Lily (Lil) Mercer

1901 Lilly Mather

• Birth Notes
  • In Lil Mercers notes, she is recorded as eldest daighter of John Mercer
    
    Aged 24 in 1901
    
    

• Death Notes
  • Sadly nobody wrote the date namely Alice in Newspaper clipping of Bolton reads:
    
    Lilly Mercer & Richard Mather married May 23rd, 1904 at Cathcart Street Baptist Church, Richard youngest son of Joseph Mather to Lily Mercer eldest daughter of John Mercer both of this Town.
    
    Sue believes all her grandparents except Lily Doxey died around 1956/7.  There are several matching death in the index from 1954 to 1960, but none matches perfecty :-
    
    Oct-Dec 1954 Lily MATHER, 62, Barton, 10b 266
    Apr-Jun 1955  Lily MATHER, 61, Middleton, 10e 489
    Jan-Mar 1958  Lily MATHER, 74, Farnworth, 10c 227
    Jul-Sep  1958  Lillie MATHER, 73, Bolton, 10b 524
    Apr-Jun 1960  Lily MATHER, 63, Salford, 10f 471
    Jul-Sep  1960  Lily MATHER, 83, Manchester, 10e 188  (BEST)
    
    All except the last record appear to have died too young if Lily Mather (nee Mercer) was born in Dec-1876.  Probably the Last record is correct and Lily died (actually death recorded) in Manchester, but the obituary was in Bolton as that is where she once lived.  Sue would have only been 7, so still a young child and not remember Lil much!
    

• General Notes
  • Living at 121 Knowsley Road in 1891, aged 14
    Living at 13 Brill St in 1901, aged 24
    
    Lily and Richard had to go to Belfast (to help build the Titanic).  They packed up from Liverpool, but the sad part was that Lily had to part with quite a few of her wedding presents as they could not afford to take everything with them.  This must have affected her a lot for daughter Winnie always  talked about it.  Alice always said her parents were told never talk about politics and religion while living in Belfast !
    
    Richard and Lily were friends of John Thaw’s (the actors)  parents, which is a little thing the family where quite proud of!
    
    Story by Sue:  I don’t know of any occupations Lily did other than, while having a young family for some extra money for a while she would clean some Ladies front steps.  Do you remember in those days with the Donkey Stone and a brush, it was the thing to do.  While after so long the Lady was going to live somewhere else and said to Grandma that she could choose anything she liked in her house, so I think the lady must have been going into a Nursing Home and Grandma Mum said had always admired the lady’s Tea Set, so she was able to have it and yes to this day it sits in the Victorian Display Cabinet that belonged to my Grandparents Doxey in our dining room.  I think its Derby Pottery.  It’s beautiful - I adore it.

Details of Lil's family with Richard (Dick) Mather