The Festival of Britain 1951

 

The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition and fair that took place during Summer 1951, seventy years ago.

Unlike previous World Fairs or the Great Exhibition of 1851, this focused on Britain and its achievements, promoting British science, technology, industrial design, architecture and the arts in the post war years.

 Mam went to the exhibition with some of her family.

The Skylon on the South Bank was a symbol of the exhibition.  It was a cigar-shaped aluminium-clad steel tower supported by cables.

Mam also took the opportunity to see some of the other attractions in London

She brought back a souvenir booklet.

Commemorative stamps were also produced, which grandfather had in his collection.

 

Lives of the First World War

Our Grandparents generation was the one most affected by the First World War, whether they served or kept essential services going or waited behind for loved ones. We have listed below the family members we have found who served in the military during the war, but all would have been affected in many different ways. 

Crowther

Joseph Crowther (1890-1969) Service number Z/201

Grandad in  the centre

Grandad served with the Royal Naval Reserve. He enlisted in RNVR Tyneside division 4th company in March 1909 when he was 18 years old. He was a painter by trade and he underwent a painters training course in 1911 on board HMS Vanguard. His service ended in February 1914 and in July that year he married Grandma, Margaret Slaughter, in Jarrow.  Eight days later World War One began.  Grandad re-enlisted in the Navy in October 1914. He sailed in HMS Victory in October 1914 but spent most of his time at sea in HMS Duncan where he would have seen action in the Adriatic Sea in the second half of 1915 and first half of 1916.  HMS Duncan then transferred to the Aegean Sea based at Salonika taking part in operations against Greek royalists who opposed entering the war on the side of the Allies.  In February 1917 HMS Duncan returned to Sheerness and Grandad was based on shore until he was demobilised in February 1919. Grandad continued to serve in the RNVR until 1933; he was awarded RNVR long service and good conduct medal and was invited to the Jubilee review of the RNVR by the Queen.

George Wouldhave Crowther (1892-1915) Service number C382

George was Grandad’s brother; he was two years younger than Grandad. He was living at 8 Dee St, Jarrow in 1914, working at Palmers as a driller, when he attested with Kings Royal Rifle Corps in September. He served for 33 days before being discharged as not formally approved. This was almost certainly because he was ill and he died on 25th November 1914 of Lobar Pneumonia; the informant was William Robson Wouldhave, his uncle. He was buried in Jarrow Cemetery aged 23 on 28th Nov 1915.

Joseph Frederick Crowther (1896-1918) Service number 39998

Joseph was the son of James Francis Crowther (Grandad’s uncle) and Georgina Wouldhave (Grandad’s aunt).  So he was a cousin to Grandad through both parents. Joseph was only seven years old when his father died.  Georgina married John Chambers in 1905.  The family were living in Queens Road Jarrow in the 1911 census; Joseph is described as an apprentice plumber.

Joseph attested in December 1915.  His conduct sheet has a number of offences recorded including twice being absent and apprehended by the civil police; he served 28 days of detention for each offence. Joseph served with B company 20^th battalion of the Durham Light Infantry and he was killed in action on 23^rd March 1918 aged 22 years. He is buried in Vaulx Hill Cemetery at Pas de Calais, France.  The inscription on his headstone reads “Free from sorrow, free from pain, safe in God’s keeping until we meet again,” which was chosen by his brother George Francis Crowther.

Charles Crowther (1895-1961) Service number 30961

Charles was Grandad’s cousin.  His parents were Joseph Crowther and Mary Ann (nee Davies).  He was born in Liverpool, the youngest of six children. The family were living at 10 River Avon Street in the 1911 census.  Charles was an office boy working at a General Merchants.  Charles enlisted on 4^th August 1915.  He joined the Manchester Regiment, Infantry.  He was posted to India in February 1916 and appointed as a Corporal a month later.  He saw service in Allahabad and in July 1917 he was hospitalised for seven days with colitis. He was promoted to sergeant in March 1918 and posted to Singapore in August 2018; he spent seven days in hospital suffering from influenza that same month.

Charles stayed in service in Singapore for another 18 months, finally embarking for home in 1920.  While he was in the regiment his father became ill and his mother sent a heartfelt letter to his commander asking if there was any possibility of his coming home since his father wondered if he would ever see his son again. Fortunately Charles did return before his father’s death in 1921.

Letter from Mary Ann Crowther regarding her son returning home

Charles married Eva Eleanor Neale in Birkenhead in 1923 and was living in Fallowfield Rd, Liverpool in the 1939 register; his occupation was gas meter inspector and collector.  He died aged 66 in 1961 in Denbyshire.

William Henry Slaughter (1895-1973) Service number 680 and 767305 and 22/762

William was Grandma’s younger brother.  He was born in 1895 and was a pupil at St Oswald’s School in Hebburn.  In the 1911 census he was working in a coal mine. When he attested to the Territorial force in 1913 he was working for the Wallsend and Jarrow Mining Company. William served with the Royal Field Artillery, Durham Battery and was deployed in France after war broke out. In 1915 he suffered gunshot wounds to his head and neck but survived following hospital treatment.  In March 1916 he was appointed Acting Bombardier and promoted to Corporal in July 2017. He married Elizabeth McGibbon in March 1918 at St John’s, Hebburn when he was on furlough for a month from 22^nd February, before returning to France. Following the war William continued to serve in the Territorials as a Gunner with the Royal Regiment of Artillery until 1930. In the 1939 register he was living at Mons Ave, Hebburn working as a Fitter’s Labourer in the shipyards. He died in 1973 aged 77 years and Elizabeth, his wife, died in 1976 aged 82 years. 

McAndrew

William Burridge (1889-1972) Service number 104627

William was Grandma’s cousin, the eldest son of Mark Burridge and Elizabeth Ann (nee Wilkinson).  William was born in 1889 and the family were living in Pelton in the 1911 census, four of the sons were working in the Durham coal mines, including William and his brother Edward whose information is given in the section below.  Mark tragically took his own life in 1915. He was found drowned in the Colliery reservoir.  He had not worked for the past 14 years having suffered from mental disease.  He had been missing since 18th October and was found dead 27th November 1915.

William enlisted with the Durham Light Infantry in December 1915 but was placed on the reserve list, no doubt because the country needed coal miners.  He was mobilised in June 1918 to France and returned home in November 1918. In the 1939 register he was living at the family home, 6 Eden Place, Beamish, with his mother, sister and niece.  William died in 1972 aged 82 years.

George Edward Burridge (1895-1977) Service number 301067

George Edward seems to have been known as Edward.  He was Grandma’s cousin, the sixth child of Mark Burridge and Elizabeth Ann (nee Wilkinson); he was born in 1895.

Edward enlisted in July 1915 and joined the Durham Light Infantry.  He was posted to France in March 1916. He was listed as a prisoner of War in May 1918 and was not repatriated until the end of December 1918. An estimated 192,000 British and Commonwealth servicemen were taken captive during the First World War; there is no comprehensive list covering these PoWs. The International Committee of the Red Cross does have some information regarding poWs.  Edward was noted as being taken prisoner at Craone in France.

Edward returned to mining when he got home and he married Florence Isabel Richardson in autumn 1919. They had six children.  In the 1939 register they are living at 64 ‘D’ Street West, Chester Le Street.  Edward died in 1977 aged 81 and Florence died in 1981aged 80.

John Alfred Burridge (1891-) Service number 202260

Form from John Alfred Burridge acknowledging
the receipt of his war medals 

John Alfred, Grandma’s cousin, was the first son of Thomas (Tom) Burridge and Emma (nee Owers).  In the 1911 census they are living at Slaidburn Road, Stanley.  Although Tom was a coal miner neither of his sons became miners. John was an assistant teacher; his brother Frederick’s information is given in the section below.

John attested in February 1915.  He was initially assigned to the Army Service Corps and appointed Corporal in September 1917. In December 1917 he was re-assigned to the Rifle Brigade (Prince Consort’s Own).  He was wounded in action in April 1918 in France; he suffered a gunshot wound to his right thigh.  After spending time in a military hospital he was granted leave from 26^th June 1918 until 5^th July.  In this time he married Hilda Muriel Nicholson who was an assistant school mistress in South Moor. John was discharged in February 1919. 

In the 1939 register he is living at Pelaw Ave, Stanley with his wife and his daughter Jean (born July 1924).  At the time he is an Assistant School Master.  John died in 1966, aged 75, and Hilda died in 1967 aged 78.

Frederick George Burridge (1892-1970) Service number 2322

Frederick was John Alfred’s brother, also Grandma’s cousin, and the second son of Tom Burridge and Emma (nee Owers). In the 1911 census he was an apprentice grocer.

Frederick attested in June 1915 with the 3^rd line 2^nd Northumbrian Field Ambulance, Royal Army Medical Corps. Before he was posted to France in December 1917, he married Nellie Nesbit in early 1916 and they had a daughter, Doris, in October that year.  Frederick was in France until he was demobilised in April 1919.  In the 1939 register he is a shop assistant in a grocers living in The Ridgeway, South Shields.  He was also an ARP warden at a First Aid post in the Second World War. He died in 1970 aged 77 years and Nellie died in 1980 aged 87 years. 

The Imperial War Museum Lives of the First World War

https://livesofthefirstworldwar.org/search#Category=lifestories&FreeSearch=&PageIndex=1&PageSize=20

On this website everyone is encouraged to ‘remember’, to add details, including photos and stories, to create a memorial for ancestors who are named on this website. We have ‘remembered’ all of the relatives we can find and we would encourage you to look at the website, remember our relatives and add any further information if you have any.

How far can we go back part 1

Crowther

The Wouldhave Family

We have been researching our Wouldhave connections for some years now and, although there are mentions of the Wouldhave surname in medieval times our most reliable information traces our direct line back to Thomas Wouldhave who lived in Newcastle and died in 1686, a year after James II acceded the throne.  In parish registers he is described as ‘of Benwell’, an area in the west end of Newcastle, which was in the parish of St John’s. 

St John's Church in Newcastle taken last summer

Thomas married Elizabeth Anderson in 1672 and they had three sons, Robert 1673, John 1676, who died in infancy, and Thomas 1678.

There were a large number of Wouldhaves in the Newcastle area in Tudor and Stuart times.  Many were Freemen of the city and involved in specific trades.

The original font at St John's Newcastle

The family line linking us back to Stuart times is as follows

v  Thomas (1678-1751) a ropemaker and freeman by apprenticeship, married Mary Ellison.  They had four sons and lived in Newcastle.

v  William (1711-?) a ropemaker and freeman by patrimony and was also a mariner or seaman.  The only evidence we have of this is the apprentice certificate for his son Richard.  He may have married Elizabeth Dalziel in Morpeth. We haven't yet found a record for his death.

v  Richard (1742-1783) a mariner who lived in Hull.  He married Mary Grey and had four children, only one of whom survived to adulthood.

v  Richard (1772-1838) a mariner who was brought up in Hull, press-ganged and eventually lived in North Shields.  He married two sisters Anne Whately in North Shields with whom he had two children and Elanor Whately in Wallsend, with whom he had six children.

v  Richard (1794-1844) a shoemaker who lived in North Shields.  He married Isabella Arkel and they had six children

v  George Arkell Wouldhave (1837-1908) a cabinet maker who lived initially in North Shields and later moved with his family to South Shields.  He married Phillis Robson and they had seven children.

v  Hannah Isabella Wouldhave (1861-1911) married Joseph Crowther in South Shields

McAndrew

The Pinkney family

Joseph Pinkney (1738-1823) was baptised in Brancepeth and his father was Ralph Pinkney. It is possible that Ralph was born in either 1687 or 1690.  There are two baptisms for a Ralph Pinkney in Brancepeth, one with father Ralph and one with father John.  It is impossible at this point to work out which one is the direct link. 

Map of Durham showing some of the places the Pinkneys lived

The family line linking us back to the time of William of Orange is as follows

v  Ralph Pinkney (1773-1853) a horse keeper lived in Beamish, owning a freehold property in Great Lumley. Ralph married Ann Pate, who may have been born in Lincolnshire, and they had ten children.

v  Thomas Pinkney (1803-1871) a wagon rider and colliery labourer who lived in Holmside and Craghead. He married Mary Thompson and they had eight children

v  John Pinkney (1822-1884) a coal miner and later, a horse keeper.  He lived in Craghead and Twizell. He married Ann Wright and they had ten children.

v  William Pinkney (1846-1909) a coal miner living at West Pelton. He married Mary Ann Stobbs and they had six children

v  Sarah Pinkney (1874-1951) married Frank Burridge, lived in Twizell and Beamish.

St Thomas's church at Craghead taken last summer

We will be following back through some of our other family lines in later blogs.

Cousins

It was lovely to see some of cousins recently at a local celebration.  So we've pulled together some of our photos of cousins - although we're not entirely sure of the identity on some of the photos.

Crowther

Margaret and Iris

Before she married, Mum was a babysitter for Margaret and Iris.

We're not entirely sure if this is Margaret and Iris but we have no indication who else it could be

Margaret and Iris at Grandma's house with Helen and possibly Anne

At Mam and Dad's wedding

At Whitley Bay with Dad

At home in the sixties

Kathleen, Michael, Pat and Joan

We saw a lot of these cousins since we went to the same church.  Also Kathleen used to our babysitter.

Michael

Kathleen at Mam and Dad's wedding

Birthday Party (Joyce's fourth), with Kathleen, Pat and Joan

Helen and Joyce with Pat and Joan and some of the children from our street

Joan 

Kathleen with Joyce

Anne

Anne with Helen and Pat.  The Birthday cake was made by Aunt Iris

Anne with Helen and Joyce

Kenneth

McAndrew

Celia and Geoff

Celia and Geoff at the beach with Grandma, Dad, Aunt Josie and Aunt Celia

Celia and Geoff at Grandma's 

Celia and Geoff with other cousins at Grandma's

Michael

This photo was taken by Dad and says Michael and Pal in the back garden

Michael and Uncle Alf with Dad

John and Sue

John

John and Susan

Susan

Helen and Joyce with two Susans

Great Great Grandparents Part 2

As we mentioned in the previous blog, the further back in time we go , the more difficult it is to find information about our ancestors.  There are some individuals for whom we have a great deal of information for example if they appeared in military records.  However most of our ancestors were ordinary people who went about their business without being recorded other than in parish baptisms, marriages and burials.  Any further blogs going back in time will only include ancestors for whom we have uncovered additional information.

Crowther

George Arkell Wouldhave (1837-1908)

George was a cabinet maker and joiner. George was the younger of two sons of Richard Wouldhave (1794-1844), a shoemaker (or cordwainer) and Isabella Arkel (1798-1879). George married Phyllis Robson in December 1860 in All Saints Parish Church, Newcastle.

All Saints Church, Newcastle

George had several sisters as well as his one brother, Richard.

His siblings were:

• Ann Wouldhave (1819-1862)
• Hannah Wouldhave (1821-1892)
• Isabella Wouldhave b 1824 married Joseph Nicholson, a shoemaker, in 1853.
• Jane Wouldhave b 1831 married George Sanderson, a Master Boat Builder.
• Richard Wouldhave (1832-1907), a Shipwright. Richard (RI102) married twice, firstly to Jane Jackson at the Salem Chapel, Hood Street, Newcastle, in 1852 and secondly to Ann Webster in 1868 following the death of Jane in 1866. Jane was the daughter of George Jackson, a master mariner in North Shields and Ann was the daughter of Thomas Webster, shipwright of North Shields. Richard went into partnership with William Johnson in 1875 and they had premises near to the Low Lights at North Shields. Wouldhave and Johnson launched their tugs at the Low Lights up until 1884 when the Fish Quay was extended. (More information about Richard and his family can be found in our blog Wouldhave Family Surname at wouldhavestudy.blogspot.com)
• Eleanor Wouldhave b 1841 married David Chambers in 1864 in North Shields.

When George died in 1908, the Jarrow Express of 22^nd May had this information:

Death of Mr G Wouldhave

There passed away yesterday (Thursday) an old and highly respected resident of Jarrow, in the person of Mr George Wouldhave.  The deceased was a relation of William Wouldhave, the inventor of the life-boat.  He was 70 years of age and was for many years a prominent musician in Jarrow and district.  He was a native of North Shields and had resided in Jarrow for 46 years.  He leaves a widow and grown-up family.

Phillis Robson (1840-1917).

Phillis was the daughter of William (1799-?) and Barbara (1803-1869) Robson formerly Smith.  William was a housepainter.  It is intriguing to think that our grandfather, Joseph Crowther, followed his grandfather into the same profession.

Grandad (in his later years) painting

Phillis was born in North Shields in October 1840.  She was named after her grandmother Phyllis (formerly Brunskill) who was born in Middleton in Teesdale in 1765 and was living with the family in Collingwood Street, Chirton in 1841 and 1851 census.  Phillis had several siblings.

• Matthew Robson b1831, a housepainter
• Elizabeth Brunskilll Robson b1835
• William Allan Robson (1835-1849)
• John Sharp Robson 1838, a housepainter, who lived in the house in Collingwood St after his father’s death
• Hannah Bell Robson b1843 married Thomas Murray, a grocer, in 1868 and lived in Collingwood Street.

John Lowe (1821-1884)

John was the son of Robert Lowe (1801-?) and Margaret Scott (1801-?).  He was born in Ferryhill in 1821.  His father Robert was a coal miner and John followed the same occupation in the Durham coalfield from a young age.  He died in 1884 from chronic bronchitis and heart disease aged 63 years. John had the following siblings

• Joseph Lowe b1826, also a coal miner from a young age.
• Ann Lowe b 1831 who was a maid at Windleston Hall owned by William Eden, Baronet, in the 1851 census. This was later the birthplace of Anthony Eden (Prime Minister from 1955-1957).
• Mary Lowe b 1836

Margaret Bell Storey (1818-?)

Margaret had been married at least twice before marrying John Lowe in Kelloe in 1847.  For her marriage to John Lowe she gave her father’s name as Thomas Storey. She had married James Douglas in 1842, also in Kelloe, giving her surname as Graham and her father’s name as Thomas Sheraton.  Therefore it is difficult to find her original maiden name and trace her parents and family.

McAndrew

Richard Paddon (1821-1900s)

Richard was born in 1821 in Co, Mayo, his father was Michael Paddon, a labourer and his mother Anne.  In the 1861 census he was living in the Market Place, Morpeth and his occupation was agricultural labourer.  In the 1871 census he was an agricultural drainer at Billy Pit Village, Longbenton.  He appears in the 1901 census as a labourer living in Gateshead. We cannot find a death certificate for him and cannot find him in the 1911 census so we have assumed he died sometime in the 1900s. 

Nancy or Mary or Anne McKay or McCoy (1831-?)

Mary was born in Mayo in 1831.  Her father was Thomas McCoy, a labourer and her mother was Mary.  She married Richard Paddon in the Catholic Chapel in Pilgrim Street in 1852; in 1870 this Chapel was demolished to provide space for building the Fire Station. The family lived at various places in Northumberland including Morpeth and Longbenton.  In the 1871 census her sister, Catherine McKie aged 27, is living with the family and she is an agricultural field labourer. Mary died before the 1901 census where her husband is described as a widower, but we haven’t found a death certificate.

William Pinkney (1846-?)

William was the son of John Pinkney (1822-1884) and Ann Wright (1824-1891).  He was born in Craghead, Durham. William was a coal miner and eventually a Pit Sinker, one of the highly skilled men who dug the pit shaft.

St Thomas' Church at Craghead

His siblings were

• Elizabeth b1847 married John Grieveson in 1870
• Thomas (1849-1904) married Mary Jane Graham in 1874. He was a coal miner and his sister Annie and brother John lived with him and his family in Pelton.
• Hannah Jane b 1852 married William Owers in 1873.  William was a coal miner and they lived next door to Thomas and his family. Hannah Jane died in 1890
• Ann (1860-1926)
• Eliza b 1862 married James Owers in 1883 (possibly brother to William above)
• John (1868-1941) a coal miner

Mary Ann Stobbs (1848-1918). 

It has been very difficult finding any information about Mary Ann.  She married William Pinkney in 1867 in Trinity Church, Pelton.  On her marriage certificate Mary Ann, a spinster aged 20, gave her father’s name as Joseph Robinson, a coal miner.  We have not been able to find any family on the 1851 or 1861 census that includes Mary Ann Stobbs and Joseph Robinson. The family lived in Twizell Colliery for several years, where William was a Coal Miner.  In the 1881 census the family are living in Brotton in Yorkshire; William is a Pit Sinker. The family later moved back to Pelton. 

St Paul's Church, West Pelton

Great Great Grandparents Part 1

Great Great Grandparents

Our great grandparents were born into the Georgian era but most of their adult life was spent in the Victorian era.  They would have seen a tremendous amount of change throughout their lives and many of them moved to more industrial areas to find work and thrive in the industries which were rapidly changing with technological innovation.  It becomes harder to find information about people before the advent of the general registration of births, marriages and deaths (1837) and before the national census started in 1841. Most of the information comes from parish records that are available online or at the local record offices we have visited. However there is probably more information available that we haven’t yet found. This may change as we find other resources to trace our families.  We also have no images of our great great grandparents although it is possible that there may be photographs of them somewhere.
This first blog gives information of four of our great grandparents from each side of the family

Crowther

Joseph Crowther (1820-1889)

Joseph was the son of Joseph (1786-?) and Betty Crowther, formerly Parkinson. Joseph Crowther Snr was a Slater. Joseph was a Cooper and also a Freeman of the City of Liverpool. Joseph had two siblings, Elizabeth b 1817 and James b 1812. Joseph married Eliizabeth Hitchmough in 1845 at St Brides Church in Liverpool. They lived in Blundell Street and later in Troughton Street in Liverpool until they moved with their family to Jarrow in the 1870s.

Liverpool Town Hall would have been a familiar sight for
Joseph as a Freeman of the city

Elizabeth Hitchmough (1823-1892)

Elizabeth was the daughter of Ralph Hitchmough (1798-1861) and Ellen Penketh (1796-1862). She was born in Hale in Lancashire. (Hale is now in Cheshire and is located close to Liverpool) The family lived in Mulberry Street in the East End of Liverpool.  Ralph was a cowkeeper and the family appears to have been reasonably affluent, having three servants in 1841. Ellen had a number of younger siblings:

John b 1824, who married Sarah Grears in 1848, was a policeman

Francis b 1826, a butcher in the 1851 census

Alice b 1827 married Stephen Kitching in 1848. Stephen had taken over the family business by the 1861 census.

Mary H b 1829 married Charles Chatham, a wood carver in July 1851

Ellen b 1831 married Thomas Williams in 1853.

Ralph b 1832 was apprenticed as a plumber in 1851.

Elizabeth Pratt (1828-1907)  and Thomas Slaughter (1815-1860)

Elizabeth was the daughter of Peter, a labourer, and Mary Pratt. Elizabeth married Thomas Slaughter in 1858 in Brighton, but it isn’t clear if Thomas (1815-1860) was Willliam Slaughter’s (1855-1925) father (and therefore our great great grandfather), since William's birth was registered under the name William Henry Pratt, with no father’s name on the certificate.
Thomas died in Brighton workhouse in 1860; the family must have been destitute since Elizabeth was in the workhouse with her youngest child Frederick Stephen in the 1861 census. Undoubtedly Elizabeth moved north because of the promise of employment for her sons in the coal mines of Durham. Elizabeth married for the second time in 1873 to William Wake (1813-1887), a widower and coal miner, eighteen years her senior.

 McAndrew

Edward McAndrew (1830-1870s)

Edward was born in Mayo in about 1830 and died sometime in the 1870s in the North East.  He lived in the All Saints area of Newcastle and in the 1871 census his occupation is given as Drainers Labourer.  

This early postcard of Newcastle shows the All Saints
area on the right of the picture

When his son Edward got married to Mary Paddon in 1878, his occupation was given as Labourer and he was deceased. We have so little information about him that it is difficult to trace him any further.

Mary Caulfield (1825-1901)

Mary was born in Co Mayo and lived in Newcastle for a time with her husband Edward McAndrew. She was widowed by 1878 and in the 1881 census she is staying with her son Edward and his family in Byker. She died in 1901 in Wallsend.

Early 1900s Map of the area of Devon around Exeter,
Crediton, Newton St Cyres and Poughill.

Thomas Burridge (1833-1919)

Thomas was the son of Thomas Burridge and Elizabeth Stuckey.  He was born in Poughill in Devon in 1833.  Thomas Snr died at the age of 38 in 1842.  The family was split up and Elizabeth is an agricultural labourer in the 1851 census with her daughter Jane but there is no sign of Thomas or his other siblings. They may well have been apprenticed to a farmer. In December 1854, Thomas married Elizabeth Voysey in Newton St Cyres, Devon.  They moved to Cornwall in the early 1860s and then to the North Durham area in the late 1860s.  Thomas had the following siblings

Mary b 1831

Elizabeth b 1839

Jane b 1842

Elizabeth Voysey (1830-1900). 

Elizabeth was the daughter of John Voysey (1796-1861) and Elizabeth Bowden (1799-1869).  She was born in 1830 in Puddington, Devon. Puddington is a small village in mid-Devon not far from Tiverton.  John was a Farm Labourer and the mortality rate of children in the area at this time was high; several of their children died young. The following siblings did reach adulthood.

Mary Ann b 1824 married James Kingslan in 1846

Harriet (1828-1873) ended her days in the workhouse at Crediton

Eliza b 1837 married James Bowden in 1856. Their daughter Emma Bowden was with Thomas and his family in Bowes Terrace, Lamesley, on the 1871 census.
Elizabeth married Thomas Burridge at Newton St Cyres in 1854.

The parish church of St Andrew's, Lamesley

Great Grandmothers

Our Great Grandmothers either moved to the North East when their husbands or families came looking for work in the mid 19th century or they were born in this area of the country. They would have had hard lives with large families to care for. Many of them lived in coal mining areas which have extensively changed or disappeared following the closure of the mines in the twentieth century.

Crowther

Hannah Isabella Wouldhave (1861-1911)

Hannah was born in North Shields and baptised at the Middle Street Mission.  Her parents were George Arkell Wouldhave (1837-1908) and Phyllis Robson (1840-1917). George was a cabinet maker and joiner.  The family was related to the famous William Wouldhave, Inventor of the Self-righting Lifeboat. 

William Wouldhave exhibition at South Shields Museum

The family lived in North Shields until the mid 1860s when they moved to Jarrow.  Hannah was the eldest child and her siblings were

• Elizabeth Ann Wouldhave (1863-1925), who married Thomas Giddes Morpeth in 1884 in St Peter’s, Jarrow.  Thomas was an Engine Fitter and the family lived in Wallsend.
• Georgina Wouldhave (1867-1937) married James Francis Crowther (the brother of Thomas Frederick Crowther, Hannah's husband).
• William Robson Wouldhave (1873-1923) married Sarah Ellen Ibbs (1873-1939) in 1897 at St Paul’s, Jarrow.  William was a Driller in the Shipyards.  The family lived in Jarrow.
• Richard Wouldhave was born in 1877 and died a year later.  He was buried in Jarrow cemetery.
• John George Wouldhave (1879-1952) married Frances Batey Quin (1881-1950) in 1915 in South Shields. He worked in the shipyards and the family lived in Jarrow.
• Eleanor Jane Wouldhave (1883-1962) married George Alexander Stock (1882-1918) in 1906 in St Mark’s, Jarrow. 

Isabel (Bell) Lowe (1859-1933)

Bell was the daughter of John Lowe (1821-1884) and Margaret Bell Storey (1818-?).  She was born in Kelloe in North Durham, where her father was a coal miner.  Margaret, her mother, had been married at least twice before marrying John and there were children in the family from at least one previous marriage. 

Bell Lowe in the late 1920s

The family moved to Jarrow in the late 1870s. A number of Bell’s siblings died young; the following reached adulthood

• Jane Douglas (1844-1881), a child of a previous marriage, married William Gates, a coal miner in 1862.
• John Lowe (1851-1924), married Frances Jane Fenton in 1874.  John worked as a coal miner all of his life and is buried in Hebburn Cemetery.
• Mary Hannah Lowe (1858-1897) married George Maudling, a coal miner, in 1879.
• Elizabeth Lowe (1861-?) married Alfred Davison in 1891. 

McAndrew

Mary Paddon (1854-1938)

Mary’s birth was registered in the All Saints district of Newcastle. She was the daughter of Richard Paddon (1821-?) and Mary McKay or McCoy (1831-?), who were both born in Mayo, Ireland. They were married in the Catholic Chapel in Pilgrim Street in 1852; in 1870 this Chapel was demolished to provide space for building the Fire Station. The family lived at various places in Northumberland including Morpeth and Longbenton.  Richard’s occupation was agricultural labourer. Mary married Edward McAndrew in 1878.  Mary had seven children, all girls, with the exception of her son, Edward.  She must have found it particularly difficult bringing up a family when her husband, Edward, was admitted to the County Lunatic Asylum in Newminster, Morpeth in 1896. In the 1901 census Mary was an agricultural labourer, aged 47 years.  When her husband was released from the Asylum he wasn’t able to work, so there wouldn’t have been much money coming into the household.  Mary died in Wallsend in 1938 from Heart Failure, aged 84 years.

Shipyard cranes in Wallsend in the late 1970s

Her siblings were

• Bridget Paddon (1857-1922) married George Turnbull in 1878.  The family lived in Lamesley, Eighton Banks and Gateshead.  Bridget had six sons and one daughter; most of her sons became coal miners.
• Michael Paddon (1859-1919) lived in Gateshead and was a night watchman for the North East Railway.
• Thomas Paddon (1860-1933) married Margaret McHugh in 1888.  They had six children and the family lived in Felling.  Thomas was a Coal Hewer.
• John Paddon (1865-?) was also a coal miner and lived in Gateshead.
• Patrick Paddon (1870-?) worked as a labourer for the NE Railway Company and lived in Gateshead with his brother Michael.

Sarah Pinkney (1874-1951)

Sarah was the daughter of William Pinkney (1846-?) and Mary Ann Stobbs (1848-1918).  The family lived in Twizell Colliery for several years, where William was a Coal Miner.  In the 1881 census the family are living in Brotton in Yorkshire; William is a Pit Sinker i.e. one of the highly skilled men who dug the pit shaft. The family later moved back to Pelton. Sarah married Frank Burridge (1873-1915) in October 1867 in Trinity Church, Pelton.  They lived in Beamish.

Modern day Beamish Village

After Sarah’s husband, Frank, died, she stayed with her son Frank and they lived in Wallsend. She was buried at Holy Cross Cemetery in 1951. Sarah had the following siblings

• Elizabeth Ann Pinkney (1869-1939) married Richard Gloyne in 1893.
• John Pinkney (1872-1952), a coal hewer who lived with his sister Dinah and her husband.
• Dinah Pinkney (1876-1940) married William Andrew Nixon in 1895. In the 1939 register they were living in Craghead.
• William Pinkney (1881-1946) married Margaret Annie Carr. William was a coal miner and in the 1939 register he was living in Seaham Colliery.
• Josephine Pinkney (1889-1952) married Samuel Wase.  In the 1939 register they are living in Stockton on Tees.  Josephine was buried in Preston on Tees.