Florence Mason’s 1920’s Wedding - Sepia Saturday

This week’s Sepia Saturday Prompt is a 1928 wedding photograph of a seated bride Florence Timms. 

I am featuring another Florence in another 1920’s wedding between Florence Mason who married Charles Urstadt in Jamesburg, New Jersey in 1921.

 Florence is seated on a chair decorated with greenery  and wearing  such a distinctive  headdress ,that I wondered if it had any links to Charles' German background. And what huge bouquets!   Her bridesmaids were her older sisters Alice and Jenny.  

Florence Adelaie Mason (1898-1965) was my grandfather's cousin on his mother's side and I have to thank my  American third cousin, Bonny (Florence's granddaughter) who discovered my blog and made contact with the photographs featured here.

Florence was the youngest of 11 children of John Mason and Alice Rawcliffe - sister of my  great grandmother Maria Danson, nee Rawcliffe. 

Alice from Hambleton, near Poulton-le-Fylde, Lancashire  married,  at the age of 19, John Mason and between 1874 and 1886,  they had six English-born children - Robert William, Jane Elizabeth, John Thomas, James Richard, Margaret Alice and George Rawcliffe - all Christian  names connected with their extended family.

It was only a casual browsing on www.familysearch.org that revealed that Alice had died in Jamesburg, Middlesex County, New Jersey.  The first knowledge I had of any of the Rawcliffe family outside Lancashire. 

The New York Passenger Lists online  revealed that John Mason had sailed from Liverpool to Brooklyn, New York, in 1886 followed by Alice, a year later travelling with 6 children aged 1-13 and two pieces of luggage.  What on earth was life like for them all  on he voyage?   If only I could discover why they took this step of adventure from a small Lancashire community to the teeming streets of Brooklyn New York, 

Between 1888 and 1898, John and Alice had a further five children, born in the USA - Arthur Valentine (born appropriately 14th February), Harold Arthur Victor, Lillian Eveline, Bessie Irene and the youngest Florence Adelaide. Sadly Arthur, Bessie and Lillian all died in infancy - could this be due to the crowded apartment block living conditions   At some point after 1898,  The family later moved from Brooklyn, New York, across the river to Jamesburg, Middlesex County, New Jersey.

So Florence. born 1898  was part of  a large family of eight surviving children (three girls and five boys) , with her eldest sister Jane Elizabeth 23 years older.   Below  is the earliest photograph of her with her father.  She looks to be about 7 years old, so taken c. 1905 -  and what a magnificent hat for a wee girl - and her skirts look surprisingly short for the period.

 I  was delighted to get from Bonny  this larger family group photograph (below)  showing all eight children of Alice and James Mason, with Florence in the dark dress sitting at the front. Alice died in 1930 and James seven  years later, both buried in Fernwood Cemetery, Jamesburg.  

Standing - Robert and James 

Middle Row - Thomas (John Thomas), Jenny (Jane Elizabeth), Mother Alice, Father John, Harry

Bottom Row  -  Alice (Margaret Alice), Florence,and George 

Florence and Charles on their wedding day  

Below - the home in Jamesburg, New Jersey  where Florence and Charles lived all their married life and raised their six children - Ruth Alice, Charles Melrford,  Beulah,  William John Henry, Donald Wesley and Curtis Rawcliffe.   Charles senior  lived there until his death at  the age 99.

A  happy photograph of Florence surrounded by her grandchildren.  

Granddaughter, Bonny recalls 

"She was a beautiful young lady and the sweetest grandmother.  She never worked [outside the home], because she had six children, and that was enough work.  She made so much by hand, she was a good seamstress - I guess she had to be with all those kids to make clothes for. She was also an excellent cook and did  so much  canning. She was very active in her Methodist Church which  was across the street from her house".

Florence died in 1965 aged 67.

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With thanks to my third cousin Bonny in New Jersey 

for allowing me to feature her memories and family photographs. 

 

 Based on a post first written in 2014 

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Sepia Saturday gives an opportunity for genealogy bloggers  

to share their family history and memories through photographs.

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