Grandparents

Charles’ paternal grandparents were Frederick Futvoye and Mary Anne Aldis. Mary’s history is interesting and demonstrates that it was possible to prosper after a poor start in life. She was born on 18 October 1825 in the workhouse at Blything, Suffolk. She was baptised on 24 November 1825 in the parish of St Pancras. Her father is not named in the record. We found no other information about her prior to her marriage. Frederick Futvoye was born on 14 December 1821 and was baptised on 5 January 1822 at St Marylebone. Frederick and Mary married in March 1845. The 1851 census shows them living at 134 Regent St, Westminster, with 3 children, Marion, born about 1847, Eleanor, born about 1849, and Clara, born about 1850. Frederick was a dressing case maker. They later had several more children including Augustus Herbert, born on 5 July 1857, Charles Francis (Charles Cyril’s father), born on 5 November 1858, Arthur Ernest, born on 21 January 1860, and Montague Adolf, born on 3 September 1863. The 4 boys were all baptised on 1 September 1867 in Bayswater. Their address at the time was Woodfield Place.

Frederick was involved with Messrs Futvoye and Company, who imported and supplied jewellery, clocks etc and had premises in Regent St, Beak St, Silver St and Rue de Rivoli, Paris. Newspaper articles questioned the company’s absence from the Great Exhibition of 1851 but it was explained that they supplied goods to many other exhibitors and did not want to appear to be in competition. At some point, Frederick became a proprietor in the Crystal Palace Bazaar, a shopping precinct in Oxford St modelled on the original Crystal Palace. He died on 10 August 1867 and was buried on 14 August 1867 at All Souls’, Kensal Green. A newspaper announcement stated that he left a widow and 13 children.

Mary Anne moved to Sussex. In 1871 she lived at 1 St Margaret’s Terrace, St Mary Magdalen, Hastings, where she ran a lodging house. Two of her daughters, Clara and Florence, lived with her and they had 2 servants. In 1881 she was living with her daughter, Marion, and her husband, John Roy, a teacher of music, at 36 Silchester Rd, Hastings. In 1891 she lived at 45 Chantry Rd, Lambeth, with daughter Florence, now a professor of music. She died on 5 January 1898 at Argyle Villa, Ballard’s Lane, Finchley, Middlesex, leaving £169 19s to Florence.

The only information we have on the maternal grandparents is that the grandfather was Francis William Laws, a commission agent.

Parents

Charles Francis Futvoye was born on 5 November 1859 and baptised on 1 September 1867 at Bayswater. His first wife was Louisa Ball of the parish of Kingston. The banns were read in August 1886 in the parish of St Mary, Putney. In 1891 they lived at 77 Bayston Rd and Charles was a dress costumier. Louisa died in 1891 and on 1 April 1893 Charles married Amy Florence Laws at St Mark’s church, Dalston, Hackney, London. Charles was 34 and a buyer. By 1894 the family had moved to Manchester and were living at 27 Queen’s Rd. While at that address they had 3 sons, the oldest being Charles Cyril. The second son was George Frederick, baptised at Christ Church on 9 February 1896, the third was Stanley Francis, baptised at Christ Church on 11 November 1899. By 1911 the family had moved to 63 Clyde Rd, West Didsbury, and Charles Snr was a costume buyer and George a shipping office clerk. George later became a private in the Manchester Regiment, service number M2/155056. Charles Snr died on 17 May 1919 and is buried in Southern Cemetery. He left £2855 16s 4d to Amy. Amy died on 21 May 1938, leaving £2166 9s 8d. Her address was 23 Park Drive, Whalley Range. Probate was awarded to Stanley, now a costume and coat merchant.

Charles Cyril

Charles Cyril was baptised at Christ Church on 1 April 1894. By 1911 he was a motor salesman. He signed attestation papers at Grove Park on 29 February 1916. He had previously been a member of the Manchester University Officer Training Corps for 2 weeks. He joined the Army Service Corps (MT), service number M2/156066, and went to train at Curragh Camp where he died of pneumonia on 17 March 1916 in the military hospital. He was 22 years old. He is buried in Southern Cemetery, grave reference G. 220. C/E.

Curragh Camp

This army training camp was in Co Kildare. Historically it has been a military assembly area owing to its wide expanse of plain. It is now used as the Defence Forces Training Centre of the Irish Defence Forces. During the Elizabethan wars in 1599 Henry Harvey stated “A better place for the deploying of an army I never beheld.” In the 19th century it was used to train soldiers for the Napoleonic Wars. The British finally built some permanent military structures in 1855, preparing for the Crimean War. Queen Victoria visited in 1861 as her son Prince Edward, Prince of Wales, was serving there. It was handed over to the Irish Free State Army in 1922. It was later used as a detention centre for prisoners in the Irish Civil War.

Army Service Corps

The function of the ASC was the transportation of supplies over land, along coasts and across lakes. The supplies included food, water, fuel and general domestic stores such as clothing, furniture and stationery. Ammunition was also transported. The suffix MT signifies Mechanical Transport, as opposed, for example, to HT, Horse Transport.

The Futvoye name

According to an episode of the television programme, Who Do You Think You Are?, the name Futvoye originates from the Belgian town of Spa. It would appear that Charles Cyril Futvoye shares a great-grandfather with the actor, Charles Dance. The gentleman in question was Charles Francis Futvoye (1777–1847), an artist.