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I think when you see certain areas you can guess where they worked. One of the biggest employers in Reading back then were Huntley and Palmers biscuit factory

jax

Snork. That would actually be

8 court 2 house

;)

I have managed to get hold of a copy of the marriage certificate of Arthur Frederick Morris to Amy Salkeld on 4th June 1927.
His father is down as John Frederick Charles Morris , his address looks like 8 cows 2 horse, Greyfriars Lane, Coventry.
Not sure if some one had a sense of humour.

Ah, interesting, I was going to mention that I have Ancestry which doesn't allow for address searching (without a big hassle of tracking down census districts).

Yes, that seems like a good surmise -- so it would indicate that the parents were well acquainted, at least. ;)

Mind, Florence herself may have been a biscuit factory worker and that was her connection with the household.

And here's an interesting birth:

Births Mar 1874
Close Florence Cranfield Edmonton 3a 226

A surname as a second given name was very commonly an indication of the father's surname, where the parents weren't married.

It was also not uncommon for people born to unmarried parents who did know their father, or at least their name, to use the father's surname.

Oh rats.

Deaths Dec 1874
CLOSE Florence Cranfield 0 Edmonton 3a 134

Well, it's important to rule out, too, so I'll leave this here for that purpose!

I have checked the occupants of 4 Auckland road for 1901. This is the place and year on his birth certificate. The occupants are John and Emily Chambers and their two sons. John Chambers was also a biscuit factory worker. I am guessing he may have been a friend/colleague of Arthurs father.

There is one Morris birth after 1911 with mother Cranfield:

Births Jun 1912
Morris Edgar E Cranfield Mile End 1c 728

With Arthur in a home in 1911 it seems unlikely these would be the same parents, but there's no marriage before or after that to account for that birth.

It might be worth knowing who those parents were.

Ah, unfortunately:

Deaths Sep 1912
MORRIS Edgar E 0 Mile End 1c 390

I had assumed through the lack of info I was finding that some aspects of this side of my family tree was probably shall we say frowned upon at that time. Still, I shall hopefully be able to put the jigsaw together. I appreciate all your help and am finding it interesting.

I'm liking my Emma Cranfield theory so far. She provides the Warwickshire / Reading connection.

She made a successful career as a senior domestic servant, it seems. In 1851 she is in Castle Ashby, Northamptonshire, servant to Lady M Alford, a nurse (child carer).


This is her in 1841 with her family:

Civil parish: Newbold Upon Avon
County/Island: Warwickshire
Registration district: Rugby

John Cranfield 45 - farmer
Ann Cranfield 40
Emma Cranfield 14
Mary Cranfield 12
Harriet Cranfield 11
John Cranfield 8
Eliza Cranfield 5
Jane Cranfield 4
Charles Cranfield 1
Joseph Walton 18
Elizabeth Robins 70


So while I go watch the season finale of Desperate Housewives, maybe somebody else will come along and trace her siblings to see whether one of them might have had a daughter Florence around 1875-80ish.

Or even Emma herself might have!

Aha, my gr-grfather was a biscuit factory loader in Reading 1871!
His sister married the wealthy heir and had 50 acres with horses and servants ... but then the heir just went bankrupt from gambling on the horses a few years later, so all in all it didn't much matter. ;)

There's one Cranfield in St Giles Berkshire in 1891 and 1901

Name: Emma Cranfield
Age: 73
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1828
Relation: Head (unmarried)
>> Where born: Warwickshire, England

Civil parish: St Giles
County/Island: Berkshire
Registration district: Reading
address: 21 Eldon Square

She has a domestic servant. In 1881 she is a housekeeper in Buckinghamshire, the head servant presumably, at Ashridge House in Nettleden.

In 1881 at Ancestry, someone has "added an alternate name" and birth year but there's no indication of what they originally were! But that person can be contacted through Ancestry. (Oh, I see, I think Ancestry made her name part of the address. ... Ancestry has made a giant hash of it, as usual.)

The two addresses, 4 Auckland Rd and 21 Eldon Sq, aren't that far apart by distance, although they seem quite a different class.

I'm just wondering whether Emma was, say, an aunt of Florence, and Florence stayed with her when she had her son -- and very possibly gave him up.

Arther Morris in Stretford in 1911 is definitely in an institution, by the way, with numerous other children.

I have no info on addresses between his birth and marriage. When his first child Arthur John William Morris (my father) was born 17th march 1928 the address is down as 'Allendale' Pinley Gardens, Coventry

I dont know if it helps in the search but his fathers occupation is down as a Biscuit factory labourer.

Ah, okay, so you already had the birth registration info I "found", since you have the birth certificate.

Unfortunately, it seems most likely Florence fibbed, and wasn't a Morris by marriage. There just doesn't seem to be a marriage.

She would not have been able to put the father's name on the certificate if they were not married, without his consent, so pretending to be married solved that problem.

If you go to google maps and search for

4 auckland road, reading, berkshire, uk

you should see a photograph right there; if you're not familiar with it, it's an ordinary terrace house.

In 1911 it is occupied by Elizabeth and Joseph Streams and also Ernest Buckeridge, 19, James Smiley, 27. Ten years on, no one left.

http://www.1911census.co.uk/search/tnaform.aspx

GB may be right that this is him in 1911

MORRIS, Arther 9 1902 At School Reading Berkshire

in Stretford, Barton upon Irwell. Do you know anything about where he was before his marriage?

I'm going to have to run off soon, and most of the Britishers are abed (I'm in Canada), so you may find this continued tomorrow!

I've had no luck identifying Florence Cranfield, myself.

The writing on the certificate looks like Cranfield but I have also checked records for Granfield just in case. This too has drawn a blank for me.

Florence Morris formerly Cranfield is on the birth certificate of Arthur Frederick Morris. She is down as the mother and informant on the certificate. The address she gives at the time is 4 Auckland road.

Okay, well, as I said, it may be up at the top of the thread next to the purple button that says "Watch this". These features are new and most of us hate this one. Don't know why you ticked it ... but if you can't untick, it, >>>> maybe Ann of Green Gables will just delete it please!!! Not the end of the world for now.



This is the death of the John Frederick C Morris virtually certainly:

Name: John F C Morris
Birth Date: abt 1876
Date of Registration: Jan-Feb-Mar 1956
Age at Death: 80
Registration district: Wandsworth
Registration County: Greater London
Volume: 5d
Page: 1107


edit -- I don't see any marriage for him ever.

(The 1954 marriage for that name in Croydon is accounted for by a 1930 birth there.)

Above the post, or above your thread, I don't know, because we can't see it, there will be a purple button that says "mark as unanswered". It may be beside the purple button for "watch", but I don't know.


Stella, can you tell us where you have the name Florence Cranfield from?

This could be father John in 1881, but just a bit of a guess

Name: John C. Morris
Age: 6
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1875
Relation: Step Son
Mother's name: Mary J. Mockett
> Where born: Chelsea, Middlesex, England

Civil parish: Battersea
County/Island: London

Henry W. Mockett 33 - born Chelsea
Mary J. Mockett 32
Frederick A. Morris 7
John C. Morris 6
Jane C. Morris 5
Minnie E. Morris 2
Edwin Sloane 21

The mother and stepfather don't seem to have married, though.

Stella, you've "ticked" the post by Ann of Green Gables as the answer to your question. I don't think it has anything to do with your question at all!


(and AoGG -- it would be really really nice if you would return to the threads where you post random records like that, read further, and if they do appear to be totally unrelated, delete them -- don't say you will if the poster asks, most new posters just don't know -- and leaving them in just takes up loads of space and is very confusing, both for other "helpers" and for the poster. Truly!)


Ticking it means that your post shows as answered in the board list, and this just means that fewer people will read it. You should really "untick" it.