Created by Julie Goucher, 2021 using Wordscloud

Continuing with the Census, People and Genealogy series – all posts can be found HERE. There is also a Census downloadable to be found HERE.

In 1891 we remain following Henry Harris and his wife, Caroline. In the decade since the 1881 census, there have been changes to the family dynamics, with marriages, new families and deaths.

The first change is the family have left Puttenham, they have moved across the Hogs Back (A31) to Wanborough, a distance of just a few miles. The descriptive page is one of the best we have seen since this series began.

Census 1891 – Surrey History Centre RG12/562/86/1

The family are shown here, living in one of Wanborough Farm Cottages. Granny is marked by the green arrow.

Census 1891 – Surrey History Centre RG12/562/86/4

The family, in addition to Granny who is now aged 11, includes both her parents, Henry Harris who is head of the household and still a shepherd. He is aged 46 and it is indicated he is employed. My great great Grandmother, Caroline (nee Ellis) is also aged 46 with her place of birth indicated as Elstead, Surrey. Caroline is also recorded as an agricultural labourer.

There are five children in the household, which includes Granny. Her brother Henry who was known as Harry, is aged 16 and an agricultural labourer. There is another brother, Edward who also an agricultural labourer and is aged 13 years. The youngest two daughters are also in the family home, Kate A, was actually Alice Kate, but always known as Kate, she was aged nine with the youngest, Mabel aged six, both were recorded as scholars, as was Granny.

Wanborough is frequently twinned with Puttenham, and whilst I knew the family association with Wanborough existed, I can hear my Great Aunt telling me that anything before 1930 was Manor Farm at Wanborough, I had not appreciated that the association had begun as far back as 1891 until I began writing this series, which really is an example of why revisiting earlier research is always time well spent.

As I shared yesterday, Henry and Caroline had ten children altogether, in 1891 there was only five living in the family home, so where were the others, all of whom were born in Puttenham?

• Emma Jane who was the eldest, born before her parents married in 1864.
• George William born in 1866
• Mary born in 1867
• Ellen Harriet born in 1870
• Rose born in 1873

1. Emma Jane married William Arthur West in 1897. They raised two children, one of whom died during the First World War. Emma and William settled in Stony Stratford on the Buckinghamshire/Oxfordshire border.
2. George William had married in 1895 and was living close to his wife’s family, elsewhere in Surrey
3. Mary married into a branch of the Marshall family and remained living in Puttenham until her death in 1902.
4. Ellen Harriet married George Dowsett Toller of Illford in Essex. They settled there and had nine children of whom one died. Sadly, by 1916 they were to loose another.
5. Rose married Richard Cresswell in 1900 in Wanborough. Richard worked on the railways, they raised two children and settled on the south coast in Sussex.

More on these folks in the months ahead, as I get the records updated and expanded. To conclude, here is one of my favourite and treasured photographs – Caroline (called Carrie) and four of her girls, Granny, Annie Prudence is on the far left, then Mabel, Rose and Kate.

Caroline Harris (nee Ellis) sitting with daughters (left to right) Annie Prudence, Mabel, Rose and Kate
Copyright from the personal collection of Julie Goucher