Mary from Italy
05-03-17, 17:17
I've come across this fascinating story while researching Eliza Inman, the first cousin of my disreputable great-grandfather Arthur Inman.
Eliza (born Horton, W. Yorks in 1843) married a George Uttley in Bradford in 1872.
She'd had an illegitimate child, Mary Emma, in Bradford in 1870, who I assume wasn't George's as they were both free to marry at the time. No baptism found for Mary Emma, and the mmn is blank in the GRO index. Mary Emma died in 1885.
From 1841 George (bap. 1839 in Barnsley) was always living with his parents (Truelove and Eliza) and siblings. In 1861 and 1871 they were at 75 Bedford Street, Bradford, and Eliza and her family were close by at 52 Bedford Street in 1871. George was a stone mason.
In 1874 the following report appeared in the Yorkshire newspapers, which I suspect relates to the same George Uttley, but I can't prove it so far.
A George Uttley was engaged to Mary Battison. According to the report they were both from Swinton, but met in Royston, where the wedding was to be held. Mary's mother had arranged a lavish do at the local pub, the wedding party were due to meet there, but the groom failed to turn up. In preparation for the wedding he'd bought a suit on credit and borrowed a watch from an acquaintance. A passer-by, seeing the bride in floods of tears, offered to marry her himself. The bride eventually agreed, and her mother went off to tell the vicar, who said it unfortunately couldn't be done immediately (presumably it would have taken too long to get a licence in the right name). As the wedding breakfast had already been ordered, the new suitor said it would be a pity to waste it, the family agreed, mum put a sovereign behind the bar for liquor and a good time was had by all, except the owner of the watch.
I can't find any other reports of the incident, so presumably the law never caught up with George. I'm curious to know what happened to Mary Battison, but I can't find a likely marriage for her and I haven't found her on the censuses so far.
I wouldn't be surprised if the passer-by was a friend tipped off by George to take advantage of the situation.
George appears in the newspapers on two other occasions.
The first is in 1875, when he was accused of embezzling books that he was supposed to sell on commission. This is definitely my George, because his address is given as Bedford Street, Bradford. The case was dismissed after George's brother-in-law (possibly one of Eliza's brothers, who were living with her and their mother in Bedford Street in 1871) offered to repay part of the money.
The second case, which is particularly interesting, was in 1877, when George Uttley, 38, a mason, was charged with stealing a gold watch and guard from James Copperthwaite, a packer of Tyersal (nr Bradford). George and his wife (unnamed, but sure to be Eliza) were lodging with James, and Mrs Uttley was his housekeeper. James fell asleep drunk one night and found his watch and watchguard missing in the morning. George was said to have pawned the watch and sold the guard. He was committed for trial, and according to the criminal registers on Ancestry he was acquitted of larceny at Quarter Sessions, but I can't find a newspaper report of the acquittal. Presumably he or his wife alleged that James gave them the watch.
As he had form for stealing watches, my guess is that he's the same man who jilted Mary Battison. He and his parents and siblings were living in Bradford, so if the banns were read in Royston, probably nobody who knew him would have noticed. He was a stone mason, so perhaps he was working in the area when he met Mary.
This is probably George's death:
Deaths Mar 1878
UTTLEY George 38 Bramley 9b 245
I hoped to find a burial that confirmed his occupation, but I haven't found a matching burial for that death in the West Yorks records on Ancestry.
Then, in 1879, Eliza remarried, to none other than James Copperthwaite, a packer from Tyersal. She was 35, and he was 63.
I can't find any of them (James and Eliza Copperthwaite, Mary Emma Inman or George Uttley) on the 1881 census.
James died in 1885, and in 1886 Eliza married Carl Heinrich (aka Charles Henry) Stolz, a 48-year-old bachelor from the Cape of Good Hope, S. Africa.
Carl and Eliza were together in 1891, and he died in 1894. Eliza outlived all her husbands by many years. She was a boarding house keeper in 1901 and a part-time mother's help in 1911. She eventually died in 1925.
None of her husbands lasted very long (about 6 years on average). I'm particularly curious to know what George died of, but I can't see anything in the papers, so presumably it was natural causes. I don't think I can really justify buying the death cert.
So to sum up, what I'd still like to find is:
- a burial for George Uttley in 1878
- a newspaper report of George's trial at the West Riding Quarter Sessions in Wakefield on 2/4/1877 (edited).
- an 1881 census entry for Eliza and James Copperthwaite and Mary Emma Inman
- what happened to Mary Battison (but it's just curiosity, as she isn't part of my tree).
There's a 12-year-old Mary Emma Inman, daughter, with a Clayton family in 1881, but I've ruled her out, because the Clayton in question married an Inman.
Copperthwaite is really badly transcribed on most of the censuses.
I'll put the census references in a separate post in case anyone wants to have a look.
Eliza (born Horton, W. Yorks in 1843) married a George Uttley in Bradford in 1872.
She'd had an illegitimate child, Mary Emma, in Bradford in 1870, who I assume wasn't George's as they were both free to marry at the time. No baptism found for Mary Emma, and the mmn is blank in the GRO index. Mary Emma died in 1885.
From 1841 George (bap. 1839 in Barnsley) was always living with his parents (Truelove and Eliza) and siblings. In 1861 and 1871 they were at 75 Bedford Street, Bradford, and Eliza and her family were close by at 52 Bedford Street in 1871. George was a stone mason.
In 1874 the following report appeared in the Yorkshire newspapers, which I suspect relates to the same George Uttley, but I can't prove it so far.
A George Uttley was engaged to Mary Battison. According to the report they were both from Swinton, but met in Royston, where the wedding was to be held. Mary's mother had arranged a lavish do at the local pub, the wedding party were due to meet there, but the groom failed to turn up. In preparation for the wedding he'd bought a suit on credit and borrowed a watch from an acquaintance. A passer-by, seeing the bride in floods of tears, offered to marry her himself. The bride eventually agreed, and her mother went off to tell the vicar, who said it unfortunately couldn't be done immediately (presumably it would have taken too long to get a licence in the right name). As the wedding breakfast had already been ordered, the new suitor said it would be a pity to waste it, the family agreed, mum put a sovereign behind the bar for liquor and a good time was had by all, except the owner of the watch.
I can't find any other reports of the incident, so presumably the law never caught up with George. I'm curious to know what happened to Mary Battison, but I can't find a likely marriage for her and I haven't found her on the censuses so far.
I wouldn't be surprised if the passer-by was a friend tipped off by George to take advantage of the situation.
George appears in the newspapers on two other occasions.
The first is in 1875, when he was accused of embezzling books that he was supposed to sell on commission. This is definitely my George, because his address is given as Bedford Street, Bradford. The case was dismissed after George's brother-in-law (possibly one of Eliza's brothers, who were living with her and their mother in Bedford Street in 1871) offered to repay part of the money.
The second case, which is particularly interesting, was in 1877, when George Uttley, 38, a mason, was charged with stealing a gold watch and guard from James Copperthwaite, a packer of Tyersal (nr Bradford). George and his wife (unnamed, but sure to be Eliza) were lodging with James, and Mrs Uttley was his housekeeper. James fell asleep drunk one night and found his watch and watchguard missing in the morning. George was said to have pawned the watch and sold the guard. He was committed for trial, and according to the criminal registers on Ancestry he was acquitted of larceny at Quarter Sessions, but I can't find a newspaper report of the acquittal. Presumably he or his wife alleged that James gave them the watch.
As he had form for stealing watches, my guess is that he's the same man who jilted Mary Battison. He and his parents and siblings were living in Bradford, so if the banns were read in Royston, probably nobody who knew him would have noticed. He was a stone mason, so perhaps he was working in the area when he met Mary.
This is probably George's death:
Deaths Mar 1878
UTTLEY George 38 Bramley 9b 245
I hoped to find a burial that confirmed his occupation, but I haven't found a matching burial for that death in the West Yorks records on Ancestry.
Then, in 1879, Eliza remarried, to none other than James Copperthwaite, a packer from Tyersal. She was 35, and he was 63.
I can't find any of them (James and Eliza Copperthwaite, Mary Emma Inman or George Uttley) on the 1881 census.
James died in 1885, and in 1886 Eliza married Carl Heinrich (aka Charles Henry) Stolz, a 48-year-old bachelor from the Cape of Good Hope, S. Africa.
Carl and Eliza were together in 1891, and he died in 1894. Eliza outlived all her husbands by many years. She was a boarding house keeper in 1901 and a part-time mother's help in 1911. She eventually died in 1925.
None of her husbands lasted very long (about 6 years on average). I'm particularly curious to know what George died of, but I can't see anything in the papers, so presumably it was natural causes. I don't think I can really justify buying the death cert.
So to sum up, what I'd still like to find is:
- a burial for George Uttley in 1878
- a newspaper report of George's trial at the West Riding Quarter Sessions in Wakefield on 2/4/1877 (edited).
- an 1881 census entry for Eliza and James Copperthwaite and Mary Emma Inman
- what happened to Mary Battison (but it's just curiosity, as she isn't part of my tree).
There's a 12-year-old Mary Emma Inman, daughter, with a Clayton family in 1881, but I've ruled her out, because the Clayton in question married an Inman.
Copperthwaite is really badly transcribed on most of the censuses.
I'll put the census references in a separate post in case anyone wants to have a look.