BRICKER, Samuel Henry - Friends of Horton Cemetery

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b.1867-d.1915

Samuel’s parents

Samuel Henry Bricker was born in Isleworth in the 4^th quarter of 1867. His parents were mason Henry Bricker and his wife Emma (née Payne or Paine).

Henry had been born in the village North Nibley in Gloucestershire, about two miles from Wooton-under-Edge, the son of weaver James Bricker and his wife Martha (née Webb). In the 1851 Census we find James and his parents and seven siblings living in the village of Bradford in Wiltshire.

Samuel’s mother, Emma, was baptised in the parish church of Nunney, a village three miles from Frome in Somerset, on the 3^rd of February 1844. The baptismal register describes her as the ‘illegitimate daughter of Elizabeth Payne”. Although the 1851 Census gives her age as 7, the ages given in later censuses would suggest that she was actually born in 1841.

Unfortunately, it has not been possible to find either Henry or Emma in the 1861 Census records so we do not know when they were married – or, indeed, if they were ever married as it has not been possible to find a marriage certificate for the couple.

Henry and Emma’s children

We next meet Henry and Emma in the 1871 Census, living in Tolson Road in Isleworth with their sons 8 year-old James and 4 year-old Samuel (our subject) and daughter Ann (registered as Hannah Netty, born in the 1^st quarter of 1870). Henry is described as a mason.

Interestingly, 8 year-old James’s place of birth is given as North Wales though later censuses (up to 1911) state that he was born in Isleworth. The birth of a Harry James Samuel Bricker was registered in Brentford in the 4^th quarter of 1865 but the mother’s maiden name is given as Watts. Does this mean that Henry had been married before? Unfortunately it has not been possible to find evidence of a Bicker-Watts marriage registered between 1850 and 1870.

In later censuses James’s date of birth is given variously as 1864, 1865, 1867, 1868 and 1870. In the 1911 Census his place of birth is given as Wales once again.

The death of Samuel’s father

Sadly, Henry died in the 1^st quarter of 1880, aged 53. In the 1881 Census we find Emma, described as a greengrocer, living at 12 South Street in Isleworth with her children James, Samuel, Nettie (previously Ann), Lottie (born in the 2^nd quarter of 1872) and Emily Isabella (born in the 4^th quarter of 1874).

There is also another daughter, Lennie, whose age is given as 16, suggesting a birth year of 1865, though it has not been possible to find her birth in General Register Office records. In the 1871 Census we find a Lena Bricker (the name has been transcribed as Blecker but it could just as well read as Bricker) aged 6 and born in Isleworth, visiting lighterman Alfred Burgess and his wife Elizabeth at their home in Walter Road, Stepney.

An Ancestry family tree suggests that a Lily Leonora Bricker married William John Norman in 1888 but I have not been able to find a marriage certificate to confirm this. However, in the 1901 Census we find engineer William John Norman and his wife Lilly (born 1865 but in Wandsworth) living at 72 South Street in Isleworth, while Emma and her daughters, Nettie and Emily, were living at number 62. Despite the absence of documentary evidence I think we may cautiously assume that this Lilly is our subject Samuel’s older sister.

Samuel’s marriage to Lucy Blackburn and their first child

In the 1881 Census James is described as an apprentice mason and his three younger sisters are scholars. However, no occupation is given for Lennie or 13 year-old Samuel.

On the 21^st of April 1889, Samuel married 19 year-old Lucy Blackburn in the Church of St Mary the Virgin in Mortlake, Surrey. Samuel, now aged 21, is described as a slater, the son of stone-mason Harry Bricker. Lucy is the daughter of Joseph Blackburn, a roadman. At the time of their marriage both Samuel and Lucy were living in Mortlake.

The couple’s first child, William Samuel, was born on the 15^th of March 1890 and baptised in the Church of St Mary the Virgin in Mortlake on the 6^th of April 1890.

In the 1891 Census we find the family living at 3, Tinder Box Alley, High Street, Mortlake, close to Lucy’s parents, Joseph and Lucy, who live at 1, Manor Cottages. Samuel is still employed as a slater.

Tinderbox Alley is still a walkway today between streets of houses, a stone’s throw from the Thames Path.

The 1890s – a growing family and two tragic deaths

By the time of the 1901 Census the couple had moved to 5, Brown’s Cottages in Mortlake and Lucy had given birth to six more children:

Harry Joseph (born 3^rd quarter of 1891)
Annie Daisy (born 24^th of January 1893, baptised 10^th March 1893)
Thomas Albert Victor (born 8^th of August 1894, baptised 2^nd of September 1894)
Samuel Harry (born 21^st of November 1896, baptised 24^th of January 1897)
Grace Lucy (born 11^th of June1899, baptised 15^th of September 1899)
Lilly Edith (born 14^th September 1900, baptised 11^th of November 1900)

Sadly, Annie died shortly after her baptism and Thomas died in the 2^nd quarter of 1896, before reaching his second birthday. One can only imagine the impact these two tragic deaths, coming so close together, would have had on the young couple.

All the baptisms took place in the Church of St Mary the Virgin, Mortlake (see above map) and the baptismal register gives the family’s address as Tinder Box Alley, though the number is given variously as 2,3 and 5. At some time between Lilly Edith’s baptism and the taking of the 1901 Census (31^st of March) the family moved to 5, Brown’s Cottages in Mortlake. Samuel is described in the census as a slater and tiler and also an employer which would imply he has set up in business on his own account.

Six more children – and two more deaths

In the 3^rd quarter of 1906, Samuel’s mother, Emma, died in Brentford aged 61, according to her death certificate.

By the time of the 1911 Census (in which the family name is written as ‘Bicker’) Emma had given birth to six more children:

Charles Henry (born 8^th of November 1901, baptised in the Church of St Mary the Virgin 6^th of April 1902)
George Edward (born 13^th of February 1903, baptised in the Church of St Mary the Virgin 18^th of October 1903)
James Edward (born 4^th quarter of 1905, no baptismal record found)
Arthur Joseph (born 2^nd quarter of 1907, registered as ‘Brickner’, no baptismal record found)
Mabel Selina (born 2^nd quarter of 1909, no baptismal record found)

A unnamed boy whose age is given as 1 in the census, though what appears to be ‘2 weeks’ is written underneath. This may be Edward Frederick whom we meet again in 1915 (see below).

Sadly, George Edward died in the 2^nd quarter of 1909 aged 6 and James Edward died in the 2^nd quarter of 1909 aged 3. On George Edward’s baptismal registration in 1903 the family’s address is given as 53, Treherne Terrace in Mortlake but at some time before the 19^th of November 1906 when Grace and Lilly were admitted to the Frogmore School in Wandsworth, the family had moved to 18 Guelph Street in Wandsworth.

The death of Lucy

In the 1911 Census we find Samuel and Lucy, now living at 65 Guelph Street, with their 9 surviving children, William (21, an outside porter at Putney Station), Henry (18), Samuel (14, a van boy at a laundry), Grace (12), Lilly (11), Charles (9), Arthur (4), Mabel (2) and the unnamed baby boy.

Curiously, the census states that Emma has given birth to 14 children born alive, 9 of whom are living and 5 of whom have died. It has been possible to account for 13 births and 9 surviving children but not a fourteenth who died, though it is possible his or her name was registered incorrectly, as we saw with Arthur Joseph.

Giving birth to so many children and watching at least four of them die young must have put an incredible strain on Lucy’s mental and physical health. Sadly, in the 2^nd quarter of 1912, Lucy died aged just 43. At the time of her death there were three children under the age of 5 living at home. We do not know if Samuel had anyone to help him look after the children other than his own daughters, 13 year-old Grace and 12 year-old Lilly, but the stress of raising a young family alone and holding down a job must surely have contributed to the mental health problems that necessitated his later admission to Long Grove.

Samuel’s admission to Long Grove and death

Samuel’s name does not appear in the Lunacy Patients Admission Register so we do not know when he was admitted to Long Grove. According to the Poor Law School District Register, on the 11^th of February 1915 Charles, Arthur, Mabel and Edward Frederick Bricker were admitted to the Intermediate School, Swaffield Road, Wandsworth, suggesting that they could no longer be looked after at home. (I think we can cautiously assume that Edward Frederick is the unnamed son from the 1911 Census, though his date of birth is given in the school register as simply January 1912. As no day is given this was, perhaps, an estimated birth date.)

Just over a month later, on the 18th of March 1915, Samuel died in Long Grove aged 47. He was buried in Horton Cemetery in grave number 1560a.

Samuel’s children

William Samuel. On the 30^th of December 1914 William married Edith Violet Biddick in Wandsworth registry office. We do not know if Edith was a widow or divorced but she had a daughter, Florence Evelyn, who was born in St Columb, Cornwall in the 4^th quarter of 1904.
On the 7^th of June 1916, William, now aged 26 and employed as a ‘picture palace attendant’ was drafted into the army labour corps from the army reserve. At the time he, Edith and Florence were living at 11, Middleton Road in Battersea. William served in the labour corps until he was discharged on the 30^th of December 1919. From the 1921 Census we learn that the family was living at 14, Eccles Road in Battersea and William was employed as a cinema attendant at the Lyric Picture House in Wandsworth, a position he still held when the 1939 register was taken. William and Edith do not appear to have had any children together. William died in the 1^st quarter of 1953 aged 62.

Harry Joseph. In the 2^nd quarter of 1920 Harry married widow Winifred Crane in Kensington. Winifred was the mother of Ivy Crane, born on the 22^nd of December 1917. In the 1921 Census we find Harry, Winifred and Ivy living at 15, Bangor Street in Kensington. Harry is described as a slater (as his father had been) but unemployed. By the time of the 1939 register the family had moved to 3, Crispin Road in Burnt Oak. Harry’s occupation is given as ‘soldering electric’. Harry and Winifred do not appear to have had any children together. Harry died on the 12^th of February 1966 aged 74.

Samuel Harry. Unfortunately it has not been possible to find Samuel in the 1921 Census. In the 1939 Register he is described as a house decorator and unmarried, living with the Newman family at 31, Temple Road in Isleworth. That was also his address when he died on the 14^th of January 1951 aged 54. He left effects valued at £852 7s 8d (equivalent to over £34,000 today) to his brother Harry.

Grace Lucy. In the 1921 Census we find a Grace Lucy Bricker, aged 22, working as a domestic servant in the home of accountant Christopher Harrison and his family in Richmond-upon-Thames. This would appear to be our subject Samuel’s daughter but for her place of birth, which is given as Shere is Surrey. Is this an error in the census or do we have the wrong person? Or had Grace lied to her employer about her origins? We do know that Samuel’s daughter Grace married Walter Edward Dunning in the 2^nd quarter of 1927 in Wandsworth. (In the 1939 register Walter is described as an expert packing case maker.) The couple had two children, John, born in the 3^rd quarter of 1935 and Eileen, born in the 1^st quarter of 1938. Grace died in the 2^nd quarter of 1976 aged 77.

Lily Edith. Although it has not been possible to find Lily in the 1921 Census we know that in the 4^th quarter of 1924 she married window-cleaner Henry J. White in Wandsworth. In the 1939 Register the couple are living at 268, Mitcham Lane, Wandsworth. Unfortunately, I have not been able to confirm if the couple had any children or the date of Lily’s death.

Charles Henry. Charles served in the Merchant Navy in the First World War from 1916 to 1921. In 1927 he married Doris Minnie Diamond and the couple had three children, Frank, Margaret and Peter. Unfortunately, I have not been able to discover Charles’s occupation after leaving the Merchant Navy. He died on the 19^th of January, 1979 in Middlesex Hospital aged 77.

Arthur Joseph. In the 1921 Census we find 13 year-old Arthur an ‘inmate’ at the Anerly School (Orphanage) in Penge. Unfortunately, it has not been possible to trace Arthur after this date.

Mabel Selina. In the 1921 Census we find 12 year-old Mabel living with her adoptive parents, Edward and Maude Ryder at 22, Backham Drive in Balham. Edward, aged 64, is a financial clerk at the Ministry of Labour. Maude is 55. It is not known if the couple had children of their own. It has not been possible to trace Mabel after this date.