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Percy John GOATHAM
1877 - 1927 (~ 50 years)
Has 53 ancestors and 19 descendants in this family tree.
Set As Default Person 
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Name Percy John GOATHAM Relationship 
with Teresa Ann GOATHAM Associated names GOATHAM , DE GOTHAM , DE GOTTONE , GOTEHAM , GOTHAM , GOTHAM GRIGG , GOTHAM-BEW , GOTHAM-BOREHAM , GOTHAM-POTTER , GOTHAN , GOTTAM , GOTTOM , VAN GOETHEN Born Dec Q 1877 Bredgar, Kent, England 
- GRO ref: Goatham, Percy John q4 1877 Milton RD 2a 841; GRO online index shows mother's maiden name as Manser
Baptised 27 Jan 1878 St. John the Baptist Church, Bredgar, Kent, England - From PR entry (image on FMP, viewed 20 Jul 2019)
Abode Bredgar, father Joseph shown as a labourer.
Gender Male Residence 1881 Primrose Lane, Bredgar, Kent, England - With his parents and siblings
Education 1891 Scholar Residence 1891 Bexon Lane, Bredgar, Kent, England - With his parents and siblings
Residence 1901 Oak Wood Cottage, Bredgar, Kent, England - With his parents and siblings.
Occupation From 1901 to 1911 [1] Wood and fruit labourer / dealer - Described as "Wood and fruit labourer" (1901 census), "dealer (fruit and wood)" in 1911, "Fruit buyer and sallesman" in 1921.
He must have also kept some pigs as in 1910 he was fined for neglecting to given notice of swine fever.
If he had orchards then of course pigs could be kept by rooting around at the base of the trees.
Fruit sales were at one time reported in detail in local papers, and in 1913 we learn:
"Cherry Sales at Teynham and Eastling
Messrs. Honeyball and Finn held their annual sale of cherries at the "Plough" Inn, Lucerne Street, Teynham, on Friday. There was a large attendance, and the orchards that promise a fair crop fetched very good prices, but others that are not so favoured did not reach a very high figure. Several lots that were passed over were afterwards sold privately.
...
The cherries in Tower Orchard (in front of Dalby Cottages, 12 acres, the property of the exors. of Mr. W. W. Gascoyne, were sold to Mr. P. J. Goatham for £128. ..."(from The Faversham Mercury and North-East Kent Journal, Sat 21 June 1913, p. 8, col. 4, image on FMP, viewed 6 Feb 2021)
Residence 1907 Frinsted, Kent, England - At the time his son Joseph was baptised
Residence 1911 London Road, Sittingbourne, Kent, England Residence 1915 London Road, Borden, Kent, England - Given as his wife's address when she was the informant of the birth of their daughter Eliza.
Occupation From 1915 to 1919 Fruiterer - Occupation given when his daughters' births were registered.
Residence From 1919 to 1925 1, Duvards Place, Pond Farm Lane, Borden, Kent, England - At 1 Duvards Place by the time the birth of his daughter Lilian was registered in 1919, there at the time of the 1921 census and when his wife sought a separation late in 1925.
Duvards Place is a terrace of 8 houses on a track just off Pond Farm Lane.
At the time of the 1921 census Percy was there with his wife and four children.
Employee 1921 General Labourer, Arthur Fairbrass - At the time of the census Arthur Fairbrass was working for Percy as a general labourer.
Petty sessions 1924 Poaching? Residence 1927 The Hut, Pett Field, Bredgar, Kent, England His home at the time of his death Died 24 Mar 1927 The Hut, Pett Field, Bredgar, Kent, England Cause: Prussic acid poisoning while of unsound mind [Suicide] - GRO ref: GOATHAM, Percy J q1 1927 aged 49 Milton RD 2a 1727; GRO online index shows middle name as John
Actual date and place from probate calendar entry.
Inquest 25 Mar 1927 Sun Inn, Bredgar, Kent, England - "A BREDGAR TRAGEDY.
wife's startling discovery.
Called to a hut in Pett Field, Bredgar, on
Thursday afternoon in last week, by her son,
Mrs. Goatham, the wife of Percy James
Goatham, a general dealer, discovered her hus-
band, sitting in a chair, quite dead. The de-
ceased man, who was 49, was well-known in
the district. Husband and wife lived apart;
some time ago Mrs. Goatham obtained a
separation, and a maintenance order was
granted her at the Sittingbourne Court. They
had been married 21 years, and there are two
children in family.
The story of how Percy Goatham came to
an untimely end in a hut in which he lived
alone was revealed at an inquest held at the
Sun Inn, Bredgar, on Friday last, by Mr. E.
C. Harris, County Coroner.
Mrs. Ellen May Goatham, the widow, who
lives at Mill House, Dean's Hill, Bredgar, gave
evidence of identification, and said that she
and her husband had not been living together
for some time. She last saw deceased alive on
the previous Sunday afternoon, but not to
speak to.
On Thursday (witness continued) a letter
for the deceased arrived, and I sent Rex (her
younger boy) to the hut in Pett Field to ask
him to come and take it from me. The boy
went to the hut, and then called to me, "Mum,
come quick."
I went down the bank, where I was stand-
ing, and saw the deceased in a sitting posi-
tion in an armchair, and he first appeared to
be asleep. Then I saw he was dead, and I
got a coat off his bed, and put it over him.
There was a tin containing white powder on
the table, and a mug with a little water in it
on the ground by the side of him.
Witness said she then sent Rex for Mr.
Hadlow.
The Coroner: Have you ever heard your hus-
band threaten to take his life? - Yes.
Recently? - Yes.
He was a drinker at one time, wasn't he? -
Not much recently.
Was he well off financially? - Not very well.
Was there any money to come to you? - Yes,
a good lot to come to me.
Amos Hadlow, farmer, who lives at Bell
Cottages, Stockbury, but who had some land at
Bredgar, said that about half-past five, on
Thursday afternoon he received a message from
Mrs. Goatham, and he proceeded to the hut in
Pett Field, where he found the deceased as
described by his wife. Deceased was quite
cold.
In answer to the Coroner, who asked witness
if he had seen deceased recently, the reply
was: I saw him on Tuesday afternoon on his
bike up the street, but not to speak to.
Witness said that Goatham often used to
come into his (Mr. Hadlow's) place. He was
of an excitable nature, but lately he seemed
rather "down."
Witness added: I had not noticed any smoke
coming from the hut all day on Wednesday,
nor on Thursday.
In answer to the Coroner, witness said he
had never heard Goatham threaten to take his
life.
Dr. J. S. Clark, of Sittingbourne, said he ex-
amined the body at ten minutes to twelve on
Thursday night, and he should think that
deceased had been dead from 12 to 18 hours.
Rigor mortis had set in. There
was a discolouration over the body, and the
lips were very red, and he came to the con-
clusion that death was due to prussic acid
poisoning.
Dr. Clark said he saw the powder in the
tin, and smelt the liquid in the mug (both
produced), and they smelt of bitter almonds
which confirmed his opinion as to prussic acid
poisoning.
"It is a very potent poison," added the
doctor. "A minute or two would do it. It
was consistent to find him seated comfortably
in a chair."
This completed the evidence, and the Coroner
in reviewing the facts of the case, said that
for the last two years the deceased's life had
not been a very happy one: probably it was
his own fault to a certain extent. He was of
an excitable nature, and probably was de-
pressed at times.
The Coroner said he found that the de-
ceased died from prussic acid poisoning, self-
administered, while of unsound mind.
Sergeant Hollands and Police-constable Wes-
kitt, K.C.C., were the Coroner's officers.
The body of the deceased man had been re-
moved to the stable of the Sun Inn, and it
was stated that Goatham had the poison in his
possession for the purpose of destroying wasps'
nests."
(Report in the East Kent Gazette, 2 April 1927)
Grant of Administration 22 Nov 1927 London, England Probate calendar entry - Goatham Percy John of The Hut Pettfield Bredgar Kent died 24 March 1927 Administration London 22 November to Beatrice Ellen Mary Goatham widow. Effects £150.
Siblings7 brothers and 1 sister Patriarch & Matriarch 
Notes - By the time of the 1911 census Percy and Beatrice had had just 1 child. Percy was an employer and they were living in a 7 room house in London Road, Sittingbourne.
- (Research):See attached sources.
Person ID I491 All | England: Kent Group (in Go(a)tham One-Name Study), England: Kent Group - subjects of Go(a)tham One-Name Study, All in the Goatham / Gotham One-Name Study , All subjects of the Goatham / Gotham One-Name Study, The descendants (and other halves) of George Goatham and Ann née Winch Last Modified 19 Apr 2024
Father Joseph GOATHAM, b. 1840, Bredgar, Kent, England , d. 27 Apr 1921, 36, Station Road, Rainham, Kent, England (Age 81 years) Mother Susan Eliza (“Eliza”) MANSER, b. Mar Q 1842, Rye, Sussex, England , d. 27 Apr 1915, 167, East Street, Sittingbourne, Kent, England (Age ~ 73 years) Married 27 Apr 1865 St. Mary’s Church, Chatham, Kent, England - GRO ref: q2 1865 Medway RD, Kent 2a 562
(Joseph indexed both as GOATHAN and GOATHAM)
The 1911 census confirms that Joseph and Susan had had 9 children, with 6 still living. Only 30 year old Augustus was by then living with them, at Little Bushell, Norton, Faversham.
Family ID F338 Family Group Page | Family Chart
Family Beatrice Ellen May TRICE, b. 16 Aug 1883, Kingsdown near Lynsted, Kent, England , d. Dec 1954, Queenborough, Sheppey, Kent, England (Age 71 years) Banns of marriage From 30 Sep 1906 to 14 Oct 1906 St. Dunstan’s Church, Frinsted, Kent, England - From banns register (image on FMP, viewed 20 Jan 2023)
Married 15 Oct 1906 St. Dunstan’s Church, Frinsted, Kent, England - GRO ref: Goatham, Percy John to Trice, Beatrice Ellen M q4 1906 Hollingbourne RD 2a 1685
Details from FreeREG website (transcribed data)
Register entry no. 93
Percy John Goatham, age 28, Bachelor, occupation: Fruit dealer, father: Joseph Goatham, father's occupation: Fruit dealer
to
Beatrice Ellen May Trice, age 23, Spinster, [no occupation given], father: William Trice, father's occupation: Carpenter
Witnesses: William Goatham, Susan Ellen Goatham
Who were the witnesses? - I guess William was Percy's brother, but I know of no Susan Ellen Goatham, I suspect this is a mistake on FreeREG and should be Susan Eliza, Percy's mother.
(no marriage register on FMP, indexed or to browse, as at 30 Mar 2021)
Separated From 24 Oct 1925 - After a few years of treating Beatrice "unkindly" she left him in 1925, leaving on 24 Oct and applying for a separation order on 7 Nov at Sittingbourne Petty Sessions:
"HOME LIFE WRECKED BY DRINK
Beatrice Ellen Mary Goatham, No. 1, Duvard's
Place, Borden, applied for a separation order
against her husband, Percy John Goatham,
of the same address.
Mr. A. K. Mowll appeared for the applicant,
and said the parties were married at Frinsted
on October 15th, 1906. On the 1st October,
defendant threatened to turn his wife out. On
the 23rd October he told her she wanted pole-
axing and killing, and throwing down a well<
and that he would swing for her. On several
occasions before he had ill-treated her, and
for the larger part of his life he had been
the worse for drink. On the 24th October he
turned her out of the house, and locked the
door on her. Since then he had asked her to
go back, but on these occasions he had been
the worse for drink, and she was afraid to go
back.
Applicant said she had three children, all
under the age of 16. She and her husband went
to live at Duvard's Place about ten years ago.
For the past few years her husband had treated
her unkindly. Three times he had pulled
her out of bed and tried to pull her false
teeth out. On the 1st October last he came
home intoxicated, and told her she was to
clear out on Saturday moring at 11 o'clock.
On the 23rd October he again came home in-
toxicated and complained that the child was
sick, and that she did not look after her
properly. He threated to kill her, and said
he would swing for her. At a quarter to six
the next morning he complained that the boy
was not up. When she got up he slapped her
face. He then had some tea and went away.
He came back in the afternoon, and kept
grumbling and swearing at her. He said she
must go, and pushed her towards the door. She
got her things and went, and he fastened the
door behind her. She left the children behind.
She afterwards went back two or three times,
and defendant told her to clera out. After
the summons he had offered to take her back,
but he was drunk when he did so, and she was
afraid to go back. Her husband had got some
property and some sheep. He was a dealer.
Defendant (to his wife): Haven't I been a
genuine husband to you? - You have been all
right at times, but not always.
Haven't I worked? - You have worked, but
you have not treated me properly.
Did you say that I wanted another woman
in the house? - You said I could not look after
the children properly, but you knew of some-
body who would, and that I could go.
Mrs. Katherine Matthews, Mill House, Dean's
Hill, Bredgar, said she had known defendant
for about three years. On Tuesday last he
came up in a taxi and was the worse for drink.
He asked to see Mrs. Goatham, and she told
him she was out. Hen then asked her if she
would go for a ride with him, which, of course,
she refused to do. She saw him again early
on the Wednesday morning, when he was not
drunk, but he was muddled. (Laughter.) She
saw him about five o'clock the same day, when
his condition was about the same. On Friday
she saw him again, and he was sober.
Defendant, who elected to give evidence on
oath, said they had been married 19 years, and
like the rest of married couples had had slight
tiffs and ups-and-downs. The present proceed-
ings, he said, were a planned plot. He had
been invalided out of the Army with a good
character. He had suffered from rheumatism
and neuritis, and had had 30 week' illness at
a stretch. All he could say was that one was
as bad as the other.
The Chairman: You admit you were bad
then.
Defendant said he wasted half
his time in public-houses, which was entirely
false. He had offered to take her back, and was
fully prepared to forget and forgive. He al-
leged that these proceedings were planned by
people who were trying to entice his wife away
from him.
Mr. Mowll: Would it be true to say you are
more often drunk than sober? - No, it would
not.
You have never been drunk? - I might have
been occasionally, but very seldom.
In answer to the Chairman, Superintendent
Hoare said the allegations as to defendant's
drinking habits were quite true.
Mr. G. F. Jacques, Police Court Missioner,
said although he knew defendant by sight, he
knew nothing about his domestic affairs until
about ten days ago. When he saw him there
appeared to be no sense or reason in him, and
he was under the influence of drink. He had
come to his (Mr. Jacques') house twice since,
and once in an insulting manner. Witness had
done his best, but the wife refused to go back.
The Chairman told defendant that until he
changed his habits the Bnech would have to
make an order. He would have to pay £2 a
week, 7/6 in respect of each child, and the
balance to the wife.
Defendant said he was willing to let his wife
and children have the house, and he would find
fresh lodings.
The Chairman: You have got to stop this
drinking, or you will very soon come to a bad
end. You come from a very good family, and
you must try to uphold it. We hope you and
your wife will come together again later on.
Mr. Jacques said he would follow the case
up, and do his best."
(from The East Kent Gazette, Saturday, November 14, 1925, p. 2, col. 3)
Sadly the Chairman's comments re Percy coming to a bad end would come true less than 18 months later.
Children4 children Last Modified 10 Apr 2024 Family ID F364 Family Group Page | Family Chart
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Event Map Click to hide 
Born - Dec Q 1877 - Bredgar, Kent, England 
Baptised - 27 Jan 1878 - St. John the Baptist Church, Bredgar, Kent, England 
Residence - 1891 - Bexon Lane, Bredgar, Kent, England 
Banns of marriage - From 30 Sep 1906 to 14 Oct 1906 - St. Dunstan’s Church, Frinsted, Kent, England Married - 15 Oct 1906 - St. Dunstan’s Church, Frinsted, Kent, England 
Residence - 1907 - Frinsted, Kent, England Child - Joseph William GOATHAM - 2 Mar 1907 - Frinsted, Kent, England 
Child - Rex GOATHAM - 16 Apr 1913 - Borden, Kent, England 
Residence - From 1919 to 1925 - 1, Duvards Place, Pond Farm Lane, Borden, Kent, England Child - Lilian Mary (“Lily”) GOATHAM - 20 May 1919 - 1, Duvards Place, Pond Farm Lane, Borden, Kent, England 
Inquest - 25 Mar 1927 - Sun Inn, Bredgar, Kent, England 
Grant of Administration - Probate calendar entry - 22 Nov 1927 - London, England = Link to Google Earth (if installed; see link below to install) Pin Legend 
Sources - [S103] Newspaper ‘The South Eastern Gazette’ onThe Kent Messenger Group Digital Archive, Kent., (http://www.kentonline.co.uk/kentonline/digitalarchive.aspx :), "Sittingbourne," 29 Nov 1910, online archives (http://www.ukpressonline.co.uk/ukpressonline/getDocument/KMSG_1910_11_19_002?fileType=PDF&#search=%22goatham%22 : accessed 2 Apr 2013), p. 2, col. 2. (Reliability: 4), 2 Apr 2013.
Sittingbourne
...
P. J. Goatham, dealer, of Sittingbourne, was fined 5s. and 11s. costs for neglecting to give notice of swine fever, contrary to the Contagious Diseases (Animals) Act.
There were no other P. J. Goathams who could have been the person referred to, and in addition the description of dealer fits with that in the 1911 census.