FRIDAY FOTO 9 - CHARLES IRVINE

A photo of my grandmother - Elizabeth WELSH (nee ENGLEBRETSEN) - attending a family party at her sisters home in Lordens Road, Huyton.

Pictured with her is her brother-in-law Charles IRVINE, the husband of her sister Hannah.

Born around 1892, Charles was father to five children - Charles Gerard (b.1916), May Henrietta (b.1918), Edna Marion (b.1921), Hannah (b.1924) and Lilian (b.1928).

Charles served in the Great War, although I have as yet been unable to find his war record.

His son Charles was tragically killed on 9th April 1945 at Bari, Italy when a liberty ship (the SS Charles Henderson) was being unloaded and the ammunition on it exploded.

Of the couple's children, the three middle sisters - May, Edna and Hannah - survived. I have fond memories of all three of them, and also the subsequent cousins (their children) who I grew up with.

I asked Mum about her specific memories of Charles Snr, and she recalled that he would often give her half an orange before she had her breakfast when she slept over. "Get that down you...it'll do you good," he'd tell her.

The final star of the photo above must be the phonograph - the handle on the front being used to wind the clock / spring mechanism inside which drove the turntable around and play the record. 

I have a few old 78 RPM records of my Mum's in the garage downstairs. 

I wonder if any of those were ever played during that happy family party, all those years ago.    

FRIDAY FOTO 4 - D'ANNUNZIO - AN ITALIAN CONNECTION

Felice and Mary Agnes D'Annunzio

Above is a photograph of Felice D'Annunzio and his wife, Mary Agnes (formerly Douglas) with two of their children, dressed in their Sunday best clothes. The photo was taken at the beginning of the twentieth century, probably in Liverpool, during the early 1900's.

It appears to show one of their children dressed as if ready for baptism, the other-- slightly older child-- dressed smartly, his boots polished and shining.

On checking our family records, I believe the older child to be Henry Edward D'Annunzio, who was born on the 10th June 1902 and lived until he was ninety-four years of age. He married a lady called Jane Lloyd, but at present no further details of the family are available. 

Judging by his probable age in the photograph, it is likely that the younger child could then be his sister, Maria Eleanora D'Annunzio, born in 1906. She later went on to marry Thomas Fitzsimmons and had at least four children. 

Felice was brought to Liverpool by his parents, along with his siblings, after leaving the ancestral home in Atina in Italy. The collective families then established themselves in Liverpool, where some of their descendants still live to this day.

One of his siblings, Filipo (also known as Puche) Annunzio, is the great-grandfather of my wife, Sandra. Felice is, therefore, her great-uncle.

FAMILY HISTORY - GROWING UP ITALIAN

I found this video on Pinterest while I had my first cup of tea in the morning and it reminded me of some of the stories which came from my wife's family, the D'Annunzio's, as we started going out together and commenced growing up.

The family were descended from first generation Italians; and were street musicians who came over to Liverpool from Atina in Italy to live and work in the city. They too had the large families which feature in the film, and their Liverpool descendents had adopted the practice of gathering on a Sunday to visit Mum - her children and grandchildren gathering together for a visit before dinner, even though she herself was more Irish than Italian. But this didn't matter... for the visit itself was the important thing.

It is also true that families now lead more separate lives in this busy world we all exist in. Most of us have lost the art of using Sunday as a day of relaxation - we can't afford to, there are so many jobs we need to do, so many shops we have to visit before work-work starts all over again on Monday morning. Our friends and family also have their own stuff to do - they don't want us turning up out of the blue and taking up their precious time. Better to do whatever shopping we need to do in the morning and then go to the carvery in the afternoon... no cooking or dishes to clean up then!

This is why this film is so important. It brought back memories to me, even though I only married into that Italian way of life which is now only a memory. The film is a window through to our recent past, a world which is changing by the minute and not necessarily for the better either. Occasionally its good to stop what you are doing for a moment and just remember the world as it was.

And if she isn't here any more, take a moment to remember Mum. As long as someone remembers them, they'll always be here.

(Growing Up Italian)

#familymemories #familyhistory #D'Annunzio #Liverpool