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England (Counties as in 1851-1901) => England => London and Middlesex => Topic started by: Smokey807 on Thursday 27 June 13 19:22 BST (UK)
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Lots of newspaper articles online about the career of Miss Annie Luker up to 1905 but I want to know anything you can tell me about her after 1905. I know she was the wife of Frederick W. Parker. They are recorded in the 1891 census at Westminster St Margaret. He was born 1865 at Woodford,Essex and was an oyster merchant. His wife Miss Annie Luker (her performing name throghtout her career) was born as Hagar Ann Luker 1870 at Abingdon,Berkshire, one of eight children born to swimming professor John Pearson Luker(1838-1915). John had been married 3 times and had children with all three wives. John lived with his family in Tunbridge Wells,Kent 1881 until 1915 but after the 1881 census the last of his children left home, including his daughter Hagar Ann Luker.She obviously found her way to London and embarked on her swimming,and diving career.
What can you tell me about her life after the 1891 census and her career after 1905. There must be lots of references to both her and her father in London for many of her stunts were diving off the London Bridge and swimming long distances in the Thames. I suspect her father, who gave training to the famous English channel swimmer Matthew Webb (in 1875) must also be mentioned in London. Any information gratefully received.
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Hagar and Frederick were married, as you may know, at St George's Hanover Square in Q2 1890.
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Thank you for the details about the marriage. I knew it was 1890 but didn't know the quarter or the location.
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Annie Luker was my Gt Grand Aunt and Baby May who performed with her was my Grandmother.
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To Doug Mussell;
I have written a history about the Luker family which will be published on my webite www.allabouttunbridgewells.com in the first week of December 2013. if interested you can go to the website and make a copy of the article with the pictures.
My history of Annie Luker however is not as complete as I would like it and I would appreciate it if you would provide to me more details about her life which I will add to my article and of course give you credit in it for supplying the information. Her performing career seems to have ended in the 1890's and then it appears she devoted her later years as a swimming instructor. I have a record of her marriage but when and where she died is not fully known by me and I have no record of her ever having any children. I will send to you by private message a copy of my article without the images and perhaps you would be kind enough to reply with any additional information you have. I have not heard of Baby May before so I am very interested in what you can tell me about her and how she is connected to Annie Luker. I suspect you must be a decendent of Annies sister Elizabeth who I also provide information on in my article. I look forward to hearing from you again
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Hm - actually, Baby May is recorded in censuses as Annie's niece. ;)
(whoops, my carelessness -- that is what Doug's message said.)
In 1901, the two are in Islington, where Annie Parker is recorded as the married head of household, a swimming instructor, and May Waters as her niece.
In 1901, Frederick Waters appears to be a tram conductor boarding in Bromley and reporting himself (or perhaps the head of household assumed) as single. This is the only person who matches his description in 1901 (same age and place of birth as in 1891), and no one else in 1891 matches that description.
May Elizabeth Waters' birth was reg in Tunbridge reg dist in June quarter 1890. In 1891, she appears with parents Thomas, a cycle mechanic, and Kate in Tunbridge, Kent. Kate was born in Abingdon; she seems to have been Annie's sister then.
Thomas Truman Waters and Kate Elizabeth Luker married in Tunbridge in 1889.
Thomas Truman Waters died in 1898 in Tunbridge.
There is a Kate Waters marriage in Tunbridge in 1889.
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To Janey Canuck; Did you mean to say marriage of kate Waters was in T.Wells 1899 instead of 1889 as given by you? It must be!
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Yes. ;)
Kate and Thomas married in 1889 and had daughter May Elizabeth Waters in 1890.
Thomas Truman Waters died in 1898, and Kate seems to have remarried in 1899.
http://freebmd.rootsweb.com/cgi/search.pl
I see my mention of the 1911 census has been removed. Such selective attentions ...
This is Annie in 1911 at the free access site FamilySearch:
https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/XWLB-58G
but I am absolutely blamed if I can figure out how FS has mistranscribed May Elizabeth Waters.
The details are accessible at pay sites.
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Kate and Thomas were married at St John's Church, Tunbridge Wells 2nd June 1889. My grandmother May Elizabeth (Baby May) was born in Tunbridge Well 13th May 1890. She died She 1st August 1973 in Crewkerne Somerset. Doug.
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To Janey Canuck; Did you mean to say marriage of kate Waters was in T.Wells 1899 instead of 1889 as given by you? It must be!
You're quite welcome! :)
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May in 1911
https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/XWLB-58P
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Kate Elizabeth Waters died 27th Feb 1942 and is buried at Islington Cemetery. I have no record of her remarrying.
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I'm a RootsChat first timer, and this is such an interesting thread (albeit a few months ago now) as, like you Doug, Annie Luker was my G-G-G Aunt, as her sister Kate Elizabeth was my G-G Grandmother too.
My grandfather always told me the story of how Annie was a champion diver, and that her father had trained Captain Webb, the first man to swim the Channel (though I've never found any solid evidence of this). So it's great to see that other people are interested in Annie too, and this thread has given me lots of info, so thank you all!
I'm just starting out on my research so I'm afraid I don't have a lot of useful things to add, except that Kate didn't marry again.
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Hi Georgeous. You must be a blood relative if Annie Luker was your GGG Aunt; Kate Elizabeth also who was my G grandmother. I have searched for Annie Luker's death without success, perhaps you or your relatives may have info? If you would like to identify who you are and how you are related to the Lukers perhaps you could e-mail me at (*) I have info which confirms the Captain Webb story.
Doug
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Hi Doug and other rootchatters
I am also a relative of Annie Luker the diver - Annie's half-sister May Luker (not Baby May Waters) was my great grandmother. I also heard about Captain Webb, my grandfather told me about it. But I don't see any evidence. I saw Annie's diving medal though. Annie left her things to her niece Joan.
Like Doug, I can't find her death. I have asked Joan's relatives but they don't know, too young to remember at that time. Doug have found an article on Annie - newspaper dated 1932.
I couldn't find any more after that, which is mystery. She appeared on so many papers in 1900s then quietly then popped up in 1932.
Grub
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Hi Grub I was pleased to read your info about Annie. I would like to hear more about Annies half sister. I am away for a couple of weeks hopefully I can link up with you then. Doug
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Annie Lukers half sister was May Hilda Luker born 1885 Tunbridge Wells, one of four children born to John Pearson Luker (1838-1915) and Annie Elizabeth Vidler (1849-1929), who was John's second wife.In 1911 May was living with her parents and siblings in Tunbridge Wells at 40 Quarry Road and she was working as a telephone operator.
One source of evidence that Luker trained Capt Webb is in The Strand Magazine of 1896 where it is stated in part " the well known and expert Miss Annie Luker, who's father trained Captain Webb"...
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I was curious, so just in case anyone else wants the source for that quote:
http://archive.org/stream/StrandMagazine64/Strand64_djvu.txt
Now, was ever such an opportunity given an experienced angler as that suggested by my next picture? And he is an experienced angler — perhaps I ought to say a professional angler — who has played bigger salmon in the Fraser River than ever Scotland produced. And surely this is a novel angling contest — Rod v. Woman. I witnessed the interesting event in a specially-arranged swimming-bath, the "fish" being the well-known expert, Miss Annie Luker, whose father trained Captain Webb, and who is herself engaged at this day in imparting the natatory art to a couple of thousand London Board School children. Miss Luker's biggest feat was a swim from Kew to Rotherhithe.
And it goes on to describe the particular exhibition they were putting on.
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To Smokey
Actually Ann Elizabeth Vidler was John's third wife. Ann's sister Sarah Ann Vidler was John's second wife.
John have 9 children - three with Sarah Shepherd, two with Sarah Ann and four with Ann Elizabeth.
Grub
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Yes you are quite right- I knew about his 3 wives- I just got a little mixed up.Thanks for straightening out the information.
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Hello there, John Pearson Luker had a bust of Captain Webb. On his death in 1915 it went to his son Henry Blackford Luker who was born in 1875, the year JP Luker trained Captain Webb. Apparently this was destroyed by a bomb in WW2. My father is HB Luker’s son.
Can anyone send me a copy of the press article about Annie Luker/Parker from 1932? I’m also trying to find a death for her. Thanks, Christina
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Hello,
Cannot believe this thread is interesting.... no surprise there....still hunting for Annie's death..... my earlier thread was a mistake abt newspaper 1932, nothing about Annie, just a flagged bit. So, back to 1915s.....where her last address was. I keep thinking she drowned without report aor ended up in prison and her names may be wrong on prison register
Don't give up! Lots of people wanted to know too!
:D
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Hi Doug and other rootchatters
I am also a relative of Annie Luker the diver - Annie's half-sister May Luker (not Baby May Waters) was my great grandmother. I also heard about Captain Webb, my grandfather told me about it. But I don't see any evidence. I saw Annie's diving medal though. Annie left her things to her niece Joan.
Like Doug, I can't find her death. I have asked Joan's relatives but they don't know, too young to remember at that time. Doug have found an article on Annie - newspaper dated 1932.
I couldn't find any more after that, which is mystery. She appeared on so many papers in 1900s then quietly then popped up in 1932.
Grub
Can I ask who Joan's parents were? Just trying to figure out her role as niece to Annie, where she lived, etc. as if she received Annie's medal one would assume Annie must have died around the same area. Just a thought.
Annette
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Hello there, Joan Marion Luker was the daughter of Arthur Ernest Luker. Joan was born in 1919 so would that mean Annie was alive then?
Joan’s birth and death in 2002 are both in Tonbridge Wells.
Here’s all I’ve found on Annie so far
https://www.ancestry.co.uk/family-tree/person/tree/46367264/person/122044761152/facts
All the best, Christina
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Hello,
Over the years i have been looking for Annie’s death, wondering why she was not found. My theory that when John and Ann’s house on Quarry Road, was cleared out by their sons Alfred and Arthur after Ann’s death, (Annie Luker’s swimming career highlighted when John and Ann were alive,)supposedly Annie left her things in their house before she moved to London, and married , supposedly, Arthur and Alfred found her things and stayed with Arthur. Until Arthur passed away, his daughter Joan looked after Annie’s things. When Joan passed away, Annie’s stuff have passed to Joan’s family, so no one know when Annie passed away. I saw the medal myself.
Still a mystery, i cant find her on 1921 census either.
:'( ???
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Dear Grub, I can’t imagine her storing her stuff there when she went to London. She was living here from around 1889. I live a few streets away from Englefield Road and her house is a large four storey Victorian house. Huge in comparison to Quarry Road which is a two up two down. Unless she had died and they kept her things.
As you’ll know Annie is no longer on the electoral roll after 1915 so she either married again or died.
I’ve sent off for a number of certificates in the hope they might be her but none of them match. Although we know she knocked off a few years on the 1911 census which I took into account. Nothing under the name Hagar Parker either.
I thought about trying to look at Islington archives but haven’t found time yet.
I read on a feed someone had said she was a suffragette and there was a prisoner in Holloway around 1916 called Annie Parker but as it’s such a common name I can’t be sure.
I will keep on looking.
Best wishes, Christina
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Hi
I have nothing to do with this family but read the postings out of interest because of her profession and because the original post was over ten years ago!
In my own research, I have had births that have not been registered but deaths seem to have been taken a bit more seriously!
There are 33 Family Trees at Ancestry for Hagar Ann Luker, a couple of them give the death as being registered in Abingdon in 1916
https://www.ancestry.co.uk/search/collections/1030/?name=hagar_Luker&count=50&name_x=s&pcat=42 (https://www.ancestry.co.uk/search/collections/1030/?name=hagar_Luker&count=50&name_x=s&pcat=42)
Annie Parker aged 47 III/1916
Age right, area right.
Perhaps just risk the 3 quid on a digital certificate ? If a profession is noted, that should clear things up. Also the person who registered the death might be of interest.
Hope I'm not meddling!
Rebel
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Annie Parker who dies 1916 in Abingdon was wife of Alfred Parker a Grocer died of Breast cancer
so I dont think she is the correct one