charlotte townsend + alfred allat townsend
c. 1863
Charlotte was born in Westminster on 6 December 1833 and baptised at St James, Piccadilly on 4 June 1834. She was the daughter of Thomas Henry Townsend and Harriet Willis and grew up in a prosperous middle class family on Charles Street in St James.
Charlotte and her sister Louisa were no doubt influenced by newspaper articles of the day that promoted the idea of emigration as an option for young, educated women. Their family was initially opposed to the idea but finally agreed and offered to pay the cost of the passage. On 28 May 1862, they left the port of Dartmouth for a new life in Victoria in the colony of Vancouver Island on Canada’s west coast where they intended to find positions teaching French and music. The voyage from Dartmouth lasted four months and took them to the Falkland Islands and around Cape Horn to San Francisco before finally arriving in Victoria Harbour on 17 September.
Harriet Townsend had arranged for her daughters to stay with a family friend, Mrs. Pringle, and her clergyman husband on the mainland but after such a long journey, Charlotte had no desire for another trip and stayed in Victoria while Louisa travelled to Fort Hope with Mrs. Pringle.
Charlotte married Alfred Allat Townsend at St John’s Church on 26 March 1864. Alfred was born in London on 5 May 1816 to James Townsend and his wife Susanna Jackson. When they married, Alfred was working as a Book Keeper and later records list his occupation as a Clerk and a Store Keeper.
Their first son, Turner Norton Edward, was born in Victoria on 10 May 1866 and the following year, Charlotte gave birth to twin daughters, Harriet Elizabeth and Susan Emma, on 20 December. In 1868 and 1869, Alfred was listed in the local business directory along with T.H. Giffen as the proprietors of the British Columbia Hotel on Fort Street. The directory also lists Alfred’s residence as View Street.
c. 1870
On 3 March 1869, Alfred James was born and the baptism record from 12 May at St John’s listed his father’s occupation as a Spirit Merchant. This is confirmed in the 1871 City Directory where Alfred and his partner T.H. Giffen were listed as the owners of the Ominca Saloon on Johnson Street as well as the British Columbia Hotel. In the late 1800s, Johnson Street was considered to be a rough area of town where saloons, brothels and dance halls lined the streets.
Their third son and youngest child, Frank Shepard, was born in 1872 and baptised at St John’s on 23 June. Alfred continued to run the hotel but by 1874, his partner had left and he was running the business on his own but it appears that they gave up the saloon. The colony of British Columbia and Vancouver Island did not join confederation or become part of Canada until 1871 so its residents do not appear in a Canada census until 1881. In that first census, the family was living in the James Bay ward and Alfred’s occupation was listed as a General Agent so he may have given up the hotel as well. The census return also notes that Frank had an infirmity and was classified as ‘dumb’ and Charlotte was generously listed as being 35 years of age when she was in fact forty-eight.
In the 1882—83 edition of the directory, Alfred was listed as a Clerk with a residence on Fort Street near Vancouver Street which was only one block south of their previous residence on View Street. One year later, 68 year old Alfred died of chronic pneumonia and was buried at Ross Bay Cemetery. His memorial headstone contains an engraving of a three link chain along with the letters F, L and T which stand for friendship, love and truth and this is a commonly used symbol of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, a fraternal organization established in Baltimore, Maryland and based on a similar one founded in Britain in the 18th century. So it seems likely that Alfred was a member of the Victoria chapter.
Charlotte and the children moved to a house on Rae Street and in 1891, all of her children were still at home. Turner was working as a brakeman on the railroad, Harriet as a seamstress and Emma as a bookbinder to help support the family. Charlotte continued to shave 10 years off her actual age and was reported to be 47 years old in 1891.
On 25 June 1892, eldest son Turner married Frances Lee at St Paul’s in Nanaimo. Turner was working as a conductor on the E & N Railway which ran between Victoria and Nanaimo. Frances’ family had emigrated from Rothwell in Yorkshire in 1883 to work in the coal mines in Nanaimo. Sadly only two weeks after this happy event, the family suffered a loss when Frank died suddenly on 8 July at the family home on Rae Street. His death registration does not include a cause of death and his obituary in the Daily Colonist confirms his death was sudden and the cause possibly unknown:
Townsend — at 1am on July 8th at the home of his mother No. 8 Rae Street of rapid decline, Frank Shepard, youngest son of the late A.A. Townsend, Victoria BC. Funeral will take place tomorrow Sunday at four o’clock from the family residence and at 4:15pm at Christ Church Cathedral.
Three years later, Harriet married Thomas Hubbard in Victoria on 4 December. Thomas was born in West Wetton near Great Yarmouth in Norfolk on 2 December 1860 to Thomas Hubbard and his wife Mary Jane. He emigrated to Victoria in 1882 and worked on the railroad before taking a job as a Dominion Custom’s Officer. Harriet’s twin sister Susan married two years later to Everett George Youngs on 16 June 1897. Everett was born in Oxford, Ontario to Benjamin Franklin Youngs and his wife Margaret. Everett arrived in Victoria only a year before his marriage and worked as a Carpenter.
Alfred James married Lila Maud Houston on 13 May 1900 at 512 Alexander Street in Vancouver. Lila was born in Alison, Indiana to William Houston and Frances Abernethy but she was living in Seattle, Washington at the time of their marriage. Alfred was listed in the BC Voter’s List of 1898 living at 44 Princess Avenue in Victoria and working as a Scenic Artist. He must have moved to Vancouver sometime after this but he continued to work as an artist though in what capacity is not known.
In 1901, Charlotte was living with her daughter Susan and her family in Victoria. Harriet and her husband Thomas were living nearby and also caring for their two nephews, Turner Norton and Alfred Henry. Thomas’ occupation was listed as Freight Agent and it also notes that he earned $720 a year. Turner was working as a clerk on a salary of $250 in the Yukon Territory when the census was taken; his wife and two young daughters were also with him so the boys may have been left in Victoria to attend school. But Charlotte's youngest son Alfred and his wife Lila have not been located in the Canadian Census.
Ten years later, Charlotte was still living with Harriet and her husband Thomas. They had moved to 137 Clarence Street in the James Bay Ward, which was not far from Charlotte's sister Louisa on Simcoe Street, and Thomas was working as a Cashier. Charlotte continued to live with her daughter on Clarence Street until her death on 7 January 1929 at the age of 96. She was buried next to her husband at Ross Bay Cemetery in Victoria.
Thomas Hubbard died of heart failure at his home on Clarence Street on 25 June 1947 and was buried at the Colwood Burial Park in Victoria three days later. Following her husband’s death, Harriet moved into a care home until her death on 15 November 1956; she was buried next to her husband at Colwood. Susan and Norton remained on Vancouver Island but Alfred James has not been traced beyond his wedding date in 1900.