Obituaries/Death Notices, London?

[Spangle]

This might be her death registration:

Name: Irene Waters
Birth Date: 7 Apr 1911
Death Registration Month/Year: Mar 1996
Age at death (estimated): 84
Registration district: Wandsworth
Inferred County: London
Register number: B78A
Entry Number: 275

but it raises some doubts about accuracy

YOU'RE confused?!!!

Her husband was a Dr Waters, so that is doubtless her BUT...

Irene the pianist is assumed to have been born at circa the date given, though there is much confusion. The BMD registers give 2 Irene Kohlers born in London around this period - one reg 1909 in West Ham, the other reg 1912 in Camberwell.

Indeed there WERE 2 Irene Kohler's in my family - my Nan's sister was also an Irene Kohler. As my Nan was bon in Camberwell, and as the pianist Irene's father married in West Ham, I guessed that the 1912 reg in Camberwell was my Nan's sister and the 1909 reg in West Ham was the pianist. This is borne out by the fact that Irene Kohler, reg 1912, Camberwell, had a mother with the maiden name COX - as did my Nan! So the 1912 lady had to be my Nan's sister, and there has to be a discrepancy over the pianists true date of birth.... doesn't there???


We in the family assumed that perhaps the pianist had shaved a couple of years off her age and used her cousin Irene's birthdate, hence the pianist always shows on Google to have been born circa 1912. I do hope I am making sense here!

I am aware of the Aussie institute, thank you. My cousin (herself a concert pianist) has contacted them and now possesses a listof the music they hold but the detail does not sem to be very personal.

I hadn't thought of Google Books though! Lots of reading to do now!

Thank you one and all.

[Spangle]

As you are in the UK I believe you can join the Bedfordshire Library online.
The Times is in the Reference Section and can be looked at from your PC without leaving your home.

Worth a try
https://www.galaxy.bedfordshire.gov.uk/cgi-bin/vlib.sh

Just joined the library online, thank you... but it doesn't allow access to The Times unless in person!

[Mutley]

That's a pain...
Gale Virtual Reference Library are obviously moving the goal posts.

Let us hope someone can do a lookup for you.

[Peter Goodey]

Irene the pianist is assumed to have been born at circa the date given, though there is much confusion. The BMD registers give 2 Irene Kohlers born in London around this period - one reg 1909 in West Ham, the other reg 1912 in Camberwell.

Not an insuperable problem, though. You now know that she married in 1950 (if accurate). You could start by getting the marriage certificate.

[Peter Goodey]

Just joined the library online, thank you... but it doesn't allow access to The Times unless in person!

I seem to recall reading the Bedfordshire Libraries got into trouble for making the databases too freely available. Hardly surprising.

Haven't you tried your own library service? I found that biog through mine.

Times Digital Archive doesn't cover 1996. Infotrac Custom Newspapers does.

[Sue Mackay]

Have you see this?

https://www.npg.org.uk/live/search/pe...LinkID=mp52898

[Spangle]

Sorry for the delay in saying this - I have had problems with my computer yet again!

A HUGE THANK YOU!!!!

[Geoff_M]

The other person was my Nan' cousin, the well-known pianist Irene Kohler. I now nothing much of classical music I'm ashamed to say, but apparently she was internationally renowned. She died in 1996, yet again I have yet to find any obituary for her and I'd imagine there is even more chance that there is one knocking about somewhere. I could only think of the Times, but have neither the ability to register for membership nor access to the central libray in my county in order to search via their computers. Has anyone any advice or ideas on either of these posers please? Thank you.

I am going to produce a small book for my grandchildren, consisting of all my mother’s memories about her life (1912 – 2006)
In these notes she writes –
" … One of the girls in my class was a girl called Irene Kohler, who subsequently went to Australia, and I heard once that she was a famous concert pianist out there. “

My mother was born in the borough of Wandsworth, lived in Peckham, south-east London, and went to Cator Street School, Cator Street, Peckham.
She knew Irene Kohler.

Age-wise and place-wise, this ties in with Irene Kohler being born in 1912 in Wandsworth, and even indicates that she lived in the catchment area (Peckham) for Cator Street school

[Lesley Robertson]

Welcome to the British Genealogy Forum, Geoff. I don' know whether you have realised, but you have joined a thread more than a decade old and most of the participants are no longer members (that's why they are tagged "guest"). However the newspaper references are still valid - try Find My Past or the British Newspaper Atchive.
There's more online than there was in 2008.

[Geoff_M]

Many thanks Lesley! :-)