Lavinia Woodgate was born in Coleman Street, City of London, England, on the 18th May 1842, the daughter, and only child, of Thomas Henry and Anne Sarah Woodgate (née Fleet). His father was a law stationer and it would appear that he separated from Lavinia’s mother sometime after her birth and lived with a woman named Emma Levick as his common law wife, and with whom he had a number of other children. Lavinia was brought up by her father and Emma Levick, with their children. Nothing is known about her mother, except that in 1881 she was working as a charwoman and died in 1882. Shortly after her mother’s death, Lavinia’s father married Emma Levick.
On the 25th May 1868, Lavinia married John Francis Varcoe, who was a joiner, in Hackney, London. Their daughter, Emily Frances, was born in London in 1869, and then, in March 1871, the family emigrated to the United States of America, where they settled in Kansas City, Missouri, and had at seven more children, four of whom survived infancy and childhood. They were named Elizabeth, Georgina, Lavinia and Thomas.
The family made return trips to England in 1885 and 1895, before Lavinia, her husband, and two of their children, Georgina and Lavinia, returned to England permanently. They established their home at Yorke Cliffe, Mevagissey, Cornwall, where John Francis Varcoe was born and grew up.
By 1911, Lavinia and her husband were living alone, their children having moved out and married, and when John Francis Varcoe died in 1913, Lavinia went to live with her son, Thomas Henry ‘Harry’ Varcoe, who was a sales manager, at his home at 33, Willows Crescent, Cannon Hill, Birmingham, Warwickshire.
In April 1914, she left Liverpool on board the Lusitania to visit all her children and grandchildren in the United States of America. As The Public Ledger - Philadelphia in its edition of 11th May 1915 stated: -
She made a trip to America to visit her children in widely scattered sections of the country. She felt that she was nearing the end of her days and wanted to see all her offspring before the end came. She was urged not to return while the war was in progress, but her desire to see her grandson born while she was on this side prompted her to brave submarines.
Consequently, she had been in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, visiting a daughter and in Kansas City, Missouri, visiting another. Despite their contrary arguments, for her return voyage to England, she booked second cabin passage on the Lusitania which was due to set sail from New York on the morning of 1st May.
Having left Kansas City by rail, she joined the liner on that date, at her berth at Pier 54 in New York, in time for the liner’s delayed departure which actually began at 12.25 p.m.. The delay was caused because she had to take on board passengers, cargo and some crew from the Anchor Liner, Cameronia, which had been requisitioned by the British Admiralty for war service as a troop ship.
Six days later, on the afternoon of 7th May, Lavinia Varcoe’s life ended with the torpedoing of the liner within sight of the coast of southern Ireland and only hours away from her Liverpool destination and home port. As her body was never recovered from the sea and identified afterwards, she has no known grave. She was aged 72 years, although her age on the official passenger manifest was given as 69 years.
On 12th July 1915, probate of her estate was granted at Birmingham to her son, and her effects amounted to £1,990-13s-1d., (£1,990.65p.), a not inconsiderable sum in 1915!
Register of Births, Marriages and Deaths, London England Church of England Births and Baptisms 1813 – 1920, London England Church of England Marriages and Banns 1754 – 1936, 1851 Census of England & Wales, 1861 Census of England & Wales, 1901 Census of England & Wales, 1911 Census of England & Wales, New York Passenger Lists 1820 – 1957, UK Incoming Passenger Lists 1878 – 1960, Cunard Records, Philadelphia Public Ledger, West Briton and Cornwall Advertiser, Probate Records, PRO BT 100/345, Deaths at Sea 1871 – 1968, Graham Maddocks, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.