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Cowley |
The website of the Cowley Local History Society can be found at
Below is a photo of the interior of SS Mary & John Church 1962
From the Dictionary of Surnames:- Bray- English habitation name from places in Berkshire and Devon. The former is probably called so from Old French bray, meaning marsh, the latter from the Cornish element bre meaning hill.
William [Bill] BRAY married Florence Hetty GRAY[then known as BAREFOOT] on 11 August 1938
at Oxford Register Office
They
had 2 children both still living
My
father was
William
[known as John William] BRAY born 25 July 1939
The family lived in Asquith Rd, Rose Hill
Bill
was born 17 August 1917-find his family under CORNWALL-St.
Stephen in Brannel
He
arrived in Oxford and became a Territorial Soldier 5 May 1937 in the 4th
Battalion Oxford and Bucks Light Infantry
He
was part of the British Expeditionary Force in 1940-on 25th May the Battalion was ordered to defend Cassel as one of a ring of strong points to be held to the last man to enable
the rest of the B.E.F. to get away at Dunkirk. They held the left of
Cassel and the 2nd Bn Glosters held the right half. They held out until the 29th
May when they were entirely surrounded by the enemy, and orders were received to
evacuate that night. Their only chance was to escape across country in
single file during which time the rear half lost contact with the front
half. On 30th May they received orders to proceed to Watou then
Hondschoote but each column eventually encountered overwhelming enemy forces and
it was almost certainly then that Bill was captured. He survived the Death
March and was a POW in Stalag XXID in Posen, now Poznan, Poland
My thanks go to the volunteers of the Regimental Museum of the Ox and Bucks for supplying information about 4th Bn's role in 1940
Although Bill survived the War, due to camp conditions he had contracted tuberculosis, and spent his remaining years in and out of hospital-he wrote the following poem from Cold Arbour Hospital in a letter dated 30 June 1948 to a family friend in Cornwall:-
Five
years a British Prisoner, in a German Prison Camp,
The
place was full of mice and lice, also ‘twas very damp.
At
last to the death march I did go,
All
through Hitler, the so and so.
The
British Spirit to the end I kept,
Though
many a time I swore and wept.
At
last my home life I again begun,
Unighted[sic]
with Wife, Daughter and Son.
Home
life was never meant for me,
As
here I am with dreaded T.B.
My
spirit held for all those years,
But
now I have my greatest fears.
Life
is sweet, but Health and Liberty are also needed to make it so.
Below
is a photo taken shortly before his death on 22 January 1950
---------------------
John
married Valerie BRYDEN at SS Mary &
John Church on 21 July 1962
Sharon Valerie BRAY,
[myself] was born 17 April 1963 at Bicester, OXF
My
brother was born in 1964
In
1964 the family moved to Weyland Rd, Headington
In 1970 to Green Ridges, Headington
In
1982 to Poole, Dorset
From
My
great grandmother, Maud Beatrice GRAY was born
27 June 1896
at
4 Hertford St
Her
first child was Agnes Maud GRAY born 7 April 1915, father unknown
Her
second child was my grandmother, Florence Hetty GRAY
born 30 November 1917
After
Maud’s death, letters were found indicating her father was an Australian
soldier surnamed ST. CLAIR
Maud
married John Ernest (Jack) BAREFOOT on 28 February 1920 and Florrie took his name
Their
children were
Doris
Lilian Maud BAREFOOT born 28 September 1920
Irene
May BAREFOOT born 29 January 1922
Thomas
Henry BAREFOOT born 21 March 1923
John
BAREFOOT born 4 July 1925
Rose
Ellen (Toots) BAREFOOT born 9 November 1932
Below
is a photo of Maud on an outing in 1932-she is in the front centre, holding her
hat and coat
Jack
was accidentally killed [by a motor car] on 16 January 1933 aged 34
Maud
married Harry THOMAS
They
had a child
Bryan
THOMAS born 4 April 1936
Below is a photo of Maud and Harry dated 18 September 1937, Blackpool
Harry
died 15 January 1959 aged 49
Maud
died 2 November 1962 aged 66, buried at Rose Hill Cemetery
Thomas
GRAY married Emily
Henrietta COX at Banbury parish church on
2
June 1884
Thomas
was born 8 November 1863 at Prince St, Cowley Rd
He
was a Carpenter
Emily
was born 20 April 1864 at Banbury, OXF
See
her photo under that parish
Their
surviving children were
Emily
H GRAY born before 1890
Ellen
Harriet GRAY born 12 May 1890
Lucy
Clementine GRAY born 16 June 1892
Maud
Beatrice GRAY born 27
June 1896
In
1885 they were living at 3 Howard St
By
1890 at 110 Magdalen Rd
By
1895 at 4 Hertford St
Thomas
was admitted to Littlemore Hospital on 12 May 1896
He
was suffering from Melancholia, and the duration of his illness prior to
admission was several weeks, probably months
He
had threatened to commit suicide by drowning or cutting his throat
He
died 23 April 1897
Emily
married Alfred BERRY [born 1873, died 1924] on 30 July 1898 at Cheltenham
Register Office
Their
children were
Evelyn
[Eva]
BERRY
Lavinia [Lally] BERRY born 1901
Aubrey
BERRY born 4 July 1903
Violet
BERRY
They
lived at 13 Barnet St, off Magdalen Rd
Emily
died in 1939
Thomas
GRAY married Charlotte
WALTON at the Wesleyan Chapel, Banbury on 25 March 1860
Thomas
was baptised 20 October 1839 at Great
Milton, OXF
He
was a Carpenter, Carman, Builder and Contractor
He
built some of the houses in Catherine St
Charlotte
was from Tysoe, WAR
Find her family under this link
Their
surviving children were
Emma
GRAY born circa 1860
Thomas
GRAY born 8 November
1863
Esther
Ann GRAY baptised 12 February 1865
Mary
Ann GRAY baptised 25 December 1866
Harriet
GRAY born circa 1869
Ernest
George GRAY baptised 9 April 1871
Frank
GRAY baptised 4 May 1873
Benjamin
GRAY baptised 25 April 1875
Joseph
GRAY baptised 9 May 1876
The
family lived at Princes St; by 1866 they were at Robin Hood Terrace
In
1871 they were at 99 Catherine St; in 1881 at 1 Catherine St [built by Thomas]
Thomas
died of bronchitis on 26 February 1889 aged 49
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