CreativeGraces.net
Genealogical
Research
Index

INDEX

GenHome

Welcome & Overview

Conditions & Abbreviations

Research Tips

DNA & Genealogy

Quick Name Index

Family Name Summaries

Contact Info

A GRACE Family of England
From C19th Essex, to Kent, Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Lancashire & C20th/C21st Greater Birmingham

- This is the 2008 update of our family story -

Part 1: Uncertain Origins and The Continuing Search for My Family Roots (1811-1836)

Part 2: The Early Days in Ramsgate, Kent (1836-1851)

Part 3: The New Life in Ashford, Kent (1851-1896)

Part 4: The Yorkshire Connection (1861-1877)

Part 5: The C19th/C20th Derbyshire Families

Part 6: The C20th Yorkshire Families

Part 7: The C20th Families of Greater Birmingham the West Midlands

Part 8: My Family Into the C21st

Part 1: Uncertain Origins and The Continuing Search for My Family Roots (1811-1836)

My family has indeterminate roots in the early C19th with the current head of the family tree, Jeremiah GRACE, my 3xGGF. By his own testaments (census returns) he believed he was born in Colchester, Essex c1811/1812, however no baptismal records have been found in the Colchester or surrounding area, and no obvious parents or siblings. His Old Testament name suggests Non-Conformist origins which necessitated a wider UK search (SE England), including adult baptisms into the early 1830's (relevant if Jeremiah was a Baptist, although his later life (marriage and children's names) does not support this). GRACE was also a name, like TEMPLE, PILGRIM or BISHOP, sometimes used to name church foundlings, therefore Jeremiah may have been an orphan, which may account for the lack of records. Since the early 1980's a more than 25-year search has provided no paper clue to Jeremiah's origins.

He may have been mistaken about his place and date of birth hence my search for any Jeremiah GRACE, baptised between 1800-1830, anywhere in the UK & Ireland (the latter country having a known concentration of that family name), although there is no evidence to connect this family with the noble Irish or Kilkenny families. All potential spelling variations are also of interest which include GRACE, GRACEY, GRACIE, GRACEY, GRAYES, GRAYS, GREYS & GRICE.

The search for my surname roots, which started in 1981, goes on!
Where the paper trail disappears new genetic genealogical techniques may add a new dimension. You can follow results here.
More on "GRACE in Essex: The Search for the Essex Man, Jeremiah"

Part 2: The Early Days in Ramsgate, Kent (1836-1851)

Jeremiah’s first official record is when he signed his marriage certificate, while Mary Ann BOWLES, his new wife, just made her mark. There were no known family witnesses to the marriage to help identify relatives of Jeremiah. Mary Ann was the daughter of a Ramsgate boatman. They married in St. George’s church in Ramsgate, Kent. Jeremiah was a Coachpainter. How and when he arrived in Kent by 1836 remains a mystery. If he came from Essex then it would likely to have been by boat across the Thames Estuary or via London. It is unknown whether he was apprenticed in the trade and is not found in any trade directories for the period. His title did not include "Master" or "Journeyman". It is unfortunate that Jeremiah & Mary Ann's marriage occurred just one year too early to benefit from family details appearing on marriage certificates as a result of the Act of General Registration in 1837. This has provided the biggest obstacle to my search. As a coachpainter, Jeremiah most likely worked for one of the small coachmaking firms in Ramsgate town.

The "Mother Church" for Ramsgate was St Lawrence, Thanet. Strangely, Jeremiah & Mary Ann's marriage was found in the Bishop Transcript copy but not in the St George's Ramsgate original. The two witnesses, Michael RYAN & Elizabeth REED, were perhaps no more than friends of the couple or professional witnesses. In case they are relatives then GRACE = RYAN and GRACE = REED marriages in the area prior to this date are sought. St George's church was built in 1827.

William GRACE, their only son (my 2xGGF, and therefore the younger head of our family tree), was born in 1840 at 2 Belleview Cottages, Ramsgate. The 1841 census shows the family still living in Ramsgate, but at King Street also with their first child Harriet Anne GRACE (1838). A mariner and his wife, William & Martha STEAD, were lodgers:

The 1851 census in Kent showed the imminent relocation of the family from Ramsgate to Ashford. Jeremiah was lodging with other coachpainters at the home of beerhouse keeper George AUSTEN in New Rents, on the Ashford 1851 census, while at Ramsgate, probably taken on another day, Jeremiah was present with Mary Ann & children at 1 Belle Vue Hill [Note: the family is listed as GOWER in the Ramsgate Census Index]. By 1851 daughters Rosina GRACE (1841), Mary Ann Rebecca GRACE (1843), twins daughters Martha GRACE & Elizabeth GRACE (1848), and baby Ellen GRACE (1851) had been born. Rosina, the only child lost before maturity, died in 1845. 6 shillings were paid for her '4 foot grave between L & M' at St. George’s Church, Ramsgate.

In 1842 the first rail links in Kent were being built and in 1847 the Carriage Works for SE Railways was established in Ashford. 1851 represented the start of boom time & Jeremiah was in the vanguard of the rapidly expanding railway coachbuilding business, no doubt leaving less profitable road carriage construction for an employer who could pay more. In 1872 carriage and wagon staff could expect a minimum wage of 15 shillings per week. By 1881 SER's works dominated Ashford town. In Bagshaw's Directory of 1847 for Ramsgate, Jeremiah could have been working for either George BURGESS of King Street (the street in which the GRACE family lived), or Robert PANTONY of Turner's Place.

Geographical notes:

King Street, Ramsgate, was just down the hill from Belleview Cottages. Part of the old Belleview Cottages was named Belleview Avenue in the 1990's, with some old buildings and workshops backing onto Belleview Road (previously Belleview Place in 1849). The other part of Belleview Cottages has been demolished and in the 1990's was a group of garages attached to a modern block of flats. Belleview Road now stretches beyond Holy Trinity Church. The hill previously named Belleview Hill becomes the extended part of the Plains of Waterloo in Ramsgate.

New Rents in Ashford still exists, however it has been completely modernised as a part of Ashford's modern pedestrian precinct. Modern buildings attempt to maintain the old character. The pub on the corner with Castle Street may have been the one run by George AUSTEN in 1851, although no name was given, and his beer house may not have been the only one in New Rents at that time.

Part 3: The New Life in Ashford, Kent (1851-1896)

The complete family arrived in Ashford probably sometime shortly after the 1851 census. The family were certainly in the town by 1857 when the eldest daughter, Harriet Anne GRACE, married. The 1861 census shows the family to be resident at Churchyard (St. Mary's), Ashford, by which time son William GRACE had left for Yorkshire (see Part 4). For the period 1871-96 the family were in Hemsted/Hempstead Terrace.

Jeremiah GRACE most likely worked at the Ashford Carriage Works painting coaches. A possible accident or illness left him with paralysis by the 1871 census.

Local street map of Ashford showing New Rents (top left). Hemsted Terrace (bottom left) & St. Mary's Churchyard (middle right)

In October 1857 Harriet Anne GRACE married Francis Charles GIFFORD. Their first child Frances Rosina GIFFORD (Rosina Frances in GRO index & BC) was born in August of the following year. Nothing more is known of this family except that Rosina Frances GIFFORD was living with the GRACE family from early on in Ashford (1861), and by 1881 had an illegitimate daughter Rosina Mabel GIFFORD born in June 1880. It appears the GIFFORDs left the Ashford area (not on any census 1861-1901) for reasons yet to be determined (possibly emigration), and had left their daughter in the care of the grandparents. Harriet was a witness to sister Mary Ann Rebecca GRACE's wedding in 1863, which is the last date recorded for her. Records possibly indicate a 1Q 1887 marriage for a Frances Rose GRACE in West Ashford (to William COOPER or William Charles GIBBENS) and her daughter's possible marriage in 2Q 1902 Camberwell, London (to James FOLEY or Charles James KEALY). Further investigation into the GIFFORDs (census data) suggest they may have emigrated.

1880 was a year of illegitimate children for the family as one of the GRACE twins, Elizabeth GRACE, had a daughter Lily Josephine Barnard GRACE in May 1880 at 136 New Town, Ashford. The birth did not occur at home, but Lily was on the 1881 census at Hemstead Terrace. No father was given on the birth certificate but it is interesting to speculate from the name whether a certain Joseph BARNARD was in the area at the time. The 1881 census does reveal a family headed by a James BARNARD, a 28 year old upholsterer with his wife Lydia and three young sons, however no Joseph. Elizabeth later married Austen ARTLETT, a man 13 years her junior, in 1885 and had sons Charles Frederick ARTLETT (1886), Arthur ARTLETT (1888) & William Austen ARTLETT (1889). The family lived in Ashford, then Maidstone (1891) before moving to Wandsworth, South London (1901). Charles married there in Dec Qtr 1910 and William Austen ARTLETT died there in Dec Qtr 1929 (aged 39). Austen died there Sept Qtr 1900 (aged 26) while Elizabeth survived until aged 82 dying in Mar Qtr 1930. Elizabeth ARTLETT was present in the1901 census in Battersea (St Andrew Parish) at 3 Corunna Terrace, confirmed as a widow, with sons Charles F ARTLETT (14) a warehouse clerk, Arthur ARTLETT  (13) & William A ARTLETT  (11). Also present was Elizabeth's daughter Lily, but not as GRACE (20), with occupation as Herb Packer Drug. Lily has been found to have died 1936/37 in Lambeth, as an ARTLETT, suggesting her adoption, formerly or otherwise.

Daughter Mary Ann Rebecca GRACE, present in 1851 & 1861 (as Mary Ann, a 17 year old servant) married 21 year old Ashford fireman Barnes Usherwood SNELLING on Christmas Day 1863.  Mary Ann may be the one who died in Wandsworth in 1883 aged 40. They are not found on the 1901 census. A number of SNELLING children are registered in West Ashford in the period following the marriage which include the related named William Thomas Usherwood SNELLING (Dec Q 1864) and Ernest Usherwood SNELLING (Jun Q 1870). There are no registered births for the family after the 1870 entries. The family were in Tunbridge Wells in 1871 with children William T SNELLING (6), Barnes SNELLING (4), and Ernest SNELLING (10m) and not on the 1881 census, therefore may have emigrated. Question is if Mary Ann went to join her sister Harriet?

[Seeking more information on the history of the SNELLING family for any known GRACE family history.]

In 1871 there was a lodger, Benjamin HOLE (17), a Factory Labourer, while in 1891 there was only the widowed Mary Ann GRACE [midwife, sick] & daughter Martha GRACE. Also resident was a Daisy BRETT (8) a Nurse child & Scholar. It is assumed that unmarried Martha GRACE stayed on to look after her mother until Mary Ann's death in 1896. The future of 53-year old Martha beyond her appearance in Ashford as an unmarried laundress in 1901 is unclear. It is possible she lived with some of her relatives nearby - the details have not been confirmed.

[Seeking more information on the history of Martha GRACE from 1901.]

Youngest child Ellen GRACE married George Thomas SWEETMAN in June 1875 in Ashford. She was already carrying their first child at the time of their wedding and they went on to produce a large family: George John B. SWEETMAN (1875), Helen Violet G. SWEETMAN (1877), Edward William J. SWEETMAN (1879), Alice Maud Elizabeth SWEETMAN (1880), Frederick Ernest SWEETMAN (1881), Alfred Harold SWEETMAN (1882), Arthur Reginald SWEETMAN (1884), Maud Isabel SWEETMAN (1885), Charles Herbert SWEETMAN (1886) & Henry Ernest SWEETMAN (1889). The SWEETMAN family lived near the GRACE family just around the corner at in Hemstead Street on also census to 1901. Descendants of this family live in Ashford today but have no GRACE family history to relate.

For the history of Jeremiah & Mary Ann's only son, William GRACE (my 2xGGF), please refer to Part 4.

Geographical note:

Hemstead Terrace disappeared in the late 1980’s. It has been renamed Codlington Road, where the original part of Codlington Road (to the west of Hemstead Terrace) is now part of the southern leg of the Ashford Ring Road. The actual row of terraced houses has been demolished and replaced by a car park. Town maps do not indicate numbering of houses, however, census numbering suggests the odd numbered houses were in excess of even numbers, and therefore were the houses on the southern side of the street. The corner pub, "The Market Inn" in 1871 is now named "The Wig & Gavel". The "Invicta" pub is still on the corner of Hemstead Street in derelict land, and Hemstead Street leads only to a multi-storey car park.

Part 4: The Yorkshire Connection (1861-1877)

As a coachbuilder William GRACE, my 2xGGF and the younger head of the family tree, the son of Jeremiah & Mary Ann GRACE, appeared to move on from one railway coachbuilding centre to another. By the 1861 census William was lodging in the house of William & Ann SAUNDERS (actually SANDERS) at 72 St. Sepulchre Gate, Doncaster in Yorkshire, a family of Leicestershire origins. In addition to their two young sons, William SANDERS' sister, Charlotte SANDERS, a 17 year old milliner, and William GRACE's coach making colleague William PETT also from Ramsgate, Kent were resident. GNR's Locomotive & Carriage Building Works had opened in Doncaster in 1853.

Clearly romance bloomed and William GRACE married Charlotte SANDERS in 1863 at Balby & Hexthorpe, Doncaster, ensuring the GRACE family line. There are stories from within the family that the match was not approved by the SANDERS family, who as relatively wealthy master craftsmen (gunsmiths) with numerous shops in Leicestershire, may not have approved of their youngest daughter marrying the lodger. William & Ann SANDERS were the witnesses to the marriage.

	William GRACE in his early twenties. The photo was taken in the early 1860's Doncaster, Yorkshire by A&G Taylor, Photographers to the Queen, around the time of his marriage to Charlotte SANDERS.
	The young William GRACE & Charlotte GRACE nee SANDERS The photo was taken at the studio of D. Brownsworth, The Studio, Otley Street, Skipton, probably shortly after their marriage in 1863. The couple would be in their mid to late twenties.
	William GRACE (taken in the 1880's?). The photo was taken in Ashford at the studio of A. T. De'Ath. The back shows the forwarding address to be "15 Shaftsbury Street of Osmarton Road, Derby". It may have been taken at the funeral of his mother in 1896 or to celebrate some other major family event which necessitated his attendance in the town (e.g. 1875 & 1885 weddings). William looks in his late forties/fifties.

The new Yorkshire family of William & "Lottie" GRACE remained in the area initially. In the 1871 census they resided at Portland Terrace, Doncaster, however by the1881 census they were at 4 Byron Street, Normanton near Derby, probably following the railway business to another noted centre. The new Derby Carriage & Wagon Works opened in Derby in 1873.

In the1891 census they were resident at 57 Whittaker Street, Derby. William died in Derby in 1902. Lottie died in 1924 Smethwick, Birmingham, having been living with relatives there.

The children of this union were the Doncaster born un-named girl (born and died in 1867), Ernest Sanders GRACE (1869), William Henry GRACE (1870) my GGF, Charles Edward GRACE (1871), Florence Ellen GRACE (1874), & Maud Martha GRACE (1876). By 1878 the family were in the Shardlow registration district of Derby. Maud Martha died in 1878 followed by her sister Florence Ellen a year later. The surviving Derby children were Edith Mary GRACE (1879), Frederick George GRACE (1883), & Walter Bertie GRACE (1885).

Part 5: The C19th/C20th Derbyshire Families

a. The eldest son of William & Lottie, Ernest Sanders GRACE ("Sanders GRACE I" *) married Sarah Jane SHEPHERD in Derby in 1891. Their eldest child, Daisy GRACE was born in 1892. Missing from the family in the 1901 she was visiting elsewhere as she is listed on the census in the Derby area. There is a Dec Qtr marriage in Derby to either a Thomas E. HOLT or John H. SHARPE. 

Ernest & Sarah's two other children Ernest John GRACE (1893) and William Sanders GRACE ("Sanders GRACE II") (1894) were born in Lancaster. In 1901 the family were at 22 Edith Street in St Luke's Parish, Lancaster. Ernest was still a Railway Coach Builder. Other children born to the couple: Mabel GRACE (1896-98), Frank GRACE (1899-99) & Reginald GRACE (1905-5). 

Sarah Jane GRACE died of TB aged 45. Her death was registered in Kings Norton in 1915. Ernest Sanders GRACE remarried to a Mabel G. M. LANGE or PAVELY (both listed in GRO index) at St. George's, Hannover Square, London in 1919. There are no Mabel PAVELY births, but the birth index has a Mabel Delia E. LANGE registered at W Derby in 1895. She may have been a young war widow at 24, but no previous marriage to a PAVELY found to account for the double entry, so may be a transcription error. Ernest was more than twice her age. There are no known children from this union.

Ernest John GRACE, a coachbuilder, was married in 1915 at Kings Norton, Birmingham to Daisy E. STONE. The couple had three daughters named Kathleen M GRACE (1920), Mabel GRACE & Anne GRACE. No more history is known about this branch of the family or their location after this time.

William Sanders GRACE (1894) married Evelyn May DAWES in 1917 Smethwick, West Midlands. Billy worked as an engineer at the Austin Motor Company. Their only child Vera Evelyn GRACE (?1917) died aged 18. The couple, in their mid 90's, were resident in a retirement home in Portsea, near Portsmouth, Hampshire in 1990.

This branch of the GRACE name died out as there were no surviving sons.

b. Second son William Henry GRACE (my GGF) married Susannah BRADLEY in Derby in November 1893. Their children born in Lancaster were Nellie GRACE (1896), William Sanders GRACE ("Sanders GRACE III") (1897) my grandfather, John Frederick GRACE (1899), Walter GRACE (1901-2), Marion GRACE (1902), Doris May GRACE (1904-7), Harold GRACE (1908), Edith GRACE (1910), Nora GRACE (1913-14) & Eric GRACE (1914). Bill & Sue followed the family of Bill's older brother to Lancaster. In the early C20th this family came to reside in the Birmingham area.

As a result of the closing of the Lancaster Railway Carriage & Wagon Company's works in Caton Road in 1908, over 2000 men were unemployed. In 1902 the Metropolitan Amalgamated Railway Carriage & Wagon Co. Ltd., was established and work was centralised in Saltley, Birmingham, resulting in the closure of LCWW six years later. The GRACE coachbuilders were those who found work in Birmingham. 

c. Third son Charles Edward GRACE married Mary Ann HOLLOWAY (aka Polly) in late 1895 at Derby. Charles worked on the railways whereas Polly was a station barmaid. The newly weds moved to work on the railways at Skipton in Yorkshire and founded the second Yorkshire GRACE family for the C20th. See Part 6 below.

d. In addition to the first born child (an un-named girl) in 1867, the couple's others daughters died young: Florence Ellen GRACE (1874-79), Maud Martha GRACE (1876-78) & Edith Mary GRACE (1879-98).

e. Fourth son Frederick George GRACE was also a Derby coachbuilder, being apprenticed there, where he reportedly worked with the refurbishment of Queen Victoria's railway coach. He died in 1966. He married Sarah Ann WITHEY in Derby in 1905, and worked for a short-time at the Lancaster carriage works before it closed. The family moved to Smethwick, where they lived at 11 Piddock Road, apparently backing on to Billy & Evelyn GRACE in Regent Street. Their children included Dorothy Maud GRACE (1906; "Dolly" m. Fred HERBERT in 1932 & was living in Smethwick until the 1980's), Phyllis Ada GRACE (1907; m. Arthur BAGGOTT in 1930 Smethwick). Reginald GRACE (1913) & Wilfred GRACE (1917). Sarah Ann died in 1918 of TB. Some early children who did not survive childhood may have been born in Lancaster (being investigated).

• Reginald GRACE married Linda Ellen WILLIAMS in 1937 (d. 1945)  Child: Reginald Barry GRACE (1937) m. Christina Maureen KELLY in 1959; son Robert GRACE (1961), living near Minden, Germany, with wife Gudrun HARMENING (m. 1992) and daughter Michelle GRACE (1993). Reginald remarried to Rose.
  
• Wilfred GRACE m. Rose COOK in 1938 and had three children: Dorothy GRACE (1939), Wilfred Derek GRACE (1941; m. Betty FULLWOOD in 1962) & Patricia GRACE (1943). Dates and extended family under research.

f. Fifth son Walter Bertie GRACE (1885) became the postmaster at Holbrook near Derby. He married Phyllis FOULK in Derby in 1909. Their children are:

• Doris GRACE (1909, m. John HOWE in 1934; In 1984 Doris HOWE published 'The Story of Holbrook');
• Frederick GRACE (1910; m. Dorothy ALTON in 1935; children:
  • Judith Mary GRACE (1938);
  • Robert Frederick GRACE (1941; m. Jennifer? - children unknown);
  • Anthony Ernest GRACE (1944; m. Jane? - children unknown);
• Edith Eleanor GRACE (1917, m. Joseph BROWN in 1941);
• Olive GRACE (1920, m. Howard OLDKNOW in 1941);
• Ernest GRACE (1922) - believed to be unmarried;
• Ronald GRACE (1925 = Jean SPENCER in 1950; children:
  • Peter Ronald GRACE (1951; m. ? - children Gideon GRACE (m. Kadriye DURAKLI in 2002) & Kelly GRACE (m. Robert HALLAM in 2003);
• Richard John GRACE (1952; m. Noella - children Leanne GRACE (m. Christopher BENSON in 1991);
• Andrew Charles GRACE (1959; m. Jacqueline - children Mark GRACE & Emily GRACE m. Wayne HALL in 2003);
• Martin James GRACE (1965; m. Julia S. MORRIS in 2003 - children Holly Ann-Marie GRACE (1999) & Katy Jane GRACE (2002));
• Rosalie GRACE (1932, m. John CLARKE). 

I'm looking to re-contact the Derby clan for further information, if they would be kind enough to contact me.

Part 6: The C20th Yorkshire Families

The Skipton family of Charles & Polly GRACE consisted of Harry Sanders GRACE ("Sanders GRACE IV") (1897-1974), Gladys Elizabeth GRACE (1900-74), Mabel GRACE (1908- ), & Mary GRACE (1912-70).

Harry Sanders GRACE (1897) had married Sarah WHITHAM by 1927 when their son Alan Sanders GRACE ("Sanders GRACE V") was born. This is the couple's only known child. Alan went on to marry Avril INGHAM in 1953 Skipton. There was no issue from this marriage and therefore GRACE branch died out with Alan's death in 1986. Avril GRACE remarried to a Jack BECK in 1989 and moved to Cyprus.

The known histories of the three daughters and their descendant families are:

• Gladys Edith GRACE (1900; GRO index) aka Gladys Elizabeth GRACE (family) married Thomas MASON, a railway porter in 1921; they had two sons Kenneth Ireland MASON (who married 3 times) & Gordon MASON (descendant families MASON & EVANS);
• William GRACE (1906) -  a previously unknown child, but assumed have died young (not found)
• Mabel GRACE (1908) married Clifford HUDSON and had children Barry Clayton HUDSON (1931), Georgina Grace HUDSON (1936; m. William HAZELDEN and had 4 daughters Belinda HAZELDEN (1958; m. UREVIA of Trinidad), Beverley HAZELDEN (1959), Victoria HAZELDEN (1966) & Alexandra HAZELDEN (1971)) & Clifford Eastwood HUDSON (1938).
• Mary GRACE (1910) married Arthur KNOWLES; daughter Patricia KNOWLES (1937) m. Robert DAVIS and had daughters Karen DAVIS, Lindsey DAVIS & son Craig DAVIS.

Charles Edward GRACE appears in an October 1966 edition of the "Craven Herald & Pioneer", unfortunately the photocopies I have are too poor to reproduce. On Friday 21st October 1966 a photo entitled "Railway staff, 1900" was loaned by Charles to the paper, which showed "Skipton Railway Station at the turn of the century, and the employees...." Charles was one of the 14 pictured. Also that week a picture of Charles appeared along with an article entitled "Mr. Charles Grace 95, Not Out...former railwayman still likes cricket". 

Part 7: The C20th Families of Greater Birmingham & the West Midlands

The family of Bill & Sue GRACE arrived in the West Midlands after the closure of the Lancaster coachworks to provide the foundation for an extensive Birmingham area clan:

a. Nellie GRACE (1896), a laundry seamstress, married gardener Selwyn DAVIS. Their son Derek DAVIS was an architect and living in the Isle of Wight in the C20th.

b. My grandfather William Sanders GRACE (1897), an accounts clerk, married Elsinora Alicia Patricia LANE in June 1927 at West Bromwich. They had only one son, Anthony Paul Sanders GRACE ("Sanders GRACE VI") (1932). On the last day of 1955 he married Margaret Maud SANDERS (of a different SANDERS family) in Birmingham. Their two children were Mark Anthony Sanders GRACE ("Sanders GRACE VII") (1959; this web author) & Judith Ann GRACE (1960) both born in Tividale, West Midlands. Judith was married to Alan POWELL between 1984 & 1992 and then married James Alexander MOORE in April 1995. Their first child Benjamin Anthony MOORE was born in 2000. This story continues in Part 8.

c. John Frederick (Jack) GRACE (1899) first married Wilhelmina GUNN in Chorlton, Lancs., in 1924 but she died of TB and without issue. Jack then married Phyllis Eleanor DOHERTY in 1929, Birmingham. They had two children Brian John GRACE (1930) & Carolyn Mary GRACE (1940). Carol married Brian Frederick WRAGG in 1961 and had two children Kathryn Mary WRAGG(1962) & Lawrence Brian WRAGG (1966).

Brian GRACE married Beryl Margaret WILLIAMS in 1954 and had children David Brian GRACE (1960) & Diane Margaret GRACE (1963). David has at least one child Nicole Diane GRACE (1982) by his wife Glynis and has been married several times, including adopted children. No further information is known, including whether there are any genetic sons to David.

d. Walter GRACE (1901-2).

e. Marion GRACE (1902), an office clerk, secretly married Leonard HOLMES in 1924. There was no issue.

f. Doris May GRACE (1904-7).

g. Harold GRACE (1908), a Co-Op grocer married Edna BUTTS. There were two sons Gerald Manning GRACE & Roger GRACE. Roger married twice, first to ?Jean then Gina. Issue unknown. Gerald, an upholster, married Colleen RILEY and had daughters Tania GRACE (1959) & Tina GRACE (1960). He later also remarried. Further history of this family branch is unknown and also whether there are any sons to continue the GRACE family name along this branch.

h. Edith GRACE (1910) married Thomas Arthur FISHER in 1931. FISHER and FERREDAY families and their descendants live in the Birmingham area.

i. Nora GRACE (1913-14).

j. Eric GRACE (1914), an industrial pickler, married Hilda ?COOK. They had three daughters Elaine Patricia GRACE (1938; originally married McHALE, now DERRY), Joan GRACE (1941) & Norma GRACE. Son Karl aka Carl Ian GRACE (my 1C1R) was born in 1959, a building design consultant in Birmingham. Karl married Anne Elisabeth RUSSELL  in 1984 and has three sons to continue the family name along this branch; Aaron Daniel GRACE (1992), Daniel Adam GRACE (1993) & Nathaniel Luke GRACE (1995).

Other stories relating to these families are not given here out of respect to those numerous relatives still living. If any descendants read this then I would be delighted to discuss their family branches and connected stories.

Part 8: My Family Into the C21st

Mark Anthony Sanders GRACE (1959): I am a petroleum geologist, who in 1981 emigrated to work with Statoil in Bergen, Norway, after 18 months with an oilfield service company working in the North Sea. In 1988 I first set eyes on my future wife Felicity Ann O'NEILL at Moscow Airport. We were both on the way to an adventure holiday in Madagascar. We were married in 1989. My career with various oil companies has taken the family from Norway to London, Dubai, Scotland, Kuwait and currently resident in Geneva, Switzerland.

This branch of the GRACE family line remains in the hands of sons Paul Sanders GRACE ("Sanders GRACE VIII") (1991) & Alexander William GRACE (1993) both born in Gravesend, Kent. Perhaps we can expect to see a successful succession of the family name by 2020?

This study is in memory of my father, Anthony Paul Sanders Grace (1932-79),
who, as an only child orphaned at the age of 7, had always intended to research his roots,
but never lived long enough to learn the story of our family.

Download Family Tree

Home Page & Contact Info

 
Unable to find what you're looking for on CreativeGraces.net?

Still stuck? Try the FAQ !