Albert Burt was a bootmaker and grocer in the High Street for a brief period in the late 1880s.
Childhood at Hardington
Albert, born in 1864 at Hardington, was the son of Lazarus Burt, a labourer, and his wife, Elizabeth. His father later became the landlord of the Butcher’s Arms, Yeovil.
Life at Yetminster
In April 1881, Albert was a shoemaker at Yetminster, lodging with Charles Jesty, a railway plate layer.
Return to Hardington
By August 1885, Albert had returned to Hardington, where he advertised a bicycle for sale.[1]
On 14 September 1885, at Yetminster, Albert married Frances Jeffery, the youngest daughter of Henry and Elizabeth Jeffery. Henry was a butcher, and his wife was the village schoolmistress.
Albert and Frances set up a home at Hardington, where Albert worked as a bootmaker and a grocer.
In August 1887, he was fined 5s and costs for having unjust scales.[2]
Albert and Frances had two daughters: Elizabeth Maud and Mabel Frances.
Two deaths
On 21 February 1889, Albert’s older brother, Alfred Charles Burt, died at the Butcher’s Arms, Yeovil, aged 26.[3]
In September 1889, Albert’s wife, Frances, died at the young age of 28. Her death left Albert with the sole responsibility of caring for their two young daughters. Unable to look after them alone, he placed them with his wife’s mother and decided to make a fresh start.
Move to Lichfield
Albert moved to Lichfield to manage a boot shop at 35 Market Street. The 1891 census recorded his nineteen-year-old sister, Emily Jane, a boot saleswoman living with him.
Second marriage
In 1892, Albert married Henrietta Mary Ward, an assistant schoolmistress. The following year, Albert’s sister, Emily Jane, married Edward William Cureton, a brewer’s clerk.
Business success
At about this time, Albert may have borrowed £200 from his father at 3.5% interest.[4]
By September 1896, Albert had his own business as a shoe and boot dealer at 9 Bird Street, Lichfield. In March 1901, his household included his wife, their two sons and his daughter, Elizabeth Maud, from his first marriage. Albert’s daughter, Enid Mary, was born on 20 February 1903.
By 14 September 1906, when Albert and his brother, William, obtained probate for their late father’s will, Albert described himself as a boot manufacturer.[5]
In 1905 or 1906, Albert moved to Cedar House, Gravelly Hill North (a suburb of Birmingham).[6]
Early death
Four months after his father’s death, Albert, too, was dead. He died of acute nephritis (inflammation of the kidneys) on 8 December 1906, aged 41.[7]
Albert Burt’s will
Albert’s estate was valued at £1,869 18s 5d.
He directed his executors to convert his estate into money, invest the resulting sum and pay his widow the income during her widowhood. After her death or remarriage, his children inherited the capital as tenants in common.[8]
Henrietta’s later life
In April 1911, Henrietta Burt was a landlady living at 65 Clarendon Road, Southsea, with her daughter Enid and one servant.
By June 1921, Henrietta and Enid had returned to Lichfield and lived at 21 Market Street. Enid was a dispensing student.
In 1928, Enid married Jack Brenton Shewring, a bank clerk. Henrietta spent her final years with Enid and her husband at Paramount, Dunstone Road, Plymstock, Devon. She died on 13 August 1947, aged 81, leaving an estate valued at £1,303 7s 9d. In later life, she wrote Gospel leaflets under the name “H. M. B.”[9]
Albert and Henrietta’s two sons
Albert and Henrietta’s two sons were killed in the First World War.
Their oldest son, Albert Gordon Burt, emigrated to Australia in 1912 and enlisted in the army, where he rose to the rank of sergeant. He died at sea on 4 September 1919 from wounds received while serving in France. He is commemorated on his brother’s headstone and the Hollybrook War Memorial at Southampton.
Their other son, Frank Elliot Burt, attended Stratford-upon-Avon Grammar School. He served as a second lieutenant with the 6th North Staffordshire regiment and was killed in France on 3 October 1918.
References
[1] Western Gazette, 14 August 1885, p.4.
[2] Western Gazette, 5 August 1887, p.6.
[3] Western Gazette, 1 March 1889, p.1.
[4] The will of Lazarus Burt, dated 13 April 1901, proved in London on 14 September 1906.
[5] The will of Lazarus Burt, dated 13 April 1901, proved in London on 14 September 1906.
[6] The will of Lazarus Burt, dated 13 April 1901, proved in London on 14 September 1906.
[7] Lichfield Mercury, 14 December 1906, p.5.
[8] The will of Albert Burt, dated 29 June 1905, proved in London on 11 January 1907.
[9] Lichfield Mercury, 22 August 1947, p.6.
