CFHS code : MG237
Parish : St Mary the Great
Inscription : headstone Sacred to the Memory of a beloved and affectionate brother JOHN SMITH d Oct 25 1864 aged 62 HENRY JEFFERY SMITH BA St Johns Coll d Dec 9 1868 aged 24 SMITH JOHN SMITH 25 years assistant at the University Library b Jan 5 1824 d Nov 27 1871 ELIZABETH SMITH d 5 Fitzwilliam St aged 81 HENRY SMITH d May 5 1886 aged 82 coped stone Sacred to the Memory of CHARLOTTE SMITH d Dec 21 1877 aged 60 IELR HARRIOTT SMITH d May 30 1929 in her 82nd year ALFRED SMITH d June 7 1942 in his 93rd year
Monument : Headstone/Coped stone/Kerb stones/Footstone
Above information amended from Cambridge Family History Society Survey
Lat Lon : 52.202188, 0.1373194 – click here for location
Monument
This headstone combined with a coped stone, located in the parish of Mary the Great, stands 2 rows east of the central path. In 2016 it was found to be overgrown by ivy. We were unable to check much of the carved inscription and did not find the coped stone which may have sunk into the ground.
The grave register places 8 members of this family over plots 3 and 4
Inscription
headstone
Sacred to the Memory of a beloved and affectionate brother JOHN SMITH d Oct 25 1864 aged 62
HENRY JEFFERY SMITH BA St Johns Coll d Dec 9 1868 aged 24 SMITH JOHN SMITH 25 years assistant at the University Library b Jan 5 1824 d Nov 27 1871
ELIZABETH SMITH d 5 Fitzwilliam St aged 81
HENRY SMITH d May 5 1886 aged 82
coped stone>Sacred to the Memory of CHARLOTTE SMITH d Dec 21 1877 aged 60>
In Ever Loving Remembrance of HARRIOTT SMITH d May 30 1929 in her 82nd year
ALFRED SMITH d June 7 1942 in his 93rd year
Relationship: It is believed that John, Charlotte and Henry were siblings. Henry’s wife Elizabeth, step-son and two sons
John Smith (1802 – 25 October 1864)
John worked as a printer/compositor at the Pitt Press and lived at 13 Corn Exchange Street with his sister Charlotte (1851/1861). He died at home and newpaper reports read ‘Mr John Smith, nearly half a century a compositor at the Pitt Press, after a lingering illness borne with Christian fortitude and resignation. Deceased was an affectionate brother and was highly respected by all who knew him’.
Henry Jeffery Smith (1844 – 9 December 1868)
Henry was the son of Henry and Elizabeth Smith and was baptised at St. Mary the Great Church on 3 May 1844. He went up to St. John’s College in October 1864 and died aged 24 years old. As his degree course had been completed he was posthumously awarded a B.A. in 1869.
Smith John Smith (5 January 1824 – 27 November 1871)
Smith was born in Cottenham and is believed to have been the illegitimate son of Elizabeth Smith. He was baptised on 15 February 1824 at St. Mary the Great church and only his mother’s name appeared on the baptism record. He lived with his mother and step father Henry at 24 Corn Exchange Street (1861) and Fitzwilliam Street (1871) and worked as assistant librarian at the University Library. He died at Fitzwilliam Street aged 48 years old.
Elizabeth Smith (née Smith) (1803 – December 1884)
Elizabeth was born in Cottenham and had at least one son ( Smith John Smith) before marrying Henry Smith on 12 April 1829 at St. Mary the Great Church. They had at least two more sons: Henry Jeffery and Alfred (1849-1942). The family lived at Slaughter House Lane (1841), Corn Exchange Street (1851/1861) and then 5 Fitzwilliam Street (1871/1881). Elizabeth died at home aged 81 years old and her funeral took place on 23 December 1884.
Henry Smith (1804 – 5 May 1886)
Henry married Elizabeth when he was 25 years old and worked as a bookbinder before becoming the parish clerk for St. Mary the Great (1861 onwards). In 1871 he was also documented as being a clerk to the University and died at Little St. Mary’s Lane aged 82 years old.
Charlotte Smith (1817- 21 December 1877)
Charlotte was the daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth and was baptised at St. Mary the Great Church on 28 September 1817. She lived with her brother John and acted as his housekeeper, and then lived with Henry and Elizabeth Smith at Fitzwilliam Street. She died at Fitzwilliam Street and was buried on 26 December 1877.
Harriott Smith (née Eastes/D’Este) (1847 – 30 May 1929)
Harriott was born in Cambridge and baptised at St. Benet’s church on 28 November 1847. She was the eldest daughter of John and Harriott (née Newport). Her father was lay vicar of King’s, Trinity and St. John’s Colleges and member of the University choir and Harriott grew up at 65 Trumpington Street where her father also taught singing. In August 1865 John Eastes legally changed his name to John D’Este as ‘a lineal descendant of the House of Este, of Este Castle, Holland’. There might have been a family scandal as by 1871 John D’Este had left Cambridge and had settled in London with Caroline Crowe and was living as man and wife. There is no record of a divorce. His first wife Harriott died in Cambridge in April 1889 and is buried in Cherry Hinton.
Harriott married assistant librarian Alfred Smith in 1871 and they lived at Herne Lodge, St Eligius Street. They are not believed to have had any children and by 1901 Alfred had retired and they moved to live in Lowestoft (1901) and then Reydon (1911). Harriott died at their home, Redwald,Reydon aged 81 years old.
Alfred Smith (26 October 1849 – 7 June 1942)
Alfred was the youngest son of Henry and Elizabeth Smith. He died in Reydon aged 92 years old.
Sources:
Ancestry
Newspaper archives
by Claire Martinsen
[If you have any further information about this family, please contact us at Friendsofmillroadcemetery@gmail.com]