Wednesday 7 August 2013

Ernest Guy Fenwick

Major Guy Fenwick was born in 1867 in Sysonby, Leicestershire and married my great grandaunt Elsie Robarts in 1895 (Elsie Fenwick served with the Red Cross at La Panne, beginning as a probationer and finishing as head sister on a surgical ward of 80 beds. For service in Flanders, as a nurse, she was awarded the Medal of Queen Elizabeth of the Belgians, French Red Cross Medal and the General Service Medal. In Kenya, 4th Feb 1905, she shot a lion).

Guy served with the Royal Bucks Hussars during WWI and became President of the British Percheron Horse Society, Deputy Lieutenant of Rutland and a Rutland County Counsellor.

His father, Charles Richard Fenwick (1822 - 1888), married Georgina Minnie Walker (1824 - 1880) and was born in Tooting and in 1841 is described as a gentleman, in 1861 as a merchant, in 1871 a landowner and finally in 1881 as the magistrate for upper voting in the county of Herts & the liberty of St Albans and merchant.

He, in turn, was the son of Ralph Fenwick b. 1777 and Jane Brown d. 1825 who may or may not be the son of James Fenwick b. 1740 and Jane Turpin b. 1744 and married in Wallsend, Northumberland on 21 Aug 1768.

If Ralph is the son of James and Jane then he's almost certainly a scion of the Northumberland Fenwick Brewer and Banker family which are proving hard to pin down.

James Fenwick b. 1740 married Jane Turpin (b. 24 May 1744, Bedlington, Northumberland) and appears to have had 6 children:

1. Frances b. 1771

2. Thomas Turpin b. 1773, Longbenton - there appear to be two contemporaneous Thomas Fenwicks and they're difficult to disentangle but I think this one married Martha b. 1801 Newcastle upon Tyne and had:

George John 1822 m and had issue x9.
Lucy (1829)
Frances (1832)
Thomas (1836)

I think, but am not certain, that Thomas Turpin was a partner in Lambton & Co Bank viz:

Thomas Fenwick of the Fenwick family who were partners in the banking firm of Lambton & Co (taken over by Lloyds in 1908). He may have lived at South Hill, Durham and is listed in the 1855 directory - but other sources I hold suggest he died in 1852. Other Lambton's Bank Fenwick's lived at Bywell Hall and Benwell Lodge.

In the 19th Century, Harbour House belonged to Thomas Fenwick, a Newcastle banker who also owned Southill Hall just to the west near Plawsworth.

Dating from the 18th Century, the hall was substantially rebuilt for Fenwick by the Newcastle architect, John Dobson, in 1821.

The Fenwicks were profligate in Newcastle at this time so disentanglement is difficult - is this Thomas Turpin, the Thomas involved with the bank Lambton & Co or  cousin of the same?
3. James 1775 d. infant?

4. Ralph - as above.

5. Jane 1778 - 1860 m John Carlisle (1780 - 1840)

6. James 1781 -

My interest in the Fenwicks was resparked whilst researching Sophia Frances Fenwick b. abt 1876 m Ralph Aubrey Thomas Cartwright (1881 - 1936) daughter of George Anthony Fenwick d. 1912 son of George Fenwick d. 1883 - try as I might I can't find the connection between Sophia and my other Fenwicks.