John Smith's Family Tree Website

Walsh family

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Part 4: Rebecca Walsh (1867 - 1952)

Rebecca Walsh was the youngest child of Thomas Walsh and Lucy Flitt. She was born 12 January 1867 in Barnet and baptised 31 March the same year. When she was a teenager, her parents lived in Wood Street, Barnet, down the road from the Bull’s Head Inn which was run by Levi Dolton. Rebecca married Levi's youngest son  Henry (Harry) Dolton (1864 - ?) 18 August 1888 at Chipping Barnet Parish Church, Hertfordshire, and they had two sons: Sydney and Reginald. (More information about them appears in the Dolton section.)

Harry was a commercial traveller and travelled a lot, his work life probably insecure and quite hard. In the early years of marriage, the family were lodgers in Harrow, money obviously being tight. By 1901, they had moved to 1 Palm Road, Romford, Essex, and Rebecca’s widowed mother lived with them for a time. Then sometime in the next decade, Harry disappeared and left his family, possibly to join some of his siblings in Australia.

Rebecca, now head of the household, took in a boarder to help make ends meet, and both her sons were working to help out. Rebecca was apparently a clever seamstress and this helped add to her finances. The Singer hand-sewing machine she used is still in the possession of a grand-daughter who had it electrified.

In later years, Rebecca went to live with one of her sons. She died from senility and hardening of the arteries in Epsom Hospital 26 January 1952, age 87. She was buried in Sutton Cemetery.

Rebecca c1890s

Rebecca June 1918

Rebecca in later life

Rebecca in Margate

Footnotes