Helen Norman, 19 July 2008
Dear Jane
I have been tracing my tree and your site has been very helpful and informative. My maternal great grandfather was John Thomas Coles (b 1862) and he and his wife Clara Tansley/Binley (b 1862) ran the Three Horseshoes Pub during the early 1900s, having moved his family back to Cottingham from Leicester. They had 6 sons and 1 daughter. Their son (my grandfather) Ezra (b 1892 ) eventually left Cottingham, married Alma Meads from Burton Latimer and moved to Raunds where most of his family still reside. Ezra’s son Raymond was born at the pub, now a private residence, and has early memories of the pub and schooldays in Cottingham. Ezra was brother to Vere Coles and I can remember as a child visiting (great) Uncle Vere and Aunt Doss both at the shop and later at the bungalow Vere built next door. Family say that as there were too many pubs in the village in the early 1900’s one had to close and so it was my great grandfather’s Three Horseshoes Pub that was forced to close.
John Thomas Coles’ parents were Thomas Coles (b 1842) and Caroline Crane (b 1843) born Cottingham but who later moved to Leicester, His grandparents were Thomas Coles (b 1804) and Susannah Claypole (b 1805). My 4 x great grandfather was Francis Coles, (b 1764) the village blacksmith. Clara Tansley’s parents were I believe Matilda Tansley (1837) and Lewis Binley (1839). As you know Tansley, Claypole and Crane are very local to Cottingham, more frustratingly they all seemed to call their children by the same names which can be very confusing when trying to follow their lines through!
I have been unsuccessful in the tracing of John Thomas’ siblings (huge gap in that generation of the tree) but I see from your emails a family connection (Chris Coles Aug 2007). Thomas and Susannah Coles had over 50 grandchildren, many of whom stayed in Cottingham. With regard to email from Mrs L Wright 29.9.05, Alice Tansley who died in 1875 was sister to my great great grandfather Thomas Coles (1842).
There are still a few gaps in the family tree but hopefully given time I will gradually fill them.
Helen Norman