Family Vignette--The Unfortunate Demise of Elvina Barber
Elvina Barber’s story Henry George Adams, who died in the sinking of the fishing vessel Labrador , left a widow, Ruth Maria Elizabeth Barber who was the niece of Elvina Barber. Elvina’s story came to light while scanning through The Lowestoft Journal online. What caught my attention was the headline: WOMAN DROWNED IN LOWESTOFT; HERRING DOCK Elvina Barber was born in 1839 in Pakefield, the fifth of nine children born to Thomas Barber 1806-1889 and Hannah “Ann” Spurgeon 1807-1882. She was baptized on June 9, 1839 at the church in Witnesham, Suffolk, England. In 1861, at the age of 22, Elvina worked as a house servant. By December 1861, she married a fisherman named Barnes Samuel Taylor in Lowestoft. In 1875, Elvina Taylor was accused of larceny but acquitted at the General Quarter Sessions held at Ipswich on October 21, 1875. The details surrounding the offense are not known. In 1884, Elvina had gotten in trouble with the law...