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Seventh Generation
Family of William PLOWMAN (P17) and Elizabeth GROSSMITH (G15)
P18 Emily Louise PLOWMAN
About 1915 when Emily
Louise was 30, she married Sidney CUE, son of George CUE (1840-) and
Sarah E (1845-). Sidney was born in 1885 in Deptford, London. In the 1901
Census his father is shown as a Commercial clerk living at 62 Trundley Road, St
Pauls, Deptfod.
They had the following children:
Sidney - Sidney married Rose Sparshott
Leslie
Edwin
Helen (married Francis AUBREY)
Constance Isabel Harriet (married Donald COOPER)
Dorothy (married Clifford WALTERS)
Winifred (married Herbert MacKINDER)
Born on 18 December 1885 in Croydon, Surrey.
Emma Theresa died in New Plymouth, New Zealand on 1 September 1940, at the age of 54.
Buried in 1940 in Opunake, New Zealand.
Emma was diabetic.
Emma can not be found in the 1901 Census. She would have been 16 so had probably left home.
When Emma was about 18 with the family business failing, she went into service with a wealthy family. She was said to have had a great sense of humour. She could ride a horse, which was much admired by her younger sisters. When she came home from a holiday she always had presents for the young ones who adored her.
About 1908 when Emma Theresa was 22, she married William C WATSON.
William was the son of John WATSON (1835-) and Hannah (1827-).
He was born on 28 December 1863 in Deptford, London.
William died in Wellington, New Zealand on 18 November 1937, at he age of 73. Occupation: Stationers Assistant.
In 1881 Census he was living at 53 Daneville Road, Camberwell, Surrey with family
They had the following children:
Emma emigrated to New Zealand in September 1908 and arrived in January 1909. She settled on North Island, New Zealand. Apparently she was very unhappy and all her life wanted to come home. Emma never actually married William Watson, although all her children were known by that name.
Her eldest son, William (Bill), is known to have changed his name legally to Watson. No one seems to know why Ivy and Millie were registered as Clarke, but they too were always known as Watson.
In 1908 when she arrived in New Zealand she took a job in a boarding house.
Her daughters went to Milton in the depression as cooks in a nurses' home.
In her later years she lived with her sons William and Charles, and helped milk cows.
P20 Henry James PLOWMAN
Born about 1887 in Croydon, Surrey.
Diabetic
Henry is listed in the 1901 Census living at 10 Keeley Road, Croydon with his parents, at the age of 14.
Henry James married
Millicent.
They had the following children:
Henry
Rhona
Henry was to have taken over the family business but married and his wife wanted a more secure future. He became a tram driver in London. There is a family story that he once left a tram on a hill full of passengers without the brake on, whilst he popped into a shop for a newspaper. Nobody was injured.
His son Harry emigrated to Australia.
P21 Florence Mary PLOWMAN
Born on 6 November 1889 at 35 South End Croydon Surrey. Florence is listed in the 1901 Census living at 10 Keeley Road, Croydon with her parents, at the age of 11.
Recorded residing at 82 Tamworth Road, Croydon in 1908; and at Lower Hutt, New Zealand in 1946.
Florence Mary died in Garden Court Flats, White Line East, Lower Hutt, New Zealand on 30 August 1973, at the age of 83. She was buried on 3 September 1973 in Taita, New Zealand. Cause of death: Acute Coronary Insufficiency, fracture of left femur.
On 7 October 1908 when Florence Mary was 18, she first married Thomas DONALDSON, at St Michael and All Angels, Croydon.
Thomas was the son of David DONALDSON and Margaret JOHNSTON. He was born on 24 January 1869 in Wemyss, Fife, Scotland. He is recorded as residing at Crossroads, Methil, Fife in the 1901 Scottish Census, and at 7 St James Road, Croydon in 1908. Thomas died in Public Hospital, Nelson, New Zealand on 25 August 1935, at the age of 66. He was buried on 27 August 1935 in Nelson, New Zealand.
Occupation: Coal Miner.
Thomas had previously been married to Christina, born in 1872 in Edinburgh. They had five children: David (1895), Euphemia (1897), Maggie (1899), Thomas (1900) and Christina (1901). No record has been found of either a divorce or a death of Thomas' first wife. In 1908 when he married Florence he claimed he was a bachelor.
One interesting memory of Thomas was that he had an accident in a coalmine in the UK and as a result he had a glass eye. Apparently he had several of these and one of the children’s chores was to polish them for him!
Picture 34 – The Marriage in 1908 of Thomas Donaldson and Florence Plowman
They had the following children:
Florence had met Thomas in England and wanted to marry him and go to New Zealand with him. She was eventually allowed to on condition that her elder sister Emma accompanied them. Apparently Thomas was not at all happy about this as Emma was ‘a bit of handful’ and he did not want the responsibility.
William Plowman paid the fare of £18 and another £10, for Emma’s passage. Thomas and Florence sailed on the SS Wakanui and arrived at Auckland on the 29 December 1908.
There are two stories as to what happened next. Either Emma found out before their arrival in NZ that Thomas wasn’t all he claimed to be and left the ship at its first port of call.
Florence later told her sister Ellen that they had quarrelled on the boat. In Wellington, Tom Donaldson gave Emma £5 and she was left there. She went to a lady that she had met on the boat, whilst Tom and Florence continued on another vessel to Westport. Emma did not speak to Florence for years.
Florence and Thomas went directly to Denniston Hill in New Zealand where Thomas had previously worked as a coal miner.
Their first child Florence was born at Burnett’s Face. There was no hospital at that time so the delivery was by the local midwife. Florence was terribly homesick and was sent back to England for a holiday in 1911, where Thomas was born. In 1911 the family moved to Woolongong in New South Wales, Australia where Thomas worked on the Corrimal Mine. They stayed there for about 18 months before returning to the Coalbrookdale Mine on Denniston Hill, New Zealand.
Florence stayed in contact with her mother Elizabeth and sister Ellen. A collection of letters sent from New Zealand between 1910 and 1940 still exists.
On 3 April 1946, when Florence Mary was 56, she second married David Alexander MITCHELL, at St Cuthberts, Wellington, New Zealand.
David Alexander was the son of James MITCHELL (1843-) and Ann (1842-). He was born on 7 September 1883 in Roxborough Street, Wellington, New Zealand. David Alexander died in 1956, at the age of 72. Occupation: Plumber.
Florence visited England on one occasion, but it is believed that Emma never did. In 1958 Florence and her daughter Margaret and son in law Alec came over for a trip to England. This was the first visit for 50 years.
In 1965 Henry Plowman and Ellen Crowhurst applied to the Registrar of Births to correct an error on Florence’s birth certificate. The entry of the mother’s maiden name had erroneously been recorded as Goldsmith and not Grossmith. The error was corrected.
Florence was described as a very tall striking woman with long dark curly hair and dark eyes.
Born on 16 April 1892 at 35 South End, Croydon.
Rosabel Madeline Maude died in Brighton in July 1960, at the age of 68. She was buried in July 1960 in Bandon Hill, Wallington, Surrey.
Occupation: Cafe Owner.
Always known as Maude. She was diabetic.
She owned a cafe before moving to Brighton.
She had black hair and green / grey eyes and was known as the family comedienne. She could play the piano but had heart trouble.
Maude is listed in the 1901 Census living at 10 Keeley Road, Croydon with his parents, at the age of 8.
On 2 June 1915 when Rosabel Madeline Maude was 23, she married Arthur HOLLEDGE, in Croydon.
Arthur was the son of Maurice James HOLLEDGE (1856-1930) and Ellen GARLAND (1857-1936). He was born on 8 March 1890 in Croydon.
Arthur died in September 1960, at the age of 70.
They had the following children:
Stanley Arthur Maurice (1916 -) He married Audrey and had six children Reginald William (1918 -) He married June and had two children. He was later the Chairman of the South West Hospital Board Dennis Peter He married Marion and worked for the Ford Motor Company in Dagenham, Essex and at Liverpool P35 Elizabeth Ellen (1926-)
P23 Ellen (Nell) Mary Frances PLOWMAN
Born on 2 February 1894 in Croydon, England. Recorded residing at 598 Brighton Road, South Croydon in 1936.
Ellen (Nell) Mary Frances died in Caterham, Surrey on 26 November 1979, at the age of 85. She was buried in November 1979 in Bandon Hill, Wallington, Surrey.
Cause of death: Lung Cancer.
Occupation: Department Store Assistant.
Religion: Anglican.
Ellen was always known as Nell.
She had a very happy childhood as her parents were very well off until the early years of the twentieth century.
Ellen is listed in the 1901 Census living at 10 Keeley Road, Croydon with her parents, at the age of 7.
On 1 October 1927 when Ellen (Nell) Mary Frances was 33, she married Francis (Frank) CROWHURST (E6), in St James Church Croydon.
Frank was the son of Francis CROWHURST (26 April 1862-10 June 1911) and Emily Alice CARTWRIGHT (1865-10 November 1918). He was born on 19 October 1893 in Brixton, London. He died on 20 October 1975, at the age of 82.
Witnesses at marriage: Emily Louise Cue and Henry James Plowman
They had one child:
Ellen worked in the London Selfridges store in the china department and later had various shop jobs. She had an excellent knowledge of china and often talked about it.
Her father taught Nell, like her brothers and sisters, to cane chairs. With her husband, Frank, they operated a home business repairing and caning chairs for a number of London agents, until very late in their lives.
Picture 36 - Frank and Nell Crowhurst in the late sixties
P24 Cecil RAVENSWOOD
Born on 12 October 1899. He was adopted by William and Elizabeth.
In the 1901 Census he is listed as a visitor at the home of William and Elizabeth Plowman at 10 Keeley Road, aged only one.
Cecil's grandparents were from Liverpool. His father, Cecil, was a stage player/comedian and is in the 1901 census as being born in Auckland New Zealand in approx 1859. However there is no birth on or around that time recorded for him. He married Kate Annie Crank (from Manchester) and they had James Leicester Rosse in Leigh, Lancashire on 18th April 1898. (James married Helena Divine in Liverpool on 7th Sept 1936).
Cecil was born at 10 Keeley Road Croydon and Elizabeth Plowman was present at the birth.
Kate died 21st May 1938 in Tynemouth. Her son James was with her having travelled up from Liverpool.
It either seems like Cecil abandoned Kate before the baby, Cecil, was born or the pair of them decided to leave the child. One would like to think that they did not have the means to provide for two children rather that the possibility of abandonment!
This branch of the family is being researched by Zoe Ravenswood from New Zealand.
Cecil married Ethel.
They had one child:
Marion – Marion married Jim LYON.
He second married Peggy
They had no children.
My Family Tree is a 60 minute documentary that I have made with my digital camcorder and edited into a video production.
This documentary is the story of four families. It is the story of my father's parents, Brigden and Chapman, and my mother's parents, Crowhurst and Plowman.
The video can be purchased for £5 plus £2 postage and packaging. To order a copy click here