The Holley family

Frederick John Holley was born in Puriton, Somerset about 1868.  He was the illegitimate son of Susan Maria Holley.  In 1871 he was living in Puriton with his mother, a dressmaker aged 24, his grandmother, Ann Holley, a grocer aged 46 and his great grandmother, Jean Gibbs, an annuitant aged 86 years.

Frederick married Hannah Myers in Bridgewater in December quarter 1891.  Hannah was born in Bridgewater about  1869. 

They had children, Bessie Ellen (known as Nellie) born in Bristol in 1896, Beatrice Annie born in Thornbury in 1898, and Frederick George born in Thornbury in 1900 and Wilfred Herbert was born in 1905.  Nellie died in 1902 aged 6 years.

When Frederick and Hannah moved to Thornbury they appear to have lived first the house we now know as 4 Pullins Green.  They were shown as living there in the 1901 census when Frederick was a baker and confectioner, presumably employed by English's in St John Street.

We know that the Holley family moved from Pullins Green to number 6 Crispin Lane.   We are not sure when this happened but from the Council School records it appears to be between 1902 when the family were still living in St John Street (aka Pullins Green) and 1905 when they are shown in the school records and the electoral register as being in "Mutton Lane" which is another name for Crispin Lane.

The photo on the right shows Fred as a member of the Thornbury Brotherhood, a men's social club associated with the Baptist Church.

Frederick died in 1928 aged 59 years.  After Frederick's death, Hannah went to live with her daughter, Beatrice Annie and her husband, Ernest Frank Biddle in their house at 21 Pullins Green.  She is shown in the electoral registers as living with them in 1935 through to 1954.  We will be writing more on the Biddle family when we get around to doing their house in Pullins Green.

Wilfred Holley - the son of Frederick and Hannah seemed to follow in his father's footsteps.  We have  seen an account of a funeral of a Robert Perkins in 1918 in which Wilfred was one of the mourners.  Robert Perkins was also employed as a baker and confectioner at English's bakery in St John Street.

This page was last updated: 25/03/2008