The early years
In 1904, the month of October was dull, rather cool and dry; it was Friday 14th when Grandad Spencer was born – the 4th child of Bertha and Henry.
Bertha was my great grandma and this is her story.
Bertha was born on Sunday, 16 December 1877, to William and Sarah. She was their fourth child, a younger sister to William and Emily. Their third child, Ada (born in October 1875), had sadly died just a few months earlier in July 1877, the cause of death recorded as measles and diarrhoea.
When Bertha was born, the family lived at 12 Wilkinson St, in the Oldham Road area near Manchester city centre. In May 1878, Bertha was baptised at six months old, the family had moved to 148 Cheltenham St, Collyhurst – just around the corner from Willert Street Police Station
Every 10 years a census is conducted to count the population. In 1881, this took place on the evening of Sunday, 3 April. By this time the family had moved to 176 Cheltenham Street, and Bertha’s mum was now a widow. In January 1880 Bertha’s father, William, passed away at just 29 years old.
William had made a living as a shuttlemaker, crafting the wooden shuttles used in the cotton mills. The work was demanding, and the days were long. His cause of death was recorded as bronchitis, and it is likely that his job and the harsh working conditions contributed to his early death.
Now widowed with three young children, Sarah Ann had to find ways to support her family. She worked as a charwoman and took in a female lodger to help with finances. Her daughters, seven year old Emily and three year old Bertha, remained with her, while her son William stayed with his aunt Emily, Sarah’s sister, at 6 Collyhurst Street.
In 1882, Sarah Ann remarried and went on to have three more children from her second marriage – Arthur, born in 1883; Joseph, born in 1886; and Sarah Anne, born in 1888.
Bertha & Henry
On 26 December 1896, Bertha and Henry were married at St Mark’s Parish Church in Newton Heath. Henry, a 25 year old greengrocer, and 19 year old Bertha chose a Boxing Day wedding – likely because Christmas and Boxing Day were traditional holidays long before becoming official bank holidays, ensuring time off for the occasion.
Just weeks later, their first child, William Henry, was born on 14 February 1897 – Grandad Spencer’s eldest brother.
But less than 6 months later little William died. This must have been an incredibly difficult time for Bertha and Henry. Losing a child at such a young age is hearbreaking, and the fact it was due to something so rare and painful, like intussusception, a serious condition where part of the intestine folds into itself, blocking food and blood flow, adds a layer of profound sadness. The exhaustion they must have felt, physically and emotionally, during that time is unimaginable.
Their daughter, Sarah Ellen, was born on 18 September 1899, the family were living at 196 Cheltenham Street. Sarah Ellen was christened on 8 October in St James, Collyhurst; interestingly, the register entry shows their address as 149 Cheltenham Street.
In 1901 the census was taken on the evening of 31 March, Henry was registered as an inmate in Workhouse & Workhouse Hospital, Crumpsall. When Henry died in 1907 his cause of death was registered as ‘cardiac syncope, acute pthisis’ – TB and heart problem – it is highly probable that Henry was in the Workhouse Infirmary. I have been unable to trace Bertha and Sarah Ellen in the 1901 census, it is possible they were not recorded or their names were not transcribed correctly.
More tragedy followed, on 11 July 1901, aged only 22 months, Sarah Ellen died from pneumonia. The family were living with Henry’s older sister Hannah Jane in Gunson Street, Newton Heath.
In the early 1900’s, infant mortality rates were alarmingly high due to the harsh and unsanitary living conditions. Families often lived in overcrowded homes with poor ventilation and limited access to clearn water, which facilitated the spread of infectious diseases like pneumonia, tuberculosis and diarrhea. Children were especially vulnerable to these illnesses.
Henry and Bertha’s third child, Mary Ann, was born on February 21st, 1902; followed by Alfred on 14 October, 1904 and Bertha on 14 February 1907.
But more tragedy was to follow; Henry died on 29 October 1907, acute phthisis (TB) and cardiac syncope (loss of consciousness). Bertha, their youngest daughter, was only nine months old when, on 3 November 1907, succumbed to a cerebral haemorrhage and cardiac arrest – just six days after her father. They are buried together in Phillips Park Cemetery, in grave D859.
This was a tragic period in Bertha’s life, highlighting the struggles families endured during that period and the resilience needed to persevere.
The later years
Life would have been difficult for a single mum, there were limited support systems and societel expectations often compelled widows and widowers to remarry swiftly. Bertha remarried, on 31 March 1908, her second husband was James Hyde.
Bertha had two surviving children from her marriage to Henry, Mary Ann (b1918) and Alfred (b1904)
Bertha and James went on to have 3 children – Joseph (Uncle Joe), James and in 1912 a still born baby recorded as ‘Baby Hyde’. The burial register lists the baby as stillborn (SB). All stillborn births were registered separately and no birth certificate would have been issued.
The 1911 census was taken on the night of 2 April and records James and Bertha, living at 37 Crissey Street, living with Mary Ann Spencer and Joseph Hyde b 1910.
At the outbreak of the First World War James joined the British Army and saw active service in the towns and villages of Flanders and northern France. Tragically, he was killed in action on August 19, 1917 and is buried in Bard Cottage Cemetery, a military cemetery in Ypres, Belgium. Bertha was widowed for the second time.
After the war
The 1921 census, taken on Sunday 19 June, gives us a fascinating glimpse into Bertha’s life at 9 Coleridge Street, Newton Heath where she was living with her sons Alfred Spencer, Joseph & James Hyde, daughter Jane Hyde and as well as her half brother Arthur Flynn and niece Susan.
9 Coleridge Street, Failsworth, was recorded in the 1921 census as having just three rooms – cramped conditions for two adults and five children to share.
While researching another branch of the family, I came across a poignant glimpse of life between census records. Arthur and his family lived with Bertha at 9 Coleridge Street, Newton Heath. Tragedy struck in December 1917 when Arthur’s wife, Ethel, died at the age of just 24, only two days before their three-month-old daughter, Elsie. Bertha was recorded as present at little Elsie’s death, a detail that adds both sadness and intimacy to the record.
The 1921 census hasn’t finished yet though; Jane Hyde’s story introduces an intriguing mystery. At just 5 months old, the census records her father as deceased, yet Berth’s husband, James, had died in 1917, making it impossible for him to be Jane’s father. The blank space for the father’s name on Jane’s birth certificate adds another layer of uncertainty.
Family stories tell that James Hyde’s brother Alfred was living with Bertha and was Jane’s father; Alfred is buried with Bertha – so it could be there is some truth to this family story.
The later years
In 1939 Bertha is living with her youngest son James, at 9 Coleridge Street. Living next door at no.7 is Annie Westhead; Annie and Bertha were great friends, indeed they are buried together in Philips Park Cemetery.
In 1940 James Hyde married the ‘girl next door’ Mary Westhead and on 23 June 1945 Jane Hyde married William Westhead, son of Annie Westhead. And the mystery of Jane’s father would seem to be solved; her wedding certificate shows Alfred Hyde as her father – so it appears the family story was true.
The wedding picture is Jane Hyde and William Westhead, Annie Westhead and her husband and Bertha and Alf Hyde.
Bertha certainly led a full life, giving birth to 9 children with 5 growing to adulthood, 2 husbands and an ‘unknown’ partner.
Bertha died on 17th August 1954 and was buried in Philips Park Cemetery, Manchester
Family 