart’s disappearance was presumably an attempt to avoid allowing the suit to progress. “Substituted service” is the indirect delivery of legal documents to request an individual's presence in court. Stuart did not defend the case and costs were awarded against him.

Even though Angelina won the case, her husband did not return to live with her. In the 1891 census there is an Angelina Fieldes, aged 23, born in Cornwall, living in Cadogan Terrace, Hackney. Her occupation is described as “living on own means”.  Also listed with Angelina is Robert E A (the initials are unclear) Fieldes, a son aged 3, born in Hackney. There are no Robert Fi(e)ldes birth registrations that match this. The best candidate that I can find is a Robert Herbert Ernest Armitage birth registered Q4 1887 in Hackney. There is no mother’s maiden name registered with this birth, indicating that the mother was unmarried. I can find no marriage or death for this person and he does not appear with Angelina in any later records. Perhaps he was born to Angelina before she married and later given up for adoption? This is speculation on my part.

The 1891 census shows Stuart living as a boarder at Dyffryn Aled, Llansannan, Denbigh. This was a 25 bedroom house on remote moorland in North Wales. It sounds like he may have been in hiding to avoid complying with the court order.

Electoral registers show Angelina at 1 Kings Court Mansions, Fulham Road, London in 1900. The census in 1901 shows her aged 33, living alone in High Street, Yoxford, a village in Suffolk. Stuart was a visitor at a guest house in Sidmouth. The occupation for both was “living on own means”.

There were dramatic events in 1909. The item below was printed in The Barnet Press dated 29 May 1909.

SOLICITOR AND LADY

Exciting Interview.

Last week, a well dressed woman called at the London offices of Mr Charles Henry Cumberland, solicitor, who resides at The Firs, Bell Bar, Hatfield, and the interview took such a dramatic turn that the woman was charged before Mr Curtis Bennett at Bow Street Police Court with threatening to murder Mr Cumberland, and with unlawfully presenting a revolver at Police Constable McDonald, with intent to do him grievous bodily harm.

The woman, who gave her name as Angelina Fildes, declined to state her age, or give her address. Mr Cumberland was called on by the police to give evidence. He said he did not think it expedient to charge the defendant himself, as he did not consider that she was responsible for her actions. About 20 years ago he acted for the trustee of a settlement in which she was interested, and, under their directions, he paid her a regular allowance for about two years. The matter then passed out of his hands, and he had not seen her or had any communication with her from that time until the previous day, when she called his office by appointment. The trustees of the settlement had recently asked witness to act for them again, and that was why the defendant called at his office on Friday. When she entered witness said to her: “I presume you have come to give me instructions as to the mode of paying your allowance from the trustees?” She replied, “I have no instructions to give, and I will not be under your thumb again”. Witness told her that he had been instructed make certain payments to her, and he wished to meet her convenience in every way. She had previously been receiving her money direct from the trustees. Defendant said she would not have an allowance and demanded her husband’s address. Witness said he must decline to give it to her. Thereupon she left the chair in which she had been sitting, took two or three steps backward, and produced a revolver, which she pointed at witness. With the weapon held in that position she said: “I am a desperate woman, and I not going leave here until I get my husband's address.” Witness still refused to give it, and the defendant said: “You won’t?” In order to temporise, witness asked the defendant if she would be satisfied if he asked her husband to meet her at his office; but he did not catch her reply. He then called over the telephone his clerks’ office and asked them to go for the police. The defendant heard him, and said sarcastically: “Oh, I did not think you would have been so kind.” She remained leaning over the back of a chair, pointing the revolver at witness until P.C. McDonald entered. On seeing the revolver the officer said to her: “Put that thing down.” The defendant said: “Who are you talking to?” At the same time she turned the revolver towards the constable, who made a sudden rush and seized her by the hand. At that moment the revolver went off and the bullet entered the office wall. The defendant was then arrested.

The Magistrate: Have you any questions to put to this witness?

Defendant: No; I refuse to be under his thumb. He will allow me the income as long as he thinks proper, and then he will stop it.

Witness: I have no discretion

The defendant: You have. It is a discretionary allowance.

Witness: It is discretionary so far as the trustees are concerned. I have no discretion.

The defendant: For 19 years you have been my bitterest enemy. Nineteen years ago you did me a deadly wrong. Understand that.

P.C. McDonald said he did not actually seize the defendants hand when she refused to comply with his request to put the revolver down. He rushed towards her and knocked her hand up and at that moment the revolver went off.

Inspector Bailey said the revolver was loaded in four chambers, and contained one empty cartridge. When the charge was read to the defendant at the police station she said: “I did not resist at all. As regards Mr Cumberland, I meant it.”

The defendant was remanded.

Angelina was held in Holloway Prison and her case was heard at the Old Bailey on 23 June 1909.  “The Proceedings of the Old Bailey” website contains the court’s official record and says

FILDES, Angelina (41, no occupation), indicted for feloniously attempting to discharge a loaded revolver at Charles Henry Cumberland, with intent to do him grievous bodily harm; assaulting and resisting William McDonald, a Metropolitan police-constable, in the execution of his duty, pleaded Guilty of a common assault on Cumberland; Not guilty of assaulting the police-constable or of firing the pistol.

Prisoner has been in prison five weeks, during which time she has been under observation. The doctor reports that her mental condition is somewhat unstable, perhaps, and she seems to have been brooding over more or less imaginary wrongs; but she has undoubtedly benefited by her detention.

The case was reported by various newspapers including the Exmouth Journal. The edition dated 26 June 1909 reads

WOMAN WITH REVOLVER

Angelina Fildes, the woman who presented a revolver at Mr. Cumberland, a solicitor, in his office near Bedford Row the other week, was brought up at the Old Bailey on Wednesday charged with unlawfully resisting P.C. McDonald. The weapon was discharged as the constable was about to arrest Fildes.

Mr. Morris, for the defence said the prisoner was married in 1889, and five months later her husband left her, and she had not seen him since. She had received £8 10s weekly under trust in which Mr. Cumberland acted and she gained the impression from a letter written by him that the amount was about to be reduced. Her intention in going to the office with the pistol was to draw attention to her life, for she had been living an utterly lonely existence in little villages. She was prepared to promise to communicate with Mr. Cumberland only by letter in the future, and go to live with some friends at Brighton.

The Judge ordered her to be bound over in her own recognisances on the understanding that this course was taken.

Another paper reported that

During the hearing of the case, Mrs Fildes screamed and fell to the ground, being carried out hysterical.

Angelina’s weekly allowance of £8 10s in 1909 is equivalent to about £3,200 now, when related to the earnings index. This figure and the description of her as a “well dressed woman” in the report of her appearance at Bow Street Police Court indicate that Angelina was comfortably off.

In the 1911 census, Angelina (aged 43) and her mother Mary (73) are shown as visitors at 11 Denbigh Terrace, Notting Hill, the house of Angelina’s cousin Thomas William Armitage (39). I can’t find Stuart in the census.

The 1921 census shows Angelina (aged 52, married) and her mother Mary (83, widow) as visitors in the house of Angelina's sister Mary Armitage (54, single, a lodging house or apartments keeper) at 48 Cambridge St, near Victoria Station in London. Her estranged husband Stuart was living in Malvern, Worcestershire.

Angelina’s elder sister Mary Emma Armitage died in 1925 aged 60 at St Thomas’s Hospital, Lambeth. Probate records give her address as 48 Cambridge Street, Victoria and show that administration of her estate (£341) was granted to Angelina Fildes.

Stuart Fildes of Madresfield Road, Malvern is listed as a dog breeder in the 1932 Kelly’s Directory of Worcestershire. His mother Jessie Macblane Birley died in 1938 aged 89. Her last address was Malvern Hotel, Malvern. Probate on her estate (£1,392) was granted to Stuart Gladstone Fildes, no occupation.

The 1939 Register shows Angelina living at "The Gables" in the Truro registration district (in Cornwall). Her date of birth is given as 14 Feb 1870 (the year was actually 1868), her occupation as "unpaid domestic duties". She is listed as married (so there had been no divorce from Stuart).

Angelina died on 26 November 1949 aged 81. Her address was The Gables, Perranporth, Cornwall. Angelina’s name appears in the burial register of Perranzabuloe Church (near Perranporth), so she is presumably buried in its churchyard. Administration of her estate (£2,748) was granted to Barclays Bank.

Stuart died in 1950 aged 82. His address was 45 Madresfield Road, Malvern and he died at Clanmere Nursing Home, Malvern. Stuart is buried at Great Malvern Municipal Cemetery and his gravestone is inscribed “Stuart Gladstone Fildes, born 18 Jan 1868, died 15 Dec 1950.” Probate records show that his estate was valued at £30,563.

The Funeral of Edward Armitage (1839-80)

Edward Armitage was an elder brother of Robert Melton Armitage (1846-1910), my great grandfather.

Edward died on 6 January 1880 aged 41 in Hackney. The 16 January 1880 edition of the Hackney and Kingsland Gazette contained a description of his funeral:

Funeral of a Police Constable

A much respected member of the Hackney Division of Police (Edward Armitage, 547), died rather suddenly in his garden, on the 6th inst., from rupture of a blood vessel, and on Tuesday the final obsequies were observed at the Manor Park Cemetery. The cortege, which started from the deceased's late residence, 26, Pratt Road, Clapton Park, consisted of hearse and mourning coach and the mourners included four inspectors, 11 sergeants, 110 constables; the Band of the Division and four officers of the Volunteer Fire Brigade, with engine also being present, and attracted considerable attention en route. The ceremony was a most impressive one, the officiating divine deducing from the sad event the awful uncertainty of life. The deceased, who leaves a widow and seven children, had fortunately taken the precaution of insuring himself and family in a society which very many of the men of the N and other divisions have also joined, viz., the Royal London Friendly Society, and thus spared the bereaved ones the pangs of poverty which invariably follow the demise of the improvident husband and father. There are certainly benefits to be derived by the families of deceased P.C.’s., still too much provision cannot made to enable a widow with a family to meet the stern realities of the world; and the above painfully sudden case should prove a stimulus to others to make a like provision.

Cemetery records show that Edward was buried in Manor Park Cemetery grave 100/328, which is shared with three other people not related to him.

A revised profile of Edward's life is on this blog.

George Henry Armitage : International Cap

My great uncle George Henry Armitage (1898-1936) played football for Charlton Athletic FC (see the item about his life on this blog). He was selected seven times to play for the England amateur team and once for the England professional team. I have donated one of his England amateur international caps, which was awarded for the match against Wales in the 1923-24 season, to the Charlton Athletic museum. They were pleased to receive it and tell me that they intend to display it at the museum.

One of George's caps, similar to the one donated.

Armitage photos

Cheryl, a great granddaughter of Robert Melton Armitage (1874-1953), has seen this blog and kindly supplied me with photos of him, his wives and children. I have added them to the items on Robert and his son John James William Armitage (1906-41).

My Armitage / Pinnuck Family History Blog Statistics

I started my Armitage / Pinnuck family history blog in 2012 and have now posted a total of 30 items (including this one). The blog is published using Google Blogger, which provides statistics on the number of people who have looked at it.

The total number of page views so far is 10,526, a respectable number. The largest number of page views came from Germany (2,443) followed by the UK (2,280), Russia (1,772), United States (1,422) and Australia (492). Why my blog has been viewed in Germany and Russia is not clear to me.

Items with the most page views are:

888 : George Henry Armitage (1898 - 1936), international footballer

747 : Robert Melton Armitage (1920-1993), train driver

362 : Stanley Thomas Armitage (1925-94), British Rail clerk

350 : Alfred George Armitage (1918-91), signalman and station master

346 : Robert Melton Armitage (1846 - 1910), milk carrier

252 : Gertrude Ellen Bull nee Armitage (1889 - 1978)

185 : William Armitage (1841-1926), soldier and gatekeeper

142 : David Pinnuck (1837-1922) and Edward George Pinnuck (1843-1927), immigrants to  Australia

86 : John James Armitage (1881-1953), decorated soldier

62 : William Frederick Armitage (1884-1940), warehouseman

Several people have seen my blog and contacted me with additional information and pictures, which I have added to the appropriate items.

Frances Elizabeth Kemp nee Pinnuck (1892-1930), Migrant to Canada

I posted an item on the life of Frances Elizabeth Kemp on my blog in January 2017. It was seen by Val, a great granddaughter of Frances. She has kindly supplied me with additional information and photos, which are included in the revised item below.

Frances Elizabeth Kemp nee Pinnuck was a cousin of my grandmother, Emma Ivall nee Armitage (1883-1970). Frances was a daughter of Alfred John Pinnuck (1863-97); Emma was a daughter of Ellen Armitage nee Pinnuck (1855-1913), a sister of Alfred.

Alfred John Pinnuck married Harriett Elizabeth Loveday on February 17^th 1899 at St Matthias Church, Stoke Newington in London. They had four children but the only one to survive past the age of one was Frances. Alfred was a carpenter. The 1891 census shows him at 3 Shakespeare Road, Stoke Newington, the same address as his sister Ellen. It must have been crowded as there were 4 adults and 7 children living there. Later in 1891, Alfred and Harriett moved to Lambeth where Frances was born on October 6^th 1892. She had a twin brother, Matthew Luke, who died in 1893 aged 6 months.

Alfred’s sisters Ellen and Mary Anne also had several children who died young. Ellen had 12 children of which only 7 were alive in 1911. Mary Anne had 11 children of which only 6 were alive in 1911. Most of these child deaths occurred in the first year of life and probably reflect overcrowded housing conditions and poor sanitation. The number of deaths in this branch of the Pinnuck family far exceeds the average rate of infant mortality in England and Wales at that time, which was about 150 deaths per thousand live births.

Sadly Alfred died in 1897 aged only 24, when Frances was 5. The 1901 census shows Frances (aged 8) living in Stoke Newington at 2 Pellerin Road (a dairy) with her mother Harriett, aged 32, a dairy manageress. Harriett died in July 1901, making Frances into an orphan. She went to live with Sarah Sophia Paul nee Pinnuck (1854-1916), who was Alfred Pinnuck’s eldest sister. Records of St Mary’s National School, Hitchen (in Hertfordshire) show that Frances was at the school from September 1901 until May 1907, when she reached the normal age (14) to leave. Her address was The Highlander, 45 Tilehouse Street, Hitchen, which was a pub run by Luke Paul, Sarah’s husband. It still operates as a pub under the same name.

The grandmother of Frances was Frances Eleanor (aka Ellen) Pinnuck. She died on September 11th 1910 at 45 Tilehouse Street, Hitchen aged 86. Her death certificate says that she died of an acute intestinal obstruction. Frances Pinnuck, her granddaughter, is shown as the informant, who was present at the death. It seems that Frances was on a visit to Hitchen, as her address is given as 65 Byne Road, Sydenham.

The next record I have for Frances is the 1911 census where she is shown aged 18, living at 65 Byne Road, Sydenham at the house of her cousin Frances Elizabeth Weiste (37), the only child of Sarah and Luke Paul. Frances Elizabeth Paul had married Franz Friedrich Diedrich Weiste in 1899 and they had two daughters, Helena (b 1899) and Dorothea (b 1901). Diedrich is listed in 1911 as a rope turner, yarn and mat agent (employer). The house had 7 rooms, so apparently the Weiste family were comfortably off.

Frances later went to live in the house of John George Ernest Kemp, a hairdresser, in Camberwell. He had married Annie Mary Loveday, a sister of Frances’s mother Harriett, in 1893. Annie died in 1901 aged 28. The 1911 census shows John Kemp, a widower aged 39, living at 16 Waterloo Street, Camberwell with his sons George Henry Kemp (aged 17, a coffee porter) and Harold Jesse Kemp (aged 16, a printer). 

Frances married George Henry Kemp (born November 16^th 1893) on April 20th 1914 in Camberwell Register Office. They were first cousins as their mothers were sisters. Frances was 21, George was 20, a clerk. They later had two children, Elsie Lilian born in 1915 and Barbara Frances in 1917, both in Camberwell. According to family stories, George was in the army during World War One, but suffered from shell shock (now called PTSD or post-traumatic stress disorder) and was not the same man when he returned.

George and Frances Kemp

George’s brother Harold Jesse Kemp (1894-1969) had immigrated to Canada in 1913. George and Frances decided to do the same and Canadian Passenger Lists (on Ancestry) show George (26), Frances (27), Elsie (5) and Barbara (3) on board the SS Grampian from London, arriving at Montreal on 15 May 1920. George’s previous occupation is shown as “driver, mechanic and clerk” and his intended one was farming. Ancestry has the passenger declarations for George and Frances. They say that their destination was the Manitoba Agricultural College, Winnipeg and that their passage was paid by an Overseas Settlement Voucher. The Overseas Settlement Scheme was set up in 1919 to offer free passage to ex-service men, with their wives and children, to British colonies. It lasted until 1922 and 86,000 migrants were assisted, of which 26,560 went to Canada.

 Passenger declaration completed by Frances in 1920

The 1921 Canada census shows George and Frances Kemp with their two children living in the house of John Grierson (aged 50), a farmer, in the rural municipality of Whitehead, Manitoba. This is a sparsely populated district of the Canadian prairies, about 140 miles west of Winnipeg. The nearest town is Brandon, 8 miles to the east. Here the winters are severe, with the daily mean temperature typically being -17 C in January, but the summers are warm. George was a city boy and found farming work hard. They had three more children namely Dorothy (b 1922), John “Jack” (b 1923) and Frank (b 1925). 

Frances with her daughters Elsie and Barbara

Sadly, Barbara Frances Kemp died in 1927 aged 10 in Alexander Manitoba, from complications due to diabetes. She was one of the first individuals to be given insulin developed by Canadian scientists Frederick Banting and Charles Best, but her symptoms were too severe for her to survive. The family then moved to Swift Current, Saskatchewan for George to work with his brother Harold Jesse Kemp. Harold had received a Bachelor of Science and Arts (BSA) degree in Agricultural Engineering and worked on the Experimental Station in Swift Current. Harold later invented several pieces of equipment for farmers.

Frances died in 1930 aged 38 from complications due to a miscarriage and is buried in Swift Current, Saskatchewan. Her daughter Elsie was then 15 years old and was needed at home to look after the smaller children.  She dropped out of school to do so. George eventually allowed his brother Harold and wife Eva to adopt the young boys.  George then married Alice Lydia Beresford and moved to British Columbia.  Soon afterwards, George, suffering from PTSD, left the family.  Elsie and Dorothy remained with their stepmother.

Dorothy, Elsie, Frank and Jack, after their mother died.

Unaware of what happened to George, it was assumed he had died.  Elsie eventually moved to Alberta and married Albert Joseph Wuttke (1894-1993).  They had two children.  Elsie died in 2005 aged 90. She is buried in Killam, a small town in Alberta, with her husband (there is a photo of the gravestone on the website Find A Grave).

Dorothy remained with her stepmother. She later married and started a family of her own, residing in British Columbia until her death in 1994.  They had 6 children. 

Both Jack and Frank worked in the agricultural industry like their uncle Harold. Jack moved to New Brunswick to work on the Dominion Government Research Station. There he and his wife Gwen raised 4 children.  He passed away in the early 1990’s. Frank remained in Saskatchewan. He passed away in 1983 while living in British Columbia.

Dorothy, Frank, Jack and Elsie in later life

As previously stated, the children were led to believe that their father, George had died. But, in 1979, a UK solicitor found among the belongings of George’s brother Albert, who had recently passed away, information on a brother (Harold Jesse) in Canada. Harold had passed away in 1969 so the letter was forwarded to Jack advising him of the death.  Jack, Frank, Dorothy and Elsie were the only surviving family of the deceased brother.  It was at this point that they discovered that their father had returned to England and passed away in 1967.

George Henry Kemp married Louisa Prior on September 25th 1937 at St John's church, Chelsea. The marriage record shows him as aged 43, widower, a chemical warehouseman. She was 42, a widow.

A UK National Register was compiled in 1939. It shows George Kemp (born November 16^th 1893, the date of birth of Frances's husband), a chemical and drug packer, living at 6 Beechwood Avenue, Orpington. This is a semi-detached house in a pleasant area on the edge of London. Also listed at the address was Louisa Kemp (born March 22^nd 1895).