19 Kingston Street, Cambridge

A Bricklayer & a Carpenter

1881

Benjamin Matthews, 43, and his wife Fanny, 49, live here in 1881.  He is a coal agent and the couple were both born in Cambridge.  Their boarder is  Walter Mountdier, 20,  a coal merchants’ clerk from Brandon, Norfolk.

1891

In 1891, 19 Kingston Street is home to the large Morley family, with four children. Christopher Morley, 49, from Cambridgeshire, is working as a Bricklayer. His wife Sarah, 47, is from Essex. Their eldest daughter Bertha is 18, and as she was born is Suffolk we can infer the family had been moving around a lot until settling in Cambridge. Ernest Morley, 15, is the eldest son and working as an Errand Boy. 12 year old Arthur Morley and 9 year old Mary Morley, despite being school age, are not in education, likely as a result of trying to support 6 people on a single, fairly low Bricklayer’s salary.

1901

By 1901, 19 Kingston Street is home to the Shanks family. Sarah Shanks, aged 31, is married to Arthur Shanks, a 30 year old Carpenter. Both Arthur and Sarah, alongside their eldest daughter, 5 year old Grace, are born in Withersfield in Suffolk, while their two youngest children, 3 year old Victor and 2 year old Winifred are both born in Cambridge.

1911

By 1911, 19 Kingston Street is home to Tabitha Boutle, a 60 year old Widow from Burwell. She lives with her 65 year old Sister Harriet, also a Widow, and likewise hailing from Burwell. Living alongside them is Tabitha’s son William Boutle, a 22 year old Engine Cleaner with the Great Eastern Railway, born in Reach.

Sources: 1881, 1891, 1901, 1911 UK Census