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The Linnett family at work, church and play

Gail Linnett has sent me some fantastic old photos based around her fathers's and grandfather's life and times. Gail, who has lived all her life in Edinburgh, never met her Grandfather, who died long before she was born. Back in the 1800s the Linnetts owned a drapery business in Coventry, and her Great Great Grandfather had a shop in the High Street - possibly number 8 with the name "Albion House".

Arthur Linnett

Gail tells us that in the first picture.... "The man with a cigarette in one hand and a glass in the other is my Grandfather, Arthur Linnett. He worked for Rudge and then Dunlop. I'm guessing this photograph was taken at a works event - probably at Dunlop but I really don't know."

Tennis

"The photo has "Sept 1929" on the back. At the time my father was born in 1934 they lived in Broad Lane, so I assume this tennis club must be somewhere near there - but not necessarily. Gladys and Frank Neason were my father's Aunt and Uncle; he called Florrie and Lil aunts but they were no relation."

The people who Gail knows in the above photo are as follows:
Back row L-R: Arthur Linnett, unknown, Frank Neason, unknown
Front row L-R: Florrie Mobley, Ethel Linnett, Lil, Gladys Neason, unknown

Choir

This last photo is a real piece of Coventry history, and features one of the strongest characters of our time during the Second World War, Reverend Graham Clitheroe. (More about his activities during the blitz here.) Please click on the photo below for a super-sized one that you can pan around for a closer look at everyone.

Arthur Linnett with the Holy Trinity Choir late 1940s

Gail tells us more about this super photograph....
"This photo is from the late 1940s, taken outside Holy Trinity. My Father, Alan Linnett, is far left in the front (head choirboy); his cousin John Neason is in the row behind on the right hand side (wearing glasses). The only other people he remembers are:
Canon Clitherie is in the centre of the third row (glasses); Verger, Mr. Ingram is at the right hand end in the fourth row, and there is another Mr. Ingram in the choir, fourth from the left on the fourth row (in white) - can't remember his first name."

Update 28th November 2014

Some great new on this last photo; Cliff Jones has many memories of Holy Trinity Church, and would like to share the names that he remembers with us....

"Wonderful to see Holy Trinity Church choir, some years before I joined them.
The verger is Bill Ingram, and his brother, quite rightly identified as fourth from the left on the fourth row (in white) is Arthur, and on Arthur's right (our left!) is John Fletcher, proprietor of Fletcher Signs in Gosford Street.
Second from the right in the second row (in white) is Bablake schoolmaster Mr Duffield - mentioned on the Bablake School thread on the forum.
On Bill Ingram's left is Stanley Meacock, my dentist, who practised in Eaton Road - he's there as a churchwarden, as I guess are all the others in suits.
It is annoying that I can recognise a couple of other men choristers, without being able to recall their names, and I don't recognise any of the boys.
[PS I think it's Bill Holloway on Arthur's left!]
Incidentally, the vicar's name is Clitheroe!
Looking at the Bablake School thread, where I posted a choir photo to illustrate Mr Duffield, it is interesting to note that he, Fletcher and Arthur Ingram stand 5, 6 and 8 on the back row, and there are two other men there who also appear on the subject photo."

Update 31st August 2017

Once again there is more good news as we hear from someone else with a close relationship to people in this photograph. Ruth Conway (nee Ingram) wishes to inform us that....

"The choirboy on the second row up and second from the left is Arthur's eldest son (my brother) Peter."

Update 3rd May 2019

As always it's wonderful to learn more about these personal little snippets of local history, and this time we hear from Pam Roberts (nee Neason), who adds this....

"Frank Neason was a younger brother of my father, Harold. My father was a member of the Holy Trinity choir as a chorister, and later a man, until 1934. He was married there, and my late sister and I were christened there also."

If anyone recognises anyone else in these wonderful photos, please contact me with anything you can contribute.


 
 
 
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