William Titheradge Trade Unionist and Labour Councillor

Below is a newspaper report of the death of one of the Titheradge family members in Portsmouth in 1955. William is one of our ancestors who was an active Trade Unionist and member of the Labour Party.

Portsmouth Evening News on 4 April 1955

Death of Councillor W J Titheradge

"Councillor William Joseph Blaik Titheradge of 51 Cedar Grove, Copnor died at his home on Saturday afternoon after two weeks illness.  He was 59.

He had served on the City Council for nearly eight years as a Labour member.

A native of Portsmouth he had been engaged in the Dockyard as an electrical wireman since 1909 apart from service in World War 1 with the Portsmouth Battalion (15th Hants) in France and Germany.

He was a member of the Transport and General Workers Union and for more than 12 years was Secretary of Portsmouth branch No 296. He also served as a member of the Executive of the Portsmouth Labour Party.

Councillor Titheradge was first elected to Portsmouth City Council as a representative of St Mary Ward in November 1945. He was defeated in May 1949, regained the seat at a by-election in February 1950 but was unsuccessful at the 1951 election. In 1952 he regained St Mary Ward and in 1953 on the redistribution of the wards was allocated to Paulsgrove. He was due to seek re-election next month.

As a member for the Paulsgrove Ward he was interested in the many problems of the new estate and contributed largely to the inauguration of the Hillsley Road bus service.

He leaves a widow one son and one daughter.

The funeral service will be held at Copnor Methodist Church on Tuesday followed by interment at Milton Cemetery."

William Joseph Blaik Titheradge

William Joseph Blaik Titheradge was the eldest of four sons born to Joseph Blaik Titheradge and Ada Caroline Matthews in Portsmouth. His middle name “Blaik” is named after his grandmother Mary Ann Blaik. He was born 8 May 1895 but was christened at the same time as two younger brothers at Portsea, St Mary on 6th December 1900. The family’s address was given as 42 Railway View, Fratton where the family were still living on the 1901 census.

In 1904 two of his siblings died aged 4 and 2. In the same year William's father Joseph died leaving Ada with two children to support, William aged 9 and Walter aged 5. Joseph had been a leading stoker in the Royal Navy and as result the boys were sent to a Naval Orphanage in Commercial Road, Portsmouth after their father's death . When that closed they went to Swanage orphanage. The grave of William’s parents and brothers is in Kingston Cemetery a photograph can be seen at this link below

Joseph and Ada's grave

The 1911 census sees 15 years old living William living with his mother and maternal grandmother at Liverpool Street, Fratton, his occupation given as messenger.

With the outbreak of World War 1 William joined up and served in the Hampshire regiment. He joint the 15th Battalion which was raised in Portsmouth in 1915 and this was one of the many Pals Battalion, known as "Pompey Pals Battalion". He was a private, regimental number 55417 and was awarded the Victory Medal and British Medal.

After the war in 1920 William married Emma Dorothy Higgins in Portsmouth. They had two children a boy and a girl.  On the 1939 Register William and Emma are living at 51 Cedar Grove with their young daughter while their son is away from the hazards of Portsmouth and living and going to school in the New Forest

William enjoyed an active life in both the Labour Party and Trade Union movement. He died on 2 April 1955. Probate records show he left his widow Emma £1872 3s 6d. Emma survived him by 19 years dying in 1974 in Portsmouth.

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