Mary HORNER

• General Notes
  • Mary was born abt 1843 the second child of Thomas and Esther Horner, who were both working as Farm Labourers in Sharow nr Ripon, Yorkshire. The first census I have been able to locate her on is the 1851 census, where she is one of now five children.
    
    With father and mother being farm labourers they would have had to move regularly as this type of work depended on the labourer offering himself for hire at seasonal fairs. Thus eldest son WM was born at Norton Mills, Mary at Sharow, Chris at somewhere called Mount Grace, with Elizabeth and Thomas being born at Ripon. These moves took place in the space of 10years from 1839 to 1849.
    
    So by the 1851 census the family have moved again and are now living at East Harsley nr Northallerton, again parents are farm labourers and children described as scholars. Mary is described as 8 yrs which would make her DOB 1843.
    
    Moving to the census of March 1861 Mary has left home and is employed as a House Servant to the Nicholson family, who own a Nursery and Seedsman business at Sharow. This is of course the village where Mary was born, could it be that her parents had worked for the same family? By 29th October 1861 Mary had moved to Carthorpe nr Bedale, as this is where her child Henry Horner was born, we have his birth certificate, no father is registered. Carthorpe was the place that Mary’s farther was born so perhaps she went to live with her Grandparents.
    
    It was at Carthorpe that Mary met a man 5years younger than her, Elijah Midgley; for in 1865 she gave birth to their son John at Carthorpe and married Elijah on the 15 December 1869, going on to have another five children with him including twins Gertrude and George.
    
    By the 1871 census Elijah has become a Railway Guard and they have now moved to Wakefield. Son Henry looks to be living with them, but his name appears to have been miss-spelled Hooner , but there is no mention of younger son John. However John does appear in the 1881 census!
    
    Remember Henry was born to Mary with no father on his birth certificate, so he kept his Horner surname. John was born to Mary also before she was married Elijah was probably the father so John went with the Midgley surname.
    
    The 1881 census shows that the family have now moved to 43 Clough Street, Bowling, Bradford. Elijah is now employed as a Railway Goods Inspector. Eldest son Henry we know has left home and is working as a Farm Servant at East Tanfield, before joining the police force in October 1881.
    
    1891 census shows the family now living at 11,St James Square, Horton Bradford, in what must have been a large house or cramped conditions! They still have four of their own children still at home, but also a lodger, and eldest son Henry’s wife and four children, one of which is Annie Louise my future grandma, living with them. Elijah is now described as a Drayman, which sounds a bit of a come down from his previous roll, is this still on the railway?
    
    The census of 1901 finds them moved again to 130 Fitzgerald Street, Bradford.  Elijah is definitely back on the railway, described as a Railway Foreman. Just one of their children, Thomas, is living at home. To date I have been unable to trace Henry and family anywhere in the 1901 census.
    
    I have found no information regarding Mary’s death; I have assumed a date of 1910
    
    by John Wagstaff 

Details of Mary's family with Elijah MIDGLEY

Details of Mary's family with Unknown