William Whiting 1875-1909

Parents: William Whiting and Elizabeth Jacobs (1,2)
Born: 1875 in Withersfield (1)
Baptised: 24th December 1876 at St Mary's Church, Withersfield (2)
Married: Hannah Elizabeth Claydon, 26, tailoress, spinster of Haverhill, daughter of John Claydon, weaver, in 1902 in the Risbridge district.(3)
Children: William John Whiting b.1903 and Gladys Annie Whiting b.1907
Died: July 1909 in Haverhill. Buried at Haverhill Cemetery on 26th July 1909.(4,5)

Bio: William was the youngest child of William and Elizabeth. He was born at the end of 1875, and baptised a year later on Christmas eve 1876.(2)

He appears on the 1881 census at Withersfield. He lives with his widowed mother and sisters Susan and Mary Ann and brothers George and Charles.

On the 1891 census William remains at home working as a hairbrush weaver. Several of his siblings are also present, along with Edith the five year old daughter of his half-sister Susan.

William features again on the 1901 census living with his mother and brother George. He is still a hairbrush weaver.

Next year William married Hannah Claydon, of Haverhill, the daughter of John Claydon and Maria Sharp, who was originally from Bocking, Essex.

William and Hannah had two children, William born in 1903 and Gladys Annie born in 1907.

Similarly to his next oldest brother Charles, William died at a tragically young age. This happened in 1909 when he was only 33. As with Charles, I'm not sure of the cause of his early death but as the two brothers died so young one wonders if there was a connection. He was buried at Haverhill Cemetery on 26th July 1909.

On the 1911 census we find the widowed Hannah Elizabeth and her two children living with her widowed mother Maria at 16 Union Square, Haverhill. Hannah is a sewing machinist. Also living there is Lily Brown,12, another grandchild of Maria, who is at school

Hannah didn't marry again, and died in Haverhill at the end of December 1950.(6) She was buried next to William at Haverhill Cemetery on 1st Jan 1951.
A funeral notice appeared in the South West Suffolk Echo of 6th January 1951: 'Worked 20 years as Tailoress. Death of Mrs H E Whiting. The funeral took place on Monday, at Haverhill Cemetery, of Mrs Hannah Elizabeth Whiting, of 17, Wratting Road, Haverhill. Aged 75, Mrs Whiting before her retirement nine years ago; was employed as a tailoress by the Haverhill Co-operative Society for 20 years. She was connected with West End Congregational Church and her husband died about 40 years ago.'

Thanks to Judy Stratford for the funeral report

Sources:

(1) Birth Register. 4th Quarter 1875, Risbridge District, Volume 4a Page 445
(2) Suffolk Baptism Register, SFHS, Clare Deanery, 1813-1900
(3) Marriage Register. 4th Quarter 1902, Risbridge District, Volume 4a Page 1577
(4) Death Register. 3rd Quarter 1909, Risbridge District, Volume 4a Page 381
(5) Haverhill Cemetery, Compartment L, Grave Plot 76, Ref.3375. http://www.haverhill-uk.com/pages/burial-records-137.htm
(6) Death Register. 4th Quarter 1950, Newmarket District, Volume 4b Page 938