Preface:
This
little story was written, perhaps prematurely, in the early stages of my
research into my Family’s History. Some time after writing I came upon new
information which affected several aspects of this story. I retained this story
nonetheless, because it still contains some good information, and also gives a
little insight into how an investigation can take a wrong direction. To get the
true picture, I recommend reading this story first, and then reading “Who Was
Joseph Jolly?” as a follow-up.
* * * * *
Joseph Jolly, my Great Grandfather, was born in 1861 to parents Robert and Rachel Jolly, both from Heath Charnock, who had moved to Chorley around 1850. Just where and when Joseph was born has been difficult to ascertain. He doesn't appear in the 1861 Census, suggesting he was born after April 7th that year. In the 1871 census he is recorded as born in Preston, and 9 years old, suggesting a birth year of 1862. Other censuses, however, show his birthplace as follows: 1881 census, Chorley; 1891, Blackburn; 1901, Chorley; 1911, Blackburn. All show his age ending in 9, ie 9, 19, 29, 39, and 49 respectively, suggesting a "10th" birthdate after April 5th, the latest of those censuses. In other words, all the censuses suggest he was actually born after census day 1861 (April 7th) and before the same date 1862 (so if he was born April 6th 1861, then on census day 1871, April 2nd, he would not yet have turned 10, and would be recorded as 9). The only birth record I have come up with to date is a Birth Registry Index showing a Joseph Jolly born in the Jul-Aug-Sep Quarter of 1861, which works for his age, but was registered in Bolton, just to add to the confusion! It should be noted, of course, that the birth registration place doesn't always match the actual place of birth.
Joseph had a fairly typical Lancashire Cotton Town childhood, living first in East Street, then around the corner in Friday Street, an area made up of mills, foundries, terraced houses and the railway. His father Robert was a mechanic and engineer working in the mills, and his mother Rachel did house keeping. Their income was modest, and they lived in pretty ordinary conditions, apparently even in a "Cotton Mill Weaving Shed" according to the 1861 census, along with another married couple.
In the 1871 Census Joseph was living at 40 Friday Street in Chorley, and was recorded as a scholar. He doesn't appear at Friday Street in the 1881 census, but I have found an interesting entry in the home of David Critchley, Joseph's uncle, in Kirkdale. The transcript of the census form says John Jolly, but in the image the name doesn't look like John. It doesn't really look like Joseph either, but this person is 19 years old, born in Chorley, and working as a clerk. I believe this to be Joseph, boarding with his uncle.
A block or two away from Friday Street, Chorley, at 50 Bengal Street, lived 21 year old Elizabeth Ann Waddington, Granddaughter of Thomas Waddington, Head Of Household. Elizabeth Ann was born on February 8th, 1860 in Blackburn, the daughter of Ellen Waddington, who I believe was a single mother. Elizabeth Ann had lived practically all her life in or near Chorley, most of it not far from the Jolly's. In the 1861 census she was living in Wheelton, but by 1871 she and her family were living in Livesey Street, Chorley, and at that time she was a scholar. By 1881 the Waddingtons had moved to Bengal Street, and Elizabeth Ann was working as a Cotton Weaver. I suspect that as children, Joseph and Elizabeth Ann knew each other quite well, and would have played and gone to school together as they grew up.
I have not been able to find any record of Joseph and Elizabeth Ann's marriage, other than an entry in their 1911 census sheet which says they had been married 25 years at that time. This puts their marriage somewhere between April 3rd 1885 and April 2nd 1886, assuming that they were indeed married. We next find Joseph and Elizabeth Ann in the 1891 census, living at 220 Crown Lane, Horwich. Joseph is now 29 years old and working as a Railway Clerk, most likely at the nearby Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway depot and locomotive factory. Elizabeth Ann, now 31, was recorded as a housewife, and for the first time we see Fred Jolly, my Grandfather, aged 1. Also recorded in the Jolly household that night was a Lucy Jolly, aged 62, a widow born in Rivington, and listed as Joseph's Mother-in-Law. I think this is another example of the enumerators sometimes not paying due attention to what they were doing. This, I believe, was Lucy Critchley, sister of Joseph's mother Rachel, born in 1830/31 in Heath Charnock. She was not widowed, but never married - I think the enumerator may have been a little confused that day!
The presence of Lucy Critchley in the home of Joseph and Elizabeth Ann in 1891 is important and quite fortuitous from a research point of view. The confusion over Joseph's date and place of birth outlined in the opening paragraph could lead one to consider that there may have been two (or more) Joseph Jolly's born around the same time in Preston, Blackburn, Chorley and even Bolton, and that my records may be a mix-up. Therefore, can I be sure that my Joseph Jolly was indeed the son of Robert and Rachel Jolly, given that there were other Joseph Jolly's born around the same time and area? Lucy Critchley ties it all together: among Rachel's siblings was also Mary Critchley, and in the 1861 census we find Lucy living at Mary's house in Eaves Lane, Chorley, along with brothers James and Peter. In the 1871 census, Lucy has relocated to sister Rachel's house at 40 Friday Street, where 9 year old Joseph was living. By 1881 it seems Lucy had moved to Kirkdale, and was living with her brother David (as was Joseph), and by 1891 found her way to Joseph and Elizabeth Ann's house. This all ties Robert Jolly, Rachel Critchley and Joseph Jolly together quite convincingly.
Between the 1891 and 1901 censuses, Joseph and Elizabeth Ann moved to 210 Eaves Lane, Chorley, and Joseph was recorded as a Railway Accountant's Clerk. Elizabeth Ann had returned to work as Cotton Weaver, and Fred, now 11, was at school. And yes, Lucy Critchley was there with them, now aged 71. The house at Eaves Lane, though terraced, was relatively large, shown in the 1911 census as a 6-room house, suggesting 4 bedrooms, or possibly 3 bedrooms but with a "Sitting Room" as well as a Living Room. Sitting Rooms were rarely used, and were where the family's most precious items of furniture, crockery and cutlery would be kept, serving only for very special occasions.
 |
| 210 Eaves Lane today. The small front yard indicates that these were slightly "upmarket" terraces compared to others which had the front door straight off the footpath Image courtesy of Google Maps Street View |
Ironically, in 2004 I inadvertantly took this photo:
 |
| Friday Street, Chorley, taken from Stump Lane railway bridge, April 2004 |
By April 2nd, 1911 - census day - Joseph and Elizabeth Ann had again moved, now to 3 Granville Road, Chorley. Joseph was recorded as "L & Y [Lancashire & Yorkshire] Railways Clerk", and no occupation was listed for Elizabeth Ann. Fred was listed at St Mark's College in the census, and there was no sign of Lucy Critchley, who would have now been 81.
On May 13th, 1911, at just 49 years of age, Joseph Jolly passed away. The Probate Calendar entry reads as follows:
"JOLLY Joseph of 3 Granville Road Chorley Lancashire died 13 May 1911 near Grimsargh Lancashire. Administration London 15 December 1911 to Elizabeth Ann Jolly widow. Effects £125 6s"
I don't know what brought Joseph's life to such an early end, but a clue may lie in the location of his death. Grimsargh is North-East of Preston, and nearby is Whittingham Hospital, initially opened in 1873 as a major lunatic asylum. In 1884 a sanatorium was established in the grounds for patients with infectious diseases. A sanatorium was commonly associated with the treatment of Tuberculosis. It's possible that Joseph's mother-in-law, Ellen Waddington Gregson was infected with TB, which may well also be what killed her husband, William Gregson in September 1909, just six months before her own death in March 1910. Following her move to Joseph's home in Stump Lane, he may well have also contracted the disease, leading ultimately to his death a little over a year later.
Joseph lived what would have been considered a "middle-class" life - not because of wealth or income, but more because of the type of work he did, the way he would have dressed for work and so on. His income would likely have been no greater than that of the factory and mill workers who lived around him. Slightly better housing than most of the working classes was probably afforded by the fact that both he and Elizabeth Ann worked, and Fred was their only child. Nevertheless, the probate calendar shows that his wealth at the end of his days was pretty ordinary.
Update, June 2016: There's more to this story: Joseph Jolly may not have been who we all thought he was - Who Was Joseph Jolly?
This Story Was Written By
 |
| The Geneagrapher - Ancestral Story Writing Service. Visit my website to see if I can be of service to you |
### Questions or information to add? Click here to Email Me
No comments:
Post a Comment