I was intrigued when I got an e-mail from Rob Joyce, who'd found my blog on a search. He was trying to track down his ancestors and one clue was the picture of him with his elder brother from about 1983.
I went to have a look at the grave yard at St Peters Church where Rob thought that the picture had been taken.
Almost as soon as I went up the path I could see a likely candidate.
To the left of the warning notice and towards the fence there is a cross.
This turned out to be the right grave, although it is now very overgrown with ivy.
In the picture Rob sent, there is a piece of ceramic work on the plinth and that was still there.
When the ivy was cleared away the inscription was clearly legible.
William James WilesOf Westcliffe Farm
The Dearly Loved Husband of
Mary Jane Wiles
Who Entered into Rest
December 7th 1900
Aged 54 Years
Rob tells me "William J. Wiles was my great-great-grandfather, and census (and family-knowledge) details tell me he was a carpenter, joiner, and builder - and also owned a
farm at Westcliffe. In the 1881 census, he is a builder employing 30 men and 8 boys."
Hopefully we will be able to find out more, from the archives.
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