Everything tagged: England

My name is John Usher, a native of Salisbury, Wiltshire, England but have been living in Norway since 1971. One of my interest´s is tracing my ancestors and this is why I am contacting you.

Louisa Jane Usher was my grandfather’s elder sister:-

Born is Salisbury, Wiltshire 30 Sept 1865

Census 1871 – 67 Endless Street Salisbury

Census 1881 - 67 Endless Street Salisbury

Census 1891 – Skellbrok Hall Yorkshire, working as a nurse in the house of Percy S. Neville and his wife Etheline.

Director of the Hong Kong Observatory from 1965 to 1981 (source).

My granfather worked in Hong Kong, I believe at the Youmati School from 1922 to the invasion of HK in WW2. I have records of travel out but no records of travel back to the UK though from family photos he clearly did return and travel out again. As the Youmati school is a government school would British government recruit? Would he have needed any experience qualifications. He had served in WW1 and was a lieutentant (I think via the tempoary gentleman route as his family worked on the railways). Would that give him some opportunity to work in HK.

He is mentioned in the list of POWs (though with some mistakes in the name):

And also in the 1941 Jurors List:

The name of Gilbert Harriman is remembered in my family as the trainer of my grandfather, Charles Warren’s racing ponies, known as the “Tile” ponies, during the years 1920-1923. When one of the Tile ponies won the Professional Cup at the Happy Valley Derby, a photographer was hired to commemorate the occasion, snapping Charles Warren and his daughter Evelyn together with Harriman and the magnificent trophy for posterity. The cup has sadly disappeared. After Charles Warren’s death in 1923 the Tile ponies were all sold and Harriman’s connection with our family ceased.

Brother of Constance Rosen.

John and Gertrude Tully were living at 8 Broadwood Road at the time of the death of my grandfather, Charles Warren, in June 1923 and, as neighbours, it is not surprising that they attended his funeral together with their colleagues the Cossarts who lived at no. 22. Asiatic Petroleum, for whom John Tully and Louis Cossart worked, rented several houses in Broadwood Road at the time. Tully came to Hong Kong as a marine engineer. He first worked for the Whampoa Dock Co. and later Taikoo Docks. He retired back to England in 1934.

I'm beginning to see some links between the mourners who were the group of friends and associates of my grandfather Charles Warren, in that, according to Carl Smith, George Avenell was the brother-in-law of F.P. Lenfesty, one of the other mourners mentioned in the obituary. That said, the attribution is to Mr and Mrs E.G. Avenell, so there may be a mistake, but I can't find an E.G. Avenell. George Avenell came to Hong Kong with the Sherwood Forresters in 1902 and thence to Shanghai. He returned to Hong Kong as Armourer Staff Sergeant to the Police and also joined the HK Volunteers.

Nona  was born as Florence Keele Bernhard on 23 May 1901.  She did not use this exact date on later documents.  She grew up around Marybelone and Finchley in London, England. The family moved to Stone Ness, Ashurst, Kent in about 1916.  In 1916 the entire family was granted the right to change the family name to Morris, and bear the family coat of arms, by King George V.