Liverpool & South West Lancashire FHS - Forum

Catherine Bradshaw was born in 1839 in Overton Flintshire, the daughter of a carpenter. In the 1851 census, she is described as a waitress and is a visitor in the home of my great grandmother Maria Priest (née Dugelby) (plus her brother, three of her nine children and a servant) at 21 Sandown Lane, Wavertree. On 9 September 1861, Catherine Bradshaw of 7 Fletcher Grove, West Derby is the only witness to what appears to be the sudden death (in minutes!) from a burst blood vessel of 38-year-old Maria Priest at 7 Fletcher Grove, West Derby. There was no inquest or reference to a coroner and the death was registered the following day by a Richard Bradshaw (who as far as I can tell is no relation at all!). Maria was buried on 14 September 1861 at Stanley St Anne, West Derby.

Fletcher Gove no longer exists and it does seem to have been a rather 'transitional area' in 1861, with a lot of residents who were not born locally. It is possible that Maria Priest was also living there, though it would perhaps have been a bit of a come-down from Sandown Lane.

I can find no definite record of Catherine Bradshaw after that (though it is not that uncommon a name and I did find one death in Blackburn in 1896 that could possibly have been hers), and no newspaper story relating to either of them. I would be most interested to discover anything else about the death or about Catherine Bradshaw.

Sorry! That should read 1861 census for Catherine Bradshaw being a visitor at Maria Priests's house at 21 Sandown Lane.

1851 Catherine 11 is listed as daughter of Wm 40 carpenter and Martha 38 in Chester St Overton
sibs John 14, Margt 7, Elzbth 5 Emma 0.
I hope this is of help.
Same parents in 1841 Overton, Mary 8, Ellenor 5, John and Catherine.

There's a Catherine Bradshaw, est birth year 1839, died in Belfast, 1894. Did she have any connection with over there?

Thanks, Tina. Yes I've already got the 1841 and 1851 census data for her.

and

Thanks Fledge, I'll investigate, but I'm not aware of a Belfast connection.

Maria and her kiddies all born in Middlesex in 1861 where Catherine was a servant.
A very sad end for Maria dying so suddenly.
Sandown Lane was a des res back then.

Interesting John Emily Ellen and Robert Priest in 1871 are with
James & Robert Dugelby,in Finsbury London.
Robert 40 bn Yorks was in Wavertree 1861 census with Maria as a visitor.

Yes, thanks Tina, I have the 1861 census records for all the Priest family at 21 Sandown Lane, Edge Lane West Derby and Hornsey London, and Catherine Bradshaw was actually a visitor (described as a waitress) in 1861 at the 21 Sandown Lane address (and there was a servant as well). Yes Maria's children are described as being born in Middlesex, which technically they were, though that part of Middlesex was already within the built-up area of London by then, came within the LCC area in 1889; the whole county of Middlesex was abolished and became part of Greater London in 1965.

And yes, thanks, I have the 1871, 1881, 1891, 1901 and 1911 census records for all members of the family who were still alive and in the UK except Alice and Catherine Prudence who are the subjects of a separate topic I posted yesterday! Maria was not actually a visitor in Wavertree in 1861, she was Head of the household.