The fourth Abraham

The most recent Abraham Garner ( that I know of) -My Great Uncle. A man with many addresses, careers and maybe mysteries.

Abraham John Garner (IV)  was born on May 14th, 1866, and baptised on September  20th in Sunninghill Anglican Church 

  The family home was at 11 The Terrace, next to the school his Grandfather had taught at. His father was Alfred (Alf) Charles Garner my Great Grandfather, then living as Charles Garner. His mother was Mary Ann Garner, nee Hawthorn.

His older sisters are Clara J, born 1861, aged 5, Mary Ann born 1862 aged 4.

By the time of the 1871 census, when Abraham John was 15, they had moved to 23 and a half Lambeth High St, above the Grocers shop of Arthur Dunk, and my great-grandfather, Edward Ernest Garner, was born there on February 4th, 1875.

Abraham John marries Agnes Sophia Clark at St Mary's, Lambeth, on 16th May 1886. Her father is a police inspector.

By the time their first child Agnes Mary is born (on April 17th 1881), they are living at 1 Medford St in Westminster while he works as a ”clerk”.

The description of their lodgings is “two top-floor rooms, unfurnished at 6/6 per week, with the landlord a Mr Colivar.”

A map and a similar house still standing in Medford St below.

In 1890, Ruth Garner was born to them, the birth recorded in Islington

 The census in 1891 shows the family living at 16 Birkbeck Road, Hornsey

Abraham J Garner 24, Agnes S Garner 23, Agnes M Garner 4, Lilian S Garner 2, Ruth Garner 1

In 1893, Francis Henry Garner was born in Croydon.

In 1895, William John was born in Leytonstone

In 1897, Ernest Richard was born, also in Leytonstone

On February 12th 1900, they were living at 1 Waddon New Road in Croydon, which was his father's address, and Leonard George’s birth is recorded here.. Abraham was now working as a commercial Traveller “in Paper”.

On February 12th 1900, they were living at 1 Waddon New Road in Croydon, which was his father's address, and where Leonard George’s birth is recorded.. Abraham was now working as a commercial Traveller “in Paper”.

Sadly, Abraham John’s wife Agnes Sophia died on December 11th 1900, aged only 32. She was living in West Ham at the time of her death presumably with the family and was buried on April 5th 1900, in Newham

The April of 1901 shows the family now living at 268 Thorold Road, Ilford

Abraham J Garner 34 (Widower) with

Agnes M Garner 14, Ruth Garner 11, Francis H Garner 8, William J Garner 6, Ernest R Garner 4, Leonard G Garner 1, and servant Mabel M Shea 30

In November 1901 he married again to a widow called Mary Ann Esther Lopez 33.

They are both living in Ilford at 268 Thorold Road, Ilford. According to the banns, he is again said to be a commercial traveller, and they are already co-habiting. Ilford is about 3 miles from Leytonstone, where the family has previously resided.

The father of the bride is a dairyman - Stephen Williams Morrien

The 1911 census, taken in April, finds them at 18 Chatfield Road in Croydon.

This guy moves about a lot! 

In the 1921 census we find him somewhere completely different. The family is living at Lodge Lees, Denton, Barholm in Kent.

And his occupation is described as a “smallholder agriculture”.

 

Head Abraham John Garner Birth Circa 1866

Wife Mary Ann Esther Garner, Birth Circa 1869

Son        Ernest Richard Garner, Birth Circa 1897

Visitor Agnes Mary Garne,r Birth Circa 1887

Visitor Arthur Garner, Birth Circa 1890

This is Lodge Lees farmhouse.

A Mr Nick Ridley, who lived in the area, wrote this about his childhood in the 1920’s in Denton.

Where I grew up:

 Whitehall Farm was a small one, nowadays it would be a smallholding, In the 20s and 30s we had

upwards of 4000 free range hens based in several large wooden chicken houses. The eggs had to be

collected by hand, individually "candled", weighed, and boxed, and then were collected by a firm called

Stonegate I think. We also supplied hotels in Folkestone with eggs and oven-ready chickens. Most of thisprocessing work fell to my mother. To produce a bird ready for the oven, she had to kill the bird, pluck itby hand while it was still warm (easier to pluck), take out the giblets and gizzard and put them in aseparate bag, singe off the bits of feather not removed in the plucking, then fold the legs in and truss it

ready for the oven. Towards the end of the 30's the egg trade died because of cheaper imports from

France. These eggs were sold as "Calais day old". They might have only taken a day to get from Calais,

but three weeks from Poland and eastern Europe, where they had been laid. But they were cheaper!

And in 1924 he is no longer with his family but is registered to vote at 37 Circus Street NW8 with a Mrs Jane Starkie, who lived there alone in 1923 - she is a very rich widow, having inherited 2.5 million pounds, equivalent, on the death of her husband Richard Stringer Starkie, who was 30 years older than her.

 

I have delved more deeply into the life of the Starkies and will post that separately - suffice to say she had an interesting life, from a barmaid to someone who inherited £2.5 million and died leaving £3.5 million - to her sisters, sadly not my great uncle.

I lose track of him from 1924 to 1939 when now retired, In September 1939 he is at 202, Brigstock Road, Croydon,

Head Abraham J Garner May 14 1866 Traveller (Retired) Paper Trade

Wife Mary A E Garner         July 27  1868 MarrUnpaid Domestic Duties

1949 Dies at 82 in S E Surrey