This may be a picture of Elizabeth Fishwick Blinkhorn

My grandmother was a Blinkhorn. Her mother was a Fishwick. I believe my grandmother economically married up into the Moore family. The Moore’s were not the wealthiest inhabitants of Aspull. The Moore’s were basically coal miners. However, they did have enough capital to start a small store and support their church. The Blinkhorn on the other hand were just plain poor… very poor.

My grandmother’s father was Henry Blinkhorn. He was the son of Robert Blinkhorn and Alice Richardson. At the time of Henry’s birth, the Blinkhorn’s lived in area of Wigan called Scholes. It was one poorest areas of Wigan.

Martin Cruz Smith in his novel, Rose, described the area quite well. One thing I remember about his description was that the miners would get drunk at the local pub. They would strip down except for their wooden clogs that had a metal tip on them. They would tie their leg to an opponent. They would fight by kicking trying to inflict injury with the metal tips on their clogs.

Later George Orwell would describe the poverty in the Scholes area in his book, The Road To Wigan Pier. Although his book describes the poverty some 30 years after the Blinkhorns left Wigan, we can still make generalizations of the poverty there in 1900.

Henry Blinkhorn married Elizabeth Fishwick on 18 Mar 1872. (I believe Elizabeth Fishwick was even poorer than the Blinkhorns when she was born and through the first 11 or so years of her life. I am not sure if her condition improved after 1861. I do know it could not have gotten much worse.)

Henry and Elizabeth move from Scholes to nearby Ince. Henry is coal Miner. Their children were: James (June 1873), Jane (1875), William (1877), John (1879), Phoebe (1882), Robert (1885), Henry (1887), Thomas (1890), Arthur (1892), Catherine (1891).

Sometime around 1907 Henry and Elizabeth immigrated to Sydney Mines. With them came Francis and Phoebe Blinkhorn Moore. Others that came were Arthur, and James. (James married Mary Moore Francis Moore’s sister.) They may have been other Blinkhorns that immigrated as well.

Henry died in Sydney Mines, Nova Scotia on 14 Apr 1918. Elizabeth died in Sydney Mines on 05 Jan 1926. She is buried in Brookside Cemetery. I assume Henry is there with her.

Copyright: Paul Moore Sep 2011

Francis H Moore and Phoebe Blinhorn Moore: Vitals

Phoebe Blinkhorn Birth Certificate





Francis Moore and Phoebe Blinkhorn Marriage Registration




Francis H Moore Birth registration

Phoebe Blinkhorn Moore


24 Jun 1923 Immigration Papers: Francis enters the USA at Eastport, Idaho. He enters by himself. (From Seattle passenger and Crew Lists M 1383_97 at National Archives, 1930 census)

1923 Letters from FHM: Strike at Nova Scotia Steel and Coal Company.

07 Sep 1924 Letters from FHM: Francis date of first letter to Canada. They are living at 703 W Penn in Whittier. He was working as an electrician’s helper in the oil fields (Sante Fe Springs). His boss was his brother Wilfred. He was paid $5 a day for 8 hours.

(Note: All the address number in Whittier were changed in the 1960's)

28 Feb 1924: The rest of the Moore family Immigrates to CA. he comes through Port Huron, Michigan on the Grand trunk Railway. Border crossing card lists Florence and Phoebe. (1930 Census and Frederick Moore Declaration of Intention of Citizenship Document. Frederick Moore Certificate of Arrival Number 23 62380 US department of labor found at the national Archives in Perris CA. Copies are held by Paul Moore) (Border Crossing card at Michigan Passenger and Crew Lists 1903 – 1965 http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?h=218609&db=MichiganPL&indiv=try. A summary is held by Paul Moore.)

1924 Letters from FHM: Dec 1924 Francis Moore buys used 1922 Chevy. Phoebe crashes it into a lemon tree. (Letters p 5.a copy is held by Paul Moore.)

1924 Letters from FHM: Dec 1924 Francis Moore not happy that Coolidge won the election. Son Wilfred out of a job. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

Jan 1926 Letters from FHM: The family moves to 1238 Hillview Court. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

22 Mar 1926 Letters from FHM: Francis in a letter to auto club describes a court case he won against Mr. Ramsey – broke his foot in a car accident

25 Apr 1930 Letters from FHM: Francis writes letter to Willie Somers of Sydney Mines says he is Reddy’s godfather. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

1930 Census: Francis H. Moor (49) (sic Moore) is living with his wife, Phoebe (47) Francis (49) in Whittier, CA. They are renting a house for $25 a month. (This house is on Hillview Court in Whittier. Their neighbors are the Ramsey’s.) The children are Wilfred (23), Francis H (AKA Harry) (21), Florence (19) and Frederick (13). Francis, Phoebe and Wilfred were born in England. Francis (Harry), Florence and Frederick were born in Canada with English citizenship. They own a radio. Francis came to California in 1923. The rest of the family came in 1924. No one in the family had been naturalized. Francis was an oil worker in an oil field. Wilfred was an oil worker for a company. They were all able to read and write. Francis (Harry), Florence and Frederick went to school. (Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2002. Original data: United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Fifteenth Census of the United States, 1930. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1930. T626, 2,667 rolls. Copy held by Paul Moore)

24 Mar 1933 Letters from FHM: Francis describes the Long Beach Earthquake (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.))

10 Apr 1934 Letters from FHM: Francis wrote to brother Fred in Detroit. He describes making beer. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

10 Sep 1934 Letters from FHM: Francis wrote a letter to Harry in English and Spanish about Harry being in a Mexican jail. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

26 Sep 1935 Declaration of Intent: Francis files paper for Intention to Declare Citizenship. He is 5’8” and 130 pounds. He is white, male, 5 feet 8 inches tall, 130 pounds. He has a light complexion with blue gray eyes. He is English and British. He is married Phoebe on 25 Oct, 1905 in Ince England. He entered the country from Port Huron Michigan for permanent residence on 28 Feb 1924 (sic). His son Wilfred was born in England (8 Nov 1906) Francis (8 Sep 1908) Florence (29 Nov 1910 and Fredrick (29 Dec 1916) were all born in Canada. All now reside in Whittier, CA. He also states he entered the country from Lethbridge, Canada to Eastport Idaho in Apr 1923. (Footnote.com at http://www.footnote.com/image/#41|10046890. A Copy is held by Paul Moore.)

1936 Letters from FHM: writes letter with others to thank Mr. Jordon the teacher of the naturalization class. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

01 Jan 1937 Letters from FHM: Francis attends Rose Parade for the first time. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

03 Jul 1937 Letters from FHM: Francis sends letter to nephew Joe in Detroit – mentions Detroit family names. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

13 Feb 1938 Letters from FHM: Francis writes Wigan Coal and Iron Company. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

9 May 1938 Letters from FHM: Francis writes letter to Joseph Brown mentioning: Farm at Pitcroft, Jack Kuth’s place, Brinks Pit, Billy Pit, Meadow Pit, Crawford Pit, Cale Road, Tinday pit, David C. Ollier (driver of locomotive), Jim Pugh. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

10 Jun 1938 Letters from FHM: Francis sends letter describing son, Fred, graduating from college (sic Junior College) and his naturalization. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

08 Sep 1938 Letters from FHM: Francis writes St Williams Church in Ince for marriage license. He lived on Yarrow St in Hindley and Phoebe lived on Broom Street Ince. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

09 May 1938 Letters from FHM: Francis sends letter to Joseph Brown Pitchcroft, Haigh Lanes England Describes history of self Hoover house, Family in CA Spencer’s of Lanes End were cousins and owned a grocery across Catholic Church. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

12 Aug 1938: Francis H Moore received his certificate of citizenship. He is 57 years old, male, white, 5 feet eight inches, light complexion, grey eyes and hair. He is married. (Paul Moore holds a copy of the citizenship certificate issue by the federal government.)

Jul 1939 Letters from FHM: Francis and Phoebe attend San Francisco World’s Fair with Phoebe (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

09 Sep 1939: Phoebe Moore becomes a citizen of the USA. She 5 four two and half inches, light complexion with brown eyes. She is 56 years old. She is married. She is British. She lives at 517 Hoover Ave, Whittier CA. (Naturalization Certificate. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

27 Dec 1940 Letters from FHM: Francis has to work his last Christmas. He mentions the flu around LA. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

9 Feb 1941 Letters from FHM: Francis’ last letter – handwritten. (Letters. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

02 May 1941 Death certificate: Francis died of coronary thrombosis from a rundown condition of pneumonia in Whittier, Los Angeles County, CA. He is a male, white and married. He lives at 517 Hoover Avenue in Whittier. He died at 9:20 am. He was a fireman in the oil fields. His father was Constantine Moore and his mother was Mary Watmaugh both from Aspull, England. He lived in the county state and country for 18 years. He is buried in Calvary Cemetery in Los Angeles. (Death certificate is in the Los Angeles County Clerk’s Office in Norwalk, CA. A copy is held by Paul Moore) (He died in the Hoover House bathroom not quite 61 yrs old.)

21 Sep 1963 Phoebe Blinkhorn Moore died in Whittier CA at 9:40 pm. The last address was 6039 Hoover. (Then 517 Hoover.). She lists her parents as Henry Blinkhorn and Elizabeth Fishwick of England. She was a widowed. She has been a housewife for 58 years. . She lived at 517 (now 6039) Hoover Avenue in Whittier, CA. She died at Presbyterian Intercommunity Hospital in Whittier CA. she is buried in Calvary Cemetery in Los Angeles. (Death Certificate is in Los Angeles County offices in Norwalk CA. A copy is held by Paul Moore.) (Francis and Phoebe Moore are buried in graves 4 and 5 in lot 685 Section G as per a note on death certificate for Phoebe.)
Oct 1974: Wilfred “Dent” Moore, Francis’ eldest son, died. His last residence was at 85614 Green Valley, Pima, Arizona, United States of America.

27 Feb 1994; Florence Moore Barkley dies in Orange County CA. (CA Death Index 1940 – 1997 found at ancestry.com. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

06 Oct 2002: Francis Harry Moore died in Whittier, Los Angeles CA. (Social security Death index found at ancestry.com. A summary is a held by Paul Moore.)

Time Line of Francis and Phoebe Moore Part I

The Tunisian: The Ship Francis Moore Took to Canada 1907

Below is a time line of Francis H. Moore and his wife Phoebe Blinkhorn Moore. (Note letters of FHM means Letters written by Francis H Moore while he lived in Whittier CA.

23 Nov 1880: Francis Moore is born in Aspull England. Constantine and Mary Watmough Moore were his parents. They lived at 1 Church Street. District Wigan: (FreeBMD, Index 8C page 11 From Births Registered Jan Feb Mar. 1881 Page 372 Letters: Wilfred Moore, his brother in his description of his childhood said all his brothers and sisters were born there. Birth registration states that Francis Henry Moore was born
23rd November 1880 at 1 Church Street, Aspull. Father was Constantine Moore. His mother was Mary formerly Watmough. Father's profession was a contractor in a coal mine. Constantine signed when registering the birth. (The birth entry is in Lancashire County England. Paul Moore holds a copy.)

1881 Census: Francis Moore is living in Aspull with his father, Constantine, (34), mother, Mary, (35), Frederick J, (8). Constantine, (5), Mary E. (3), and Francis H is 4 months. There was a Bridget Hartney in the house. She is 19 and listed a servant as a relationship to the family. Constantine was a laborer at a colliery, his wife had no occupation. Frederick, Constantine and Mary were scholars. Constantine was born in Blackrod. All the rest were born in Aspull. The servant was born in Durham. (1891 Census from ancestry.com. Paul Moore has a copy.)
1891 Census: Constantine (44) is living with wife Mary (45) on Church Street Aspull. (Home Shop is listed.) He is a grocer and nothing is listed for Mary. The children are: Frederick J. (18), a colliery laborer, Norman (15) a grocer’s assistant, Mary E (12) a scholar, Francis H (10) a scholar, Wilfred (8) a scholar. Constantine was born in Blackrod, Mary in Wigan, and all other children in Aspull. (1891 Census from ancestry.com. Paul Moore has a copy.)

5 Oct 1882: Phoebe Blinkhorn is born at 60 #A that was on the back east side of Broom Street Upper Ince to Henry Blinkhorn and Elizabeth Fishwick Blinkhorn. Henry is a coal miner. (She gave her mark as an X). Phoebe was registered on 17 Nov 1882. A copy was sent 04 Oct 1947. (Birth Registration is in Lancaster county England. Paul Moore holds a copy.)

16 Oct 1882: Phoebe is christened. (Batch # is C007717 at www.familysearch.org.)


1897 Letter by FHM: Francis Moore Started work at Wigan Iron and Coal Company under Joe Cox at Top Place. He was a cleaner and a firer at Shevington and West Leigh. (Letter 13 Feb 1938. The Wigan Iron and Coal Company is local to Aspull. It is listed in 1869 city directory: http://www.wiganworld.co.uk/stuff/towndaspull.php?opt=townd1869)


1901 Census: Constantine Moore (54) is living with wife Mary (55) at 71 Haigh Road I Aspull. Their sons are Constantine (24), Francis (20), and Wilfred (17). Constantine is a general laborer while his wife is listed with no job. Constantine, a son, is a bus driver. Francis and Wilfred are are railway engine stokers. Constantine was born in Blackrod, Mary in Wigan and the boys in Aspull. (1901 census from Ancestry.com. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

1901 Census: Henry and Elizabeth Blinkhorn live at 34 Broom St in Ince in Markerfield. They live with their sons Robert (16), Henry (13), Thomas (11) and Arthur (8). Henry and Elizabeth were born in Wigan while the sons were born in Ince. Henry is a coal driver (?) and Robert and Henry are coal laborers Below ground. . Phoebe is not in the home or she is not listed as being in the home.. (1901 census found at ancestry.com. A copy is held by Paul Moore)

Before 25 Oct 1905: Phoebe converts to be a Roman Catholic. Harry’s wife said that Phoebe told her that converted in order to marry Francis. (A conversation with the wife of Harry Moore, a son of Francis Moore. she knew both Francis and Phoebe Moore.)

25 Oct 1905 Marriage Certificate: Francis Moore marries Phoebe Blinkhorn at St. William’s Church in Ince Wigan. He is living at 10 Yarrow St Hindley. She is at 34 Broom St Ince. Rev. A Dobson officiated. In presence of Robert Blinkhorn (older brother) (34 Broom) and Elizabeth Hornsby (18 Markland Rd Ince). (The record was requested on 11 Nov 1938 for Naturalization. A copy of Marriage certificate from Wigan is located at St Williams Ince. Paul Moore holds a copy.)

O8 Nov 1906: Wilfred ‘Dent” Moore is born in Wigan England. (Social security Death Index found at ancestry.com. A summary is a held by Paul Moore.)

1907 Letters from FHM: Before leaving England he is firing (railroad) for Dave Colliers under his brother Jim Collier.

1907 Letters from FHM: Francis leaves for Canada in April 1907. (Letter: 13 Feb 1932. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)
13 Apr 1907. Francis H Moore, Henry Blinkhorn (father in law) and Arthur Blinkhorn (brother in law) sail from Liverpool to Halifax on the Tunisian. They arrive in 13

Apr 1907. They have no cash listed. They are on their way to Sydney Mines.(Ancestry: Canadian Passenger Lists 1865 to 1935 roll T502. A copy is held by Paul Moore)
12 Sep 1908: Francis Harry Moore is born. (Social security Death index found at ancestry.com. A summary is a held by Paul Moore.)

1911 Canadian Census from Sydney Mines Nova Scotia: Francis Moore (B Nov 1820 is the head of the family. He is living with his wife Phoebe (b Oct 1884), son (B Nov 1906 (Wilfred?) daughter, Florence (B 1910) and son F…. ? (Francis) (b Sep 1908). They lived next to his father Constantine and the Blinkhorns. (1911 Census found at ancestry.com. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

29 Nov 1910: Florence Gertrude Moore is born in Sydney Mines Nova Scotia Canada. CA Death Index 1940 – 1997 found at ancestry.com. A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

29 Dec 1916: Frederick Vincent Moore is born in Sydney Mines, Nova Scotia, Canada to Francis Moore and Phoebe Blinkhorn. (Birth and Baptism Certificate located at The Roman Catholic Church, Sydney Mines, Nova Scotia, Canada)

1920 Census Canada: Not Available at Ancestry.com) (A copy is held by Paul Moore.)

Copyright 2011 Paul Moore

My Grandmother: Phoebe Blinkhorn Moore

Phoebe Blinkhorn Moore in Front of the Hoover House

My grandmother was Phoebe Blinkhorn Moore. I do remember her in that I was a teenager when she died.

My father was very close to his mother. Every Sunday around 4:00 pm he would take me and my brother to visit her in the house that she built on Hoover Ave. in Whittier, CA. This became a ritual in my youth. Sometime I would walk home after school. I would pass her house a stop in to say hello. I remember spending a lot afternoons at her house, perhaps she was babysitting me. I can’t remember why I would be there so often. We would spend every Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter with her and my uncle Harry and his wife. Most of these holidays were spent at her house. Sometime she would visit us. She liked to cook. She was a huge fan of Liberace.

Phoebe Blinkhorn was born in the village of Ince near Wigan and Aspull on 16 Oct 1882. Her family must have been very poor. I had heard a family story that at one time Phoebe was a pit brow lassie. She told me once that she ran a pub in Blackpool. I have not been able to prove either story, but I believe both of them to be true.

I have been able to find Phoebe in all the censuses from her birth up to 1930 except for one. She is not on the 1901 census. Yet, two years later when she was married she was living with her parents in Ince. Perhaps they forgot to list her as living at home. Perhaps at 19 she went off and ran a pub in Blackpool. I don’t know where she was in 1901. I have been working on this problem for over a decade. I doubt I will ever find her in 1901.

She married Francis Moore on 25 Oct 1905 in a Roman Catholic Church. According to Harry’s wife that knew her, she had to convert from the Church of England to Roman Catholicism in order to marry Francis whose was family were devout Catholics.

She would follow her husband to Canada sometime between 1907 and 1908. (Uncle Harry was born in Canada in Sept of 1908.) She would again follow her husband to Whittier California in 1924. (She told me she took the train across the United States and was terrified about being attacked by Indians.)

When she came to Whittier the family lived in small houses for 6 years or so. All the while she was saving up money to build a house modeled on houses she had seen in England. She had a jar (cookie?) where the boys would put part of the wages every week. That is what she used to build the house on Hoover Avenue. My daughter and I own that house to this day. My daughter and her family live there.

She lived in that house with my Uncle Harry and his wife until 1963. That is the year my parents bought the house and moved in. We lived with my grandmother for a couple of months. Then she died on 23 Sep 1963. She is buried in a Catholic cemetery with her husband and later my Uncle Harry.

My biggest regret with my grandmother was that I was too young to ask about her life. Now I would like to know how she lived before getting married and moving to Canada.

There are still a number of her family members, namely the Blinkhorns’, that live in England and Canada.

I will post the time line for both her and Francis on the next blog. In future blogs I will work backward in time from Phoebe into the 1700’s with her Blinkhorn family.


Copyright 2001 Paul Moore

Francis H Moore: My Grandfather

Francis H Moore: Picture From Citizenship Document


I never knew my grandfather. He died before I was born. This has been a big regret in my life. From what I know of him, he could have been a good role model for me and my brother.

What I know of him came mainly though his letters to friends and family in Sydney Mines and Wigan. He always typed a carbon copy of these letters and kept them. After he died these letters fell into the hands of my uncle Francis aka “Harry.” I received a bound copy of these letters held by uncle for a Christmas present. Almost all that I know about him came from those letters.

From these letters I discovered he did not live in Wigan like I thought. He lived in Aspull/Haigh. Aspull and the neighboring Haigh are about 3 to 4 miles northeast of the much larger city of Wigan in Lancashire, England. From Aspull to the Blackrod, the home of Richard Moore is about more 2 miles further up the road. That makes Blackrod about 4 to 5 miles from Wigan.

From what I can tell from the letters he was a very intelligent man even though he ended his education at the eighth grade to work in the mines. He wrote short stories. He learned Spanish. He would write radio quiz shows and offer his questions on history and literature. He was knowledgeable on current events and had a definite opinion on the labor movement and what was going on in Europe with Hitler. In all his letters I never have come across a spelling or typing error.
Francis Henry Moore was born in Aspull in to Constantine and Mary Watmough Moore who lived at 31 Church Street on 23 Nov 1880. He attended Mass and school at the Our Lady’s Roman Catholic Church. By 1897 he is already working at the Wigan Iron and Coal Company. He is just 16 or 17 years old. On 25 Oct 1905 he married Phoebe Blinkhorn at St Williams Church in Ince where Phoebe lived. (Ince is about a mile from Aspull.) In April 1907 Francis Moore leaves England and immigrates to Sydney Mines, Nova Scotia, Canada. His ship was the Tunisia. In Sydney Mines he worked on the railroad that serviced the coal mines. He was fireman. He joined the union and remained a member pretty much the rest of his life. In 24 Jun 1923 he left Canada and immigrated to Whittier, CA with his brother Wilfred. They came to Whittier to work in the nearby Santa Fe Springs oil field. Phoebe and the children would join him in Feb 1924. He built the family home on Hoover Street with Phoebe after 1930. He became a citizen of the USA but always had a love of England until the day he died. He was transferred to the Taft Oil fields about 120 north of Los Angeles. There, in the spring of 1940, he contracted pneumonia. He died in the bathroom of his house on Hoover. He and Phoebe had four children. Wilfred was born in Wigan born on 8 Nov 1906. Francis Henry “Harry” was born on 12 Sep 1908. Florence Gertrude “Florie” was born on 29 Nov 1910. My father, Frederick Vincent “Freddy”, was born on 29 Dec 1916. All three of the younger children were born in Sydney Mines, Nova Scotia, Canada.

That is my grandfather in a nutshell. In future posts, I will list a detail time line with sources for Francis Moore for those genealogists and others that are interested.

Copyright 2011 Paul Moore

Constantine and Mary Watmough Moore: Primary Source Documents

Birth Registration for Constantine Moore

Marriage registration for constantine Moore and Mary Watmough

Death certificate for Constantine Moore

Death certificate for Mary Watmough Moore

Mary Watmough's Birth Registration