How Tragic

[vikki brace]

I was just going through the national burial index on findmypast, and I have just found the death of 3 Titchmarsh's

(Wife) Phillis Titchmarsh b,1839 died July 1863
(Husband) John Titchmarsh b.1831 died Mar 1864
(only child) John Titchmarsh b.1860 died Mar 1864

How sad, one family all dead within a year. I know it was quite common - buts its still sad

[Christine in Herts]

It makes you suspect that there was something in particular going on in the area at the time? An epidemic or something?

Christine

[Guest]

1863 London Scarlet fever epidemic 30,000 die
maybe it was scarlet fever

[Elizabeth Herts]

In 1854 my 3xgt-grandparents both died from cholera in London. They weren't "deprived" in the sense that they had a good income and good housing.

I wonder if there was any such epidemic then (apart from Scarlet Fever).

[Little Nell]

1864 there were epidemics of cholera, typhoid and typhus. Plus, of course, there could have been a local outbreak of something infectious.

[vikki brace]

Well I have been digging around and haven't come accross any epidemics in the area for that time period, but I suppose the wife could have died in childbirth (or complication arrising from pregnancy) and the father and son could have died from Flu. I think I will order the 3 certs to satify my curiosity. They are not my direct line but they are Titchmarsh's

[Little Nell]

this is also sad

NOT my lot, but another family who were connected by marriage

from North Cerney, Gloucestershire burial register 1842:


William Gegg of Woodmancote age 12 7 Jun 1842
Reuben Gegg of Woodmancote age 7 12 Jun 1842
George Gegg of Woodmancote age 5 2 Jul
Anna Maria Large of Woodmancote age 15 10 Jul
Mary Gegg age 5 10 Jul
Henry Gegg age 3 10 Jul
Elizabeth Large of Woodmancote age 6 31 Jul
William Large of Woodmancote age 10
Eliza Large of North Cerney age 7 27 Aug

The ones in blue were brothers, the ones in red siblings, and the ones in purple siblings. The blue ones were 2nd cousins of the red ones and the red ones were 2nd cousins once removed of the purple ones.

[Olde Crone Holden]

TB was endemic. Most of my adult deaths were from TB in the mid 1800s.

OC

[dicole]

Not just an epidemic can take the whole family.

You will understand that I was very curious about the following five deaths in the NSW deaths index.

3932/1933 DAVIS VINCENT K JOHN EMMA G HELENSBURGH (father)
3933/1933 DAVIS ROSA G L EDWARD MARY J L HELENSBURGH (Mother)
3934/1933 DAVIS CLIFFORD N VINCENT K ROSA G L HELENSBURGH (age 2)
3935/1933 DAVIS LESLIE VINCENT K ROSA G L HELENSBURGH (age 14)
3936/1933 DAVIS VINCENT B VINCENT K ROSA G L HELENSBURGH (age 16)

I just had to send away for one death certificate to find out more.

It is so much worse than you could imagine.

The family went down to the NSW South Coast, to Stanwell Park, camping in the last week of the January School Holidays (also middle of the Depression). During the night a severe thunderstorm caused torrents of water to swell the creek and surround the tents. Father Vincent roped together self, wife, three of their children and two other boys, and oldest girl carried the baby, to try to cross the flooding area. The force of the water knocked everyone off their feet and broke the rope. All were washed out to sea, except the mother, who drowned trapped under a tree, and the only girl, Laurel who was 15, who survived. The bodies of three were washed up on a nearby beach and three bodies were never found.

Di

[Little Nell]

That's awful!