The Woodroffe Girls

Today’s photo I picked up on eBay a few months ago, three pretty ladies who lived in Birmingham in the later part of the 19th century with the younger one being born soon after the turn of the 20th century.

The mother was Elizabeth Scriven, better known as Bessie, she was born in Foxley, Wiltshire abt 1864, the second wife of James Woodroffe who was born in Birmingham, Warwickshire about 1866. His first wife, Emily Lawrence, was the mother of the older girl in the photo, she was Bessie Emilie Woodroffe born 1895, her birth name was registered as Bessie. The younger girl is the daughter of James’ second wife, she was Dorothy Helen Woodroffe born 19 Oct 1904 in Kings Heath, Worcestershire.

So we have Bessie the mother with Bessie her step-daughter and Dorothy her daughter:-

There were also two other children to James & first wife Emily, they were Eveline Jessie born 1892 and Lawrence Ernest born 1893. As the Woodroffe family were living in Hartshill, Atherstone, Warwickshire in the 1911 census I presume they moved to Beaumont Rd in Bournville soon after that, the reason they moved became obvious when I noticed that James was listed as a ‘missionary with the Society of Friends’ in the census.

Bournville was founded by the Cadbury brothers of Cadbury Chocolate & Bournville Cocoa fame, they were Quakers and interestingly Dorothy Helen Woodroffe was married in the Bournville Quaker Meeting House in 1930 to Ronald Gower Salter.

I would say the above photo was taken about 1916 give or take a few years. I’ve had a look in Google Maps and here is what Beaumont Rd looks like today, #63 is the second house from the right:-

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If anyone knows anything about or is connected to the WOODROFFE family please do contact me, I would love to pass the photo onto a family member, even a distant one. Contact by email is preferable but if you are going to leave a comment please don’t forget to include your email address.

Dawn Scotting
pandora[at]kc.net.nz