CHAPTER III
The Cable Family – 1851 to 1856
1851 – CENSUS
It is not known how long the Cable family endured life in the St Olave Union; it may have been only few months but could have been many years but what we do know is that they all survived the experience. By 1851 they had left the Workhouse, and as recorded on the Census of that year, taken on Sunday 30th March 1851, they were living at 21, Church Street, Rotherhithe, Surrey in the borough of Southwark.
Rotherhithe is a residential district in inner south-east London, England and part of the London Borough of Southwark. It is located on a peninsula on the south bank of the Thames, facing Wapping and the Isle of Dogs on the north bank, and is a part of the Docklands area. It borders Bermondsey to the west and Deptford to the south east. Rotherhithe has a long history as a port, with many shipyards from Elizabethan times until the early 20th Century.
Church Street, Rotherhithe was renamed c. 1891 to St Marychurch Street, Rotherhithe, the north end of which is located only a few yards from the banks of the River Thames.
A few of the buildings, contemporary with the time Henry and his family lived in the street, still remain and can be seen using Google Street View. These include warehouses, a granary, the Mayflower public house at the junction with Rotherhithe Street and the imposing church of St. Mary the Virgin.
Below is a screen grab from Google Street View of the street in which Henry and Charlotte Cable lived in 1851 with their children. This modern picture is at the north end of the street and shows the churchyard of St. Mary’s church on the left, and on the right a building which is known as Grice’s Granary with an address of 82 St. Marychurch Street (previously known as Church Street). The granary was originally built around 1780 and and was used as a warehouse overlooking the Thames. At the far end of the street is the Mayflower public house. I can say with confidence that Henry Isaac Cable walked along this street and passed these very same buildings.
Regrettably all of the building at the southern end of the street, around where 21, Church Street was situated, are all relatively modern buildings
Although I cannot locate any old pictures of Church Street (St Marychurch Street) Rotherhithe but below are three photographs shooting Rotherhithe Street, which joins Church Street – in the above photograph Rotherhithe Street is the street on which The Mayflower pub is situated, it is just around the corner from Church Street. These picture were take circa 1910, around 60 years after the Cable family lived in the area but it gives an idea of the type of housing in which they lived. [Click on the picture to see a larger version of these images].
Rotherhithe Street
In addition to the three children who were living in the Workhouse ten year prior; CLARA, EDWIN and CHARLOTTE, who are now aged 15, 12 and 10 respectively, Henry and Charlotte also have three more children; WALTER born in 1845, aged 6, JULIA, who was 4 years old born in 1847 and SAMUEL born in October 1850 aged only 5 months old. The two oldest children, Clara and Edwin are both attending school, their father Henry is recorded as being a Plumber. Below is a copy of the relevant section of that Census.
1851 Census – Henry & Charlotte Cable with their six children
| Name of Street | Name | Relationship | Condition | Sex | Age | Profession | Where Born |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 Church St | Henry Cable | Head | Marr | M | 36 | Plumber | Surrey, Rotherhithe |
| Charlotte Cable | Wife | Marr | F | 37 | Surrey, Barkham | ||
| Clara Cable | Daug | F | 15 | Scholar | Surrey, Rotherhithe | ||
| Edwin Cable | Son | M | 12 | Scholar | Surrey, Rotherhithe | ||
| Charlotte Cable | Daug | F | 10 | Surrey, Rotherhithe | |||
| Walter Cable | Son | M | 6 | Surrey, Rotherhithe | |||
| Julia Cable | Daug | F | 4 | Surrey, Rotherhithe | |||
| Samuel Cable | Son | M | 5 months | Surrey, Rotherhithe |
1851 – CENSUS – HENRY’s MOTHER & SIBLINGS
Henry’s mother and siblings are also recorded within the 1851 Census Records. A copy of the actual record and the details can be seen below. As in 1841 Ann Cable (née Barwood) is now living in Hickman’s Folly, Bermondsey. On the right is a photograph taken many years later.
This house is in the Dockhead, the notorious slum on the south bank of the River Thames in London mentioned on the previous page where her son, Henry Isaac lived with his wife Charlotte and their family.
On this Census her ages is 55 years and her status indicates she is married and not, at this time, a widow. With Ann are her daughter, Martha, aged 17 years, ‘Waistcoat Maker’ and also her son Thomas, aged 20, a ‘Journeyman House Painter’
The Census also shows Ann Cable (née Barwood) was born in Drury Lane, Middlesex and has an occupation of ‘Skirtmaker‘ or ‘Shirtmaker‘.
| Name | Age | Occupation | Whether Born in same County |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ann Maria Cable | 55 | Shirtmaker | Middlesex, Drury Lane |
| Martha Cable | 17 | Waistcoat Maker | Surrey, St. Johns, Southwark |
| Thomas Cable | 20 | Journeyman House Painter | St. Johns, Southwark |
CHARLOTTE DIES
Approximately five years after this Census was taken, around 1856 Henry’s wife Charlotte (née Richardson), dies. She was around 40 years old and left Henry as a 41 years widower with six children.
At the time of their mother’s death, the approximate ages of their six children would have been; Clara – 20 years, Edwina – 17 years, Charlotte – 15 years, Walter -11 years, Julia – 9 years and Samuel around 6 years old.
Next Page: A son named Francis is born