What an epitaph ..

“One of the pluckiest and unselfish of women” ..

I have been doing research on the Sheard family and in this case Ada Rebecca Sheard, born in 1850 at Dalton, near Huddersfield, Yorkshire, her parents James Sheard and Mary Ann Senior, the fourth child of eleven children.

I found the civil registration of her marriage to William Bennett in 1876 at Liverpool, apparently a double wedding with her older sister, Emma, to Halbert Ferguson.

It appeared initially that the two girls had married into wealthy families and would have an easy life. Halbert was a solicitor of Scottish descent, whose father was a bank manager. William, an ironfounder whose father, also William, with his brother, had started an ironfoundry in Liverpool called Bennett Bros. When Alderman William Bennett of Liverpool died in 1885, his estate was valued at about 268,000 GBP.

I found the Bennetts in 1881 Census at Holmlea, Oakhill Park, Liverpoool - William and Ada Rebecca with their 2 daughters Ada Margaret Mosley, 3 years; Elsie Gwendoline Arden, 9 months; with three staff, living a comfortable life.

I have not found them in the 1891 Census? A very important piece of their story ..

I then found in 1897, that their home, Holmlea, Oakhill Park, Liverpool, with it’s contents of grandpiano, oil paintings etc etc was sold. Bankruptcy proceedings had been filed against the business of Bennett Bros, which was a furnishing ironmonger, cabinet maker, glass and china dealer. Eventually the decision was that they had more assets than liabilities, but bankruptcy must have hit hard in many ways.

In the 1901 Census, William and Ada Rebecca are living at Bournemouth in Hampshire, far from family and friends.

What though of the epitaph!! ..

William and Ada Rebecca were buried at Toxteth Park in Liverpool. William, born 1838, was eleven years older than Ada Rebecca, he died first in 1909, where they were back living near family, at St Anne’s on the Sea, Fylde, Lancs. Then I noticed also on the headstone, Emily, wife of William aged 34 years buried 1873 …

Here a whole new story is revealed. I found the marriage William Bennett and Emily Crosfield in 1862 West Derby. The 1871 Census - Holmelea Oakhill Park – William 32 ironfounder, employing 156 men and 15 boys, Emily 32 wife, Edith Mary 8, Isabella Crosfield 5, Herbert William 3. !!

Then I went looking for the children’s baptisms – I found all three were baptised at St Mary’s for the Blind in Liverpool. This church was attached to a school for the blind, the first in existence. I also found that there were other children called Crosfield who were baptised there, so it would appear that their sight was probably a genetic condition.

They aren’t with their father and new family in the 1881 census, so possibly they are boarding at the school for the blind?

I have found that when all three were married at All Saints, Stoneycroft Church, their residence is at Oakhill Park and their extended families, very much in evidence. Edith married in 1889; Herbert married in 1893 and Isabella in 1894.

Edith’s marriage registration has 14 signatures (7 of the Rhodes family) plus W Bennett, AR Bennett, Isabella Bennett and HW Bennett; Herbert’s marriage in 1893 has 11 signatures, including, it looks like his best man, James F Sheard, who was around the same age as Herbert and was Ada Bennett’s youngest brother. Also signatures of Ada R Bennett, Wm Bennett, Isabella Bennett, Elsie Bennett (who was Herbert’s half sister, who would have been 13) and the curate Thomas Mercer. In 1894 Thomas Mercer, clerk in Holy Orders, married Isabella Bennett. This time it was much more restrained, with both the father’s acting as witness, as well as Isabella’s half sister, Ada Margaret Mosley Bennett signing her name in full.

In the 1901 Census - Ada MM, the daughter, is living with her mother’s two widowed sisters at Toxteth Park, Liverpool. Gertrude M Thompson 43, her daughter Muriel 14, Caroline Ruth Watson 45 and Ada MM niece 23 professor of music. No trace of Elsie Gwendoline Arden Bennett, who would have been 20.

(I have tracked Ada MM quite some distance around the world. She married a steam engineer Benjamin Hick in 1905 Berea, Durban, Natal, South Africa, where they had a son Benjamin in East Rand in 1906. I believe there was also a son, 2 years younger, Colin, but I have somehow lost where I found him. The family also went to India for a number of years and then moved around the world. They had home bases in LLanundo in Wales and also Bognor Regis. Ada Hick (Margaret) died in the Ballearic Islands in 1932.)

In the 1911 Census at Slyne with Hest, Lancashire
Mary Bennett 78 single totally deaf from birth. (Mary died Christmas Day 1916.)
Ada Rebecca Bennett visitor sister in law 60 widow married 33 years 2 children both living.
There were four staff.

On 4 October 1925 Ada Rebecca Bennett died at the Carlton Hotel, Southsea, Hampshire. Probate 643 GBP – Margaret and Benjamin Hick.

The question that I have not been able to answer unfortunately, is what happened to Elsie Gwendoline Arden Bennett? .. Her baptism was located 12/9/1880, she was with the family as a 9 month old in 1881 Census, she witnessed she half brother’s marriage on 19/7/1893. In the 1911 Census her mother noted her 2 children were living. So back to investigate all the Elsie Bennetts!!!

Why did the business fail? .. Maybe it was bad business expenditure, maybe it was a downturn in the economy, maybe it was living beyond their means, however reflecting on Ada Rebecca’s epitaph … a formidable and fascinating lady, a pleasure to research, just wish she was my ancestor.

[ElizabethHerts]

Julie, I was trying to remember the details of this after you told me about it on the phone yesterday. Fraser must be so excited to learn of his extended family.

So far I can't find them on the 1891 Census, but I can see that William Bennett already had business problems in 1890. I'm not sure if you have FMP, but there is this newspaper article:
https://search.findmypast.co.uk/bna/...18900513%2f040

Let me know if you can access it or not.

[ElizabethHerts]

Here is Isabella Crosfield Bennett on the 1891 Census.

https://www.ancestry.co.uk/interacti...&usePUBJs=true

She is with her aunt Mary Bennett who was deaf and dumb from birth. She must be the same lady that you found on the 1911 Census with Ada Rebecca.

[Merry]

This is prob Elsie:

https://www.ancestry.co.uk/interacti...nSearchResults

I can't see a marriage or death for her though.

After I'd found this I also saw her on an Ancestry tree married to Cyril.

[Merry]

Oh, n the tree she died 1944 in Germany. What on earth was she doing there???

[Merry]

Forget that, it's Cyril who died there.

As Ancestry is pretty broken for me, I can't actually find a tree with this info. It only comes up in the initial Record results:

Spouse:
Elsie Gwendoline Arden Bennett
Father:
John Rickard
Mother:
Eliza Grigg
Birth:
17/01/1876 Derby Derbyshire England
Death:
26/11/1944 Germany
Residence:
1881 Chichester Sussex England

So I can't see anything else.

[Merry]

From War Graves site:

Civilian
RICKARD, CYRIL
Died 26/11/1944
Aged 68
Civilian War Dead
Husband of Mrs. Rickard, of Vardes Cottage, Les Vardes, St. Peter Port, Guernsey, Channel Islands. Died at Biberach.

[ElizabethHerts]

Deaths Jun 1971
RICKARD Elsie Gwendoline A About1880 Worthing 5h 2120

Thanks Merry and Liza. That is really great.

I think that possibly they were married in South Africa. Her older sister Ada Margaret married Benjamin Hick there in 1905 and their son was born there is 1906.

Very fortunately Benjamin Hick has his engineering history posted on Ancestry and you can follow where he was posted. Unfortunately the same hasn't happened for Cyril Rickard.

Elsie certainly lived to a good age and some of the Hick family settled in Sussex, so that is possibly might why she came back from Guernsey.

Sorry I don't have FMP at the moment so it won't open.

[ElizabethHerts]

Probate for Cyril Rickard:

https://www.ancestry.co.uk/interacti...&usePUBJs=true

and this from Find a Grave:

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/112601876

"Civilian Casualty of WWII,Cyril was deported from Guernsey, Channel Islands to the internment camp at Biberach where he died, aged 68.

He left a widow, Mrs. Rickard of Vardes Cottage, Les Vardes, St. Peter Port, Guernsey, Channel Islands."