21 May 2009

Culpin-day

Now then, today . . . less of a struggle than yesterday, and all birthdays.

First, meet the twins - Charles Henry & Thomas Sadler Molloy, the sons of Thomas and Sophia Kington (nee Culpin), were born today in 1858 in the village of Meopham in Kent, and christened two days later. Sadly, Thomas lived only until the first months of 1859 but his brother Charles plainly thrived. The family, by then augmented by a younger sister, had moved to the Isle of Wight where Thomas snr was a schoolmaster and Charles a twelve-year-old telegraph clerk. The 1881 census found Chas in Islington and in the Civil Service, shortly to marry Caroline Cobb (well, in the December quarter of that year).

With two young children, Chas and Caz reappear in Dovercourt, Essex, in 1891; by this time our birthday boy has become a Customs Official and so he remains until at least the 1901 census. And that's all I know, so far . . . .

The twins were my 1st cousins three times removed, and also the great-nephews of our birthday girl; my great-great-great-aunt Frances Culpin was born today in St Ives, the daughter of Charles and Catherine (nee Watts). After her christening on 20th June the same year, she next appears in the 1841 census as a 20 year-old bonnet maker . . . but then she breaks away and marries George Hardy in 1847 in Rotherham.

In 1851 she and George can be found in Kimberworth, both listed as British School teachers, and they have a guest in the house - one Sophia Kington Culpin (see above) who is described as a British School assistant but is also Frances' niece. Anyway, G&S then had two sons and moved back down south to London, settling for thirty-or-so years in Islington. George died in 1882 and Frances (and possibly her elder son) came back to her roots in St Ives where she stayed until her death in 1895.

And finally, one more birthday: Ethel May Culpin, born today in1899 in Peterborough, the daughter of George & Rhoda (nee Grammar). She was my sixth cousin twice removed and the only other thing I know about her is that she appeared in the 1901 census in Eastgate, Peterborough.

That's it for today - I feel the need to go and find out more about Ethel!

More soon.



3 comments:

Konein said...

Hi!

Just some updates for your tree.
And I'm fully awake this time :-)

Of course you know about Sophia Molloy ending up in the Netherlands to become my great granny (she died in 1911 by the way) but here goes on Charles Molloy in 1911:
52, Clerk First Class, living at 65 HOOK RD GOOLE, Yorkshire with wife Caroline (married for 29 years), daughter Jessie and a servant.

The mystery I still haven't solved yet is daughter Caroline. I found her birth in 1884 but can't find her in any census return after 1891. Nor is she in the death index. Also everyone in my family knew about cousin Jessie (the youngest daughter) but no one had ever heard anything about a cousin Caroline. So although I haven't been able to find a record for her death I suspect she died when she was a little girl sometime before the 1901 census.

Frances Hardy (nee Culpin) had to have been a real family woman and as far as I'm concerned one of the heroes in my family tree; apart from giving her cousin Sophia Molloy a home and a profession after Sophia's parents both died (1871 & 1872) several other Culpin relatives can be found living with Frances and her family in 1871.

Ethel May can be found living with father, mother and sister Ada at 56 EASTGATE PETERBOROUGH during the 1911 census.

pengen said...

Hi,
Thanks for the updates.

I might have just solved the Caroline problem:- Dec qtr 1910, Goole, 9c 1631, marriage between Caroline S Molloy & Percy B Hoare.

1911 census Index: Islington - Caroline Sophie Hoare, age 26, Percy Burt Hoare, age 26

What do you think?

Konein said...

Wow.. I think you actually cracked it!
Did another search for 1901 as well and found a Caroline S Hislloy born in 1884 in Gravesend, living at Woodford House School in Islington, a "home for working girls" as a Telegraph Clerk. I think that must be her. No idea why I haven't found her before. Okay, the surname is half wrong but apparently I never tried a search on just her christian name and place of birth before.
Still makes me wonder why my gran never mentioned her to anybody. She was very found of her cousin Jessie and Jessie visited the family several times. Maybe because Caroline was 12 years older as my gran? I guess I'll never know but I'm really glad you found her! I'll add this new info and her husband to my tree!