Obed Thomas Spargo 1901-1989
Known as Tommy by his family and friends, when young and by his childhood sweetheart and first wife, Cora
Tom in later life and to his second wife, Margaret
Dad to Alan and Lionel
Grandad to Gill, Beryl, Carol, Nigel, Jane and Peter.
Young Tommy 1901-1926
We’ll start by calling him Tommy. His full name was Obed Thomas Spargo and he was named for his father, a stonemason.
Obed Thomas Spargo and Nellie Tippet married on the 8th October 1900 in Paul Church. Obed sailed to South Africa on the 3rd December, two months after the wedding.
Read Obed’s story here
In the Census held on the 31st March 1901, a pregnant Nellie was living with her father (her mother died in 1896). Tommy was born on the 21st August 1901. Tommy believed that he was born in what became the family home, a substantial house next door to the Kings Head public house. His father, Obed was named as the lessee in the national Estate Survey of 1912.
Tommy was born in the detached house beyond the white one, in this photograph.
His birth certificate is here. One family story is that when he was born the midwife attending said, “Don’t e cry my handsome, there’s a little maid just up the road from here that’ll do just right for ee”. This was Cora Waters who was born 2 days before him, and so she was….
The midwife in question was likely to be Jane Annear a widow who appears in the 1901 census living in Paul Churchtown ( she is also in the 1911 Census.)
So, we have a boy growing up without his father, but clearly financially well provided for. In Tommy’s memories of his early life, we hear of a warm extended family.
My first awareness of those around me. Mother of course, and Grandfather- sitting on his lap while entertained me with a button strung with cotton in his waistcoat buttonhole.
Going to Trungle with cousin Dick to help Grandfather with his carpenter’s frail (bag)
Grandfather’s funeral. I was sitting in the stairs with all the bustle going on and bursting into tears -hearing someone say “oh the dear child is feeling all alone” and I don’t know who it was that gathered me into her arms, but I can feel tothis day the lovely warmth of her body and the sense of complete and utter protection.
Listen here to Tommy talking in 1977 about his grandfather’s carpenters place in Trungle.
His maternal grandfather William Tippet died in November 1905 when Tommy was 4. His wife Elizabeth had died in 1896.
There were other days – Sundays no doubt when my cousin Beatrice took me out walking with her friends across the fields to Trevithal and the surge (of) emotion when eventually I saw my mother coming across the fields to meet us.
I remember too being taken to school by the same cousin and put to sit at the teacher’s table. In those days children were allowed to bring wee children to school. Gradually, I was also aware of my various relatives – Grandma (paternal) several aunts. One lived in Mousehole where she and Uncle ran a bakery and grocery and my wandering around there in a sort of Aladdin’s cave, and of going out to the bathing cove.
Another aunt lived at Lamorna – that too was another wonderful experience, a journey into the wilds.
Listen to Tommy talking about the photography studio which was in Trungle
Soon after Grandfather died my father returned from S Africa quite suddenly one winter evening unexpected! And mother’s cry of joy as she rushed to him, of my saying hello “Da” for that is what we called Grandfather – and I got the reply “I am your father”! I was too young to be flattened and duly corrected the address.
During the summer (of 1906) my parents went for a holiday to Newquay! This was a treat for me too. Rarely did anyone in the village bar perhaps the vicar or members of his family have holidays away from the village. High spots of that trip stand out still in my memory such as playing on the sands with my parents, and when walking over the golf course hearing the cry “fore” being shouted from time to time and which puzzled me greatly! Of the journey there and back I can only remember the motor train as it was called which from the junction at Bodmin I presume – to Newquay. The cane covered seat backs were reversible to accommodate the direction of train – a sort of push pull. I can’t even remember the homecoming.
The following winter 1906-7 there was a major snow event in Britain including Cornwall.
During that snow fall I saw father crouching below the front garden wall and heaving quite a large lump of snow right in the path of our neighbour who apt to be passing causing quite some fun.
My father returned to S.A. early 1907 – my mother stayed at home. I think the reason was that she was fearful of the journey -being pregnant at the time. That she never did go eventually is still a bit of a mystery to me, apart from the fact that she was scared of the sea, or afraid of the journey with two young children.
You can read Tommy’s memoirs of his youth in full here
Tommy and the Western Union
.Tommy went to Penzance County School for boys in 1914. As the family was comfortably off it is likely that he was a fee paying pupil. The local newspaper used to print the names of those children who won scholarships and his name doesn’t appear. He left school in 1916 aged 15 following the death of his father in Queenstown South Africa in the April of that year. The family’s financial position was changed dramatically by Obed’s death. So no money to pay the fees and Tommy had to leave school to go to work to help support the family. His mother Nellie went on to run the village post office from one of the rooms in the house.
Cornwall was at the forefront of the telecommunications revolution of the 19th Century. Marconi’s ground-breaking work on the Lizard and the start of the transatlantic cable service centring in Porthcurno with Eastern Telegraph and Western Union based at Sennen Cove and with an office in Penzance.
So it was that on 2nd January 1917 that Tommy went to London to train as a Telegraph operator on an annual salary of £36, rising to £60 after 6 months. He returned to work in Penzance in December 1917. He completed his training in July 1918. The increases in salary were steady over the next few years. In 1921 £158 – according to National Archive Currency calculator was worth 479 days of skilled tradesman
These records are held by the Smithsonian Institute in America. They are available online. Sadly Western Union’s staff archive for the UK does not extend beyond 1921, so we do not know exactly when Tommy moved to London. We know he was there in 1924 because of the surviving letters between him and his mother.
The Courting Years Tommy and Cora
We do not know when Tommy and Cora got engaged or when their courtship began. They had known each other all their lives and went to the village school.
Cora, at the time of their engagement was living with her family at Boslandew which had been purchased by her father Joseph Waters on his retirement from farming at Middle Kemyell in between Mousehole and Lamorna. Cora worked as a music teacher up until her marriage.
Tommy had transferred to the London office by August 1924. He kept some of the correspondence from that time until his mother’s death in June 1925. Cora in her letters sounds quite lonely, even though she came from a large family and would have known many people in the locality.
It’s a good thing for me, the Choral. If I didn’t have that to do I should probably be down with mum and that isn’t at all lively. I wish I could get a girl chum. I’m fed up and getting old as the hills. Engaged girls aren’t wanted much with younger ones. They think I am very slow. Rita Polgrean told me the other day she wouldn’t like to think she’d be going around like me when she is my age. She’d either be married or going around with someone who was home. I just told her quietly that we’ve something else to remember first, and that was Lionel and Mum. She hasn’t thought of that, at all. People seem to think money simply grows on ferns, don’t they? Of course, I seem old to them, I forget that. 21st February 1925
Rita of course became Cora’s sister In law, when she married Lionel in 1930 aged 24, only a year younger that Cora was when she married Tommy!
Sending his laundry home Nellie to Tommy 25.1.1925
I don’t think your clothes are fit to go away today. I think you had better send them to the laundry for a few weeks until the folks are better. See how you get on with it. I am sorry to tell you to do it but there are 2 or 3families now with the lame helping the lazy
The money was a nice little extra wasn’t it you will be set up now again, don’t go pulling out new shirts every week. Keep 2 or 3nice ones by you then you will always have a decent one (put them in a glass case) you are thinking now I suppose. Did you take 3 sets of underclothes or only 2 with you. Mind you have a nice suit now you are about and take care of that too.
Payrise or perhaps a bonus? This seemed to be quite common with Western Union
Nellie to Tommy 6.3.1925
You are still working on the income tax people. When you send money put down £10 sent on whatever it is they might doubt it you very rarely say amount so then I could show it them if necessary. You made me laugh when you said you would see Mr Hawke, does he allow interview personally but still he can’t eat you.
Nellie to Tommy 1.5.1924
Whitsun will soon be here now a week earlier than I thought it was. Did you make up your mind to come Whitsun or wait for Aug that would be a longer break cut up the year a bit better.
I see you have the tax to pay shame isn’t it? All that keep one poor for ever.
Sadly Tommy never saw his mother again she died on the 13th June 1925.
Read Nellie’s story here
Tommy and Cora marry in July 1926
