1807 Info 3: James Crompton
His son, Thomas edmund Crompton

Close info window


Thomas Edmund Crompton ...
... was born 5 May 1839 at Metham near Howden. He trained as a nurseryman with Backhouse Nurseries. During his life he lived at:


His marriage

Thomas Edmond married Mary louise Moore of Campsall, Doncaster.

Source: GRO Marriages
Crompton Thomas Edmund   3rd Quarter 1865  Doncaster  vol. 9c page 627
Moore Mary Louisa        3rd Quarter 1865  Doncaster  vol. 9c page 627

who was born on 13 August 1842 in Clapham, Surrey and died on 07 September 1880 at Preston, Hull.

Source: GRO Deaths
Crompton Mary louisa    38  3rd Quarter 1880  Sculcoates  vol. 9d page 117
1871 Census Sun/Mon. 2/3rd April 1871
Source:      FHL Film  TNA Ref RG10
             Piece: 4778; Folio: 55; Page: 19;  Sched 98
Dwelling:    North Road
Place:       Preston, York, England

Name                    Rel   Mar  Age  Occ              Birthplace
Thomas Edmund Crompton  Head   M   31   Market Gardener  Yorks, Melton
Mary Louisa Crompton    Wife   M   28   Gardener's wife  Surrey, Clapham
Edmund Thos Crompton    Son         1                    Suffolk, Hoxme                

On his son Arthur's birth certificate his occupation, in 1874, is "market gardener".

By the time of the 1881 census Thomas was a widower, bringing up his four children and living in a tied house which appears to be the first 'old' house from the cross roads at the centre of Preston, on the road to Salt End.

Known as Stakes Road until at least 1927 the name was changed to Staithes Road, taking the dialect word for jetty. This can be found, on the Humber shore, beyond Salt End. The Enumerator's description of Hedon District 4 describes the location as 'All that remaining part of the parish of Preston in the Rural Sanitary District of Sculcoates from and including Mrs Garbutt's House and all the Houses and Cottages on the west side of the Turnpike Road leading through Preston to Wyton Holmes Bridge to Preston Field Farm.

1807info3, sheet 2

1892 map of Preston 1:10 560 - Kb gif

Above: The 1892 map of Preston, scale 1:10 560
The red circle marks the possible location of Thomas's house, being the first house in Stakes/Staithes Road

1881 Census   Sun/Mon 2/3rd April 1881
Source:       FHL Film  PRO Ref RG11
              Piece 4752 Folio 44 Page 1  Sched  1
Dwelling:     Stakes Road (Enumerator's first house)
Place:        Preston, York, England

Name                    Rel  Mar  Age Occ            Birthplace
Thomas Edward Crompton  Head Wid  41  Market Gardner Yorks, Meltham
Edmond Thomas Crompton  Son       11  Scholar        Norfolk, Hoxen
Agnes Louisa Crompton   Dau        9  Scholar        Yorks, Preston
Arthur Crompton         Son        6  Scholar        Yorks, Preston
Albert Crompton         Son        4                 Yorks, Preston
Transcription error: For Edward read Edmund and for Meltham read Metham

It is possible, that when John Harper moved to Hyde, James moved in with his eldest son Thomas Edmund, who was now an agricultural labourer, living in Carrick's Row, Preston.

1891 Census   Sun/Mon 5/6th April 1891
Source:       FHL Film      PRO Ref RG12
              Piece 3921 Folio 32 Page 9
Dwelling:     Carrick's Row
Place:        Preston, York, England

Name              Marr  Age  Sex  Birthplace         Rel     Occ    
Thomas E Crompton  Wid   51   M   Melton, Yorks      Head    Ag. Lab.
Albert Crompton    Son   14   M   Preston, Yorks     Son
James Crompton     Wid   87   M   Bridlington, Yorks Father
Transcription error: For Melton read Metham

His suicide, in Preston, is thought to have been caused by the shame of the death of his father, James, in Sculcoates Union (Hull Workhouse). The story is told by an extract of the Hull Daily Mail, dated 26 March 1896, page 3, column 1. The second transcription is from The Eastern Morning News and Hull Advertiser of Thursday, 26th March, 1896, Page 6, Column 2.

1807info3, sheet 3
Hull Daily Mail
26 March 1896
Preston suicide.

  An inquest was held yesterday in the Bell Inn, Preston, near Hull, by Mr H. Birks, district coroner, on the body of a man, Thomas Edmund Crumpton [sic], who committed suicide in a shed in Reedmar, near Preston. Mary Tate stated that she was the sister of the deceased and lived next door to him. On Thursday last she and the deceased visited their father in the Sculcoates Union [workhouse]. She anticipated hearing of his death very soon. On Friday morning the deceased received a letter from the Governor of the Union stating that his father was dead. Witness noticed that the information affected him very much. She had heard him express his sorrow at the thought of his father having to die in the workhouse, but witness did not see by his manner he had any thought of taking his own life. She did not see him on Saturday as she was at work

 

all day. On Monday morning she went to his house, and saw two envelopes lying on the table. One was addressed to his daughter who resided in Hedon, and the other to his son (sic) [brother] John Crumpton (sic), living in Hyde, near Manchester. There were no letters in the envelopes. The first she heard of his death was from a neighbour, who told her his body had been found in a shed. George Brunton, postman, Hedon, said he saw the deceased on Saturday, but did not notice anything in his manner to be alarmed at. Arthur Tomlinson, butcher, stated he found the body yesterday hanging by a rope attached to a beam. He cut him down, and found he was dead, and immediately informed the police. The jury returned a verdict that the deceased committed suicide whilst in an unsound state of mind.

The Eastern Morning News and Hull Advertiser
Thursday, 26 March 1896
SUICIDE AT PRESTON - INQUEST

  Yesterday afternoon, the District Coroner, (Mr. Henry Birks) held an inquest at the Bell Inn Preston, touching the death of Thomas Edward (sic) Crompton.
  Mary Tate, widow, of Preston said that the deceased was her brother. He was 56 years of age and a gardener. He had been rather downcast lately. His father had been in the union and she and the deceased went to see him on the Wednesday in last week. She had heard the deceased say that he wished that he was dead, but he had never used any threat that he would do away with himself. His father died last Friday and the witness found a letter on Monday on the table in his house informing him of his father’s death. She last saw her brother on Friday night. When she came home on Saturday afternoon, she noticed that the front door of his house was fastened, but she did not suspect anything. On the following morning, however, her little girl told her that the back door was open. On the Sunday afternoon the back door had been shut. On the

 

 Monday morning, she went into the house and found two envelopes, one addressed to the deceased’s son at Elton [Etton] and the other to his brother at Hyde, near Manchester. There were no letters in the envelopes. She knew that the deceased did not like the idea of his father dying at the union. But he made no special observation about it. A neighbour informed her on Tuesday that the body had been found hanging in a shed.
  George Branton, postman, Hedon, said that he saw the deceased in Preston on Saturday morning. He asked him if he was going to Hedon. The deceased said “Yes”, and as the witness was driving, he offered him a ride in his cart. The deceased then said that he would not go. He seemed rather strange. Arthur Tomlinson, butcher, Preston, deposed to finding the body hanging in a shed in Reedmar, Preston.
 The jury returned a verdict of "Suicide while in a state of unsound mind."

1807info3, sheet 4

The Hull Daily Mail reported that Thomas' death was at Reedmar. Local research suggests that this may be a dialect pronunciation for Reedmire, a name associated with an open land drain. Whilst the 1855 map locates Reedmire, close to where Thomas lived in 1881, it is known as a sewer, rather than a drain. On the modern 1:50 000 map the drain is shown but not named.

The probable location of Thomas' death  27Kb-gif

Above: The 1891 OS first edition of Preston, Hull.

The top blue circle shows the assumed location of Thomas' house in the 1881 census. From back yard, that is probably a farm yard, a track runs south south east, across two fields to Reedmar Drain - shown as a black line.

To the east of the field gate is a building, the probable shed, mentioned above. 

GRO Death
Thomas Edmund Crompton 56 Sculcoates 9d 110 1st Qt. 1896
Registration District Sculcoates
1896 DEATH in Sub-District of Hedon in the Counties of Kingston upon Hull and York
No When and
where died
Name and surname Sex Age Occupation Cause of
Death
Informant When registered Signature of registrar
174 24th March 1896
Preston
Thomas Edmund
Crompton
Male 56 Gardner That the deceased
hanged himself
whilst in an
unsound state
of mind
Birks coroner
Inquest held
25th March 1896
27th March 1896 Thomas
Johnson

Back to TOP Use portrait to print
This page was created by Richard Crompton
and maintained by Chris Glass
Version A.1
Updated 02 February 2008