Husband of W.P. 'Bill'
Richardson's Great Aunt, Mary Ellen Gilliland
John Moordaff Cape
was born in Tow Law on 11th February 1877. His parents
were William Cape (a miner) and his second wife
Catherine, who were both born in Workington. Very soon
after John M was born, the family returned to Cumberland
and the 1881 census recorded them in Little Broughton
near Cockermouth. John was 4 years old and listed as a
scholar. His parents were both 32 and his father was
working as a coal miner. The other children were Thomas
(12) and Joseph (1). His grandmother, Isabella Ousby
(55) was also recorded in the house.
The 1891 census showed the family in Great Broughton.
John was 14 and working for his living as a coalminer.
His older brother Thomas was no longer listed in the
family home. His younger brother, Joseph, was 11 and was
listed as a scholar as were the new members of the
family, Mary Ann (9) and Jonathan (8). Granny Isabella
(66) was still living with them and she was recorded as
a retired laundress. They also had a lodger in the
house, William Doran (23), a coalminer born in
Whitehaven.
At some stage after 1891, the family moved back to
Durham. The death of William's grandmother, Isabella
Ousby, was registered in Cockermouth in the last quarter
of 1892 but in 1901, his parents and siblings were
living in Sunniside.
However, by 1901, John had become a married man. His
wife was Mary Ellen Gilliland, whose family lived in
Sunniside, and they were married on 14th January
1899 at the Crook Primitive Methodist Chapel. In the last quarter of 1899, a daughter, Hilda,
was born but sadly, she died in the second quarter of
1900.
The 1901 census recorded John and Mary Ellen living in
Ridley's Buildings on Front Street in Sunniside. John
was 24, and his occupation was entered on the census as
a hewer, his wife, Mary Ellen, was 26.
Very shortly after the census, in the second quarter of
1901, John's second daughter, Annie, was born and her
birth was registered in the Auckland Registration
District.
In the next few years, the family must have moved as, in
the third quarter of 1904, a third daughter, Elsie, was
born in the Lanchester Registration District. Sadly,
Elsie died just over a year later. The family returned
to Sunniside and in the third quarter of 1907, Mary
Ellen gave birth to a son, William. Like Hilda and Elsie
before him, William died very young. His burial took
place on January 4th at Dans Castle Cemetery in Tow Law.
Time went by and in the first quarter of 1909, another
daughter, Katie, was born and mercifully, like Annie,
she lived into adulthood.
The 1911 census showed the Cape family living in Front
Street, Sunniside. John was 34, and still working in the
pit as a hewer. Mary Ellen was 36 and the census form
recorded that they had been married for 12 years and
they'd had 5 chldren of whom only two were still living.
They were Annie (10) and Katie (2).
Around this time, John was becoming politically active.
From 1911 to 1920 he was chairman of the Roddymoor
Miners' Lodge and he was also a member of Crook Urban
District Council. The latter is shown in the Kelly's
1914 Directory of Durham where John and his
brother-in-law, John Edward Gilliand, are shown as
members for the Sunniside Ward.
In 1921, John stood for a seat on Durham County Council
but was unsuccessful but he did gain a place some three
years later.
In 1928, he was appointed as a County Alderman. As part
of his County Council role, he served on numerous
committees and had a particular interest in education.
He also acted as the agent for the Labour Party in
Barnard Castle and in the telephone directories from
1922 to 1937, his entry mentions that he was a political
agent. His number was: Crook 52.
It is worth mentioning that his half-brother Thomas Cape
(1868-1947) was also politically active, being the MP
for Whitehaven in Cumberland from 1918 to 1945.
The report of his death in the Auckland Chronicle of
26th May 1938, includes reference to his having been
unwell for some time. He had been to meetings in the
previous few days but died on the morning of 25th May.
He was buried on 28th May in the churchyard of St
Thomas, Stanley, Crook and his grave is still clearly
visible despite a tree in very close proximity.
The inscription on his grave reads:
In Loving Memory of John M Cape ,
Beloved husband of Mary E Cape, Who Died May 25th 1938
"Thou art not idle in thy higher
sphere
Thy spirit bends itself to loving tasks
And strength to perfect what it dreamed of here
Is all the crown and glory that it asks"
This stone is dedicated on behalf of
the Spennymoor Divisional Labour Party
In honour of his great service for the people whom he
loved
Probate was granted on 8th July 1938 to John's widow,
Mary Ellen. His effects amounted to £625:5s:7d.
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