{"id":16,"date":"2025-11-22T11:00:04","date_gmt":"2025-11-22T11:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.spargosykes.co.uk\/?page_id=16"},"modified":"2026-04-02T10:49:31","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T10:49:31","slug":"obed-thomas-spargo","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.spargosykes.co.uk\/?page_id=16","title":{"rendered":"Obed Thomas Spargo 1901-1989"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Aged around 20<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Obed Thomas Spargo 1901-1989<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Known as Tommy by his family and friends, when young and by his childhood sweetheart and first wife, Cora<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tom in later life and to his second wife, Margaret<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dad to Alan and Lionel<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grandad to Gill, Beryl, Carol, Nigel, Jane and Peter.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Young Tommy 1901-1926<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ll start by calling him Tommy. His full name was Obed Thomas Spargo and he was named for his father, a stonemason.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read Obed’s story here<\/mark><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the Census held on the 31st<\/sup> 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. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Tommy was born in the detached house beyond the white one, in this photograph.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


His birth certificate is here<\/mark><\/a>.<\/mark> One family story is that when he was born the midwife attending said, “Don\u2019t 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\u2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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So, we have a boy growing up without his father, but clearly financially well provided for. In Tommy\u2019s memories of his early life, we hear of a warm extended family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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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.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Going to Trungle with cousin Dick to help Grandfather with his carpenter\u2019s frail (bag)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grandfather\u2019s funeral. I was sitting in the stairs with all the bustle going on and bursting into tears -hearing someone say \u201coh the dear child is feeling all alone\u201d and I don\u2019t know who it was that gathered me into her arms, but I can feel to<\/em>this day the lovely warmth of her body and the sense of complete and utter protection.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Listen here to Tommy talking in 1977 about his grandfather’s carpenters place in Trungle. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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There were other days \u2013 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.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I remember too being taken to school by the same cousin and put to sit at the teacher\u2019s table. In those days children were allowed to bring wee children to school. Gradually, I was also aware of my various relatives \u2013 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.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another aunt lived at Lamorna \u2013 that too was another wonderful experience, a journey into the wilds.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Listen to Tommy talking about the photography studio which was in Trungle<\/p>\n\n\n\n