Born 26 September 1899 he was always known as Reg and was conscripted into the army in 1917, but he did not suffer the same fate as many others and was demobilised after the armistice of 1918. The reader will recall that his brother Will wrote him a letter when they were both in the army.

Reg seems to have suffered from ill-health after his army service and had a succession of jobs, but spent most of his life working as a ticket collector for London Transport at underground stations. He fell in love with a Welsh girl Dolly Morgan, probably from Abergavenny where his mother's Cullimore relatives later settled. Dolly had already had a child by another man and somehow the affair fell through.

He next became attracted to Ada Violet Ella Pawsey (Vi), who was born 30 June 1902 in the Chelsea area. They married 8 November 1930 at St. Johns, Tadema Road, Chelsea.
I remember Reg as a jovial uncle who used to visit us at Kensal Rise on Sundays. His infectious laughter (perhaps inherited from his father), once turned to shouts of pain when he was at a Jack Buchanan show, where, to stifle his guffaws, he held up the programme to his face - and got the staple in the centre of the programme caught up in his nose. The story goes that Jack Buchanan found this so funny that he was unable to continue the show!

Reg died in London 7 February 1972. Vi lived on in London until 19 May 1981 and was buried in East Sheen cemetery. Vi's sister May, although she had a humble job was an interesting person. She was the Queen's dressmaker for many years and regularly visited Buckingham Palace and other royal residences, not only to fit Her Majesty, but also Princess Margaret and later Princess Anne. She was delighted to have been asked to contribute to a television series about London and the book which accompanied it.

Edward Reginald Howard Merryweather their only child was born in London 22 August 1933. After the Second World War 18 year-old men had to serve for up to two years in one of the three services and Ted did his time in the army with the Royal Signals. He worked all his life for The Institute of Cancer Research and it was there that he met the girl who was to become his wife. On the 2 November 1963 he married at St. Michael's, Smarden, Kent, Jill Larking who was born 22 January 1943 at Welling, Kent. Jill is the daughter of William Ernest John Larking and Ellen Eva née Clasby. William, initially a butcher became a furniture removal man working for a then famous firm, Bonnors of Welling. Ted and Jill have been much involved in swimming administration, Jill becoming the Surrey County President in 1993 and Ted, Chairman then President of the Barracuda Swimming Club.
After checking through all of this history, she too became ensnared in the family history hunt!

Trudi Merryweather, their daughter was born 18 May 1972 at Farnborough, Kent. Taking up swimming as a toddler, she developed into a highly competitive breaststroker, representing Surrey. After leaving school, she studied Travel and Tourism at the College for the Distributive Trades in Leicester Square and later went to work for American Express Travel Services in Croydon and spent some time on a working holiday in Australia in 1995/1996.

At 10.48pm on the 29 August 2000 a son, Jay Longhurst was born at East Surrey Hospital to Trudi Merryweather and Christopher Longhurst. Weighing 7lb 8oz, he arrived just in time to be included here!

¹ Information accompanying a letter of 14 June 1986 from Ted Merryweather: The Pawseys came from Great Barton, West Suffolk; 18 children were in this family. James was the eldest, he married Emma Waller, they appear to have had a large family, and also to have eaten a bible, hence the Christian names Augustus, Azaraiah, Ada, Hephzibah, etc. We do not know the rest. Azaraiah Alfred married Ellen Hammond, they had two girls, Florence May and my mum, Ada Violet Ella. The other side of the family was: John Hammond who married Sarah Ling; they had 7 children, Ellen [as above], James, Ann, Walter, Horace, Martha and Elizabeth. I have a photograph of David and Letitia Ling the Mother and Father of Sarah Ling; he was a head shepherd. They married on the 8 November 1930 at St. John's, Tadema Road, Chelsea.
² The Making of Modern London 1815-1914.