JUDITH​ HOLMAN-CROOK

Charles, born 22 June 1908, 60 Shaw Street, Blackburn, Lancashire, England to George Crook and Mary Ann Sullivan, brother to Mary Elizabeth, George Redvers, Mildred Rachel, Horace, Sydney, Gilbert and Leonard. Charles  married Mary Rogers in 2 April 1934 in St Josephs Roman Catholic Church, St Petersgate, Stockport. There were 4 children to the marriage. The names of the four children are Mary born 1934, George Redvers born 1936, Ronald born 1938, Barbara born 1945. All the children are born in Stockport.

 

The family history of Charles Crook.

 

Charles came from a large family of 8 children 6 sons and 2 daughters. They were a very close family and were bought up in the Methodist  Church. The boys strongly defended their sisters and all the children did as their parents told them to. The boys were bought up tough but respectful to their elders. Charles's father George Crook served with Sir Redvers Buller  in the Boer War and named his first son George Redvers in honour of Sir Redvers Buller. How proud he was to come when all his sons were to go into uniform in World War 11.

Taken from the Stockport Advertiser 14th January 1941.

 

Mary Crook born in 1934 named after Mary Elizabeth (although her mother's name is also Mary), George Redvers born in 1936 named after George Redvers the uncle, Ronald born 1938 after Mildred Rachel's son Ronald. As a close knit family Charles would have kept the family connection.

 

The story in the Crook family was that Charles had died during the war, most likely in France or on the journey over in 1943. But no evidence of his death was never found, not in the military, or in BMD's. He just disappeared.

I received a message through Ancestry from Ron Crook asking about my Charles Crook saying he was the son of Charles. Well, the family story was that Charles had died and this was my husband Howard's side of the family, I asked for proof. Ron sent me a photo of Charles's father George. I sent a message back and said, "this is not proof, this is the photo I put on Ancestry, give me something I have not got". The next thing Ron sent me was a copy of his parent's marriage certificate. That was all the proof I needed. I called Howard  to have a look at the address where Charles and his father George lived and the occupation of George Crook and they were exact. We had a match. We had family.

 

It turns out Ronald the son of Charles and Mary has been trying to find his family for many years, through the Red Cross, the Salvation Army, the Catholic Church and he has even been to the Stockport Library and the Stockport Town Hall time and again but to no avail. He now lives in Western Australia and has travelled to and from Australia and England on his search for his father. He kept hitting a brick wall. "What happened to his elusive father Charles?"

 

Ron is now a happy man of 74 now he has found his family but he still wants to find his father who walked out on his family when he was very small. He felt almost like an orphan all his life and since he was a very little boy he wanted to find his father. Ron's mother would never say why Charles  walked out but she became very bitter. It took its toll on the family. the children reacted in different ways. Barbara wants to know where her father is and Charles why have walked out on the family at the time of her birth. What happened? This is not the way Charles was bought up.

 

The fractured family.

 

Charles broke the family rules. He married into the Catholic Church. He married a Catholic girl. When Charles and Mary married a baby was already on the way. Charles did the right thing, he married Mary. He was 25, she was 19. Mary's father was deceased but her family was at her wedding Charles's family was not except his father. Charles loved his family and he was bought up on duty. His duty now was toward Mary. Charles tried to mend the hurt his parents felt. He came to their home in Reddish with three of his children, Ron was one of them,  but they didn't stay long it didn't go well. He never went back again. That would have been about 1943. Ronald remembers going there sitting very still and quiet in the sitting room as a very little boy.

 

So began the story that got handed down to all the family members that Charles had died. For he had indeed died in the eyes of his parents. After the war a friend of Charles had seen him and told Charles's brother Sydney who said you are mistaken. With this the fellow, shocked, walked away.

Sydney, as far as we know, said nothing about it to anybody, until Horace's son Howard Crook (my husband) asked him to write down anything about family he could remember. His writing was so bad and hard for Howard to read, he just took what he wanted out of the letter at the time and put the letter away. When Ron contact us Howard dug out this letter and read it again and there in black and white is the story of Charles having been seen after the war. That puts Charles death after 1945.

 

When Ron and  his wife Ann first told Mary of their wanting to marry, they were shocked at her attitude toward them. She said "don't spend a lot on a ring, it won't last." Ron was bought up Catholic and Ann Protestant. Mary was still carrying on the hurt of Charles having left her all those years ago and put it on her youngest son. Ron and Ann have been married 50 years.

 

The legacy of Charles leaving his family for whatever reasons have left a fractured family of his own. Mary his eldest child lives in Lancashire doesn't talk to her siblings, George Redvers the second child doesn't want know about his new members of his family or his father but some of his children do. Barbara, Ron says is the gentle one of the family will want to know everything and everyone.

 

For myself, I wanted to meet Ron and Ann along with my husband Howard and if this story helps Ron and Barbara find their father then it would have been all worth it. Ron lives in Western Australia and I live in Victoria, over 3000km's from each other.

 

Ron and Ann along with Howard and I have now met and are a true family. Ron and Howard have the same Crook look and sound the same and have the sense of humour. It is uncanny how when genetics gets handed into the mix you can see family.