Minnie Charlotte Pritchard born about 1856 in Bermondsey, Surrey

For related information see www.the-kirbys.org.ukAncestor List, Place Index and Wills Index

Summary

Yet to be summarised.

Parents and family

Minnie's marriage certificate gives her father as Benjamin PRITCHARD and his occupation looks like 'Slater' but the handwriting is not very precise in its letter formation. On the 1881 Census, Minnie's husband Samuel KIRBY has his Mother-in-Law living with the family. She is age 64, name Martha PRITCHARD, born Brixton (central part of word is far from clear), Surrey, England.

It is far from certain who this Benjamin PRITCHARD was. Assuming he fathered Minnie after the age of 14, by the time of the 1871 Census he would have to have been at least 28, by the 1861 at least 18 and by the 1851 Census at least 8.
Candidate A, the Royal Naval stoker appears barely old enough. However, as he does not appear to have a service record listed amongst the National Archives online Naval service records, this could not be confirmed.

Candidate D, is to be preferred on several grounds -
  1. He has a daughter called Charlotte of approximately the right age and birth location (one of only two uses of Charlotte in PRITCHARD birth registrations of the relevant period, see below).
  2. His wife has the right age, christian name and birth location for Minnie's mother.
  3. He uses the same spelling of PRITCHARD.
Furthermore, although he was not of the right occupation, he was not a professional and so was more likely to move between jobs. 

Birth

Her marriage certificate gives here name as Minnie Charlotte PRITCHARD and her age in 1875 as 19. She was therefore born about 1856. 

I can find no Minnie PRITCHARD on the Birth Register indexes for 1854-1858 inclusive, amongst military overseas births, or on a searchable index of non-conformist birth registrations.

The only Minnie PRITCHARD entries I can find on the various censuses are -
It therefore appears that Minnie Charlotte PRITCHARD was either not her original name or not the name she routinely used.

Charlotte is a very rare name amongst the PRITCHARD registrations of that period, however, there was:
It therefore appears fairly certain that Minnie's birth was registered as Charlotte PRITCHARD and that she was daughter of Candidate D above. Prior to marriage she appears as Charlotte PRITCHARD on Census records. She therefore probably added Minnie at the time of her marriage, though it is unlikely to be possible to prove this from any other source. 

Childhood and education

Charlotte appears to have lost her father, Benjamin Pritchard, within four years of her birth.

The 1861 Census has her at 75 Fair Street, St John's Southwark, London. Age 4, name Charlotte Pritchard, born St John's South'k, Surrey (as were all the group, possibly out of lazyness). She was a scholar. She is with her mother
On the 1871 Census she is at The Bell (adjacent to 8 Little Tichfield Street, if not it), Marylebone, London with her unmarried sister. The group comprises a couple of widowed aunts as well -

Employment

The is no evidence of employment prior to marriage.

Marriage to Samuel Kirby

On 8th August 1875, in Emmanuel Church in the parish of Camberwell, she married Samuel John KIRBY. The account of their life together may be found in the Biography  biography of Samuel John KIRBY

Last Will and Testament

Death

Probably 1926 as the only Candidate Minnie C KIRBY death registration is in the June Quarter of 1926 in West Ham and for an individual aged 69 (i.e. with a date of birth of about 1857).

Burial

Unknown.

Descendants and notable relations

To be completed...

Any transcripts and images on this page are Copyright R I Kirby 2005 unless stated otherwise.