Herbert George Wilkins (1888-1951), cable maker

Herbert George Wilkins was a brother of my grandmother Gertrude Taylor nee Wilkins (1890-1919). Herbert signed Gertrude’s marriage certificate as a witness, so seems to have been close to his sister. However, I never heard his name mentioned by either my grandfather or father, so presumably they lost touch with him after her death.

Herbert was born on 10 Mar 1888 in Woolwich, the seventh of nine children born to Henry Wilkins (b1850 in Bethnal Green, London) and Jane Wilkins nee Cornwell (b1851 in Kelvedon, Essex).

The 1891 census shows Henry Wilkins aged 41, a grocer, living at 31 Kidd St (a shop), Woolwich Dockyard with his wife Jane (40) and their children Elizabeth (15), Albert (13), Alice (11), Ethel (9), Cecilia (7), Annie (5), Herbert (3) and Gertrude (1).

By 1901, the family were living at 11 Church St, Woolwich and consisted of Henry (aged 50, now a coffee house keeper), Jane (49), Albert (23), Alice (21), Ethel (19), Bessie (16), Annie (15), Herbert (13), Gertrude (11) and Mabel (9).

Herbert enlisted with the Army on 10^th November 1902 at Woolwich, aged 14 years and 8 months, signing on for 12 years with the Colours. His record can be viewed in the British Army WW1 Pensions database on the Ancestry website. He joined the Army Service Corps as a saddler. At this time the British Army relied on horses to move their equipment. Men were needed to look after and drive the horses. The file contains a note from Herbert’s father giving permission for his son to enlist. There is also a letter from the headmaster of Herbert’s school (St Michael’s Boys’ School, Woolwich) saying “He is thoroughly well behaved, industrious and likely to make a good soldier. When he left school he had passed the seventh standard.”

Herbert was stationed at Woolwich. His army rank changed from Boy to Driver on 10 March 1906 when he reached the age of 18. In September 1907 he was transferred to Dover, then to Shorncliffe in February 1908. On 18 December 1909, Herbert (aged 21) married Mary Allan Kennedy (aged 20, born in Silvertown, West Ham) at Woolwich Register Office.

 Herbert was transferred back to Dover in February 1910. The 1911 census shows him (aged 23, a driver harness maker in the Army Service Corps) and his wife Mary (aged 21) as boarders at 14 Oxenden St, Dover. He left the Army on 27 May 1911 at Dover. His transfer document gives his intended place of residence as 350 Albert Rd, North Woolwich and his desired employment was “Stacker in Automotive Works”.

The first child of Herbert and Mary was Herbert Bryce Wilkins, born 28 July 1911 in Woolwich. They went to have five more children namely John Kennedy (born 1914), Bessie M (born 1916, died the same year), Marjorie (born 1923), Mary (born 1925) and May (born 1929) Wilkins, all born in the Dartford registration district.

Herbert was at the wedding of my grandparents Gertrude Wilkins and William Taylor in 1912. The  photo below of Herbert is extracted from a group photo taken then.

Britain declared war on Germany on 4 August 1914 when Herbert (aged 26) was still in the Army Reserve. He was called up on 17 August 1914 and sent to France to serve in the Army Service Corps as part of the British Expeditionary Force. Army rules required Herbert to extend his period of service by 12 months if Britain was at war when the term of his enlistment expired. He was therefore obliged to stay in the Army until November 1915, which he did. Herbert was discharged from the Number 1 Depot Company of the Army Service Corps on 9 November 1915 at Aldershot. His rank was Driver (Saddler), age 28 years 8 months, height 5 feet 3 inches. His intended place of residence was 60 Stapley Road, Belvedere, Kent (which is in the Dartford registration district). Herbert’s discharge papers describe him as a “sober and reliable man, accustomed to care and management of horses” and his military character as “exemplary”. As a result of his war service, Herbert was awarded the 1914 Star, British War and Victory campaign medals.

Herbert in 1915

I have a newspaper clipping describing the funeral of my grandmother Gertrude Taylor nee Wilkins, who died of influenza in 1919. It says that Herbert and Mary were there.

The 1921 census shows Herbert (aged 33), Mary (30), Herbert (9) and John (7) Wilkins living at 60 Stapely Road, Upper Belvedere. Percy George Page (26) was also listed at the address as a boarder. Herbert was out of work, his last job being to operate a cable stranding machine for cable making at Callenders Cable & Construction Company, who had a factory in Lower Belvedere. Percy had a job at the same site.

Electoral registers show Herbert and Mary Wilkins living at 60 Stapley Road from 1919 to 1951. The house still exists and is a modest mid-terrace property. It is close to the The Fox pub and a parade of shops in Nuxley Road. Herbert and Mary’s children are also listed (when they had reached the age of 21) at this address - Herbert Bryce Wilkins 1934 to 1937, John Kennedy Wilkins 1935 to 1940, Marjorie 1945 to 1948, Mary in 1946 and 1947.

The national register compiled in 1939 shows Herbert, a copper wire winder at a cable works, living at 60 Stapley Road with his wife Mary and son John (a capstan lathe hand), daughter May (at school) and Percy G Page (a builder's labourer).

Marjorie Wilkins married George Frederick Marsh in 1947 at All Saints Church, Belvedere. The marriage register gives the occupation of her father (Herbert George Wilkins) as “Factory Hand”.

Herbert and Mary in 1947

Herbert and Mary’s youngest child May Wilkins married Ernest William May in 1948 and became May May ! The marriage was witnessed by Herbert who signed the marriage register. His occupation is given as “Cable Maker”. He probably worked for British Insulated Callenders Cables Ltd, which had been formed in 1945 from the merger of the Callender Cable and Construction Company with British Insulated Cables. May and Ernest lived at 60 Stapley Road after their marriage.

Herbert died on March 21st 1951 aged 63 in Belvedere. In 1952, his widow Mary married Percy George Page, a long term boarder at 60 Stapley Road. He was living there in 1921 and electoral registers show him at the address from 1932. Mary lived at 60 Stapley Road until she died in 1967 aged 77. Administration of her estate (£210) was granted to her daughters May and Marjorie.

Herbert is buried in Erith Cemetery, Brook Street, grave DD38. I visited the grave in 2015. 

Herbert's grave in 2015

The gravestone was inscribed

In Loving Memory of

Herbert G Wilkins 1951

Herbert B Wilkins 1955

Percy G Page 1961

Mary A Page 1967

Forever in our thoughts

Herbert B Wilkins was the eldest son of Herbert and Mary. The grave has recently been refurbished by Herbert's grandson Philip May.

The grave in 2018

May and Ernest May continued to live at 60 Stapley Road until 1973.

Job Cornwell (1780-1869), agricultural labourer

Job Cornwell was my great, great, great grandfather. He was the father of George Cornwell (1817-1907), who was the father of Jane Wilkins nee Cornwell (b1851), who was the mother of Gertrude Amy Taylor nee Wilkins (1890-1919), who was the mother of my father, Eric William Taylor (1913-2003).

Job was born in 1780 and baptised on 6 July 1780 at St Mary, Kelvedon in Essex. His parents were Job (1756-1806) and Hannah Cornwell. He was the second of their seven children.

Job went to work at sea. In 1798 Commodore Sir Sidney Smith was manning his fleet to attack the French in Egypt. A press gang from the Commodore’s flag ship seized Job on board a coal ship. He refused to be sworn and was made a prisoner. Being an apprentice on board a coal brig, his captain claimed him and he was released.

On 21 October 1805, Job married Mary Butler (b1785), a local girl, in Kelvedon. He was aged 25 and she was 21. Parish records show that Ann Cornwell Butler was born on 8 July 1805 and baptised on 11 August 1805 at Kelvedon. Her mother’s name is given as Mary Butler with no father’s name. It seems likely that Job was her father. Perhaps he had not been able to marry Mary before Ann’s birth because he was he was away working at sea ? Job and Mary went on to have ten more children : Mary (1807-87), Phoebe (1808-85), Job (1811-66), Amelia (b1812), Charles (b1815), George (1817-1907), Jane (b1819), Emma (b1821), Harriet (b1823) and Rebecca (b1825).

The 1841 census shows Job, an agricultural labourer aged 60 living in Kelvedon with his wife Mary (55) and their youngest children Harriet (18) and Rebecca (15). Job’s wife Mary died in 1843 aged 58.

The 1851 census for Kelvedon lists Job Cornwell, aged 71 an agricultural labourer, with his daughter Amelia (37) and her husband William Freeborn (36, an agricultural labourer). Also in the household were Job’s daughter Rebecca Cornwell (25, a servant) and his grandsons George  (11) and Charles Cornwell (9).

By 1861, Job (aged 81) was living in Kelvedon with William (48) and Amelia (48) Freeborn and their daughter Harriet (8).

Job died on 28 May 1869 aged 89 and was buried in Kelvedon parish churchyard on 6 June. A newspaper item recording his burial says that he left behind 7 children, 42 grandchildren and 80 great grandchildren!

George Cornwell (1817 - 1907), coal merchant

George Cornwell was my great, great grandfather - he was the father of Jane Wilkins nee Cornwell (1851-1934), who was the mother of Gertrude Amy Wilkins (1890-1919), who was the mother of my father, Eric William Taylor (1913-2003).

Records indicate that George Cornwell was born, lived and died in Kelvedon, which is a small town in Essex between Chelmsford and Colchester. George’s ancestors, going back at least three generations, also came from Kelvedon.

George was baptized on 16 March 1817 at St Mary, Kelvedon. His date of birth was probably during February 1817, as children were normally baptized about 1 month after they were born. He was the seventh of eleven children (three boys and eight girls) whose parents were Job Cornwell (1780-1869) and his wife Mary Cornwell nee Butler (1785-1843).

George Cornwell married Elizabeth Frankling (born 1818 in Black Notley, a village nearby) on 11^th  August 1838 at St Mary, Kelvedon. He was 21 (a labourer) and she 20 (a servant). The parish record of the marriage indicates that he wasn’t able to sign his name. Their first child was born during the last 3 months of 1838 and so Elizabeth was pregnant when they married – this was quite common then. They went on to have ten children namely Charles (1838-97), George (1840-1912), Elizabeth (1842-1907), Jane (1845-9), Henry (born 1848), Jane (1851-1934), Rebecca (born 1854), Joseph (1856-7), William (born 1858) and Eliza (1861-3). At least three of their children died in infancy.

The census in April 1841 lists George Cornwell, an agricultural labourer aged 25 in Kelvedon living with his wife Elizabeth (24) and their children Charles (3) and George (1).

Kelvedon was on the road between London and Norwich and contained four coaching inns, where the coach horses were changed. One of the first railway lines in SE England was built to cover this journey. By 1843 the line went from London to Colchester and a station at Kelvedon was open. It made journeys to and from London much easier and had a major effect on the town.

The 1851 census shows George and Elizabeth Cornwell living in Kelvedon with their children Charles (aged 12), George (10), Elizabeth (8), and Henry (3). Their daughter Jane Cornwell (my great grandmother) was born on 2 October 1851. The birth certificate indicates that her mother, Elizabeth, was illiterate.

In 1861, George and Elizabeth are listed at High St, Kelvedon with their children George (now aged 20 and a blacksmith), Henry (12), Jane (9) Rebecca (6) and William (2).

British tariffs on imported cereals were abolished in 1846. Mechanisation and the development of new farmland meant that large amounts of wheat could be efficiently produced on the American prairies. Improvements in transport (new railways and steamships) made export cheaper. As a result, from about 1870 onwards, significant and increasing amounts of wheat were imported into Western Europe, which resulted in falling grain prices and a decrease in demand for agricultural labourers in Britain. This had a big impact on the countryside and many people migrated to London and other large towns in search of employment. Most of George’s children moved away from Kelvedon. His son, Charles moved to Wells in Somerset and later to Erith, his son George to Camberwell, his daughter Elizabeth to Erith, his daughter Jane to Woolwich and his son William to Australia returning to Kelvedon, then to Erith.

The Chelmsford Chronicle dated August 11th 1871 reported on the Kelvedon Horticultural Society Annual Show. George won second prize in the "Best cultivated allotments" section and first prize in the "Best six parsnips", "Best collection of vegetables", "Best 1 lb of red currants" and "Best 30 gooseberries" categories.

By 1871, only William (now aged 12) was living with George and Elizabeth in High St, Kelvedon. Up to 1871, the occupation of George Cornwell is given as an agricultural labourer. However, from 1881 onwards his occupation is given as a coal dealer / merchant. In 1881 there was just George (64) and Elizabeth (63) in the household, still in High Street, Kelvedon.

The 1884 Franchise Bill gave George Cornwell (as the male head of a rural household) the vote for the first time.

The 1890, 94 and 98 Kelly’s directories for Essex list “George Cornwell, coal merchant” in their Kelvedon section.

Elizabeth, George’s wife, died in 1889. The 1891 census shows George, a widower, living alone in High St, Kelvedon. By 1901 George, then aged 84, was living with a housekeeper, Florence Robinson (22) who was the stepdaughter of his late son Charles (who died in 1897). George was listed as retired.

High Street, Kelvedon c 1900

All of the censuses from 1851 to 1901 give George’s address as High St, Kelvedon. However, none of them give street numbers. Households are listed in order along the High St and are numbered as follows in the 1901 census

78        Freemason’s Hall + Caretaker Cottage

82        George Cornwell

91        Kingsthorpe House

96        White Hart Inn

98        Angel Inn

George Cornwell’s house was therefore between the Freemason’s Hall and Kingsthorpe House, both of which are still there - on the south side of the High St, at its western end. It seems that George’s house has been demolished as more modern housing is where I would expect it to have been. Using the approach above with other censuses indicates that he lived in the same house between 1851 and 1901. My sister Evelyn and her family stayed in a flat over a shop (The Aerial and Satellite Centre) in Kelvedon for short time in the 1980s. By co-incidence (she didn’t know it then) this is approximately the site of where George Cornwell lived.

George Cornwell died in Kelvedon on the 16 July 1907 aged 90. He was buried on 20 July in the same grave as his wife, in the churchyard of St Mary, Kelvedon. Essex Family History Society have prepared a list of monumental inscriptions in the churchyard and a map showing burial locations. I have located George’s grave using this. The gravestone (which is now barely legible) reads :

In loving memory of Elizabeth the beloved wife of George Cornwell / who died 9^th Feb 1889 aged 71 years. / Now she is gone but not forgotten, never shall our memory fade / Sweetest thoughts shall ever linger, around the spot she is laid / Her end was peace / Also of the above George Cornwell / who died 16^th July 1907 aged 90 years / Thy will be done

The gravestone of George and Elizabeth Cornwell

His will (made in 1903) divided George’s estate, which was £121 15s 1d (equivalent to about £7,000 now), equally between his daughter Elizabeth, his son George, his daughter Jane and his housekeeper Florence Robinson. The executor was George’s friend Francis Nichols. Elizabeth died in 1907, shortly before George.

Margaret Taylor nee Smiles (1852-1917)

Margaret Smiles was my great grandmother. She was the mother of my grandfather William Taylor (1890-1972).

Margaret was born on 5^th September 1852 at 11 Liverpool Street, Newcastle upon Tyne. She had a twin sister called Ellen. Her father was Alexander Maddison (no occupation is given on the birth certificate) and her mother was Jane Smiles.  Margaret’s parents were not married – about 6% of births in 1850 were illegitimate. The person who registered the birth was Jane’s sister, Mary Smiles, who also lived at 11 Liverpool Street. Margaret and Ellen were baptized on 8 September 1852 at St Andrew’s Church, Newcastle. The baptism record gives the parents as Alexander and Jane Smiles of Liverpool Street, the father’s occupation being blacksmith. Curiously, Margaret and Ellen were baptised again on 26 September 1852, at the same church and by the same vicar. This time the record gives Jane Smiles as the mother but no father is listed. Jane’s occupation is given as “single woman”. Perhaps the vicar found out that Jane was not married and insisted on the baptism being repeated ?

The 1851 census shows Margaret’s mother Jane aged 32, unmarried, a cow keeper living in Liverpool Street, Newcastle. Also at the address were Jane’s father William Smiles, a widower and retired tanner aged 68 as well as Jane’s siblings Mary (aged 22, occupation listed as “carries milk”) and Thomas (17, a plasterer’s apprentice). Also listed is Harriet Smiles aged 4. The census return says that she was William’s daughter although she was actually his granddaughter (she was Mary’s illegitimate daughter). All were born in Newcastle. Census data shows that Jane remained unmarried and continued to live in Liverpool Street, Newcastle with her sister Mary until Jane died in 1890.

I have found only one Alexander Maddison in the 1851 census. He was aged 30, a labourer and lived in South Shields (near Newcastle) with his wife Jane (30) and their children Joseph (3) and Ann (2). In 1871 he appears as a stonemason with 7 children and he died in 1901 aged 81. He was possibly Margaret’s father, but I can’t be sure.

Margaret was not well educated and remained illiterate throughout her life. This may explain some inconsistencies in the records for her.

In 1861, William Smiles (aged 78, a cowkeeper), his unmarried daughters Jane (38, a housekeeper) and Mary (28) were living at 3 Liverpool Court, Newcastle. Also at the address were Jane’s daughters Margaret (7) and Ellen (7).

The 1871 census shows Margaret as a domestic servant (aged 17) living at 34 Liverpool Street in the house of Ralph Nixon (55, a blacksmith), his wife Ann (60) and their two sons William (23) and Robert (20). Ann was an elder sister of Jane Smiles and so was Margaret’s aunt. 

Margaret married George Taylor, a driver in the Royal Artillery, on 21 February 1877 in the Newcastle Registry Office. The certificate records her age as 23 (she was actually 24) and living at Leazes Lane, Newcastle. He was 27 and living in the Newcastle Barracks. His father is shown as Daniel Taylor, an innkeeper. Her father is listed as William Smiles (who was actually her grandfather), a blacksmith. Margaret and George's first child was born on 16 July 1877, so Margaret was pregnant when she married.

I don't have a photo of Margaret. However, I do have one of Ellen, her twin sister who presumably looked like her. The photo of Ellen is included in the item about her life on this blog.

Margaret and George had 12 children, 8 boys and 4 girls. Four of them (3 boys and a girl) died as children. The places of birth of the eldest children indicate where George was posted during his army career. Their son George was born 1877 in Newcastle, Ernest Edward born 1879 in Weedon Barracks, Northants, Daniel born 1880 in Woolwich, Harriet Jane born 1881 in Bengal, East India and Charles born 1885 in Woolwich. Parish records for St Mary Magdalene, Woolwich show the baptisms of Ernest and Daniel on 26 November 1880. George was then a Bombardier in the Royal Artillery 3^rd Brigade

Woolwich was the headquarters of the Royal Artillery and there was (and still is) a large, impressive looking barracks facing Woolwich Common. It seems that George was posted to India late in 1880 or in 1881. The Indian Army was formed by the British after the Indian Mutiny in 1857. Prior to this time the British East India Company had their own army units, paid for by their profits. The Indian Army was used to suppress uprisings, keep order and guard the frontiers. It included British and Indian (sepoy) units.

It appears that George left the army in 1886 and the family moved to Charlton where their remaining children namely Margaret Ellen (b1886), Thomas (b1888), William (b1890), Samuel (b1892), May (b1894), Edward Albert (b1896) and Edith Annie (b1897) were born. Margaret Ellen's birth certificate gives her parent's address as 4 West St, Charlton and George's occupation as "sawyer".

The 1891 census shows George Taylor (aged 41, a labourer) and Margaret (36) living at 9 West Street, Charlton with their children George (14), Ernest (12), Harriet (9), Charles (6), Margaret (4) and Thomas (2) and William (10 months). Margaret’s son Thomas died in 1898 aged 9 and her daughter Edith Annie died in 1899 aged 2. The 1893 and 1894 electoral registers for Greenwich list George Taylor as living at 9 West Street. The electoral registers for 1895 to 1904 list him at 7 West Street.

In 1901 the family living at 7 West Street, Charlton consisted of George (aged 50, a labourer local board), Margaret (47), George (24, a covering machinist), Jane (19, a covering machinist), Charles (16, a covering machinist), Margaret (14, a daily servant), William (10), Samuel (9) and May (6).

The houses at 7 and 9 West Street were close to the junction with Woolwich Road. Charles Booth conducted a survey of the living standards of Londoners in 1899 to 1901. People working for him surveyed streets with the help of the local police and classified the inhabitants by their housing and the local crime rates. Booth produced a map of London which was colour coded with 7 street classifications. West Street was surveyed on 11^th May 1900. The notes read :

“ Starting at the corner of West Street and Woolwich Road.

N up West Street. This is on a lower level than the Woolwich Road. So is the character of the houses and their inhabitants. 2-storey. Poor and very poor. A few rather better off near the public house on the west side and on the east side north of York Street. Windows dirty and broken, children dirty, blinds dirty and half rolled up and pinned to prevent falling. Waterside labourers. LIGHT BLUE and PURPLE or LIGHT BLUE all through.”

The colour codes are

Purple (4th of 7) = Mixed. Some comfortable others poor.

Light blue (5th of 7) = Poor. 18s to 21s a week for a moderate family.

The houses at 7 and 9 West Street no longer exist and their site is occupied by a light engineering company. The road is now called Westmore Street and is near the Thames Barrage.

George Taylor died 23 August 1903 aged 54 in Greenwich and was buried in a common grave (E39 Con) in Charlton Cemetery. The circumstances of his death are described in a separate item on this blog. Margaret remarried on 19^th Feb 1911 at Holy Trinity Church, New Charlton, which was at the junction of Charlton Lane with Woolwich Road, only a few yards from where she was living at 7 West Street. Her second husband was Morris Samuels, a widower aged 62 who was a labourer. Margaret’s age is given as 56, although she was actually 58. The marriage register gives her father as Thomas Maddison (deceased), a blacksmith.

Four of Margaret’s children were also married at Holy Trinity: Margaret Ellen (in 1910), William (in 1912), Charles (in 1914) and May (in 1915). All gave their address as 7 West Street. The church was built in 1894, declared redundant in 1974 and demolished in 1975. There is now housing on its site.

The 1911 census shows the family still living at 7 West Street. The household consisted of Morris Samuels (62, a ships storekeeper’s labourer), Margaret Samuels (56), Charles (26), William (20) and Samuel (18) Taylor, all ammunition labourers (Charles at Vickers and Maxim, William and Samuel at Woolwich Arsenal). Morris’s place of birth is given as Amsterdam and his nationality as Dutch. 

Margaret died in Woolwich on 16 March 1917 aged 64 and was buried in plot C385 Con in Charlton Cemetery. There is no headstone or stonework on the grave, which is grassed over. Morris Samuels died in 1919 aged 75 in Woolwich.

Gertrude Taylor nee Wilkins (1890-1919), victim of Spanish Flu

Gertrude Wilkins was my grandmother, the mother of my father, Eric William Taylor (1913-2003). She was born on 1 Feb 1890 in Woolwich Dockyard, the eighth of nine children born to Henry William Wilkins (b1850 in Bethnal Green, London) and Jane Wilkins nee Cornwell (b1851 in Kelvedon, Essex). The name given on her birth certificate is Gertrude Helen Wilkins. However, the middle name given on her marriage and death certificates is Amy, not Helen.

The 1891 census shows Henry Wilkins aged 41, a grocer, living at 31 Kidd St (a shop), Woolwich Dockyard with his wife Jane (40) and their children Elizabeth (15), Albert (13), Alice (11), Ethel (9), Cecilia (7), Annie (5), Herbert (3) and Gertrude (1).

By 1901, the family were living at 11 Church St, Woolwich and consisted of Henry (aged 50, now a coffee house keeper), Jane (49), Albert (23), Alice (21), Ethel (19), Bessie (16), Annie (15), Herbert (13), Gertrude (11) and Mabel (9).

Gertrude Wilkins aged 19

Gertrude was still living at 11 Church St in 1911. The census gives her age as 21 and her occupation as a rubber casing machine hand working for Siemens Brothers Electrical Works. Also at the address were her father Henry (62, a dining room keeper), mother Jane (59), sister Mabel (19) and niece Florence Wilkins (7). The return was completed by Gertrude, so I have a sample of her handwriting.

Gertrude married William Taylor on 26 May 1912 at the Holy Trinity Church, New Charlton, which is close to 7 West Street, where William lived. They were both aged 22. He was a labourer at the Royal Arsenal. The marriage was witnessed by Gertrude’s brothers Herbert and Albert. I have pictures of the wedding.

William and Gertrude lived at 22A George St, Woolwich then at 503 Abbey Road, Abbey Wood and later at 51 Charles St, Woolwich. They had three children, Eric William who was born in 1913, Vera Gertrude born in 1916 and Ronald Albert born in 1918.

Gertrude Taylor nee Wilkins

Gertrude died of influenza at the Miller Hospital in Greenwich on 19 February 1919 aged 29. The influenza pandemic of 1918-19 killed about 50 million people (more than the 25 million who died in World War I), the most devastating epidemic in recorded world history. More people died of influenza in a single year than in four years of the Black Death (Bubonic Plague) from 1347 to 1351. Known as "Spanish Flu" the influenza of 1918-19 was a global disaster. In these two years, a fifth of the world's population was infected. The flu was most deadly for people ages 20 to 40. This pattern of mortality was unusual for influenza, which is usually a killer of the elderly and young children. The influenza virus had a mortality rate at 2.5% compared to previous influenza epidemics, which were less than 0.1%. People were struck with illness and died rapid deaths. One anecdote from 1918 was of four women playing bridge together one evening. Overnight, three of the women died from influenza. Others told stories of people on their way to work suddenly developing the flu and dying within hours. The first cases of the influenza epidemic in Britain appeared in Glasgow in May 1918. It soon spread to other towns and cities and during the next few months the virus killed 228,000 people in Britain.

The following report appeared in a local newspaper :

“The funeral took place at Plumstead Cemetery on Wednesday of Mrs W Taylor, the loving wife of Mr W Taylor, of 51 Charles Street, Woolwich (late of Abbey Wood). The last sad rites were conducted by the Rev. Faulkner Baily. The floral tributes were very beautiful and were sent by her sorrowing husband and children, Mrs H Wilkins¹ (mother), Mr and Mrs W Jenkins² (brother-in-law and sister), Mr and Mrs A Wilkins³ (brother and sister-in-law), Mrs Suter⁴ (sister), Mr and Mrs W Taylor⁵ (brother-in-law and sister), Mr and Mrs H Wilkins⁶ (brother and sister-in-law), Mr and Mrs L Barry⁷ (brother-in-law and sister), Mr and Mrs G Taylor⁸, Mr and Mrs Himbury⁹, Mr and Mrs E Taylor¹⁰, Mr and Mrs A Smith¹¹, Mr and Mrs C Taylor¹², Mr and Mrs W King¹³, Mr and Mrs S Taylor¹⁴, Florrie (niece), Aunt Mary and family, Daisy and Albert¹⁵, Mr and Mrs H Dimon¹⁶, Mr and Mrs Cook, Mrs Wain, Edie and Gertie, and old neighbours of Abbey Wood. Mr Taylor wishes to thank all those who sent wreaths and letters of sympathy in his sad bereavement.”

Gertrude was buried on 25 February 1919 in grave 289, Plot M. I have located it within Plumstead cemetery, which is still in use and well maintained. There is no headstone or stonework on the grave, which is grassed over.

Notes

1. Jane Wilkins nee Cornwell (1851 - 1934)

2. Walter Hugh and Elizabeth Jane Jenkins nee Wilkins (b1876)

3. Albert Henry (b1877) and Beatrice Louisa Wilkins (Aunt Beat)

4. Mrs Suter was born Ethel Wilkins in 1881. Her husband William Henry Suter died in 1914. Her son Herbert William Suter died of influenza on February 12^th 1919 aged 12, a week before Gertrude. They are both buried in a plot near her. Ethel became William Taylor’s second wife in 1920.

5. William and Cecilia Mary (Bessie) Taylor nee Wilkins (b1884)

6. Herbert George (b1888) and Mary Allan Wilkins nee Kennedy

7. Lawrence and Mabel Barry nee Wilkins (b1891)

8. George Taylor (b1877, William’s brother) and Kate Elizabeth nee Lambert

9. Edwin Alfred and Harriet Jane Himbury nee Taylor (b1881, William’s sister)

10. Ernest Edward (b1879, William’s brother) and Annie Edith Taylor nee Bradley

11. Alfred Charles and Margaret Ellen Smith nee Taylor (b1887, William’s sister)

12. Charles (b1885, William’s brother) and Ellen Maria Taylor nee Holder

13. James William and May King nee Taylor (b1894, William’s sister)

14. Samuel Taylor (b1892, William’s brother) and his wife
15. Daisy and Albert Finnis (Daisy was a sister of Beatrice Louisa Wilkins nee Tothill)
16. Harold Vincent and Maud Emily Dimon, friends of the Wilkins family

William Taylor (1890 - 1972), confectioner and tobacconist

William Taylor was my grandfather. He was born on 28 June 1890 at 4 West Street, Charlton in SE London, the seventh of nine children born to George and Margaret Taylor (nee Smiles). George had been a driver in the Royal Artillery. His first child was born in Newcastle, his third in Bengal, East India, his second and fourth in Woolwich. It seems likely that these places were his army postings. By the time of William’s birth he had left the army and was a general labourer. William’s birth certificate shows that his mother, who came from Newcastle, was illiterate. West Street was in an area where poor people lived.

The 1901 census shows George Taylor (aged 50, a labourer), Margaret (47) living at 7 West Street, Charlton with their children George (24), Jane (19), Charles (16), Margaret (14), William (10), Samuel (9) and May (6). The 1891 census shows two additional children namely Ernest (b 1878) and Thomas (b 1888).

William’s father died in 1903. His mother married Morris Samuels in 1911. The census that year shows the family still living at 7 West Street. The household consisted of Morris Samuels (62, a ships storekeeper’s labourer), Margaret Samuels (56), Charles (26), William (20) and Samuel (20) Taylor, all ammunition labourers (Charles at Vickers and Maxim, William and Samuel at Woolwich Arsenal). The census return says that there were 4 rooms in the dwelling. It must have been crowded in 1901 when there were 9 people living there !

On 26 May 1912 William married Gertrude Amy Wilkins at the Holy Trinity Church, New Charlton. They were both aged 22. William’s occupation was a labourer at the Royal Arsenal. Gertrude was the eighth child of nine born to Henry William Wilkins, a dining house keeper, and Jane Wilkins nee Cornwell, who was born in Kelvedon, Essex.

Gertrude and William on their marriage day (1912)

William and Gertrude later had three children, Eric William who was born in 1913, Vera Gertrude born in 1916 and Ronald Albert born in 1918.

William and Gertrude’s address on 31 August 1913 when their eldest son Eric was born was 22A George St, Woolwich Dockyard. George Street is now called Woolwich Church Street and the building occupied by William no longer exists. Number 22A was on the south side of the road, close to the junction with Prospect Place (now called Prospect Vale). It is about half a mile from West Street, where William grew up. The Kelly’s Directories for 1912, 1913 and 1914 list “William Taylor, newsagent”, at 22A George Street. However, William’s occupation is listed as “Labourer, Royal Arsenal” on both Eric’s birth certificate issued on 29 September 1913 and on the record of Eric’s baptism at Holy Trinity Church, New Charlton on 19 October 1913.

World War I started in 1914 and the Royal Arsenal was very busy making munitions and equipment for the army. By 1916 William and Gertrude had moved to 503 Abbey Road, Abbey Wood where Vera was born on 22 February 1916. Her birth certificate shows that William registered the birth. His occupation is “Labourer Royal Arsenal”. The house was close to Abbey Wood Station and no longer exists. A section of the terrace that contained 503 was demolished sometime after 1958 (the house appears on a map of this date). The site of 503 is now an access road to a car park. However, house number 505 still exists, showing what 503 looked like.

Military conscription was introduced in 1916 and on 15 February 1917 William was called up. His enrolment paper gives his address as 51 Charles Street, Woolwich, age as 26 and 6 months and trade as “explosive worker”. His height was 5 feet 6 inches and chest 32 ½ inches. He joined the Army Service Corps, who had various tasks including transporting supplies for the army. William’s army record states his rank was Driver (the ASC equivalent of Private). Most of William’s army service was in the UK. His conduct sheet says that he was at an army camp in Blackheath in 1917. In October that year he committed the offence of being absent from camp and was awarded a punishment of 5 days CB (confined to barracks). He committed the same offence in November and this time got 14 days CB. He got 7 days for another offence in December 1917. William was posted to France on 13.7.18, leaving Southampton on the SS Nirvana, which arrived at Le Havre the following day. He seems to have been unwell for most of the time he was in France until the end of the war. He was admitted for treatment of dysentery on 17.8.18 and again on 15.9.18. He was ill with diarrhoea on 31.10.18. The war ended on 11.11.18 but William was not demobilised from the army until 29.5.19. I have William’s campaign medals, which were the British War Medal and the Victory Medal. They are engraved on the rim with his name and service number T-292600.

I have an embroidered birthday card which says inside “From Bill with love to my wife Gert xxx.” It is labeled “Made in France” and so could have been sent by William while he was still abroad in January 1919 waiting to be demobilised (Gertrude’s birthday was 1 February).

In 1919 Gertrude and her children were still living at 51 Charles St, Woolwich, which was the address of her older sister Ethel Suter nee Wilkins (b1881), whose husband (a coal merchant) had died in 1914. Ethel had a daughter, Doris (b1903), and a son, Herbert (b1906). Herbert Suter died of influenza on 12 February 1919 aged 12. William’s wife Gertrude also caught the disease. William was granted leave on the 15^th February to come home but she died on 19^th February 1919, aged 29. Gertrude’s death certificate says that William was present at her death. Herbert and Gertrude were both buried in Plumstead cemetery, victims of the influenza pandemic that killed many millions of people across the world.

William and his children continued to live at 51 Charles St, Ethel Suter’s house, after Gertrude’s death. According to a family story, Ethel threatened to stop looking after the children if William did not marry her. On 30^th November 1920 William married Ethel Suter at Woolwich Registry Office. He was 30, a labourer at the Royal Arsenal and she 38. The witnesses were Ethel’s eldest brother Albert Wilkins and his wife Beatrice (known to my parents as “Aunt Beat”). William and Ethel had a daughter, Betty Ethel Taylor, who was born 31^st December 1921. 51 Charles Street was renamed 16 Brewer St in that year. The house was at the northern end of Brewer Street, not far from St Mary’s Church. The site of the house is now occupied by John Wilson Street, a dual carriageway that forms part of the South Circular Road (A205). Ethel died on New Year's Day 1933 aged 51 and was buried in Plumstead Cemetery in the same grave (which is unmarked) as William's first wife Gertrude. Probate records state that Ethel Taylor of 16 Brewer Street, Woolwich (wife of William Taylor, a coffee stall keeper) died on 1st January 1933 at St Nicholas Hospital, Plumstead. Administration of Ethel's estate (£407 14s) was granted to William. The fact that probate was needed shows that Ethel held some money (probably from her first husband) in her own name.

From 1934 to 37 the electoral registers show William and his children at 105 Brookhill Road, Woolwich. The house was close to the junction with Angelsea Road. Its site is now occupied by the garden of a block of flats. The 1935 and 1938 Post Office directories show that William ran a confectioner’s shop at this address. His occupation is given as “Shop Keeper” on the marriage certificate of his daughter Vera, who married on 11 September 1937.

My father told me that William used to act as an unofficial bookmaker as a sideline. Vera recalled that money was often in short supply, but when the family could afford it, they would get dressed up and go to the greyhound racing at Catford.

William married a third time in 1938 to Eleanor Mary Bateman nee Peall (known as Nellie). He was aged 47 and she was 43. Nellie had four children from a previous marriage. They were Victor (Vic born 1923), Constance (Connie born 1924), Clare (known as Midge) and Peter (twins born in 1931) Bateman.

The family (including my father, then aged 25) moved to 116 Sandy Hill Road, Woolwich in 1938. The house was rented (it was owned 1958-72 by the Reverend Howard AG Belben of Sheffield and the rent was £75 pa). It had a confectioner’s shop at the front which William and Nellie ran. There was a school nearby which was a good source of customers.

The 1939 national register shows William (a labourer doing munitions work) living at 116 Sandy Hill Road with his wife Eleanor and sons Eric (a general grade assistant  working for the London County Council) and Ronald (a grocery porter). Also living at the address was Eleanor's daughter Constance (a glass operative) and one person born after 1918 (presumably William's daughter Betty).

William stayed in Woolwich during the Second World War. The area was heavily bombed because the Royal Arsenal was located in the town.  I have his air raid shelter ticket, which was issued on 3 Feb 1941 and gives his occupation as shopkeeper. He seems to have worked as a clerk in 1944 as this is his occupation given on my father’s marriage certificate in February 1944.

  

The electoral registers show Nellie’s sister, Clara Goodchild, her husband and son living with William and Nellie at 116 Sandy Hill Road in 1945. Nellie’s daughter Constance (Connie) is recorded as an occupant in 1946 and 1947. Nellie’s son Victor is listed from 1947 to 1951.

Betty, William’s daughter, got married in 1946. The marriage certificate records William as a witness and his occupation as tobacconist.

London Post Office directories for 1940 to 1955 have entries for Mrs W Taylor, Confectioner at 116 Sandy Hill Road. There is no entry for 1956 onwards, indicating that William and Nellie closed the shop in 1955 (when William reached the age of 65).

I remember visiting Grandad and Nellie at Sandy Hill Road with my parents when I was a teenager in the 1960s. We entered the house by the back door, which was along an alleyway. Grandad and Nellie would be huddled over a small coal fire in their lounge, a rather dingy room. Grandad didn’t say much. My sister Evelyn’s memories are “I remember Grandad as a rather scary old man always smoking very thin and wispy roll your owns. I didn’t really like going to their house, which was long and thin and dark. The closed shop at the front was a fascination and there were always piles of cigarettes in big boxes on the piano. The most interesting thing was a bath in the kitchen covered by a large marble slab to make it a worktop. We were not allowed to go upstairs. I liked going out into the back garden, which was bright and sunny after the gloom inside. It was mainly vegetables with lots of little paths between the beds, which were nice to walk round. Auntie Nellie was a large motherly lady who spoke with a country burr of an accent.” Vera’s daughter Valerie remembers playing cards with Grandad on her visits to Sandy Hill Road and rolling cigarettes for him.

Nellie and William c1965

William had ulcers on his legs towards the end of his life, which restricted his mobility. He died on 14 January 1972 aged 81 at the Brook Hospital, Greenwich. The cause of death was bronchopneumonia and cerebral thrombosis. He was cremated on 25 January 1972 at Eltham Crematorium. He died without making a will and so his estate (£1035) passed to his wife, who died in August the same year aged 77.

The house at 116 Sandy Hill Road is still there, although the shop front has been changed to a window. The school building opposite has been converted into housing.