Hi I am trying to find out where my great aunt maybe buried and i have hit a brick wall.
Her name was Vera B MERRICK born 1898 in albrighton Wolverhampton. In the 1911 census she lived with parent and sisters in Kingslow Pattingham .
She drowned in the River Severn at Knowle Sands on the 4/4/1922 not of sound mind, also was pregnant and single. At this time she worked at a farm in Chelmarsh maybe Cleesmore.
I am trying to find out if she was buried as she was never talked about and I only found out by finding a postcard picture of her but all of her family has now passed away. Hope somebody can help me
Karen
Thank you Gwynne,
I am so shocked, as my Nan was her sister Doris May PREECE and she told my mum and I before she died that her sister killed herself with child in Pattingham lake, and since i have been looking have found that it was in River Severn. My mum has just passed away not knowing what happened, I cant thank you enough I will have to do some more investigating, I had a feeling that something was not being said, how sad for the child.
Karen
Hi Karen,
I hope the shock is somehow balanced by the satisfaction of finding out the truth at last.
Not wishing to cause you distress, the webmaster has discussed with you, on my behalf, if you wanted to see the postcard shown below or not. I understand you have expressed a keen interest to see it.
By coincidence, the postcard shows the precise area where the suicide took place. Mrs Mary Brown's cottage, mentioned at the Inquest, is the white cottage on the right. I date the postcard at approx. the same year as the incident.
Regards,
Gwynne
Thanks Gwynne
Its all very interesting I will go to Bridgnorth after xmas, thank you for all your info
Karen
Hello Karen,
I hope that the following may be helpful to you.
Following on from Gwynne's mention of a birth registration for Vera's daughter, I note that there is a birth registered in the Madeley district (in quarter 1 of 1922) for a Mary MERRICK - whose mother's maiden name is also registered as MERRICK. Coincidentally, perhaps, Vera's mother's name was Mary.
Additionally, the Will of Vera's father, George Henry MERRICK - who died on 28 July 1952, is indexed at this link:
https://probatesearch.service.gov.uk/Calendar?surname=merrick&yearOfDeat...
Although there are costs involved, a copy of the above-mentioned birth record will confirm whether or not the child is Vera's and a copy of the Will might contain a reference to her.
Peter
Hi Peter
I have sent for that birth cert hope it might help, thanks for advice will check the will out
thanks Karen
Hi Peter and Gwynne
I have received the birth cert for Mary Merrick born in Brosley area and her mother is Vera Merrick with the father unknown so will investigate futher thanks for all your help
Karen
Hi Karen,
Thanks for keeping us informed. In Bridgnorth alone, many people are interested in this.
The day before your last post that mentioned Broseley, my wife spent the day at Shropshire Archives looking at several avenues of research.
She established that;
Neither Vera MERRICK nor a MERRICK child were buried at Quatford Church in 1922.
No Mary MERRICK, or a child of any surname with a mother named Vera, were Christened at Madeley, Quatford or Chelmarsh at the relevant time.
Nothing of note was found in the Shrewsbury Chronicle.
We note the birth of a Joyce M MERRICK, mother's maiden name HARPER, was registered in the March qtr of 1922 in Madeley, the same qtr and district as Vera's daughter Mary MERRICK.
I assume you know that George MERRICK, father of Vera, has a memorial stone in Chelmarsh Churchyard. Unfortunately the burial register is still at the Church.
Gwynne
Karen,
Your quest has clearly struck quite a chord with us all.
What has emerged must be deeply emotional for you and, with this in mind, I have hesitated to possibly overload you with more suggestions. However, I hope that the following may not be unhelpful.
As both Mary & George MERRICK (Vera's parents) were long-term Bridgnorth locals, it might be that one or both of their funerals could have been reported in the local press.
As you are aware of their dates of death it may be worth researching the contemporaneous issues of the Bridgnorth Journal (or other local newspapers) to see if there are such reports.
Typically, such reports contain not only the names (and sometimes the locations) of the principal & secondary mourners but also the names of those unable to attend along with the names of those providing floral tributes.
Quite often, as I have discovered to my own delight on several occasions, these reports contain nuggets of invaluable information that in turn lead to key outcomes.
Peter
Hi,
I had intended to check but thanks Peter for your reminder that the Bridgnorth Journal newspaper reports about the deaths of Vera's parents, George and Mary MERRICK, may have provided some useful leads.
Only the one 'Family Announcement' was found for Mary's death in 1936, not the funeral.
Above from the Bridgnorth Journal issue dated 6th June 1936
After George Henry MERRICK's death in 1952 there were several 'Family Announcements' and a report of the funeral. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to provide any leads about Vera's baby Mary.
Above from the Bridgnorth Journal issue dated 1st Aug 1952
Above from the Bridgnorth Journal issue dated 1st August 1952
Above from the Bridgnorth Journal issue dated 8th August 1952
Above from the Bridgnorth Journal issue dated 8th August 1952
So, we still haven't been able to answer the original question - where is Vera MERRICK buried? and the new question - what happened to Vera's daughter - Mary?
Grasping at straws - is it even remotely possible that Vera's sister Edith, having married William SARGEANT in Wolverhampton District in Sept qtr 1922 then re-registered Vera's baby Mary as Audrey M SARGEANT in Dec qtr 1922?
Gwynne
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Hi Karen,
A sad but interesting event. A visit to Bridgnorth Library today provided some answers for you.
Firstly, I believe the farm where the MERRICK family lived was Cleedsmore Farm. It still stands today, next to the golf course at Astbury Hall and just South of Eardington Mill where my great uncle lived.
When she committed suicide, Vera wasn't pregnant as you mentioned. The Inquest report says that she had given birth to a female child on the 15th February and had been seeking an affiliation Order.
However, I can't see a MERRICK birth registration in Bridgnorth District at that time. Perhaps the child was registered under the father's name?
I guess that Vera would have been buried in Quatford Church which, although across the river, did cover the village of Eardington. Some years ago my wife and I recorded all the headstones in Quatford Churchyard but there wasn't one for Vera.
Below is the Inquest report as published in the 8th April 1922 edition of the Bridgnorth Journal. A few words have been lost due to the tight binding of the newspaper when it was filmed.
The families 'Letter of Thanks' was in the 15th April edition.
Hope it helps,
Gwynne