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Brentford Families - Carter and Hurt

The Carter family; also Hurt and Quarrier

I got sent an old photo marked up as H. M Carter, aged 95, in the collection of William Henry Hurt born 1892. My Great Great Gran was a Hannah Carter born in Berkshire as Hannah QUARRIER and was in Newbury Workhouse in 1841 and 1851 with her Mum, Mary.

I couldn't find her on the 1861 census but she married Charles Carter a labourer in 1863 in Newbury. Charles and Hannah for some reason then go to live in Brentford appearing in 1871 in Garden Terrace Brentford, in 1881 in Paradise Place Brentford (Quite poor accommodation I understand); Hannah is a tailoress.

In 1891 The family are still in Paradise Place and in 1901 Hannah is a widow in Paradise Place working as a Market Garden help. In the 1911 census I found an Annah Carter of the right age and born in Berkshire as a boarder in Pottery Road Brentford with a Bowles Family. It didn't give any more info than Annah was an 81 year old widow and a boarder. The sad thing was the Bowles Family had all 5 children's names written on the census and then one of them, Alice aged 1, was crossed out with a red pen...when you look at Children born and children living it shows 5 born and 4 living so I'd imagine they told the census taker Alice's name and then it was crossed through.

I managed to find a death certificate for a Hannah Carter in Brentford, 1923, living till 94 years of age, amazing for a person from a workhouse background and in those days. The certificate shows Hannah was of 9 Boars Head Yard, widow of Charles Carter, she was 94 and an E Rowbotham of Warkworth House, Twickenham Road, registered the death.

Their Daughter was my Great Gran, Charlotte Anne Carter born 15 July 1868, Back Lane, Brentford (photo above right) and she married an Ealing man William HURT and they seemingly did quite well...he had grazing rights for his horses on Ealing Common and was a greengrocer. So the HURTs/CARTERS have been resident in Ealing/Brentford for many years. In the photo (above left) he is outside his greengrocers at 194 Warwick Road, Ealing (Building was still there a year ago).

This photo of the HURT Family from Ealing inc my Gran was taken around 1910 (There were 17 children of which 13 survived). My Nan is front left.

My Nan, Dorothy, born 1905, used to say she went to Ealing studios when she was a child to try and get in Childs scenes in the Ealing films. She went to an Ealing College and was always proud she had been Head Girl. I don’t know what she studied but it would have been 1920s as nan born 1905...Her Son said to me when I asked he thought she studied Domestic science or cookery whatever it would have been called then. Does anyone in the society know which College this might have been please? Nan Hurt left Ealing in mid to late 1920s and came to Wiltshire marrying My Granddad in 1928 and only occasionally returned to London.

The photos below are of Nan Dorothy HURT with her best friend Winnie Bennett whom she went to College with taken at about the time she would have been in College in Ealing. They were lifelong friends (Nan wearing glasses...according to Nan the Vicar took Nan's Mum to one side when Nan was about 5years old and said I think your Daughter needs glasses Mrs Hurt. Perhaps she couldn't read the hymns rather than not be able to see them?)

Nan HURT, following on from her days at College no doubt was always very keen on education and learning, lexicon and scrabble often came out when we visited and her dictionary was very well worn.

Group photo is William Hurt (Younger than in his greengrocer photo) Charlotte Anne Hurt (Nee Carter) looking if anything as I said shorter than Nan's 4'10" and Grandad Clements. Boy/young man to left is one of Nan's Brothers but I don't know which one.

The wedding photo is Nan Hurt marrying Granddad in Savernake Forest Wiltshire in 1928...apparently Nan had a touch of the seconds on the day but Thankfully Wedding went ahead to allow me to be typing this now). They lived in a tied cottage in the Forest on the estate of The Earl of Cardigan (Charge of Light Brigade Family).She was in The forest during the 2nd World War and the whole Family had to show passes to American troups to get to their home the Forest had many hidden amunition dumps in it. Nan Hurt always stuck paper over where people had written Christmas/Birthday cards to use them again which would no doubt come from the make do and mend philosophy of the day......which digresses a bit from the Ealing /Brentford connection.

Perhaps the more interesting one is Nan Hurt as a smiling young girl inside her Ealing house no doubt wearing what looks like a tin foil dress?

Notes

A couple of other points: Boars Head Yard is in what used to be known as New Brentford, the western end of town. The alley ran down from the south side of the High Street to the Grand Junction Canal. I reckon the yard contained a few short terraces of cottages and a few detached/semi-det ones, most probably two up two down. The E. Rowbotham who informed the Registrar of Hannah's death was of Warkworth House, Twickenham Road, Isleworth (more information is available); it is possible Hannah had been admitted to the hospital that was part of the workhouse.

Hannah was buried in Ealing and Old Brentford Cemetery in a Common Grave suggesting there was no family grave available to her, or her family could not afford a plot, or she had no local family. The site has a plan of the cemetery and Hannah's burial entry.

Page published February 2018