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| Stoke Canon Post Office & Stores cc-by-sa/2.0 - © Bill Boaden - geograph.org.uk/p/4054054 |
John Lucas Bridle, son of Henry Bridle and Emma Lucas and younger brother of William Bridle and Mark Bridle, married Alice Brewer, in Exeter in early 1899. Alice, born in Newton St Cyres, on 29 Jul 1881 and baptised there on 2 Oct 1881, was the daughter of Thomas Brewer from Morchard Bishop and Sarah Heywood (who had married in her parish of Witheridge, on 31 Aug 1873.)
John and Alice had five children:
- Emma Bridle born 29 Apr 1899, bap. 18 Jun 1899 in Stoke Canon
- Frances Annie Bridle born 12 Dec 1900, bap. 6 Feb 1901 in Stoke Canon
- William Henry Bridle born 1902 (Died aged 2, and was buried on 14 Apr 1904 in Stoke Canon. Curiously, the burial record specifies that the child was "unbaptised" and that "Burial Service not used".)
- George Henry Bridle born 6 Jan 1906, bap. 18 Mar 1906 in Stoke Canon
- Frederick John Bridle born 18 Dec 1912, bap. 22 Feb 1913 in Stoke Canon
All of the children's baptisms list John as a Paper Maker.
In 1901, John Lucas Bridle (21) Paper mill labourer, Alice (19), Emma (1) and Frances Anne (0) were living at Channings Court, Stoke Canon.
And in 1911, having moved to The Square, Stoke Canon, were John Bridle (30) Paper millhand, Alice (30) Paper sorter, Emma (12), Annie (11) and George (5).
In 1915 the village of Stoke Canon, just north of Exeter, was the centre of a bitter strike. [...] Workers were in dispute over a pay claim and recognition of the National Union of Printing and Paper Workers. Charles Tremlett, Managing Director of the Stoke Canon Paper Mill, responded by sacking the workers and evicting them from their tied cottages. With nowhere else to go, the union bought the families tents and they were forced to camp in a local field. The strikers won widespread support from around the area. The village schoolteachers took up the cause and funds were raised to support the families.
Among the strikers (pictured here) were John Bridle and family, who lived at The Square. The Bridle family must have moved on, as there's a note on George Henry's school record, dated 15 Oct 1915, which says "Left the Place".
In 1939, John Bridle, Incapacitated and Alice, were at 17 Philip Street, Bristol.
John L Bridle died in 1956, aged 77; Alice Bridle in 1964, aged 83.
