News & Information

From the beginning of this year, St Martin’s Church has been celebrating 900 years since its foundation by holding monthly events. Obviously, some of the events have already taken place, but there are still more to come - between now and August!

At 7.00 pm on 29 March (Saturday), the Church will be hosting a concert, when the Bristol Ensemble will be showcasing 900 years of music-making. There will also be refreshments.

From 16 - 18 May (Friday - Sunday), a Flower Festival and a Celebration of Weddings and Marriage will be held, with a display about couples who married here. The weekend will conclude with Songs of Praise at 6.00 pm on the Sunday.

On 8 June (Sunday), there will be a Special Birthday Party for the Church, starting at 3 pm, and followed by strawberries and cream.

On 21 June (Saturday), Richard Lennox will provide a Mid-summer Concert at 3 pm, and there will be tea and cake.

In July, the Festival of Bell Ringing will take place.

 On 15 and 16 August (Friday and Saturday), there will be an Art Exhibition (10 am – 4 pm), and refreshments will be served 12 noon to 2 pm.

For further details, please see St Martin’s Church website and their Facebook page, and please do consider visiting this lovely church where you will be very warmly welcomed!

Grace Rubery

from Pat Hase

Well, the shortest month is now over and with March we can look forward to the Spring, warmer weather and perhaps visiting the haunts of our ancestors or at least concentrate on some more research.

Free Help Session Weston Library

On Saturday, March 1st we have our usual monthly Free Help Session in Weston Library between 2.00p.m. and 3.30p.m. Our volunteers will be there to greet you and guide you to the most helpful resources. Although Ancestry and Findmypast are available don’t overlook the resources available in the library. The files of information about People and Places in the area, Street Directories, Electoral Rolls and the film of local newspapers are some records which cannot be found anywhere else.

Society meeting March 12th

Somerset Follies will be the topic for the March Meeting of the Society on Wednesday 12th March at 2.30 p.m. at Our Lady of Lourdes Church Hall. The Speaker will be Jonathan Holt who has written books about Somerset, Dorset and Wiltshire Follies, their history and meaning.

(Right) Sham Castle, Bath

Zoom Workshop Breaking down Brick walls March 26th

Are you stuck with your family history research? Please submit any problems to Peter de Dulin so that they can be investigated during this Workshop on Wednesday March 26th at 7.30p.m. Members will receive information about how to log on to this meeting just before the date.

My main Brickwall is in Bitton. Robert LONG, my 4 x great grandfather, married Hester PRIGG on the 17th May 1767 but I have no real indication of his birth, parentage or death. There are 92 trees on Ancestry some have him living until he was 108 but none that I can see have proof of his birth. My family history research started with Robert LONG but has not progressed further!

My Grandfather maintained that there was a connection with the Victorian artist Edwin LONG, R.A. but here again I need more proof.

See https://bit.ly/3DaQGWJ

February Zoom Talk – She Died in Whitechapel

Following the Zoom talk last Wednesday I received a very welcome and thought-provoking email from member Keith Graham. Thank you, Keith. He posed the interesting supposition that the fact that I did not know the history of Frances COLES until I researched it demonstrated that in many cases oral family history can be censored, if deemed to be unsavoury, or possibly exaggerated to paint a more favourable picture as it is passed down. This is so true.

My grandfather, who might have known about Frances, told me many fascinating tales about his paternal family but hardly any of them have proved to be true!

It is possible that Thomas might have ridden into Bristol to watch the Riots in Queens Square not proved – but that did not stop me writing an essay about it while at school! Samuel LONG owned a Sand Pit not a coal mine. According to Grandfather the LONG family were important in the history of Bristol and his grandfather entertained Garibaldi when he visited Bristol. Research has shown the Garibaldi spent 10 minutes on Temple Meads Station as he returned to Italy in 1864 and didn’t get off the train! My grandfather was not born until1874 and was presumably recounting what he had been told.

Grandfather did not mention his maternal line – the COLES family, except to acknowledge that his mother was Rebekah Saunders COLES

Frances COLES mortuary photo – who was murdered in Whitechapel in 1891 was a first cousin to my great grandmother but none of our living family knew anything about her or spoke about her. Perhaps because she was a prostitute she was erased from their memories.

What family stories have been handed down in your family? Have you researched them? Do they match with written documentation?

Research Forum

Keith Graham posted a request for help on our Research Forum in January but unless people have contacted him directly, I can see so comments with information about residents of Hill Road. The history of a single road and its inhabitants can highlight the changing values and conditions of society and can be a valuable asset to family history research.

 

Just one of its residents – lived at 43 Hill Road image from Weston Library

 

 

Mendip Hospital

The Cemetery of Mendip Hospital in Wells will re-open for visits on Wednesday April 2nd from 11 am to 4 pm and then every Wednesday and Sunday until the end of September. Many of us will have relations who were buried there. The new exhibition in the Chapel will show some of the patients, staff and their histories.

John HASE who was born in Cross (or Winscombe) in 1828 was a patient there in 1851. According to his case notes (Name given as HARSE) he was admitted on June 1st, 1850, suffering from ye congenital imbecility His case notes are in Somerset Archives D/H/men/17/1/2. He spent some time there and in other places including Bridgwater and Axbridge Workhouses before his death at Wells in 1902 by which time he was described as blind and a lunatic. The friends of the Mendip Hospital Cemetery were able to locate his grave in Section E Grave 75 and sent me a photo of the spot where he was buried. Do take advantage of a visit to the Cemetery its well worth it.

The fact that John was blind is interesting. His father, a blacksmith. is described as blind on the 1851 census of Cross. A grandson of the blacksmith also became blind, as did a great grandson. Glaucoma has been diagnosed in several male descendants of the Blacksmith. Untreated Glaucoma would have led to blindness. In this case it looks as if Family History can assist in tracing inherited complaints.

Family Heirlooms

One of my favourite heirlooms is a traditional Welsh Bakestone or Griddle given to me by my Welsh Step-Grandmother. It will come into use tomorrow, March 1st to cook some Welsh cakes to celebrate St Davids Day. Served warm with a sprinkling of caster sugar and plenty of butter a friend used to call my Welsh cakes Them hot things.

The griddle can also be used for pizzas although I doubt that its original owner even knew what a pizza was!!

I find it interesting to consider what our ancestors ate through the years. Depending on local and seasonal produce with long slow cooking on an open fire or range. You can read about one persons memories of their food here. https://www.1900s.org.uk/1900s-everyday-meals.htm

New Family History Resources available

What new resources have you found useful recently? Please add any comments which you think would help others in their search for the elusive ancestor.

One thing I proved recently was that it pays to revisit some of the resources as new ones are continually becoming available. Always try to look at the original records because transcriptions can be faulty and look at them in context. Neighbours on censuses reveal similar occupations and the numbers living in each house might indicate the type of neighbourhood.

Good Luck with your Research and don’t forget to let Peter know of your brick walls.

Just a reminder to those who have not renewed membership for 2025 that access to the website will be blocked at end of February. I have tried to contact all those on my list who have yet to renew and have quite a few email addresses returned as incorrect. Please ensure when renewing that I have correct contact details.

Brian

Welcome to the February Newsletter. I hope that you are progressing with your research and gradually breaking down your brickwalls.

Free Help Session Feb 1^st Weston Library
February will start with a Free Help Session at Weston Library on Saturday Feb 1^st from 2.00 p.m. until 3.30p.m. when our volunteers will be present to assist anyone who attends with their research. You do not have to be a member of the Society  to come along with your queries. 

Members’ Meeting – Feb 12^th
On the Wednesday afternoon of February 12^th the Speaker at Our Lady of Lourdes Church Hall will be member, Simon Begent, who will talk about the rich and interesting History of Aviation in Weston-super-Mare.  The meeting will be from 2.30p.m. until 5.00p.m.

St Valentine's Day - Feb 14th 
Looking through your family history do you have any marriages which took place on Feb 14th or any children born on that day who were called Valentine?

Zoom Workshop – Feb 26^th
I will be hosting the Zoom meeting with a talk entitled – “She died in Whitechapel”.  This is based on my own family history but has links with the continuing interest in the well documented murders of the late 1880s.  Can you believe everything which was in print? This will start at 7.30 p.m. and members will receive notification of the sign in details before the meeting.

Holocaust Memorial day
On January 27^th the 80^th Anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz was recognised by those whose families were involved, on both sides, and by others who see that day as the realisation of man’s inhumanity to man. There is a web site where you can trace the history of the Holocaust https://www.yadvashem.org/holocaust/about.html and add any information you may have about members of your family who suffered at that time.

Researching Jewish ancestors
If you are researching Jewish ancestors there is a web site to assist you https://www.jewishgen.org/?gad_source=1 I have used this site successfully to identify members who have married into our family having come to this country from Ukraine in around 1900.

Document  concerning 158 Moorland Road
I came across this document over Christmas along with some papers which had been given me some years ago. It concerns the sale of a house in Moorland Road in Jan 1906

The seller was a James FEAR and the buyer was a Georgina FEAR  and the price was £300.  It was described as:

All that piece of land with the messuage or dwelling house erected thereon situate in Moorland Road Weston-s-Mare and known  as “Stencliffe”

Street directories show that Stencliffe was situated at 158, Moorland Road. This was on the  west side of Moorland Road towards the Devonshire Road end.

Is anyone familiar with the FEAR family? What was the relationship between James FEAR and Georgina FEAR?

In 1911 a Richard FEAR and his wife Nellie were living at 158.

There was a James FEAR who was a Builder who lived at 59 Moorland Road.  There was a Georgina FEAR who was the wife of an Ernest FEAR who was living at 40 Moorland Road.  Were they connected?

Married from Moorland Road in 1931
Unconnected with the FEAR family - This photograph appeared in the Weston Gazette Pictorial Review of 1931 and was captioned.

“Mr Francis John Harris, only son of Mr & Mr W Harris, Moorland Road. Weston-super-Mare. married to Miss Barbara Mary Hughes at Emmanuel Church”

Using FreeBMD and the GRO Index it was possible to find that the birth of Francis John HARRIS was registered in the Sept qrt of  1907 and that his mother’s maiden name was WHITTOCK.

His parents, Willie HARRIS and Minnie Martha WHITTOCK  were married in the June Qrt 1907 when presumably she was already pregnant.  Sadly, she died shortly after giving birth, aged just 21. She was buried in Weston Cemetery in Tu 926. Later, Mary Jane HARRIS, grandmother of Francis was  buried in the same plot.
His father had married again in 1911 to Alice Emily BAKER and they can be found on the 1921 Census living at 160 Moorland Road – (next door to the FEAR family at 158!) – with a daughter, Doris Evelyn HARRIS, aged 7.
Do we have anyone who is researching the HARRIS family?  

Family Events in February
February is often a dismal month, weatherwise.  But this month my husband will celebrate his 92^nd birthday so we will have something to celebrate. As he looks back over his life in Weston-super-Mare his memories come flooding back.  He was born in Whitecross Road, in the same house as his father had been born, so the family has seen many changes to the town and the way of life here.
His family were concerned with transport in Weston.  Initially with Donkeys and Donkey chairs and later with horse transport as a Cab Proprietor.

His grandfather, John HASE, a cab proprietor, had moved into a newly built  house in Whitecross Road in 1885  from the Victoria Hotel Yard. He built stables in Albert Road which backed onto their house.

In December 1907, John's wife had died from breast cancer and this advertisement appeared early in February for a housekeeper to look after the young HASE family.  Arthur, my father-in-law, was the youngest, then aged just 2 1/2 years. 

Note that John was described as an abstainer. Newspapers can often add to your knowledge of the family.  The successful applicant, Susan SANDERS, was to remain with the family until John’s death in 1933. 

1911 Census for Weston-super-Mare
19 Whitecross Road, Weston-super-Mare

Mike's father, my father-in-law, Arthur HASE, later introduced motor cars into the mix, turning their stables in Albert Road into a garage. He also offered overnight off-street parking for visitors.  

If you look at the original entry of the 1911 census you will see that the enumerator has deleted the entry that one child of John HASE had died,  This was Agnes who was born and died in 1900 from Bronchitis and Pneumonia, aged 7/8 months. It is always a good idea to look at the original entry. As the only girl to be born into this family she was known to the family as “Sissy” for the short time which she was with them.

Having been brought up surrounded with cars it is probably not surprising that these became one of Mike’s main interests – along with his singing.  When he retired from teaching, we bought a Rolls Royce and did Wedding Hire for about 12 years. Perhaps some of you may have come across us in those days.  We did about 150 weddings and they were all joyous occasions. That is until the Rolls Royce engine blew up - luckily when returning from a Wedding – and we could not afford to have it repaired so had to sell the car!

Perhaps we feature in your family history record?

Each month I ask for contributions to the Newsletter in the form of comments from members who have information which they are able to share with other members and which might help others to continue  their research. Please consider adding your comments. Thank you.

From BBC

A Happy, Healthy, Peaceful, Cheerful and successful New Year to you all. Thank you to those who sent cards and messages over the Christmas period. It was great to hear from you especially as I wasn’t feeling particularly well.  I wasn’t sure that you would be getting a Newsletter this time but here is a much shorter one than usual which in Blue Peter Style I made earlier.  Please add suggestions for research during 2025.

2025 has so much to offer. 
It is 80 years since VE Day.  I remember lying in bed asleep when my mother, who obviously wanted to share the news with everyone – woke me up to come and see the bonfires which had been lit along the railway embankment which ran alongside the Bristol Rovers Ground at Eastville in Bristol. I am told I simply said “ OK, I’ll see them in the morning” And went back to sleep!  I was 6.
 

From YouTube

This shows the Gasometer which is often mentioned in connection with the Rovers.
The 13 arches were demolished to make way for the M32.

There was a Street party, but I have no pictures.  Every type of dining room chairs with a table covered with white sheets and the favourites if the day.  Rabbit moulded jellies and blancmange, egg sandwiches, cakes and coloured drinks – there was probably more!  Do any of you have records of such parties?  This is the problem of relying on official documentation when so much of our lives are unrecorded,
I also remember being fascinated by the streetlights when they came on again – and the arrival of bananas but I don’t think that happened until Dec 1945.

Family Celebrations in 2025

In May 2025 one of my mother’s cousins will be celebrating her 100th birthday.  As her mother also reached a century it does seem that there are some long lived genes on that side of the family.  Happy Birthday Rita! 

January Society Events

Library Help Session
On January 4^th there should be a session at Weston Library. The last one had to be cancelled due to the weather and the closure of the library.  All are welcome -  just take along your queries from 2.00p.m. and our valiant volunteers will do their best to set you on the right path. The session finishes at 3,30p.m.

Live Talk to Members on Wednesday, Jan 8^th 2.30pm – 5.00
There has been some speculation recently whether an afternoon meeting suits most of our members.  Please make a comment about the suitability of the timing for the future.  This talk will be by Raye Green, the well known Worle historian. Recently she has been researching the 52 Vicars of Worle since 1325  Raye will share her knowledge about Worle history in this saunter through 900 years of St Martin's Church.

Zoom Workshop on Thursday 23^rd January 7. 30pm – 9.30pm
This is a change of day for a Workshop from its more usual Wednesday evening to a THURSDAY.  It is important that as many of you as possible attend as it will be about our new web site.  Your comments are important to its development and Rob Clarke will be taking us through it.  You will receive information about how to join the Workshop by email prior to the meeting.

New Resources

 Ancestry

The 1921 Census of England and Wales launches on the 7th of January and will show details including where your relatives were living, who they lived with, what industry they worked in, who employed them - you could even see their handwriting. What will you discover? – Here are some more resources on offer.

Don’t forget that Ancestry and Findmypast can be used at Weston Library.

Free Research Sites

I wonder how many of these sites you have used. https://shorturl.at/Le1Sq   Were any of them helpful?  Let us know which you recommend.

Membership

Your membership to the Weston-super-Mare & District FHS ended on Dec 31st so your renewall will be welcomed by the society. And of course new members are always welcome.

Finally

Wishing you all a successful, Interesting and healthy 2025 and with many thanks to those who contribute to the Society.  Happy New Year!

PS    Received this message this morning – can anyone help?

Message:
Hello. I am trying to see if Backwell House is still standing. Also to see if anyone know about what happened to owners and their children.