Alice's Story

Can facts and figures tell a story?  Yes they can…

The lady pictured is my Great Great Grandmother Alice Bates born in 1863 Wrexham, North Wales, UK

Alice’s parents were Thomas Bates and Jane Jones who married in Wrexham in 1853. Jane already had a young son but Thomas brought him up as his own child. In fact that step-son took on Thomas’ surname after immigrating to the USA (following in the footsteps of Alice’s sister Louisa Bates and her husband George Jewitt). Thomas was an Iron Puddler (a process to make wrought iron) at the time of Alice’s birth. He later became a Marine Store Dealer (a title that covered anything from shopkeeper to rag ‘n bone man in the mid 19th century).  Thomas and Jane had eight daughters and one son together.  As young ladies, Alice and her sisters worked as paper rag sorters, probably in their father’s store. It’s clear that Thomas was adept at moving with the booming times.  His occupation, trade and places of residence advanced profitably each decade.  He became a Coal Merchant.  Thomas’ only son Joseph died aged 86 and was noted as being the oldest Coal Merchant in Wrexham.  Thomas’ grandson was still delivering coal to my own family in the 1960s.  

Thomas Bates was born 1834 in Staffordshire, England and his father had been a Parish clerk in the village of Anslow.  Thomas moved to Wrexham but two of his brothers and two cousins immigrated from Staffordshire to Australia in the 1850s and with many losses and hardships those relatives begat an Australian lineage.

My Great Great Grandmother Alice Bates married Joseph Clutton in 1882.  Together they had eight children, six boys, two girls plus an adopted daughter. Joseph worked as a General Labourer all his life.  He died in 1913. Alice then lost two sons in WW1 and a third son in 1922 due to a simple yet fatal accident. From eight children, Alice had only seven grandchildren, the first never married; the second was killed in the Gresford Colliery Disaster aged 23; the third never married; the fourth died age 3; the fifth died aged 26; the sixth was my Grandmother Jennie and the seventh married.  From seven Grandchildren, Alice had only two Great Grandchildren.

In 1922 Alice married a widower, Edward Pate who was a grave digger at that time.  He died in 1929 leaving Alice a widow once more.  He was buried with his first wife. Alice, her brother and married sisters were deeply involved with the Church community and perhaps earlier The Temperance Movement and the Friendly Society.  They could play musical instruments; had sporting endeavours; were involved with musical societies and wrote Postcards to each other to celebrate Birthdays or make arrangements to meet at favourite seaside towns.   

Alice died in 1933 – twenty years to the day after Joseph had died.  They are buried together.

Nothing of Alice’s history was known to my family until I began my research which included old photographs of people then unknown; newspaper clippings; Postcards; family tales and factual records found so that pieces of a jigsaw came together and it became clear to me that the extended Bates family were hard working with a close affinity.  Even with their tragedies. Even across oceans.