Who Do You Think You Are - John Simpson 25th Sep

[kiterunner]

On BBC1 at 9 p.m. and repeated next Tuesday at 11:35 p.m. Last in series.

[Shona]

SPOILER ALERT

Some info on his great-grandmother, Elizabeth's, 'husband'.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Franklin_Cody

[kiterunner]

Episode synopsis:

John Simpson was brought up believing that aviator Samuel Franklin Cody was his great-grandfather, but his father eventually realised that John's grandmother was too old to be Sam Cody's daughter and that he must have been her father, which meant that he lost contact with his mother's family.

In 1908 Samuel Cody became the first man to fly an aircraft in Britain. John went to Farnborough to find out about his flying career. Sam Cody died in a flying accident in 1913. His age at death was stated to be 52, but he was really 46. A newspaper report on the accident said that his sons Leon and Frank saw him die, and also mentions another son Vivian but these were actually the sons of "Mrs Cody" Lela by her husband Edward King.


The Codys' gravestone shows that Lela died in 1939, aged 87.

John met his second cousin Peter Cody, the grandson of Vivian, who had some newspaper articles about Lela, the first woman to fly in the British Isles, and photos of the "Cody Family" in their Wild West Show.

Lela's full name was Elizabeth Mary Blackburn-Davies. She and Edward also had a daughter Lizzie, John's grandmother, who didn't take part in the shows, and a son Edward who appeared as "Cousin Ted LeRoy".

Lela's family lived in Chelsea; her father owned a big stables in Sloane Square. John went to the Theatre Royal to meet an historian who suggested that Lela may have met Sam Cody at a show at Olympia in 1890. By 1891 they were performing as The Cody Family.

John went to Kensington Library and looked at the 1881 census, where Edward King is shown as a retired licensed victualler born Chelsea, aged 38, with wife Lizzie Mary age 25, and sons Edwd John and Charles L D. On the 1871 census Edward is the son of licensed victualler John King, 61, living in Keppel Street, Chelsea. An 1865 Ordnance Survey map of Chelsea shows where Keppel Terrace was, now called Tryon Street, and the pub the Queen's Head is still there. John met genealogist Else Churchill at the pub and she showed John various certificates, including Edward King's birth certificate. He was born at 10 Keppel Terrace in Dec 1841. John King's death certificate showed that he died on the 22nd Jun 1872, violently poisoned accidentally. A newspaper report of the inquest said that John was "poisoned through the carelessness of his son" - Edward had given a waiter an empty medicine bottle to put cleaning fluid in, and when John returned he took the bottle and drank it. Edward is reported to have been very upset during the inquest. The National Probate Calendar showed that administration with the will attached was granted to Edward, with John's effects totalling under £800. In 1873 Edward, age 32, married Elizabeth Mary Davies, 19. Else Churchill said that it had not been possible to find Edward on later censuses but that he died in 1904 of chronic Bright's disease (13 years) and hepatitis.


The informant on his death certificate was A E Whittall, son-in-law, present at the death, John's grandfather (Arthur.

John's father had told him that there was a big rift between Lela and Liese (John's grandmother). John visited his cousin Tony Reid who remembers their grandmother as he was about 8 when she died. He had photos of her and a postcard written from her to Lela, which showed no evidence of a rift, although there are family stories that Lela called her "big and ugly".

Arthur and Lizzie had three daughters, Viva (Tony's mother), Leonie, and Joyce Lela Vivian, John's mother. Joyce's birth and Arthur's death were both registered on the same day, 23 Aug 1906. Arthur died from enteric fever at the age of 32, the family story being that it was caused by infected water that he drank at TA Camp. The Cody family then took Liese and her children in, and Liese made the covers for the wings of Sam Cody's aircraft.

The 1911 census shows S F Cody age 49, his wife Lela 48, married for 30 years, with Lela's birthplace shown as Spain. Liese is listed as "cousin" because she would be too old to be Sam's daughter.

[kiterunner]

Here is that 1911 census entry with Liese and Edward down as "cousins" (also Edward actually using the surname Leroy):
1911 census ancestry

Liese is shown as having had 4 children, one of whom had died.

[kiterunner]

Wikipedia says that John Simpson's full name is John Cody Fidler-Simpson, born 9 Aug 1944, so his birth registration must be John C Fidler, mother's maiden name Cody, Jul-Sep 1944 Fylde, Lancashire. On Lancashire BMD his name is John Cody Fidler and there are two MMN's: Cody and Keen. Not Whittall! Presumably the children were known as the Cody family after Arthur Whittall died and they went to live with the Codys, but I wonder where the name Keen fits in?

Ah, there is a marriage between a George H Keen and Joyce Whittall Oct-Dec 1928 Epsom, Surrey, and then Joyce L V Keen married Roy S Fidler Jul-Sep 1941 Croydon, Surrey. Perhaps George H Keen is the one who died Oct-Dec 1933 Reigate, Surrey, age 31?

And presumably John's father is Roy Simpson Fidler-Simpson who died Jun 1980 Lambeth, dob 15 Jul 1914. His name is Roy S Fidler on the birth index.

[kiterunner]

Here are Arthur and Liese in 1901, Arthur using his middle name Ernest:
1901 census

And a possible for Edward King? Married but wife isn't there:
1901

[Shona]

Originally Posted by kiterunner

Here are Arthur and Liese in 1901, Arthur using his middle name Ernest:
1901 census

And a possible for Edward King? Married but wife isn't there:
1901

Arthur and Liese were living in Cowdery Road in 1901. Wasn't that Sam Cody's real surname? Quirky coincidence.

[Shona]

Humph.

Article from the Daily Telegraph from 2007, which covers much of what was in last night's episode.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/mot...n-Simpson.html

Feel cheated!

[Shona]

Apart from John Simpson's autobiography, there is masses of info on Samuel Cody, his first wife Maud and Lela and her family in a book titled:

A Pair of Shootists - The Wild West Story of SF Cody and Maud Lee.

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=5...ed=0CDQQ6AEwBA

[kiterunner]

Originally Posted by Shona

Humph.

Article from the Daily Telegraph from 2007, which covers much of what was in last night's episode.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/mot...n-Simpson.html

Feel cheated!

I did feel as though I had watched a programme or read an article about this before! I'm not a Telegraph reader, but probably someone had sent me a link at the time.