Sergeant John Henry ATHEY who is /was he?

[Robin]

Have just obtained a certificate:-


FROM THE PEOPLE OF WADHURST

To You

Sergeant J H Athey


The parishes of WADHURST and TIDEBROOK, deeply

conscoius of the great debt which they owe you

as amember of H.M. forces who served during the

1939-45 war, tender their sincerest thanks.




H.C.de f.du Vallou (i think thats right)

Chairman Parish Council




Also have a certificate of him crossing the Equator as a member of the Royal Army Service Corps so I assume he served Overseas at some time....


Any Ideas?

Have spoken to Local British Legion, He is/was not a member.

What happened to him?

[emma@esh]

I am hoping to go to lewes in the next week or so, I will add Sergent J H Athey to my list of lookups on the Parish register and Kellys Directories ! I do not have him listed on the MI's. No sign of him on the CWGC site. Does the certificate about the equator have a date on it?

[Robin]

If only....
neither of the certs has a date.
Assuming cert was issued after the end of the war..
Assuming he must of had Wadhurst connections....
Have not seen this cert before so dont know if different ones were issued for Tidebrook residents???
The Parish Clerk "register", if there is such a thing?? may help to narrow date
His age must have been 18+ when he joined so DOB before 1927(45-18) more like before 1925.
Cant find any trace on 1837 or any ATHEY on 1881 census.
Their are a couple of "AHEYATEY/ATHEY" sites but seem to concentrate on the "the original twelve tribes of Ireland!!.
Their is an ATHEY in Lamberhurst who I telephoned but he and family are from Yorkshire.
Hope to bump into Stan to ask him if he knows anytnihg.
robin

[Robin]

Senility is creeping in.
The "Equator crossing" cert has a date of 09th March 1942.
"the day of crossing from North to South"

[emma@esh]

Probably nothing to do with it but I found this site

http://www.historyarticles.com/ghost_ships.htm

which is about british troops going to Singapore in January 1942. Too early for our chap to be crossing the Equator but the right direction! it makes interesting reading anyway.

[Robin]

1881 census


2 Frant Road, Frant.

Anna M. Arthy age 83W, Head, born Edinburgh, Scotland.

[emma@esh]

Maybe....Will have a look too.

I had a look at various Kellys Directories for Sussex and there didn't appear to be ANY in sussex in the 1930's- well none with a telephone or a business anyway. Also checked the 1938 Telephone directory for Wadhurst,Ticehurst,Frant,Tunbridge Wells etc and found no Atheys at all :(

[Robin]

Ancestry has a death of John Henry ATHEY in 1996.
Uckfield District 34E/82
Age 90.
D.o.B. of 26th July 1906.
Not on FreeBMD..........
Robin

[emma@esh]

That must be him. We will have to get the death certificate and hope that a still living person registered him? Also on Ancestry...

DOROTHY MARY ATHEY Jan/97 (death) (birth) 29 Aug 1906. Registered Tunbridge Wells Kent

Am thinking that this could be his wife? unable to find a marriage as of yet though.

[Robin]

looked at a few "timelines"
Certificate states North to South 09th March 1942.
Feb 15th 1942 Singapore captured by the Japanese.
(Surely he would be going the other way?)
March 7th British evaucuat Rangoon Burma
(Wrong? way again)
June 21st Rommel captures Tobruk
(Was he going to/did he fight fight in Africa?)
Nov 8th North Africa Landings
( bit too early?)

[Robin]

Rapid progress - following Tuesday's meeting! Val Tunbridge's mother [Nora Tweedley] recalls him - he was known as John and his surname was pronounced Athee - with a long A. He lived in Fairglen [I think] as a child and trained as a motor mechanic wiht the Eaton Brothers.
He then worked at Dodmans Garage in Fairglen[now the bungalow set back from the road]; he maaried a Miss Inglefield [who was adopted] and then lived opposite Pennybridge, where Mr du Vallon, chairman of the Parish Council lived.
For further information, she suggested you approach Walter Hodder. Gwen Eaton is another possible - but elderly

[Robin]

Have looked at census info..........
INGERFIELD ('s) appear out of LAMBERHURST in the 1861 with three generations of the family up to the 1901 at BUSSES GREEN & WHITE MAGPIE.
Eli(the younger) had three children as of 1901 would not be suprised if he had another daughter called Dorethy in 1906.
Perhaps need to spend money on certs.

If they married after the war? She would have been 30+(assuming the death is the right one), to late for children?
Again nothing on FreeBMD.
Are the Parish register for post war period avaliable?
Had no reply from the RASC re his Army career.
Need his service record details

[emma@esh]

Have just found this on free bmd

Births Dec 1903
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ingerfield Dorothy Mary Ticehurst 2b 101

So someone is telling fibs about her age somewhere :)

As she is a Wadhurst girl I am imagining they got married in Wadhurst at some point. The parish Register should list this marriage, even if it took place in the 1940's.

I am confused about the adoption now. Her birth was registered under the name Ingerfield. Perhaps they adopted a child? As you say they may have married after the war and not had any of their own?

[Robin]

Maurice Wilson, )Sue's uncle) thinks he knows of a possibly connected family in the Woods Green/Monks Lane? Cousley Wood area.
Am waiting to hear from him...............

[Robin]

Following Heather,s request in the Courier, I had a 'phone call from Walter Hodder.
His parents were friends with John & Dotty and he remembers them as a child. They married 1946-47-48 ish probably at Tibdebrook.They had no children.
Walter confirmed that John,s father worked as a driver/handyman at Tidebrook House?, but does not have a time-span.
John had a brother Cecil? who died tragically(pre-war)?
Dotty styled her name as Ingerfield-Brown which confuses the adoption issue.
John worked at various garages within Wadhurst and Tunbridge Wells.
Walter also told a story of a "resque" involving John and a "fire in a car inspection pit", he can't remember a date or if John was resqued or was the resquee.
Walter stated that the certificates were presented at a party in the Commemoration Hall, it caused some upset in the village as they were presented mainly to the older servicemen who came home in 1945, it was not repeated for those of a"younger age" who did not return until 1946.
Walter also remember the sale of the bungalow which he is sure was handeled by a nephew/s of Dorethy.
I don't intend to take this any furthur at present, cos I dont want to spend money on certs which would only confirm what is already known. Any other thoughts.

[emma@esh]

It looks like there is no immediate family to give the certificates to then :(

Did we ascertain where he was born? Now we have a rough date and place of marriage we can check the PR next time one of us goes down to ESRO. That would give fathers names and perhaps witnesses (siblings?). Though am not 100% sure they have Tidebrook PR's there? from what I can tell on the A2A site they only have a baptism PR.
If it proves too difficult to find a relation perhaps we could keep anything we do find out about him and put it together for some sort of display in the future? It seems a shame to have found his things and not 'remember' him.

[emma@esh]

Having just looked on genesreunited someone has registered some Wadhurst Ingerfields but no Atheys from here.

[Robin]

DO you still have access to the 1901 census.
Are there ANY Atheys working as "chauffeer"(not a lot of cars about in 1901), driver, groom at any "large" house anywhere????
Any idea on who owned Tidebrook House?1910's/20's/30's.
Did they move there from another part of the country, bringing some staff, this may give a clue as to a birth location.
I am still reluctant to spend any money on certificates.
(must be my Scottish ancestry;) )

[lucretia]

I think they should have some sort of debt of honour corner in the commemeration Hall, after all that's what it was intended for. They could have the CWGC Certificates, and mabe this certificate could be added as he does'nt appear to have any children.

[emma@esh]

Is Tidebrook House the same as Tidebrook Manor? If it is then I know that John and Constance Budd were there

Dist No Sched No Road or House Name Surname First Names Rel To Head Condition Age Occupation Where Born County Where Born Town Piece No Folio
H 2755 32 The Manor (Tidebrook) Budd John E Head Married 40 Copper Smelter Surrey Felcham RG13 894 81
H 2756 32 The Manor (Tidebrook) Budd Constance A Wife Married 37 India Calcutta RG13 894 81
H 2757 32 The Manor (Tidebrook) Lade Mercy Servant Single 36 Cook (Domestic) Sussex Wadhurst RG13 894 81
Dist No Sched No Road or House Name Surname First Names Rel To Head Condition Age Occupation Where Born County Where Born Town Piece No Folio
H 2758 32 The Manor (Tidebrook) Ewing Isabella Servant Single 25 Parlour Maid (Domestic) St? Strattlebland? RG13 894 81
H 2759 32 The Manor (Tidebrook) Russell Emma Servant Single 26 Housemaid (Domestic) Kent Benenden RG13 894 81
H 2760 32 The Manor (Tidebrook) Bourne Fanny Servant Single 16 Kitchenmaid (Domestic) Sussex Wadhurst RG13 894 81

if this isn't the place then I can't see which house it was. I have Constance's prayer book and it has pressed flowers in it still :)
I know that John Budd died in the 1920's.

[emma@esh]

This may have no relevance at all but..

Bromley 1901
Alice Athey 9 London Poplar London Bromley
Amelia Athey 41 London Shadwell London Bromley Tailoress
Frederick Athey 16 London Shadwell London Bromley Shop Assistant

and

James Athey 18 Ldn Shadwell London St Mary Stratford Bow Kitchen Lad Dom ( perhaps an older brother?)

A James Athey and a Amelia Hughes married in Stepney in 1882.

The following year (1902) Amelia died (aged 42) and this was registered at Battle. I can't find any links with Battle and Athey at the moment. I have no idea why she would have come down this way unless she came to a special kind of hospital or she had family in this area.

[emma@esh]

Just found amongst some Lewes stuff which is in a huge pile by the pc...

Wadhurst Burial Register
May 3rd 1951
Agnes Athey of 2 Fairglen Cottages aged 72 years.

hmmmm.....?