1901 Botteslow Farm and cottage

[AlanBoyd]

1901: Ruth Corden is with her family at 19 Old Hall Terrace, Hanley. Her father John Corden, 56, is a farmer, and her brother George, 23, is a farm labourer.

Added: by my estimate on Google Maps, using Old Hall Street (which is still there) as a proxy for Old Hall Terrace (they were close by each other) it was, as the crow flies, about one mile from the Corden house to Botteslow Farm.

[softly softly]

Deleted

[hepburn]

http://www.thepotteries.org/districts/maps/botteslow_farm.jpg

This is a photo taken of part of Botteslow farm.1972..There was a lot of land around there before they built Eaton Park..There still quite a bit of land still called Berryhill..

[queenswood 1]

Thank you all for all your help! I can see now the connection with John Corden listed as a farmer in 1901 with son George Corden as a farm labourer. In Nov 1904 George Milner married Ruth Corden and Ruth stated that her father John Corden was a general labourer- presumably working at Botteslow farm just 1 mile from Old Hall Terrace. Ruth was a dressmaker both in 1901 and on the marriage cert in Nov 1904. the wedding took place on 14th Nov 1904 at stoke Registry Office and their daughter lily was born just 5 weeks later- at Botteslow Farm- so i just wonder if Ruth was visiting her father and brother at the farm when the baby decided to arrive! Her husband George Milner is not on the 1901 census- possibly Boer War service- and is shown as a potters placer on both the marriage cert in 1904 and the later census in 1911, by which time the young family were living at 25 Botteslow Street.
I can only think that maybe this is finally the explanation as to why my grandmother was born on a farm!
On the marriage cert in 1904 Ruth gives her address as 24 Old Hall terrace (she was with her parents in 1901 at 19 Old Hall terrace) but I am unable to decipher the address for George Harry Milner. I am unable to attach a copy of the marriage cert to this post but if you could kindly PM me maybe have a look for me? I have deciphered all the other details on the marriage cert.
Thank you all so much for helping me work out this conundrum- and I now have the current location for Botteslow farm (land only now!) so will be back in my car to walk more in their footsteps.
Thank you so very much.
Caroline

[queenswood 1]

Ruth Corden is shown as a dressmaker in both 1901 and also on her marriage certificate in 1904- so she was not used to getting her hands dirty! Only assumptions as to scenarios but I think it is quite conclusive unless you have any other ideas!

Many thanks indeed to you all.

Caroline

[queenswood 1]

Ruth's mother Ellen came from several generations of butchers ( Schemilt of Ipstone) and so that makes a further ,link with farming and the rearing of cattle for beef maybe. Certainly making a strong case for Botteslow Farm to be linked into Ruth Corden and her family- the Milners were not farmers at all - they were in the Pottery industry.
So the birth of Lilian May Milner at Botteslow Farm is surely connected with her maternal line and nothing to do with her paternal line.
Just random thoughts.
Caroline

[Wellington66]

Hi everyone,
Forgive me for going off topic here.  My grandfather had a grocery shop at 51a Bottleslow Street from about 1924 until the mid 50's I believe.  I remember visiting when rationing was still in force. The surname was Walkaden.
Welly

[queenswood 1]

No probs! My maternal great grandparents and my maternal grandmother lived at 25 Botteslow Street from sometime between 1904 and 1911 and were still there in 1929- my gt grandfather was a Potters Glost placer- and that was the job he did all his life till he passed away in 1946- potters through and through!

If you have any pictures of what the housing was like in Botteslow Street in the 1920s/30s etc that would be great! I suspect it would have been small terraced housing but it would be great to see- please send me a PM if you have a picture to share. many thanks.

Caroline

[Wellington66]

Hi Caroline,
Golly, I expect your ancestors would have bought groceries in my Nan and Grandads shop.  I am so sorry I don't have any photos.  I wish I had.  My father was in the forces and I stayed with my grandparents when we came back from Egypt.  They really were typical terraced houses.  I wasn't very old but remember going to school for a few weeks.  I had to go over a bridge, I think it was over a canal.  I have wonderful memories.  The toilet was in the yard. I remember Nan heating the iron on the fire before she had an electric iron she plugged into the light socket above the kitchen table. I remember customers knocking on the side door way after closing time because they had forgotten something. Nan bless her never complained.
Just recently someone from the Potteries brought me some oatcakes from "The hole in the wall".  Nan used to do them for me with "best" danish bacon and cheese.  She also used to give me the "bottoms" of her stout because she said i needed "building up". 
They later went "all posh" in the sixties and moved up to Ashbank Werrington which is where I took my children to meet them.
Welly x
Welly