Emily Ralph / Dennis nee Ivall (1845-1911)

Emily Ivall was a sister of my great grandfather George Ivall (1853-1932). Their parents were David Ivall (1816-67) and his wife Elizabeth Ann (1817-92) nee Gibson, who had nine children. David Ivall was a journeyman coachmaker - meaning that he worked for other people. The available evidence indicates that he was not well off, so Emily would have grown up in a moderately poor, working- class household.

Emily was born in 1845 in the St Pancras registration district of North London. At this time, her family lived in Somers Town, which included the site (next to St Pancras Station) where the British Library is now located.

The 1851 census lists David (aged 34, a coach maker) and Elizabeth (33) living at 29 Bull Place, St Pancras with their children Henry (9), Georgiana (7), David (2) and Elizabeth Ann (8 months). Emily Ivall (age given as 3 but should be 5) is listed with her grandparents Thomas (aged 54, a coach-lace weaver) and Ann (54) Gibson at 49 Wilsted Street, St Pancras. 

David and his family moved from St Pancras to Southwark sometime between 1851 and 1853. By 1861, the family were living at 19 Nursery Row, Walworth, Southwark and consisted of David (aged 44, a coach maker), Elizabeth (43), Georgiana (17), Elizabeth (10), George (7), Louisa (5) and William (2). Emily is not listed with them. By then she would have been 15 and might have left home for work reasons eg she could have been living elsewhere as a servant. I have not found Emily in the 1861 census.

On 15 August 1864, Emily married William Ralph, at St Peter’s Church Walworth. Their marriage certificate shows that William, aged 25 was a mariner. His father was Thomas Ralph, a labourer. Emily was aged 19. Her residence at the time of marriage is shown as 19 Nursery Row (where her family lived). Her brother Henry and sister Georgina Jane were witnesses to the marriage (Emily witnessed Georgina’s marriage in 1866).

William Ralph in 1860

Emily and William had a child, Emily Elizabeth, in 1867. Another child, William, was born in 1869 but died in 1870. Emily’s husband William Ralph died on 17 March 1871 aged 32. His death certificate says that he was a stoker (someone who shovelled coal into the furnace of a ship’s steam engines) in the Royal Navy. He died from an aortic aneurism at the Royal Naval Hospital at East Stonehouse in Devon. The census in April 1871 showed Emily (aged 25, a widowed dressmaker) and her daughter Emily (aged 3) living at 125 Salisbury Place, Newington, Southwark. Another daughter, Rose Jane, was born later in 1871.

Emily married James Christmas Dennis (a railway guard) on 8^th April 1872 at St John’s Walworth. She was aged 26, he was 33. The 1881 census lists James (aged 42, a general dealer) and Emily living at 24 Green Hundred Road (a shop), Camberwell, which is close to the Old Kent Road. Living with them were Emily’s children from her first marriage, Emily (13) and Rosy (9) Ralph as well as Ann (7), Ellen (3) and James (1) Dennis, from her second marriage.

The family were living at the same address in 1891 and consisted of James (52, still a general dealer), Emily (45), Charles (9), Louisa (7) and Ada (5) Dennis. By 1901, the family at 24 Green Hundred Road were James (62, a general carman), Emily (55), Charles (19, a general dealer), Louisa (17) and Ada (15). Also in the household was Rose Barrett (widow, 29, a laundress) together with Rose’s children Charles (7) and Rose (1) Barrett (Emily’s daughter Rose had married Frederick George Barrett in 1891, but he died in 1899).

Charles Booth arranged a survey of London’s working class and their housing between 1886 and 1903. His team produced a map in which the roads were classified into 7 categories ranging from the poorest (1) to the most affluent (7). Green Hundred Road at the northern end was classified as category 2 (very poor, chronic want), the rest being category 3 (poor, 18s to 21s a week for a moderate family). The property at 24 Green Hundred Road no longer exists.

Emily Dennis nee Ivall

In 1911 Emily (65) and James (72, a retired carman) were living in one room at 492 Old Kent Rd, Walworth. The census return says that 10 children had been born to their marriage, of whom 7 were alive. GRO records show the following 7 Dennis births with Ivall as the maiden name

Ann Ralph Dennis (1873-1931)

Ellen Alice Dennis (1877-?)

James Dennis (1879-82)

Charles Ernest Dennis (1882-1942)

Louisa Susan Dennis (1883-1956)

Ada Dennis (1886-1973)

Florence Maud Dennis (1890-1890)

If Emily’s 3 children by her first marriage are included, it brings the total to 10.

Emily died in 1911 aged 65 in Camberwell. She was buried in a common grave in Camberwell Old Cemetery on 9 September 1911. There is no grave marker. Her husband James died in 1915 aged 76 and is also buried in Camberwell Old Cemetery in a common grave.

Emily’s eldest four children, namely Emily Elizabeth (1867-1970, she lived to the age of 102), Rose Jane (1871-1964), Ann Ralph and Ellen Alice emigrated to Canada. Bev, one of their descendants, has kindly provided me with information and pictures for this article.

Henry Ivall (1842-99), Convict and Royal Navy Sailor

Henry Ivall was born on February 1^st 1842 at 22 Willsted Court, Somers Town. He was the third of ten children born to my ancestors David and Elizabeth Ivall. Somers Town was an area of mostly poor housing in London near St Pancras station where the British Library is now located. Henry was baptised at St Pancras church on February 27^th 1842.

The 1851 census lists David (aged 34, a coach maker) and Elizabeth (33) Ivall living at 29 Bull Place, St Pancras with their children Henry (9), Georgiana (7), David (2) and Elizabeth Ann (8 months). David and his family moved from St Pancras to Southwark sometime between 1851 and 1853.

Henry worked in the coach maker’s shop with his father. There is a story¹ that David showed Henry a piece of finished work and asked how long it would be before he could do as well. He answered “Never!” and was chased out of the shop.

On August 7^th 1856, Henry, aged 14, was tried² at Middlesex County Sessions for the offence of “Stealing from the person of Thomas Rickett Lovell, a handkerchief, value 2s, his property.” He was found guilty of “Larceny from person” and sentenced to 4 calendar months in the House of Correction, Cold Bath Fields. This prison was in Clerkenwell and was notorious for its very strict regime of silence and also for the way in which the treadmill was officially used. Today, the site is occupied by the Mount Pleasant Royal Mail Sorting Office. The court record says that Henry had been in prison before.

The National Archives has a record showing that Henry voluntarily joined the Royal Navy on November 10^th 1857. He was aged 15 and was assigned the rating “Boy Second Class”. He signed up until February 1^st 1870. The 1861 census shows him as a Royal Navy sailor, ordinary 2^nd class, on board HMS Narcissus, a wooden hulled frigate. This ship was launched in 1859 and was powered by sails as well as a steam engine (that drove a propeller). It was crewed by 540 men.

1859 painting of HMS Narcissus by J Wood (National Maritime Museum, Greenwich)

In 1864, Henry signed (as a witness) the marriage certificate of his sister Emily when she married William Ralph in Walworth, S E London. I can’t find Henry in the 1871 census.

In 1872, banns³ were read for the marriage of Henry Ivall (a bachelor) to Ann Eliza Butterby (a spinster) at St Mary’s Church, Lambeth. As Ivall is a very unusual surname, I am fairly sure that the Henry Ivall named is the subject of this article. It seems that the marriage didn’t take place (there is no record of it in London Parish Records on Ancestry or on Free BMD), but I don’t know why. To add to the mystery, I can find no other records of anyone called Ann Eliza Butterby.

I can’t find Henry in the 1881 or 1891 censuses. He died on May 2^nd 1899 at St Saviour’s Union Infirmary in Dulwich (the building is now Dulwich Community Hospital). The death certificate gives his age as 61, whereas Henry was actually 57. Incorrect ages at death are common, especially when family members are not available to give the correct information. I am fairly sure that this is the “right” death certificate, because Henry Ivall is an uncommon name and I have information on all Ivalls in England at that time and can rule out other possible candidates. Henry was a scaffolder living at St Olave’s Chambers, Newington. The cause of death was phthisis (another name for tuberculosis), granular kidneys and uraemia. It was notified to the registrar of deaths by the Infirmary Superintendent.

Henry was buried in Brookwood Cemetery (in Surrey). His name is not in probate records.

Notes

1. Recorded by Dennis Endean Ivall (1921-2006), in notes on Ivall family history he consolidated in 1986.

2. From “Digital Panopticon” website www.digitalpanopticon.org, accessed 15 Sep 2017.

3. London Parish Records collection on www.ancestry.co.uk accessed 16 Sep 2017.

Louisa Crouch nee Ivall (1855-1898)

Louisa Ivall was a younger sister of my great grandfather George Ivall (1853-1932). This profile of her life contains information from John Mottram, who is her great grandson.

Louisa was born on December 29^th 1855 at 6 Pontypool Place, Southwark. She was the eighth of nine children (five boys and four girls) born to David Ivall and his wife Elizabeth. In 1861, David Ivall’s family were living at 19 Nursery Row, Walworth (South London) and consisted of David (aged 44, a coach maker), Elizabeth (43), Georgina (17), Elizabeth (10), George (7), Louisa (5) and William (2). Nursery Row no longer exists, there is a park where the road used to be. Louisa was christened on 31 July 1867 at St John’s, Walworth. Louisa was nearly 14 by then - such a late christening is unusual. Her father David died later that year.

Louisa was a witness to her brother George’s wedding on 17th May 1875. On 6 February 1876, she married George William Crouch, at St John’s, Walworth. The marriage certificate gives his occupation as “Japanner” which means someone who applied Japanese style black hard varnish called “Japanning”. They were both aged 20 and went on to have 7 children who were born between 1876 and 1888.

The 1881 census shows George and Louisa living at 73 Bingfield St, Islington with their two eldest children George (aged 4) and Louisa (1). The occupation of Louisa’s husband is given as “Deal Furniture Maker (Cabinet Maker)”. It seems that George and his brother Alfred worked in a cabinet making business founded by their father George John Crouch. G J Crouch and Sons, Cabinet Makers, is listed in the Business Directory of London 1884 with premises at Alpha Place, Caledonian Road and York Road, Kings Cross. The York Road establishment is close to Bingfield Street, where George and Louisa lived. By 1891, the family’s address was 97 Pembroke St, Islington and consisted of George (aged 34, now a Cab Driver Groom) and Louisa (34) and their children George (14, a bradawl maker), Louisa (11), Florence (9), Charles (7), William (6), Alfred (5) and David (3).

Louisa died on 25 April 1898 aged 42 in Islington Infirmary of phthisis pulmonalis (another name for tuberculosis). She was buried at Islington Cemetery, East Finchley in an (unmarked) common grave.

The family moved to Edmonton soon after Louisa’s death, where two of her sons were accidentally drowned. The inquest was reported in the Edmonton and Tottenham Weekly Guardian, Friday 4 August 1899 :

TWO BOYS DROWNED IN A BROOK – INQUEST

On Friday afternoon last (28 July 1899), Mr Langham, deputy coroner, held a lengthy inquiry at Cemetery House, Edmonton, respecting the deaths of two lads named David Crouch, aged 10 and William Crouch, aged 14, the sons of George William Crouch, a cabman who had only resided about a week at Wimborne Road on the Church Fields Estate, Lower Edmonton and who were drowned on the previous Wednesday evening (26 July 1899) while bathing in “Salmons” brook in a hole between six and seven feet deep.

 George William Crouch, the father, said that he only moved to the present address on Monday. He never knew the boys to go into the water before. He left home to go to work about 8.10 on Wednesday evening, both boys were then at home, but must have gone out soon after.

Victor Cann, aged 8, of 4 Wimborne Rd said he met the boys across the fields and they asked him if he was going to bathe, he told them no, but he accompanied them to the brook. William went into the water first and David followed afterwards. They seemed to slip and he saw no more of them. He called out to them, but as they did not come to the surface, he ran home and told his mother and a sister of the boys.

Louisa Crouch said that she gave her brothers permission to go out. They did not say they were going bathing. Shortly afterwards the lad Cann came and told her that they were in the water and could not get out. She sent her brother and another boy to the brook and afterwards followed herself but was not allowed to see the bodies of the deceased.

Alfred Mills said he undressed and dived into the water but could not find the bodies. Some rods were obtained and soon after the bodies were recovered. The witness had seen boys bathing at that spot before.

John Newby of Ponders End, who was in charge of the Fire Station the day the council had their outing to Yarmouth, said that he heard of the occurrence and proceeded to the brook with a hitcher and pulled out both the boys. There was a hole six feet deep in the bed of the brook at this spot.

Richard Fletcher of 12 Church Lane said that he helped recover the bodies.

PC Driscoll 372N said that he and Dr Morrow attempted to restore life by artificial respiration but unfortunately failed.

The jury returned a verdict of Accidental Death adding a rider to the effect that the proper authorities should be communicated with a view to having the hole filled up.

Police Constable Driscoll drew an excellent plan of the place where the accident happened for the guidance of the jury.

George Crouch died in 1907 aged 51.

William Ivall (1859-1940), plumber’s shopman

The tenth and last child of my great great grandfather David Ivall (1816-67) was William Ivall, who was born on 26 March 1859 in Southwark. In 1861, David Ivall’s family were living at 19 Nursery Row, Walworth and consisted of David (aged 44, a coach maker), his wife Elizabeth (43) and their children Georgina (17), Elizabeth (10), George (7), Louisa (5) and William (2). Nursery Row no longer exists. There is a park where the road used to be.

William’s father David died in 1867 when William was aged 8. In 1871 his mother Elizabeth (53, a general dealer) was living in Cottage Row, Rodney Road, St Mary Newington, Lambeth with her children George (18, a cabinet maker), Louisa (15, a domestic servant) and William (11). William appears in the 1881 census aged 22, a plumber’s labourer, living at 1 Vittoria Place, St Pancras with his mother Elizabeth aged 63, a charwoman.

On 17 April 1881 William (aged 22) was married at St Pancras Church to  Matilda Fordham aged 23, the daughter of a builder, They went on to have 8 children, namely Matilda Elizabeth (1882-1973), William Charles  (1883-1968), Elizabeth Jane (1886-1979), Harriett (b1888), David (1890-1), Ernest (1892-4), Albert Edward (1894-1969) and Nellie (1896-1973). They were baptised at St Mary’s Church, Islington.

William was employed as a labourer and then as a foreman by Patman & Fotheringham, Lead Merchants (later Cubits). Dennis Ivall’s notes say that, although only a short man, he used to take pride in lifting heavy rolls of sheet lead and is said to have won many a bet on being able to do so. William (aged 32, a plumber’s shopman) appears in the 1891 census living at 44 Freeling St, Islington with his wife Matilda (33) and their children Matilda (9), William (7), Elizabeth (5), Harriett (2) and David (6 months). William’s brother George Ivall (1953-1932) and his family were living nearby at 51 Freeling Street.

The family were still at 44 Freeling Street in 1901 and consisted of William (aged 42, a plumber’s shopman), Matilda (43), Matilda (19), William (17), Harriett (12), Albert (7) and Nellie (4). Charles Booth did a survey of London in 1898-9. He classifies the inhabitants of Freeling Street as being in category 3 (out of 7) “Poor. 18s. to 21s. a week for a moderate family.” Electoral registers show that William continued to live at 44 Freeling Street until 1910.

William and his wife Matilda

In 1911, the household consisted of William (52, a house decorator), Matilda (53), Matilda Elizabeth (29, an artificial florist), Elizabeth Jane (25, a machinist), Harriett (22, a machinist), Albert Edward (17, a boot warehouseman) and Nellie (14). They lived at 34 Harvist Rd, Islington. This road no longer exists but was near Arsenal Football Club’s new stadium at Ashburton Grove. The dwelling had 4 rooms. The census return says that William and Matilda had 8 children, 6 of which were alive in 1911.

William’s occupation is given as house decorator on the marriage certificate of his daughter Elizabeth in 1914 and as labourer on the marriage certificate of his daughter Harriett in 1915.

The 1921 census shows William, aged 62, a builder's labourer working for W Middleton (builder) of 73 Hornsey Road. William was living at 27 Harvist Road with his wife Matilda (63) and children Matilda Elizabeth (39, an artificial flower mounter), Albert Edward (27, a tailor's assistant, out of work) and Nellie (25, a framer, ladies handbags).

William’s wife Matilda died in October 1921 aged 63. She was buried in Islington Cemetery in Finchley. The burial register gives her address as 27 Harvist Rd, Islington. Electoral registers show William living there in the 1920s and 1930s. Some of his children also lived at the address, for instance in 1931 Nellie (with her husband Frederick) Betts, Matilda Elizabeth Ivall and Elizabeth Jane (with her husband Samuel Charles) Taylor. The 1939 national register says that William (a retired builder's labourer) and his daughter Matilda Elizabeth (an artificial flower maker) were living at 27 Harvist Road.

William was still living at 27 Harvist Rd when he died in August 1940 aged 81. He was buried in Islington Cemetery. There is no record of probate on his estate.

George Ivall (1853-1932), cabinet maker

George Ivall was my great grandfather. He was born on 21 Aug 1853 in Southwark, the son of David Ivall (1816-67) and his wife Elizabeth Ann nee Gibson (1817-92). George was the eighth of their ten children (three of which died in infancy). The 1861 census lists David Ivall, aged 44, a coach maker living at 19 Nursery Row, Walworth, South London with his wife Elizabeth Ann (aged 43) and their children Georgiana (17), Elizabeth (10), George (7), Louisa (5) and William (2).

David Ivall, George’s father, died in 1867. George was then aged 14. He was apprenticed to the piano-making trade but broke his apprenticeship and became a cabinet maker. In 1871, George (18, a cabinet maker) was living in Cottage Row, St Mary Newington, Lambeth with his widowed mother Elizabeth (58, a general dealer), sister Louisa (15, a domestic servant) and brother William (11).

On 17 May 1875, George married Alice Eliza Newman at Christ Church Somerstown, a district of London near St Pancras Station. He was 21 and she 19. She was born 1856 in Portsmouth, the daughter of Edmund Newman (1820-67), a millwright, and his wife Ann nee Creese (1820-74). The marriage was witnessed by Richard Newman (1846-1927), Alice’s eldest brother, and Louisa Ivall (1856-98), George’s younger sister. The marriage certificate indicates that Alice was illiterate.

George and Alice had five children namely Alice Elizabeth (1877-1939), George William (1880-1934), Rosa (1884-84), Rose Lily (1885-1965) and Albert David (1889-1960). All were born in Somerstown.

In 1881, George (aged 27, a cabinet maker), Alice (25) Alice (3), George (5 months) and their niece Eliza Hocking (11) were living at 5 Stebbington Street, St Pancras. Eliza was a daughter of Alice Newman’s sister Mary Jane Newman (1851-1927), who married William Hocking in 1868.

George’s daughter Rosa died in 1884 aged 5 months 10 days. The burial records for St Pancras Cemetery show that she was buried there on 6 August 1884. Her family’s address is given as 5 Stebbington Street.

Records show that George and his family moved house several times between 1881 and 1901, as can be seen from the table below

Year	Address	Record
1881	5 Stebbington Street, St Pancras	Census
1884	5 Stebbington Street, St Pancras	Burial of Rosa Ivall
1885	47 Drummond Crescent, St Pancras	School admission of George W Ivall
1889	16 Clarendon Place, Seymour Street, St Pancras	Baptism of Albert D Ivall
1889	51 Freeling Street, Islington	School admission of Alice E Ivall
1891	51 Freeling Street, Islington	Census
1896	33 Boleyn Rd, Hackney	School admission of Albert D Ivall
1899	61 Spencer Rd, Hackney	School admission of Albert D Ivall
1901	125a Holly Street, Hackney	Census

The 1891 census shows George Ivall (aged 38, a cabinet maker), Alice (36) and their children Alice (13), George (10), Rose (5) and Albert (2) living at 51 Freeling Street*, Islington. Charles Booth did a poverty survey of London in 1891. He classifies the inhabitants of Freeling Street as being in category 3 (out of 7) “Poor. 18s. to 21s. a week for a moderate family.” George’s younger brother William (1859-1940) and his family were living nearby at 44 Freeling Street.

By 1901 the family were living at 125a Holly St*, Hackney and consisted of George (aged 49, still a cabinet maker), Alice (47), Alice (23, a theatre bar manageress), Rose (15) and Albert (12). Their son George is not listed as he was in the marines and overseas. The inhabitants of Holly St are classified as category 5 in the 1898-9 Booth poverty survey meaning “Fairly comfortable. Good ordinary earnings.”

Electoral registers show George Ival living at 26 Sophia Cottages, West Hackney from 1905 to 1908.

In 1911, George (57, a general cabinet maker) was living at 76 Princess May Rd, Stoke Newington with his wife Alice (55) and children Rose (25, a restaurant waitress) and Albert (22, a general cabinet maker). The census return records that there were 4 rooms in the dwelling and that George and Alice had 5 children, 4 of which were alive in 1911. Their older children (Alice and George) had married and moved away by then.

Electoral registers show that George was living at 2 Graham Road, Hackney in 1918 and at 11 Bay Street*, Hackney from 1922 to 1932. The 1921 census lists George (aged 67, a retired cabinet maker) and Alice Eliza (65) Ivall staying with their daughter Rose Lily, who had married Walter Edwin Kebbell and lived at 9 Medina Avenue, Newport, Isle of Wight. Walter (aged 37) and Rose (35) are listed at the address with their children Joyce (7) and Winifred (6). Walter's occupation is recorded as "Brewer's manager, bottling dept" working for Whitbread Co Ltd at the Wighthall Brewery, Quay St, Newport. The census was taken in June 1921, so presumably George and Alice were visiting their daughter for a summer holiday. 

George died in 1932 aged 78 in Hackney. He was buried on 30th June 1932 in grave 2132, square C in Tottenham Park Cemetery.

After George's death, Alice went to live with her son Albert and his wife Florence at nearby 8 Mapledene Rd*, Dalston (Hackney), where she died on 12th May 1935 aged 79. She was buried in the same grave as George. 

* None of these houses exist now, their sites having been developed with new housing.