Rose Mary Butcher

Rose was born on March 12th 1912 at 70 St Leonard Street,

Poplar the third of eight children, to George Henry and
Florence Peace Butcher (neè Hollington). Her birth was
registered by Florence on April 15th at Poplar district register
office. She was later baptised St Andrew's church, Bromley
on Easter Day, April 4th 1912.

The old riverside village of Poplar grew rapidly after 1806 when the building of the East India docks began. The
fastest growth came, and that of the overspill area of Canning Town, took place with the building of the Royal
Victoria dock in 1855 and the growth of the riverside industries in the 1850's to 1880s.
Poplar Borough council came in to
being in 1900 and was one of the
more innovative in the field of
public works. It was one of the
first London boroughs to build
public baths and wash houses;
and it embraced the concept of
free public libraries with a greater
enthusiasm than most. Poplar
sanitation was better than most,
despite the vagaries of the water
supply; mortality – except in
infants – was surprisingly low.
Even the poor law guardians, who
administered the work house,
acquired a reputation for greater
humanitarianism than their
equivalents in the neighbouring
districts.
After the 1914-1918 war followed
the closure of many of the ship
building works – local hardship
was thus very severe. Almost a
third of the adult population were
labourers (George Henry Butcher)
and more than half of these were
employed, if at all, on a casual day
by day basis in the docks, or on regular but very low wages.
Today little physical evidence remains of the 19th century housing bears witness to the lack of affection in which it
was held - “the streets stretched out in endless procession, as like peas in a pod, with no individuality what so
ever”. To many residents the area not only looked depressing; it smelt unpleasant. The noxious industries – blood
and bone boiling, glue-making, soap-making. Other industries included the oakum works, paint makers, varnish,
tar, rubber, metal casks and gas mantels, - each gave off its own distinctive, yet unpleasant odour, all of which
 blew on the wind through the streets and homes of Poplar. In St Leonard Street
there was a cat meat shop, which regaled the neighbourhood with the aroma of
boiling horse flesh.

Rose had seven brothers and sisters (that survived);

“George (drove lorries, and mum was not impressed!) and I

cannot remember ever seeing him, although I do have a picture
of a portly figure of a man with ruddy cheeks (he was much off
mums contact list); Flo (Florence) who was a drain on her
mother, being unable to cope with marriage and her children;
Lydia (mum and Lydia were very close sisters. Unfortunately Lydia
had bad health. Lydia suffered from heart problems but eventually
died from a growth in her stomach)(cancer wasn't heard of then);
Charlie (mum and Charlie got on very well too. Unfortunately
Charlie's first wife died in childbirth. Charlie married again, Ethel,
who was a typical stepmother (in those days) to Charlie's two
children; John (again mum was close to John, John and Flo (another Flo) had, like mum and
dad, four daughters).“ (Irene)

Florence Peace had thirteen children altogether with six dying in child birth or very young –
not uncommon in those days -

' Grandmother was not a well women after enduring all those pregnancies which
didn't do anything for her her health; She died aged 58 in 1942 of cardiac failure
having not being very mobile for some time. To me she was a lovely grandmother
who was always looking happy with a smiley face. Mum used to take me to her
often and I can remember visiting with Eunice in her pushchair ' (Irene)

The marriage of George and Florence was not a happy one and was beset by feuds from the
outset. Florence's family were against the marriage to George -

Florence Pearce came from a very well to-do

family, they didn't want her to marry George
who came from a very low class background
and whose mother was a drunkard!
'(Margaret Hourihan)

It is possible that they were right as Rose kept

details of her life, prior to her marriage to William,
very close to her chest.

The 'twins', Alf and Jess, Henry and Nell, lived

next door to grandmother and what should
have been a nice visit was always tainted by
hearing the arguing and shouting going on
next door. We never went in to see the twins!
[Irene]
Life was very tough, indeed all the girls of the family, including her mother. When she was
young the men in the house had to have meals first and the female's had what was left.
George for what ever reason did not believe that Rose was his child and Rose and her Mother
suffered for it. Rose was treated very badly by her father both physically and mentally.

Rose did her schooling (unlike William no records appear to have been kept) and on leaving
went to work in Woolworths for a short while. She then went on to work in the Ardath
Cigarette Factory making handmade cigarettes where she got more money. Rose was very
good at making the cigarettes and very fast too. [Rose kept hold of the tools of her trade and
they are now in my possession]

Rose enjoyed her years up until her marriage with friends and dancing etc. Meeting William
and getting married so quickly upon her grandmothers (this was probably her maternal
grandmother Eliza Lydia Hollington née Colvin – could she see see what was going with her
daughter and son-in-law?) recommendation to get a happy life. The day she and William
married had its own traumas when up to the last minute as Rose left for the church did she
know if her father would be there to give her away.