Thomas Rudduck (1906-1993)

Tom Rudduck was an only child. He was born on a canal boat somewhere on the canal and worked on the canal all his single life. He married Gladys Bentham at Christchurch Douglas, Parbold on 4th August 1934, settled in the village of Parbold and worked there at Ainscough's Mill.

Thomas Ruddock (1878-1952)

In later life, after the death of his wife, my great grandfather lived with the family in Station Road, Parbold. My Mum and her brother, Tom called him Grampy Rudduck.
Grampy was born in Upholland and had a brother called Peter and a sister called Margaret.

On the 1881 census:

Dwelling: Canal Bank
Census Place: Lydiate, Lancashire, England
Source: FHL Film 1341896 PRO Ref RG11 Piece 3744 Folio 133 Page 8
Marr Age Sex Birthplace
Elizabeth CHEETHAM M 75 F Lathom, Lancashire, England
Rel: Wife (Head)
Occ: Boatmans Wife
Elizabeth BAYBUTT 12 F Burscough, Lancashire, England
Rel: Grandaughter
Occ: Scholar
Catherine BAYBUTT 7 F Upholland, Lancashire, England
Rel: Grandaughter
Occ: Scholar
Peter RUDDOCK 6 M Upholland, Lancashire, England
Rel: Grandson
Occ: Scholar
Thos. RUDDOCK 3 M Upholland, Lancashire, England
Rel: Grandson
Margaret RUDDOCK 4 m F Lydiate, Lancashire, England
Rel: Grandaughter

He married Ellen Hesketh on 16th April 1906 at St. Mary's Church, Kirkdale Parish, Walton on the Hill, Lancashire.
He was 27 years old and she was 22.
His father being Thomas Ruddock, Boatman. And her father William Hesketh, Boatman.
Witnesses: Margaret Ruddock & Edward Hesketh

His brother Peter Ruddock married Elizabeth Cheetham on 13th December 1897 in Liverpool.
He was 23 years old and she was 24.
Her father was Robert Cheetham
Witnesses: Ann Cheetham & Margaret Ruddock

Their sister Margaret Ruddock married James Webster in 1908

I know that Peter was living in a cottage on the Canal Bank at Wigan Pier and that Margaret was living in the Lydiate area, but know nothing about whether they had any children. It would be very interesting to find out more about them.

Thomas Ruddock (b.1846)

My gg grandfather was also called Thomas and was a boatman.

On the 1881 census we find him on his canal boat "Alice" with the Halsall Brothers, James & Thomas & James Blundell:

Dwelling: Flat Alice
James HALSALL U 19 M Lydiate, Lancs
Rel. (HEAD)
Occ. Master of Flat
Thomas HALSALL U 16 M Lydiate, Lancs
Thomas RUDDOCK W 35 M Lpool, Lancs
Occ. Master of Flat
James BLUNDELL U 16 M Lpool, Lancs
Occ: Mate of Flat

He is a widower, as his wife Margaret Cheetham appears to have died that same year, perhaps giving birth to their daughter, Margaret Ruddock.

I have a feeling that my great great grandfather would have been quite a character! Robert Cheetham Houghton, in his book, "Burscough Boatmen - Their Marriages & their Boats" gives not one but two later marriages for Thomas Ruddock, widower:

1881 Thomas Ruddock (wid) & Sarah Spencer (wid)
1909 Thomas Ruddock (wid) & Cicely Johnson (wid)

This could be a mistake, or could it be that he married two more times? In 1881 he was 35, a widower with three small children, so it seems likely. In 1909 he would have been 63 years old. It is possible. And this raises another question: Could this be Cecily Johnson born in 1843, widow of James Cheetham who died on 7th July 1901? If so, it would be another of the many links between the Ruddock & Cheetham families.

The origins of this Thomas Ruddock are somewhat obscure. On the above census his place of birth is given as Liverpool, yet I have not been able to find any Thomas Ruddock on the 1851 census for Liverpool and the only birth in the Liverpool area I have found so far is:

Thomas Rodick
Born 25th August 1849
Christened 10th October 1849
Father: James Dawson Rodick
Mother: Ellen
Recorded in Childwall, Lancs, nr. Liverpool

A comment made one day by my grandfather, that his grandfather was nicknamed "Paddy" may lead us to an Irish origin for the Ruddocks.

The other alternative would be that the family came from the Yorkshire end of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal. I have been able to discover that the surname Ruddock is common in both of these places.

Yorkshire Ruddocks

I found a Thomas Ruddock
Christened on 14th May 1845 at St. Leonard, New Malton, Yorkshire.
Father: William Ruddock
Mother: Rachel.
On further investigation I found that William & Rachel had several other children:

Ann Ruddock (Chr. 28th December 1842)
Mary Ruddock (Chr. 24th March 1847)
Christiana Ruddock (Chr. 26th December 1831)
George Ruddock (Chr. 16th March 1834)

I was able to trace Ruddocks back in Yorkshire to a William Ruduck who married Francis Morrice in Wykeham Yorkshire on 9th February 1647

Nevertheless, there is no certianty that the Thomas Ruddock b. 1845 is the same Thomas Ruddock I am looking for.

Irish Ruddocks

Because of the nick-name story and the census birth place of Liverpool, Ireland seems the best bet for the origin of my Thomas Ruddock.

Again there seemed to be a lot of Ruddocks in Ireland, but this is unusual as the name is English not Irish and the Ruddocks seem to have been protestants rather than Catholic, so Northern Ireland seemed to be the possible origin.

On further investigation I made contact with Mrs. Evelyn Ruddock of Belfast who was able to explain the history of the Ruddock family in Ireland to me in great detail.

It appears that all the Ruddocks in Ireland are descended from a Captain Andrew Ruddock who came over with Cromwell and landed at Youghal, Co. Cork in November 1649.

Mrs. Ruddock explained that she has managed to trace him back to a Robert Ruddock of East Harling, Suffolk, England who died in 1566. Andrew Ruddock was granted Wallstown Castle, near Mallow Co. Cork by Cromwell, he married a Miss Noblett of a well-to-do Cork family and Noblett was carried down as a Christian name in the family. Wallstown Castle has an old graveyard with a tablet on an old wall which reads: "The Family of Ruddock are buried in the valut beneath this tomb".

The family seem to have connections with the sea. Some of the descendants were Ship Builders in Kinsale, Co. Cork and another branch went to New Brunswisk and were Ship Builders there too. The great grandson of the Andrew Ruddock who was born in Ramsholt in 1640, called Noblett Ruddock, went to Bristol and had several Slave Ships there before becoming brankrupt.

It seems that there are only two Ruddock groups in Ireland, the Cork one and another in Armagh. The conclusion Mrs. Ruddock is beginning to come to is that the Armagh group may have gone North from Co. Cork as soldiers with William of Orange.

She has not been able to find any Thomas Ruddock born amongst the Cork Ruddocks in the date I am looking for so it seems possible my Thomas may come from the Armagh group.

Characteristics of the Ruddocks, according to Mrs. Ruddock: "They are sandy haired with blue eyes, very good at games and are diabetic!"