Muriel Maude Williams (abt. 1880 - 1936)

Born about 25 Apr 1880 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Ancestors

Wife of Walter Oswald Watt — married 1902 in Victoria, Australia

Died 1936 at about age 55 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Biography

Muriel married Oswald Walt Watt in 1902 in Victoria.^[1]

In the 1911 census Muriel (age 30) was the wife of Oswald Watt at 53 Berkeley Square, W, St George Hanover Square, England.^[2]

She divorced her husband in 1913:

THE WATT DIVORCE. SYDNEY. September 17. Justice Gordon, In the Divorce Court today, gave his reserved Judgment on a case in which Muriel Maud Watt, petitioned for a. dissolution of her marriage with Captain Oswald Watt, on account of alleged misconduct with a woman unknown to petitioner, and with Miss Schilling. His Honor found the charge had been made out and granted a decree nisi.The petitioner was given charge of the child and respondent ordered to pay costs.^[3]

Muriel's marriage to Sydney T B Lawford was registered in the Apr-May-Jun quarter of 1914 in the St Martin district.^[4]

She divorced her second husband in 1924.

DOUBLE DIVORCE Lady Lawford Secures Decree HUSBAND ALSO CO-RESPONDENTLONDON, Feb, 22 Lady Lawford, formerly Muriel, daughter of Sir Hartley Williams, the Victorian judge, whose first husband. Oswald Watt, the airman; was drowned in 1921, secured a decree nisi for the dissolution of her marriage with General Sir Sydney Lawford, on the grounds of his misconduct with Mrs May Aylen. Colonel Ernest Aylen, husband of the co-respondent, secured a decree nisi at the same sittings of the court on the ground of his wife's mlsconduct with General Lawford. Lady Lawford said In .evidence that she married General Sir Sydney Lawford in London In 1914, having divorced her first husband. She and Lawford lived together till the outbreak of tho war, after which she had no settled home, Her husband was ordered to India in 1920, where both lived till they returned to England in 1921. Subsequently her husband returned to India, and she had not seen him since. She had been unhappy for the last two years, and she had received a letter In which he said it was impossible to live together again, In the other case. Colonel Aylen gave evidence that his wife went away with another man while they were living. In India In 1910, He forgave her andthey were happy. until 1922, when his wife refused to break off associations with Lawford. Subsequently she wrote refusing to have anything further to do with him. Mrs Aylen and General Lawford stayed at an hotel together In 1923. There were no children of either marriage.^[5]

Muriel's death was registered in 1936 in Victoria, Australia.^[6]

Lady Lawford Many friends in England and Australia will regret to hear of the death of Lady (Muriel Maud) Lawford, which occurred at her home in Domain road, South Yarra, on Sunday. Lady Lawford, who was the younger daughter of the late Sir Hartley Williams, a membei of the Supreme Court of Victoria, recently returned from England, where she spent the latter part of her life, occasionally visiting Melbourne. Lady Lawford had one son, Mr. James Oswald Watt, of Bilgola, Mt. Eliza. Her brother, Mr. George H. Williams, and her sister, Mrs. Pomeroy Greene, are the only other relatives in Victoria. Cremation took place at the Springvale Cemetery yesterday, only relatives being present.^[7]

Sources

1. ↑ Marriage: "Australia, Marriage Index, 1788-1950"
   Edwardian Index Victoria 1902-1913; Registration Number: 4625r
   Ancestry Record 1780 #4569565 (accessed 10 August 2022)
   Muriel Maud Williams marriage to Oswald Walt Watt in 1902 in Victoria.
2. ↑ 1911 Census: "1911 England Census"
   The National Archives of the UK (TNA); Kew, Surrey, England; Census Returns of England and Wales, 1911; Registration District Number: 5; ED, institution, or vessel: 09; Piece: 423
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 2352 #1375998 (accessed 10 August 2022)
   Muriel Watt (30), wife, in household of Oswald Watt (33) at 53 Berkeley Square, W, St George Hanover Square, England. Born in Melbourne.
3. ↑ THE WATT DIVORCE. (1913, September 19). Townsville Daily Bulletin (Qld. : 1907 - 1954), p. 2. Retrieved August 10, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article60382429
4. ↑ Marriage Registration: "England & Wales, Civil Registration Marriage Index, 1837-1915"
   England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes. London, England: General Register Office; Volume: 1a; Page: 1235
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record FreeBMDMarriage #30463484 (accessed 10 August 2022)
   Muriel M Watt marriage registered Apr-May-Jun 1914 in St Martin.
5. ↑ DOUBLE DIVORCE (1924, February 23). The Herald (Melbourne, Vic. : 1861 - 1954), p. 7. Retrieved August 10, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article243751176
6. ↑ Death Registration: "Victoria, Australia, Death Index, 1836-1988"
   The Victorian Registry of Births, Deaths, and Marriages; Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; Victoria, Australia, Death Records; Reference Number: 7016
   Ancestry Record 61650 #122665 (accessed 10 August 2022)
   Muriel Maud Lawford death 1936 in Victoria, Australia.
7. ↑ Lady Lawford (1936, August 11). The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), p. 10. Retrieved August 10, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article11901764

• Burke's Colonial Gentry