familylines

This question started with a letter to Andrew Lamberton's Ask Andrew feature - after the writer consulted staff at Nantwich Library.

Footballer Frank in my family record

Dear Andrew,

I came up to Nantwich from Suffolk to investigate family connections. From Census material I knew that Charles Chesworth lived at 7 King's Lane around 1871. In 1891 he moved to 8 King's Lane! His son, Frank, who played for Nantwich and later Stockport County, lived at 62 Beam Street. Alas, both properties no longer exist.

I moved on to Acton where several Chesworths seem to have been born, and I found two graves in the churchyard. They were those of George Chesworth, born in Burland and died in 1857, and a John Chesworth, son of George, who died 1855. I think both could be related to me.

This George seems to have a wife Maria, whereas the George I've been tracing had a wife called Mary.

Confusion or a bureaucratic error?

The Nantwich Library staff were helpful, and in fact gave me your details.

I shall press on with my research and check my results from today backwards rather than from the past to today.

John Chesworth (aged 80). JULY 2010

The letter was passed to Paul, who was able to help John. His detailed replies have been edited for space reasons but John has received the full text:

John,

I have had a look into some census records for you and come up with the following:

Frank Chesworth, born 1874, son of Charles, born 1840, and Mary Blakemore, born 1840, married at St Mary's, Acton, between 1856 and 1860. I found a lot of siblings including Mary, born 1866.

In 1891, Mary has a daughter called Grace E, aged one, and is living with her parents but the surname is Townsend for both of them. Grace E Townsend married James D Clarke at St Mary's, Nantwich, in 1914.

Charles, born 1840, has a father George, born 1786, and a mother, Elizabeth (possibly Fisher), born 1798, along with two brothers, Henry, born 1821, and Samuel, born 1839. There's a bit of a gap in the age of the children so it could be a second marriage. That, I think, was Maria Johnson, born 1780 and died 1837, so she would be the mother of Henry.

I think George's parents may be George and Martha, but that is from another researcher's records so it is only a guess.

As for Frank, it looks like he married Selina Coventry between 1896 and 1899 at St Mary's, Acton.

From 1838 onwards, birth, marriage and death certificates can be searched on www.cheshirebmd.org.uk. About 1880 backwards, baptisms, marriage and burials from some Cheshire parish churches can be found at http://www.csc.liv.ac.uk/~cprdb/

l Paul also looked in the monumental inscriptions book for Acton and was able to give John some further information.

John replied:

Dear Paul

Many thanks for all your research efforts. You are right, George does appear to have remarried. In fact, I discovered the Maria Johnson side on a gravestone at St. Mary's, Acton. Then, through Cheshire Tithe maps, George's cottage in Burland was mentioned, and it appears to be still there today, called Raven's Cottage.

So many people have helped, and it was great to have come up to Cheshire for a few days and get a feeling of one's past.

I've come to a standstill with my family tree

I'M trying to get going on my family tree but have come to a standstill at a certain stage. My mother, nee Ellen Woodcock, was born on June 12, 1907, at Stapeley. Her father, John Henry Woodcock, and her mother, Agnes Woodcock, nee Hodgkinson, lived in London Road. He worked at Newcastle Crossings on the railway.

I do not know which Census to find them in, nor what birth certificate to find, as I do not know their ages. I know my mother had two or three brothers and sisters older than her.

I hope you don't mind me asking for help as I'm trying to get started and I saw your name on the "A Dabber's Nantwich" website.

Thank you,

Ernie Edgley MAY 2010

Paul replies:

OK, I have had a look around at what is available for you.

As far as birth, marriage and death certificates are concerned, you can look on www.cheshirebmd.org.uk. This will only give you limited information because of the 100-year protection rule but you can apply for a copy of any certificates you think may be correct. If you print off the forms and fill in what you can, it can limit the incorrect ones by saying such as “father must be Fred Bloggs”.

I found the following: Ellen Woodcock, born 1907, Crewe registration district. Parents of Ellen: John Henry Woodcock, born Nantwich 1879. Married Agnes Hodgkinson (on the marriage certificate she is listed as Hodgkison) 1896-99 at Wybunbury, St. Chad’s. Agnes Hodgkinson, born 1874/5. Henry died 1939; Agnes died 1949, aged 75.

There are four possible other children, if the above is correct, born in Tarporley between 1877 and 1895. Also in the records is a woman born in 1827 in Tiverton. In 1891, she is recorded as a widow, aged 65, living with her brother in Tiverton. She is listed as a pauper. It would be very easy for a woman to fall into the pauper trap when she had lost her husband.

If I were you, I would consider getting copies of Ellen’s and her parents' birth and marriage certificates as some of this is a bit of guess work on my part. Certificates of marriage show parents so that is a big help. Once you have this it would be a good idea to go to the family history unit on a Monday, Tuesday, or some Saturdays, at Crewe Library so that you can look at the microfilms if they have them for the older records and you can get other help there. The Family History Unit is run by the Crewe group of the Family History Society of Cheshire and not Cheshire Libraries.

Details can be found at www.fhsc.org.uk. Look under FHSC Groups > Crewe group.

A good on-line source where the parish has been done is the Cheshire Parish Records at http://www.csc.liv.ac.uk/~cprdb/. This has the same details as you would find on a certificate and covers the late 1800s back to the 1500s in some cases.

I hope this is of help to you.

lFOOTNOTE: Some of the family details Paul found have been omitted from his reply here, but Ernie has received the full reply - Dabber.

One of the blocks of the former Barony Hospital

Was my relative born in Alvaston Hall?

JUST wondering if you can help? I've been "doing the family tree" and would love to know the exact birth place of a relative.

The birth certificate shows: Reg Dist. Crewe; sub-dist, Nantwich. In the "Where Born" column it says Alvaston 200 (1951).

We do know the parents were travelling to RAF Cranage at the time. Do you think this Alvaston 200 could be Alvaston Hall as I can't find any other Alvaston in the area?
Many thanks,

Elaine Underhill MAY 2010

Paul replies:

WELL, this is an easy one for me. A birth in 1951 with that address would have been in the maternity unit of the Barony Hospital.

"200 Alvaston" was at one time the Nantwich Poor Law Union Workhouse, and the address

referred to the complex as a whole. The workhouse itself was built around 1780 with additions following later.

In 1879-80, to the west, a school and home for children was built with a school and day rooms on the ground floor and dormitories on the top floor (above). 1890-91 saw the addition of an infirmary to the east of the workhouse (now Frederick House) and in 1903 a women’s hospital was built, along with a Matron and Nurses' Home.

So in 1951, your relative would have been born in the former children’s home and school or - if it was a difficult birth - in the Matron and Nurses' Home.

More information and pictures can be found at http://www.workhouses.org.uk/index.html?Nantwich/Nantwich.shtml.

The canal boatman who became a grocer

I HAVE, for the past few months, enjoyed looking at the wonderful "A Dabber's Nantwich" website and wonder if you could help me with some research I am doing for my family tree?

My great, great grandparents, George and Elizabeth Jacks (spelling changed to Jacques sometime between 1851and 1861) lived in Nantwich for a number of years.

George was originally a canal boatman. He and Elizabeth married on June 13th, 1843, at the Church of St John, Chester. He was listed as being a Flatman, and their residence at the time of their marriage was Canal Side, Chester.

The first indication I have of them living in Nantwich is in the 1851 Census when their residence appears to be Copthorne(?), Audlem. Occupation, boatman. In 1861, their children Annie, Thomas, Jessie, Reuben and George are listed.

In 1871, they are living in Barbridge, Nantwich. George is a canal boatman with Reuben working on the canal telegraph. Annie is a shopkeeper in the grocer's.

In the 1881 Census, George himself is listed as being a grocer. I am presuming that being a small village that it is the same shop his daughter worked in. He also appears in Kelly's directory under the same profession.

However, neither the census nor the directory lists his address. On his death certificate he was listed as a master grocer but, again, there is no address! He died in 1890 so I'm assuming he must have run the same shop for a number of years. I would love to know where in Barbridge it was and if the dwelling still exists.

The only clue I have is that on the census the dwelling above the grocers is called Stoke Cottage. I have tried searching Google and Cheshire tithe maps but, as there seem to be a number of small dwellings around the Stoke Cottage area, I can't be sure which, if any, would be the grocer's.

I have managed to obtain a copy of George's will dated July 1868. He leaves his wife and five children and a number of cottages. Again, no addresses are shown but I presume they are in the Nantwich area.

Would a man working on the canal, as he was in 1868, be able to afford such a large property portfolio?

I am sorry for the rather lengthy email but wanted to give as much information as I could. I would be thrilled if you could help me fill in the blanks on this family.

Mrs Carly McLure-Murray, Wirral. FEBRUARY 2010

Paul replies:

IF you pass up and down the census for 1881, you will see Stoke Manor, Mill House and Stoke Bank.

Going on this I would say it would have been in what is now the old Chester Road, Barbridge.

The 1891 Census has Elizabeth living with her daughter, Annie Clarke, and her husband, John, who is listed as a grocer. This address is at the Wardle end of Barbridge.

Go on to Google maps and look up Barbridge and then, on the Nantwich Road, find the junction with Green Lane on the left-hand side. Now look to the canal side of the road and you will see a row of buildings (Google puts the marker for The Jolly Tar pub over it). I think this is where the dwelling was.

In total, the village had three shops so the above was one, and the next one was on the other side of the road. If you move down to the junction with Wardle Avenue, pass it, and the first one of the row of cottages was a shop known as Ma’s in the 1940s.

The third was further down, on what is now the old Chester road, where the bump in the canal is, with a red-topped boat on the far side. Come back to the road and it was around there.