Alfred George Hacker born 1867 Quarter 1, Islington, mother’s maiden name Bailey. He died 7 Sept 1936, Q3 Battersea, aged 69. He is buried in Wandsworth Cemetery (Link for further info.).
AGH married Alice Maud Ray on 4th Aug 1900 at St Mary, Tothill Fields. Both were single. He states he was a shipping house clerk, she a schoolmistress. Both describe their fathers as “Gentleman”, which is both interesting and inaccurate!
Alice Maud Ray was born 21 Feb 1874 in Tothill Fields and died 18 May 1955 Q1 Battersea, aged 81. Abode was 8 Blenkarne Road. She was a schoolmistress.
Their son, Kenneth Ray Hacker, born 1911, was very young (about 6) when he received that postcard from his father in WWI.
Ken married Sybil Blanche Cogger on 28 Dec 1955 at Christ Church, Surbiton Hill. They were both teachers and he states that his father was a retired civil servant.
Kenneth and Sybil's son Alan Ray Hacker, born 30 September 1938, was a celebrated musician and conductor of music — there's an obit in the Guardian (3 May 2012).
My first thought was, well, it couldn’t be the same AGH in the workhouse in 1890 if his father was a gent. But now the jury is out. Read on:
Alfred George Hacker occupations (in reverse order):
1921 — Temporary Clerk, Board of Education (his wife was a teacher), per census
1911 — Tobacconist, per census
1911 — birth of son, Kenneth, 3 January 1911, baptised 2 Feb 1911 St Michael, Cobham Close. AGH is a Tobacconist.
1902 — Tobacconist, per son’s baptism record
1901 — Clerk to Commissioners Agent, per census
1892 — Bath, Somerset, licence transfer of a grocer’s business to an Alfred George Hacker on 2 May and transferred from him on 27 Sept 1892.
1891 — Cannot find him on the census for this year, which is both frustrating and possibly illuminating.
I cannot find any other Alfred George Hacker born 1867, or anywhere close to that date, which lends weight to the argument that this is indeed our AGH. Discharged after three days into the care of his, unnamed, uncle.
1881 — 1, Cambridge Gardens, Kensington, aged 14, with his father, Edward, and siblings. No occupation given. More on Edward in a minute! Cambridge Gardens is just by Portobello Road, now very expensive, but maybe less so then?
1871 — 162, Clarendon Road, Notting Hill. Aged 4, with both his parents and siblings.
So, for context, here is some information about AGH’s father, Edward Hacker:
1881 — address as above, Tea Dealer, born Bath, says married but wife not present, but three of his children are, plus a cook and a housemaid. So not too humble a household.
1871 — address as above, grocer and tea dealer, with first wife, Elizabeth and five of their children, plus a general servant and nursemaid (the youngest child was aged 1 year).
Edward and his first wife, Elizabeth nee Bailey, had seven children. They married on 29th Oct 1861 in Islington. On his marriage certificate he states that his father was George Hacker, a baker. This is not true. His baptism record from 1838 shows that his mother was Sarah Hacker and no father’s name is recorded.
Edward’s first wife, Elizabeth, died at 162, Clarendon Road, Notting Hill, on 11 October 1873, aged just 35. She left her estate of £90 6s 0d to Edward in her Will. He was described as a retired grocer, both of Brock St, Bath.
Edward married Jane Pratt Q4 1874 in Honiton. She was born in Tiverton and her father is described on different census returns as a baker and a fundholder! I wonder why Edward married her?! She was about seven years his senior.
1891 census — 23 Brock St, Walcot, Bath. This is both Edward's commercial and residential address. He is living there with his second wife, Jane, and some of his children, plus a housemaid and cook. So he is still a man of some means to have live-in staff. He is a grocer and wine merchant.
1901 census — he has retired to “Crofton”, Weston-super-Mare, retired grocer.
[NB "Crofton", Gorst Road, is the address on Ken's postcard!]
Edward Hacker died Weston-super-Mare, 24 Sept 1901, agd 64. He left £5050 11s 3d to his widow, AGH, and possibly a son-in-law. So AGH’s fortunes improved massively in 1901.
In 1885 and 1887 EH was, per newspaper ads, the sole agent for Warminster Ales at his stores, West End Supply Stores, 23-24 Brock St, Bath, a Family Grocer and Wine Merchant.
And so to 1890, and whether it could be “our” AGH in the workhouse?
AGH was the fourth of seven children.
AGH's brother, Edward, lived with his father in 1891 and was described as a grocer’s assistant.
His brother William joined the RN.
His brother Walter emigrated to Australia in the 1880s and became a dentist (so no great help there).
The AGH discharged from the workhouse was sent into the care of his "uncle". So who was his uncle? (His father, Edward, was an only child.) But Edward himself had been raised by his uncle, John Hacker who was, guess what, a grocer.
Edward’s mother never married and was a live-in servant in London.
Sarah and John’s other siblings were agricultural labourers in the Swindon area.
I don’t know how John came to be a grocer, which is a step up from an agricultural labourer, but he raised his nephew, Edward, and in 1851 Edward is John’s servant (i.e. a trainee) and in 1861 Edward is in London, living in digs, working as a tea dealer’s assistant.
John Hacker was living in London in 1871, but otherwise lived in Swindon.
I’m not saying JH was the uncle who rescued his great nephew. I don’t know that we can establish who that was, but I would say it is highly likely that it is our AGH in the workhouse in 1890. He was a trainee grocer, and although his father had done very well for himself from very humble beginnings AGH maybe had very few resources to fall back on in London when his family were down in Bath. He did rather well to marry a schoolteacher! But clearly he had brains from his later occupations.
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