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Sarah Whitmore Tonks

B

Brummiebell

master brummie
Sarah was born 1857 and by 13 was working as a servant for the Stone family in Weston street Duddestone Aston Birmingham. The 1881 census lists her as living widowed with her brother Harry stone with children Harry Helen Charles and Rose no mention is made of her husband in the 1891 census either and she is still living with Harry I think at a different address but listed as a border and Single and with two other children kate and Clara.9(who was my nan) Would love to know what happened to her husband, who Harry was (as her birth name was Whitmore Tonks so how could he have been her brother, and who was the father of the other two children. The family only remembers mention being made of the last three children so what happened to the first three. There was an old story that my nan hated drs as her father died of scarlett fever when the doctor was called out to her and not him as they couldn't afford him to treat both, would this be possible in Aston at this time. Please help me solve these mysteries if you can especially would like to find her parents as have now hit a blank
 
I thought i new all the streets in Duddeston Weston st i am not familiar with especially if it had grand houses with servants could it have been renamed . Dek
 
How fantastic Mikejee I didn't know that there was such a website, how wonderful to see where she worked. I have just been reading that it 1701 a lot of the child employees were listed as servants due to the education act so maybe she was an apprentice tailor to him, if it's not such a grand area dek, and a tailors cutter out doesn't seem very grand, or is that so. This may make sense of the fact that the only earlier census I have found for her had her living in a household with a servant herself. I discounted it as it seemed unlikely that just ten years later she would be in service herself. Have you any idea how these houses rated were they grand or was it a retail area. Also is there anyway of finding out the address from a census report from the district no ect as one of the addresses on another cencus I can't make out the street name and would love to look it up.
 
A tailors cutter out certainly doesn't sound grand to me , though I know little about tailoring. Your point about an apprentice might be a possibility. not quite clear what you mean about the census. Is the address not written well . The best way is to go to the earlier and later pages and check those. This is bets if you have a subscription rahter than credits though. If you tell me which year it is and some details to make sure i;ve the right one, i could have a look & check.
 
That would be wonderful thank you it is the 1901 census Head of household is Harry Short and she is listed below as Sarah Tonks Children following it is schedule 188 and I am not very good at working out the writing so only can make a guess at the street name having richards in it. If you are any better at reading the handwriting can you tell me what any of the occupations are, I can only make out something to do with the gun trade for harry and have no idea as to the others. If you could give me the benefit of your expertise that would be wonderful. Let me know if you need anything else.
 
Address is no 7 back 65 Richard St. I don’t know if it is significant that Harry is put down first as married and this crossed out and altered to single .
Richard st was off Dartmouth st . I am not absolutely sure which court was back of 65, but am fairly convinced it was the one in red. If not then it must be the one on the same side of the street next to the north of the red one.
Harry is down as a “barrel filer, gun trader.”
Sarah can’t quite make out in full but would say “ -nder buttons & eyes”
Harry (jun) is “spindle turner (cycle) trader”
Ellen I am stumped, but it looks a bit like “ebony bobber spoon ware”
Charles is “polisher corkscrews”
Mike

richard_st_c_1914.jpg
 
I think you are very clever Mike, Looks like they are all working class trades and could fit with Sarah being a seamstress for the tailor rather than servant too. I love the map and have linked it to my fledgling family tree the houses look very small only three rooms for eight of them. I have tried to look up the address on the previous census of 1891 which I am reading as Brewery Street but it isn't coming up. Could I ask if you have any time if you could take a look to see if I am reading it right. (page 35 schedule 200) This is the only other census I can find her on as I can't find her on the 1881 one and am doubtful if she is the child on the 1861 one until I have birth cert. I would love to add the map of Brewery street to the collection. As for Harrys marital status, I didn't notice that, the plot thickens. I think I may have spotted him on a previous census living with his Mother in law (so disgarded) but there was no record of a wife living there. Will review it. Also Sarah is listed in the birth records as Sarah Whitmore Tonks why would that be, it is an unusual middle name I had always thought it was the husbands surname but she was given that name. Looking forward to seeing her birth cert. to find out parents names. Thank you so much for all your help, you are so clever to know all this.
 
Census 1891
Living: 1 Ct Hse 5 Brewery St.
Civil Parish: Birmingham
Ecclesiastical Parish: St Stephens

SHORT Harry Head S M 38 Gun Barrel Filer(Em'ee) Warwickshire - Birmingham
TONKS Sarah Sister W F 34 Warwickshire - Birmingham
TONKS Harry Nephew S M 7 Warwickshire - Birmingham
TONKS Helen Niece S F 6 Warwickshire - Birmingham
TONKS Charles Nephew S M 3 Warwickshire - Birmingham
TONKS Rose Niece S F 1 Warwickshire - Birmingham

The Whitmore may have been Sarah's mother's maiden name as this was very common back then
 
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Thank you Mike i have got Weston St back in my head it was between Bloomsbury St and Scholfield St certainly not the grandest area of Duddeston (although we locals regarded this as Nechells )Nechells Green was only a 100m up the road. Brummiebell if you put Bloomsbury St into the search box there are old photos of that area. Dek
 
There is a marraige for this couple that could be them in the
Dec qtr of 1851
Tonks John Aston vol 16 page 383
Whitmore Elizabeth Aston 16 383

Maybe Sarah's parents
 
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[Hi Steve, are you the same Steve I contacted via Ancestory.com who may be related to me through John Tonks her G. Grandfather? If so I sent you an email the other day to say I have now received my Nan's Birth Cert and Sarah is definitley her mother, but Harry is not down as the father. However there was a delay in registering so maybe he was considering it. It looks like he died in 1911 too so maybe he suddenly wanted to give the children his name at the end of his life. I have also found an entry for him on a census prior to his living with Sarah when he was 18, he was living with the English family as their Son in Law but there is no wife at the address. I've gone back to the previous census to try to find a daughter for them but can find no English family listed. He was a retired woollen Draper and Harry is a Rule Maker (whatever that is) at that time so maybe that is where he met Sarah who was working in the same trade. I would love to know what happened to his wife, and why he lived with Sarah for 28 years but didn't marry her. Am now sending off for Sarah's Birth Cert so that I can link her to her parents. and still looking for Francis and Emma English's Daughter who may have been married to Harry. There are rummors that I have heard that Harry had another illegitimate daughter called Gladys raised by the Tonks Family too so Harry was a busy man. Thanks for your help Steve.
 
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