Albert William Woodhurst


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Brief biography

Albert William Woodhurst was born in 1891 to parents Walter Charles Woodhurst and his wife Julia Caroline (nee) Perry. His birth certificate [Birth Index: W. Ham 4a 273, 1891 (Dec)] states that he was born on October 30th 1891 at 6, Chester Terrace, Faraday Road in Leyton. His father was occupied as a boot laster and the informant was his mother. His parents' address at that time was 4, Annie's Cottages, Crescent Road in Leyton, whereas earlier in 1891 they had been living at 1, Annie's Cottages.

The above Faraday Road was later renamed Dawlish Road and bears this name to the present day. It branches off south-east from Leyton High Road (the A112). Chester Terrace is presumed to have been a subsidiary to it but no longer bears that name.

The significance of 6, Chester Terrace is unknown. At the time of the 1891 Census the only persons living there were two elderly widows [PRO Ref RG12 Piece 1344 Folio 93 Page 14]. One was Elizabeth Cavendish, aged 86, occupying one room, living on private income and born in Camberwell, Surrey. The other was Elizabeth Jones, aged 75 (or perhaps 78), occupying three rooms, a pensioner and born in Greenwich, Kent. It is not known whether they had a family connection with the Woodhursts. Possibly one or other of them served as midwife to Julia Caroline during Albert William's birth. There may be some significance in the fact that Walter Charles' uncle Richard William (1) Woodurst had been living in Camberwell in 1881, and so Elizabeth Cavendish may have been an old friend of the family.

The 1901 Census finds Albert William living with his parents at 34A, Ringwood in Walthamstow, misspelling their surname as "Willis".

He married Beatrice Maude Mansfield in 1915 [Marriage Index: W. Ham 4a 175, 1915 (Sept)] and produced by her the three children listed below. They subsequently emigrated to New Zealand.

Beatrice Maude died aged 74 and was buried at the Timaru Cemetery, New Zealand on July 8th 1969. Albert William died aged 89 and was buried there on August 10th 1981.

His children by Beatrice Maude Mansfield

  1. Albert Lawrence George Woodhurst - [Birth Index: W. Ham 4a 791, 1919 (Dec)]
  2. Iris Beatrice Woodhurst - [Birth Index: W. Ham 4a 639, 1924 (March)]
  3. Daphne Rose Woodhurst - [Birth Index: W. Ham 4a 27, 1933 (June)]

In 2001 Albert Lawrence George was living in New Zealand at 2/13, Hatton Street, West End, Timaru. He died aged 92 on Thursday February 2nd 2012 at Timaru Hospital.

Iris Beatrice married James Harry Kemp in 1948 [Marriage Index: Epping 5a 189, 1948 (June)] and produced one child Stephen. James Harry died aged 55 and was buried at Timaru Cemetery on October 25th 1977. In early 2007 Iris Beatrice was still living in Timaru.

Daphne Rose married into the Thomas surname and in 2001 was living in Pakuranga, Auckland, New Zealand.