The Bottomley's of Ancoats

This is an incomplete story as I don't yet have all the details. I just wanted to jot down what I have at this point, so I don't lose track of where I'm at - as my daughter is now overdue, life is going to get very busy very quickly sooner rather than later!

We meet the family in 1901 on Marth 31st, the night of the census. William Bottomley is the head of this household and works as a flagger, someone who lays paving stones. He resides at 22 Marcer Street with his wife, Mary Ellen,daughter, Katie, and sons Herbert and William. William the son is my great grandfather and moved to Lincolnshire, at some point between 1901 and 1917 to marry my great grandmother, Lilian Smith - but that's another story.

17 Marcer Street in 1896, the house where my great grandfather was born.
Posted by Manchester Libraries.

The story gets complicated because I have found a William and Mary Ellen Bottomley at a nearby address in 1890, but Herbert, who would be around 5 years of age at this time is not present on the record. Perhaps he's spending the night with his biological father? Maybe that's why the couple's youngest son is called William - after his father William, and Herbert is named after his father? I have found a Herbert Kennedy born in nearby Salford - Kennedy being Mary Ellen's birth surname. My next step here is to buy the marriage certificate of William and Mary Ellen, which is around 5 years after the birth of Herbert, to find out if Mary Ellen is recorded as being a widow or previously married.

Back to Marcer Street, today this house and this street no longer exist. The area was bombed around 1940-1941 with at least 1 house being demolished. Eventually the area was purchased by compulsory order and being redeveloped. These days there's a Marcer Road, but not quite on the footprint of the old Street.

The blue circle is for high explosives, the red shading for demolished buildings. This map was created by
Manchester City Council City Architect's Department (Building Surveyor's Division) in 1940-1941.

As yet, I have been unable to find the family in 1911 (apart from my great grandfather). But as I continue to research, perhaps I will rediscover them, hopefully after the war having survived and prospering.


References:
Maps Collection. 2018. - Maps Collection. [ONLINE] Available at: https://luna.manchester.ac.uk/luna/servlet/detail/maps002~1~1~351132~123655?qvq=w4s%3A%2Fwho%2FManchester%2BCity%2BCouncil%2BCity%2BArchitect%252527s%2BDepartment%2B%252528Building%2BSurveyor%252527s%2BDivision%252529&mi=48&trs=49https%3A%2F%2Fluna.manchester.ac.uk%2F...%2Fmaps002~1~1~351132. [Accessed 05 September 2018].
Marcer Street Photograph: Flickr. 2018. Flickr. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/manchesterarchiveplus/6431339079/in/photostream/. [Accessed 05 September 2018].

Surname: Bottomley

This is the birth surname of my grandmother, Rita Bottomley (1925-2002). It is a location/habitational name from a hamlet in Calderdale, Yorkshire, called Bottomley. It is derived from the Old English words of 'botm', which can mean broad valley, bottom, ground; and léah, meaning piece of ground or woodland clearing (1)(2).

Roy Brown's Birth Certificate

As I mentioned in a previous post, my wife ordered my Dad's Birth Certificate for me this Christmas. This was very important to me because not only did he die over 12 years ago, but we had a complex and inconsistent relationship over the years. So, I'm always keen to learn more about him; even if it's just little pieces of data.

So, what new things did it tell me about my Dad and the wider family?

Firstly, it gave me an address that I hadn't known about previously. I find it so exciting to add new homes to the map and see how individuals and families move around.

Secondly, it told me that my Nana had kept her married name. She was married before meeting my Grandfather and I had wondered if she reverted back to her maiden name (which is what my mum has done); but now I know that she remained a Winterton. It also tells me that she's a Housekeeper. I need to do some research, but I think that it means she was a house wife. I'm assuming this because the trend seems to be that only records of "Housekeeper (Non Domestic)" seem to related to working outside of the home - for example in a hotel or boarding school.

Thirdly, it tells me that my Grandfather was a Bricklayers Labourer. This is exciting as I didn't have a clue what sort of work he did!

Fourthly, but probably least importantly, I know that for whatever reason, 12 days passed before they managed to register my Dad's birth. This isn't surprising as I imagine that they were both busy, Grandad with work and Nana looking after my Dad and her other children.


I was hoping for an example of their handwriting. Sadly, it appears that this was filled in by the registrar. There may be a reason for this, but as I'm still new to this, I'm not sure what it is! If you have any suggestions: answers on a postcard - or in the comments below!