THE BERTRAM BRANCH

The Bertram branch begins with my paternal grandmother Rose Emily Bertram ⁽²⁰⁾, though she always seems to have used the name Rosie. She was born at 48 Seymour Place, Marylebone, London, on 17 Dec 1882, the daughter of Charles Anthony Bertram⁽¹⁰⁶⁾ and Emily Templeman⁽¹⁰²⁾.

Bertram generations

The Bertram branch of the family has so far proved difficult to trace, due to their being Londoners at the time of my grandparents and great grandparents, but possibly having moved into London in the mid-nineteenth century.

RoseEmily BERTRAM

1       Rose Emily Bertram

My father’s mother was Rose Emily Bertram ⁽²⁰⁾. She was born, according to her Birth Certificate, at 48 Seymour Place, Marylebone, London, on 17 Dec 1882. On 2 Dec 1903 she married Percy Stowell⁽¹⁹⁾ at St. Paul’s Portman Square, St. Marylebone. The celebrant was the Rev. Reginald Stowell, Percy’s brother, and witnesses were Emily Templeman, Leonard Tatham who was Percy’s uncle, Emma T. Stowell one of Percy’s older sisters, and Rhoda Bertram, whom I cannot place with confidence. On the marriage register Rose Emily's address is given as 5 St. Andrew's Mansions, Manchester Street, London W. She and Percy had three children (see the entry for Percy Stowell).

Some time in 1918 Rose Emily, at a time when the family were living in Southport, ran away with the then Vicar of Holy Trinity, Southport, Frederick Lindon Coulson Parkyn. He had been Vicar there since 1909. I am not sure of anything about their lives together, but they cannot have been easy. They had two children, Peter Parkyn, born I know not when or where but possibly abroad, and Rose Mary Parkyn, who was registered in Luton. Peter married and had a daughter. Rose Mary married, but died shortly afterwards.

Rose Emily was always known to us as “Granny Parkyn”, though we barely knew her. She died on 10 Dec 1962, at St. Andrews Hospital, Dollis Hill, Willesden, London. On her Death Certificate her name is given as Rose Emily Parkyn of Flat 4, 15 owis Square, London W11, and she is described as the widow of Percy Stowell, retired company director and secretary.

Charles Anthony Bertram

At the time of the 1881 census, Charles Bertram ⁽¹⁰⁶⁾ was living at 27 Cambridge Terrace, then part of Sussex Gardens in Paddington, London. His age was recorded as 28, and his place of birth as Southwold, Suffolk. The head of the household was Rhoda Lawrence, his mother, and also in the household was Alice Bertram, aged 29, a daughter of Rhoda Lawrence, and also born in Southwold.

In the marriage register of St. Mary's church, St. Marylebone, is recorded Charles Anthony's marriage to Emily Templeman⁽¹⁰²⁾ on 4 Sep 1882. His age is given as 30, and he was then living at 48 Seymour Place, and is described as a jewellery salesman. It would therefore appear that he was born between about April and September 1852, but I have so far found no birth entry in the GRO index.

In the register entry for his marriage, his father is given as George Bertram⁽¹⁶³⁾ (deceased), a contractor. From the 1881 census entry his mother was Rhoda Lawrence⁽¹⁶⁷⁾.

He apparently died before Rose Emily got married, as he is so listed on the entry in the marriage register. I have not so far found any entry in the GRO index for his death between 1882 and 1903.  Emily Templeman’s father may have been a George Templeman. I do not know the name of her mother. That side of the family may have come from Suffolk.

George Bertram

All I know of George Bertram⁽¹⁶³⁾ at the moment is that he is given as the father of Charles Anthony Bertram in the registry entry of the latter's marriage, that he was already dead at the time of that marriage, 04 Sep 1882, and that he was described as a contractor. I have so far found no evidence of his marriage to Rhoda Lawrence, who is indicated to be Charles Anthony's mother in the 1881 census. Nor have I found any direct evidence yet of his birth or death. So far, the Bertram branch has not been traced beyond him. If we guess that he was about 30 when Charles Anthony's sister Alice was born, then he himself would have been born around 1822. There is an IGI record of a baptism of a George Bertram at Bramfield, in Suffolk, on 29 Jul 1824, son of George Bertram and Elizabeth. This is a possible because Rhoda Lawrence was probably born in Westhall, Suffolk and their two children Charles Anthony and Alice Bertram were born in Southwold, Suffolk. Southwold, Westhall and Bramfield form the apices of a triangle with sides around 10 km in length, with Southwold on the coast, Westhall 10 km ENE and Bramfield ESE so that Westhall is some 10 km north of Bramfield. However, there is no direct evidence at present that this is the correct George Bertram.

Children of George Bertram⁽⁶³⁾ and Rhoda Lawrence⁽¹⁶⁷⁾ (née ?)

I do not know when or where George Bertram died, only that it was before 4 Sep 1882.

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© John Stowell 2005