Winifred "Freda" NEATBY ~ 1885-1958

			Edwin Awdas NEATBY 1858-1933 #0345	Winifred JONES 1851-1908 #0779
Issue 3 - 26 January 2004			Winifred NEATBY 1885-1958 #0781

Winifred Neatby was born on the 24th June 1885 in Hampstead, North West London. She was the daughter of Edwin Awdas and Winifred Neatby.

Her father was a doctor and surgeon. At the time of the 1901 Census the family are still in Hampstead, Winifred is listed as a 15 year old.

Winifred's mother died in 1908 and her father married again to Mary Ruth Jones in 1910.

The family moved to East Grinstead in East Sussex, although her father continued to have an office in London.

Freda went to Canada in 1914 to visit relatives, she spent time with Ada and Andrew Neatby in Saskatoon, but most of the time over about a year, with her second cousin Edith and her husband Oscar Hedlin. Edith's sister Kate Nicholl relates the story that during this period Freda met Oscar's very good looking brother Frans, and they became engaged. Freda decided to go back to England, and embarked on the Lusitania. She told Kate of the calamitous night - in rushing for the boat deck, she came across an elderly lady struggling her way up the stair, and Freda stopped to give her a hand. The lady told Freda to move on as while the lady's life was lived, Freda had many years to come. Freda was young and vigorous, and made it into a lifeboat and was rescued. Soon after, she decided against marriage to Frans, and wrote to break off the engagement.

NOTE: The SS Lusitania departed New York USA for Liverpool, England on 1st May 1915 and was sank by German torpedo on 7th May 1915 off the coast of Ireland , she sank in 18 minutes. Freda was one of the 764 to be saved, unfortunately 1,201 persons perished.

Her father died in 1933 in East Grinstead.

Her un-married sister Marion died aged 62 on the 15th August 1945 at Mount Pleasant Clevedon in Somerset.

Freda was an executrice of the estate with her cousin Sarah Margaret Cox. In Marion's will she gave all her "personal chattels" to Freda. The rest of the estate was put in trust to give an income to her Freda until she died.

Freda died on the 7th May 1958 at the Homeopathic Hospital in Tunbridge Wells aged 72. Probate for her estate was granted at London on the 16th July 1958. One of her executors was her cousin Sarah Margaret Cox. Her Effects were valued at £6955 3s and the will was dated the 27th March 1957, she left various legacies and an income to Bertha Mills (who had been the family cook) and her sister Louie Mills of £26 each a year. All the rest of her estate was left to a Margaret Hooper.

She requested in the will that she wanted to be buried at the Neatby family grave no 41615 in Kensal Green Cemetery, although her father and step-mother are buried very near to the family home in East Grinstead. She also requested that "my funeral be as simple as possible".