Table of Contents
This family group is rather large and so to aid readability it is split across a few parts.
G7: Thomas Plunkett (1816-1892)
Birth: Thomas Plunkett was born in Liverpool during 1816. He was the second child of Luke and Rachel.
Marriage: to Ann Findlow on 20 July 1851 at St John’s Church opposite Lime Street Station. He was aged 35 and she was 25.
Spouse history: Ann had been born in Warrington around 1826 to joiner George Findlow.
Children: they did not have any children of their own, but raised Thomas’s nephew Thomas, who had lost his mother at a very young age.
Residences: the 1851 census captured Thomas and his soon-to-be-wife living in one of the courts that ran off Burlington Street near Scotland Road, which was an area dominated by factories and warehouses. They then moved into Everton where they had houses on Limekiln Lane, Penrhyn Street, and Elizabeth Terrace. They left this neighbourhood during the 170s to move to Blundell Street in the Baltic Triangle, and into a house next door to Thomas’s brother Robert.
After Ann’s death, Thomas went to live with his nephew Thomas and family in their typical terraced house on Langton Road near to Seaforth train station.
- Thomas: School Lane, Liverpool (1816); Blundell Street, Liverpool (1830); 2 Court (Richmond Court), Burlington Street, Liverpool (1851); Limekiln Lane, Liverpool (1851); 20 Court, Penrhyn Street, Liverpool (1861); 7/8 Court (Elizabeth Terrace), Rose Vale, Liverpool (1871); 45 Blundell Street, Liverpool (1881); 20 Langton Road, Seaforth (1891); 18 Langton Road, Seaforth (1892)
- Ann: 2 Court (Richmond Court), Burlington Street, Liverpool (1851); Limekiln Lane, Liverpool (1851); 20 Court, Penrhyn Street, Liverpool (1861); 7/8 Court (Elizabeth Terrace), Rose Vale, Liverpool (1871); 45 Blundell Street, Liverpool (1881)
Occupations: Thomas spent his life working as a shipwright – someone skilled in one or more of the tasks required to build vessels.
Deaths: Ann likely died in 1890, and by the following year the 76-year-old widower. Note that this is a different Thomas to the nephew that he raised. He died in Liverpool the following year and was buried in Kirkdale Cemetery on 15 March 1892.
Note: there were several men named Thomas Plunkett in Liverpool over this period, and so we need to be careful when reviewing the sources.
G7: Luke Plunkett (1821-1877)
Birth: Luke Plunkett was born in Liverpool between 1817-21. He was the third child of Luke and Rachel.
Marriage: to Mary Ann Currey on 4 May 1845 at the Church of Our Lady and St Nicholas with St Anne on Chapel Street. He was aged 24 and she was 17.
Spouse history: Mary had been born in around 1828 to Robert Currey, a slater.
Children: (1) Martha in 1846, (2) Rachel in 1848, (3) Thomas/Luke in 1850, (4) Ralph in 1852, (5) Thomas in 1854. Martha died in infancy.
Occupations: Luke worked as a porter in 1845.
Residences: at the time of their marriage Mary lived on South Castle Street in the very centre of Liverpool, while Luke’s address is unfortunately illegible on the certificate.
By 1861, the 40-year-old widower Luke and his young son Ralph lived with his parents and brother on Atkinson Street in Everton. His other son, Thomas, had been taken in by his brother Robert and family. Luke then appeared to move frequently, being recorded at addresses on Brown Street, Blundell Street, and Horatio Street off Scotland Road. He lived in this dinghy court house in 1871 with his 19-year-old son Ralph and elderly stepmother Ann. He had similar houses on Bute Street and Beresford Street.
- Luke: Blundell Street, Liverpool (1830); Simpson Street, Liverpool (1834-1837); 1 Cotter Street, Liverpool (1841); Blundell Street, Liverpool (1848-1851); 8 Court, Blundell Street, Liverpool (1855); 6 Atkinson Street, Liverpool (1861); Brown Street, Liverpool (1864); Blundell Street, Liverpool (1865); 4/4 Court, Horatio Street, Liverpool (1871-1873); 4/4 Court (Kendal’s Buildings No.1), Bute Street, Liverpool (1874-1875); Beresford Street, Liverpool (1877)
- Mary: South Castle Street, Liverpool (1845); Blundell Street, Liverpool (1848-1851)
Crime: Luke was fined 20s and costs during October 1864 for trading out of hours. He was again fined the same amount in November of the following year for trading on a Sunday.
Deaths: Mary died in around 1855. Luke died when aged 62 and was buried on 15 January 1877 in Anfield Cemetery.
Notes: despite being married in a Church of England, it’s possible that the family converted to Catholicism in 1854, with three of their four surviving children christened Catholic on 18 August 1854 (Rachel, Ralph, and Thomas). It is thought that Mary died at around this time.
G6: Martha Plunkett (1846-1848)
Birth: Martha Plunkett was born in Liverpool during 1846. She was the first child of Luke and Mary.
Residences: Blundell Street, Liverpool (1848)
Death: died of scarlet fever on 11 November 1848 when aged two and was buried three days later at Wesley Methodist Church on Upper Stanhope Street.
G6: Rachel Plunkett (1848-)
Birth: Rachel Plunkett was born in Liverpool on 30 April 1848. She was the second child of Luke and Mary.
Christening: on 18 August 1854 at St Patrick’s Roman Catholic Chapel on Park Place in Toxteth alongside her brother Ralph.
Marriage: to John Murphy on 23 September 1872 at St Nicholas. She was aged 24.
Spouse history: John was the son of labourer John Murphy.
Residences: at the time of their wedding the couple lived together on Ford Street, which ran off Vauxhall Road in central Liverpool.
- Rachel: 8 Eastbourne Street, Liverpool (1861); Ford Street, Liverpool (1872)
- John: Ford Street, Liverpool (1872)
Occupations: John was a labourer.
Notes: Rachel is not recorded on the 1851 census, but in 1861 there was a 12-year-old namesake working as a nurse for the Kelly family in their fine three-storey terraced house on Eastbourne Street in Everton. The head of the family, George, was a 39-year-old Customs officer.
G6: Thomas / Luke Plunkett (1850-1851)
Birth: Thomas Plunkett was born in Liverpool during 1850. He was the third child of Luke and Mary.
Christening: on 3 February 1850 at St Peter’s Church in the city centre.
Residences: Blundell Street, Liverpool (1850)
Death: died aged 1 and buried on 7 April 1851.
Note: there is not a birth registration for Thomas Plunkett, but there is one for a Luke Plunkett born at the same time to the same parents. Perhaps they changed his name to avoid confusion with his slightly older cousin who lived on the same street? There is no further record of a Luke Plunkett who was born at this time.
G6: Ralph Plunkett (1852-1931)
Birth: Ralph Plunkett was born in Liverpool on 15 January 1852. He was the fourth child of Luke and Mary.
Christening: on 18 August 1854 at St Patrick’s Roman Catholic Chapel on Park Place in Toxteth alongside his siblings.
Marriage – 1: to Mary Ann Lees on 16 December 1871 at St Anne’s Richmond Church on Cazneau Street. He was aged 19 and she was 21.
Spouse history – 1: Mary had been born in Wolverhampton during 1850, one of five children of Samuel Lees and Dorothy Beard. She was christened at St George’s during March, just around the corner from the family home on Bilston Street in the centre of town. Her father was a labourer. The family moved to Bristol before 1857, where four years later they lived on Hotwell Road aside the river in Clifton. They then moved to Liverpool, where in 1871 19-year-old Mary lived with her now widowed mother and two younger siblings on Great Richmond Street in Everton. She was a book maker – someone who folded and sewed books, rather than of the gambling variety.
Children – 1: (1) Luke in 1872, (2) Naamah in 1874, (3) Ralph in 1877, (4) William in 1879, (5) Mary in 1881, (6) Rachel in 1883, (7) Martha in 1886, (8) Emma in 1888, (9) Richard in 1891, (10) May in 1894.
Death: Mary died on 23 November 1897 aged just 47 and was buried in Everton Cemetery.
Marriage – 2: to Sarah Jane Paul on 20 September 1903 at St Peter’s Church in the city centre. He was aged 51 and she was 52.
Spouse history – 2: Sarah had been born in Liverpool during late 1851 to James and Sarah Paul.
Occupations: Ralph had followed his father into the carting business by the age of 19. Other than a short spell as a leather draper, this is the career he would have for life. At one point he was a carter for the railways and at another for Pennyfathers Cotton Merchants.
Residences: the family moved frequently in and around Everton, including houses on Lawrence Street, Reservoir Street, Rothsay Street, Rose Place, Upper Bute Street, and Louisa Street. For some of this time they shared their home with Mary’s elderly mother young sister Naamah.
The certificate for Ralph’s second marriage records the couple living together on Paradise Street, although we know from other sources that they remained on Church Street until 1908 when they briefly moved the short distance to Calder Street. In 1909 Ralph and Sarah moved into their final home together on Church Place.
- Ralph: 6 Atkinson Street (1861); 13 Lawrence Street (1871); 4/4 Court, Horatio Street (1871-1872); 17 Reservoir Street (1879-1881); 22 Rothsay Street (1884-1889); 101 Rose Place (1890-1892); 17 Upper Bute Street (1894-1897); 57 Louisa Street (1897-1900); 5 Church Place (1901-1907); Paradise Street (1903); 3 Calder Street (1908); 12 Church Place (1909-1930); 98 Broad Lane (1931) – all in Liverpool.
- Mary: Bilston Street, Wolverhampton (1850); Hotwell Road, Bristol (1861); Great Richmond Street, Liverpool (1871); 13 Lawrence Street, Liverpool (1871); 4/4 Court, Horatio Street, Liverpool (1872); 17 Reservoir Street, Liverpool (1879-1881); 22 Rothsay Street, Liverpool (1884-1889); 101 Rose Place, Liverpool (1890-1892); 17 Upper Bute Street, Liverpool (1894-1897); 57 Louisa Street, Liverpool (1897)
- Sarah: Paradise Street, Liverpool (1903); 5 Church Place, Liverpool (1903-1907); 12 Church Place, Liverpool (1911-1931)
Deaths: Ralph died at his daughter’s home on Broad Lane on the Norris Green estate on 10 March 1931 when aged 79 and was buried at Anfield Cemetery. Sarah died there too just a few months later, on 24 November 1931. She was buried in Anfield Cemetery, and left £210 4s 2d to granddaughter Sarah Paul, who had been living with her since 1929.
Notes: for some reason Ralph was cited as ‘William’ on the 1901 census. Three months before his death he left his wife to live with Polly Drayer (b.1859), who was the aunt of his late son-in-law Edgar. He supposedly took a large sum of money (£300) with him, although this was later denied by Polly. His estranged wife Sarah suggested to Rachel (his daughter, wife of Edgar) that she should approach Polly and Emma requesting a share of the money. Ralph evidently did not have time to change his will however, as Sarah was the main beneficiary, receiving £335.
G5: Luke Plunkett (1872-1941)
Birth: Luke Plunkett was born in Liverpool on 31 October 1872. He was the first child of Ralph and Mary.
Christening: on 10 November 1872 at St Peter’s Church in the city centre.
Marriage – 1: to Ann Jane Barnes on Christmas Day 1900 at the Church of Our Lady and St Nicholas with St Anne close to Prince’s Dock. He was aged 28 and she was 23, and they had been living together for some time.
Spouse history – 1: Ann had been born in Liverpool during 1877 to John Barnes, a cab driver from Dublin, and his wife Isabella Brown. Ann was not christened until February 1881 at St Nathaniel’s Church in Edge Hill, just around the corner from their terraced house on Goodwin Street. By 1891 they had moved to nearby Embledon Street. Her father was also a carter.
Children – 1: (1) Mary in 1897, (2) Dorothy in 1898, (3) Naamah in 1902, (4) Rachel in 1904, (5) Elizabeth in 1906, (6) Isabella in 1908. Unusually for the time the first two children were born out of wedlock. Naamah, Rachel, and Isabella all died in childhood.
Death: Ann was admitted to Hill Road Infirmary with pleuropneumonia in July 1909 and died a month later on 20 August when aged just 33. She was buried in Kirkdale Cemetery.
Marriage – 2: to Jessie Cameron (nee Young) during 1922 at the Church of Our Lady and St Nicholas with St Anne on Chapel Street. He was aged 49 and she was 51.
Spouse history – 2: Jessie had been born in Liverpool on 20 April 1870 to John Young. She had married John Angus Cameron on Christmas Eve 1890 and when the census was taken the next year, they lived with John’s family on Wolsey Street, although they soon moved to Seaforth. He was a marine stoker and the couple had 11 children (four died).
Occupation: by the age of 18, Luke had followed in his father’s and grandfather’s footsteps to become a carter. He would have this occupation for life, working for different hauling contractor companies. The 1921 census showed Luke as out of work, having last been employed by E.J. Roberts country agents.
There is an article in a local newspaper from 1882 which could be our Luke:
Luke Plunkett, a carter for Messrs. John Renton and Co., teamowners, Bootle, was fiend 10s and costs for working a horse when suffering from sore back and shoulders. Mr Motum of the RSPCA prosecuted.
Residences: the young family initially lived in a terraced house on Louisa Street in the north of Everton, probably with Luke’s parents, moving to nearby Denison Street in 1900. Within a few months they had moved into another terraced house on Rose Vale – with Ann’s 17-year-old brother James, who was a paper hanger. By 1905 they had made a more significant move, relocating north to Seaforth where they lived first on Conway Street with Ralph’s sister Rachel, and then in houses of their own on Bangor, Beaumaris, and Audley Streets.
In 1921, before they were married, Luke and Jessie lived together in her house on Wolsey Street. Luke was cited as a ‘boarder’ and Jessie as ‘married’. Also living there was Luke’s 14-year-old daughter Elizabeth, and Jessie’s three children aged between 20 and 11, a daughter-in-law, and a grandson.
Curiously their marriage certificate 13-year-later records that he lived on Highfield Street in the city centre, while Jessie lived on Denison Street close to Prince’s Dock, whereas the census of a year previous had captured them together on Wolsey Street.
By 1928 the Luke and Jessie had moved out to the new Norris Green housing estate in West Derby, where they lived on Rushmere Road with Albert Cameron, who was likely Jessie’s adult son. By the end of the war, they had moved to Priory Hill in central Everton. Electoral records show several other occupants for short periods, so perhaps she rented a room out.
- Luke: 4/4 Court, Horatio Street, Liverpool (1872); 17 Reservoir Street, Liverpool (1879-1881); 22 Rothsay Street, Liverpool (1884-1889); 101 Rose Place, Liverpool (1890-1892); Louisa Street, Liverpool (1898); 13 Denison Street, Liverpool (1900); 155 Rose Vale, Liverpool (1901); 12 Conway Street, Seaforth (1905); 9 Bangor Street, Bootle (1906); 60 Beaumaris Street, Seaforth (1908-1909); 51 Audley Street, Bootle (1911); 16 Wolsey Street, Bootle (1921); 31 Highfield Street, Liverpool (1922); 46 Rushmere Road, Liverpool (1928-1941)
- Ann: 14 Goodwin Street, Liverpool (1881); 6 Embledon Street, Liverpool (1891); Louisa Street, Liverpool (1898); 13 Denison Street, Liverpool (1900); 155 Rose Vale, Liverpool (1901); 12 Conway Street, Seaforth (1905); 9 Bangor Street, Bootle (1906); 60 Beaumaris Street, Seaforth (1908-1909)
- Jessie: 3 Wolsey Street, Bootle (1891); 16 Holmes Lane, Seaforth (1901); 2 Granville Road, Seaforth (1911); 16 Wolsey Street, Bootle (1921); 15 Denison Street, Liverpool (1922); 46 Rushmere Road, Liverpool (1928-1941); 8 Priory Hill, Liverpool (1946-1950); 22 Rupert Lane, Liverpool (1951)
Deaths: Luke died at home in February 1941, when aged 68, and was buried in Anfield Cemetery. Jessie died at nearby 22 Rupert Lane in April 1951 and was buried in Anfield Cemetery.
G4: Mary Jane Plunkett (1897-)
Birth: Mary Jane Plunkett was born in Liverpool during 1897. She was the first child of Luke and Ann. There is no matching birth registration, which opens the possibility that Mary was adopted, or that the birth was not registered due to her parents being unmarried.
Residences: Louisa Street, Liverpool (1898); 13 Denison Street, Liverpool (1900); 155 Rose Vale, Liverpool (1901); 12 Conway Street, Seaforth (1905); 9 Bangor Street, Bootle (1906); 60 Beaumaris Street, Seaforth (1908-1909); 51 Audley Street, Bootle (1911)
Notes: it’s likely that she married Robert Rawling during 1924 and died in 1975, but further confirmation is needed.
G4: Dorothy Teresa Plunkett (1898-1973)
Birth: Dorothy Teresa Plunkett was born in Liverpool on 19 October 1898. She was the second child of Luke and Ann.
Christening: on 25 December 1898 at St Peter’s Church in the city centre.
Marriage: to Thomas Leo Naylor on 27 April 1929. She was aged 30 and he was 27.
Spouse history: Thomas had been born in Liverpool on 2 December 1901, one of the three children of hairdresser Thomas Naylor and Elizabeth Mellon. He was christened at St Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church a few weeks later. Thomas’s father had died by the time that he was 10. In 1911 the family lived in a terraced house on Warwick Street in Toxteth, close to the maze of warehouses and goods stations near Brunswick Dock. His widowed mother worked as an umbrella maker to support the family. By the end of the First World War the family lived on Lowndes Avenue in Edge Hill, which would be their home for the next decade.
Children: (1) Elizabeth in 1930, (2) Donald in 1931, (3) Veronica in 1933, (4) George in 1934, (5) Mary in 1935, (6) Terence in 1937.
Occupations: in 1921 when he was aged 19, Thomas worked as a packer for Lybro on Mount Pleasant, which kitted out a large percentage of Britain’s workforce in overalls, dungarees, and work-jackets up until their demise in the late 1970s. By 1939 Thomas was an unemployed light haulage driver and a volunteer with the Auxiliary Fire Service.
Residences: at the time of their marriage Dorothy was lodging on Neston Street in Kirkdale, a red-brick terraced house which appeared to be the home of Henry and Elizabeth Coleman and today has the stadium of Everton Football Club standing at one end.
The family lived with Thomas’s mother and siblings on Dunnerdale Road from 1930, taking it over wholly for themselves from 1934. After Thomas’s death, Dorothy was joined in her home by daughter Veronica and family, and they lived together until at least 1970.
- Dorothy: Louisa Street, Liverpool (1898); 13 Denison Street, Liverpool (1900); 155 Rose Vale, Liverpool (1901); 12 Conway Street, Seaforth (1905); 9 Bangor Street, Bootle (1906); 60 Beaumaris Street, Seaforth (1908-1909); 51 Audley Street, Bootle (1911); 17 Neston Street, Liverpool (1929); 9 Dunnerdale Road, Liverpool (1930-1931); 9 Dunnerdale Road, Liverpool (1934-1970); 105 Prestbury Road, Liverpool (1973)
- Thomas: 107 Warwick Street, Liverpool (1911); 8 Lowndes Street, Liverpool (1921-1927); 9 Dunnerdale Road, Liverpool (1928-1962); 17 Neston Street, Liverpool (1929)
Deaths: Thomas died at Walton Hospital in Liverpool on 7 October 1962 when aged 60 and was buried in West Derby Cemetery. He left effects of £516 16s (c.£8k today) to his wife. Dorothy died in 1973 when aged 75 and was buried in the same plot as her husband.
Notes: it’s interesting to note that the 1939 Register records Thomas as being two years younger and Dorothy five years younger than their actual ages.
G3: Veronica Theresa Naylor (1933-2009)
Birth: Veronica Theresa Naylor was born in Liverpool on 4 April 1933. She was the third child of Thomas and Dorothy.
Marriage: to George Kelly during 1952 in Liverpool. She was aged 18 and he was 21.
Spouse history: George had been born in Liverpool on 22 December 1930.
Children: unknown.
Residences: the couple appeared to live intermittently with Veronica’s parents in 1955, 1957, 1964-1970. In their later years they lived in a semi-detached house on Altcross Way, part of an estate in Croxteth.
- Veronica: 9 Dunnerdale Road, Liverpool (1934-1955); 9 Dunnerdale Road, Liverpool (1957-1959); 9 Dunnerdale Road, Liverpool (1964-1970); 23 Altcross Way, Liverpool (2003-2009)
- George: 9 Dunnerdale Road, Liverpool (1955); 9 Dunnerdale Road, Liverpool (1957-1959); 9 Dunnerdale Road, Liverpool (1964-1970); 23 Altcross Way, Liverpool (2003-2010)
Deaths: Veronica died in Fazakerley Hospital on 1 February 2009 when aged 75 and was cremated at Anfield Crematorium. George survived her for seven years and died on 29 November 2016 when aged 85.
G3: Mary Agnes Naylor (1935-2009)
Birth: Mary Agnes Naylor was born in Liverpool on 8 October 1935. She was the fifth child of Thomas and Dorothy and commonly known as Marie.
Marriage: to Joseph George Rogers during 1959 in Liverpool. She was aged 23 and he was 35.
Spouse history: Joe was 12 years older than her and had been born in Liverpool on 12 June 1923 to William Rogers and Eva Louise Kewell. In 1939 they lived on Dunnerdale Road, just a few houses down from his future wife. Despite his young age he worked as an apprentice French polisher with his father.
Children: three girls between 1960 and 1972. Susan died in 1972 when aged 12.
Residences: following their marriage the couple moved in with Joe’s parents. His father died in 1964 but his mother still lived with them in 1970.
- Mary: 9 Dunnerdale Road, Liverpool (1935-1959); 14 Dunnerdale Road, Liverpool (1960-1972)
- Joseph: 14 Dunnerdale Road, Liverpool (1939-1991)
Deaths: Joe died in Liverpool on 3 December 1991 and was buried in West Derby Cemetery. He had lived his entire life on Dunnerdale Road. Mary survived him by 18 years and died in a hospital in Liverpool on 18 February 2009 when aged 73.
Notes: Mary possibly also had the middle names Teresa Bernadette, but this needs to be confirmed.
Birth: Susan Louise Rogers was born in Liverpool on 3 March 1960. She was the first child of Joe and Marie.
Residences: 14 Dunnerdale Road, Liverpool (1960-1972)
Death: died aged just 12 and buried in West Derby Cemetery on 8 June 1972.
G4: Naamah Plunkett (1902-1905)
Birth: Naamah Plunkett was born in Liverpool during 1902. She was the third child of Luke and Ann.
Residences: 12 Conway Street, Seaforth (1905)
Death: died aged just 3 and was buried on 4 May 1905 in Kirkdale Cemetery.
Notes: often incorrectly cited as Hanamah.
G4: Rachel Plunkett (1904-1909)
Birth: Rachel Plunkett was born in Liverpool during late 1904. She was the fourth child of Luke and Ann.
Residences: 12 Conway Street, Seaforth (1905); 9 Bangor Street, Bootle (1906); 60 Beaumaris Street, Seaforth (1909)
Death: died aged just 4 and was buried on 13 April 1909 in Kirkdale Cemetery.
G4: Elizabeth Plunkett (1906-1979)
Elizabeth married her cousin Arthur Edwards. See Part 3 of this family group for their history.
G4: Isabella Plunkett (1908-1909)
Birth: Isabella Plunkett was born in Liverpool during 1908. She was the sixth child of Luke and Ann.
Residences: 60 Beaumaris Street, Seaforth (1908-1909)
Death: died aged just 11 months and was buried on 30 August 1909 in Kirkdale Cemetery.
G5: Naamah Plunkett (1874-1927)
Birth: Naamah Plunkett was born in Liverpool on 3 November 1874. She was the second child of Ralph and Mary. Naamah is pronounced ‘na-hay-mah’, and at various times in her life she was also cited as Amy (which is phonetically similar).
Christening: on 20 December 1874 at St Peter’s Church in the city centre.
Marriage: to William Henry Bennett on Christmas Day 1897 in Liverpool. She was aged 23 and he was 20.
Spouse history: William had been born in Everton on 12 February 1877, the youngest of three children born to Henry Francis Bennett and Eliza Hogg. He was christened at St Peter’s on 30 April 1877. In 1881 they lived on one of the dark and narrow courts that ran off Clive Street near Brunswick Dock. They provided cheap housing for the many people moving into the city at that time. By 1891 the family lived in a back-to-back terraced house on Bismarck Street in Everton. William’s father was a railway labourer, and indeed Brunswick Goods Station was just a short walk from home. 14-year-old William was a paperhanger’s apprentice.
Children: (1) William in 1878, (2) Elizabeth in 1900, (3) Edith in 1902, (4) Henrietta in 1905, (5) Alexander in 1907, (6) Naamah in 1909, (7) Ernest in 1912, (8) Edwin in 1917.
Residences: the newlyweds initially lived in a typical terraced house on Buckingham Street, but soon moved in with Naamah’s father and siblings on Church Place off St Domingo Road in Everton. Over the next decade they had as many homes as they had children, gradually moving away from the neighbourhood of their youth towards Stanley Park. By the end of the First World War the family lived on Breck Road, one of the main roads running through Everton and which may have been a flat above a shop. Following William’s death, Naamah moved north to Seaforth where she lived in a terraced house on Seaforth Road for the final three years of her life.
- Naamah: 17 Reservoir Street, Liverpool (1879-1881); 22 Rothsay Street, Liverpool (1884-1889); 101 Rose Place, Liverpool (1890-1892); 17 Upper Bute Street, Liverpool (1894-1897); Buckingham Street, Liverpool (1900); 5 Church Place, Liverpool (1901); 3 Church Place, Liverpool (1902); 33 Spurgeon Street, Liverpool (1905); 45 Spurgeon Street, Liverpool (1906); 35 Empire Street, Liverpool (1907-1908); 2 Curate Road, Liverpool (1909); 1 Waltham Road, Liverpool (1910-1912); 309A Breck Road, Liverpool (1916-1922); 114 Seaforth Road, Seaforth (1924-1926)
- William: 1/12 Court, Clive Street, Liverpool (1881); 23 Bismarck Street, Liverpool (1891); Buckingham Street, Liverpool (1900); 5 Church Place, Liverpool (1901); 3 Church Place, Liverpool (1902); 33 Spurgeon Street, Liverpool (1905); 45 Spurgeon Street, Liverpool (1906); 35 Empire Street, Liverpool (1907-1908); 2 Curate Road, Liverpool (1909); 1 Waltham Road, Liverpool (1910-1912); 309A Breck Road, Liverpool (1916-1921)
Occupations: William began his career as a bricklayer, later becoming a steeplejack – a craftsman specialised in working at height on buildings, chimneys, and church steeples. Their work is widely varied, including everything from constructing new structures to maintenance, repair, restoration, and demolition. The skill that unites this trade is knowledge of how to perform a diverse array of tasks at great heights. Steeplejacks are named for their work on church spires and civil buildings, but with the industrial revolution their work spread to factories, power stations and other sites of industry whose brickwork chimneys needed near-constant upkeep.
There is allegedly a press photo of William erecting a flag on the top of what was described ‘as the highest point in Liverpool’ a factory chimney up on top of the Everton Brow district, but I have yet to find it.
Deaths: William met his death falling from the chimney of Lister Power Station on 24 February 1921, as reported in local papers:
STEEPLEJACK’S FALL. FATAL 150-FOOT DROP FROM CHIMNEY TOP: The inquest on the steeplejack, William Henry Bennett (43) 309 Breck Road, Everton, who met his death by falling from a tall chimney on which he was working at the Lister drive Electro Power Station, on Thursday afternoon, was held today by the deputy coroner (Mr R. Mills Roberts). Bennett was in the service of William Hogg, master steeplejack, Salisbury Road, and for ten days he and another steeplejack named Patrick Campbell of Hope Street, St Helens, had been pointing the upper part of a chimney 200 feet high at the power station. According to the evidence, Bennett was standing on a lapping stone, three feet wide, about eleven feet from the top of the chimney, which is octagonal, while preparations were being made to swing a cradle from one bay to another. Campbell was also on the projecting stone, but, feeling the effects of fumes went ‘round the corner’, as he put it, to get a breeze. His back was turned to Bennett. He heard a rattle, as of something giving way, and saw that a bracket, to which some tackle had been attached, had come out of the brickwork, and in falling had apparently caught Bennett, who fell from the lapping stone to the roof of the boiler house, a distance of 150 feet. On examination at the Royal Infirmary it was found that his skull was fractured, and, in the opinion of a doctor, death had been instantaneous. The bracket, it was stated, was Bennett’s own property, and his employer, who provided brackets which he considered safer, was not aware that he was using it. Bennett had on Wednesday told Campbell of his intention to bring the bracket, but Campbell advised him to leave it at home. Bennet was described by his employer as a careful and reliable workman. A verdict of ‘Accidental death’ was returned.
William was aged 44 at the time of his death. He was buried in Anfield Cemetery on 2 March 1921. Naamah died during 1927 when aged 52.
Note: the story of William’s ancestors is an interesting side note. His paternal grandfather, Robert, was born in Ipswich in around 1800 and joined the Royal Navy in 1819. He served for five years on HMS Conqueror and HMS Cambrian, which included a spell guarding Napoleon during his imprisonment on St Helena. He then joined the coastguard in Harwich in 1829, being posted to Ireland where Englishmen were being used to stop Irish smugglers and eventually ending up at Killala near Ross. His son Henry was born there (William’s father), who when aged 12 moved to the United States with his 16-year-old brother George. He served for three years in the US Army at Baton Rouge, Louisiana, eventually meeting William’s mother who was a Liverpool native. They were married in New York and their first child, Isabella, was born in New Jersey during 1873. The family moved to Liverpool in the years before William was born.
G4: William Henry Bennett (1898-1951)
Birth: William Henry Bennett was born in Liverpool during 1898. He was the first child of newlyweds William and Naamah.
Marriage: to Rosina Brown on 26 March 1921 at St Saviour’s Church on Huskisson Street in Edge Hill, just a month after his father had fallen to his death. They were both aged 23.
Spouse history: Rosina had been born in London on 31 March 1897 to labourer William Thompson Brown, an actor, and lived close to William Hunt Street.
Children: (1) William in 1921, (2) Agnes in 1923, (3) Edith in 1925, (4) Rosina in 1927, (5) John in 1929, (6) Richard in 1930.
Residences: the newlyweds lived with William’s widowed mother and siblings on Breck Road. By 1931 the family had moved east to Stalisfield Grove on the new Norris Green housing estate in West Derby. By the end of the war however, the family had joined about 40% of the initial residents in moving back into the city.
- William: Buckingham Street, Liverpool (1900); 5 Church Place, Liverpool (1901); 3 Church Place, Liverpool (1902); 33 Spurgeon Street, Liverpool (1905); 45 Spurgeon Street, Liverpool (1906); 35 Empire Street, Liverpool (1907-1908); 2 Curate Road, Liverpool (1909); 1 Waltham Road, Liverpool (1910-1912); 309A Breck Road, Liverpool (1916-1922); 11 Stalisfield Grove, Liverpool (1931-1939); 93 Townsend Lane, Liverpool (1945-1951)
- Rosina: 309A Breck Road, Liverpool (1921); 11 Stalisfield Grove, Liverpool (1931-1939); 93 Townsend Lane, Liverpool (1945-1952)
Occupations: in 1921, William worked as a dock labourer for steamship companies included Cunard and White Star Line.
Deaths: William died in 1951 and was buried in Anfield Cemetery on 31 August, while Rosina was sadly killed by a drunk driver during the 1950s while waiting for a bus.
G3: William Arthur Bennett (1921-1943)
Birth: William Arthur Bennett was born in Liverpool on 24 October 1921. He was the first child of newlyweds William and Rosina.
Occupations: in 1939 Bill was a crane hand.
Residences: 11 Stalisfield Grove, Liverpool (1931-1939)
Military service: Bill enlisted into the Royal Artillery during the Second World War and in November 1941 joined units based in Singapore. The Japanese began their onslaught the following month and by February 1942 the British collapse was complete. Singapore fell on 15 February 1942 and Bill was one of 85,000 troops to enter captivity.
They were sent to Burma to commence building the infamous death railway intended to improve communications with the large Japanese army poised to strike at India. Bill arrived at Songkurai No.2 Camp in May 1943, who were tasked with laying a 10 mile stretch of line including a timber bridge. However, within a week of arriving, cholera broke out in the camp and quickly spread. There was no medical care, and at its height 35 men died each day. Sadly, this included Bill who died on 31 May.
Death: Bill’s remains were exhumed and reburied in December 1945 at Thanbyuzayat War Cemetery in Burma. The village of Thanbyuzayat is 40 miles south of the port of Moulmein, and the war cemetery lies at the foot of the hills which separate the Myanmar from Thailand. He left his estate of £133 13s 6d (around £4,700 today) to his mother.
G3: Agnes Rosina Bennett (1923-2017)
Birth: Agnes Rosina Bennett was born at 144A Brownlow Hill Road in Liverpool on 10 May 1923. She was the second child of William and Rosina and commonly known as Rosina or simply ‘Gig’.
Christening: on 10 June 1923 at Holy Trinity on Breck Road.
Marriage: during the war Gig met American soldier George Richard Wilmot when he was based near Liverpool. They were married on 31 December 1943 at Holy Trinity. She was aged 20 and he was 21.
Spouse history: George had been born on 28 September 1922 in Portland, Maine, on the east coast of the United States. He was the ninth child of Frederick Wilmot and Bernice Hawkins, who had migrated from their native Canada in 1909. They lived in a rented house on Hartley Street, which was a typical white painted wooden house off a main road and their home for at least a decade. His father was a night watchman for Power Co., moving to be a labourer in retail lumber by 1940 with an annual income of $800. George was educated at Deering High School and became a baker for W.O. Leach Co.
Military service: 20-year-old George enlisted into the US Army on 21 December 1942. He was given the serial number 31218124 and although qualified as a marksman during basic training, his specialism was as a baker. This was reflected in his rank of Technician Fourth Grade (abbreviated as T/4 or TEC4 and roughly the equivalent to a sergeant), indicating that he had specialised skills that were rewarded with a higher pay grade. He sailed for England on 1 June 1943, serving with the 1591st Engineer Utility Detachment based near Liverpool, which is where he met Gig. George then served with the Allied forces in Normandy. He won the Good Conduct Medal, the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, and the World War II Victory Medal. He was honourably discharged from the army in November 1945 at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, being described as 5 feet 7 inches tall with blue eyes and brown hair.
Children: (1) twin boy and a girl in 1946, (2) Agnes in 1923, (3) Edith in 1925, (4) Rosina in 1927, (5) John in 1929, (6) Richard in 1930.
Naturalisation: Gig became a naturalised US citizen in 1947, being described as 5 feet 1 inches tall with blonde hair, blue eyes, and a fair complexion.
Residences: Gig still lived with her parents on Townsend Lane to the southeast of Stanley Park as the war entered its final year. She departed for the United States just a few days after VE Day, sailing from Southampton and arriving in Boston on 23 May. She likely went to live with George’s family on Walton Street in Portland until George joined her four months later.
The family almost immediately moved to Wichita, Kansas, where they resided in a small house on Martha Street.
They soon moved back to Portland and in 1950 lived in an apartment on Massachusetts Avenue. A city directory also taken that year recorded the family in an apartment on Eastern Promenade, a lovely road that runs parallel to the coast on the peninsular that pokes into the Atlantic north of downtown. During the 1950s the family lived in a series of apartments, including two on State Street opposite Mercy Hospital where they worked.
After living in a rather odd-looking house on Congress Street, nestled between a church and an apartment building, in 1963 the family moved to the town of South Portland on the opposite side of the Fore River. They had a typical white painted wooden house on Buchanan Street, which would be their home for at least the next 20 years. By 1993 they lived on Summit Terrace, a nearby apartment complex and their home until 2002.
- Agnes: 11 Stalisfield Grove, Liverpool (1931-1939); 93 Townsend Lane, Liverpool (1945); 2407 Martha St, Wichita, KS (1947-1948); Apt 5, 304 Eastern Promenade, Portland, ME (1950); Apt 2, 203 Massachusetts Avenue, Portland, ME (1950); Apt 3, 125 State St, Portland, ME (1951-1953); Apt 4, 125 State St, Portland, ME (1954-1955); 146 Congress St, Portland, ME (1956-1957); 28 Grand St, South Portland, ME (1958-1960); 122 Grant St, Portland, ME (1962); 57 Buchanan St, South Portland, ME (1963-1980); 112 Summit Terrace, South Portland, ME (1993-2002)
- George: 15 Hartley St, Portland, ME (1922-1940); 2407 Martha St, Wichita, KS (1947-1948); Apt 5, 304 Eastern Promenade, Portland, ME (1950); Apt 2, 203 Massachusetts Avenue, Portland, ME (1950); Apt 3, 125 State St, Portland, ME (1951-1953); Apt 4, 125 State St, Portland, ME (1954-1955); 146 Congress St, Portland, ME (1956-1957); 28 Grand St, South Portland, ME (1958-1960); 122 Grant St, Portland, ME (1962); 57 Buchanan St, South Portland, ME (1963-1980); 112 Summit Terrace, South Portland, ME (1993-2002)
Occupations: after leaving the army George worked as a baker for Fairfax Bread in Wichita, Kansas. After moving back to Portland, George worked as a kitchen manager while studying at Northeast Business College, from where he graduated in August 1951 with a diploma in accounting. George then moved into the kitchen department of Mercy Hospital where he began as a baker and later became assistant chef and food services manager over a 37-year career. Gig joined him from 1956, working first as a dietician, then dietary supervisory and food service supervisor. They retired from the hospital in 1987 and 1985 respectively.
Hobbies: George was known to enjoy reading, walking, gardening, and sports whilst Gig enjoyed making candy, crafts, sewing for the family, sports, and horse racing.
Deaths: George died at home in South Portland on 14 March 2011 when aged 88 and is buried at Calvary Cemetery. Gig survived him for six years and died aged 94 on 19 June 2017 at the Gosnell Memorial Hospice House in Scarborough, Maine. She was buried next to her husband.
Notes: Gig and her two children arrived in Liverpool on the Cunard liner Saxonia on 18 May 1956, having sailed via Montreal, Canada. They are recorded as visiting 20 Hewiston Road in Liverpool, which was presumably the home of a relative.
G3: Edith Bennett (1925-)
Birth: Edith Bennett was born in Liverpool on 19 February 1925. She was the third child of William and Rosina.
Marriage: to Alfred Powell during 1947 in Liverpool. She was aged 21.
Children: unknown.
Residences: the couple lived with Edith’s parents until 1952.
Deaths: Edith died before 2017
Due to the commonality of their names, little else is known.
G3: Rosina Bennett (1927-)
Birth: Rosina Bennett was born in Liverpool during 1927. She was the fourth child of William and Rosina.
Marriage: to Francis Gerard Lees during 1946 in Liverpool. They were both aged 19.
Spouse history: Francis had been born on 26 August 1926 to dock labourer Malcolm Lees and Rose McCloughlan. The family had lived on Townsend Avenue when the 1939 Register was taken.
Children: unknown.
Residences: the couple lived with Rosina’s parents until 1950 when they moved into a house of their own on Altbridge Road on a new estate in Gillmoss near Croxteth. In 1958 they upgraded to a semi-detached house on Hewitson Road which would be their home for at least the next 30 years.
- Rosina: 11 Stalisfield Grove, Liverpool (1931-1939); 93 Townsend Lane, Liverpool (1945-1950); 337 Altbridge Road, Liverpool (1951-1957); 20 Hewitson Road, Liverpool (1958-1989)
- Francis: 254 Townsend Avenue, Liverpool (1939); 93 Townsend Lane, Liverpool (1948-1950); 337 Altbridge Road, Liverpool (1951-1957); 20 Hewitson Road, Liverpool (1958-1989)
Deaths: Francis died of heart failure in January 1989 when aged 62 and was cremated at Liverpool Crematorium. Rosina likely died in 2014.
G3: John Bennett (1929-)
Birth: John Bennett was born in Liverpool during 1929. He was the fifth child of William and Rosina.
Residences: 11 Stalisfield Grove, Liverpool (1931-1939); 93 Townsend Lane, Liverpool (1945-1951)
Notes: due to the commonality of his name nothing else is known, although it is known that he died before 2017.
G4: Elizabeth Bennett (1900-1980)
Birth: Elizabeth Bennett was born in Liverpool on 24 May 1900. She was the second child of William and Naamah.
Christening: on 24 June 1900 at St Peter’s Church in the city centre.
Residences: Buckingham Street (1900); 5 Church Place (1901); 3 Church Place (1902); 33 Spurgeon Street (1905); 35 Empire Street (1907-1908); 2 Curate Road (1909); 1 Waltham Road (1910-1912); 309A Breck Road (1916-1922) – all in Liverpool.
Deaths: it’s possible that she died on 25 February 1980.
G4: Edith Bennett (1902-1972)
Birth: Edith Bennett was born in Liverpool on 27 October 1902. She was the third child of William and Naamah.
Christening: on 14 December 1902 at St George’s Church on Heyworth Street in Everton.
Marriage: to Albert Edward Lee on 29 April 1925 at St Leonard’s Church on Peel Road in Bootle. They were both aged 22.
Spouse history: Albert had been born in Litherland on 26 June 1902 to James Lee, a ship’s fireman, and Elizabeth Sharp. He was the seventh of nine children, and by 1911 the family lived in a terraced house on Alder Street close to Seaforth train station. His father was by then a dock labourer.
Children: (1) Edith in 1928, (2) Stanley in 1936, (3) Linda in 1939 who died aged 1.
Occupations: in 1921 when aged 18, Edith worked as a waitress for Blacklers department store on Elliot Street. Once described as ‘Liverpool’s answer to New York’s Macy’s’, Blacklers opened in 1908 and was one of the biggest stores in the country in its day and employed almost 1,000 staff. It quickly became known as ‘the people’s store’, selling everyday products loved by residents across the city. Albert followed in his father’s footsteps and became a ship’s fireman. In 1939 he was possibly serving on a ship called Melbourne.
Residences: at the time of their marriage the couple lived together in a terraced house on Gray Street, part of the packed network of terraced houses that sat alongside Gladstone Dock in the very north of Bootle. They then moved north to Waterloo where they first lived in a small house on Denmark Street, shared with Edith’s brother Alexander until at least 1931.
By 1934 they had moved a couple of miles south to Seaforth where they lived in a terraced house on Date Street, which backed onto Albert’s childhood home at Alder Street.
- Edith: 3 Church Place, Liverpool (1902); 33 Spurgeon Street, Liverpool (1905); 45 Spurgeon Street, Liverpool (1906); 35 Empire Street, Liverpool (1907-1908); 2 Curate Road, Liverpool (1909); 1 Waltham Road, Liverpool (1910-1912); 309A Breck Road, Liverpool (1916-1922); 31 Gray Street, Bootle (1925); 38 Denmark Street, Waterloo (1927-1931); 24 Date Street, Seaforth (1934-1939)
- Albert: 17 Alder Street, Seaforth (1911); 31 Gray Street, Bootle (1925); 38 Denmark Street, Waterloo (1927-1931); 24 Date Street, Seaforth (1934-1939)
Deaths: Edith died on 23 February 1972 when aged 69. Albert survived her for six years and died in Thornton, Sefton on 15 April 1978 when aged 75.
Note: a Stanley E. Lee is often cited on other public trees as the son of Edith and Albert based on him being resident with them on the 1939 National Register. However, birth records show his mother’s maiden name as Cassidy, and he is likely a nephew. There is also less than nine months between his birth and that of Albert and Edith’s daughter Linda in 1939.
G3: Edith Doreen Lee (1928-2010)
Birth: Edith Doreen Lee, who was commonly known by her middle name, was born in Liverpool on 11 February 1928. She was the first child of Albert and Edith.
Marriage: to Kenneth John McDonnell during 1949 in Crosby. She was aged 20 and he was 19.
Spouse history: Francis had been born in Liverpool on 6 February 1929 to newlyweds John McDonnell and Janet McCormack. In 1939 they lived on William Morris Avenue on the new Orrell Park housing estate to the east of Bootle. His father was a general labourer in demolition.
Children: unknown.
Residences:
- Edith: 38 Denmark Street, Waterloo (1928-1931); 24 Date Street, Seaforth (1934-1939)
- Kenneth: 30 William Morris Avenue, Bootle (1939)
Deaths: Kenneth died in Brentwood, Essex, in 1997 when aged 68. Doreen survived him by 13 years and died in Liverpool on 6 August 2010 when aged 82.
G3: Keith Lee
Keith Lee is engraved onto the headstone of Edith Doreen Lee as ‘Beloved brother of the above, 1936-2011’. There is no other record of him however, neither a birth nor death record. 1936 was also the same year that their brother Stanley Lee was born.
G3: Stanley Alfred Lee (1936-2010)
Birth: Stanley Alfred Lee was born in Crosby on 3 May 1936. He was the third child of Albert and Edith.
Marriage: to Mary Doreen Evans during 1959 in Crosby. He was aged 22 and she was 20.
Spouse history: Mary had been born in Bootle on 3 January 1938 to William O. Evans and Margaret McCusker. In 1939 daughter and mother lived with her paternal grandparents on Cleavers Row, Gas Lane in St Asaph, Flintshire. Perhaps they had headed for the relative safety of the rural Wales to escape the expected bombing.
Children: unknown.
Occupations: Stanley followed in his father’s footsteps and became a mariner. Immigration records show that he was 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighing 140 lbs, and with a scar on his right ankle. During 1953 he served on the merchant ship Powell as a catering boy. He arrived in New York in May having sailed from Venezuela, and then again in December when he arrived from Aruba.
Residences: from 2003 the couple lived on Lower Hey in Liverpool.
- 24 Date Street, Seaforth (1936-1939); 28 Lower Hey, Thornton (2003-2008)
Deaths: Mary died on 1 December 2007 and was buried in the family plot at Bootle Cemetery. Stanley survived her for a few years and died on 18 March 2010. The inscription on the headstone reads “I had a ball”.
G3: Linda Lee (1939-1940)
Birth: Linda Lee was born in Crosby on 22 January 1939. He was the fourth child of Albert and Edith.
Residences: 24 Date Street, Seaforth (1939)
Death: on 7 April 1940 when aged 1.
G4: Henrietta Bennett (1905-)
Birth: Henrietta Bennett was born in Liverpool on 29 January 1905. She was the fourth child of William and Naamah.
Christening: on 12 March 1905 at St George’s Church on Heyworth Street in Everton.
Occupations: in 1921 census when she was aged 16, Edith worked as a sweet packer for Barker & Dobson on Whitfield Road – which was on its way to becoming one of the largest manufacturers of chocolate and boiled sweets in Britain.
Residences: 33 Spurgeon Street, Liverpool (1905); 35 Empire Street, Liverpool (1907-1908); 2 Curate Road, Liverpool (1909); 1 Waltham Road, Liverpool (1910-1912); 309A Breck Road, Liverpool (1916-1922)
Notes: it’s possible that she married Archibald Hancocks in Liverpool during 1928 but further confirmation is required.
G4: Alexander Francis Bennett (1907-1979)
Birth: Alexander Francis Bennett was born in Liverpool on 14 March 1907. He was the fifth child of William and Naamah.
Christening: on 22 May 1907at St George’s Church on Heyworth Street in Everton.
Marriage: to Nellie Bradshaw during 1935 in Crosby. He was aged 27 and she was 31.
Spouse history: Nellie had been born on 18 October 1903.
Children: unknown.
Residences: in 1939 the couple lived in a terraced house on Denmark Street in the centre of Waterloo with Elsie Summerfield, an 18-year-old domestic servant.
- Alexander: 35 Empire Street, Liverpool (1907-1908); 2 Curate Road, Liverpool (1909); 1 Waltham Road, Liverpool (1910-1912); 309A Breck Road, Liverpool (1916-1922); 25 Denmark Street, Waterloo (1939)
- Nellie: 52 Red Rock Street, Liverpool (1911); 25 Denmark Street, Waterloo (1939)
Occupations: in 1939 Alexander worked as a window cleane.
Deaths: Alexander died in Crosby in 1979 when aged 72.
Note: two Nellie Bradshaws were born in Liverpool at around the same time. One was the daughter of Irish immigrants Thomas and Bridget Cunningham who lived on Red Rock Street in Everton when the 1911 census was taken and on Pickering Street in 1921. Her birth was registered as Nelley Bradshaw in 1904 however, which may be too late to be our Nellie. The other was born to John Edward Bradshaw and Jane Kelly and was registered at the right time. They lived on Denmark Street in 1921.
G4: Naamah Bennett (1909-1971)
Birth: Naamah Bennett was born in Liverpool on 29 July 1909. She was the sixth child of William and Naamah.
Christening: on 21 September 1909 at St Benedict’s Church on Kepler Street in Everton.
Marriage: to John Kelly during 1928 in Swansea. She was aged 18 and he was 26.
Spouse history: John had been born on 28 May 1901.
Children: two girls and a boy between 1929 and 1937.
Residences: the newlyweds moved to Sunderland and in 1939 lived in a terraced house on Marshall Street in suburb of Hendon, close to the docks.
- Naamah: 2 Curate Road, Liverpool (1909); 1 Waltham Road, Liverpool (1910-1912); 309A Breck Road, Liverpool (1916-1922); 4 Marshall Street, Sunderland (1939)
- John: 4 Marshall Street, Sunderland (1939)
Occupations: John was a lorry driver.
Deaths: Naamah died in Sunderland in early 1971 when aged 61.
G3: John Bennett Kelly (1929-1973)
Birth: John Bennett Kelly was born in Sunderland on 18 August 1929. He was the first child of newlyweds John and Naamah.
Residences: 4 Marshall Street, Sunderland (1939); 25 Ridley Street, Sunderland (1973)
Deaths: died in Sunderland on 25 August 1973 when aged just 43.
Notes: he possibly married Thomasina Airey in 1964, but due to the commonality of names further confirmation is required.
G3: Norena Kelly (1932-1978)
Birth: Norena Kelly was born in Sunderland on 6 March 1932. She was the second child of newlyweds John and Naamah.
Marriage: to Henry Burnell during 1954 in Sunderland. She was aged 21.
Spouse history: Henry had possibly been born in 1929 to Henry Burnell and Elizabeth Crinson. This was the only namesake born in Sunderland during the relevant timeframe, but due to the commonality of the surname further confirmation is needed.
Children: three between 1955 and 1962.
Residences: 4 Marshall Street, Sunderland (1939)
Deaths: Norena died in Sunderland in summer 1978 when aged just 46.
G4: Ernest Victor Bennett (1912-1997)
Birth: Ernest Victor Bennett was born in Liverpool on 7 January 1912. She was the seventh child of William and Naamah.
Marriage: to Lilian Hodgson Barker on 25 February 1933 at St John’s Church in Waterloo. He was aged 21 and she was 20.
Spouse history: Lilian had been born in Liverpool on 25 January 1913, the youngest of five children of Richard Barker and Sarah White. When her father enlisted into the army on 18 March 1915, the family lived on Denmark Street, a long cul-de-sac of terraced houses in Waterloo. He was a ship’s fireman and had previously served in the Royal Navy. He was injured by the premature burst of a high explosive shell on 9 March 1916.
Children: (1) Carol in 1937 who died after just five months. There are several other possible children, but further information is needed to identify them.
Occupations: in 1939 when he was aged 27, Ernest was a motor driver.
Residences: the newlyweds settled in Waterloo where they initially shared a house on Argo Road before moving to Albert Road and then King Street. The house was shared with Isabella Walker, Harold Shepherd – also a motor driver – and perhaps his sisters Mary and Doris. There are two redacted records on the Register perhaps indicating two children.
- Ernest: 1 Waltham Road, Liverpool (1912); 309A Breck Road, Liverpool (1916-1922); 114 Seaforth Road, Seaforth (1924-1926); 28 Argo Road, Waterloo (1934); 39 Albert Road, Waterloo (1937); 8 King Street, Waterloo (1939)
- Lilian: 11 Denmark Street, Waterloo (1915); 28 Argo Road, Waterloo (1934); 39 Albert Road, Waterloo (1937); 8 King Street, Waterloo (1939)
Deaths: Ernest died during April 1997 in the Hospice International Thornton when aged 85. Lilian survived him by three years and died in Liverpool on 1 March 2000, aged 87.
G3: Carol S. Bennett (1936-1937)
Birth: Carol S. Bennett was born on Christmas Day 1936. She was the first child of Ernest and Lilian.
Residences: 39 Albert Road, Waterloo (1937
Death: died aged five months and was buried in Anfield Cemetery on 24 June.
G4: Edwin Cecil Bennett (1916-1960)
Birth: Edwin Cecil Bennett was born in Liverpool on 8 October 1916. He was the eighth child of William and Naamah.
Occupations: in 1939 when he was aged 22, Edwin was a labourer. He later became a motor driver.
Residences: in 1939 he lived with his elder sister Edith and family in a terraced house on Date Street. He later moved to a terraced house on Caradoc Road in Seaforth.
- 309A Breck Road, Liverpool (1916-1922); 24 Date Street, Seaforth (1939); 24 Caradoc Road, Seaforth (1960)
Deaths: Edwin died of stomach cancer on 27 December 1960 at 21 Bath Street in Waterloo, Liverpool when aged just 44. He was cremated at Liverpool Crematorium three days later. He left his effects of £910 15s 6d. to George William, timekeeper.
