Would Our Sophia Cole Please Step Forward (52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks #3)

After researching the tragic ends that became of Sarah Chappell Cole and her three youngest children, I was interested in what happened to the rest of the family. Under the situation, it is most likely that the family entered one of the Bath workhouses. Unfortunately, many of the parish relief records for Bath have not survived, including the records for the time period in question, so I had to proceed along other avenues.

I looked at a lot of records for Sophia Cole, the eldest of the surviving children, and quickly discovered that there were two girls named Sophia Cole born at Bath, Somerset, England within a year of each other, and both were baptised in the same church. It didn’t take me long to sort out which was which. However, I wanted to document my research findings here as part of a log which includes the records that I’ve disproved as belonging to our Sophia. I hope that this might help other family historians in their research — I’d already done the research so I may as well share my findings.

After searching both the BMDs and the parish registers for Bath, Somerset, I was able to find two –and only two- children named Sophia Cole born in the area between 1848 and 1858.

Sophia Cole #1

The first Sophia Cole was the daughter of Nathaniel Cole and Grace. Her birth was registered in the third quarter of 1852,² and BathBMD lists her registration recorded in Walcot and mother’s maiden name as Ford.³ Based on my research to date, I do not believe this child had a middle name.

Her parents, Nathaniel Cole and Grace Ford were married at Rode [Road], Somerset, in St Lawrence parish on January 1st 1832, both parties residing within the parish.⁴

Sophia was baptised at Walcot-St Swithin, Bath, Somerset on December 1st 1852. They were residing at Somerset Cottage, and the father was occupied as a labourer.⁶ Research of Nathaniel and Grace’s other children’s baptismal records show this couple residing in Walcot, Weston, Widcombe, and Bath, and the father occupied as a Labourer, Servant or Porter. These findings are consistent with other records I have found for this family.

This family appears on the 1841 England Census of Bathwick, Somerset, residing at Sams Court.⁷

Nathaniel Cole, male, 30, Porter, born in Somerset
Grace Cole, female, 30, born in Somerset
Jane Cole, female, 9, born in Somerset
Hugh Cole, male, 8, born in Somerset
Ann Cole, female, 7, born in Somerset
Robert Cole, male, 5, born in Somerset
Edward Cole, male, 4, born in Somerset
Elizabeth Cole, female, 3, born in Somerset
Mary Cole, female, 5 months, born in Somerset

They appears again on the 1851 England Census of Bathwick, Somerset, residing at 13 Sams Court.⁸

Nathanial Cole, head, married, male, 42, Porter, born Winterborn, Gloucestershire
Grace Cole, wife, married, female, 38, born Road, Wiltshire
Hugh Cole, son, single, male, 17, Lite Porter, born Bath, Somerset
Ann Cole, daughter, single, female, 16, Servant, born Claverton, Somerset
Mary Cole, daughter, single, female, 10, Scholar, born in Bath, Somerset
Lucy Cole, daughter, single, female, 5, Scholar, born in Bath, Somerset
William Cole, son, single, male, 3, Scholar, born in Bath, Somerset
Charles Cole, son, single, male, 1 month, born in Bath, Somerset
There are 3 lodgers (a family) residing at the address.

The 1861 England Census shows the family including Sophia Cole, living in Lyncombe and Widcombe, Bath, Somerset, at 2 The Court.⁹

Nathaniel Cole, head, married, male, 50, Shop Porter, born Charfield, Gloucestershire
Grace Cole, wife, married, female, 46, Sempstress, born Road, Wiltshire
William Cole, son, single, male, 13, Errand Boy, born Bath, Somerset
Sophia Cole, daughter, single, female, 9, Scholar, born Bath, Somerset

Her parents, Nathaniel and Grace, continue to reside in Bath, appearing on both the 1871¹⁰ and 1881 Census.¹¹

By the 1871 census, Sophia had moved away from Bath. She appears in the household of Milles Coventry, in Streatham, Surrey, in the parish of Holy Trinty.¹²

Sarah Cole, servant, single, female, 18, Housemaid Domestic Servant, born Bath, Somerset

Now, looking at the information given in the above census, it could have belonged to either Sophia Cole born in Bath, Somerset. However, the linchpin that sorted out the identities of these two girls happened a few months after the 1871 Census, when Sophia married William Watson in Surrey, England.

The record reads:

1871, Marriage Solemnized at the the Parish Church in the Parish of St Mary Lambeth in the County of Surrey
No. 423, page 212, married 7th Nov, 1871.

Groom’s Details
Name: William Edward Watson
Age: Both of Full Age
Condition: Bachelor
Rank or Profession: Coachman
Residence at the time of Marriage: Lower Marsh
Father’s Name and Surname: Thomas Watson (deceased)
Rank or Profession of Father: Coachman

Bride’s Details
Name: Sophia Cole
Age: Both of Full Age
Condition: Condition
Rank or Profession: [blank]
Residence at the time of Marriage: Lower Marsh
Father’s Name and Surname: Nathaniel Cole
Rank or Profession of Father: Porter

Married in the Parish Church according to the Rites and Ceremonies of the Established Church, by [blank] or after Banns by me, W. R. [unable to decipher last name]. Mark of William Edward Watson and Sophia Cole [signed]. In the Presence of us, Charels Henry Border [signed] and Sarah Elizabeth Bridges [signed].

The marriage record states that the Sophia Cole who married William Watson was the daughter of Nathaniel Cole, a porter.¹³ It is this record that confirms that this Sophia Cole is not part of our family tree.

However, this Sophia Cole and her husband William Watson had a family and appear on the 1881,¹⁴ 1891,¹⁵ 1901,¹⁶ and 1911¹⁷ Censuses as living in London. Their children were:

1. Dinah E Watson (born 1872)
2. William James Watson (born 1877)
3. Sophia L Watson (born 1879)¹⁸
4. Bessie Watson (born about 1882)¹⁹
5. John Watson (born about 1888)
6. Annie M Watson (born about 1892)
7. Rose M Watson (born about 1894)

Note that this list of children is not complete. According to the 1911 Census, Sophia had 12 children, 6 of whom were still alive in 1911.

Sophia Cole #2

This is the Sophia Cole that connects with our family through her mother Sarah Chappell, who was sister to my husband’s 3rd great-grandfather Edwin Chappell. The facts up until 1863 coincide with those in the newspaper article concerning her mother’s death.

Sophia Cole was baptised as Sophia Eugenia Cole, on June 1st 1853 at Walcot-St Swithin, Bath, Somerset, and was the daughter of James Cole and Sarah. They were residing at Abindon Buildings, and her father was occupied as a gilder.²⁰ Her birth was registered in Lansdown, Bath, in 1853 under the name Sophia Eugenia Cole, and her mother’s maiden name was Chapple.²¹

The family appeared together on the 1861 England Census for Walcot, Bath, Somerset, living at 42 Dafford Villa.

James Cole, head, married, male, 49, Gilder, born Bath, Somerset
Sarah Cole, wife, married, female, 29, Gilder’s wife, born Bath, Somerset
Sophia E Cole, daughter, single, female, 7, Scholar, born Bath, Somerset
Rose Cole, daughter, single, female, 6, Scholar, born Bath, Somerset
Matilda Cole, daughter, single, female, 5, Scholar, born Bath, Somerset
John J A Cole, son, single, 3 months, born Bath, Somerset.

Shortly after her youngest brother’s birth, tragedy happened on July 6th 1863 when her mother Sarah killed the youngest three children then killed herself in the canal near Bathampton.²³

In the 1871 England census, she was working as a servant in a private home in Walcot, Bath, Somerset.

She is living in the home of Mary Lamacraft of 17 Charles St, in the parish of Walcot-Trinity, Bath, Somerset. Her line of the census reads:

Sophia Cole, serv, single, female, 17, Servant, born Bath, Somerset

By 1881, things have taken a turn for the worst again, and she is under the care of the District Bath Poor Law Union Workhouse at Lyncombe and Widcombe.

Her line of the census reads:

Sophia Cole, pauper, single, female, 27, Domestic Servant, born at Bath, Somerset

Sophia did have a child, a son named Frank Reginald Cole. Frank’s birth was registered in the parish of Lyncombe and Widcome, Bath, Somerset in 1890. There was no maiden name of the mother provided²⁶ which is usual for children born out of wedlock. However, a record of baptism exists for Frank in the register of the Bath Union Workhouse, where he was baptised on January 4th 1891, son of Sophia Cole, a servant, residing at Bath Union Workhouse. No father is listed. ²⁷

Sophia and Frank were enumerated in the Bath Union Workhouse of Lyncombe and Widcombe again in the 1891 census.

Sophia Coles, pauper, single, 33, domestic servant, born Bath, Somerset
Frank Reginald Coles, pauper, 3 months, born Bath, Somerset

Their lives improve slightly by the next census because by 1901 they are no longer living in the workhouse.

Sophia and her son Frank are enumerated as living at 48 Avon Street in Walcot, Bath, Somerset:

Sophia Cole, head, single, female, 48, Charwoman, worker, born Bath, Somerset
Frank Cole, son, single, male, 10, born at Bath, Somerset

They are living at 36 Avon St in Walcot, Bath, Somerset during the 1911 Census. What I find intriguing here is that she listed one living child and two dead children, but wrote only 1 child in as born alive. This has me wondering whether the other 2 children were stillborn or live births. I’m also intrigued by the fact that both their ages are incorrect on this return, yet they filled the return out themselves.

The census return reads:

Sophia Cole, head, female, 53, single, 1 child born alive [crossed out by enumerator and replace by a 3], 1 living, 2 dead, Wood Chopping, on own account, at home, born Walcot, Bath.
Frank Cole, son, male, 18, single, General Labourer, worker, born Bath, Somerset.

Sophia Eugenia Cole continued to live out her days in Bath. She died in 1931, at the age of 78.³¹ The GRO BMD index simply lists her as Sophia E Cole, however the Bath BMD index lists her full name as Sophia Eugenia Cole, which helped me determine that I did indeed have the correct Sophia Cole on the Bath census returns.

Hers was not a charmed life. The records show that she fought a battle with poverty from an early age, and much of the battle was fought alone. I hope her later years and the fruits of her son’s marriage to his first wife, Emily Gant,³² brought her greater joy. Frank married his second wife, Gladys Ethel Murphy, in 1932,³³ the year after Sophia passed away.

Discrepancies

On two of the census returns, Sophia’s age is listed at five years younger than she was, including the one she filled out. However, her son’s age was also wrong on the form that she filled out, so I don’t believe this hinders the argument as to whether or not this is the correct person. Furthermore, she listed herself as Sophia Cole on the form, but signed her name as Sophia Coles at the bottom of the form. She was enumerated as Coles on the 1891 Census as well.

Further, there was an additional Sophia in Bath in 1881. She was enumerated as Sophia Coles, born in Bath, a servant, residing in the Bath Union Workhouse of Lyncombe and Widcombe, and of the exact same age as our Sophia.³⁴ Other than the additional “s” on her last name, their information is identical. I could not find a record of a Sophia Coles that fit this person, certainly not one born in Bath. It is my belief that Sophia may have been enumerated twice.

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks is a blogging prompt started by Amy Johnson Crow at No Story Too Small. My stories will include both sides of our family, including collateral lines.

Copyright ©2015, Chriss Coleman

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