Introduction
Bertie Axe spent almost his entire working life in the building trade. Born into a labouring family at East Chinnock, he trained as a carpenter at a young age and remained in this occupation throughout his adult life. Early in his marriage, he settled at Hardington Mandeville, where he served in the First World War, acquired a home of his own, and lived for more than three decades. Although Bertie and his wife had no children, they became well-integrated into her wider family and the local community.
Early life
Bertie was born on 26 July 1882 at East Chinnock , the youngest of six children born to Albert and Hephzibah Axe. The family lived at 478, Barrows Hill Cottages. His father worked as a farm labourer, while his mother supplemented the household income through gloving.
Home life was not always smooth. In 1883 and 1884, Albert was fined three times for failing to send his children to school regularly.[1] Despite these difficulties, the family remained together, and all the children eventually entered employment.
Bertie’s eldest brother, Albert, became a farm labourer, while his other brother, Sidney, enlisted in the Dorset Regiment in 1895 and later worked as a bricklayer. Bertie chose a different path; by the age of eighteen, he was employed as a carpenter, a skilled trade that offered better prospects than agricultural work.
After his sister Lily married in 1904, Bertie was the only child still living at home. His mother passed away in late 1905 or early 1906 at the age of 63.
Marriage and settlement at Hardington
On 4 June 1906, Bertie married Blanche Voizey at Hardington Mandeville.[2] Both were twenty-three years old.
Blanche was the daughter of Herbert and Mary Voizey. Before his death in 1900, Herbert had combined the occupations of butcher and shopkeeper in the village. Blanche herself had worked as a dressmaker on her own account from an early age.
The couple may have met through Bertie’s sister, Fanny, who married Edward Charles English in 1898 and moved to Hardington between 1901 and 1906, possibly facilitating a connection between Bertie and Blanche.
Following their marriage, Bertie and Blanche initially lived with his widowed father at East Chinnock. However, by 1915, they had established their home in Hardington, where they would remain for the rest of their lives.
First World War
On 11 December 1915, Bertie enlisted at Yeovil with the Somerset Light Infantry. Like many married men of his time, he was initially transferred to the reserve and was not mobilised until 15 June 1916.
On 19 May 1917, he was transferred to 248 Field Company, Royal Engineers, serving as a sapper until the end of the war. His attestation papers record that he stood only 5 feet 4 inches tall, weighed 128 pounds, and was assessed as having poor physical development. Despite these shortcomings, he completed his military service and served in France before returning home in early 1919. [3]
Postwar life
After the war, Bertie returned to work as a carpenter. In 1921, he was employed by Pollard & Co. of Taunton, suggesting that his work took him well beyond the immediate locality. It is unknown how he traveled to various building sites, but a motorcycle would have been a practical means of transport for a tradesman covering larger areas.
At the time of the 1921 census, his father was living with him and may have remained part of the household until his death in 1930 at the age of ninety-one.
Bertie’s circumstances appear to have improved gradually during the inter-war years. According to the parish rate book of 31 December 1923, he occupied a cottage in the High Street that his brother-in-law, Thomas Voizey, rented from Miss Budge. This may have been part of the former holding known as Cary’s. At a later date, Bertie and Blanche purchased nearby 2 Broadstone Cottages, becoming owner-occupiers in the village where they had established their married life.
Death
Bertie died at home on 26 October 1949 at the age of 67.[4] Blanche survived him by nearly twenty years, passing away on 2 May 1969 at the age of 86. Her estate, valued at £2,171, was divided among nephews and nieces. She appointed her nieces, Lily Louise Jearum and Gladys Blanche Rawlins, as her executors and trustees.[5]
Conclusion
Bertie’s life was typical of many skilled rural craftsmen of his generation. Born into a labouring household, he acquired a trade, served in the First World War, and ultimately secured a home of his own. Although he and Blanche had no children, they maintained strong ties with her extended family and were part of the social fabric of Hardington for more than forty years. His story illustrates the modest but real opportunities for advancement available to skilled working men in the late Victorian and Edwardian countryside.
References
[1] Western Gazette, 4 May 1883, p.6; Western Gazette, 6 June 1884, p.5; Western Gazette, 4 July 1884, p.5.
[2] British Army World War I Service Records, 1914-1920.
[3] British Army World War I Service Records, 1914-1920.
[4] Western Gazette, 4 November 1949, p.10. This notice gives Bertie’s name as Bertie Mark Axe, but the middle name “Mark” appears in no other records.
[5] The will of Blanche Axe, dated 21 April 1966, proved at Winchester on 7 August 1969.