Breaking the Silence
Deaf Awareness Week is the perfect time to introduce you to Walter WHENDAY, a deaf and dumb bootmaker born in 1880. Walter kept diaries of his life for 69 years, from 1905 until his death at 94 in 1974. Throughout this series of blogs, I will be exploring Walter’s diaries and allowing his voice to be heard.
A family diary is one of the most exciting finds for a family history enthusiast. Some people are lucky enough to inherit their parents’ or grandparents’ diaries, but my family has never kept diaries… or so I believed.
One day last autumn, whilst researching my Agricultural Labourer (“Ag Lab”) ancestors from Hadlow in Kent, I entered the somewhat uncommon surname “WHENDAY” into TNA’s Discovery catalogue. Imagine my surprise and sheer delight when among the results was the following entry:-
Search result from The National Archive’s Discovery catalogue. “Walter Whenday (1880-1974) - Boot and Shoemaker - diaries (62 vols) of a deaf and dumb bookmaker.”
I immediately checked my family tree and sure enough, there was Walter, nephew of my 3x Great Grandmother Harriet WHENDAY and therefore my 1st cousin 4x removed. Walter was the only son of Walter and Emma WHENDAY, a grocer, of Hadlow, Kent. He had two older and two younger sisters. He outlived them all.
Next, I turned to the Kent Archives online catalogue to determine exactly what they held. In addition to the 62 diaries covering the years 1905-1974, they also held letters sent by Walter to his family whilst he was a pupil at the Deaf and Dumb* Asylum in Margate, some photos (including a couple of Walter himself), his apprenticeship indenture and other items. After doing a little happy dance I quickly messaged my closest genealogy pals to share my good fortune.
I contacted Kent Archives who were equally excited to find a family member of Walter’s and advised that they were not aware of anyone else consulting the diaries since they had been deposited with them in the 1980s. They also informed me that they held the school records for the Deaf & Dumb Asylum in Margate that he attended.
I carefully planned a 2-day visit to the Archives to look at the various documents that they held relating to Walter and in order to begin to review the diaries. What a joy they were – Walter’s writing was neat and very easy to read – the letters between him and his family demonstrate what a loving and close family they were, and the early diaries that I have read so far are a captivating insight into life during the Edwardian era. They also clearly show that Walter did not allow his disability to either define or limit him – living a rich and fulfilled life surrounded by family and friends.
Black and white photo of Walter Whenday (1880-1974)
My heart soared when I read the letter Walter had sent to the Asylum in 1908 – some 12 years after he had left - the purpose of which was to update them on his life and work, to let them know that he was still in contact with several fellow pupils, and thank them for the fond memories of his time at the school, recalling that Dr Elliott and his staff were so kind to him and his fellow pupils. That is not what I envisaged when I first discovered that he had spent time in a Deaf and Dumb Asylum at the end of the Victorian era, and I’m sure, sadly not the experience of many of our ancestors who may have experienced similar Victorian institutions.
Whilst at the archives, I also began to study some of the records relating to the Deaf and Dumb Asylum in Margate (later to become the Royal School for Deaf Children). The records revealed that Walter had not been born deaf but became deaf as a result of Whooping cough before the age of 1.
It wasn’t difficult to fall down a rabbit hole and I immediately began looking at the records of a number of the young girls who were pupils at Margate – but more of that to follow as we are planning A Few Forgotten Women Friday researching these young girls later this year.
I found a marvellous second-hand book online, which has now arrived and it provides a fascinating insight into the history and running of the school/asylum.
Walter’s diaries cover 69 years from 1905 to 1974 - a period in history where so many significant and dramatic events occurred not only in Kent, or in England but around the world. They cover, in no particular order,:
Two World Wars Death of 3 Monarchs 3 Coronations
1 Abdication The sinking of the Titanic Spanish Flu Pandemic
Great Depression General Strike. Introduction of the NHS
Motor cars Several political scandals. First Man on the Moon
Electricity in homes Invention of Television. & much much more
It is also clear from the newspaper cuttings that were carefully tucked into the different volumes of his diaries, that Walter was intent on breaking the record for the longest continuous diary writing. Impressively, he continued to write until a few days before his death aged 94, and only dictated his thoughts in the very last week of his life.
I’m delighted and fascinated by Walter’s words; I wanted to document and share his diaries with others, so have started this blog to ensure that Walter’s voice is heard… I would be delighted if you joined me over the coming months as I write about the contents of his diaries and uncover more about Walter’s life.
*Disclaimer: Although not acceptable in today’s society the term “deaf and dumb” was the accepted description during the 19th and early 20th centuries, along with the term “deaf-mute” which Walter uses in his diaries. My use of the term in my blogs reflects that and does not imply any irreverence or insult towards today’s deaf society.