George Turner 1865

George Turner 1865-1951

The Methodist Chapel where at least 2 of his children were baptised was between Tanners & the Green Man.

Tree for his ancestors at end of page.

1865 Born 14/08/1865 at Tanners Stebbing, Essex. Parents were William Turner, farm labourer, and Susan (Perry), living at Tanners, Stebbing. Have b.c BT3. Registered 15/09/1865 by his mother, with her mark. Seemingly the only child. Have yet to find his baptism: not in Cof E, Lindsell, or C of E Stebbing. And I did not find it at Stebbing Congregational Church [William's mother, Rhoda, had joined this church in 1858]. So maybe he was baptised in the Methodist Church?[ but records only exist from 1866], where he baptised one of his sons, Harold, in 1890 & his daughter in 1894.Another possibility is Independent Meeting House, Stebbing - , see comment on Wicks baptism after 1881C, but where are these records???

gtur-bc .


2011 sign - gate on the road	Tanners. Old photos cerca 1950s	held at the ERO	2011 aspect

Tanners Farm in 2011	these beams said to be original	with the present owner, Sharron

1871 Census. [Stebbing Dist.2,p.16 of 3]This entry is mis-transcribed under the surname James! Living at Dunmow Road Tanners, Stebbing, where he had been born. . All born Stebbing. There is another family of 6 also listed at Tanners, a David Wicks, miller.

	age
William Turner	30	Ag. Lab
Susan	28	lab.wife
George	5	son scholar
James Perry (f-in-law)	60	Ag. Lab. widower

I visited Tanners in July 2011. Owners then were Sharron & Bob Brewer - bobjbrewer@yahoo.com - who very kindly showed us round and allowed us to take photos. Mains water was only installed in the 1950s.

From E/MA 26/2, Stebbing Board School Admissions 1878-1896, he went to Stebbing school , seemingly in 1879, 1880 & 1881, Geo. Turner, admission number 62, date of birth - incorrect - 6/8/1866, father William Turner, Bran End, his last school given as the British School. It seems odd that he was at school up to the age of 15!, but this does tie up with the 1881C, where he does not seem to have a job.


Stebbing Church, inside	Stebbing Church, outside

<1879. His family had moved to Bran End - from school admission record

1881 Census. [Stebbing Dist.2, p.13 of 25, near to the Green Man] Living at Bran End, Stebbing. All born Stebbing.

	age
William Turner	40	Grocer and Chicken worker.
Susan	38
George	15	Grocer and Chicken worker's son. Interestingly here George himself does not seem to be working- he would be 15yrs 9mths .
Joseph	37	brother married. Ag. Lab.

Also living with George Turner's family was Edwin Wicks, 16, the son of the miller also living at Tanners in 1871C. Probably he and George had become good friends . Edwin's father, David Wicks, had become prosperous by 1881, being described as a farmer of eighty acres, employing three men- still at Tanners, another ag. lab. and his family also losted there . The Wicks family have a website which shows that 2 of them were baptised in 1816 in the Independent Meeting House, Stebbing - these records not in the ERO!, so WHERE?? No help from Google!

Uncle Joseph’s wife, Mary Ann (Purkis), dressmaker is living nearby in Dunmow Road, Stebbing, with her parents, John & Sarah Purkis, and 2 children, Esther Turner,12, born ‘Sep’ 1868, as Esther Purkis, and Mary Ann Turner, 7, born ‘Sep’ 1873, ref.4a.397, both in Stebbing.

(Joseph married Mary Ann Purkis in’Dec’1872, ref.4a.763. Esther Purkis, 2, was living with her grandparents, John & Sarah, in Dunmow Road, in 1871C. Can not find Mary Ann) (Joseph is living with wife, Mary Ann, daughter, Mary Ann, 17, and a grandson, Frederick H. Smith,2, in South Weald in 1891C. Is Fred. a son of Esther?)

His father's half brother John Turner 1846, with wife and 3 children, is living next door one side, his grandmother's brother, John Wilkinson 1825 the other side!.

1888. 24/12/1888. Aged 23, George Turner marries Charlotte Caroline Parchment, 19, in the Parish Church of Stebbing. He is described as a labourer, as is his father, William. Her father, William Parchment, is described as a weaver. Residence at the time of marriage is Stebbing and witnesses are Albert Parchment (her brother) and Emma Thompson( sister of Alice, Albert's wife: Albert had married Alice Thompson 5/8/1888 in B.G.). M.c. MT3

turpar-mc

. . . .Lindsell Church 2008 - he lived in Lindsell after his marriage

1888. Surprisingly he is absent from the 1888 Stebbing Electoral register - presumably just had not bothered to register when he became 21 in 1886.

1889. 27/10/1889. William George Turner born in the Village, Lindsell. Birth registered 28/11/1889 by his father, farmer. Have b.c BT4. Was he baptised a Methodist? Looked at D/NM 5/5/56 or D/NM 5/4/11 in ERO April 2011, but found no entry for him, although records of the baptisms of both his siblings exist therein.

1890. 20/10/1890. Harold Turner born in Lindsell. Ref.4a.569.Dunmow. Have b.c. . Baptised 12/4/1891 [record says born 6/10/1890!] , parents George & Charlotte Caroline Tuirner of Lindsell, father farmer, in Stebbing in Primitive Methodist Cicuit, Braintree.D/NM5/4/11

Mill House, beside the school in Lindsell. A Grade 2 listed building since 1983.

1891 Census. Living near the Mill, Lindsell, farmer's son, employed- presumably mainly by his father, William - , next to the Vicarage. The Mill House itself was uninhabited. 3 other families with addressses 'Near the Mill', some with number of rooms given, but this was only entered if less than 5!. His entry is immediately before the Crown Inn. The photo above is the old Mill House, I have not got a photo of their actual house/cottage. In 1827 from Seax Sales Cat.index,D/F 35/3/44 Mill House Lindsell and its shop were auctioned.

	age
George Turner	25	Farmers son
Charlotte C.	21
Harold	5 mths

The missing William George Turner is staying/living with his grandparents, William & Susan Turner on census day. They are at Carters Farm, Bradfield Road, Stebbing.

Both William George and Harold are listed in Lindsell School at the ages of 3.

1894. In Lindsell Poor Rate Book for April D/P 110/11/10 - but no longer seems to exist on Seax 2014! George Turner had house, garden, land & farm at Bowles? & near Mill of 15P? and 7A 1R 0P on which he paid rent of £8.10s and & £4.10s. No entry for him in October, which would suggest that he moved to Stebbing at this time. Look in Stebbing Poor Rate Books 1894-1911 - do not exist , just 1892 - next visit to ERO 2011

1894. 9/10/1894 Dorothy Lily Turner born, at The Down, Stebbing.[ I think this is just the wider area known as the Down then, and not the big house called that now]. Father given as a farmer. Birth registered 16/11/1894 by her mother. Have b.c.BT6. Baptised 11/11/1894 in Stebbing, record in the Primitive Methodist Register Book of Baptisms at Braintree. Father again given as farmer. Both birth & baptism record on her page

This map of Carters/Duck End Farm shows how near to Lindsell it was across the fields.

1901 Census.[Stebbing Dist.2, p.14 of 19] Living at Duck End Farm, Stebbing. [just a different name for Carter’s Farm]

	age
William Turner	60	widow, Farmer, b. Stebbing
George son	35	Horseman on farm b. Stebbing
Charlotte C.	31	b. Bethnal Green.
William G.	11	b. Lindsell
Harold	11	b. Lindsell
Dorothy L	6	b. Stebbing.

Carters farm [with owner, Karen Hill] ,August 2008.

1905.His father remarries. 5/11/1905, William Turner , full age, widower, labourer, son of Ezekiel Turner, labourer, marries Elizabeth Ann Cracknell [ nee Lewis, father was William Lewis labourer] in St. Stephen's Church ,South Lambeth, by banns. Have m.c. Residence at time of marriage just says South Lambeth. Witnesses were Edward John Seaman & Martha Ellen Seaman[she was the daughter of Elizabeth Cracknell]. It says 'his mark' for William, yet he had seemingly signed in 1863 for his first marriage to Susannah Perry.! Did this remarriage cause tensions in the family?- seemingly no, as William left 2/3rds of his estate to George- will written later in 1905. Can anything be inferred by the fact that the ceremony took place away from Stebbing?, by the fact that he now seemed unable to sign his name?, by the fact that he now just classed himself as a labourer? Yet William obviously returned to live and work at Duck End, as this is where he died 4+ years later.

1907. George Turner has a dwelling house, Duck End Road, in the Stebbing Electoral Register - meanwhile his father William Turner has House & Land, Duck End Farm: does this mean they were living in different houses??

1908/9 and 1909/10 his father is paying rent on Duck End House and land- £ 1.17. 2 for property owned by a Mrs Prime and 4s. 9d for that owned by Fowkes

1910/11 . It is G. Turner who has to pay the same 2 sums, same owners and ditto in 1911/12.

1910. His father ,William Turner, dies, 18/2/1910, again farmer, at Duck End farm: informant is his widow. D.C DT3 Will. {The farm was then said to have been owned by a Wilkinson [who then married a widow Cracknell], this coming from Frank Howlands book.} The dismal lot of Essex subsistence farming [ see 'Meagre Harvest' byA.F.J. Brown] must have caused George to seek a new life in Australia and he also received up to £ 180 from his father's estate . His eldest son, William George Turner was soon to marry Edith Mead: family lore has it that she refused to leave Essex whilst her mother, Elizabeth Mead/Robinson , was still alive [ & this lady did not die until 1928]. Thus George, his wife Charlotte, and 2 younger children emigrated to Victoria. George, Charlotte &' Lily' are on the ships manifest of the SS Orama [Orient Line] which sailed from London on 10 Nov 1911. I do not know why Harold is not on this manifest: had he perhaps sailed earlier?

Need to look at Stebbing Land tax & Electoral Rolls in 2013 ERO. D/Z 2/18/42 1866-1922

1911C. George Turner, living, aged 45, in 6 rooms at Duck End Farm, Stebbing, farmer, employer, with just his wife Charlotte 41, married 22 years, 3 children, all still alive.

1911C

1911. George, Charlotte, Harold & Dorothy Turner emigrate to Australia in November . Only my grandfather, William George Turner, remains in England.

1912/13. A James Riley has land at Duck End Farm

turner-ezekiel-tree

George & family settled out at Briar Hill, seemingly building their own house.

Several streets in the Briar Hill area were perhaps named after him and his family. There are still some original 1915 type houses in these streets in 2008 This is a modern map : in 1911-1930 these 'Essex' streets did not exist: were they named when he sold his property in early 1950: deeds?. Was his grandson, Arthur Law, instrumental in the naming of these streets, maybe whilst his grandfather was still alive?. But Arthur Street seems to have existed by 1931-Trove

1915. His son, Harold, joined the Austalian Army and fought in France.

1917. His daughter, Dorothy Lily, married Harold Law at Greensborough Methodist Church on 24/02/1917. The wedding group below is maybe in his garden, and not at the church, which was not wooden.. George & Charlotte are seated on the right. The m.c. gives him as farmer, the only ref. we have so far found to his occupation in Australia.

Harold Job Duerden Law and Dorothy Lily Turner, Charlotte [Parchment] & George Turner to the right, sitting. His mother, Ada,[ her husband Enoch died in 1912] seated on left, maybe Ada's father Job Duerden standing on the left. Younger bridesmaid is Margaret- Madge- Law, Harold's sister. Elder bridesmaid probably Lillian Kerr who was a witness. Bestman, standing next to Harold, was Fred Wright, the other witness. Photo likely taken in his garden- note the elegant indoor chairs that are being used!


George Turner, Charlotte Turner and Harold Law 1918	Turner house in Briar Hill, presumably Mount View Eltham Road

George Turner with daughter Dorothy Lily and grandson Arthur Law	George Turner in 1930-this photo sent back to England

George 1947 at Arthur's wedding. George with Great Granddaughter Carol Law 1948	GeorgeTurner: Golden Wedding 24 Dec 1938

The above photo , also including Harold Law, dated 1918 must surely be the house in Eltham Road: this is where Carol was born in 1948.

turgeoaus

1948 Four generations: George Turner, Dorothy Lily Law nee Turner, Arthur Duerden Law & Carol Ada Law

Carol wrote:"I also found that George and Caroline TURNER lived in 1914, 1919, 1924, 1931,1936, 1937, 1943 & 1949 as per Electoral Rolls and we know George was there in 1948 when I was born at the following address:

Eltham Road
Greensborough

which I can only presume was in the Briar Hill area. I remember Mum stating that when she used to walk me in the pram to the station she would be swooped by magpies in the spring time. I am not sure whether it was Greensborough or Montmorency station that she would walk to. Something tells me it was Greensborough but I would not like to be held accountable for this. George's occupation is only shown as farmer in 1914 & 1919, after that 'no occupation' given on the Electoral Rolls, but he is given as a chicken farmer on his d.c., but Charlotte's shows as Home Duties in all documentation. Eltham Road does not show on any map I can access via the internet or in our possession, but we think it was changed to St. Helena Road."

Eltham Road Briar Hill sort of existed in Jan 1942: from Trove ' the Greensborough bridge over the river Plenty was replaced on the Greensborough-Eltham road '

We think his house might have had the name Mount View, as son Harold gives Mount View Eltham Road as a 1922 correspondence address, and is also living there on the 1937 Electoral Roll

So, after arriving in Australia in late 1911/early 1912, they were certainly in Greensborough by 1914

Appears , living in Eltham Road Greensborough, in Electoral Rolls in 1943 & in 1949.. No occupation given. So why does his wife's 1944 d.c. give her usual place of residence as Leith Road Greensborough???Leith Road does not seem to have existed there! but there is a Leach Road running N/S at the end of Turner Street.

1944. Wife, Charlotte, died 25/08/1944. Usual address was given as Leith Road Greensborough. Do not think Eltham Road could have been renamed as Leith Road, as still Eltham Road in 1949 and does not appear in Internet maps. As stated above, maybe they meant Leach Road instead of Leith Road. Was she in a nursing home, Leith Road, Maclead?.

Also his 1951 d.c gives him dying at 108 Balaclava Road, Caulfield [this was the home of his daughter, Dorothy Lily Law], Melbourne, 5 July, 1951. But usual place of residence was 215 Alma Road, East St Kilda, where he lived with his grandson, Arthur Law. He must have moved from Eltham Road to Alma Road with Arthur, his grandson, wife Marian & Carol after 1949 and prior to April 1951 as Yvonne's birth was this April 1951 and they were already at Alma Road, East St Kilda

1944-1947 After his wife's death, probably lived by himself - or maybe with son Harold and his wife Gina, but these two were at Were Road, Montmorency 1943 & 1949, so this unlikely - in Eltham Road until Carol's parents, Arthur & Marian Law, married in 1947 and moved in with him, he being the grandfather of Arthur Law.

1947 -sometime 1949-51. His grandson Arthur Law with his wife Marian Wright and infant Carol , lived with him in Eltham Road after his wife's death. They then bought 215 Alma Road.

1951 George Turner, poultry farmer, died at 108 Balaclava Road Caulfield, Victoria 5/07/1951[ this was his daughter's, Dorothy Lily Law's, house]. But usual place of residence was 215 Alma Road ,East St. Kilda, where he lived with his grandson, Arthur Law, and family. His second Australian ggranddaughter, Yvonne, was born at this address, Balaclava Road, in April 1951. He died of Myocarditis [inflammation of the heart muscle] - 5 months and of Arterisclerosis [hardening of the arteries] - 10 years. He is buried in Greensborough Cemetery, in Plot 5 of R section in the N.W. corner of the cemetery, corner of James & Hales Street, alongside his wife Charlotte, the plot being reopened in July 1951.

He had 2 English ggranddaughters by this time, Hazel & Chris Lyons, and 1 ggranddaughter & 2 ggrandsons, Jill, Bobbie & Ronnie Turner, living by then in Detroit. He never saw any of the last 5.


Death details for George Turner	2008 photo of Carol's?	Details of the grave of both Charlotte & George Turner

Old photo of their grave	2011 photo from Jazz.