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Grave Encounters

Grave Encounters (8): the Symingtons

Pause for a moment beside the Symington’s family grave, marked out with a decorative ‘S’ on the stone cross: In Loving Memory of John William Symington. Born 27th December 1856. Died 27th March 1902. Also of Lucy Ada Lionnais. Born 14th April 1862. Died 10th July 1915. Herbert Andrew Symington. Born 8th May 1885. Died 6th December 1928. Margaret Symington. Born 31st January 1893. Died 9th October 1940.

As well as local Leicester voices in their household, I hear Mancunian, a hint of Scottish perhaps, and later French. Let’s hear Aunt Lucy’s back story…

The youngest of eight surviving children of George and Elizabeth Collis, Lucy Ada Collis was brought up living over the family pubs – initially at the Dixie Arms in North Bond Street, and then from the age of around seven at the Spinney Hill Tavern in Upper Kent Street. By the 1881 census, she and two of her four sisters – widowed Sarah Firn and unmarried Matilda Ann Collis – are running the Spinney Hill Tavern, helping their father George (“a retired publican”, he tells the census enumerator).

By the time George Collis makes his will in June 1882, it appears to be only Lucy who is “now residing with me”. He leaves items of furniture to each of his eight children, but Lucy receives “all the residue of my household furniture, linen, china, glass, books, prints, pictures” as well as his Darney pianoforte and £10 (along with Sarah Firn) “for mourning forthwith after my decease”.

The family arranges for the pub, together with three houses George Collis owned at Nos 6, 8 and 10 Gower Street, to be auctioned. “A VALUABLE and well-situated FULL LICENSED House, known as the “SPINNEY HILL HOTEL,”…. now [in the occupation] of Miss Lucy A Collis” is advertised (7 March 1884, Leicester Journal) with details of the accommodation:

Whether Lucy made a winning bid, or instead reached an agreement with her siblings, is not clear. But what is clear is that she was to remain landlady of the Spinney Hill Tavern for the next 16 years or so. It was not a single-handed undertaking but shared with her new husband, John William Symington, who she married in August 1884.

Quite why and when John William Symington – born in Manchester in 1856 – came to settle in Leicester is not clear. He first appears on record in Leicester in the 1881 census, lodging at 20 West Street, but no family links with the town are apparent. Local residents might know of another Symington connection in the county – Scottish-born James Symington (1811-1877) and his wife Sarah established a corset-making business in Market Harborough that became a substantial enterprise – but there are no known links with that Symington family. John William Symington worked as a brewer’s cashier, reflecting his family’s involvement with the drinks trade: his father Andrew Symington had briefly been a publican in Glasgow before becoming a beer store keeper in Hulme, Manchester, his maternal grandfather William Ritchie was a Glasgow wine and spirit merchant (died 1845) and, in turn, his widow Helen Ritchie ran the New French Horn Tavern on Glasgow’s Stockwell Street (1851 census).

John and Lucy’s son, Herbert Andrew Symington – their only child – was born in 1885. Within a year, they’ve set up a sideline to the pub as “Messrs Symington & Co” at the Spinney Hill Stores advertising their range of bottled beers: Allsopp’s pale and light dinner ales and Guinness stout.

They take on staff – a barmaid, a servant – and business appears to prosper. Links remain close with the Symingtons in north-west England: 5-year old Herbert from Leicester is staying with his Manchester grandparents at the time of the 1891 census, and ten years later the census records John William Symington (by then a 44-year old “retired publican”) staying with his widowed mother Elizabeth and sister Helen (a sweet shop keeper) at their new home in Wallasey. Glasgow accents blend with Mancunian tones.

Having sold the Spinney Hill Tavern around 1899-1900, John, Lucy and son Herbert move to No 18 Lincoln Street, a comfortable house in Highfields. From Melbourne Road School, Herbert wins an exhibition to Wyggeston Boys’ School, where his love of cricket comes to the fore, and he is articled around 1902 to a firm of architects, Messrs Goddard and Catlow, on Market Street. But family life takes a sad turn with John William’s premature death at the age of only 45 years. His probate record adds a further curious detail, as he’s described as “ink and stain manufacturer” as well as previously a “brewer’s cashier and innkeeper” – an enterprising man.

Lucy is on friendly terms with a couple over the road, at 23 Lincoln Street. Francois Lionnais lives with his wife Matilda and niece Leonie Jeanne Lionnais. Born in 1845 in Nancy, east of Paris, Francois had arrived in Leicester in his mid 20s to work as a French master at the Auburn House School in Narborough. As “a resident French gentleman”, Monsieur Lionnais merits a particular mention in newspaper adverts for the school (1873-74).

Maybe the demand for French lessons wasn’t there, perhaps he didn’t enjoy the work, but by 1881 he had shifted career to become a “foreign correspondent” and cashier, working in the Belvoir Street offices of elastic web manufacturers, M Wright & Sons, and lodging at 25 Upper King Street. At the age of 49, he marries Matilda Arkwright of Knighton in 1896 and they settle at 23 Lincoln Street. It’s a relatively short-lived marriage as Matilda dies “after a long illness” in 1905.

Roll forward to 1911; the friendship between over-the-road neighbours Lucy Ann Symington and Francois Lionnais has developed into a marriage. It was a romantic partnership – maybe that French accent worked its magic! – and they enjoyed a comfortable life together at No 23. Lucy is a woman of independent means – she had accumulated a portfolio of 18 rental houses, as well as her home – but Francois continued to work as a cashier, at least in their early years together.

But then WWI intervenes and the family has a tough time. Herbert is called up to join the Leicestershire Regiment in March 1915, “serving in the 1st, and later in the 4th Battalion, as a lieutenant. He saw active service in France, Mesopotamia, Egypt and Palestine, and was wounded while in the east,” as was later recorded in his obituary. His mother, alas, was not to hear of his gallant service as she died in April 1915, a month after he’d joined up. And as the end of WWI approached, Francois Lionnais died in July 1918. The very same month, Herbert married Margaret Wilson – daughter of Narborough boot manufacturer, Fred Wilson – and they settled at Ivyleigh, Narborough.

After the War, Herbert resumed his architectural work, initially for Howard H Thomson and then from 1922 in partnership with William J Prince – as Symington & Prince, based at offices in Market Street. His most notable project was the New Wyggeston’s Girls’ School on Regent Road but he also designed the extensions to the Leicester Isolation Hospital, and to the Liberty Shoe Co’s Building (which was originally designed by Howard Thomson), the St Alban’s Vicarage in Leicester, and the Westcliffe High School in Southend.

Rather like both of his parents, sadly, Herbert died at a young age – from complications after appendicitis surgery, aged only 43; who knows what else he might have achieved in a longer career.

When the architectural practice records were deposited at Leicestershire & Rutland Record Office recently, I was delighted to learn that they included a portrait photo of Herbert. And whenever I pass by the Wyggeston Girls’ School (now WQE Wyggeston & Queen Elizabeth College) on Regent Road, I glance across and think of him.

Now, having spent time with the Symingtons, let’s progress to our next family grave at Welford Road Cemetery. You can just about spot where we’re heading by taking another look at the photo at the start of this blog post. In the background, facing the rising lawned area, there’s an angel carved in white marble. From the Symingtons, it’s a very short stroll – head towards the bottom of the stone staircase and then off to the left. It’s time to meet the Pinks….

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Grave Encounters

Grave Encounters (7): the Hardings

As you arrive at ‘The Flat’ from the grave of John George and Emmeline Collis, one of the first memorials you see is that of their eldest daughter, Cary Louisa Harding. It’s an imposing double grave, with two grey granite stones raised on a plinth and set under a pediment.

Cary Louisa Collis was born in December 1864 – when her father was a machinist (engineer) living at Sanvey Gate – but she spent virtually all of her younger years living and working at her parents’ pubs: initially the North Bridge Inn, then the Hinckley Road Brewery, and later as a barmaid at the Magazine Hotel on Newarke Street (1891 census). It’s possible that she met her husband-to-be, William Warrington Harding, when he came in for a pint but it’s more likely that their fathers knew one another, mixing as they did in the town’s business circles; after William and Cary’s marriage in 1892 there was a second Harding-Collis marriage a couple of years later when Cary’s sister Emmeline Collis married William’s brother Ernest Warrington Harding.

William’s father, Samuel Harding, had established a fabric dyeing business in Bath Lane in 1859. It grew to become a considerable enterprise, led successively by four generations of the Harding family, before shifting into property development (on the Bath Lane site and further afield).

Among those commemorated on the Welford Road monument is William and Cary’s eldest son, Samuel Collis Harding, who was awarded the Military Medal for his part in the Hohenzollern Redoubt. Commissioned into the Machine Gun Corps and later transferred to the first Tank Battalion, he was killed at Passchendale on 22 August 1917.

There is still an echo of Harding’s dyeing business in Bath Lane, even though the dye-works has long since closed down; a large metallic sculpture close to the canal near West Bridge depicts a length of fabric winding through a bucket of dye, inscribed with “Samuel Harding & Sons”, scourhouse, flashets, indigo blue and other phrases from the trade.

The Hardings would have known another relative of mine who worked in the dyeing trade – George Pink, who we’ll meet shortly – but in the meantime we have another family grave to visit. Continue through ‘The Flat’ along the central avenue towards the stone staircase and nip to the left down the third pathway before the end. Look out (a few plots in on your right-hand side) for a stone cross with an ‘S’ inscribed on the top of it…

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Heirlooms Snapshot

After the Funeral? The Shipley Siblings and In-Laws (1893)

It’s rather battered – cracked down the middle, with cut corners and the left edge peeled off in a zig-zag flash – but this group portrait is among my most treasured family photos. It depicts several siblings from the Shipley family and their partners, taken in a back yard in 1890s Leicester.

All nine faces stare at the photographer’s camera; most of them look rather serious, one or two break out into a smile. I hop from one to the other, studying their faces and clothing. Was Uncle Fred as fearsome as he looked? Or Uncle Bill the joker of the pack? Had Uncle Harry’s new wife Sarah Bailey settled happily into the family? And how did Aunt Sarah manage to pinch her waist so tightly?

I was given this photo in March 1984 by Rosie Flude (nee Orchard), a distant cousin who wished me “best of luck in your hunt for the family tree”. Having discovered my enthusiasm for family history as a teenager, I was fortunate to meet Rosie and her sister Grace Cooke – then aged 78 and 89 respectively – in Grace’s terraced house in Aylestone, on the fringes of Leicester. We were generations apart, but over a cuppa one evening we shared stories and snippets about our Shipley forebears.

Why was this particular photo taken, I wonder? Rosie and Grace could only name a few of the faces in the group – including their parents, Sarah and Jack ­– but, with a bit of sleuthing, I think I’ve identified everyone. There are four siblings with their spouses – Frederick and Catherine ‘Kate’ Shipley, Sarah and John Charles ‘Jack’ Orchard, Harry and Sarah Shipley, and William Charles and Alice Elizabeth Shipley – together with their brother-in-law Albert Alletson Oldham.

The fact that Albert’s wife Ann Oldham is missing provides me with a vital clue; was this photo taken shortly after Ann’s funeral in June 1893, I speculate? Black dresses and black ties hint at a family in mourning. Comparisons with a couple of other family photos place this one in the early 1890s. And it looks like it might have been a June afternoon, warm enough for three of the men to remove their jackets outdoors.

I haven’t quite managed to pin down the back yard location but it’s most likely to be 6 Arnold Street, where the Orchards lived (and hence why they had the original photograph). That house has long been demolished but the configuration on old Ordnance Survey maps appears to align with the photo.

Having laid Ann Oldham to rest at Welford Road Cemetery, perhaps they’d come back to reminisce over a cup of tea? It seems curious to invite a photographer round to capture that particular moment – so maybe it was a week or two later – but I’m just so grateful that they recorded it for posterity. Even the neighbour was intrigued, sneaking a peek over the yard wall.

Alas, three of the Shipley siblings are absent from the photo, including Elizabeth Collis (my great great grandmother) who had been close to her late sister Ann Oldham. Their parents, William John and Ann Shipley, were still alive at this date but apparently not included in the gathering either. Nevertheless, it provides a fascinating glimpse of a significant family get together.

Archivists would be dismayed by the photograph’s condition. With its dog-earned corners and fault-line crack it has certainly seen better days. But let’s imagine it back in 1893, pristine and propped on Sarah Orchard’s parlour mantlepiece. Each time she wanders past, she can’t help but smile. Four generations on, and 130 years later, I too am captivating by it; as I wander around the group, from face to face, I feel a special connection with my Victorian family.

Ann Oldham (seated) and her sister Elizabeth Collis with their children in earlier times (c 1881)

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Grave Encounters

Grave Encounters (6): John George and Emmeline Collis

As the pathway curves round, look to the right and hopefully you’ll spot a black granite headstone inset with gilded lettering, marking the grave of John George and Emmeline Collis (Consecrated E 1317). This is a photo I took of the headstone back in 1982. But these days, sadly, it lies flat on its back – like many others at Welford Road Cemetery – due to the health and safety brigade deciding back in the 1990s that headstones which had stood upright and untroubled for decades now posed a safety risk for playing children. Please don’t get me started… having so many headstone laid flat has changed the character of Welford Road Cemetery immeasurably… enough to make my ancestors turn in their graves…

“In Loving Memory of John George Collis, died March 31st 1912, aged 69 years. Also Emmeline, beloved wife of the above, who passed away Dec 15th 1909. At Rest.”

John George Collis (known as George), my 3 x great uncle, ran several Leicester pubs: the Red Lion on Highcross Street, the North Bridge Inn on Frog Island, the Hinckley Road Brewery, the Narborough Hotel, and the Magazine Hotel on Newarke Street. I was able to piece together snippets about his working life using the British Newspaper Archive, as you can read in my article – Trading Stories, Working Lives: John George Collis, a publican in the news.

Despite being a licensed victualler, Uncle George continued with his ‘day job’ as an engineer – rather like his younger brother Martin Collis, a publican and patternmaker. In practice, running the pubs was very much a family affair: for instance, at the Hinckley Road Brewery, Emmeline his wife is recorded as ‘Waiter in house’ (1871 census) and eldest daughter Cary is ‘in charge of the tap in her father’s house’ (1878 cutting) and works as ‘assistant in the business’ (1881 census). One or two servants add to the team. And no doubt George’s engineering skills come in handy for fixing the beer engine used to draw beer up from the cellar.

By the time they’d moved to the Magazine Hotel, George had developed an appetite for performing. At a concert in 1885 “Mr J G Collis was heard to great advantage in Reyloff’s new song ‘Steering for Home’ and the enjoyment derived from it was such that the audience demanded a further exhibition of his powers.” Now I can imagine him performing ‘The Jovial Beggar’, ‘Good Night’ and other party pieces around the pub piano.

On a more serious note, he takes a keen interest in town affairs; in 1892 he’s elected to represent St Martin’s Ward on the Board of Guardians and he’s “closely concerned in the management of the Conservative Club.” As well as an obituary in the local newspaper, John George Collis also had his funeral reported upon. Funerals of well-known local figures were often recorded in great detail in the newspapers, including lists of the principal mourners and floral tributes; it was a way to fill the column inches, and sell a few extra copies of the newspaper, I imagine, but thankfully it leaves behind for us family historians an invaluable source of additional information. For example, we discover from his funeral report that JGC was a member of the Granite Lodge of Freemasons (in Narborough), so it seems fitting that his headstone is made out of granite.

A short distance away – over on ‘The Flat’ – we can meet John George and Emmeline’s eldest daughter, Cary Louisa Harding (nee Collis). Step with me, it’s just around the corner…

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Grave Encounters

Grave Encounters (5): Alfred and Eliza Collins and their two daughters

As you curve from the perimeter path back into the cemetery, on your right-hand side look out for a couple of adjacent graves. The gravestone in the foreground (Consecrated O 370) marks the resting place of Eliza Ann Collins, wife of Alfred, and their daughter Ethel Lavinia…

“In Loving Memory of Ethel Lavinia, the beloved daughter of Alfred and Eliza Ann Collins, who died Dec’r 25th 1909 aged 24 years. Rest in Peace. Also Eliza Ann, beloved wife of Alfred Collins, who died Sept 8th 1911, aged 51 years.”

And the gravestone in the background (Consecrated O 479) commemorates another of Alfred and Eliza Ann’s daughters – Beatrice Alexandra Collis (nee Collins), mother of Edna Elizabeth Barker (nee Collis), who died aged only 28 years old. Among the family papers we have this rather touching memorial card.

Alfred and Eliza Ann Collins were my great great grandparents. As these headstones record, their daughter Ethel died on Christmas Day 1909, her sister Beatrice soon after in March 1911, and their mother Eliza Ann a few months later in September 1911. It must have been an especially sad and unsettled time for the family.

Although he’s not commemorated on the headstone, Alfred Collins was also buried here when he died over three decades later in 1945, as was his second wife, Sarah Ann (formerly Potter, nee Chambers). How do I know, given that he’s not mentioned on the inscription? Well, the Leicestershire and Rutland Family History Society have created a CD of indexed burials at Welford Road Cemetery, 1849-1950 – which can be searched by surname and plot number. It’s invaluable when undertaking family history research, especially as most graves are not marked with a headstone, and those headstone inscriptions that do survive can be incomplete or difficult to decipher. For example, for Consecrated O 370 here are the details the CD provides:

So, as well as the name of the deceased and the burial (not death) date, we also get their age and an address – which can be handy in cases where an extra piece of evidence can help pinpoint the correct grave. Piecing together information from the CD and the headstones, here’s a simplified family tree showing the relationship between my relatives buried in these two graves, as well as the grave we saw in the previous blog post.

Alfred and Eliza Ann Collins in fact had a total of eight children: as well as their two daughters Beatrice and Ethel who died in their 20s, four died as babies, and only two survived to later life: William Collins and Alfred Charles ‘Uncle Charlie’ Collins. Sadly, such mortality rates were not so unusual at the time. With his second wife, Alfred later went on to have another son, Robert Francis Collins.

Alfred Collins initially worked as a fishmonger for his eldest brother, John Collins, who was the subject of one of my earlier Trading Stories, Working Lives articles: John Collins, a Victorian fishmonger and game dealer. Alfred appears as a ‘fish salesman’ in his marriage certificate (1881) as well as the census returns for 1881, 1891, 1901 and 1911. By the time of the 1921 census however, he’s become a baker, and a “baker’s assistant retired” in the 1939 Register. For many years Alfred lived – firstly with Eliza Ann, then with Sarah Ann – at 1 Sheldon Street, a house owned by Beatrice’s parents-in-law, Martin and Elizabeth Collis.

Next, we’re off to see another member of the Collis family, Martin’s brother, John George Collis. Continue on the path you’re already on, ignoring side turnings to the left and right. Another path merges in from the right-hand side. Continue sloping uphill, cross straight over the wide-and-straight avenue, and then gradually the pathway curves around to the left of a triangle…

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Grave Encounters

Grave Encounters (4): Martin Shipley Collis and the Crews

Tucked away in the westernmost sliver of the cemetery, and easily missed, you’ll find the grave of Martin Shipley Collis – my great grandfather – along with his second wife Ethel and her parents, Edwin and Jane Crew. It takes the form of a low headstone fronted by an open stone book (Unconsecrated S 3362).

“In Memory of Jane, beloved wife of Edwin Crew, who died 20th Sept 1933 in her 78th year. Also Edwin Crew who died 27th Oct 1939 in his 84th year, interred at Bournemouth” and on the book in front “Martin Shipley Collis, died 29th March 1951 aged 69 years, son-in-law of the above. Also of his beloved wife Ethel Collis, died 15th Sept 1964.”

This is the first grave in this series of blog posts that’s located in an Unconsecrated section of the cemetery. Consecrated sections of the cemetery, blessed by the Bishop when they were first laid out, were generally intended for members of the established Anglican church, whilst the Unconsecrated sections were intended for all others, often referred to as Dissenters or Non-conformists. So, Methodists, Baptists, Catholics, Quakers, Jews and those of other faiths or no faith at all might prefer to be buried in an Unconsecrated plot.

It can sometimes provide an indication of a family’s religious preferences, and in this case, I happen to know that Edwin and Jane Crew became members of the Wycliffe Congregational Church when they first settled in Leicester in 1889, though it seems they might have later moved their allegiances to St James the Great (Anglican) Church on London Road. But it was from the Wycliffe Church that they initiated – with fellow Congregationalist Thomas Harris – the Wycliffe Society for Helping the Blind in Leicester in 1893. The Wycliffe Society grew into what might today be called a social action project: a supportive community of blind residents on Gwendolen Road, clustered around cottages homes, employment workshops, a small infirmary, and a programme of social events. Edwin was also an advocate for health insurance at a time before the National Health Service.

This is not the place to tell the full life story of Edwin and Jane Crew, fascinating though it is; they’ll feature in future blog posts, I’m sure. Following Jane’s death in 1933, Edwin retired to Bournemouth to live with his eldest daughter. Despite the inscription saying “interred in Bournemouth” he was actually cremated and his ashes scattered at the inner garden rose beds at Bournemouth Crematorium. So, with his final resting place unmarked, I’m pleased he was commemorated on this headstone in Leicester where he’d been an active figure in civic life for over 40 years.

Among our family papers we have the original title deeds to this plot, showing that Edwin Crew paid the princely sum of £5 8s 0d for the freehold.

Edwin and Jane Crew’s youngest daughter, Ethel, married Martin Shipley Collis (his second wife) in 1922. Like his father, Martin Shipley Collis (known as Matt) worked as an engineer’s patternmaker – for Jones & Shipman, and later with in partnership with his uncle George Shipley on Freeschool Lane – and you can dip into his tool chest here: a patternmaker’s tool chest. He later set up as an electrical and wireless dealer with shops at 202 Melbourne Road and 2 Green Lane Road – the latter named ‘Ethlona’ after his wife – as these two adverts (1933 and 1936) illustrate.

Now, let’s meet Martin Shipley Collis’ first wife, Beatrice Alexandra (nee Collins) and her family. Continue along the perimeter pathway all the way to the far corner, curve around with it to the right and take the second turning to the right. See you there.

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Grave Encounters

Grave Encounters (3): Martin and Elizabeth Collis

My great great grandparents, Martin and Elizabeth Collis – like their parents before them, and many of their siblings – are buried at Welford Road Cemetery. Their grave (Consecrated L 1339) is marked by a modest stone cross, lichen covered and these days propped against its plinth.

“In Loving Memory of Martin, the beloved husband of Elizabeth Collis. Born July 28 1853, Died Jan’y 17th 1912. Also Elizabeth, wife of above. Died Jun 18th 1937, aged 81 years. Also Mabel Gertrude Collis, Archibald Pink Collis, children of the above, and Martin Stanley Collis, grandson.”

I’ve written a few ‘glimpses’ into the lives of Martin and Elizabeth Collis over the years:

Census: Martin Collis at the Spinney Hill Tavern (1871)

In the news: the Opera Hotel is auctioned (1893)

Snapshot: Outside the Admiral Nelson (1911)

Martin worked as an engineer’s patternmaker and, with his wife Elizabeth, also ran a succession of Leicester pubs: The Fox and Hounds on Humberstone Road, the Royal Oak on West Bridge, the Cross Keys on Highcross Street, the Opera Tavern on Guildhall Lane, the Black Lion on Belgrave Gate, and the Admiral Nelson on Humberstone Gate. At some point I hope to write their story up in more detail, inspired – at least in part – by inheriting Elizabeth Collis’ photograph albums and family papers. In the meantime, here’s a family photo taken around 1892 showing Martin and Elizabeth with their three children: Ada Elizabeth, Martin Shipley and Leonard George Collis.

As the gravestone notes, they also had two children who died in infancy – Mabel Gertrude Collis (1885-86) and Archibald Pink Collis (1896) – with baby Archie’s ‘Pink’ forename being a tribute to Martin’s childless sister and brother-in-law, Elizabeth and George Pink (who we’ll meet in a later Grave Encounters blog post). Infant mortality was a familiar aspect of Victorian life, and most families across the working and artisan classes – and often in the upper classes too – experienced the death of babies, toddlers or older children. As the gravestone also notes, it was a pattern that continued into the next generation; Martin Stanley Collis – the baby son of Martin Shipley Collis and his wife Beatrice Alexandra – died at less than one month old in 1904.

Among the family papers there’s a simple fold-over booklet for the 1937 funeral service for Elizabeth Collis, a much-loved member of the family.

Now, let’s head over to find the grave of Martin and Elizabeth’s eldest son. Rejoin the path and continue to slope down towards the bottom perimeter path. On the sliver of land between the path and the railings – lined with trees and backing onto the railway – you’re looking out for an ‘open book’ sculpted in stone…

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Grave Encounters

Grave Encounters (2): John and Sarah Firn

After visiting the gravestone of Elizabeth Collis, return to the visitors’ centre and follow the main driveway ahead. The view opens out in both directions; to the left, the cemetery lawns slope down – dotted with gravestones and trees – towards the railway line and to the right, an area known (in our family at least) as ‘the Flat’ follows a more orderly arrangement, with impressive monuments set around a grid of pathways. We’ve re-visit The Flat later in the series, so for the time being continue towards the end of the driveway. As the path begins to narrow, look out on the left-hand side for a monument looking somewhat like a stunted spire – the grave of John and Sarah Firn (Consecrated H 154).

“In Loving Memory of John Firn, who died October 21st 1873 in the sixty first year of his age. His end was Peace. Also of Sarah, beloved wife of the above, who died January 9th 1875 aged 65 years. Not dead but sleepeth.” with the side panel commemorating his parents: “George Firn, who died April 187th 1863 in the 72nd year of his age. Also Martha Firn, wife of the above, who died Nov’r 23rd 1832 in the 42nd year of her age. Interred at the Dover Street Chapel.”

John Firn was a notable stonemason and builder in Victorian Leicester, responsible for restoring and re-modelling at least 23 churches in the county from 1861-1874. And, as a monumental mason, he would have been a regular visitor to Welford Road Cemetery. In the course of his work, he and his team designed, sculpted and installed a number of significant monuments here including those commemorating the artist John Flowers, politician John Biggs, and the businessmen George Checkland and Thomas Partridge. Local historian Derek Seaton is currently researching some of the stonemasons who undertook work at the cemetery, which I’m hoping will reveal some more of John Firn’s craftsmanship.

In the meantime, you can read more about John Firn’s story – and that of his wayward son, George, who married Sarah Collis – here in one of my earlier articles: Trading Stories, Working Lives: John and George Firn, monumental masons. George and Sarah Firn aren’t buried in the Firn family grave however – George died in Sheffield and was buried there, for reasons I have yet to fathom out, and his widow Sarah chose to be buried with her own parents, George and Elizabeth Collis, elsewhere at Welford Road Cemetery.

John Firn’s family monument still stands out, even though it has not weathered as well as some of his clients’ commissions. From there, continue along the pathway – forking to the left at the triangle, and left again – in search of the grave of Martin and Elizabeth Collis (Consecrated L 1339).

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Grave Encounters

Grave Encounters (1): welcome to Welford Road Cemetery

(photo: Friends of Welford Road Cemetery)

Welford Road Cemetery in Leicester plays a pivotal role in my family history; at the last count, more than 80 members of my extended family have been buried here. Since the cemetery opened in 1849, my relatives will no doubt have visited many times. And one rather dramatically ended his life at the cemetery. Through a series of blog posts let me take you on a walk about, stopping off at some family graves and tuning in to the history of the cemetery as we progress.

Let’s begin at the main gates on Welford Road. As you head along the driveway, the traffic noise subsides and you’re soon surrounded by greenery, birdsong and impressive monuments. Like many early Victorian cemeteries, the landscaping of Welford Road Cemetery was inspired by the ‘garden cemetery’ movement which espoused that burial grounds should be designed not only for the dignified repose of the dead but also for the pleasure of the living. Visiting your dearly-departed on a Sunday afternoon, they argued, should also bring with it the chance to enjoy a beautiful setting.

To the right of the main entrance the visitors’ centre – opened in 2006 as a base for the Friends of Welford Road Cemetery – is a good starting point for those keen to track down their ancestors buried in the cemetery.

But today, on this walk, we nip immediately behind the centre. Tucked round the back, on a sloping embankment, there are serried ranks of slate headstones. At first glance, it’s an odd place for graves to be positioned, with lawn falling away so steeply. A closer look at the inscriptions also indicates something is amiss – virtually all of the years mentioned on the stones pre-date the 1849 opening of the cemetery. How can this be?

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Trading Stories, Working Lives

Trading Stories, Working Lives: Frederick Major, building contractor in Victorian Leicester

Graham Barker tracks down three Leicester landmarks constructed by his relative, Victorian building contractor Frederick Major

“He was a very active man, and always endeavoured as far as possible to walk wherever he wanted to go. In particular he objected to riding in tramcars. He also had an excellent memory, and could have written an extensive history of the city in the last century.” This extract from Frederick Major’s 1924 obituary captures something of his character – still sprightly and sparky, even at the age of 92 years old.

It’s disappointing that we will never read the history of Victorian Leicester that my relative Frederick Major could have written, woven with memories gathered over his long life working as a building contractor and town councillor. In the absence of his memoirs, how can I get a clearer picture of him? Do any of his buildings survive today, I wonder?

Read on, or download the full story here: Frederick Major, building contractor in Victorian Leicester