Biography of Daniel Walter PARSONS
[Ref. Q.31]
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Index for PARSONS |
Biography of Daniel Walter PARSONS
[Ref. Q.31]
| Ancestors | |
Profile | |
Directories | |
Dwellings | |
Photographs | |
Index for PARSONS |
Daniel Walter Parsons was born on 13 May 1868 at 31 Everton Crescent, Everton in Lancashire. He was the sixth of the twelve children of Daniel and Ellen Parsons. He was baptised at St.Anthony's Catholic Church in Scotland Road, Liverpool on 17 May the same year. His Godfather was Thomas James Haynes O'Connor and his Godmother was Margaret Jane O'Connor.
As recorded in the census of 1871, the family were still living at 31 Everton Crescent. He is not at home with the family on the 1881 census therefore is probably away at school.
Once he had completed his schooling, Daniel decided to go into dentistry and commenced work at 54 Rodney Street in Liverpool in June 1887. He applied for registration as a Student of Dentistry on 23 September 1887 having taken the College of Preceptors examination earlier the same month. He had left home at this stage and was living at 19 Meanwood Brow, Rochdale.
Daniel studied at the Medical Faculty of University College in Liverpool. During the academic year of 1889-90 he attended classes on Anatomy, Dissection and Physiology. For his second year, he registered on 2 October 1889 to study at S Earp's Egremont, Cheshire where he had started the previous day. In the summer of that academic year he attended lectures on Anatomical Dissection and the summer of 1891 he attended lectures in Dental Anatomy, Dental Surgery and Dental Mechanics. The census of that year show Daniel living at home in Marmaduke Street, his father having passed away. His studies continued during the winter of 1891-92 In 1893, Daniel gained his Licentiate of Dental Surgeons at the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh. Certificate number 6277 records his registration with the Medical Council on 3 August 1893; the fee was five pounds. At that time he was living at 20 Marmaduke Street in Edge Hill, Liverpool. In 1894 his name appeared in the year book of United Kingdom Dentists as being a Licentiate of Dental Surgery.
On 19 June 1895, Daniel married Elizabeth Rimmer at Our Lady's in Lydiate. They lived at 1 Worcester Avenue, Club Moor East, Liverpool which is where their first two children Lillian Mary was born in 1896 and Daniel Blundell in 1897. Elizabeth's brother William was a Dental Mechanic and it is a matter of conjecture that this is how Daniel met him and therefore was introduced to Elizabeth.
By 1898 Daniel had a Dental Practice at 4 Oxford Street in Liverpool. The practice appears to have previously been owned by Messrs Frederick C and Daniel L Dopson. This house was also the family home where the remaining seven children were born between 1899 and 1911. The youngest child, Henry, died of a fever in 1912 after falling into a pond at Lydiate. The house was later bought by the Local Authority for use as a maternity hospital after which it was demolished to make way for redevelopment.
The 1901 census shows Daniel and Elizabeth at 4 Oxford Street together with their three children and two servants.
Daniel played billiards and in 1906 won a mantle clock in a competition. This clock remains in the possession of his descendants. There is a story relating to this clock. Because Daniel kept gold in the house in connection with his dental work, he had a pistol in a box as protection. One day the pistol went off accidentalyy and the bullet ricocheted around the room hitting the clock. The police investigated and the pistol was taken away.
The census of 1911 shows the family living still at 4 Oxford Street, supported by three servants. They had a telephone by 1905, the number of which was Royal 785. By this time Daniel was listed in the Register of Dentists as being a mamber of the British Dental Association. Son Henry died two weeks after the census was taken.
In about 1915, the family moved with the dental practice to "Lorraine", 35 Catharine Street in Liverpool, a large terraced house which was leased from the church. He took his existing telephone number with him. The surgery was at the front of the house. The dining room was behind the surgery and there were two kitchens and a servants room. The children were able to ride their bicycles inside the house. The Register of Dental Surgeons of 1915 shows that Daniel also had a surgery at 4 Railway Road in Ormskirk. Furthermore, he was Honorary Dental Surgeon for Ormskirk Dispensary and Cottage Hospital, Dental Surgeon for Ormskirk Union also Convent of Good Shepherd in Liverpool.
All the family were still at 35 Catharine Street when the census of 1921 was taken.
Daniel had a dental mechanic working with him but also did some of the work himself. He made a set of vulcanised false teeth for his son Marcus and these lasted 40 years. Daniel himself was quite short and had a dias made around the dentists chair so that he could reach his patients. He would brush his hair upwards to give an impression of height as can be seen in his picture at the top of this page. His height was always evident when he stood next to his wife Elizabeth. There a few nice pictures of the two of them together.
He was quite an accomplished man being both a sculptor and artist in oils. He was interested in photography and a number of his glass negatives still survive in their original wooden box, and the images include many pictures of Daniel and his family. His wooden cased camera with tripod also survived for a while but became damaged by great grandchildren playing with them. One of his achievements was to build a summerhouse in his garden. There was a portrait painted of Daniel which was matched to a painting of his father.
The 1939 register shows Daniel and Elizabeth living alone at 35 Catharine Street. He is listed as Hon. Dental Surgeon at Ormskirk General Hospital.
Daniel passed away at Smithdown Road Hospital on 17 January 1948 aged 79, having suffered Pulmonary Oedema and Myocardial degeneration. On 20 November, after Requiem Mass at St.Philip Neri, he was buried in the family plot, being plot 337, block K at Ford Roman Catholic Cemetery in Gorsey Lane, Litherland. A funeral card marks the occasion. The Will he had made in 1938 was brief and left everything to his wife Elizabeth, the value of his effects being £2,212-18s-11d. After his death, Elizabeth went to live with her daughter Connie. The house at Catherine Street became initially The Oratory Club and later The White Eagle Club for Polish nationals.
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