Charles Booth was born in 1880 and had one sister and 13 brothers, one of whom was Henry, five years younger than him, who was a successful taylor. I have yet to discover more about this large family. It is very difficult without my father's help; my auntie Edie and Uncle Wilfred have also both died now.
Charles joint owned a brass foundary in Brighouse (Woodcock and Booth). As the company was founded in 1872, I assume it was founded by Charles' dad, whose name I have not discovered
yet. I remember, though, that our family home was full of brass ornaments, ornaments which are
now with my dad's second wife, Joan Booth (nee Booty).
I have been unable to trace my granddad, Charles in order to find out more information. All I know is that he was born in 1880. But he had died before I was born and my grandmother, Susan, was only alive for a year of my life, dying in 1950-51 at the age of 71. She bought my teddy for my first birthday, which still sits in my bedroom, slightly battered after its many journeys and house moves, as well as frequent baths when he was younger!
Mr and Mrs Charles and Susie Booth and family had a reasonably comfortable life in a modest terraced house in Hay Street, Brighouse.
Charles and Susie had three children: Edith (born 1916?), Norman (born 1919) and Wilfred (born ?).
Norman, my dad, had polio when he was a young boy, so one of his legs stopped growing as a result. He always walked with a limp, which didn't seem to inhibit him as a teenager. He loved cycling and would go on 50 mile rides to Scarborough, a place he loved all his life. He also played cricket. He passed his entry exam to go to Brighouse Grammar School, along with his best friends, Harold Brook and Harold Denham. When he left school, he became an engineering draughtsman. He was a very romantic teenager, from what my mum told me, and would write poems to her. A couple of his poems survive to this day. Mavis was still able to quote one of them towards the end of her life: she carried it with her to her grave. He was also very flamboyant and loved amateur dramatics. He got Mavis involved in acting, appearing in the local amateur dramatics club shows. He was a great showman and was very interested in magic, which led him to join the Magic Circle. He loved to be the comedian and as an amateur actor, delighted in the role of comedian in a reviews and pantomimes.
He was very fond of his elder sister, Edith, who had a similar vibrant personality. I only got to know her for a brief time in the early eighties, after Norman died, and I'm only sorry that I did not continue to keep in touch with her: a few exchange of letters until they petered out. I met her son David about a year before my dad died and was struck by his physical likeness to my dad. In fact, my dad left his beloved walking stick to him in his will, and expressed the wish that I saw more of his side of the family, whom I had never come to know all the time when I was growing up. (Whenever we visited Yorkshire, dad used to go off on his own and visit his relatives. I only ever knew Herbert and Daisy, who we visited quite a few times, and Uncle Willie, Audrey and Ivy, who we visited just once.) Edith was unknown to us because she had had a son 'out of wedlock' I presume so we were never introduced to her or her family, apart from Gordon, her eldest son (born 1932), who came to stay with us unexpectedly in Kent. I know nothing of Edith's teenage years. All I know is that she married 'Parker' and had seven more children: Mavis, Pat, Billy, Bunty, Iris, David and Angela . Nor do I know anything of Wilfred his brother who married Elsie, and had one son, Malcolm who was born the same year as Michael in 1952. I'd welcome any information at all from their families.
I will leave this space for her family to include a passage about Ethel. Maybe I will also be able to catch up with Malcolm and their story.
Charles joint owned a brass foundary in Brighouse (Woodcock and Booth). As the company was founded in 1872, I assume it was founded by Charles' dad, whose name I have not discovered
yet. I remember, though, that our family home was full of brass ornaments, ornaments which are
now with my dad's second wife, Joan Booth (nee Booty).
 |
| Susie Booth (nee Copeland) sitting on the left, with sister Edith and her husband Harry next to her. |
My grandmother, Susan Harriet (Copeland), was a year older than Charlie (but this date is uncertain - it may have been a bigger age gap than this). Susan had four younger sisters and two younger brothers: Ethel, Edith (who married Harry and settled in Blackburn), Daisy (who married Herbert - a real larger-than-life character who fancied himself as a comedian), John (who married Cissy and adopted Irene, an evacuee), William (who married Ada and had girls Ivy, Nora and Audrey), and finally Liza, who married Lawrence and had two sons, Lawrence and Eric. I remember visiting Great Uncle Willie at Scarborough, as well as his daughter (whose husband was a chef at Castle Howard, where they lived), and Audrey. That was a long time ago and the last time I saw them. I was only a teenager.
Mr and Mrs Charles and Susie Booth and family had a reasonably comfortable life in a modest terraced house in Hay Street, Brighouse.
Charles and Susie had three children: Edith (born 1916?), Norman (born 1919) and Wilfred (born ?).
Norman, my dad, had polio when he was a young boy, so one of his legs stopped growing as a result. He always walked with a limp, which didn't seem to inhibit him as a teenager. He loved cycling and would go on 50 mile rides to Scarborough, a place he loved all his life. He also played cricket. He passed his entry exam to go to Brighouse Grammar School, along with his best friends, Harold Brook and Harold Denham. When he left school, he became an engineering draughtsman. He was a very romantic teenager, from what my mum told me, and would write poems to her. A couple of his poems survive to this day. Mavis was still able to quote one of them towards the end of her life: she carried it with her to her grave. He was also very flamboyant and loved amateur dramatics. He got Mavis involved in acting, appearing in the local amateur dramatics club shows. He was a great showman and was very interested in magic, which led him to join the Magic Circle. He loved to be the comedian and as an amateur actor, delighted in the role of comedian in a reviews and pantomimes.
He was very fond of his elder sister, Edith, who had a similar vibrant personality. I only got to know her for a brief time in the early eighties, after Norman died, and I'm only sorry that I did not continue to keep in touch with her: a few exchange of letters until they petered out. I met her son David about a year before my dad died and was struck by his physical likeness to my dad. In fact, my dad left his beloved walking stick to him in his will, and expressed the wish that I saw more of his side of the family, whom I had never come to know all the time when I was growing up. (Whenever we visited Yorkshire, dad used to go off on his own and visit his relatives. I only ever knew Herbert and Daisy, who we visited quite a few times, and Uncle Willie, Audrey and Ivy, who we visited just once.) Edith was unknown to us because she had had a son 'out of wedlock' I presume so we were never introduced to her or her family, apart from Gordon, her eldest son (born 1932), who came to stay with us unexpectedly in Kent. I know nothing of Edith's teenage years. All I know is that she married 'Parker' and had seven more children: Mavis, Pat, Billy, Bunty, Iris, David and Angela . Nor do I know anything of Wilfred his brother who married Elsie, and had one son, Malcolm who was born the same year as Michael in 1952. I'd welcome any information at all from their families.
I will leave this space for her family to include a passage about Ethel. Maybe I will also be able to catch up with Malcolm and their story.
Susie Booth (nee Susan Harriet Copeland) is sat with her sister, aunt Edith, and uncle Harry who lived in the Ewood area of Blackburn, Lancashire.
ReplyDeleteCan't remember their surname.