Ma (my mother) was Doris Barratt née Wilson. Her father Frederick Wilson and her brother Tom Wilson were both involved at some stage in the Wilson banana ripening business in Newark. Most of our information about the business originally came from two articles by Tim Warner in Newark Advertiser in 1996. Since establishing contact with the other line of Wilsons, I have been able to find out more about the growth of the business and the identify of our forebears. Here are some Census records. My apologies for the lack of straight columns — I'm saving disk space by not using table codes.
1871 Census of Newark
We find this family at 37 Norfolk Buildings (off Barnbygate):
Thomas Wilson 34 head fruiterer born 1837 Newark
Mary Wilson 29 wife 1842 Newark
Thomas Wilson 7 son scholar 1864 Newark
Emma Wilson 5 dau scholar 1866 Newark
Eliza Wilson 3 dau 1868 Newark
Harriet Wilson 1 dau 1870 Newark
1881 Census of Newark
At Norfolk Buildings (near or part of 142 Barnbygate?) we find Wilson who are identifiably our ancestors.
Thomas Wilson 44 head fruiterer born 1837 Newark
Mary Wilson 39 wife 1842 Newark
Thomas Wilson 17 son fruiterer’s son 1864 Newark
Emma Wilson 15 dau 1866 Newark
Eliza Wilson 13 dau 1868 Newark
Frederic Wilson 11 son 1870 Newark
John Wilson 4 son 1877 Newark
George Wilson 2 son 1879 Newark
Frederic(k) was my grandfather, and his son Thomas was involved in the business, plus a much younger son George.
1891 Census of Newark
We find Thomas Wilson, now a widower, running a fruit business at home with sons Frederick (my grandfather) and George (working at the age of 12):
At 37 Barnbygate
Thomas Wilson 53 head widower, fruiterer born 1837/8 Newark
Harriet Wilson 21 dau domestic servant 1870 Newark
Fredk Wilson 18 son asst at home (employed) 1873 Newark
George Wilson 12 son asst at home 1879 Newark
1901 Census of Newark
Thomas and his son George are still in business at 142 Barnbygate:
Thomas Wilson 64 head fruit merchant born 1837 Newark
Harriett Wilson 28 dau 1873 Newark
George Wilson 22 son asst fruit grocery trade 1879 Newark
Mary Wilson 19 dau 1881 Newark
In 1901, Frederick is living with his wife, Lily née Armstrong, and family at Barnby Road (the address is not given as Barnbygate). My mother Doris makes her first appearance in a Census.
Fredk Wilson 28 head fruiterer born 1873 Newark
Lily Wilson 27 wife 1874 Skellingthorpe, Lincs
Doris Wilson 1 dau 1899 Newark
Thomas Wilson 5 m son 1900 Newark