Mrs Anne WIBLIN, née Clifton (1827–1867), first wife of Charles Wiblin
Their daughter Miss Harriett Eliza WIBLIN (1854–1872)
Miss Amelia Florence Clifton WIBLIN (1868–1892), Wiblin’s daughter by his second wife
St Paul section: Row 11, Grave B24 [St Paul ref T.8]

Jane Wiblin and daughters

 

IN MEMORY OF
ANNE THE WIFE OF
CHARLES WIBLIN
WHO DIED MAY 28, 1867.
AGED 38 YEARS.

 

Also of
HARRIETT ELIZA WIBLIN
ELDEST DAUGHTER OF THE ABOVE
WHO DIED SEPT. 13, 1872.
AGED 17 YEARS

 

Also of
AMELIA F. C. WIBLIN.
(MINNIE)
WHO FELL ASLEEP IN JESUS
JANUARY 7, 1892.
AGED 23 YEARS.

 

.

This headstone is made of Pennant sandstone

 

Charles Wiblin was born in London Place, St Clement’s, Oxford in 1830 and baptised at St Clement’s Church on 30 May He was the eldest son of the butcher/poulterer Charles Wiblin the Elder and his wife Frances English, who were married at St Peter-le-Bailey Church, Oxford on 20 April 1829. Although he is not buried in St Sepulchre's Cemetery himself, he is an interesting Oxford character and his first wife and two of his children are buried in this grave. For more about his parents and siblings, see below.

Charles grew up over his father's butcher's shop in St Clement's, but by the time of the 1851 census when he was aged 20 he was working as a footman at 64 High Street, Oxford, the house of Thomas Whorwood (Lord of the Manor of Headington) and his widowed mother Mary. His duties were not onerous: there was a standing joke in Oxford about Whorwood’s servants, “whose service was perfect freedom”.

Charles Wiblin's first wife, Anne Clifton or Cliffin, was born at George Street in 1827 and baptised at St Mary Magdalen Church on 14 April. She was the daughter of William Cliffin and Elizabeth Price, who were married at that church on 8 August 1810. For more about Anne and her family, see her father's grave. At the time of the 1851 census Anne (23) was a house servant at Upton Lea Farm, Upton-cum-Chalvey, Eton in the home of the Nash family.

On 2 August 1852 at Upton-cum-Chalvey, Buckinghamshire, Charles Wiblin of St Clement's, Oxford married Anne Clifton of Upton Lea. They had the following children:

  • Harriett Eliza Wiblin (born at Heath Mill Lane, Aston, Warwickshire in 1854 and baptised at Holy Trinity Church, Bordesley on 5 December)
  • Anne Frances Wiblin (born at Wood Street, Oxford in 1856/7 and baptised at St Ebbe’s Church on 29 March 1857)
  • Emily Jane Wiblin (born at Castle Street, Oxford in 1858/9 and baptised at St Peter-le-Bailey Church on 6 March 1859); died in infancy, burial on 30 June recorded in parish register of St Peter-le-Bailey
  • Charles Tom Alexander Wiblin (born at Castle Street, Oxford in 1860 and baptised at St Peter-le-Bailey Church on 5 September)
  • Emily Jane Wiblin II, usually known as Emma (born at St Clement’s Street in 1861 and baptised at St Clement’s Church on 8 December).

Charles Wiblin and his first wife Anne evidently began their married life at Aston near Birmingham, and when their first child was baptised there Charles was described as an assistant to a clothier. By early 1857 the family had moved back to Oxford and lived at Wood Street, St Ebbe’s, and Charles was once again employed as a servant,

By 1859 Charles Wiblin had become a butcher in Castle Street: Charles (30) and Ann (32) can be seen there at the time of the 1861 census with Harriett (6), Anne Frances (4), and Charles Tom (eight months). When their youngest child, the second Emily, was baptised at the end of that year, however, Charles was described as a butcher of St Clement’s High Street. Emily died in June 1859, she was probably buried at Osney Cemetery, as her burial is recorded in the St Peter-le-Bailey parish register.

On 16 February 1864 Charles Wiblin junior was adjudged bankrupt by the London Court of Bankruptcy to the tune of £413 3s 6½d, and the address of his shop was given more precisely as 67 High Street, St Clement's (now 67 St Clement's Street, on the eastern corner of Bath Street):

Jackson's Oxford Journal reported on his bankruptcy on 19 July 1864, stating that “the bankrupt's creditors chiefly reside at Cowley-road, Oxford Market, St. Clement's, Oxford, &c.” Wiblin attributed his bankruptcy to “Insufficiency of business, meat being at such a high price that there has not been a living profit to be got on it, want of capital, losses in business, and pressure by creditors“. An Order of Discharge was granted in February 1866.

Charles Wiblin’s first wife Anne died at St Ebbe’s in 1867, and it is a mystery why she is buried in the St Paul's section of St Sepulchre’s rather than in Osney Cemetery, as it is hard to see any connection with the St Paul’s district chapelry:

† Mrs Anne Wiblin, née Clifton died at St Ebbe’s at the age of 38 on 28 May 1867 and was buried at St Sepulchre’s Cemetery on 3 June (burial recorded in the register of St Paul’s Church).

Just seven months later, on 1 January 1868 at St Mary Magdalen Church, Oxford, Charles Wiblin married his second wife, Eliza Clifton or Cliffin. Eliza (born at George Street in 1829) appears to be the sister of his deceased wife Anne, making the marriage illegal. They had the following children:

  • Amelia Florence Clifton Wiblin (known as Minnie, born at Castle Street, Oxford in 1868
    and baptised at St Peter-le-Bailey Church on 6 December)
  • Effie Gertrude Wiblin (born in Oxford in 1871/2, reg. first quarter of 1872).

At the time of the 1871 census Charles Wiblin (42) was a butcher, living over his shop at 3 Cowley Road with his second wife Eliza (38) and their daughter Amelia (2), plus his children Emily and Charles from his first marriage. His daughter Anne (14) was living with her aunt, the laundress Miss Harriett Clifton, at 7 Gloucester Green.

At around this time Charles Wiblin left his second wife Eliza, to whom he was probably not legally married. Eliza went to live at Gloucester Green with her stepchildren and children. Charles’s eldest daughter by his first wife, Harriet Eliza Wiblin, died there in 1872 and was buried with her mother:

† Harriet Eliza Wiblin died at Gloucester Green at the age of 17 on 13 September 1872 and was buried at St Sepulchre’s Cemetery on 18 September (burial recorded in the register of St Paul’s Church).

In 1874 Charles’s second daughter Annie Frances Wiblin (17) was sent to Canada on the Scandinavia, arriving in Quebec on 5 October.

On 6 October 1878 at St Saviour's Church in London, while his “wife” Eliza was still alive, Charles Wiblin married his third wife Mrs Sarah Randall, née Broadway, formerly Mrs Barker. This was probably a legal marriage rather than bigamy, however, as his second marriage appears to have been invalid and his legal first wife was dead. They each gave their address as 203 Queen Street, Blackfriars Road, London. He brought Sarah back to Oxford to live with him over his Cowley Road shop.

On 6 March 1880, the following report appeared in Jackson’s Oxford Journal: “Charles Wiblin, butcher, Cowley-road, was summoned by the Local Board for furiously driving a pony in High-street, St. Clement’s, on the 20th of Feb.; the Bench being divided, the case was dismissed.”

At the time of the 1881 census Charles Wiblin (50) was living at 202 Cowley Road (now around No. 92) with his third wife Sarah (52). Meanwhile his second wife Eliza, who described herself as both married and the head of the household, was living at 36 Gloucester Green: she was working as a laundress, her stepdaughter Annie (19) was working as a dressmaker, and her daughters Amelia (12) and Effie (9) were at school. They employed a 16-year-old servant girl. Charles’s daughter Emily (20), who was working as a machinist, was paying a visit to a lady in St Ebbe’s.

On 16 July 1881 Jackson's Oxford Journal reported that Charles Wiblin, described as a butcher of the Cowley Road, was summoned for being drunk whilst in charge of a horse and cart at Cowley on 28 June.

On 10 January 1885 it was reported that the General Purposes Committee of the Oxford Local Board recommended that the licence of the slaughter house at 202 (now around 88)Cowley Road be transferred from Charles Wiblin to George Jackson, who now occupied the premises.

† Charles Wiblin died of acute rheumatism and delirium tremens at the Radcliffe Infirmary at the age of 56 on 20 August 1886 and was buried at St Clement’s churchyard the next day. His address at the time of his death was given as the Port Mahon pub. His personal estate came to £310 3s. 8d., and his executor was his youngest son Charles Tom Alexander Wiblin, who was also a butcher.

His only son was married in 1888:

  • On 14 August 1888 at St Clement’s Church, Oxford, Charles Tom Alexander Wiblin (28) married Rose Emma Goddard (25) . He was described as a butcher of 1 Penson’s Gardens, and Rose was the daughter of Alfred Goddard, a beer retailer at 30 St Clement’s Street.

At the time of the 1891 census Charles Wiblin’s second “wife” Eliza (60), who described herself as a retired laundress and a widow, was living at 28 Alma Place in east Oxford with the two daughters she had with Charles: Amelia (22) and Effie (18), who was a pianoforte teacher.

Her elder daughter Amelia died the following year and was buried in the grave of her older half-sister Harriet and her father's first wife (and her maternal aunt) Anne:

† Miss Amelia Florence Clifton Wiblin (known as Minnie) died at 28 Alma Place, St Clement’s at the age of 23 on 7 January 1892 and was buried at St Sepulchre’s Cemetery on 12 January (burial recorded in the register of St Paul’s Church).

A lace dress set made by Minnie in the 1870s was given to the Oxfordshire Museums Service by her sister Effie.

Charles’s third wife and official widow Mrs Sarah Wiblin (formerly Mrs Randall) died on 5 May 1892, and the following announcement was inserted in Jackson’s Oxford Journal: “May 5, at 22, Princes-street, Cowley-road, Sarah, widow of Charles Wiblin, and relict of the late James Randall, aged 66”.

Charles’s second “wife” Mrs Eliza Wiblin, née Clifton was living at 50 Lonsdale Road, Summertown with her unmarried daughter Effie Gertrude (39) at the time of the 1911 census. Eliza Wiblin died in 1916 at the age of 84 and was buried in Wolvercote Cemetery (E2/205) on 18 March.

Charles Wiblin the elder

Here is more information about the father of Charles Wiblin above, as It is easy to confuse the two east Oxford butchers called Charles Wiblin, especially as the father outlived his son

Charles Wiblin the Elder was born in Oxford in 1808 at Cowley Place (then in St James's parish, Cowley). He was the son of James & Elizabeth Wiblin, and was baptised at St Clement's Church.

On 20 April 1829 at St Peter-le-Bailey Church, Oxford Charles Wiblin of St Clement's married Frances English, who was born at Botley, but was now of St Peter-le-Bailey parish, and their marriage was announced in Jackson's Oxford Journal. They had nine children:

  • Charles Wiblin (baptised at St Clement’s Church on 30 May 1830): see above.
  • James Wiblin (born in St Clement's on 14 February 1832 and registered at a nonconformist church in 1837)
  • John Wiblin (born in St Clement's on 15 September 1833 and registered at a nonconformist church in 1837)
  • Elizabeth Wiblin (born in St Clement's on 1 October 1835 and registered at a nonconformist church in 1837)
  • Ann Wiblin (born in St Clement’s in c.1836)
  • Henry Wiblin (born in St Clement’s in c.1837)
  • (George) Isaac Wiblin (born in St Clement’s in 1840)
  • Frances Wiblin (born in St Clement’s in 1841)
  • Frederick Wiblin (born in St Clement’s in 1843).

At the time of the 1841 census the address of Charles Wiblin the elder's butcher's shop was given as High Street, St Clement's and he lived there with his wife and their first eight children. By the time of the 1851 census he described himself as a brewer and was living in George Yard in St Clement's with Frances and four of their children: John (17), Elizabeth (15), Frances (9), and Frederick (7).

In 1861 Charles Wiblin the elder described himself as a master butcher employing one man and living at 14 Hythe Bridge Street in St Thomas's parish, Oxford with Frances and their son Frederick (17), who was a builder's labourer.

In 1863 in Oxford, Charles Wiblin the elder married his second wife Maria Morris.

Grave of Charles Wiblin senior

 

At the time of the 1871 census Charles (62) was a master butcher living over his shop at 67 St Clement's Street with his second wife and his grandson and a servant, and he and his wife were still there in 1881. In the 1880s he had a field at Wolvercote.

By 1891 Charles (83) had retired and was living with Maria (75) at 62 Cowley Road (then numbered 212) with their servant.

Charles Wiblin the elder died at the age of 83 at 62 Cowley Road on 24 April 1892 (six years after his son of the same name) and was buried in St Clement's churchyard. His effects came to £141 15s., and probate was granted to his widow Maria.

Right: Grave in St Clement's churchyard of Charles Wiblin the elder and his wife Maria, who was buried with him five years later

From 1885 his third son John Wiblin was a butcher at 31 St Giles' Street, where he continued the tradition of the famous Oxford Sausage.

Charles Wiblin junior’s surviving children

By his first wife Anne:

  • Anne Frances Wiblin (born 1856/7) remained in Canada, and was living in Hamilton, Ontario when on 24 May 1876 at the age of 19½ she married Thomas Groves Wilson, a grocer, at Barton, Ontario.
  • Charles Tom Alexander Wiblin (born in 1860) was a master butcher at 6 Kingston Road, but at the time of the 1911 census, when he was aged 50, he was a bookkeeper employed by another butcher: he and his wife Rose then lived at 141 Walton Street with their three children: Dorothy (20), who was a butcher’s clerk; Alexander George Alfred (19), who was the apprentice of a mechanical engineer; and Minnie (17), who was a dressmaker’s apprentice. His widowed mother-in-law Mrs Elizabeth Goddard also lived with them, and they had one servant. Charles died at Sandford Crossing, Radley on 28 September 1914, and his personal estate came to £1,782 8s. 5d. His eldest son Alexander died in the First World War the following year at the age of 23.
  • Emily Jane Wiblin, known as Emma (born 1861) never married. She was working as a lady’s maid in Leamington Priors in 1891, aged 29. Ten years later she was a lady’s maid to a different family in Stourhead. She died at the age of 83 in 1945 and was buried in the grave of her father's third wife Eliza in Wolvercote Cemetery.

By his second “wife” Eliza:

  • Miss Effie Gertrude Wiblin (born 1871/2), was the only surviving child of Eliza. She never married, and was still living in her mother’s house at 50 Lonsdale Road in 1962. She died at Oseney Court, Botley Road in 1964, and her wealth at death was £8,318. She was buried in the grave of her mother in Wolvercote Cemetery on 29 March 1964.

 

 

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