Maud Singleton born CollierMaud Singleton born Collier| 1882-09-28 | b. Land, Sidmouth, Devon | birth certificate; TNA: RG 12/1673 f22 p18 |
| not bapt. in Sidmouth | parish register | |
| 1891 | scholar, of 7 Turnpike Terrace, Sidmouth, living with her grandparents | RG 12/1673 f22 p18 |
| brought up by her grandmother Louisa Collier | interview with Brenda Newnham | |
| 1901 | housemaid domestic, in the household of Dunbar Fraser Huyshe, retired Lt-Col, Sid House, Salcombe Regis, Devon | RG 13/2025 f60 p6 |
| Louisa set her up in the needlework business, as a court dressmaker in Sidmouth, before her marriage; employed a staff of about half a dozen | interview with Brenda Newnham; interview with Brenda Newnham, 1991 | |
| 1911 | seamstress, own account, at home; living with her grandparents at 5 Lawn Vista, Sidmouth | RG14PN12570 RG78PN721 RD269 SD2 ED19 SN47 |
| 1914-04-29 | of Windy Arbour; m. William Joseph Singleton, parish church, Cheadle, Staffordshire | marriage certificate |
| 1914 | living c/o Mrs Hurst, 2 Cumberland Place, Cheadle | envelope in possession of Christopher Murphy |
| Children: | Phyllis (1915–1994) and Brenda Ruby (1917–2007) | interview with Brenda Newnham; daughter's birth certificate; GRO index |
| 1920 | living with her husband at 31 High Street, Herne Bay, Kent | electoral registers |
| 1921 | occupation given as "Married", with "Home Duties" added by the enumerator; living with her family in 7 rooms at 31 High Street, Herne Bay, Kent; a young woman boarder, Emily Marion Harvey, "bigamously married", and her baby son, also included in the household | RG 15/4348 RD59 SD2 ED3 |
| c. 1922 [presumably actually 1925] | inherited 5 Lawn Vista, Windy Arbour, Sidmouth, from Louisa Collier—sold it straight away | interview with Brenda Newnham |
| tall and slender, with beautiful hands, lovely dark eyes, sallowish complexion, and hair raven-black when young, snowy-white at her death | ||
| In Herne Bay, ran a restaurant opposite W.J. Singleton's shop, then later worked with him in the shop; made the family's clothes and hats, grew and bottled fruit and veg.; limed eggs; was also a good bricklayer, made lace, and embroidered; worked all day in the shop and still did all the cooking, supervised washing, starching, ironing and goffering, and did all the above. | information from Brenda Newnham | |
| as a cure for warts, used cucumber skin and the inner surface of broad bean pods | ||
| very good at art; used to do the most beautiful embroidery, smocking, beautiful lace-work; painted as well | interview with Brenda Newnham | |
| used to show her things at village shows—always won prizes | ||
| When she first lived in Herne Bay, she used to visit the workhouse in Blean—taking knitting and presents in for the babies, and things like that. Fostered a little boy called Rodney for a good few years, almost from the time he was born, until his parents went to India. | ||
| always took the family, for a summer holiday, to Sidmouth, or sometimes to Exeter | ||
| played the mandolin | interview with Brenda Newnham, 1991 | |
| suffered from Bright's disease | ||
| 1926 | of 31 High Street, Herne Bay; daughter Phyllis given a free place at Herne Bay County School | Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald, 1926-06-19 |
| c. 1931 | moved to London, renting a room in Kilmorie Rd, SE23, from a Mrs Quigley, later moving into a downstairs flat in Stanstead Rd | information from Brenda Newnham; interview with Brenda Newnham says 1928/9 |
| 1936 | living at 9a Mayow Road, Sydenham, London, SE23, with her husband and elder daughter, and an Amelia Maud Holland | electoral register |
| 1939-09-29 | unpaid domestic duties, living with her husband and elder daughter at 156 Perry Vale, Lewisham, London | 1939 England and Wales Register (TNA: RG 101) |
| c. 1945—before the end of the war | went to Dublin to live with her daughter Phyllis—was there 8-9 years; then returned to England, and after c. 6 months Phyllis bought a house in Finchley, where she mostly lived for the last ten years of her life [sometimes with jer daughter Brenda]. | information from Brenda Newnham |
| that she was illegitimate explains much—she was always very disapproving of that sort of thing | ||
| not affectionate as a mother | ||
| believed that children should be seen and not heard—but broadened out a lot as a grandmother | interview with Brenda Newnham | |
| 1962-07-09 | d. at Phyllis's, 17 Elm Park Road, Finchley, London N.3, of a) mesenteric embolus b) arteriosclerosis | death certificate; information from Debbie Wells |
| bur. Muswell Hill cemetery; no stone; daughter Brenda organized funeral | information from Brenda Newnham | |
| daughter of John Collier | marriage certificate | |
| daughter of ____ ____ and Alice Collier | birth certificate | |
| daughter Brenda didn't think W.H. Piper (mother's later husband) was her father; was inclined to believe it was a Potbury, and that 5 Lawn Vista may have come to the family as "hush money" | information from Brenda Newnham |
| 1914 | gardener | daughter's marriage certificate; reference probably really relates to her mother's father John Collier |
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