Hiatt, James

James was born on 16th December 1905 in Sherbourne, Warwickshire. He was baptised on 4th February 1906 at All Saints Church, Sherbourne. His father, Frederick Thomas, was a gardener on the Sherbourne Estate.

James was one of a large family of 13 children although two of his siblings had died before 1911. The eldest was born in 1896 and the youngest in 1914. The surviving children were: Eleanor (1896-1972), Edith May (1897-), Alice Mary (1898-1979), Sidney Walter (1900-1981), Frederick Thomas (1903-1972), Frank (1904-1981), Kate (1905-1980) and Elizabeth (1907-). The three eldest children had been born in Warwick before the family moved to Sherbourne, where the rest of the children were born.

James married Lillian Hall in Warwick in 1930 and according to the 1939 census he and Lillian were living at 20 Mill Street and his occupation was a bricklayer. They had two sons – Philip James (1935-2009) and Gordon Leslie born in 1931 who was in HM Forces and he died on 25th September 1951 aged 20 at Warneford Hospital.

By 1939 James father and mother, together with Kate junior, Edward and Henry, had moved back to Sherbourne and they were living at 31 Stratford Road.

Three of James’ brothers, and three of his sisters, together with their husbands attended James’ funeral at Warwick Cemetery.

Lillian died on 19th January 1951 aged 50. James’ twin sister Kate never married and died in 1980 aged 74.