Winifred May Harriet Maynard (Week 3 - MM)

[Merry]

Name - "official" name and what they were known as

Winifred May Harriet Maynard, known as Mai (with an i )

Date and place of birth

8th Nov 1892 at 31 Arragon Road, Twickenham, Middlesex

Names of parents

Edwin Maynard and Sarah Jane née Wells

Details of each of his or her marriages - if any - and any divorces

1) 21st May 1915 at Preston Lancashire to Leonard Harrison Whelan, Capt East Lancs regiment.

This marriage was bigamous as LHW had a living wife in London. The day after the marriage he was posted overseas. On his return he was arrested for theft from the army. It was also discovered he had committed theft, fraud and deception with regard to rings taken from jewellers in Devon and Bond St London. The police failed to notice they had taken statements from two different Mrs Whelans during the investigation. LHW was jailed for one year with hard labour. His mother appealed to the King for clemency. LHW was released back into the army with a false name and as a private in the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. He was killed shortly after returning to the front.

2) 8th May 1917 to my grandfather, Walter Henry Clark at All Saints Church, Wyke Regis, Dorset (my grandmother is recorded as a spinster. I think it likely she never knew her first marriage was bigamous and livved her life thinking her marriage to my grandfather was bigamous as it's unlikely she would have ever found out LHW was dead given that he died under his assumed name of James Fraser.)

Occupation(s) - if any

None

Military service - if any

None

Addresses where they lived - and please list which censuses you have or haven't found him/her on, if applicable.

I don't feel comfortable adding all her full addresses as many of them are the same places my mother lived and she is still living....So I'm listing the areas:

1892- Aft 1901 31 Arragon Road, Twickenham, Middlesex
Aft 1901-1917 Willow Dean, 8 Queens Road, Twickenham, Middlesex
1917-1925 Twickenham, Middlesex
1925-1930 Cyprus
1930-1931 Bayswater, Middlesex
1931-1934 Bengeo, Herts
1934-1937 Hertford, Herts
1937-1939 Broxbourne, Herts
1939-1943 Swindon, Wilts
1943-1945 Bulford, Wilts
1945-1946 Chiswick, Middlesex
1946-1957 Twickenham, Middlesex
1957-1965 Adderbury, Oxon
1965-1974 Ferndwn, Dorset
1974-1985 Bournemouth, Dorset

Date, place and cause of death

17th March 1985 at home in Bournemouth, Dorset of bronchopneumonia and senile myocardial degeneration

Date and place of burial / cremation.

Cremated at Bournemouth Crematorium, Dorset

Details of will / administration of their estate - if applicable

Probate to daughters, 1985

Memorial inscription - if any

Her name and terminal dates are on the grave of her daughter near where I live.

[Merry]

Second marriage 8th May 1917 to my grandfather, Walter Henry Clark at All Saints Church, Wyke Regis, Dorset (my grandmother is recorded as a spinster. I think it likely she never knew her first marriage was bigamous and lived her life thinking her marriage to my grandfather was bigamous as it's unlikely she would have ever found out LHW was dead given that he died under his assumed name of James Fraser.)

I now know my grandmother must have discovered her first marriage was bigamous - fmp added some new criminal records to their database which showed me that her first husband, Leonard H Whelan was convicted of bigamy whilst already in jail for theft/fraud. I still don't know if she ever knew LHW was killed in WW1.

[James18]

It's always good to find a bigamist in the family - makes family trees a bit more colourful.

[Merry]

lol I'm not sure my grandmother would agree with you!