John Harcus and Selina Patrick

Gillingham Parish Church (St Mary Magdalen)
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © N Chadwick - geograph.org.uk/p/1146460

John Harcus (bap. 15 Jul 1821 at St Mary's, Chatham), son of George Frederick Harcus, Gunner RN, and Martha Buckledee, married Selina Patrick (bap. 26 Oct 1823 at St Mary's, Chatham), daughter of Richard Patrick and Mary Ann Davidson, at Gillingham, St Mary Magdalene on 7 Apr 1844.

John and Selina had six children:

1. Richard John Harcus b. 1845 S Quarter in MEDWAY Volume 05 Page 354, bap. 20 Jul 1845 at St Mary's Church, Chatham 
2. Henry George Harcus b. 1848 S Quarter in MEDWAY Volume 05 Page 398, bap. 15 Oct 1848 at St Mary's Church, Chatham
3. Selina Mary Ann Harcus b. 1850 M Quarter in MEDWAY Volume 05 Page 414, bap. 10 Mar 1850 at St Mary's Church, Chatham
4. Alice Martha Harcus b. 1858 J Quarter in MEDWAY Volume 02A Page 323, bap. 30 May 1858 at St Mary's Church, Chatham, died aged 1 and was buried in the Former St Mary's Burial Ground.
5. John Edward Harcus b. 1860 J Qtr in MEDWAY Vol 02A Page 340
6. George Frederick Harcus b. 1863 M Quarter in MEDWAY Volume 02A Page 418 (reads John Edward, but can't tell where the error occurred.)

In 1851, John Harcus (29) Tailor, Selina Harcus (26), Richard Harcus (5), Henry Harcus (2) and Selina Harcus (1) lived in Whittaker Place, Chatham. Visiting them were Isabella Tennis (29) Seaman's wife and her daughter, Martha Tennis (5). As these are visitors, there's always a chance that they are family, however, there are no other records under the surname 'Tennis', which I think may be a transcription error, but the writing is difficult to discern.

In 1858, in Melvilles Directory, is listed, "Harcus John, tailor, and Alma beerhouse and concert hall, High street" (Alma, 157 High Street, Chatham).

Then in 1861, John Harcus (37) Inn Keeper, is at the Red Lion, 110, High Street, Chatham (images), wife Selina (37), Henry (12), Selina (11), John (1), William Holding (21) Inkeeper Assistant and Jane Hills (17) Domestic Servant.

Later in the year, clearly, they had a different servant. This report is from the Maidstone Telegraph, Rochester and Chatham Gazette, 26 October 1861.

Robbery of a Publican.

Helen Reed, 23, was on Monday charged on remand, before the county magistrates, with having stolen half a pint of brandy, from the spirit bar of the "Red Lion" public house, Military Road, Chatham, where she was servant.

The spirit was accidentally discovered hidden away, by Mrs. Harcus, the landlady, and on the prisoner being taxed with the robbery, she at once confessed that she had taken the brandy.

The magistrates committed her for 3 months' hard labour.

John Harcus died on 9 Jul 1868, at 47. He was buried in the Former St Mary's Burial Ground, now Town Hall Gardens. (The tombstone was amongst those removed from the said Gardens and reinterred, on 5th August 1971, in the Borough Cemetery in Maidstone Road Chatham Section.) 

Probate was granted on 8 May 1869, when:

"The Will of John Harcus late of the "Chest Arms" High Street Chatham in the County of Kent Victualler deceased who died 9 Jul 1868 at the "Chest Arms" aforesaid was proved at the Principal Registry by the oath of Selina Harcus of the "Chest Arms" aforesaid Widow the Relict the sole Executrix".

In 1871, Selina Harcus (47) Licensed Victualler was at the Chest Arms, 55 High Street, Chatham, George (7), daughter Selina Caddy (21), Henry Caddy (24) Shipwright; Lydia Emill (16) and lodgers: William Smith (40) Pensioner from Cork and George Atts (31) Photographer from Germany.

Kellys Directory places Selina Harcus at the Chest Arms in 1874, then from From the Rochester and Chatham Journal and Mid-Kent Advertiser, Saturday, September 2, 1876: "Miscellaneous. The magistrates hear adjourned for some time to take of luncheon. On business being resumed the following persons, who had been convicted of various offences during the year, and his cases had been deferred in consequence, apply for the renewal of their licences. vis. Mrs. Harcus, "Chest Arms," Chatham ..." No idea what the offence was.

In 1881, son John Edward Harcus was the Licensed Victualler at the Dartmouth Arms, 257 High Street, Chatham (image), with widowed mother, Selina Harcus (56), Henrietta Golding (18) Domestic Servant, brother George Frederick (18) Mariner and Mary Ann Drago (23) Visitor, listed as wife of Wm Drago. (William Drago, Shipwright, had married Mary Ann Tester in 1876. One of the witnesses to this marriage was George Vokes, who had also been a witnesses for Henry George Harcus and Susan Alice Tubb in 1872.)

Now reinterred, on 5th August 1971, in the Borough Cemetery in Maidstone Road

Son Henry George Harcus died at 39, in 1887, then son John Edward Harcus died two years later on 12 Jun 1889, at 29 and was also buried at the Former St Mary's Burial Ground, now Town Hall Gardens, on 16 Jun 1889.

In 1891, Selina Harcus (66) widow, was Living on her own means at Pleasant Row, St Margaret, Medway, Kent.

In 1901, Selina Harcus (78) was living in the household of her youngest son, George F Harcus (37) Barge Captain at 18, Cecil Avenue, Strood, Kent, with Charlotte Harcus (34), Richard Harcus (13) and Nellie Harcus (12).

Selina Harcus died, aged 81, at Coburg House, Cliffe Rd, Strood and was buried on 28 May 1904 at Strood Cemetery, Section K Grave No. 3 (C). 

Strood Cemetery, Cuxton Road
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © Marathon - geograph.org.uk/p/3602387

George Frederick Harcus and Charlotte Cooper

St Nicholas with St Mary Church, Strood
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © Marathon - geograph.org.uk/p/3568896

George Frederick Harcus (b. 1863), youngest son of John Harcus and Selina Patrick, married Charlotte Cooper (bap. 25 Aug 1867 at St Nicholas Church, Strood), daughter of Henry Cooper and Mary Ann Willan, at St Peter’s Church (now demolished), Rochester, Kent in 1884.

George and Charlotte appear to have two children:

1. Richard John Harcus b. 1888 M Quarter in STROOD Volume 02A Page 555, bap. 27 Apr 1888 at St Nicholas Church, Strood
2. Nelly May Harcus b. 9 Aug 1889 in STROOD Volume 02A Page 545

Cecil Avenue, Strood
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © Chris Whippet - geograph.org.uk/p/4847606

None of them can be found on the 1891 census, anywhere.

In 1901, George F Harcus (37) Barge Captain was living at 18, Cecil Avenue, Strood Intra, Strood, Kent with Charlotte Harcus (34), Richard Harcus (13), Nellie Harcus (12) and George's widowed mother, Selina Harcus (78).

In 1911, George Harcus (47) Waterman barge captain, Charlotte Harcus (43) and Nellie Harcus (22), lived at 67 Kitchener Road Strood Rochester. 

George Frederick Harcus died, aged 69, on 31 Mar 1932 and was buried at Strood Cemetery in Section K Grave No. 3 (C), where his mother was buried. Charlotte Harcus died, on 10 Mar 1939, she will have been 71, at 67 Kitchener Rd, Strood and was buried on 16 Mar 1939, in the same plot with her husband. Probate was granted on 9 Jun 1939 to her daughter, Nellie May Slater.

Kitchener Road, Strood
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © Danny P Robinson - geograph.org.uk/p/889492

• Richard J Harcus married Elizabeth R Andrews, in Strood in the 4th quarter of 1917. There is a Richard John Harcus (b. 1888) in St Olave, Bermondsey, London in 1921, but with no Elizabeth in the household. Richard John Harcus died, aged 72, in 1960. 
• Nellie M Harcus married Ernest J Slater in Strood in the 3rd quarter of 1923. In 1939, Ernest J Slater (b. 5 Jul 1885) Gentleman's hairdresser, and Nellie M Slater were still living at 67 Kitchener Road, Rochester. Nellie May Slater died in 1979, aged 90.

Henry Caddy and Selina Mary Ann Harcus

St Mary, Dock Road, Chatham
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © David Kemp - geograph.org.uk/p/4674626
The church, now closed, is mainly late C19 but a few Norman features still remain.

Henry Caddy (24), Shipwright, son of John Henry Caddy and Sarah Kirkby, married, Selina Mary Ann Harcus (20), daughter of John Harcus and Selina Patrick, on 18 Dec 1870 at St Mary's Church, Chatham. Witnesses were her brother Henry George Harcus and Sarah Caddy, Henry's sister.

In 1871, Selina Caddy (21), Henry Caddy (24) Shipwright, were living with Selina's widowed mother, Selina Harcus (47) Licensed Victualler at the Chest Arms, 55 High Street, Chatham.

Henry and Selina Caddy then had one daughter: 

1. Selina Sarah Caddy, b. 15 Jan 1872 (1872 M Quarter in MEDWAY Volume 02A Page 470), bap. 11 Feb 1872 at St Mary's Church, Chatham.

Selina Mary Ann Caddy was one of the witnesses to the marriage of her brother Henry George Harcus and Susan Alice Tubb, on 29 Dec 1872.

Then in the forth quarter of 1874, in Shoreditch, Selina Mary A Caddy married either Lewis Betjemann or Christopher Court Harmes (Jane Edmunds married the other), but without buying the certificate, it's not clear which one married which. None of the combinations are listed on subsequent census returns. 

This is a mystery, because one might assume that Henry Caddy had died ...

However, in 1881, we find Henry Caddy (34) Shipwright presumably alive therefore, listed as married, living in the home of his father, John Henry Caddy (59) Joiner (he had been a Joiner at the Dockyard) and his second wife Elizabeth Caddy (61) at 50, Church Road, Gillingham, Medway, Kent, but with no mention of Henry's wife or child. (Henry's mother, Sarah Caddy, had died in 1866 and John Henry Caddy had married widow, Elizabeth Fowler, on 26 Mar 1874).

After that I can find no more records for Henry Caddy, not even a death.

Selina Sarah Caddy doesn't appear on a census either, until 1891, when we find George Lewis (47) Caretaker from Mile End, Middlesex at James Allen's School, Townley Road, Camberwell (James Allen's Girls' School), with wife Selina Lewis (41) Housekeeper from Chatham, Kent; daughter listed as Selina Lewis (19) also from Chatham, Kent, with two Assistant caretakers in the household.

There is no obvious record of a marriage of George Lewis to a Selina anything in the relevant timeframe that I can find and it's interesting that Lewis is the surname here, where it was a forename on the 1874 marriages. Coincidence? Is it possible that Lewis Betjemann, for whom I can find no other record, Anglicised himself to George Lewis? Was that a bigamous marriage? Did Selina have a good reason to escape Henry Caddy? We will probably never know. Subsequent records, which I found first, show that these are the right people however.

In 1894, Selina Sarah Caddy (22) married William Slate (24) at the church of St Michael, Burleigh Street, Westminster (Initially a chapel within the parish of St. Martin in the Fields, closed 1905. The church was demolished.)

William and Selina Sarah Slate had five children:

1. Victor Alfred William Slate b. 30 Nov 1895 in HOLBORN 01B 683
2. Eleanor Selina Slate b. 11 Nov 1897 in HOLBORN 01B 687
3. Alfred John Slate b. 10 Aug 1900 in WEST HAM Vol 04A Page 469, bap 2 Sep 1900 at St. James' Church, Walthamstow
4. Doris Margaret Slate b. 13 Oct 1904 in WEST HAM Vol 04A Page 458, bap. 13 Nov 1904 at St. James' Church, Walthamstow
5. Lily Slate b. 12 Aug 1910 in WEST HAM Vol 04A Page 474, bap. 9 Sep 1910 at St. James' Church, Walthamstow

George Lewis (55) had died, in Camberwell in 1900.

In 1901, Selina Lewis (51) Widow, General shop dealer, from Chatham, Kent, was living at 52, Gladstone Road, Walthamstow, West Ham. William Slate (32) Bookbinder, was living at 81, Gladstone Road, Walthamstow, West Ham with Selina Slate (29) from Chatham, Kent; Victor (5), Selina (3) and Alfred (0).

In 1911, at 23 Camden Road Walthamstow, Walthamstow, were William Slate (41) Bookbinder, Selina Slate (39) from Chatham, Kent; Victor Slate (15) Junior clerk; Eleanor (13), Alfred (10), Doris (6), Lily (0) and Selina Lewis (61) Mother, Widow, Dressmaker from Chatham, Kent.

William and Selina Slate were still living in Walthamstow in 1921. There was nobody with the surname Lewis in their household, however, there is a Selina Ana Lewis (b. 1850), from Kent, also living in Walthamstow in 1921.

Selina M A Lewis died, aged 88, in Sep 1938 at 13 Forster Road, Walthamstow and was buried on 26 Sep 1938 at Queen's Road Cemetery, Walthamstow.

In 1939, William Slate (b. 1 Jul 1869), Groundsman and Sarah Selina Slate (b. 15 Jan 1872) were living at 13 Forster Road, Walthamstow. William Slate died, aged 89, in 1958 and Selina S Slate died, aged 95, in 1966, in Waltham Forest.

Henry George Harcus and Susan Alice Tubb

Church of St. John the Divine, Chatham
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © Chris Whippet - geograph.org.uk/p/3850305

Henry George Harcus (b. 1848), son of John Harcus and Selina Patrick, married Susan Alice Tubb (b. 1852), daughter of Edward Tubb and Hannah Bussey and younger sister of Elizabeth Tubb, at St John's Church, Chatham, Kent, on 29 Dec 1872. Henry George Harcus', 24 at the time of the marriage, occupation was listed as Publican. Witnesses were Selina Mary Ann Caddy (Henry George's sister, who had married in 1870) and George Vokes. 

(With Henry George's surname mis-transcribed as Harrens on the record of the marriage, it was finding his sister's marriage and her subsequently living with their widowed mother in 1871, which led me to the correct entries.)

(St John's a Waterloo church built in 1821 and restructured in 1869, ceased being an active church in 1964, used as an art project, reopened in 2021.)

The couple don't seem to have had any children.

On 8 Mar 1875 at Maidstone Assizes (the assizes heard the most serious cases), Susanah Alice Harcus stood accused of Perjury, but the bill was ignored. I don't know the details of the case, but it's ironic that Susan appears to be in trouble with the law, when her sister married a policeman. 

That same year, on 21 Oct 1875, at Maidstone Quarter Sessions, Henry Harcus was tried for "Stealing £1, the money of George Miles, at Chatham, on 12th September, 1875". The Verdict of the Jury was "No Bill", which generally means there was not enough evidence to indict him on the alleged crime, or the prosecution decided not to pursue the case any further.

In 1881, Henry Harcus (32) Eating house keeper and wife listed as Alice S Harcus (27) from Portsmouth, Hampshire, were living at 7, Middle Street, Gillingham (7 Middle St, Brompton, Chatham, Gillingham, close to both Chatham Dockyard as well as Brompton Barracks and Kitchener Barracks).

Henry George Harcus died on 20 Feb 1887, aged 39, at that time resident in St George in the East, Middlesex and was buried at Chatham, St Mary in the Chatham, Former St Mary's Burial Ground, now Town Hall Gardens. Records show he was interred in grave 319, with his father and sister. Now reinterred, on 5 Aug 1971, in the Borough Cemetery in Maidstone Road.

The very next quarter in 1887, Susan Alice Harcus remarried in Mile End Old Town, London. As yet, I haven't been able to determine who she married.