Monday September 17, 2007

John and Sarah are my Grandparents.

John and Sarah, about 1948

John Mather

John, son of Joseph and Ellen, was born in Birkenhead on 08-Jan-1873

Living at 304 Beckwith St, Birkenhead at the 1881 Census and 342 Beckwith St, Birkenhead at the 1891 Census, and at 282 & 284 St. Anne St., Birkenhead with his parents in 1901.

John was a keen bowler, and a member of the North End bowling club for 5 years from 1897 to 1902, before he moved to Tranmere and the Birkenhead Park B.C. At Birkenhead Park, he held all of the positions except Treasurer. He also enjoys other sports including rugby football in the winter and cricket in the summer, and also athletics.

John was president for 20 years of the Birkenhead Park Bowling Club, and a past president of the West Cheshire Bowling Association, and was well known as an engineer pattern maker. He worked for many Merseyside shipping firms.

John and Sarah were married in Birkenhead on 13-Aug-1901.
Click here to see their wedding photo.

John Mather died shortly after Joan and Walters wedding in Tranmere, on 6th March 1950, aged 77.  He had heart problems, had retired early and had been unwell for some time.  My father thought he would have lived longer if he'd been allowed to have a tot of whisky each evening, but his wife Sarah was a strict teetotaler and wouldn’t allow alcohol in the house. He was cremated on a Thursday at Landican Crematorium.  The chief mourners were Mrs Sarah Mather (widow), Messrs Joseph, Albert, Jack and Walter Mather (sons) , Mrs A Bailey, Misses M. and J. Mather Mrs J. Graham (daughters), Mr H. Mather (brother), Mrs. H. Hopwood, Mrs. S. Robinson, Mrs J. Nugent and Mrs. W. Cole (sisters).

Sarah Stocks

Sarah was born on 04-Mar-1877 in Bingley, Yorkshire.  She was the oldest child of Albert and Jane.

When she married John, her occupation was dressmaker, although with a family of 8 to look after, together with a large Victorian garden to the rear of 45 Thompson Street, with two greenhouses, gardens and vegetable patches, just looking after the house and family was a full-time job.

John Mather and Sarah Stocks were married 13-April-1901 in Birkenhead. They lived at 45 Thompson Street, Higher Tranmere, Birkenhead most of their married life to bring up their eight children: Joseph (Jo), Albert (Ab), John (Jack), Nellie (Nell), Norah (No), Jessie (Jess), Eileen (Lean) and Walter (Wal).

During WWI they lived in Holt Road for a time, while the Stocks lived at Thompson St.

Sarah of 45 Thompson Street, died 26th February 1968, aged 90, leaving £5000.