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Shoemaker being an officer in the Army?

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  • Shoemaker being an officer in the Army?

    Obviously any army had to have bootmakers, but I have discovered that one of my great uncles was an officer in the army. I would have thought this would have been a civilian occupation and wondered how he managed to become an officer.

    For anyone who is interested, his name was Ernest Smith born in Capel, Surrey about 1863. In the 1891 census, he was in Lewes, Rottingdean as an officer. By 1901 he had married a Julia Ellen and was living in Horsham. I haven't found their marriage which presumably took place at sometime in the intervening 10 years. Was he still in the army and because of his rank had been allowed to marry, or had he left? I don't have the faintest idea about how to find these things out.

    MTIA.

  • #2
    I'm not convinced he was an army officer. If you look at the 1891 census there are a lot of women on the same page also listed as officers - it seems to be a school: Brighton Parochial Schools

    I've not looked at the next census yet though!

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    • #3
      It occurred to me to look up Brighton Paroceal schools and the superintendent on top of the sheet, according to the information I found, worked at Warren Farm School, which was a poor house for poor or 'at risk' children. It would seem likely that my GGU was on the staff and I am wondering if Julia Ellen was one of the inmates.

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      • #4
        Help! She's a Smith too!!

        Marriages Sep 1891
        Barnes George Edwin Reigate 2a 279
        Smith Ernest Reigate 2a 279
        Smith Julia Ellen Reigate 2a 279
        Warren Caroline Margaret Reigate 2a 279

        lol

        This looks like her birth:

        Births Dec 1868
        SMITH Julia Ellen Dorking 2a 141

        She seems to be the dau of Charles (60) and Fanny (40) on the 1871 Says b Dorking, but that's near enough!). On the following census she has the correct birthplace () and Fanny has remarried, presumably after the death of Charles.

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        • #5
          It would be interesting to see if Julia and Ernest were distantly related anyway, as Ernest was born in Capel just outside Dorking, therefore, its not beyond the realms of possibility that they are distant cousins.

          Thanks for the info Merry.

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          • #6
            The "officers" could be members of the Church Army. I've just found someone who was in the Salvation Army and described in the census as "officer".
            Uncle John - Passed away March 2020

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