Hebert DRAKE 1886
Herbert Drake was the eldest child of Albert Ernest Drake and Elizabeth Ann Randell. He was born four years into their marriage, late in 1886. His birth was registered in Methwold, Norfolk, making him the only one of their three children not born in Ixworth. In the three census that are available during his life time he was recorded living with his mother at the family home. In 1901 he was a scholar giving no indication of his future vocation, however by 1911 he was recorded as a Colonial Clerk. Only three years later he was a Manager at a local dairy.
Several Herbert Drake's appear in the marriage records in the following years. The most credible being the marriage of Kate Elizabeth Burgess to Herbert Drake, 1 November 1913 in Woolverstone, Suffolk.
Assuming this to be correct, the War Service Record associated with Herbert Drake provides the following information. Kate Elizabeth Burgess was born in Woolverstone in 1880 and the couple married at Woolverstone Parish Church. Today Woolverstone is a small village that sits on the south bank of the River Orwell near Ipswich. The Parish Church has a number of smugglers' graves giving some insight to earlier employment in the area.
At the time that Herbert enlisted in the Royal Garrison Artillery, 12 December 1915, the couple registered their home address as 247 Bramford Road, Ipswich and Norman Clifford Drake, born 11 December 1914 in Ipswich, as their only child.
Herbert stated his occupation as Manager at the Joseph Heant Wholesale Dairy in Spring Street, Ipswich. In a perverse piece of military administration this was crossed out and replaced with the word 'clerk'. In a more generous mood they described his physical condition as 'fair' and noted his height as five feet ten inch and his weight 129 lbs. Apparently he had two V marks on his left arm which distinguished him and no doubt contributed to them assigning him the number 160091, the rank of Corporal and transferring him to 'Rugely Stapps' (Royal Garrison Artillery trained at Rugeley Camp, Cannock Chase, Rugeley, Staffordshire).
In 1925 Herbert, described as 'Secretary to a motoring engineering company' became the executor of his mothers will.
Herbert Drake died aged 88 years and his death was registered in the Ipswich District in December 1974. His wife Kate Elizabeth didn't fare quite as well and died in March 1961 aged 79 years.
Norman Clifford DRAKE 1914
Norman Clifford Drake appears to be the only child of Kate E Burgess & Herbert Drake. He was mentioned as such in the war service record of his father being noted as born 11 December 1914 in Ipswich.
The death of a Norman C Drake aged 25 years was recorded in June 1940. Given that Norman C Drake the deceased is in the same location and would be the correct age it's reasonable to assume they are one and the same.
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Norah Jessie DRAKE 1889
Norah Jessie Drake was born in the second quarter 1889 in Ixworth, Suffolk. She was the middle child of Albert Ernest Drake and Elizabeth Ann Randell. She was living with her widowed mother in 1901 in Cemetery Road, Ipswich. By 1911 the family had moved to 42 Warwick Road, Ipswich, Suffolk and Norah had found employment as a Sales Assistant - Furs. I was unable to find any further definitive record of her but several Norah Drakes are found in the marriage records, none however in Suffolk.
Bertha Emma DRAKE 1891
Bertha Emma Drake was born in Ixworth in the first quarter of 1891. She was the youngest of the three Drake children and was with her family in 1901 and 1911. In the latter census she was recorded as a Sales Assistant - Boots, which may imply she worked at Boots the Chemist or simply sold footwear.
The Marriage Register of Ipswich, 2 July 1915 records the wedding of Bertha E Drake and Dudley Jolly. The doting groom, Dudley Jolly, was born 1892 in the then rural community of Bramford, Suffolk, just three miles north west of Ipswich. He grew up on his parents farm, Bullen Hall, which was attached to another property called Bullen Farm. The two properties, collectively called Bullen Hall Farm, were run by the Jolly family and were recorded in Kelly's Directory on several occasions. The property still exists today as a working dairy farm but appears to have no connection with the Jolly family.
Dudley's parents were Robert Saddington Jolly and Emma Norfolk. They married in 1868. Robert Saddington Jolly a Farmer died 1908 and Emma died 1931. They are buried together in St Mary The Virgin, Bramford, Suffolk.
I suspect Dudley and Bertha were not blessed with children. Dudley's War Service correspondence continues into the 1920s and doesn't record any dependant children. However, around the time of their wedding two children called Jolly, mothers maiden name Drake, were in fact born in Suffolk but remain an outside chance as they appeared a significant distance from Ipswich.
On 11 December 1915, one day before brother-in-law Herbert Drake enlisted, Dudley Jolly joined the 6th Suffolk Regiment. He recorded his status as married with no children, living at 75 Springfield Lane, Ipswich. Dudley was recorded as 5 feet 8 inches, chest 34 inches with 4 inches expansion, 24 years 4 months and a Draper. In the following years his address changed twice. First to 42 Warwick Road, Ipswich and by 1919, to 7 Greetwell Street, Lincoln. All three houses still exist.
The expansive Army records detail his movements as he served in overseas, 'Enlisted '6th Suffolk's' - 11 December 1915, posted overseas 24 May 1916, transferred '3rd Bedfordshire's', 16 October 1917, and finally "2/G.S.W. - R Shldr", 23 August 1918. Decoded into English this was a gun shot wound to his right shoulder. He returned home 29 August 1918 having been declared unfit due to Rheumatism attributable to his army service. Ignoring the obvious comment he was assessed as twenty percent disabled and awarded a small pension for his efforts. His character was described as 'Very Good'.
Despite taking a bullet for his country, Dudley Jolly outlived his wife by 15 years and died in 1967 in Essex, aged 75. Meanwhile Bertha E Jolly, died a relatively young woman in 1952, aged 60 in Ipswich, Suffolk.
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