Henry Jefferd Young - why did he wait 25 years?

[Brentor boy]

This is probably impossible to know but I feel I have to ask.

Henry Jeff(o/e)rd  Young was born 31 Jan 1871 in Axminster, Devon. He served in the R N 1889-1917, finishing as a Chief Petty Officer.

He married Ethel Maud Cork in 1909 with whom he had a daughter in 1912 and a son in 1913.  Ethel Maud died in Feb 1929 in Gosport.

At this time he was also in a relationship with a widow, Evelyn Bessie Beer ( nee Sanders, aka Bessie Evelyn), living in Devon. With her he had sons born in 1927 and 1929.

If I interpret  the Index correctly, he was living in Gosport in 1939.

He eventually married Evelyn Bessie in  1954 when he was 83. He died in 1957.

Are there any records relating to his circumstances between 1929-1954 that might explain his delayed action, or did he just decide to put the record straight while he had the chance? He named his daughter, born 1912, as his executrix.

[PaulineJ]

was the "widow" Evelyn Bessie free to marry before then?

[Brentor boy]

Her husband, Sidney R Beer, died Dec 1925, Newton Abbot. I have found nothing to suggest that any other impediment existed.

[Billyblue]

You say he was in the Royal Navy during WW One.
Could it be they married late so that she could get a War Widow pension when he died?
Don't know if it applies in UK, but it has been known in Oz.

Dawn M

[aghadowey]

Where were Bessie & her two sons living in 1939? if may be that they had 2 children together but went their separate ways for a while before getting back together and finally marrying.

[Brentor boy]

You say he was in the Royal Navy during WW One.
Could it be they married late so that she could get a War Widow pension when he died?
Don't know if it applies in UK, but it has been known in Oz.

Dawn M

Possible, but often pension schemes only grant widows' pensions when marriage  is before retirement.

[Brentor boy]

Where were Bessie & her two sons living in 1939? if may be that they had 2 children together but went their separate ways for a while before getting back together and finally marrying.

I have not recognised a potential  entry on the Index, but have not looked any further.  (Bessie had three sons - one with Sidney Beer)

[AntonyMMM]

Harry and Bessie E YOUNG are living in Torquay in 1939, with children called BEER and YOUNG and claiming to be married. Maybe everyone thought they were married (including the children) and they didn't want to have to explain. Harry is a builder's labourer and his date of birth is shown as 11th May 1887.

Eventually they decided to make it official (possibly because of concern about inheritance/wills etc.)

You should look at the birth registrations in 1927 & 1929 to see if they falsely claimed to be married when registering those births.

But this doesn't really fit with your naval man born in 1871, who does seem to be in Gosport in 1939 - something is wrong somewhere.

[Cwellan CoDown]

Have you searched for any other weddings - perhaps he married again, and was not free to marry Evelyn?

Or maybe they married abroad, and believed they were married, but it came to light that their foreign wedding wasn't recognized in the UK