Helen Lyons, born 1885

Following info. from Bernard Cullen, researcher St. Georges RCC: Born 27/09/1885, baptised 25 /10/1885 Helen Lyons daughter of Timothy & Elizabeth Lyons (nee Tobin) God parents Michael Lynch & Helen Buckley at St. Georges RCC..Rev. J. Golden. Ref. V6 - 67 . Could this Helen Buckley be connected with her grandmother Catherine Buckley 1827??- investigate one rainy day!!

1891Census. Ellen Lyons, aged 6, living at 34 Kinross Street, [this has been demolished, but was off Tanner Street] Bermondsey.

	age
Timothy Lyons	39	Head Leather Warehouseman born Bermondsey
Elizabeth	37	born Bermondsey
William	10	Scholar born Bermondsey
Ellen	6	Scholar born Southwark
Mary J.	3	born Peckham

1901 Census. Helen Lyons, 15, living at 9 Wilds Rents Bermondsey
Timothy S. 48 Dock Labourer b.Bermondsey
Elizabeth 45 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . b.Bermondsey
Elizabeth 9, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .b.Bermondsey
Josephine 12 . . . . . . . . . . . . . .b.Peckham
Helen 15 . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . b.Blackfriars
William J. 19 General Carman. b.Bermondsey
David Tobin 30 married Wharf Labourer. b.Bermondsey . Thus the family with 4 surviving children plus uncle, David Tobin , 30.

1911C. Living, under name of Ellen Lyons, aged 24, barmaid, with her youngest sister Elizabeth A Lyons,19, housemaid, at a licensed Victuallers, 8 rooms, at Pineapple I, , St. Georges Road, Elephant & Castle, Southwark. The Pineapple Pub was demolished in 1958..

The Pineapple in its heyday . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . and about to be demolished in 1960

1916. Helen Lyons married John Henry [Jack] Blackmore,[ born 26/9/1887] on 24/12/1916 in St. Ethelburga's R.C. Church, Holborn. Both given as 29, he a private in the 20th London Regt., formally a draper's assistant, living at The Grange, Convelescence Home, Nashing??: she a Hotel Assistant at The Plough, 53 Fore Street, London. Her father a Leather Salesman, his a Draper

The Plough was an ancient city inn and was completely destroyed by a bomb in 1940, along with St Alphage church next door. A modern replacement pub was built on the site during the 1960s redevelopment of the Barbican area - in 1964. This pub subsequently closed in 2006 and now lies empty.

West face of St. Ethelburgas; visited in 2012, now no longer an active church

He is in the 1911C, aged 23, single, a Drapery Assistant, boarder at 56 Elm Park Brixton Hill, born Okehampton, Devon. He had joined up in August 1914, spent 18 mths in France and then suffered shellshock mid 1916. He spent the next year in England and was finally discharged as unfit July 1917, address by 1919, when he received £66 compensation, was 149, Evening Road, Stoke Newington, N16 - see his Army Record. They got married whilst he was still in the army.


Helen, maybe ~ 1915?	Helen, maybe ~1920?	Helen with one of her sisters, maybe Lizzie?

Helen & Jack, maybe ~ 1916 when they married	Is this also Helen? - in Philippa's photos from Hilda	Jack & Helen Blackmore in later life, ~ 1960s?

1919. Helen & Jack Blackmore are living at 47 Darville Road, Stoke Newington - from his army record.

1923 & 24. Helen Blackmore was living at 47, Darville Road. Stoke Newington in December 1923 (Timothy's death). London Electoral Registers, Ancestry.

1924-1926. They moved to 104 The Ridgeway, Enfield, phone ENField 4796 & were still there on the death of her husband, 1969,

1926. Helen & John Henry Blackmore living at 104 The Ridgeway Enfield - London Electoral Registers, Ancestry.

1928. Her father-in-law, Henry Blackmore, 71, a draper in Okehampton, died, leaving £8400 , but do not know what his son John[ seemingly an only child] received from this: his second wife presumably got most of it.

1939 Register. Her sister, Josie, appears to be living and working for her: Josephine Collins, born 24/4/1888, paid domestic duties, is living with her elder married sister at 104 The Ridgeway, Enfield . Helen Blackmore, born 27/9/1887( incorrect, should read 1885) , and John H Blackmore, born 26/9/1887, clerk Insurance Industry, Lloyds . Also an officially closed record.

John H	Blackmore	26 Sep 1887	Male	Clerk Insurance Industry (Lloyds)	Married	100	1
record closed
Helen	Blackmore	27 Sep 1887	Female	Unpaid Domestic Duties	Married	100	3
Josephine	Collins	24 Apr 1888	Female	Paid Domestic Duties	Married	100	4

1969 John Henry Blackmoor died 8/12/1969 at St. Michaels Hospital Enfield, address given as 104 The Ridgeway, Enfield. He left a Will, exeutor the National Provincial Bank, leaving all to his wife. He left an estate of £110 351. 11.0 on which £48994.4.4 was paid as death duty [ likely deferred until his wife died]. Probate was given on 4/2/1970. It is then thought she, Nellie, feeling unable to cope with the Enfield house by herself, went to live in the Bournemouth/Poole area with one of 3 nephews on the Kenney side (grandchildren of Mary Hine nee Blackmore). Eventually thought she was moved into a nursing home at Winchester or maybe even Poole??. So how come she died in the Croydon area?

Bill ( her great nephew William :Lyons 1919) never spoke of this Aunt, a complete mystery. I ( his son John) do remember him telling me that he and Eva visited Helen in a nursing home at Winchester, they spoke to the local catholic priest about her. Don't think she knew who they were

John Henry Blackmore was an only child but his father Henry Blackmore had 4 brothers and 1 sister whose living descendants were amongst 13 beneficiaries on the Blackmore/Hine sides, in the legal dispute over Nellie's Will, now thought to have been settled out of court. .

1971. Helen Blackmore died 6/12/1971 at 129 Haling Park Road, South Croydon, widow of John Henry Blackmore, Lloyd's Underwriter, 104, The Ridgeway, Enfield. Cause of death was a. Cerebral Arteriosclerosis, & b. Previous C.V.A. - a stroke. Date of Birth 27/9/1885. Informant: Hilda Josephine Ferrier, niece.

129 Haling Park Road was the St. John's Care home - so presumably she was moved there from Winchester

http://www.carehome.co.uk/carehome.cfm/searchazref/20001010JOHA
http://62.73.173.233/CSCI/CRH/41/DS0000019041.V367117.R01.S.pdf

Probate was not granted until 6/12/1974. She left £120713.90 on which £49389.33 estate duty was paid.

There was great family discussion about Aunt Nellie's will [ handwritten 20/8/1970]: the Blackmore 'family' & her 6 surviving Lyons nephews & nieces, Hilda, Eva, Frank, Len, Bill & Dennis contested the legality of this dubious handwritten document in which Helen had left everything to a "Mr Smith" who apparently looked after her financial affairs, he being a friend or associate of her late husband Jack Blackmore. Lyonses & Blackmores won, and her estate was probably divided into shares, with Hilda getting more of the Lyons portion than her 5 siblings . Hilda apparently would only join the legal challenge if she were to receive more [twice as much??] - seemingly she had an arrangement with the 'Mr Smith' to receive some money if he got it all! - who knows!!! - but she and husband would only have received £ 400 from the 'dodgy will' . I have so far failed to ascertain who Patrick and Kathleen Mansell of Tower Road Poole were- not seemingly husband and wife, so maybe brother and sister - owners of the Nursing Home that John remembered she was in , in Poole, at sometime??? They were certainly not any of the Blackmore/Kenney family who challenged this will with the Lyonses

JL has some papers on the Blackmore participants of the "settlement" & there is no mention of "Mansell". I now have a copy of these papers, and can see roughly how the 'Blackmores' divided their share of the money from Nellie. But... we still do not know what the percentage split between the 2 families, Blackmore & Lyons, was!! Maybe 50-50??

Helen's father-in-law, Henry Blackmore, 1857-1928, was born, Clayhidon, to Thomas & Joan Blackmore. Thomas Blackmore prob. died 1885. Henry seemingly had 4 brothers, all born Clayhiden, Wellington: Thomas 1847-~1879, William 1849-1928, John 1855-1925, Robert 1863-1921 & a sister, Mary Ann Blackmore 1853-1908. A 1/7th share was apportioned to the descendants of each of these, with the exception of Robert: he had married Alice Helena Hine [brought up in Clayhidon & became a draper's assistant] in 1894 and, despite a son who died in 1929, seemingly no issue. Another 1/7th went to the father-in-law's estate: I do not understand this as he had no living issue. The remaining two 1/7ths went to Emily Ann Pearce, nee Hine, 1859-1954, & her brother Richard Hine 1851-1936: how do these fit in??- not siblings of Alice Helena Hine, but maybe cousins of her. This Richard Hine had indeed married Mary Ann Blackmore 1853 - but then her estate had already been allocated its 1/7th share!!

The names recorded (apart from Blackmore and Kenney) are Hine, Jackson, Pearce, Parsons, Northover, Stringer, Stafford, Noble, Watts & a Mary Ann Manley, daughter of a William Blackmore.[ one was born 1889 in Clayhidon, son of William Blackmore 1849, older brother of Henry Blackmore 1857. She married in 1916 a Manley in Wellington]. Thus Mary Ann Manley and JH Blackmore were first cousins .There were many more such 1st cousins: 3 other children of William 1849, one son of Thomas 1847, one son of John 1855, one son of Robert 1863 & 5 children of Mary 1853.

Interesting to note that in the case of Joan Elizabeth Parsons the document refers to her death in 1983 which was 12 years after HB died and 5 years after John's Dad, weird !!.Also other deaths after 1974.

The share that each person received, of the 'Blackmore' pot, was either one 7th or one 28th, or one 105th, presumably geared to their relationship with the deceased.

John's recollection of the contested will is that ""Helen had left everything to a "Mr Smith" who apparently looked after her financial affairs, a friend or associate of Jack. It was this will that was challenged by the Lyons and Kenney families who all shared in the payout. I think Dad [ Bill Lyons] got £4000 in Shell Transport shares."

Seem to recall that Smith believed Hilda to be the only relative on the Lyons side, hence the inclusion of Hilda & Harold Ferrier..

Sisters of Charity (adoption agency) was also interesting, wonder if this had anything to do with little Irene and the Blackmores desire to adopt a child, also suggests Helen kept the faith.

John & Helen used to entertain his clients at The Savoy and a famous local hotel near Enfield (so she must have had a certain presence and intelligence to fulfil such a role)??

Her d.c. shows that her house in the Ridgeway obviously had not been sold prior to her entering the St. John's Care home at 129 Haling Park Road. :

Had niece Hilda arranged her entry into this home? - Croydon some distance by public transport from Stanmore.

Nellie was godmother to her niece Eva Lyons in 1912 but was seemingly not liked by her nephews and nieces.

Pre 1890. His father, Henry Blackmore, 1857-1928, was born, Clayhidon, to Thomas & Joan Blackmore. Thomas Blackmore prob. died 1885. Henry seemingly had 4 brothers, all born Clayhiden, Wellington: Thomas 1847-~1879, William 1849-1928, John 1855-1925, Robert 1863-1921 & a sister, Mary Blackmore 1853-1908. But also a Richard shown as son aged 1 in 1861C: have decided he was a nephew, b. Honiton, son of a Richard Blackmore. .

Mary Blackmore married Richard Hine 1879 Wellington. They had 5 children: Dorothy I. Hine/Kenney -1956; Frances J.Hine/Northover -1974; Thomas W. Hine -1959; Mary E. Hine - 1952 & Louisa A. Hine/Stafford -1978. The1st daughter, Dorothy I Hine, married Benjamin Kenney 1915 Wellington. They had children Joseph R. Kenney, Ian G.Kenney,& Richard B. Kenney..

Henry Blackmore, 1857, was, aged 13, at Croyle House Bording School, Dulverton, in Devon in 1871C. Robert 1863 was at school near Chard. John & Robert farming in Clayhiden in 1881C.

1891C. Aged 3, family of 3, father, Henry Blackmore, a Draper & Outfitter, 11 Fore Street, Okehampton

1901C. Aged 13, still in Fore Street, Okehampton, his mother having died, Mary E. Blackmore Sep 1896 Okehampton. John seemingly the only child of Henry Blackmore, 44, a Draper & Outfitter.

1911C. I think his father has remarried and is in London City, Henry Blackmore, aged 53, b. Devon, a draper, employer with wife Ann Mary Blackmore 27, also a draper,, married 6 yrs, no children, in a hotel at 154 Aldersgate St., E C . Marriage Sep 1905 Okehampton to Annie Mary Yeo. Seemingly no Blackmore/Yeo births Sep 1911 onwards - just possible a child was born and registered Jun 1911, but no issue given in bmd thereafter .

For more on the family tree of Helen Lyons and more details on her childhood homes & on her siblings , return to

Helen Lyons, 1885-1971