Liza With A Z

Only her husband ever called her Liza.

Her name was Eliza Thomas although, of course, the Thomas changed when she married.  She was my Great-Grandmother.  She was born in the East End of London the daughter of a poor shoemaker and his Irish wife. The East End in those days was a harsh place and people struggled to survive in poor housing with little money.  Cholera was still rampant in London and there were regular outbreaks in the East End and these outbreaks carried hundreds of people to an early grave.  I know nothing of her early life except that she had three sisters and little if no schooling as she signed all the birth certificates of her children with a x.

How and when she met my Great-Grandfather can never be known because he is a man of mystery.  His roots are untraceable.  It is said in the family there was a surname change.  I really do not know.  I only know he was not born in the place he gave on the census records and that he could have been at least six years older than he said he was.

Anyway, however they met, I can imagine that he would have been bowled over by this beautiful young woman:-

His job as a Carpenter journeyman took him all over the place and their two eldest children were born in Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire before they eventually settled in London.  At one time he gave up his work, left London and became a publican and Liza was by his side.  Alas, he was too genial a "mine host" and gave so many free drinks to his pals that the venture was doomed to failure and they returned to London where he took up carpentry again.

In the buildings where they lived, the occupants had to take their turn at sweeping out the corridors and keeping the laundry room and toilet facilities clean, so she did not have an easy life.  Eventually they were able to move out of the buildings as his salary increased and rented a house nearby. Eliza already had several children but had to share their home with a widow who had five children.  It is hard to imagine allthose people crammed into one tiny house with an outside toilet.

She and William were to have eleven children and nine survived to adulthood.  Louisa died aged eight and Maud died in babyhood.

Eventually the family moved further out of London and  in middle aged acquired their own little house. Eliza had a love of animals and particularly of gardening.  She grew all the old fashioned type of flowers, those that have lost popularity today. 

This is a picture of her taken later in life.  She posed as "lady of the manor".  It is unknown who the "maid" is, maybe one of her daughters or grand-daughters.  It is a charming picture and I love the fact that she is in her garden.

She was adored by all her family. When my mother spoke of her she always said "oh, she was a darling".  My mother always kept the mourning card that was issued on Eliza's death and I have it still.  I wish I had known her but she passed away several years before I was born.

All the neighbours turned to her in times of trouble and she really was the person who held the family together.  Her little house was kept immaculate and she tended her flowers with loving care.  Her particular favourites were blue Hydrangeas and she always had two large pots outside her front door with one in each.

William outlived his Liza by nearly eleven years . Alas, the way he was treated by one of his sons at the end of his life caused a split in the family that was never to be repaired. Eliza would have been heartbroken.

They were buried together not far from where they lived. Sadly the grave has now been vandalised as have so many graves in the suburbs of London.

I am proud to share something of her life with you today.