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England (Counties as in 1851-1901) => Cheshire => England => Cheshire Lookup Requests => Topic started by: Fecamp on Sunday 04 May 25 03:03 BST (UK)

Title: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: Fecamp on Sunday 04 May 25 03:03 BST (UK)
I am trying to find details about my great aunt, Alice Edge. In my possession are two paintings that came into the family through her.

She was born in the December quarter of 1889, and would have left school at 10 or 11 years old.

She went into ‘service’, apparently to a family in Yorkshire, and she was reportedly given these paintings when she left.

I would like to find her whereabouts in the 1901, and if possible, the 1911 censuses.

Her parents were Edward Edge (born c.1854) and Jane Wainwright (born c.1854). They lived in Millstone Lane, Nantwich.

I would be grateful for any information.

Thank you.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: maddys52 on Sunday 04 May 25 03:11 BST (UK)
Welcome to RootsChat.

In 1901 she is with her family at 55 Millstone Lane.
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XS6K-WW6?lang=en

In 1911 she is with the family of Benjamin ILLINGWORTH at Roselea, Heaton Grove, Bradford.
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XWJL-W7N?lang=en

For interest, in 1921, Alice is still with the ILLINGWORTH family in the same place.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: maddys52 on Sunday 04 May 25 03:29 BST (UK)
Benjamin ILLINGWORTH (wool merchant, born c1863) died on 17 April 1930 - is this when Alice received the paintings? There may be some mention of her in his will.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: Fecamp on Sunday 04 May 25 08:16 BST (UK)
Dear Maddys52,

This is fantastic – thank you VERY much!

Would a couple of other details be possible?

Firstly, I wonder if we could get an accurate date of Alice’s birth?

I assume she went into service 1900 – 1902. When did Benjamin ILLINGWORTH lose his wife?

In the 1911 census, were all of the family members still there, or had Herbet, or Elsie Margarite left and possibly married? What of Annie Bottomley, his cousin?

Alice never married. Would I be right to assume that on the death of Benjamin ILLINGWORTH, her time in service ended?

It would be nice to know if Benjamin left the paintings to her in his will (hence my curiosity about family composition), or whether Herbet, for example had given them to her after his father’s death.

Thank you again.

…. out of interest, the two paintings are versions of ‘Hush’ and ‘Hushed’ by Frank Holl, which are in the Tate Gallery. I don’t yet know if my two paintings are also by Holl, but this information certainly gives some provenance.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: Fecamp on Sunday 04 May 25 08:26 BST (UK)
... sorry - I meant the 1921 Census !!  ::)
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: AlanBoyd on Sunday 04 May 25 08:27 BST (UK)
In 1921 her age is stated as 31y 8mo. The date of the census was 19th June 1921.

By my reckoning that places her birth in November 1889, but please check.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: KGarrad on Sunday 04 May 25 08:34 BST (UK)
From FreeBMD.org.uk:

December qtr 1889
Nantwich Registration District     vol 81, page 350
Edge, Alice

The birth certificate will have her date of birth.
Order from GRO (https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/indexes_search.asp):
Paper copy £12
PDF copy £8
Digital image £3

For a will use https://probatesearch.service.gov.uk/. Cost £1.50.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: AlanBoyd on Sunday 04 May 25 08:48 BST (UK)
Herbert Illingworth m Christine Asquith January 18th 1917, St Barnabas, Heaton.

The couple are with Benjamin Illingworth in 1921. No other family members.

August 20th 1923 passenger list SS Caronia arriving New York
Herbert Illingworth,  35y 4mo, wool buyer, final destination Melbourne, Australia
next of kin Mrs C Illingworth, Moorfoot, Villa Road, Bingley, Yks.

When Benjamin Illingworth died in 1930 his address was still Roselea, Heaton Grove, Bradford
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: hanes teulu on Sunday 04 May 25 08:59 BST (UK)
Electoral Registers

In 1929 she is with Benjamin at 34 Heaton Grove
In 1931 there is an Alice Edge at Westwood, Highgate with an Ernest and Margaret Turner.

Both addresses are within the Heaton Ward, Constuencey of Bradford.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: hanes teulu on Sunday 04 May 25 09:13 BST (UK)
A 1937 Bradford newspaper competition for long service (domestic servants) with an employer named Ernest Turner, Westwood, Highgate as employing a P. Gudgeon for 24 years.

Did Alice go to work for Ernest and Margaret after Benjamin's 1930 death? There is no Alice Edge with the Turners in 1930.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: Millmoor on Sunday 04 May 25 09:48 BST (UK)
This may be worth checking out.

There is a death for an Alice Edge 31 Dec 1965 in Nantwich. The death was registered in the first quarter of 1966.

Not only did she leave a will but there is a report of her funeral in the Nantwich Chronicle of 13 Jan 1966. This names many family members who you may recognise.

" The funeral took place at All Saints Cemetery, Nantwich on Wednesday of last week of Miss Alice Edge, aged 76, of 23 Pratchett's Row Nantwich, who died the previous Friday".

You can register for the British Newspaper Archive and , I believe, obtain 3 free articles.

William
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: AlanBoyd on Sunday 04 May 25 09:51 BST (UK)
Electoral Registers

In 1929 she is with Benjamin at 34 Heaton Grove

Thanks HT, I had been trying to find the house number for Roselea. Here is the 1958/1971 large scale map showing the location.

https://maps.nls.uk/view/210656314#zoom=4.9&lat=6856&lon=3573&layers=BT (https://maps.nls.uk/view/210656314#zoom=4.9&lat=6856&lon=3573&layers=BT)
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: maddys52 on Sunday 04 May 25 10:28 BST (UK)
Fecamp, I hope others have answered some of your questions.

Benjamin ILLINGWORTH (24) married Mary TRICKETT (24) on 30 April 1887 at the Eastbrook Chapel, Bradford.

Mary died 31 July 1902 (of 27 Victoria Park Shipley), wife of Benjamin ILLINGWORTH, wool merchant, according to her probate.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: DCB on Sunday 04 May 25 10:41 BST (UK)
The beneficiary named in the will, mentioned by William, was Vera Farrington.

She was Vera Jane Edge who married Harry Farrington in 1946 and died on 19th May 1995 in Nantwich.

Born on 29th January 1922, she was the daughter of Edward Edge, and Alice Clarke, born in 1896, the son of Edward Edge and Jane Wainwright.

Two trees mention that Alice had a son, Robert Harold Edge, by Herbert Illingworth in 1911.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: maddys52 on Sunday 04 May 25 10:43 BST (UK)
I looked at the trees that mention Alice having a son Robert Harold. I think it very unlikely - the Robert Harold EDGE born 1911 was baptised at Bickerton to mother Sarah. The birth certificate can confirm if this is the correct child. (Nantwich 8a/622 Dec qtr 1911, no mmn).
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: Millmoor on Sunday 04 May 25 10:55 BST (UK)
Just to add to what DCB has written  in the article I quoted from the Nantwich Chronicle ,Vera Farrington is named as Alice Edges's niece.

William
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: Fecamp on Sunday 04 May 25 10:59 BST (UK)
Thank you VERY much to Alan Boyd, KGarrad, and hanes teulu !!
Through finding that Roselea, Heaton Grove is numerically number 34 (and thus, I was able to find a streetview photograph on Google Maps), is there anywhere a number associated with Westwood, Highgate?

I tried to order a digital birth record of Alice Edge (and KGarrad, I know your info is correct, because I had already found the same), but it returned ‘No Matching Results Found’. Bizarre.

But seriously, thank you all very much. It gives me a lot to work on.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: Fecamp on Sunday 04 May 25 11:03 BST (UK)
Apologies !! I have just found more replies !!!!

THANK YOU.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: hanes teulu on Sunday 04 May 25 11:16 BST (UK)
The 1921 Census sheet before Ernest  and Margaret Turner at "Woodside, Highgate" carries the address "102 Highgate". The sheet after their record carries the address "Woodside, 104 Highgate".
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: KGarrad on Sunday 04 May 25 11:21 BST (UK)
I tried to order a digital birth record of Alice Edge (and KGarrad, I know your info is correct, because I had already found the same), but it returned ‘No Matching Results Found’. Bizarre.

On the GRO site, search the Birth Indexes, and click the button next to the relevant entry.
3 options appear (in blue): Certificate, PDF, Digital Image

I just entered 1889 as the year, and then Edge as Surname, Alice as Forename, and Female as Sex.
5 entries appeared, including your Alice.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: hanes teulu on Sunday 04 May 25 11:29 BST (UK)
I also took a walk on Streetview and a flight on Google Earth.

https://maps.nls.uk/view/210655711#zoom=4.5&lat=3509&lon=4611&layers=BT
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: Fecamp on Sunday 04 May 25 12:44 BST (UK)
Hello!

I am very interested in the Nantwich Chronicle report of her death, but I couldn’t find the article. I had visited Auntie Alice in Pratchett’s Row with my mother a couple of times. I remember her being bedridden, and hers was the first funeral I ever went to.

It is interesting that she made a will, and that Vera Farrington was the beneficiary. (Was there any mention of the paintings? They went to her sister, Jane – my grandmother.) I also remember my parents being friendly with a Farrington family in South Crofts, Nantwich.

One of the Farringtons – I think his name was Robert – used to take me and his nephew (I believe), Martin, to football matches at Crewe Alexandra. This would be around 1968.

I am also intrigued to learn that Alice – who never married – had a child by Herbert Illingsworth when she was 20/21. Did Robert Harold survive? Did Alice bring him up? I notice he didn’t travel to Australia with his father …
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: Millmoor on Sunday 04 May 25 13:39 BST (UK)
Here is a link to the article about the funeral of Alice Edge. It is  the first article and is titled "Funeral of Miss A Edge". You would need to register  with the British Newspaper Archive to read it in full.

( I found it by searching for Alice Edge and then using the filters to narrow the search down to 13 Jan 1966).

https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/search/results/1966-01-13/1966-01-13?basicsearch=alice%20edge&somesearch=alice%20edge&retrievecountrycounts=false

William
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: DCB on Sunday 04 May 25 16:00 BST (UK)
One of the trees seems to be by a descendant of Robert Harold Edge.

However, it doesn't have any details about Alice, except for her approximate birth and the 1891-1911 censuses.

It sounds as though Alice may have been a supposed ancestor.

As mentioned by maddys52, his baptism gives his mother as Sarah Edge.

In 1921, Robert was visiting a George Hewitt in Bunbury and stated that his father was dead.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: Fecamp on Sunday 04 May 25 16:40 BST (UK)
Thanks!!

'In 1921, Robert was visiting a George Hewitt in Bunbury and stated that his father was dead.'

A really interesting comment. Where was this from?
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: DCB on Sunday 04 May 25 17:50 BST (UK)
It was the 1921 census.

In 1911, the probable Sarah was with her parents, Thomas and Mary, in Bunbury.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: hanes teulu on Sunday 04 May 25 19:04 BST (UK)
Electoral Registers

In 1929 she is with Benjamin at 34 Heaton Grove

Thanks HT, I had been trying to find the house number for Roselea. Here is the 1958/1971 large scale map showing the location.

https://maps.nls.uk/view/210656314#zoom=4.9&lat=6856&lon=3573&layers=BT (https://maps.nls.uk/view/210656314#zoom=4.9&lat=6856&lon=3573&layers=BT)

AB - re. the map - how did the postman manage his route? The house numbers don't conform in any way to the natural flow of things. Reminds me of being on the post as a student many years ago (pre postcodes) and the sorter back at the office had it in "delivery" order rather than in house no. order.
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: AlanBoyd on Sunday 04 May 25 19:46 BST (UK)
It was clearly a very select area, so perhaps they had their own private postal officer who had “the knowledge”.

Another strange thing I noticed, can’t remember if it was 1911 or 1921, but there seemed to be a remarkable number of Austrian residents!
Title: Re: Alice Edge of Nantwich
Post by: Fecamp on Sunday 04 May 25 21:51 BST (UK)
An interesting point ...

When I was looking through the Yorkshire Illingworth obituaries (I didn't find him), I was surprised at the number of other (well, maybe 2 - I didn't count) Yorkshire Illingworths who were born in Berlin.

 ;)