Daughter of W.P. 'Bill'
Richardson's Great Uncle, Thomas Richardson
Annie (Nance) was
born on 24th January 1892, the second child and
first daughter of Thomas Richardson and his wife Mary
Eleanor (nee Purvis). Her birth was registered in the
Chester le Street Registration District.
She was baptised on 28th February 1892 and her baptism
was recorded in the Primitive Methodist Register for
Jarrow Circuit. The family lived at Usworth Village and
Annie's Dad was a coal miner.
Annie was recorded on the census of 1901, at 6
Cooperative Terrace, Usworth, Co. Durham, she was 9
years old. Her father, Thomas, was 32 and he
worked as a Checkweighman at the mine. Her mother, Mary
Eleanor, was also 32. Annie had two sisters, Margaret
(8) and Florence (3), she also had a new baby brother
John M., who was 4 months old. In 1908,
when Annie was 16, she was a Pupil Teacher at Washington
Station Road Council School. She was mentioned in the
school log kept by the head teacher. The
census of 1911 recorded Annie and her family at 38
Cooperative Terrace, Usworth. She was 19 and listed as
an Elementary School Teacher, working for the County
Council. Her Dad, Thomas, was not listed in the family
home as by that time he was Member of Parliament for
Whitehaven and was in Barrow in Furness, presumably on
business. Her Mam, Mary Eleanor was 42 and the other
members of the family at home were Margaret (18) who
worked as a typist, Florence (13), John (10), Thomas (5)
who were all at school and the baby was Robert, who was
5 months old. Sometime between 1911 and
1918, the family were living in London and on 7th
September 1918, Annie married Alan Holmes at the
Primitive Methodist Church in East Finchley.
According to the entry for her father in the Dictionary
of Labour Biography, Annie was a secretary in the House
of Commons for the Rev. Herbert Dunnico,
MP first in London and then at the United Nations in
Geneva.
Annie and Alan emigrated to Vancouver in Canada though I
am not yet sure when, their son Tony was born in Canada.
They are on an incoming passenger list, returning to
England in 3rd July 1922 on the Canopic from
Montreal and Tony is listed there as being 1 year old.
In 1930 they went to live and work in Geneva and
stayed there for four years until Alan was transferred
to London. In around 1940 they returned to Canada and
eventually settled in Vancouver again.
Annie's husband, Alan, died on 10th March 1972, in
Vancouver. Annie died on 8th August
1972, her death was registered in the North Vancouver
District, British Columbia. |
