Mary Ann, Hannah, Edward Carver

 

Subject Names :    Mary Ann Carver  (b 1835 – d unknown)
                                Hannah Carver (b 1869 – d 1949)
                                Edward Carver (b 1873 – d 1931)

Researcher :         Jean Libaert

Mary Ann Carver, orphaned at just 6 years old, led an itinerant life, having probably four illegitimate children in Worcestershire and Surrey. After being an inmate of the Guildford Union Workhouse in 1881 with two of her children, Hannah and Edward, Mary Ann disappeared from the records. Her son Edward joined the Army, although mental health problems brought that to a premature end. Hannah and her elder sister Elizabeth, however, both went on to successfully raise large families in Godalming.

Mary Ann Carver was born in Ripley, Surrey on 7th February 1835, the daughter of single mother Sarah Carver 1.  She had a half-brother Edward, born in Ripley three years earlier 2.  No father was named on either baptism record.

The 1841 Census showed 6-year-old Mary Ann – recorded just as Ann – living with her mother Sarah and widowed grandmother in Ripley Street, Send 3.  Edward was not with them, instead living with his uncle and aunt close by in Prey Heath, Woking 4.

Just five months later, in November 1841, Mary Ann’s mother Sarah died at home aged 30 from ‘syphilis’ 5.   Sarah’s mother Frances was present at her death.  Frances was now in her mid-sixties, so would she have been able to care for her young grand-daughter Mary Ann?  Four years later, Frances passed away too, aged 70, with Mary Ann just 10 6.

Mary Ann goes missing

At the time of the 1851 Census, Mary Ann’s half-brother Edward was still with his uncle and aunt in Prey Heath, but there was no sign of Mary Ann 7. She was now 15, but has not been traced in the Guildford Union Workhouse, with relatives, or indeed anywhere else in either the 1851 or 1861 Censuses.  However, records from the 1850s that may well be for Mary Ann perhaps start to tell the story of how she came to be in the Guildford Union Workhouse. 

A birth certificate from February 1856 recorded that a Mary Ann Carver had given birth to an illegitimate daughter of the same name in Littleworth, near Evesham, Worcestershire 8.  The baby only lived for 16 days with the death certificate saying mother Mary Ann was a ‘pedlar’ 9.   Working as a pedlar roaming the country would have been a likely reason she was missed by Census enumerators in 1851 and 1861, but perhaps a more telling reason for believing that this Mary Ann was from Ripley was that, according to the 1871 Census, a second daughter, Elizabeth, was also born in Worcestershire, although no birth certificate has been found for her to verify the details 10.

Return to Guildford

The Guildford Union Poor Law Accounts for 1864 to 1871 (the only years for which the Accounts still exist) showed that 29-year-old Mary Ann Carver and daughter Elizabeth, of Send & Ripley Parish, entered the Guildford Union Workhouse in mid-1868, and were inmates there for long periods 11.

During this time, Mary Ann became pregnant again, giving birth to Hannah in the Workhouse on 25th November 1869 12.  No father was named on the birth certificate nor at her baptism 13.  The Workhouse Birth Register noted that Hannah was Mary Ann’s third child, further evidence that the 1856 child in Littleworth was also hers.

After Hannah’s birth, the Accounts book showed that from March 1868 to September 1871 Mary Ann, Elizabeth and Hannah were almost permanent inmates.  At one point in 1870 they left the Workhouse, only to be taken back at the expense of the Union because they had ‘no home’.

The April 1871 Census confirmed ‘domestic servant’ Mary Ann in the Guildford Union Workhouse with her two daughters, Worcester-born Elizabeth, and 1-year-old ‘Annie’ (Hannah). 

Despite the sheer poverty and hardship that enveloped Mary Ann’s life, she became pregnant for a fourth time, giving birth to John Edward Carver on 2nd April 1873 in the Workhouse 14. As before, no father was named.

Mary Ann and her three children didn’t remain in Guildford, as they were soon in the nearby Farnham Workhouse.  In January 1874, Guildford Union received a letter from Farnham Union asking Guildford to accept ‘Mary Ann Carver and her 3 illegitimate children belonging to Ripley’ 15.

Three months later the family was again in Farnham, with their Workhouse Minutes noting ‘MA Carver and her children released from hospital, accepted’ 16.  No reason was given for why they had been in hospital.

The next record found for Mary Ann and her children is the 1881 Census, when she was once more in the Guildford Union Workhouse, an unmarried domestic servant 17.  Her two youngest children, 11-year-old Hannah and Edward, 7, were scholar inmates. Her eldest daughter Elizabeth had left the Workhouse and was a general servant for a licensed victualler in Godalming 18. 

This 1881 Census is the last record traced for Mary Ann Carver.  She almost certainly left the Guildford Union Workhouse as their death records do not include her name, but beyond that, she seemingly disappeared.  If she was the pedlar in Worcestershire, this vanishing act would not be too surprising, although walking away from her three children is perhaps unexpected.

Daughter Annie settles into family life

Annie was 11 at the time of the 1881 Census, and her general education would have included preparing her for life outside the Guildford Union Workhouse around her 13th birthday.  Annie did indeed follow this route as she was a domestic servant living and working in Bridge Street, Godalming in early April 1891 19.  21-year-old Annie was just a couple of weeks off her wedding day, marrying labourer Sidney May, 22, in Godalming 20.  Annie’s half-sister Elizabeth, a witness at the wedding, had married Sidney’s older brother George William May back in 1882 21.   

Annie and Sidney settled in Ockford Road, the same street as Elizabeth and George, with their first child Amelia arriving in July 1891 shortly after their marriage 22, 23.  The family quickly grew, the 1901 Census showing Annie and Sidney with five children 24.  They eventually had seven, although two of the children passed away at a very young age 25-28.

Annie and Sidney’s son Donald was called up in 1916 for the Great War, serving with the Royal Army Service Corps (Mechanical Transport) as a driver in Basrah and Baghdad, Iraq 29.  He survived the War but was hospitalised in Iraq on a number of occasions including for both smallpox and malaria. 

No service record exists for Annie and Sidney’s other son Sidney – many of these records were destroyed in a bombing raid on London in September 1940 – but Sidney joined the Royal Army Service Corps and also came through the conflict 30.

The 1921 Census showed Annie and Sidney still at 124 Ockford Road with their children Donald, Annie and Eva 31.  Both husband Sidney and son Donald were noted as out of work labourers, a major problem in post-war Britain – unemployment peaked at 23.4% in May 1921 32. Their sisters Annie and Eva were working at a confectioner’s shop in Godalming.

Annie’s husband Sidney passed away in 1935 aged 66, but Annie remained in Ockford Road 33. In 1939 she was living there with her three daughters and a granddaughter, and died there in September 1949, aged 79 34, 35. She was laid to rest in Eashing Cemetery, Godalming, in the same plot as her husband 36.

Mary Ann’s son Edward’s Army career cut short by ill-health

Following the 1881 Census, it seems likely that Mary Ann’s son (John) Edward would have completed his education and training in the Guildford Union Workhouse.  The 1891 Census showed him lodging with his half-sister Elizabeth and her family in Ockford Road, Godalming, working as a groom 22.  

Just over four months later, in August 1891 18-year-old Edward enlisted in Guildford with the Royal Warwickshire Regiment 37.  He said that he was a tailor, a skill he probably learnt in the Workhouse 38. His medical record described him as 5’ 4¾” (1.64m) tall, weighing 112lb (50kg) with bluish-grey eyes, brown hair and a dark complexion.  He also had a dot tattooed on the back of his right forearm, a scar over his stomach and a wart on the side of his left shoulder blade!

Edward served with the 1st Battalion of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment throughout his time in the Army, which came to a premature end after less than three years.  In February 1894, Edward was admitted to an Aldershot hospital following a report that he had ‘behaved queerly in the barrack room’.  Nothing unusual was found during two weeks of observation, so he was released. Ten days later, he was back in hospital, this time with ‘periods of depression alternating with excessive hilarity’ which the doctors diagnosed as ‘dementia’.  

Although the use of the term ‘dementia’ in 19th Century medicine was far wider than it is now, Edward was clearly unwell, so in April, he was sent to Netley Military Hospital near Southampton for more tests 39.  Here, they confirmed the diagnosis, and Edward was discharged from service as ‘medically unfit’ in July 1894, aged 21.

There are no records to show if Edward remained a patient at Netley Hospital.  In fact, no records have been found for Edward for the next 20 years, until in August 1914, he admitted himself to the Merthyr Tydfil Workhouse, in Glamorganshire, Wales 40.  He was 41, unmarried, a tailor, and had been living at the Metropole Lodging House in Bargoed.  He had no family or friends as contacts, and his reason for admission was ‘mental’.

Two days later, Edward was moved to Bridgend Asylum where he was to spend the rest of his life 41.  The 1921 Census confirmed Edward there, born in Guildford, an unmarried tailor 42.  He passed away almost ten years later on 27th March 1931, aged 57 43.  The cause of death, apart from congestion of his lungs and influenza, included ‘epilepsy 9 years’ and ‘epileptic insanity’, but no mention of the dementia diagnosed over 35 years earlier.

Half-sisters Elizabeth and Annie remain close in Godalming

Mary Ann’s eldest daughter Elizabeth, who had married George William May in 1882, eventually settled in Shackstead Road (later Shackstead Lane), Godalming, next to Ockford Road where her half-sister Annie and family were living 21, 44-49. 

Elizabeth and George remained here for the rest of their lives, George passing away in April 1929, aged 74 50, 51.   

The 1939 Register gave one final clue about Elizabeth’s origins, saying that she was born on 25th December 1860 52.  All the Censuses from 1881 onwards and her death certificate point to an 1860/61 birth.  The 1921 Register had said that her place of birth in Worcestershire was ‘not known’, but with no birth certificate traced, it seems that the circumstances of her birth will remain unclear.

Elizabeth lived until 1st May 1942 before passing away at her Shackstead Lane home 53.  She was laid to rest in the same plot as her husband George at Eashing Cemetery, Godalming 54. 

September 2023, updated March 2025

Spike Lives is a Heritage project that chronicles the lives of inmates, staff and the Board of Guardians of the Guildford Union Workhouse at the time of the 1881 Census.  The Spike Heritage Museum in Guildford offers guided tours which present a unique opportunity to discover what life was like in the Casual/Vagrant ward of a Workhouse. More information can be found here

References

Note: records sourced from Ancestry.co.uk unless otherwise specified

  1. Mary Ann Carver 5 Apr 1835 Baptism; 7 Feb 1835 Birth Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Ripley, St Mary; ref RIP/4/1
  2. Edward Carver 11 Mar 1832 Baptism; 12 Jan 1832 Birth Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Ripley, St Mary; ref RIP/4/1
  3. Frances, Sarah, Ann Carver 1841 England Census for Ripley Street, Send, Surrey; class HO107; piece 1080; book 15; enumeration district 4; folio 37; page 28
    Sarah Carver 27 Jan 1811 Baptism; 20 Dec 1810 Birth Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Send, St Mary; ref Sen/1/7 (parents Thomas & Fanny)
    Thomas Carver 19 Feb 1840 Burial Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Ripley, St Mary; ref RIP/5/1
  4. Willm, Ann Why; Edward Carver 1841 England Census for Prey Heath, Woking, Surrey; class HO107; piece 1080; book 6; enumeration district 2; folio 29; page 12
    William Wye & Ann Carver 19 Oct 1823 Marriage Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Puttenham, St John the Baptist; ref PUT/2/2/3
  5. Sarah Carver 21 Nov 1841 England & Wales Civil Registration Death Index; Guildford, Surrey; vol 4; page 127 Digital copy from Government Register Office GRO.gov.uk
  6. Frances Carver Oct-Nov-Dec England & Wales Civil Registration Death Index; Guildford, Surrey; vol 4; page 127
  7. William, Ann Why; Edward Carver 1851 England Census for Prey Heath, Woking, Surrey; class HO107; piece 1594; folio 59; page 15
  8. Mary Ann Carver 29 Feb 1856 England & Wales Civil Registration Birth Index; Evesham, Worcestershire; vol 6C; page 338 Digital copy from Government Register Office GRO.gov.uk
  9. Mary Ann Carver 17 Mar 1856 England & Wales Civil Registration Death Index; Evesham, Worcestershire; vol 6C; page 186 Digital copy from Government Register Office GRO.gov.uk
  10. Mary Ann, Elizabeth, Annie Carver 1871 England Census for Guildford Union Workhouse, Guildford, Surrey; class RG10; piece 813; folio 81; page 7
  11. Mary Ann, Elizabeth Carver Half Year ended Michaelmas 29 Sep 1868 95 days; Half Year ended Lady Day 25 Mar 1869 138 days; Half Year ended Michaelmas 29 Sep 1869 113 days; Half Year ended Lady Day 25 Mar 1870 146 days;
    Mary Ann, Elizabeth, infant Carver
    Half Year ended Michaelmas 29 Sep 1870 154 days, 2sh 6d ‘no home’, ‘expenses to Union’
    Half Year ended Lady Day 25 Mar 1871 174 days; Half Year ended Michaelmas 29 Sep 1871 186 days
    Guildford Poor Law Union Half Year Accounts 1864-1871; ref BG6/33/1. Available at Surrey History Centre, Woking Surreycc.gov.uk
  12. Hannah Carver 25 Nov 1869 England & Wales Civil Registration Birth Index; Guildford, Surrey; vol 2A; page 69 Digital copy from Government Register Office GRO.gov.uk
    Hannah Carver 25 Nov 1869 Guildford Union Workhouse Births; ref BG6/37/1 Surrey History Centre, Woking Surreycc.gov.uk
  13. Hannah Carver 12 Jan 1870 Baptism Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Stoke next Guildford, St John the Evangelist; ref STK/4/3
  14. John Edward Carver Apr-May-Jun England & Wales Civil Registration Birth Index; Guildford, Surrey; vol 2A; page 60
    Edward Carver 2 Apr 1873 Guildford Union Workhouse Births; ref BG6/37/1 Surrey History Centre, Woking Surreycc.gov.uk
    John Edward Carver 10 Apr 1873 Baptism Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Stoke next Guildford, St John the Evangelist; ref STK/4/3
  15. Mary Ann Carver 17 Jan 1874 Guldford Poor Law Union Minute Books; ref BG6/11/18. Available at Surrey History Centre, Woking Surreycc.gov.uk
  16. MA Carver 9 Apr 1874 Farnham Poor Law Union Minute Books; ref BG4/11/1. Available at Surrey History Centre, Woking Surreycc.gov.uk
  17. Mary Ann, Hannah, Edward Carver 1881 England Census for Guildford Union Workhouse, Guildford, Surrey; class RG11; piece 778; folio 93; page 7
  18. Elizabeth Carver 1881 England Census for Bridge Street, Godalming, Surrey; class RG11; piece 779; folio 108; page 11
  19. Annie Carver 1891 England Census for Bridge House, Bridge Street, Godalming, Surrey; class RG12; piece 561; folio 91; page 1
  20. Sidney May & Annie Carver 29 Apr 1891 Marriage Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Godalming, St Peter and St Paul; ref 5315/1/4
  21. George William May & Elizabeth Carver Oct-Nov-Dec 1882 England & Wales Civil Registration Marriage Index; Guildford, Surrey; vol 2A; page 123
  22. George W, Elizabeth, Archibald, John, Ethel, Elsie May; Edward Carver 1891 England Census for Ockford Road, Godalming, Surrey; class RG12; piece 561; folio 118; pages 44&45
  23. Amelia May 6 Sep 1891 Baptism; 4 Jul 1891 Birth Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Godalming, St Peter and St Paul; ref God/4/3
  24. Sidney, Annie, Amelia, Donald, Sidney, Fred, Annie May 1901 England Census for Ockford Road, Godalming, Surrey; class RG13; piece 606; folio 106; page 9
  25. Sidney, Annie, Donald, Sidney, Annie, Eva May 1911 England Census for 124 Ockford Road, Godalming, Surrey; class RG14; piece 3091; folio 202 (7 children born, 5 still living)
  26. Donald and Ronald May 21 Jan 1894 Baptism; 26 Dec 1893 Birth
    Sidney May 28 Jun 1896 Baptism; 1 May 1896 Birth
    Annie Elizabeth May 17 Apr 1901 Baptism; 26 Mar 1901 Birth
    Eva May 28 Oct 1904 Baptism; 5 Oct 1904 Birth
    Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Godalming, St Peter and St Paul; ref 5315/1/1
  27. Fred May 19 Feb 1899 Baptism Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Milford, St John the Evangelist; ref MIL/1/2
    Fred May 23 May 1901 Burial Nightingale & Eashing Cemetery, Godalming; book E5; entry 0013 godalming-tc.gov.uk
  28. Ronald May 7 Mar 1894 Burial Nightingale & Eashing Cemetery, Godalming; book N4; entry 3421 godalming-tc.gov.uk
  29. Donald May 23 Sep 1916 attested The National Archives, London; War Office; Soldier’s Documents; First World War; ref WO 363; regimental number 223175
  30. Ruth Margaret May 26 Sep 1916 Baptism Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Godalming, St Peter and St Paul (father Sidney ‘Private ASC’)
  31. Sidney, Annie, Donald, Annie, Eva May 1921 England Census for 124 Ockford Road, Godalming, Surrey; class RG15; piece 3220; ED4; schedule 68; book 03320
  32. UK unemployment data from 1881 Unemployment in the United Kingdom Wikipedia.org
  33. Sidney May 25 May 1935 Burial Nightingale & Eashing Cemetery, Godalming; book E8; entry 2215; section L; plot 3547 godalming-tc.gov.uk
  34. Hannah, Annie E May; Eva Keefe; Amelia, Joan Finch 1939 England Register for 124 Ockford Road, Godalming, Surrey; class RG101; piece 1899J; ED DMNL; registration district 33/2
  35. Hannah May 22 Sep 1949 England & Wales Civil Registration Death Index; Surrey South-Western; vol 5G; page 678 Digital copy from Government Register Office GRO.gov.uk
  36. Hannah May 26 Sep 1949 Burial Nightingale & Eashing Cemetery, Godalming; book E9; entry 4235; section L; plot 3547 godalming-tc.gov.uk
  37. Edward Carver 14 Aug 1891 attested for Royal Warwick Regiment; 10 Jul 1894 discharged as medically unfit The National Archives, Kew; UK Royal Hospital Chelsea Pensioner Service Records; WO 97; regimental service number 3385 Ancestry.com / Fold3.com
  38. Guildford Union Appointment of a Tailor as Caretaker of the Boys 21 Dec 1883 Surrey Times, page 1 British Newspaper Archive / FindMyPast.co.uk
  39. A History of Dementia, Victorian Asylums 20 Dec 2024 Author Sarah Munson co.uk
  40. Edward Carver 25 Aug 1914 admission Glamorgan Archives, Cardiff, Wales; Records of Poor Relief; Merthyr Tydfil; Admission and Discharge Register 1913-1916
    Edward Carver 25 Aug 1914 admission, discharge 27 Aug 1914 Glamorgan Archives, Cardiff, Wales; Records of Poor Relief; Merthyr Tydfil; Admission and Discharge Register 1899-1917; Discharge Book
  41. Edward Carver 27 Aug 1914 admission, 27 Mar 1931 died Glamorgan Archives, Cardiff, Wales; DHGL/1/1/2 Available at Glamorgan Record Office
  42. Edward Carver 1921 England Census for Glamorgan County Asylum, Parc Gwyllt, Bridgend, Glamorganshire; class RG15; piece 26967; ED 27; page 11; book 26967
  43. Edward Carver 27 Mar 1931 England & Wales Civil Registration Death Index; Bridgend, Surrey; vol 11A; page 1188 Digital copy from Government Register Office GRO.gov.uk
  44. George, Elizabeth, Arch, John, Ethel, Elsie, George Harry May 1901 England Census for Ockford Road, Godalming, Surrey; class RG13; piece 606; folio 171; pages 43
  45. George Willm, Elizabeth, John, George, Harry, Margaret May 1911 England Census for 21 Shackstead Road, Godalming, Surrey; class RG14; piece 3091; folio 396 (9 children born, 7 still living)
  46. Archibald May 13 May 1883 Baptism; 3 Mar 1883 Birth
    John May 9 Aug 1885 Baptism; 20 Jan 1885 Birth
    Ethel May 3 Feb 1888 Baptism; 19 Nov 1887 Birth
    Elsie May 2 Apr 1890 Baptism; 27 Feb 1890 Birth
    Edward May 11 Jun 1893 Baptism; 21 Feb 1893 Birth
    Harry May 18 Feb 1898 Baptism; 24 Jan 1898 Birth
    Edith sic Alice May 25 Nov 1900 Baptism; 17 Nov 1900 Birth; 26 Nov 1900 died;
    Margaret May 21 Aug 1904 Baptism; 21 Jun 1904 Birth
    Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Godalming, St Peter and St Paul; ref GOD/4/3 and 5315/1/1
  47. George May 23 Jun 1895 Baptism Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Milford, St John the Evangelist; ref MIL/1/2
  48. Edward May 31 Mar 1894 Burial Surrey History Centre, Woking; Surrey Church of England Parish Registers; Milford, St John the Evangelist; ref MIL/4/1
  49. Alice May 27 Nov 1900 Burial Nightingale & Eashing Cemetery, Godalming; book E5; entry 0013 godalming-tc.gov.uk
  50. George William, Elizabeth, Harry, Margaret May; 1921 England Census for 21 Shackstead Road, Godalming, Surrey; class RG15; piece 3220; ED4; schedule 346; book 03320
  51. George William May 6 Apr 1929 Burial; 3 Apr 1929 Death Nightingale & Eashing Cemetery, Godalming; book E7; entry 1583; plot 1748 godalming-tc.gov.uk
  52. Elizabeth, Harry May; 1939 England Register for 21 Shackstead Lane, Godalming, Surrey; class RG101; piece 1899H; ED DMNK; schedule 64; registration district 33/2
  53. Elizabeth May 1 May 1942 England & Wales Civil Registration Death Index; Surrey South- Western; vol 2A; page 647 Digital copy from Government Register Office GRO.gov.uk
  54. Elizabeth May 6 May 1942 Burial Nightingale & Eashing Cemetery, Godalming; book E8; entry 3097; section P; plot 1748 godalming-tc.gov.uk