Annie was an elder sister of my grandmother Gertrude Taylor nee Wilkins.
Annie’s birth was registered in Woolwich during Q1 1886. The
rule was that up to 6 weeks were allowed between the date of birth and its
registration, so she might have been born in late 1885. Her parents were Henry
Wilkins (1851-1915) and his wife Jane nee Cornwell (1851-1934), who married in
1875. Annie’s name was registered as Annie Louisa Wilkins, but no other records
I have found give her middle name.
In the 1891 census, the Wilkins family were living at 31
Kidd St (a shop), Woolwich Dockyard and consisted of Henry (aged 41, a grocer),
Jane (40), Elizabeth (15), Albert (13), Alice (11), Ethel (9), Cecilia (7),
Annie (5), Herbert (3) and Gertrude (1).
In 1901 Henry Wilkins aged 50, a coffee house keeper, was living
at 11 Church Street, Woolwich Dockyard with his wife Jane (49) and children
Albert (23, machinist shell factory), Alice (21, shirt machinist), Ethel (19,
cook domestic), Cecilia (called Bessie, 16, shirt machinist), Annie (15),
Herbert (13), Gertrude (11) and Mabel (9).
Annie married Thomas Henry Drake on 20 April 1908 at Woolwich Register Office. She
was aged 22, he was 19. Their first child, Thomas Henry, was born on 1 June 1908, so Annie was pregnant when she wed (which was not uncommon at this
time). They had two more children, Elizabeth Annie born in 1911 and Harry
Arthur in 1915, all in Woolwich.
The 1911 census shows Thomas, aged 22, a carman (meaning
someone who transports goods), Annie (25), Thomas (2) and Elizabeth (less than
1) living in 2 rooms at 9 Gough Street, Woolwich.
Sadly, Annie died on 7th January 1916 at The
Infirmary, Woolwich, aged only 29. Her death certificate gives her address as 9
Gough Street and her husband’s occupation as metal caster. The cause of death
was (1) Morbus Cordis (2) Nephritis Pulmonary Embolism. Morbus Cordis means heart disease.
Nephritis is a condition in which the tissues in the kidney become inflamed and
have problems filtering waste from the blood. A pulmonary embolism is a blood
clot that blocks and stops blood flow to an artery in the lung.
Annie was buried in Plumstead Cemetery in plot K 2002. I was not able to locate the exact location of the grave and believe that it is unmarked.
Annie's husband Thomas was enlisted into the army on 27 April 1916. He joined the Royal Flying Corps and was later transferred to the Army Ordnance Corps. His service record shows that some of his pay was stopped for support of an illegitimate child that was born on 1 May 1917. The money was sent to Frances Ann Richardson (presumably the mother) who lived in Rotherhithe. Thomas was discharged from the army on 31 January 1919. I can't find him in the 1921 census, but his son Thomas Henry Drake is shown living with Mabel Barry (nee Wilkins), who was his aunt. The census return says that both of his parents were dead. I can't find a record of the death of Thomas senior.
