Malcolm Smith's Family History Archive

Biography of

Charles  Marcus  PARSONS

[Ref. R.7]

Ancestors Profile Employment Dwellings Keepsakes Photos Index for PARSONS

 
Charles Marcus Parsons was the seventh of the nine children of Daniel Walter and Elizabeth Parsons, and was born at 4 Oxford Street in Liverpool on 13 September 1907. He was quite poorly at birth and, according to a sister of his, was not expected to live and was thrown to the bottom of the bed.

He was educated at the Catholic school of St. Edward's College, Everton between September 1918 and July 1923. He was also in the scouts. His family were practising Catholics and attended the Church of the Sacred Heart in Hall Lane. Marcus obtained references from both these establishments in March 1924 when he as looking for work.

Marcus served an apprenticeship with Cammell Laird as a Ship Fitter and Engineers Draughtsman between 1925 and 1929, but then was made redundant as a result of the recession. He was out of work for four years, but made use of his time to study Radio Engineering. He found work locally between 1931 and 1933, then moved to a job in London where he took digs in Central Avenue, Hayes. A colleague called Ernest Walker shared the digs.

Whilst in London, Marcus was courting Edith Swinnerton, and they wrote to each other regularly. However, Marcus bought an Austin 7 open tourer car which needed renovation. He wanted to prepare it as a surprise for Edie and spent so much time working on it that he neglected his correspondence with her. His flatmate, Ernest, perceived Edie's anxiety, and rang her just to tell her that Marcus was working very hard on a surprise, and that she should not worry.

Marcus next moved to Plymouth where he found a job as a service engineer in an electrical shop. He rented a flat at 19 Caprera Terrace and was living there when, on 19 October 1935, he married Edith Lilian Swinnerton at the church of St.Mary and St.Boniface in Cecil Street.

Upon their marriage, Marcus and Edith moved to a more modern flat at 56 Salcombe Road. Then Marcus unfortunately lost his job, then went through two more during the following year. One of those was for the Singer company at Barton Hall outside Paignton. The place was bought by Pontins years later and it became a holiday camp. His daughter Brenda stayed there with her family some years later. At some time, Marcus also worked in a Radio shop in Paignton.

Marc and Edie were now living at 12 Barton Avenue which is where their son Michael Tomes Parsons was born on 6 July 1936. Three months later, Marcus travelled down to London to look for work during which time Edie stayed with her neighbour, Betty Appleby. Marcus found a job in Park Royal, London, and Edie soon joined her husband and they lived in a top floor flat at 34 Harlesden Gardens, Harlesden. Edie's brother Frank came to lodge with them for a while whilst he was out of work. When Frank did find work, he moved into a ground floor flat in the same building.

Early in 1937, Marc's friend Ernest Walker got in touch with him to offer a place as the first draughtsman in the new radar research establishment at Bawdsey Manor near Felixstowe. Marc and Edie had just put down a deposit of £15 on the purchase of a house in Harrow for which the mortgage would have been £1 per week. Nonetheless, they gave that up, having decided to move to Felixstowe and, on Christmas Day, found a suitable bungalow at 27 Looe Road. The rent was £1 per week, reducing by 1 shilling per year. Their friend Ernest Walker lodged with them before he married Alice on 12 August 1939 at which Marcus was best man. Marc and Edie became friendly with their neighbours, the Smethurst family, and their friendship endured after they had moved away.

At the beginning of World War 2, the staff at Bawdsey Manor were moved at short notice for purposes of security. Some went to Perth but Marcus and others were sent to Leighton Buzzard in an RAF lorry. They left their furniture in storage at Felixstowe and found accommodation at Beechcroft School by way of introduction through family connections of the Semthurst's.

After a short while, Marcus was transferred to the Royal Aircraft Establishment at Farnborough. The family initially found lodging at 3 Coleford Bridge Road but then found a top floor flat in a large and isolated house in Hawley lane. Whilst they were there, they were advised by a friend of a house coming available for rent at 13 Manor Road (later renumbered to 60). They approached the landlord who accepted them.

The family was increased with the birth of twin daughters on 13 April 1943. They were Brenda Audrey and Wendy Dorothea. Wendy was the second to be born and weighed only three pounds and consequently spent the first three months of her life in a nursing home. Twins had not been expected so Marcus searched to find a suitable pram which he got from Seale near Farnham. As it was too big to go into his car, he walked the ten miles home with it.

The family kept dogs once the girls were born. The first was a labrador mongrel called Pete and the children were so upset when he died that their parents bought a black labrador called Mick. He grew too big for the household but was also rather badly behaved, so he had to be given away. Some years later, the family had an apricot coloured poodle called Mandy, to be joined a few years later by Mitzi. A couple of Mandy's puppies were taken by Edie's brother Frank.

Marcus became due for some money from an award at work and Edie had decided how it should be spent. However, having been without a car for some years, he had seen a Jowett 8 car which he could not resist because it had a red steering wheel. It also had a broken back axle but this did not deter him. Edie was furious with him. However, the family were now able to go for picnics at Frensham Ponds and Windsor Great Park. The children gave the car the nickname of Daisy. The family would travel up to Liverpool in the car and tyhere was one occasion when they had no less than 13 punctures on the journey during which things got a bit fraught.

Marc was a radio engineer, not only by profession, but by way of a hobby. He built a television in 1952 in time for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth 2 which he invited many of his neighbours to watch with his family. He was good with his hands and consequently often being asked for help by others. When he visited his family in Liverpool, his aunt Annie regularly called him round to fix things and one day she kindly gave him a carriage clock as a gift in payment. That clock remains within the family. He was always doing jobs for Mrs Lacy, a lady in his office. His wife was peeved at this and called her Ma Lacy and thought Marcus was enamoured of her rather overdone good looks, complaining "That he's always fixing things for her and we have to wait".

Round about 1959, Marc sold the Jowett 8 and bought a Jowett Javelin from Phil who was the boyfriend of his daughter Brenda. Marc was very mechanically minded and thoroughly enjoyed tinkering with cars. In Farnborough, he and his like-minded friend, Ronny Selway, would spent hours working and chatting together. Marc liked to read and would visit the local library once a week to change his books. He would set himself up in the kitchen with a book and a mug of tea. He would also scour the Exchange and Mart magazine each week. He was not really able to cook except for scrambled egg which he liked very sloppy. When eating main meals, he was very precise in the way he cut up his food so to watch him eat a kipper was fascinating as he would remove every single bone.

At about 1960, Marc decided to take up the option to purchase the bungalow, having paid rent for twenty years.

The family had usually taken their holidays on Hayling island, but in the 1960's Marc and Edie had a holiday in Italy. Unfortunately, Marc got an infection in his 'waterworks' which rather spoiled his holiday. He described the event in a letter to his son Michael.

Marcus had taken an interest in the history of his family and undertook a great deal of research, producing a comprehensive family tree. A high point of this was a trip to the Republic of Ireland in persuit of his ancestors at Tuam following extensive correspondence with various people. He was so taken with the country that he tried to persuade his wife that they should move out there to live, but she resisted. He designed a family crest which was perpetuated in the form of an engraved signet ring which is inherited by Marc's heirs. Marc colluded with John Parsons in Canada, exchanging family information and keepsakes.

Daughter Wendy was married and living at Mudeford near Christchurch. Daughter Brenda had married in 1967 and moved to Verwood in Dorset so, in 1971, Marc and Edie moved to 50 Woodlinken Close, in Verwood, to be close. Marc had tried to get a transfer from the RAE to the SRDE at Christchurch but was told that he would have to resign and reapply. However, the matter was resolved when he was offered early retirement due to staff cutbacks.

On 18 February 1972, Marcus was awarded the Imperial Service Medal in recognition of meritoroius services.

It was sad that Marcus only had a couple of years of retirement in Verwood as he passed away at Poole hospital on 21 November 1973, having suffered a heart attack from a thrombosis. He was buried at Verwood cemetery. He left a Will.

 

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