Caroline (Holloway) Thurkle (bef. 1815 - 1877)

Born before 26 Nov 1815 in Clerkenwell, Middlesex, England, United Kingdom

Descendants

Died 7 Jun 1877 after age 61 in St Olave Southwark, Surrey, England, United Kingdom

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Biography

Caroline Holloway was born in Little Bath Street (now Eyre St Hill), Clerkenwell, Middlesex, the daughter of James Holloway and his wife Mary Ann; and baptised at St Andrew's church, Holborn, on 26th November 1815 ^{[1] [2] [3]}. (Clerkenwell and Holborn are only about a mile apart, and later became part of the same registration district.) Her father's occupation was given as "Cheesemonger".

Likely parents: Her christening records name her parents as James and Mary Ann. I think her parents were probably James Holloway and Mary Ann Holloway nee Brocklehurst, who were both residents of Finsbury, London, when they married on 28th January 1808, at St Luke Old Street Church, Finsbury [11] [12]. Their birth years are estimated from an 1841 census record, also from Finsbury, that has James and Mary Holloway, aged 60-64, living in Finsbury ^[4]. See Research Notes for why these parents are more likely than alternatives. The relationships are marked as Uncertain to reflect the thin evidence.

Marriage: Caroline married William Thurkle, probably before 1839 (to judge by the 1841 census return), but I have found no record of it. They may have married before general registration began in 1837; or their marriage record may be among the registrations that were lost in the early days of the new system.

1841 census: Living on Friars Street, St George the Martyr, St George Southwark, London & Surrey ^[5]. (Notes: 1. 1841 census rounds adult ages down to multiples of 5; 2. Edward Holloway is presumably a relative of Caroline.)

1851 census: Living at 34 King Street, St Mary Newington, London/Surrey ^[6].

The registration of her daughter Emily's birth in 1854 indicates that Caroline made her mark rather than signed her name, indicating that she was not literate ^[7].

1861 census: Living at 2 Charlotte Place, Bermondsey, London & Surrey ^[8]

1871 census: Living at 32 West Street, Bermondsey, with her paralysed husband and three of their sons ^[9]. The census return says he is "paralised". (Notes: 1. William's name is misspelled Thirkley, but the other attempt at writing the name (for the fourth entry, which starts the next page) spells it Thurkle. 2. The entries either side of the page break are both in the name of George, but the ages suggest the second of these is actually Edward. 3. West Street is now named Enid Street ^[10])

Death: Caroline died on 7th June 1877 at 63 Long Lane, in the Leather Market district of Bermondsey, St Olave, Southwark ^[11]. The cause of death was diarrhoea. Her daughter, Maria Ellis, was with her and registered the death the following day, making her mark as she could not sign her name.

Death registration for Caroline Thurkle

Research Notes

Edward's baptism: [13]

Her marriage: I have not been able to find a marriage record and have resorted to ordering this in the hope there's been a transcription error in the databases [14]. Update: There was not.

Her parents' marriage and identities: From FindMyPast search [15], there are only three possibilities:

• James H & Mary Cadman, 1800, St James Piccadilly (where both were living) [16] - but a long gap before children? If Mary was from within 5 miles of London, then this is probably her, bapt Kensington 23 Jul 1775, daughter of John (a seedsman) and Grace [17].
• James H (of "Mouth Mims, Hertford", presumably South Mimms) & Mary Childs (of St James' Piccadilly), 1807, St James Piccadilly [18]. There are many possible baptisms for Mary Ann Childs near London from 1778-1798 [19]. But there is only one for James - christened 17 Jul 1782 in North Mimms, son of Caleb Holloway & Anne [20] [21] [22] However, there is a James & Mary Holloway in North Mimms in the 1841 [23] and 1851 [24] Censuses - but she is from North Mimms. This record need not spoil my proposal, provided they married in North Mimms, but there's no sign that they did - there are no marriages nearby (10 miles) from the right time period. Alternatively, there could be another James Holloway from South Mimms. FamilySearch does suggest another, but it is unsourced - James, son of George Holloway and Ann, born North Mimms 1 Nov 1782 [25].
• James H (bachelor) & Mary Brocklehurst (spinster), both residents of Finsbury, 28 Jan 1808, at St Luke Old Street Church, Finsbury [26] [27]. No Mary (or Ann) Brocklehursts were christened anywhere near London from 1775-1799, but the register DOES say she was a spinster, increasing the chance she could have given birth in 1821 (both could write their names).
• Until looking at the censuses of 1841 and 1851, I favoured the second option: soon before the birth of the first child, and with no shortage of possible baptisms for the mother. However, the third now seems more parsimonious, but does not by itself allow me to propose parents as I don't know their years of birth - and I do not know from where Mary Brocklehurst migrated to London.
• The 1841 census has three James Holloways in London old enough to be Caroline's mother. One is married to Mary (both 60-64, neither Middlesex-born) ^[12]. A second has James and Ann (both 50-54, neither Surrey-born) in Lambeth [28]; but tracing the birth of their youngest child identifies Ann's maiden name as Davis [29], and she married James in 1809 in Richmond [30]. The mother is named Ann in all the registrations of her children, never Mary Ann. The third 1841 census record has James married to Sarah, in Bermondsey [31].
• The 1841 census has several Mary Holloways old enough. This one is from Clerkenwell and has her with several daughters, but there are no candidate baptisms with James as the father [32]. This one from the Strand has her with Jane Holloway (26), but there are no London baptisms with James as father https://www.findmypast.co.uk/transcript?id=GBC/1841/0008084241&expand=true. This one from St George the Martyr, Southwark, has her with Maria (15) but again no baptisms [33]
• There is a great deal of room for doubt, but the 1841 census record of James and Mary in Finsbury, where James Holloway married Mary Brocklehurst in 1808, and (Clerkenwell being within Finsbury) where Caroline later said she had been born, leads me to tentatively infer that these are Caroline's parents.

Possible siblings: Searching for baptisms within 5 miles of Holborn with James Holloway as father and Mary Ann as mother yields the following possibilities (with an 11-year gap before):

Uncertain relationship:

• Mary, b 1808 bapt 30 April 1809 in Holborn, parents James Holloway and Mary [34]
• William, bapt 21 Jan 1810 in Holborn, parents James Holloway and Mary [35]
• Maria Susannah, bapt 12 May 1816, Paddington; James Holloway & Mary [36]
• Charles Holloway; bapt 24 Sep 1817, Holborn; James Holloway & Mary [37]

Caroline and full siblings:

• Caroline, bapt 26 Nov 1815, Holborn; parents James Holloway and Mary Ann [38]
• William Henry, b 1821, bapt 19 Aug 1821, d 26 Aug 1824 [39], Southwark; James Holloway & Mary Ann (living at Great Suffolk Street) [40]

Assigned to younger parents (see below):

• John James, n 1830, bapt 14 Jul 1830, St Marylebone; James Holloway & Mary Ann [41]
• William Cousins, b 1833, bapt 9 Dec 1834, Lambeth; James & Mary Ann(e) [42] [43]
• Anne, bapt 4 Dec 1836, Lambeth; James & Mary Ann [44]
• James, bapt 28 May 1837, Lambeth; James & Mary Ann [45]
• Mary Ann, bapt 25 Apr 1841, Lambeth; James & Mary Ann [46]

• Many of these children - William (8), Ann (6), James (4) and Mary Ann (but aged 9!) - are found together the 1841 census in Crosby Row, St Mary Newington, Newington, London & Surrey [47]. However, James (a stationer) is only 30-34 and Mary Ann only 25-30 - not old enough to be the parents of all the children listed above, and indeed not old enough to be Caroline's parents (she's listed as 20-24); if I have the right baptism for her, she was 26 herself. The household also includes a 25-29-year-old, Mary Holloway, listed as "Independent" - likely to be James' sister.

• Given the nine-year gap from 1821-1830, I am inclined to assign John James (b 1830) to this younger family, or to a further unidentified family, rather than as a sibling of Caroline. William Henry (b 1821) seems certain to be a full sib

Brocklehursts in London in 1841 and 1851: Only three families of Brocklehurst are in London in the 1841 census:

• Frederick (20, "cloth work"), George (55, "Ind"), Mary (45), Louisa (11) and Elizabeth (6), not London-born; Bow Lane, St Mary Le Bow, City of London, London & Middlesex [48]
• James (55, labourer) & Lydia (45), not London-born; Wellington Street, Stepney, London & Middlesex [49]
• John (45) and Henry (20), both silk manufacturers, not London-born; Milk Street, St Mary Magdalen, City of London, London & Middlesex [50]

In 1851, there are 17 Brocklehursts in London.

This is her death record from 1877 [51]

Sources

1. ↑ “Baptism: 1815 - Caroline Holloway.” London Metropolitan Archives; London, England; London Church of England Parish Registers; Reference Number: P69/And2/A/01/Ms 6667/17. Accessed January 18, 2023. [1]
2. ↑ “Baptism: 1815 - Caroline Holloway.” England Births & Baptisms 1538-1975 (Holborn 1815). Accessed January 13, 2023. [2]
3. ↑ "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NYNW-WP1 : 10 April 2021), Caroline Holloway, 1815.
4. ↑ “1841 Census: Monmouth Street, St Giles in the Fields, St Giles, London & Middlesex.” 1841 England, Wales & Scotland Census (HO107/673/2596). Accessed January 18, 2023. [3]
5. ↑ “1841 Census: Friars Street, St George the Martyr, St George Southwark, London & Surrey.” 1841 England, Wales & Scotland Census (HO107/1084/896). Accessed March 9, 2022. [4]
6. ↑ “1851 Census: 34 King Street, Saint Mary Newington, Newington, London & Surrey.” 1851 England, Wales & Scotland Census (HO107/1567/71). Accessed January 13, 2023. [5]
7. ↑ “Birth: 1854 - Emily Thurkle (Scan of Original Registration).” Births Jun 1854 (GRO: Newington, vol 1D, p 191)
8. ↑ “1861 Census Record for 2, Charlotte Place, Bermondsey, London & Surrey, England.” 1861 England, Wales & Scotland Census (RG09/325/275). Accessed February 8, 2022. [6] and [7]
9. ↑ “1871 Census: 32 West Street, Bermondsey, St Olave Southwark, London & Surrey.” 1871 England, Wales & Scotland Census (RG10/628/259). Accessed January 13, 2023. [8]
10. ↑ “A-Z New to Old Street Names.” maps.thehunthouse.com. Accessed January 13, 2023. [9]
11. ↑ GRO: St Olave Southwark, 1877 Q2, vol 1d, p 157.
12. ↑ “1841 Census: Monmouth Street, St Giles in the Fields, St Giles, London & Middlesex.” 1841 England, Wales & Scotland Census (HO107/673/2596). Accessed January 18, 2023. [10]