Lieutenant Commander Benjamin Titheridge (1857 – 1918)

Lieutenant Commander Benjamin Titheridge R.V.O.  R.N. was a well-respected naval officer who died 100 years ago today. This is his life story.

Benjamin Titheridge’s Family

Benjamin Titheridge was born 26 June 1857, one of 13 children born to William Henry Titheridge and Elizabeth Ann Baird. The family lived in Alverstoke, Hampshire at 11 Stocks Yard in 1861 and 9 Forton Road in 1871.

Benjamin was twenty five years old when he married Louisa Pope on 26 March 1882 at Portsea, All Saints. They had seven children:

• Ruth Titheridge born 1882 died 1899 aged 16
• Benjamin James Titheridge born 1884 died 1951, married Eva Wells
• William George Titheridge born 1886 died 1890 aged 4
• Arthur Horace John Titheridge born 1887 died 1963, married Celia Walker
• Ethel Louisa Titheridge born 1892 married, Thomas Potts
• Beatrice Dorothy Pamela Titheridge born 1893, married Frederick Gibbins
• Harry Percival Titheridge born 1899 died 1970, married Edna West

Benjamin’s wife Louisa died on 18 December 1906, leaving Benjamin with three children under 14. A year after Louisa’s death Benjamin married Lizzie Rebecca Phillips on 28 December 1907 at Forton, St Johns.

Benjamin and family lived at a variety of addresses around Alverstoke and later Southampton.  Their known addresses are:

• 1886 Stoke Road, Gosport
• 1891 38 Prince Alfred Street, Gosport 
• 1906 Park Road, Gosport 
• 1907 15 Forton Road, Gosport
• 1911 49 Millais Road, Itchen, Southampton
• 1912 115 Obelisk Road, Woolston, Southampton

Benjamin Titheridge’s Naval Career

Benjamin joined the Royal Navy sometime between 1871 and 1875.  This was a career that was also followed by two of his brothers, James and John. Benjamin remained in the Royal Navy until his retirement in 1912. His service number was 53111. His naval records show he was promoted to Gunner on 20 March 1885; promoted to Chief Gunner on 20 February 1904; and promoted to Lieutenant on 30 September 1909.

The records also show glowing reports about him and show he was an excellent seaman. These are as some of the comments by his superiors. In 1886 it is recorded “very good, smart respectable recommended for promotion”. In December 1890 his superior wrote “very good specially recommended for advancement”. In 1910 he is described as “A first rate officer. Quiet and firm. Very strongly recommended” and “all very good, zealous and good manager of men”

It is known that he served on the following Navy vessels

• In 1881 HMS Wolverine
• In 1885 HMS St Vincent 
• In 1887 HMS Craysfoot 
• In 1895 HMS Orlando
• In 1901 HMS Trafalgar
• In 1901 His Majesty’s Yacht Osborne
• In 1908 His Majesty’s Yacht Alexandra

On 2 November 1909 he was made a member of the Royal Victorian Order, this is a British honour given by the monarch to people who have served them. The Royal Victorian medal was presented by King Edward VII.  The entry appears in the London Gazetter on Tuesday 9 November 1909 and reads
“Chancery of the Royal Victorian Order, St James’s Palace, November 9 1909.
The King has been graciously pleased to make the following appointments to the Royal Victorian Order to take effect from the dates noted:
To be a member of the 5th class
2 November 1909 Lieutenant Benjamin Titheridge, Royal Navy, His Majesty’s Yacht Alexandra”

Lieutenant Benjamin Titheridge MVO was placed on the retired list on 26 June 1912.  With the approach of World War 1 on 2 August 1914 Benjamin was reappointed to “HMS Pomone” Royal Naval College at  Dartmouth. HMS Pomone was used as a training ship. Benjamin continued on the staff of the naval college and on 30 September 1917 he was promoted to Lieutenant Commander.

Benjamin Titheridge’s Death

Benjamin died 23 January 1918, aged 60, at his home at 115 Obelisk Road, Woolston, Southampton after developing pneumonia. He was buried in St Anne’s Hill Cemetery, Gosport (Plot 31a 113).  He was survived by his wife Lizzie who died in 1929 at Southampton.

A photograph of Benjamin’s grave can be seen at the following link War Graves Photographic Project


The following funeral notice appeared in the local paper.

Hampshire Telegraph 01 February 1918

NAVAL OFFICER’S FUNERAL

The funeral of Lieutenant-Commander Benjamin Titheridge, M.V.O., R.N., took place at Ann’s Hill Cemetery on Monday afternoon with naval honours.  The coffin enclosing the remains had been brought from Sholing, where Lieutenant-Commander Titheridge died, to the Gosport railway station.  It was there met by a Naval funeral party under the command of Lieutenant Sidney Crabb R.N. and there was a large attendance of commissioned and warrant officers.  The coffin was placed on a Naval field-gun carriage, on which it was borne to the cemetery. The following officers being the pall bearers:  Lieutenant-Commander G H Colwill M.V.O. R.N.,  J E Edwards R.N.,  G Hogg R.N.,  R Arnold R.N.,  J H Jarvis,  H W Eason R.N.,  and A Gamblin  R.N., Commander Shrubsole R.N.R. represented the Commander in Chief.  Following the gun carriage were private mourners, who included Messers A Titheridge and H Titheridge (sons).  Mrs T S Potts and Mrs F J Gibbins (daughters).  Lieutenant Titheridge and Mr Jack Titheridge (brothers).  Mrs Emma Bryan, Mrs Talford and Mrs Godden (sisters).  Mr Will Godden and Mr Cecil Titheridge (nephews).  Messers J Redman, W A Phillips and Talford (brothers in law) and Beal (Southampton).  At the cemetery the cortege was met by the Rev. C Carey, M.A., Vicar of St Johns Forton, by whom the service was conducted. At the close three volleys were fired over the grave, and the “Last Post” sounded.

Tuberculosis a Common Cause of Death

Cause of death
 

Have you ever looked at the cause of death of your ancestors? 

There are several places you can research this. The easiest way, is to buy a death certificate. These can now be obtained electronically from the GRO website for £6 each ( GRO link ). If death was unexpected or suspicious you may find the inquest reported in the local papers. These articles are free to search but cost to access the articles ( Newspaper link  ). Occasionally the minister at the church recording the burials may add cause of death, especially if it is something unusual. You may also find some details in old hospital records ( example of hospital records )

Research shows that in 19^th and first half of the 20^th century the cause of death was very different from today. Today the main causes of death are heart disease, cancer, stroke whereas in the nineteenth century one of the biggest cause of death was tuberculosis, followed by other infections such as pneumonia and diarrhoea. Simple infections often had deadly results. It was only in 1928 that the first commercial antibiotic was discovered and it was 1940s before antibiotics were routinely distributed among the general public. Death also occurred much earlier and in 1915 the average life expectancy was 48 for males and 54 for females compared with 79 and 83 today.

Tuberculosis

Tuberculosis (TB) is one of these infections that took the lives of many people. In the nineteenth century the disease tended to affect young adults and was more prevalent in women than men. It is known by many names and you will also see it written as tuberculosis, TB, Consumption, Phthisis, White Plague and Potts disease. Tuberculosis is caused by bacteria that mainly attack the lungs but other parts of the body are also attacked. It leads to a persistent cough and other symptoms may include losing weight and appetite and a fever. The disease is spread through the air, so a person suffering TB can pass it on by coughs or sneezes. For most people the body’s immune system attacks the bacteria and you don’t get ill, but the disease can lie dormant for years. Before 1949 the only known treatment for TB was rest, good food, gentle exercise and time. In many cases this did not work. It was 1949 before the antibiotic, streptomycin, was first used to cure a patient. Treatment is now antibiotics taken over a long period of time. Between 1851 and 1910 nearly 4 million people died in England from TB.

So far I have come across two young family members who have died of TB.

Alfred William Tutheridge (1906 -1923)

Alfred William Tutheridge was born in the Peckham district of London on 21 February 1906, son of Alfred John Tutheridge and Jemima Alice Thomsett. He was one of one of seven children. Alfred was christened on 15 Jun 1911, with three of his siblings, at Christ Church, Greenwich. The 1911 census shows the family living at 42 Marlston Street, Greenwich, later they moved to 6 Fingal Street. Alfred was admitted to the Greenwich Union Infirmary with TB and hospital records show he died there on 27 January 1923 aged just 16. He was buried on 2nd February 1923 at Greenwich Cemetery. Later in the same grave are buried his father Alfred William (1929), his mother Jemima Alice (1942) and his sister Florence Maud (1933).

Sophia Tytheridge(1826 - 1853)

Sophia Tytheridge was born Sophia Cunningham about April 1826 in Liverpool. The 1841 census shows her living with her aunt and uncle, John and Catherine Courtney and her mother and two sisters. Nineteen year old Sophia married William Henry Walter Tytheridge at St Luke’s Chelsea on 24 May 1845. William was a senior clerk in the General Record Office of Somerset House. The family were relatively well off, with William described as a gentleman on the baptism records. Sophia and William lived at 23 St John’s Terrace Kensington and other addresses in Chelsea. There were three children from the marriage Henry Burton Holdup Tytheridge born 1847, Walter Robert Tytheridge born 1849 and Elizabeth Sophia Tytheridge born June 1853.

Sophia developed TB around the time of the birth of baby Elizabeth. She died as a result of this six months late on 13^th December 1853 age just 27 years. The death certificate records the cause of death as “Phthisis 6 months certified”. Sophia was buried on 20 December at the Brompton Cemetery London. Her Uncle John Courtney had died just two months earlier and when Sophia died her Aunt Catherine requested Sophia be buried in the family plot. Her letter reads “I request my grave be opened to receive the remains of my niece Mrs Sophia Titheridge on 20^th December” signed Catherine Courtney of 3 Old Cottages Brompton. Later in the same grave were buried Catherine (1879), Sophia’s mother Elizabeth Sophia Cunningham (1885) and Sophia's sisters Elizabeth and Anne Cunningham (1899).

After Sophia’s death husband William was left with three children to look after, Henry 6, Walter 4 and Elizabeth 6 months. By the 1861 census he had employed a governess, Caroline Sarah Dredge, to look after the children. In December 1862 William married the governess Caroline who was twenty years his junior. It was 1880 when Caroline died and 1886 when Willliam died.

These are just two of our ancestors who were victim of Tuberculosis. If you have ancestors that contracted TB please tell their story in the comments section below.

William Titheradge Trade Unionist and Labour Councillor

Below is a newspaper report of the death of one of the Titheradge family members in Portsmouth in 1955. William is one of our ancestors who was an active Trade Unionist and member of the Labour Party.

Portsmouth Evening News on 4 April 1955

Death of Councillor W J Titheradge

"Councillor William Joseph Blaik Titheradge of 51 Cedar Grove, Copnor died at his home on Saturday afternoon after two weeks illness.  He was 59.

He had served on the City Council for nearly eight years as a Labour member.

A native of Portsmouth he had been engaged in the Dockyard as an electrical wireman since 1909 apart from service in World War 1 with the Portsmouth Battalion (15th Hants) in France and Germany.

He was a member of the Transport and General Workers Union and for more than 12 years was Secretary of Portsmouth branch No 296. He also served as a member of the Executive of the Portsmouth Labour Party.

Councillor Titheradge was first elected to Portsmouth City Council as a representative of St Mary Ward in November 1945. He was defeated in May 1949, regained the seat at a by-election in February 1950 but was unsuccessful at the 1951 election. In 1952 he regained St Mary Ward and in 1953 on the redistribution of the wards was allocated to Paulsgrove. He was due to seek re-election next month.

As a member for the Paulsgrove Ward he was interested in the many problems of the new estate and contributed largely to the inauguration of the Hillsley Road bus service.

He leaves a widow one son and one daughter.

The funeral service will be held at Copnor Methodist Church on Tuesday followed by interment at Milton Cemetery."

William Joseph Blaik Titheradge

William Joseph Blaik Titheradge was the eldest of four sons born to Joseph Blaik Titheradge and Ada Caroline Matthews in Portsmouth. His middle name “Blaik” is named after his grandmother Mary Ann Blaik. He was born 8 May 1895 but was christened at the same time as two younger brothers at Portsea, St Mary on 6th December 1900. The family’s address was given as 42 Railway View, Fratton where the family were still living on the 1901 census.

In 1904 two of his siblings died aged 4 and 2. In the same year William's father Joseph died leaving Ada with two children to support, William aged 9 and Walter aged 5. Joseph had been a leading stoker in the Royal Navy and as result the boys were sent to a Naval Orphanage in Commercial Road, Portsmouth after their father's death . When that closed they went to Swanage orphanage. The grave of William’s parents and brothers is in Kingston Cemetery a photograph can be seen at this link below

Joseph and Ada's grave

The 1911 census sees 15 years old living William living with his mother and maternal grandmother at Liverpool Street, Fratton, his occupation given as messenger.

With the outbreak of World War 1 William joined up and served in the Hampshire regiment. He joint the 15th Battalion which was raised in Portsmouth in 1915 and this was one of the many Pals Battalion, known as "Pompey Pals Battalion". He was a private, regimental number 55417 and was awarded the Victory Medal and British Medal.

After the war in 1920 William married Emma Dorothy Higgins in Portsmouth. They had two children a boy and a girl.  On the 1939 Register William and Emma are living at 51 Cedar Grove with their young daughter while their son is away from the hazards of Portsmouth and living and going to school in the New Forest

William enjoyed an active life in both the Labour Party and Trade Union movement. He died on 2 April 1955. Probate records show he left his widow Emma £1872 3s 6d. Emma survived him by 19 years dying in 1974 in Portsmouth.

If you can add anything to this story please get in touch.