Lofty’s father Charles was illegitimate
Aha…scandal in the family. Almost certainly Lofty’s father Charles was illegitimate.
The facts…
Charles is born on 12th March 1882. The Snowball family website states that Charles is the offspring of the marriage of Joseph Sunter and Jane Anne Snowball.
Joseph and Jane got married on 14th September 1883 – a full 18 months after Charles was born. So he was illegitimate.
Remember Joseph was married to Isabella. She was living away from the area in the 1881 census. Was the relationship on the rock even then.
Isabella died in the first quarter of 1883 leaving the way open for Joseph to marry Jane.
Could Charles have been Isabella’s son? I don’t think so. In the 1901 Census data Jane is a widow and head of household. Isabella and Joseph’s son, William, is listed as her stepson. Charles is listed as her own son.
What would the effect of this be on Charles? William, surely, would have known the full story – Charles must have known. Given the social norms of the time what effect would this have had on Charles’ outlook? Could this help to explain the mystery disappearance when Lofty was a child?
‹ Mystery of Charles Sunter Massive Shock re Sunters ›
The birth certificate for Charles Snowball gives his name as Charles Hull Snowball. In the 1881 census 19 year old Jane Ann Snowball is employed as a domestic servant in the house of Thomas Hull who had sons aged 21, 19 and 17. I will leave you to work it out.