My great great uncle Aaron Stocking was 34 years old when he was killed in action at Bourlon Wood, France on 1 December 1917. His wife of two years was pregnant with a son he would never see. He was awarded the Military Medal; I hunted for years for a citation but a letter he … Continue reading Aaron Archibald Stocking (1883-1917): Military Medal [Updated]
Cause of death
William Henry Stocking (1880-1966): Master Builder
Building trades are very much part of my Stocking ancestry. My Dad worked for his father's firm of J Stocks & Sons in the 1950s. His great uncle William Henry Stocking built up the firm of W Stocks & Sons, creating an earlier dynasty of builders and decorators in the 1900s, one for which several … Continue reading William Henry Stocking (1880-1966): Master Builder
Emma Mary Ann Stocking (1877-1939): A corset machinist and young widow
The third of my 2xgreat grandparents' 19 children was Emma Mary Ann, born in 1877. Her occupation, over several decades, as a Corset Machinist, is well referenced. She had an illegitimate daughter who died in infancy. After being widowed in her early 30s, she lived with her sister Harriett and family. With no surviving children … Continue reading Emma Mary Ann Stocking (1877-1939): A corset machinist and young widow
Alice Caroline Stocking (1874-1928): A tragic end
Alice was the eldest of my 2xgreat grandparents' children and appears to have had a steady childhood, albeit one of 19 children. After leaving school, she worked as a needlewoman, making shirts and hat trimmings. Her home life after she married was also straightforward, although she only had two children, a small family for the … Continue reading Alice Caroline Stocking (1874-1928): A tragic end
Susie and Dot Fage: Sisters of Sandy
My maternal grandmother was one of eight children, four girls and four boys. Her three surviving brothers worked in market gardens before and after their service in WW1. Her three sisters were still alive when I was young, and both she and her sister Vera lived to be over 100, but I knew little about … Continue reading Susie and Dot Fage: Sisters of Sandy
William John Fage (1872-1940): Death in the Blackout
My maternal great grandmother Alice Fage died at home in Sandy on 12 February 1940. Two weeks later, on 26 February, her widower was involved in a fatal accident. Reports of the inquest heard of his state of mind at the time, and reveal witness statements from some of the family. This is his final, … Continue reading William John Fage (1872-1940): Death in the Blackout
Alice Fage (1872-1940): A last illness
There were various twists and turns to my maternal great grandparents' early lives before they settled in Sandy, Bedfordshire, in the 1890s and raised their family of eight children there. My grandmother didn't talk about them much, so it wasn't until online newspapers revealed the sad stories of their deaths, two weeks apart in February … Continue reading Alice Fage (1872-1940): A last illness
Lavinia Brown: Family struggles and a lost son
A 1910 local newspaper commented that my great grandmother, "Mrs Brown ... has had a hard struggle to bring up her large and young family and several times illness and other misfortunes have befallen them". Born Lavinia Seaby, she was widowed in 1904 when her husband Charley Brown died of cancer. What other records give … Continue reading Lavinia Brown: Family struggles and a lost son
Charley and Lavinia Brown: A short marriage
My maternal great grandparents Charles Brown and Lavinia Seaby married fairly late in life; he was 30 and she was 32. Both had had careers before marriage, he as a soldier in India, she as a Cook in London. Their marriage was sadly cut short by Charley's early death. What do we know of their … Continue reading Charley and Lavinia Brown: A short marriage
Frederick Ephgrave: London Dairyman to RAF Engineer
My great grandfather's early life and career took some interesting twists and turns. He was born illegitimately in Luton, initially followed in his baker father's footsteps but then worked in the London Dairy industry before becoming an RAF Motor Engineer. Before researching Fred's career I knew next to nothing about London's dairy industries in the … Continue reading Frederick Ephgrave: London Dairyman to RAF Engineer
My Stocking Roots 