The Matthews Family
John Matthews was born in 1740 in the Bethnal Green area of London.
On the 22 March 1763 he married Mary Garth, the same age, at
St Matthews Church Bethnal Green.
I have found three of their children, Elizabeth, bapt. 13 January 1764, Christopher, bapt. 5 December 1765 at St Matthews Church Bethnal Green and Hannah bapt. 26 October 1768. Christopher is our link to the past.
On the 7th December 1780 when Christopher was fourteen years old he became indentured to his father John, described here as a citizen and butcher of Aldgate High Street. It could be a costly business securing a place for a child to be trained to join a guild but it should lead to a more secure and profitable future for them. As it was for his own son he only charged him the sum of 1d (1 old penny). The indenture, or apprenticeship, was for a period of seven years.
On the 22 March 1763 he married Mary Garth, the same age, at
St Matthews Church Bethnal Green.
I have found three of their children, Elizabeth, bapt. 13 January 1764, Christopher, bapt. 5 December 1765 at St Matthews Church Bethnal Green and Hannah bapt. 26 October 1768. Christopher is our link to the past.
On the 7th December 1780 when Christopher was fourteen years old he became indentured to his father John, described here as a citizen and butcher of Aldgate High Street. It could be a costly business securing a place for a child to be trained to join a guild but it should lead to a more secure and profitable future for them. As it was for his own son he only charged him the sum of 1d (1 old penny). The indenture, or apprenticeship, was for a period of seven years.
On the 22 January 1793 when he was 28 years old Christopher married Elizabeth Teague at St Dunstan and All Saints in Stepney. Elizabeth had been baptised on the 18 November 1776 in Brighton so she was about 10 years his junior. He secured the lease to 60 Aldgate High Street where all eleven of their children were born. In March 1799 his shop was broken into and he was robbed. The proceedings of the ensuing Old Bailey court case are as follows:
JOSEPH SEDGLEY was indicted for breaking and entering the dwelling-house of Christopher Matthews , about the hour of one, in the night of the 7th of March , and burglariously stealing two wooden drawers, value 1 shilling. 168 pieces of copper money, called penny-pieces, 474 halfpence, and 30 farthings, the property of the said Christopher Matthews.
CHRISTOPHER MATTHEWS sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. I am a butcher , I live at No. 60, Aldgate High-street : On the 7th of March, I was the last person up in the house, I went to bed about ten, my premises were then all safe locked up; I was the first up in the house, I went to bed about ten, my premises were then all safe locked up; I was the first up in the morning, I got up about six o'clock, I found that the tiling had been taken off the slaughter-house; the slaughter-house and the shop is all in one, under the same roof that my house is; I missed a great number of penny-pieces, halfpence, and farthings; I suspected the lad at the bar, and I took him to the officers, with a neighbour or two; I apprehended him in his father's house, about eleven o'clock on Saturday morning the 9th.
Q. When you took him; what passed between you? - A. I did not ask him any questions; he said, when I came up to him, stop, I know what you want, I want to go back for my hat.
Mr. Knapp. Q. Had you said nothing to him before that? - A. No, nothing at all.
Mr. Knowlys. Q. How far is his father's house from your's? - A. A very little way, it is in Arrow-alley; we met Mr. Griffiths in Alie-street, and delivered him up to him; I was present when he was searched, I found upon him some halfpence tied up in a handkerchief.
Q. Did you count them? - A. No, I did not; we found two-pence more in his waistcoat pocket, which, he said, was not mine; that was the very expression he made use of.
Q. What quantity of halfpence did you lose altogether? - A. Somewhere about two pounds, in halfpence, farthings, and penny pieces.
Cross-examined by Mr. Alley. Q. You do not mean to swear to the quantity of halfpence? - A. No.
Q. This lad lived with his father up to the time he was apprehended? - A. Yes.
Q. Do you know how old this unfortunate lad is? - A. I believe he is about fifteen.
Q. The time that you apprehended him at his father's house, was two days after this had taken place? - A. Yes.
Q. Therefore, if he had been so minded, there was plenty of time for him to have gone any where else? - A. Yes.
Q. You were not present when any conversation took place between the officers and the boy? - A. No.
Q. Have you heard that there is a forty pounds reward for burglary? - A. Yes.
RICHARD OSMOND sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. Griffiths delivered the prisoner into my custody. (The witness ordered to withdraw).
JOHN GRIFFITHS sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. I am an officer; the prisoner was delivered to me by Mr. Matthews and another neighbour; I was going out, and I delivered him into the hands of Osmond; I returned, and went into the room where they were; I believe Smith was not there at that time.
Q. Before you relate any thing that the prisoner said, did you, or any body in your hearing, tell him it would be better for him to confess, or worse if he did not? - A. No.
Mr. Knapp. Q. What Osmond might say to him when you were not there, you do not know? - A. No.(Osmond called in again).
Osmond. I found upon the prisoner this parcel of halfpence and penny pieces.
Q. Did you say any thing to him to persuade him to tell every thing that he knew about it, or make him any promise of favour? - A. No, nor any body else in my hearing.
Q. Do you remember such an expression as this- tell us what you know about it, and save yourself from being hanged? - A. No, there was nothing of the kind. After that I found two-pence in his waistcoat pocket, and he said it did not belong to Mr. Matthews: Griffiths said, there were more halfpence missing; and he said, if they would send for his father, he would tell them; then he said that they were hid under a stone in his father's yard; Griffiths and another went there, and after they were gone, he said he had missed telling them of the drawers which were under the cellar stairs, and then Smith went after them; when Griffiths came back, he said something which I did not hear.
Cross-examined by Mr. Knapp. Q. He referred you to his father's house, and to his father, for the rest of the things that you had not found upon him? - A. Yes.
Q. His father was at home? - A. Yes.
Q. Therefore, whether his father might not have given him these things, you cannot swear? - A. I cannot.
Q. And every thing that was found by his reference to his father's house, were found in his father's house? - A. Yes; his mother told him he had better tell the truth, while Griffiths was gone.
EDWARD SMITH sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. I found these two drawers by the direction of the prisoner under the coal box in his father's cellar; I found them exactly where he had directed me.
Cross-examined by Mr. Knapp. Q. He gave you directions where to find them; but whether he had put them there, or whether his father or any body else had put them there, you cannot tell? - A. No.
JOHN GRIFFITHS sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. - I am one of the Police-officers, (produces some money); I found it at his father's house under a stone in the ground; the prisoner told me it was hid there; I asked him who was with him in the robbery of Mr. Matthews, and he said, no person but himself.
Matthews. These are my drawers, I have tried them, and they fit exactly.
The prisoner called seven witnesses, who gave him a good character.
GUILTY Death . (Aged 15.)
The prisoner was recommended to his Majesty's mercy by the Jury and the prosecutor, on account of his youth .
Tried by the London Jury, before Mr. Baron HOTHAM.
John Sedgley's sentence was commuted to transportation to Australia for 7 years. He left England along with 301 other prisoners aboard the 'Royal Admiral' in March 1800.
CHRISTOPHER MATTHEWS sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. I am a butcher , I live at No. 60, Aldgate High-street : On the 7th of March, I was the last person up in the house, I went to bed about ten, my premises were then all safe locked up; I was the first up in the house, I went to bed about ten, my premises were then all safe locked up; I was the first up in the morning, I got up about six o'clock, I found that the tiling had been taken off the slaughter-house; the slaughter-house and the shop is all in one, under the same roof that my house is; I missed a great number of penny-pieces, halfpence, and farthings; I suspected the lad at the bar, and I took him to the officers, with a neighbour or two; I apprehended him in his father's house, about eleven o'clock on Saturday morning the 9th.
Q. When you took him; what passed between you? - A. I did not ask him any questions; he said, when I came up to him, stop, I know what you want, I want to go back for my hat.
Mr. Knapp. Q. Had you said nothing to him before that? - A. No, nothing at all.
Mr. Knowlys. Q. How far is his father's house from your's? - A. A very little way, it is in Arrow-alley; we met Mr. Griffiths in Alie-street, and delivered him up to him; I was present when he was searched, I found upon him some halfpence tied up in a handkerchief.
Q. Did you count them? - A. No, I did not; we found two-pence more in his waistcoat pocket, which, he said, was not mine; that was the very expression he made use of.
Q. What quantity of halfpence did you lose altogether? - A. Somewhere about two pounds, in halfpence, farthings, and penny pieces.
Cross-examined by Mr. Alley. Q. You do not mean to swear to the quantity of halfpence? - A. No.
Q. This lad lived with his father up to the time he was apprehended? - A. Yes.
Q. Do you know how old this unfortunate lad is? - A. I believe he is about fifteen.
Q. The time that you apprehended him at his father's house, was two days after this had taken place? - A. Yes.
Q. Therefore, if he had been so minded, there was plenty of time for him to have gone any where else? - A. Yes.
Q. You were not present when any conversation took place between the officers and the boy? - A. No.
Q. Have you heard that there is a forty pounds reward for burglary? - A. Yes.
RICHARD OSMOND sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. Griffiths delivered the prisoner into my custody. (The witness ordered to withdraw).
JOHN GRIFFITHS sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. I am an officer; the prisoner was delivered to me by Mr. Matthews and another neighbour; I was going out, and I delivered him into the hands of Osmond; I returned, and went into the room where they were; I believe Smith was not there at that time.
Q. Before you relate any thing that the prisoner said, did you, or any body in your hearing, tell him it would be better for him to confess, or worse if he did not? - A. No.
Mr. Knapp. Q. What Osmond might say to him when you were not there, you do not know? - A. No.(Osmond called in again).
Osmond. I found upon the prisoner this parcel of halfpence and penny pieces.
Q. Did you say any thing to him to persuade him to tell every thing that he knew about it, or make him any promise of favour? - A. No, nor any body else in my hearing.
Q. Do you remember such an expression as this- tell us what you know about it, and save yourself from being hanged? - A. No, there was nothing of the kind. After that I found two-pence in his waistcoat pocket, and he said it did not belong to Mr. Matthews: Griffiths said, there were more halfpence missing; and he said, if they would send for his father, he would tell them; then he said that they were hid under a stone in his father's yard; Griffiths and another went there, and after they were gone, he said he had missed telling them of the drawers which were under the cellar stairs, and then Smith went after them; when Griffiths came back, he said something which I did not hear.
Cross-examined by Mr. Knapp. Q. He referred you to his father's house, and to his father, for the rest of the things that you had not found upon him? - A. Yes.
Q. His father was at home? - A. Yes.
Q. Therefore, whether his father might not have given him these things, you cannot swear? - A. I cannot.
Q. And every thing that was found by his reference to his father's house, were found in his father's house? - A. Yes; his mother told him he had better tell the truth, while Griffiths was gone.
EDWARD SMITH sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. I found these two drawers by the direction of the prisoner under the coal box in his father's cellar; I found them exactly where he had directed me.
Cross-examined by Mr. Knapp. Q. He gave you directions where to find them; but whether he had put them there, or whether his father or any body else had put them there, you cannot tell? - A. No.
JOHN GRIFFITHS sworn. - Examined by Mr. Knowlys. - I am one of the Police-officers, (produces some money); I found it at his father's house under a stone in the ground; the prisoner told me it was hid there; I asked him who was with him in the robbery of Mr. Matthews, and he said, no person but himself.
Matthews. These are my drawers, I have tried them, and they fit exactly.
The prisoner called seven witnesses, who gave him a good character.
GUILTY Death . (Aged 15.)
The prisoner was recommended to his Majesty's mercy by the Jury and the prosecutor, on account of his youth .
Tried by the London Jury, before Mr. Baron HOTHAM.
John Sedgley's sentence was commuted to transportation to Australia for 7 years. He left England along with 301 other prisoners aboard the 'Royal Admiral' in March 1800.
Their family thus became: John born Nov 1794, Elizabeth 7 April 1796, Jane 16 July 1799, Christopher 4 September 1801, James 21 July 1803, Sarah 11 January 1806, Henry Edwin 1808, George Garth (grandmothers maiden name) 1810 but died in 1812, our decedent George 17 February 1813, Mary Ann 7 February 1815 and finally Susannah February 1819. She also only survived for one year. I haven't yet found an indenture for the first born, John, so it is possible that he also died early. Christopher snr. did however indenture his next two sons, Christopher jn. and James.
Our g.g.grandfather George must have missed out as his father died when he was only 11 years old.
60 Aldgate High Street was rented to Christopher Matthews and in 1820 the owner died and the leases for the four butchers shops, 57,58,59 and 60 were put up for sale. Christopher presumably continued to trade from his shop for when he died in August 1824 aged 58 his address was still Aldgate High Street.
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However, my family line comes from George, born 17 February 1813 as shown here in his christening entry
He was never indentured but he worked in the family business as a butcher. Just a few days after his eighteenth birthday he married Martha Wright, a farmers daughter from Farnham in Surrey, in the parish of St Giles, without Cripplegate, on the 24th February 1830.
In 1841 the family were living in Whitechapel High Street, close to the junction with Somerset Street. George is 28 years old and still a butcher by trade, his wife Martha is also 28 and they have four children, Mary (10) Christopher (7) Martha (4) and Elizabeth (2). This census record would suggest that both George and Martha were just 15 years old when they had their first child but for the 1841 census ages were normally rounded up or down to the nearest 0 or 5. The baptism record for Martha shows that they were living at 54 Aldgate High Street.
the matthews family line 1841
George Matthews = Martha Wright
b.c1814/5 b.c1814/5
l------------------l------------------l-----------------l
Mary Christopher Martha Elizabeth
Aldgate Aldgate Aldgate Aldgate
Mary Christopher Martha Elizabeth
Aldgate Aldgate Aldgate Aldgate
Marked in yellow on this 1868 map by Edward Weller, is the approx. position of the family, on Aldgate High Street, just before Somerset Street.
The blue arrow indicates the direction that the drawing below is looking; toward the City. This drawing was made in 1837, the year that young Martha is born, and just four years earlier than the 1841 census so should be a reasonable likeness of the area. In the distance can be seen the Monument. Notice from the clothes being worn that this is still very much a Georgian society and not yet Victorian.
Whitechapel High street 1837
The suburb of Whitechapel and the surrounding area became 'the other half' of London, located east of Aldgate, outside the City Walls and beyond official controls. It attracted the less fragrant activities of the city, particularly tanneries, breweries, foundries (including the Whitechapel Bell Foundry which later cast Philadelphia's Liberty Bell and London's Big Ben) and slaughterhouses although the biggest meat market was at Smithfilds, also outside of the city walls. Smithfields was also the location of the annual Bartholomew Fair – three days of merrymaking, dancing and music which over the centuries became the most debauched and drunken holiday in the calendar. Even so, it lasted almost 700 years before it was eventually closed by those prudish Victorian spoilsports in 1855 but not before, I am sure, our ancesters would have visited it.
By the 1840s, Whitechapel, along with Wapping, Aldgate, Mile End, Bow, Shadwell and Stepney (collectively known today as the 'East End'), had evolved into the classic "Dickensian" London, with problems of poverty and overcrowding. Whitechapel Road itself was not particularly squalid through most of this period—it was the warrens of small dark streets branching from it that contained the greatest suffering, filth and danger.
By the 1840s, Whitechapel, along with Wapping, Aldgate, Mile End, Bow, Shadwell and Stepney (collectively known today as the 'East End'), had evolved into the classic "Dickensian" London, with problems of poverty and overcrowding. Whitechapel Road itself was not particularly squalid through most of this period—it was the warrens of small dark streets branching from it that contained the greatest suffering, filth and danger.
The East End of London traditionally starts at the Aldgate pump (a drinking water pump set in the main Whitechapel Road and still there today) and Aldgate is one of the gates into and out of the City of London. 'All Gate' means free to all, as it was at one time the only gate into the city that no toll had to be paid to pass through. Interestingly, between 1374 and 1386 Geoffrey Chaucer was the 'Controller of Customs' and lived in an apartment over this gate. Perhaps the travellers going under his gate were the inspiration for his 'Canterbury Tales'. Was the Prioress an Essex girl?
This next picture ( from the London Illustrated News 1849) shows the row of butchers’ shops that Whitechapel had been well know for since the 17th century. Many slaughter-houses here and in Aldgate and indeed all over London were at the backs of the houses. That means that all the animals had to be taken through the front of the shop to be slaughterd at the rear and then all of the blood etc. would run back through the premises and into the gutter in the street outside! It would most probably be in just such a building that George and Martha were living. Many poor families lived crowded into just one room with no sanitation or proper ventilation.
This next picture ( from the London Illustrated News 1849) shows the row of butchers’ shops that Whitechapel had been well know for since the 17th century. Many slaughter-houses here and in Aldgate and indeed all over London were at the backs of the houses. That means that all the animals had to be taken through the front of the shop to be slaughterd at the rear and then all of the blood etc. would run back through the premises and into the gutter in the street outside! It would most probably be in just such a building that George and Martha were living. Many poor families lived crowded into just one room with no sanitation or proper ventilation.
The 1851 census tells us that the Matthews family had moved just a mile or so further east and away from the city to 1 Bridge Street, Mile End Old Town. George is still a butcher and the family now consist of George and Martha, both 38, Mary Hannah (19) Christopher (15) George (9) Henry (7) Edward (5) JAMES (3) and Emma (3 months). Martha and Elizabeth are not recorded, but Martha returns on the 1861 census.
the matthews family 1851
George Matthews = Martha m. c1830
b.c1813 l b.c1813
l
l-----------------l-------------------l--------------l---------------l-----------------l----------------l
Mary Christopher George Henry Edward James Emma
b.1831 b.1834 b.1842 b.1844 b.1846 b.1848 b.1851
Aldgate Aldgate Aldgate Aldgate Stepney Stepney Stepney
b.c1813 l b.c1813
l
l-----------------l-------------------l--------------l---------------l-----------------l----------------l
Mary Christopher George Henry Edward James Emma
b.1831 b.1834 b.1842 b.1844 b.1846 b.1848 b.1851
Aldgate Aldgate Aldgate Aldgate Stepney Stepney Stepney
The map below ( still Edward Weller 1868) shows their new location.
The 1861 census (below) puts them a few streets away at 4 Bow Common Road (marked blue). George describes himself as a cattle dealer rather than a butcher and the family is made up of George 48, now a widow, Martha 23, James 13, Emma 10, Charles 6 and Kate aged just 3. His wife Martha had died two years earlier in 1859.
Young George Matthews is not shown here but I have found a George Matthews, aged 20, unmarried, described as a drover, and living in a licenced lodging house at 12 Thrawl Street. There are two new additions to the family, Charles born 1855 and Kate in 1858.
The Spitlafield area, where Thrawl Street was, had been in decline for some time since its hey day as an area of wealthy master silk weavers. The once grand houses were now divided into multidwelling slums. After a cholera epidemic of 1832 an artical in "The Poor Man's Guardian" (18 February 1832) stated 'The low houses are all huddled together in close and dark lanes and alleys, presenting at first sight an appearance of non-habitation, so dilapidated are the doors and windows:- in every room of the houses, whole families, parents, children and aged grandfathers swarm together.' George is lucky though because a licenced lodging house meant clean bedding once a week and somewhere to cook his meal.
''By 1871 it is just George and his youngest daughter Kate, now 13 and they are boarding at 7 Salisbury Place, Bethnal Green however, George was to remarry on 25 March 1872 to Eliza Woods and would have two more children, Ada in 1874 and William Ernest 1875.
What happened to all the other children?
There would seem to be a close association between the Matthews family and the De'Caux family. Mary Matthews marries Edmund De'Caux on 5 January 1857 at St Ann, Limehouse. They will go on to have at least seven children before she dies at the beginning of 1881 in Mile End Old Town.
Edward marries Charlotte De'Caux, they have no children and Edward dies in 1876.
Emma marries John Day and has three children, Emma, Ada and John but she also dies in 1876 so Charlotte with no children marries John Day with three children!!
Kate married George Allender in 1889, had two children and died on Christmas day 1915.
What happened to all the other children?
There would seem to be a close association between the Matthews family and the De'Caux family. Mary Matthews marries Edmund De'Caux on 5 January 1857 at St Ann, Limehouse. They will go on to have at least seven children before she dies at the beginning of 1881 in Mile End Old Town.
Edward marries Charlotte De'Caux, they have no children and Edward dies in 1876.
Emma marries John Day and has three children, Emma, Ada and John but she also dies in 1876 so Charlotte with no children marries John Day with three children!!
Kate married George Allender in 1889, had two children and died on Christmas day 1915.
Our ancestor was James Matthews, the ninth child and he married Ann Leonard at St Mary and St Michael's Roman Catholic Church, Commercial Road on 10 July 1869.
And the church as it stands today.
The Leonard’s connection.
Born around 1818 and 1822 respectively in Cork, Ireland, William Leonard and Ann arrived at some time before 1844 in London. I have yet to work out whether they met and married in Ireland or in London, Leonard being a common name and I have no surname for Ann to go on. I have found a London marriage entry in St Georges in the East for a William Leonard and an Ann Donoghue, both from Cork City, Ireland and dated 1844 which is both the right place and time frame for them but as yet, no definitive proof.
What is certain is that they lived in the Shadwell Basin area of east London (Lower Wells Ally, Plough Ally and Smiths Place) and had at least six children; Mary born 1844, Peter 1846, Ann 1849, William 1851, John 1855 and James born 1859. Apart from the 1851 census when William Leonard is described as a labourer to a beer merchant, all other job descriptions place him firmly in the London Docks. His family and that of James and Ann never more than a few streets apart for the rest of their lives.
Born around 1818 and 1822 respectively in Cork, Ireland, William Leonard and Ann arrived at some time before 1844 in London. I have yet to work out whether they met and married in Ireland or in London, Leonard being a common name and I have no surname for Ann to go on. I have found a London marriage entry in St Georges in the East for a William Leonard and an Ann Donoghue, both from Cork City, Ireland and dated 1844 which is both the right place and time frame for them but as yet, no definitive proof.
What is certain is that they lived in the Shadwell Basin area of east London (Lower Wells Ally, Plough Ally and Smiths Place) and had at least six children; Mary born 1844, Peter 1846, Ann 1849, William 1851, John 1855 and James born 1859. Apart from the 1851 census when William Leonard is described as a labourer to a beer merchant, all other job descriptions place him firmly in the London Docks. His family and that of James and Ann never more than a few streets apart for the rest of their lives.
On his marriage certificate James describes himself as a 'general dealer', probably still in the meat trade, but two year later, in the 1871 census he is working in the docks as a labourer, perhaps his 'father-in-law' got him started. The marriage certificate gives James' fathers name and profession rather than just 'Deceased' and I would like to think that he was able to attend their wedding although he is not cited as a witness. On the other hand, Ann has her elder sister Mary as her witness. James and Ann start out their married life at 49 Sutton Street. You will note that in all of these census's more than one family live in the same house!
Ten years on, 1881, James and Ann are living at 11 Lower Gun Alley and with a family. Notice also the the emunorator has named James as John.
James Matthews = Ann
I
I----------------------l-----------------------l--------------------------l
Ann Martha Mary James
b.1872 b.1875 b.1877 b.1880
I
I----------------------l-----------------------l--------------------------l
Ann Martha Mary James
b.1872 b.1875 b.1877 b.1880
Between 1881 and 1891 two more children are born, Charles in 1882 and William born 23 January 1886. It is believed that this date is incorrect as William always thought his real birth date to have been 26th December 1885. As it cost money to register a birth, Williams father, James, had left it until quite late to do so just in case the baby should not survive so he then had to register him as being born at a later date. It appears that the family have moved from 11 Lower Gun Alley to 7 Lower Gun Alley.
The complete family now looks like this:
James Matthews = Ann Leonard married 10 July 1869 St Mary & St Michael Church Commercial Rd.
b c1848 wapping l b c1850 white chapel
l
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Ann Martha Mary James Charles William
b.1872 b.1875 b.1877 b.1881 b.1882 b.1886 d.1956
b c1848 wapping l b c1850 white chapel
l
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Ann Martha Mary James Charles William
b.1872 b.1875 b.1877 b.1881 b.1882 b.1886 d.1956
And here a copy of Williams birth certificate. Schooling among the poorer families, and particularly for girls, was not considered a necessity and so Williams mother makes her mark with a cross. Note that Mary Leonard did also on James and Anns marriage certificate.
All the locations that the family lived in were right on the edge of the river Thames and therefore little commuting to be done in the morning. I like to think that these neighborhoods, though very poor at least had a good sense of humor, as in "Anchor and Hope" Ally. Booths Poverty Map of London for 1898-1899 shows that where Lower Gun Alley once stood has now been cleared and converted into an open space, a recreation ground. This happened between the two census dates and it was probably this slum clearance that necessitated the families next move to Hilliards Court.
So here they are in 1891 at 11 Hilliards Court. Martha is no longer with them.
By 1901 they have moved again, this time to: 3 Taylors Rents and just the three youngest boys still at home. Living next door, at number 2 Taylors Rents, are the Dobinson family. Our young Charles Matthews takes a shine to little Miss Harriet Dobinson and they would later go on to marry.
Below is the 1878 Vestry map for St George in the East and I have marked the roads where the Matthews family lived from 1871 to 1901.
Red is 49 Sutton Street. Green is Lower Gun Alley. Yellow is Hilliards Court. Blue is Taylors Rents. Purple is Red Lion Street.
Red is 49 Sutton Street. Green is Lower Gun Alley. Yellow is Hilliards Court. Blue is Taylors Rents. Purple is Red Lion Street.
James dies early in 1903 aged 53.
Red Lion Street is where our last census for the Matthews family comes from. After James has died it is just young William and his mum living at number 126. Also living at 126 is Williams sister Ann and her husband John Fuller and their three children.
Time now for a few pictures of the dock area for the period 1850 to 1910 starting with Red Lion Street taken about 1900, just when William and his mother Ann were living there:
'Wapping Police' a sketch by Whistler in 1859. Look at the Wapping map and you will see the Thames Police office and pier just a couple of hundred yards from where the family lived so this would have been a very familiar scene to them.
And now, thirty years later this lovely watercolor entitled 'The riverside at Limehouse' by Fredrick A Winkfield dated 1890. As you can see, nothing really has changed in the intervening years. Underneath are a few pictures of the general area.
Pennington street, 1896 . This road lay immediately to the north of the Western Dock and what you see is the back wall of the dock warehouses. This would have been a very familiar road to them.
And now right up to date with this view of Wapping from 2011. The green and leafy park still stands where Lower Gun Ally once was. Notice too that the police office and pier sill remain as depicted in Whistlers sketch of 1859.
Missing from the last two census returns are James and Anns' two daughters, Ann and Mary. Ann marries John Fuller and would be living with her mum and little brother William at 126 Red Lion Street as seen in the 1911 census. Mary, you may have noticed in 1891, worked as a domestic servant. In the 1901 census she a 'living in' servant in Mile End old Town. I have been led to believe that Mary was also the name of the lady of the house where she was working and so they began to call her 'Polly' so as not to cause confusion. It may also have been because she used to make the tea and bring in the afternoon cakes! It was while she was collecting their bread and cakes from the local bakery that she meet her future husband, William Simpson. I mention all of this because without the marriage of Polly and William I may never have been born. William Simpson had a sister, Ellen Jane Simpson, my grandmother, and that is how she would come to meet up with Pollys younger brother, William Matthews, eventually marring in 1914.
My grandmother was not going to live in the east end and docklands even though that is where William worked, she wanted better living conditions for their family to grow up in, so they moved first to Linver Road in Fulham then to the Peabody Estate in Walham Green and evenually to the Dover House Estate in Roehampton. Mary (Polly) and William Simpson made a similar decision and set up their permanent home also in Fulham although William was able to work at a local bakery.
William and Ellen had three daughters, Ellen Dora, born in 1916, Elizabeth Ivy, born 1918 and Audrey June born in 1926.
My grandmother was not going to live in the east end and docklands even though that is where William worked, she wanted better living conditions for their family to grow up in, so they moved first to Linver Road in Fulham then to the Peabody Estate in Walham Green and evenually to the Dover House Estate in Roehampton. Mary (Polly) and William Simpson made a similar decision and set up their permanent home also in Fulham although William was able to work at a local bakery.
William and Ellen had three daughters, Ellen Dora, born in 1916, Elizabeth Ivy, born 1918 and Audrey June born in 1926.
The Wilsons
My maternal great grandmother was Jane Ellen Wilson. Her parents were Thomas Wilson and Ellen Trayhorn, both born in Plymouth, Devon and they married in Medway, Kent in April 1850. All I know at present about Ellen Trayhorn is that she was born about 1829/30 in Plymouth, Devon. Thomas Wilson was born 26 September 1826 in Plymouth and was the son of William Henry Wilson, a ships carpenter working at the navel base in Plymouth and of Fanny Elvy who were married on 7 April 1825 at Stoke Damerel, Devon. It is possible that Thomas and Ellen hitched a ride on a ship heading for London, stopped off at Medway, in Kent, to get married before continuing to London where they began married life at 110 Cromer Street, St Pancras. Thomas is a shop man (tea haller). Here is the Census of 1851:
I have located six children for Thomas and Ellen Wilson. Their first was my great grandmother Jane Ellen born 25 November 1853 in Theobald Road, Holborn. There is then a gap to Thomas in 1860, also in Holborn, so there may well have been others that did not survive, Sophia Ellen in 1861 in Stepney, Robert Herbert in 1863 in Lambeth, Dora Emily on 26 May 1868 in Mile End Old Town and finally Ada in 1874 in Limehouse. Here is the birth certificate for Jane:
I have not as yet found a census for 1861 for them but here is a (not very clear) copy of their 1871 census showing them living at 218 Cable Street, St Georges-in-the-East and Thomas employed as a carpenter.
In 1877 my g.grandmother, Jane Ellen, meet a young man named William Demery, born in Bethnal Green on 29 September 1852. William may have been a bit of a handful as a teenager as the 1871 census (he would have been 18) put him as a pupil at the "Home-in-the-East", a reform school, and it is most likely to have been here that he received his training as a cook as he was later to become a ships cook. While he was away at sea, my g.grandmother gave birth to a son in January 1878 naming him William after his father. On William Demery's return to shore, they were married at Mile End Old Town Registry Office on 15 July 1878. Jane's father, Thomas Wilson, is now described as a Venetian Blind maker and the family are at 131 Burdett Road, M.E.O.Town.
I recently came across this old tin plate photo of Jane Ellen Wilson as a young lady.
I recently came across this old tin plate photo of Jane Ellen Wilson as a young lady.
Three years later in the 1881 census Jane describes herself as a actress, apparently she had a very good singing voice, is now a widow and she and her 2 year old son William along with her sisters Sophia, Ada and another visitor, F W Simpson and are residing at Solis Cottage, 141 St Paul's Road. The family story as told to me by my grandmother, Ellen Jane Simpson, was that William Demery went back to sea on a voyage to Australia and never returned !!!
St Paul's Road and Burdett Road intersect each other so she is living very close to her parents.
St Paul's Road and Burdett Road intersect each other so she is living very close to her parents.
I am always amazed at how inaccurate peoples ages are recorded on census returns. We know that by 1881 Jane must be 27 and not 23, Sophia will be 19 not 16, Ada's age seems fine but F W Simpson would be about 28 and not 40. How do I know that?
F W Simpson was born in 1853 and is the cousin of James Caldow Simpson. And who is James Caldow Simpson?
F W Simpson was born in 1853 and is the cousin of James Caldow Simpson. And who is James Caldow Simpson?
The Simpson's were an enterprising family. Some of them were builders whilst others ran a successful Venetian Blind manufacturing company. It is almost certain that this is where Thomas Wilson was working and so the rest of the Simpson family would know of Jane's plight. It was James Caldow Simpson who fell in love with the beautiful young actress but as the law stood at that time, a period of at least 15 years had to elapse before a death could be presumed without the evidence of a body and William Demery was only presumed dead, not proven. This meant that Jane and James were not married, however, my grandmother, Ellen Jane, was born on 20 October 1883 in Stratford, West Ham followed by Elizabeth Hope on the 3 September 1887 and finally James Tristram Augustus on 13 August 1895. Tragically, James Simpson died in the autumn of 1895 at the age of 43 just months after the birth of his son and he and Jane never were able to marry. Here is the census for the year 1891 showing our little family at 147 Mare Street, Hackney.