Charles Francis Stone and Ivy Elizabeth Sweeney

Hand coloured photo of the wedding of Frank Stone & Ivy Sweeney

Charles Francis Stone (Frank) (b. 17 Jul 1923 in Devonport, Plymouth), 22, Batchelor, RAF, of 117 Corisande Road, Selly Oak, Birmingham, only son of Charley Stone and Ellen Jones, married Ivy Elizabeth Sweeney (b. 5 Mar 1924 in Shoreditch, East London), 21, Spinster, War Worker, of 47 Glanville Drive, Hornchurch, Essex, only daughter of Job Thomas Sweeney and Elizabeth Fuller at St Andrew's Church, Hornchurch, 80 years ago, on 8 Sep 1945.

Witnesses were W J [William Joseph] Wilson, the bride's uncle (pictured), who was best man, and P [Peggy] Kinchin, one of the bridesmaids. The other bridesmaid I only know as 'Lily from Louth' and I don't know which one was which. My mother often mentioned that her bouquet was of Piccadilly roses, described as "Bright, bold and just a teeny bit brassy, Piccadilly is a cheerful hybrid tea rose". (She wouldn't have liked even a "teeny bit brassy".)

St Andrew, High Street, Hornchurch - East end
cc-by-sa/2.0 - © John Salmon - geograph.org.uk/p/2825789

Hornchurch church, with the famous horned bull's head on the east end of the chancel, was designated as a Grade I listed building by Historic England in 1955. The huge East window behind the altar wouldn't have been there at the time of their marriage, as it dates from 1954. It replaced the original medieval window which was destroyed during the second world war. [Source]

The bridal party with the addition of both sets of parents

The couple had one daughter, myself, so I'll leave out the details, except to mention that I was christened at St Luke’s Church, Kingstanding, Birmingham, which hails its "modern Catholic tradition of the Church of England". Those who know, will understand why I find that slightly amusing. Safe to say, my mother cannot have known that the church uses the word 'Catholic'.

After their marriage, they went to live with Frank's parents at 117 Corisande Road, Selly Oak, Birmingham for the next 5 years. My mother hated that.

In 1950 they bought their first home at 68 Delhurst Road, Great Barr, Birmingham. The house apparently came complete with the previous owners' black cat, who my mother gave the indignity of the same name as that of Dambuster Guy Gibson's dog (a racial slur). Every day, the cat would know exactly when to go down the garden and along the back lane, which gave access to the garages, to meet my father coming home from work; the cat was infamous for launching himself across the lino to catch a ball and for wrapping himself around my father's shoulders and stealing food off his fork on the way from plate to mouth - although, I'm sure my father simply let him. My infant school, which was directly opposite, has been demolished, but you can still see the outline of the grassed area around which was the semi-circular driveway to the main entrance (forbidden to us kids) that provided a wonderful 'racetrack' around which I rode my tricycle.

In the mid 1960's - around the same time as Birmingham's first Bull Ring Centre opened - we left the city and moved to 41 Pinewood Road, Hordle, Hampshire and around 18 months later to 11 Claremont Avenue, Sunbury-on-Thames. In 1985, my parents retired to 7 Blair Close, New Milton.

Charles Francis Stone, Chartered Electrical Engineer (retired), died on 21 Feb 2001 (DOR Q1/2001 in NEW FOREST (4941A) Reg 4A Entry Number 250) at 7 Blair Close, New Milton, the cause of death given as Bile Duct Carcinoma. And it was only today, while researching for this post that I learned that this condtion, "Cholangiocarcinoma is rare in the Western world."

My mother was admitted to Royal Bournemouth Hospital on 17 Aug 2011, suffering from 'a virus' (we both caught this severe 'tummy bug' that the GP said was 'going around', but were never given a name for it). Ivy Elizabeth Stone died on 6 Sep 2011 (DOR Q3/2011 in BOURNEMOUTH (427-1D) Entry Number 505484751) at Royal Bournemouth Hospital from I (a) Sepsis - Unknown Origin; (b) Immune Compromise Secondary to Chemotherapy (chemotherapy that she was ADAMANT she wasn't having) and II CLL (Chronic lymphocytic leukemia), diagnosed a decade or so earlier. Shortly afterwards, while it was fresh, I wrote about the Funerary Fiascos that had ensued. It's not pleasant reading, but it's what happened. The relationship I had with my mother was, at best, strained, but we have her to thank for this research, mainly because she had strenuously attempted to deter me from doing it and would get angry and really quite nasty at the suggestion. I still haven't completely worked out why, because I've encountered a lot of incredibly interesting ancestors who I'm proud to have discovered. 

William Wright and Caroline Masters

Photo © David Martin (cc-by-sa/2.0)

All Saints' Church, Weston, Wednesday, 23 October, 2024

Photo available for reuse under this Creative Commons licence.

William Wright (bap. 9 Jul 1826 in Elford, Staffordshire), School Master, Bachelor, of the parish of Northfield, in the County of Worcestershire, son of Samuel Wright and Ann Bosworth, married Caroline Masters (b. 1837 in Southwark), Spinster, daughter of George Sparrow Masters and Mary Pope, after Banns, at All Saints' Church, Weston, Bath on 26 May 1861.

The couple had six children, of whom three survived:

1. William Henry Wright b. 1862 M Quarter in KINGS NORTON Volume 06C Page 430, bap. 1 Sep 1862 in North Harborne, Stafford, England. Mother's maiden name is not listed on GRO birth registration. On the baptism transcript, the father isn't listed, but mother is Caroline.
2. Ernest William Wright b. 14 Mar 1863 (1863 J Quarter in KINGS NORTON Volume 06C Page 455), bap. 3 May 1863 at St Mary's Church, Selly Oak. Died on 3 Jul 1863 and was buried on 7 Jul 1863, also at St Mary's Church, Selly Oak. The notice in the Birmingham Journal of 11 Jul 1863, reads: "On the 3rd inst., at Selly Oak, aged 4 months, Ernest William, son of Mr W. Wright, Schoolmaster."
3. Herbert George Wright b. 15 Mar 1864 (1864 J Quarter in KINGS NORTON Volume 06C Page 439), bap. 17 Jun 1864 at St Mary's Church, Selly Oak, again, son of William and Caroline Wright.
4. Alice Mary Wright b. 12 Jul 1865 (1865 S Quarter in KING'S NORTON Volume 06C Page 408), bap. 3 Sep 1865 at St Mary's Church, Selly Oak.
5. William Alfred Wright b. 9 Sep 1866 (1866 D Qtr in KINGS NORTON Vol 06C Page 445), bap. 4 Nov 1866 at St Mary's Church, Selly Oak.
6. Maria Ellen Wright b. 16 Nov 1867 (1867 D Quarter in KINGS NORTON Volume 06C Page 424), bap. 2 Feb 1868 at St Mary's Church, Selly Oak.

The mother's maiden name on the 2nd to 6th births is MASTERS.

William Wright died, aged 41, on 11 Nov 1867 (1867 D Quarter in KINGS NORTON Volume 06C Page 236), at St Mary's Schoolhouse, Selly Oak. One notice read, "On the 10th inst. (sic), very suddenly, Mr. Wm. Wright, of St Mary's Schools, Selly Oak." (St Mary's CofE Primary School, Selly Oak.) 

An inquest was held on 13 Nov 1867 and the opinion of Ralph Docker, Coroner for Worcestershire (a solicitor, not a doctor), was that Wright had died from Natural Causes 'Syncopal Asphyxia'. That term doesn't really exist medically: it's a portmanteau of syncope (fainting) and asphyxia (shortage of breath). Perhaps he had an underlying condition (heart problem maybe) that he wasn't even aware of and he simply did just 'drop down dead'.

Sixth child, Maria, was born posthumously, five days after her father's death.

The baptisms of Ernest William, Herbert George, Alice Mary and William Alfred list William Wright's occupation as Parochial Schoolmaster. On that for Maria Ellen, she is clearly listed as the daughter of William (deceased) and Caroline and the word 'late' has been inserted above her father's calling.

In 1871, Caroline Wright (34) Widow, Mantle Maker, was lodging at 301 Breck Road, Everton, West Derby, Lancashire, with Alce Mary Wright (5), William Alfred Wright (4), Maria Ellen Wright (3) and Mary Matthews (sic) [Mary Masters] (68) Widow, Annuitant (Caroline's mother). 

From 9 Aug 1875 until 8 Aug 1877, Maria Helen Wright (sic) was a pupil at Princess Mary Village Homes (former children's home for little girls), in Addlestone, Surrey. It seems an odd choice, given that these homes were set up, principally, for children whose parents had committed a crime.

In 1881, Caroline Wright (43) Widow, from Southwark, Surrey, Occupation Matron, was an Inmate of 7 & 8 House of Rest, 7, Cambridge Gardens, Willesden, Middlesex. My guess is this was one of The Houses of Rest for Christian Workers. [Haven't yet been able to locate the children.]

In 1891, Caroline Wright (52) from London, Living on her own means, Alice M Wright (25), William A Wright (24) Student of CofE Lay Worker; and Helen M Wright (23) [Maria Helen], birthplaces listed as Selly Oak, Worcestershire, were living at 66, Cornwall Road, Bexhill, Battle, Sussex.

In 1901, Caroline Wright (63) Widow, from Southwark, Surrey and Alice M Wright (35) from Selly Oak, Worcestershire, were living in Barrack Road, Bexhill, Battle, Sussex. Neither of them has an occupation listed. 

In 1911, Caroline Wright (73) Widow from Southwark, London and Alice Mary Wright (45) from Birmingham, Worcestershire, both of Private Means, were living at 13 Rutland Road, Hove, Sussex. On this census schedule, Caroline has listed that she had six children, of whom three had died and three were then still living. It seems obvious that for a son to be named William in 1866, his elder brother born 1862 must have died in infancy, but I have found no record of his death. Likewise, I have found no record of the death of the third child, Herbert George, either, but neither have I been able to find any sign of him alive, so I have to assume he also died as an infant.

Caroline Wright died, at 78, in 1916 J Qtr in STEYNING Vol 02B Page 388.

• In 1921, Alice Wright (55) from Selly Oak, Worcestershire, of no occupation, was living alone at 95, Trafalgar Road, Portslade by Sea, Sussex. Maria Helen Wright (53) from Selly Oak, Birmingham, was Housekeeper to Annette Jeckell (72) Widow at Milton House, Hollier's Hill, Bexhill, Sussex. Alice Mary Wright died, at 73, in 1939 M Quarter in HOVE Volume 02B Page 481. So far, I've found no further records for William Alfred or Maria Ellen.