John Henry Tidy
- Family History
- Military History
- Extra Information
- Photographs
John Henry Tidy was born in 1889 the son of John Tidy a curtain reader and Florence Ada Tidy (née Bryan) of 4 Bovill Street, Nottingham. His father was born at Lenton, Nottingham in 1869, his mother also at Nottingham in 1870. They had ten children, nine, all born at Radford Nottingham, surviving infancy - John Henry b.1889, Ernest b.1891, Thomas b.1893, George b.1896, William b.1898, Charles b.1901, Florence Ada b.1904, Averlada b.1906 and Alice b.1910. John Henry married Charlotte Caroline Willis, who already had a son (John Tidy Willis) in 1908 at Nottingham. Their daughter Charlotte Caroline was born on 11th September 1910. In 1911, the family lived at 4, Chapel Street, Ronald Street, New Radford.
John Henry Tidy enlisted at Wakefield. Whist serving at Larkfield Camp, he committed suicide and is buried at Durrington Cemetery, Wiltshire, Cemetery Reference: 23.
On 1st June 1917 Tidy's parents were prosecuted for fraudulently claiming his estate. “WAR OFFICE DEFRAUDED. REMARKABLE STORY IN NOTTM. POLICE COURT. Remarkable features were associated with case, which came before Mr. A. E. Blake and Ald. E. L. Manning, at the Nottingham Guildhall, to-day, [1st June 1917] when John Tidy, 48, curtain reader, and his wife, Florence Ada Tidy, 45, of Bovill-street, were charged with obtaining £3 18s. 2d. from the War Office by false pretences. For the prosecution, Mr. A. Barlow, who represented the War Office, called evidence to show that defendants’ son enlisted in 1914, joining the King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry. While in camp he committed suicide, and his mother applied for his personal belongings, the money involved the charge being paid over to defendants. About the same time the widow wrote to the War Office, pointing out that she was left with two children and had no money except what she could earn herself, but although efforts were made to stop payment of the postal order these were too late. When seen by Detective-sergeant Rogers, the male defendant declared that he was innocent of any wrongful intent. His son, he added, asked permission to get married, some years ago, but he refused. 'If he is married, it is unknown to me,' added defendant, 'though I know they have been living together.' The woman said, 'My son made a will leaving everything to me. I had no idea we were doing anything wrong.' In cross-examination, Mr. T. F. B. Beck, who appeared on behalf of the defendants, elicited the information that no application was made for a separation allowance in respect of Tidy. Mrs. Charlotte Tidy said she married defendants son in 1908, at a registry office, and subsequently obtained a separation order, but after that they lived together again. When she went to see her husband's mother the latter suggested that he had never been any good to her, and she should find somebody better and get married again. Witness agreed, in answer to Mr. Beck, that her husband broke into his father’s house in 1913, and was convicted of theft. He enlisted in a wrong name the first time he joined the army, and then, after serving six months’ imprisonment, re-enlisted. On the advice of Mr. Beck both defendants eventually pleaded guilty, but in their defence it was suggested that the War Office had been somewhat lax in paying over the money on the strength of the vague answers which appeared on the paper they had filled in with particulars of their claim. The defendants, in consideration of their previous good characters, were dealt with as first offenders, the magistrates, while expressing the view that the War Office had to a certain extent connived in the offence, pointing out that they (the defendants) had no right to receive the money. They would have to refund the amount and also pay the costs of the prosecution." Newspaper report was published in the Nottingham Evening Post on 1st June 1917 and is courtesy of Jim Grundy and his facebook pages.
