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Information contained in these pages is intended for genealogical research only,
and I ask that you respect the privacy of those mentioned.
William Charles Atkins and Fanny Julia Mott © The birth certificate of William Charles Atkins, the first child of Robert and Rachel (nee Saville), shows he was born in Newport, Essex on the 7th June, 18801 and baptised in the Parish Church, Newport, on the 2nd July, 18802. It is thought his mother Rachel may have gone home to her mother in Newport for the baby's birth, as when William's birth was registered1 by his mother on the 14th July, the family’s address was recorded as Brunswick Road, Tottenham and William’s father's occupation was given as Farm Labourer. William, age 10months, is listed on the 1881 Census3, with his parents, living at 10 Devon Road, Tottenham, London, Middlesex. According to the 1891 Census3, the family had moved to 2 Milton Road, Edmonton, Middlesex, and by this time Robert is a Scholar and he had a sister Alice and a brother Ernest. The 1901 Census3 shows William still living with his parents and siblings at 2 Milton Road, Edmonton, his occupation given as Bricklayer, age 20. On 1st August, 1903, William married Fanny Julia Mott in the Holy Trinity Church, Wimbledon, Surrey4. Both signed the register, and both gave their address as 6 Herbert Cottages, Wimbledon. William's occupation is given as Bricklayer, but no occupation is given for Fanny. The witnesses were John Henry Mott and Mabel Lucy Mott, believed to be Fanny’s brother and his wife. The daughter of John Henry Mott and Mary Elizabeth (nee Cooke), Fanny was born on the 9th August, 1879, at No.2 Goldsmith Place, Kilburn, Middlesex1. Her birth was registered by her mother on the 11th September, her father's occupation given as House Painter. Fanny Julia was baptized on the 7th September, at St Augustine's in Kilburn2. Kilburn is an area in north-east London5. An ancient rural hamlet, it grew up on the banks of a stream which has been known variously as Cuneburna, Kelebourne and Cyebourne, and it has been suggested the name means the ‘royal river’ or possibly ‘cow's stream’. There was a Benedictine nunnery on the grounds of what was known as Abbey Field until 1722. Founded on the site of Godwin's hermitage, this nunnery was a cell to Westminster Abbey. Kilburn was also the site of a Mineral Spa until the late 18th Century, this is now a tea room. Kilburn continued to be mainly a rural village until the early 19th Century, since then the area has undergone great and rapid extension. Today Kilburn is a busy multicultural London district and is most strongly associated with its Irish population and culture. Fanny Julia, age 1, and born in Kilburn, appears on the 1881 Census3 with her parents and siblings at 33 Hartfield Crescent, Wimbledon. By 18913 the family, including Fanny Julia, had moved to Herbert Road and Fanny is recorded as an 11year old Scholar. Still living at home in Herbert Road with her parents and siblings in 19013, Fanny Julia is recorded as a 21year old Laundry Maid. After their marriage, William and Fanny stayed in Wimbledon, with Census and family records telling us that William and Fanny had six children: Florence Ethel Victoria 1906, she married Edwin John Fuller 1926; Roberta Gladys 1907-1958; Ellen Elizabeth 1909-1988; John Robert 1911-2002; Alice 1914-1920; and Dorothy May 1920-2000. On the 1911 Census3 William, his wife Fanny and children: Florence; Gladys; Nellie; and John, are living at 20 Palmerston Grove, Wimbledon. William's occupation is given as 'Bricklayer', in the ‘Railway Industry’ and he is classed as a worker. With them are Florence Higgins, recorded as 'sister' and her two children. Florence was Fanny Julia’s sister and records indicate she was staying with William’s family while she and her children waited to sail to America, to join her husband. Wimbledon has been inhabited since at least the Iron Age when the hill fort on Wimbledon Common is thought to have been constructed5. Archaeological evidence indicates that originally the centre of Wimbledon was at the top of the hill close to the common, the area is now known locally as ‘the village‘. Referred to as ‘Wimbedounyng’ in a charter signed by King Edgar the Peaceful in 967, the name Wimbledon means ‘Wynnman's hill ‘, with the final element of the name being the Old English ‘dun‘ (hill). No mention of Wimbledon occurs in the Domesday Book as it was part of the very large Manor of Mortlake. With over 110 households, the value to the Lord of the Manor in 1086 was £38. The name is shown on 1786 map of the London area as ‘Wimbleton‘, and the current spelling appears to have been settled on in the early 19th Century, the last in a long line of variations which have included: Wimmeldon; Wymmeldon; Wimbledone; Wymbeldon; and Wymelton. A mill, which was part of Wimbledon in 1348, may have been one of the mills mentioned in the Domesday Book as belonging to Mortlake. Lying roughly 12km south-west of London, the village continued to grow and the introduction in the 18th Century of stagecoach services made the journey to London routine. The main line of the London and South-Western railway, connecting the parish with London, was opened in 1838, and since that time Wimbledon has grown into a very favourite and accessible suburb. Wimbledon Common, with its still wild and lovely scenery and famous ‘Windmill’, is the chief feature of the parish and a favourite place for locals and visitors to relax and picnic. Little more is known about William and Fanny, except it is said that William served overseas in the WWI and he is mentioned in a Roll of Honour in the Parish Magazine of the Church of St Andrew South Wimbledon6. However, to date no official record of his military service has been located. William died at 45 Herbert Road, on the 30th December, 19217. The cause of death is given as Cardiac Disease and Coma. Oral Family History tells us William also suffered from Diabetes, but died before the use of Insulin became readily available. He was only 44years old, his occupation was given as Bricklayer (Journeyman). His wife Fanny was the Informant and was present at his death. William was buried on the 4th January, 1922, at the Gap Road Cemetery, Grave No. LB5138, it is believed there is no marker or headstone on his grave. His daughters, Alice and Florence, and his father-in-law John Henry Mott are also buried in this grave. Fanny Julia continued to live at 45 Herbert Road until sometime during WWII, when the area was hit by a bomb and, along with several other houses, No.45 was destroyed. She moved to Cochran Road, New Malden, with one of her daughters, where she remained until her death. At the age of 68, Fanny died on the 15th July, 1948, at the home of her daughter in Cochrane Road, Wimbledon7. The cause of her death was recorded as Pyloric Obstruction and Carcinoma of the Stomach. Pyloric Obstruction refers to the narrowing of the small intestine which stops food from passing into the stomach9. Reasons for this developing include both benign causes such as peptic ulcer disease, as well as malignancy, such as gastric or stomach cancer. Fanny was buried at Gap Road Cemetery, Wimbledon, Surrey, in, Grave No. L.A.1568, her mother Mary Elizabeth Mott (nee Cook) is also buried in the same grave8 & 10. There is no marker identifying their final resting place.
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