47 replies to this topic

[Stockley1989]

richardsc, on 19 November 2011 - 05:40 PM, said:

Hi to you all and greetings from East of the Pennines. Hope I am not too late to join your party; I’ve only just found your website and Anjela’s thread.

I am looking for an Edward born around 1768 according to the age when buried on 17/6/1840 Prescot, and cannot find one. Can anyone help?

My mother was one of the Stockleys from Accrington – her father Alfred founded the confectionary firm there with his cousin, and it’s still going. His father, also Alfred, left Prescot to set up his own clock business. The family story is that he was in disgrace for getting the maid (Annie Brownbill) pregnant, and then marrying her!

Alfred’s father was James a watchmaker (bap 4/3/1821 Prescot), 2^nd of 3 Illegitimate boys of Mary, all by a miner called Henry Molyneux. Mary never married, and died in Prescot in 1845. I think her father is the Edward I seek, assuming she was the 2^nd of 4 children of Edward & Mary Ashcroft (m 3/5/1790 Prescot).

If our family is linked to those of the Sandylands, it must be further back

Hi richardsc, I'm the great great granddaughter of Mildred Evelyn Stockley whose father was Alfred Stockley whom you mentioned was in family disgrace due to him getting Annie Brownbill the maid, pregnant. He did the honourable thing and married her. Not too sure about the Alfred Stockley setting up the sweet business though. I have always been told by my aunt whose mother was sister to Mildred Evelyn that it was her (my aunt's) mother's brother Malcolm Stockley who set up the sweet business. Indeed my grandma has a photograph of the family's stall in the Market Hall, Bolton (is now the Market Place and has been re-developed into a shopping centre). It is still going as you say but is no longer owned by the family and has been taken over several times. There is a kind of museum in Oswaldtwistle Mill where you can see some of the Stockley sweets being made (although not all of them are the original sweets which Stockleys used to make, they have introduced some new lines under the Stockley name). Hope to hear from you soon with some more Stockley family tales.

Also do you know anything about Prescot Hall? Have googled it but have not been able to find anything about it.

Edited by Stockley1989, 19 April 2012 - 09:45 AM.

[stephen nulty]

Stockley households in Prescot in 1911 (from the Enumerator's Summary Books)

Attached Files

•  Stockley.png   13.02K   3 downloads

Edited by stephen nulty, 19 April 2012 - 11:34 AM.

[richardsc]

Stockley1989, on 19 April 2012 - 09:45 AM, said:

Hi richardsc, I'm the great great granddaughter of Mildred Evelyn Stockley whose father was Alfred Stockley whom you mentioned was in family disgrace due to him getting Annie Brownbill the maid, pregnant. He did the honourable thing and married her. Not too sure about the Alfred Stockley setting up the sweet business though. I have always been told by my aunt whose mother was sister to Mildred Evelyn that it was her (my aunt's) mother's brother Malcolm Stockley who set up the sweet business. Indeed my grandma has a photograph of the family's stall in the Market Hall, Bolton (is now the Market Place and has been re-developed into a shopping centre). It is still going as you say but is no longer owned by the family and has been taken over several times. There is a kind of museum in Oswaldtwistle Mill where you can see some of the Stockley sweets being made (although not all of them are the original sweets which Stockleys used to make, they have introduced some new lines under the Stockley name). Hope to hear from you soon with some more Stockley family tales.

Also do you know anything about Prescot Hall? Have googled it but have not been able to find anything about it.

Hi Stockley 1989. Yes, sorry, but there are 2 errors in that post, but as I have still not found out how to edit them, they will have to stay there!! Alfred [1899 - 1983], my grandfather, started the sweet business with his elder brother Malcolm Vincent [1888 - 1944], Alfred being the confectioner, and Malcolm the salesman. According to my mother, there was an almighty bust-up in 1925, Alfred leaving the business, and going to Leeds to join a nougat company, and then on to Bellamy's of Castleford as head confectioner, where he remained until they were taken over by Mackintoshes of Halifax. Brothers William Edgar & Stephen Naylor were also in the Leeds area, and I grew up knowing the children and grandchildren of the latter. The family rift was so deep that I never got to know those that remained in Accrington, other than Annie [Swarbrick]. You are right that Amy, Evelyn, and eventually other family members went to work in the business.

Stephen's son Alfred [1925 - 2011] was trying to put a tree together, and I have carried it on. I have got back to the John [1731-92] and Mary Webster, but not via Edward as I first thought, but via his elder sister Catherine [1765-1840]. Alfred's funeral in November last, and his sister Cynthia's in January, gave this part of the family a couple of opportunities to get together after many years

As for Prescot Hall, I know nothing, other than John and Ann Shaw, the parents of John [1731], lived there when most of the children were baptised. There are a lot of land transactions in the lancashire archives involving Stockleys in the 1600's, but as I like Sue have hit a wall with John born ca 1700, I have not followed them through yet.

Incidentally, I believe your parents are vaguely in touch with my Mum Margaret [1925-], and so, should you wish, you could get in touch via that route