1
00:00:05,750 --> 00:00:07,630
So this is the track.
2
00:00:09,150 --> 00:00:11,870
I spent pretty much every day here.
3
00:00:13,390 --> 00:00:17,510
This was just my whole life,
really, for so many years.
4
00:00:18,670 --> 00:00:21,230
It's not changed, though.
It's exactly the same.
5
00:00:23,230 --> 00:00:26,350
Jessica Ennis-Hill
is one of the world's greatest
6
00:00:26,390 --> 00:00:28,070
track and field athletes.
7
00:00:28,110 --> 00:00:31,670
I started athletics
when I was nine or ten years old,
8
00:00:31,710 --> 00:00:34,510
and from that point
I was always training
9
00:00:34,550 --> 00:00:38,910
and working towards that end goal,
you know, becoming an Olympian.
10
00:00:42,230 --> 00:00:44,950
The pinnacle of her career
was at London 2012,
11
00:00:44,990 --> 00:00:47,990
when she won the Olympic
gold medal for the heptathlon.
12
00:00:48,030 --> 00:00:50,070
COMMENTARY:And here goes Jess!
13
00:00:50,110 --> 00:00:56,070
It was just the best experience ever
and me feeling mentally ready to go,
14
00:00:56,110 --> 00:00:58,470
physically in the best shape
of my life.
15
00:00:58,510 --> 00:01:01,470
COMMENTARY:Jessica Ennis
is the Olympic champion!
16
00:01:03,830 --> 00:01:06,230
It's a really interesting question,
17
00:01:06,270 --> 00:01:09,790
like, what does it take
to become an Olympic champion?
18
00:01:11,590 --> 00:01:15,510
I think I owe my success
to my resilience
19
00:01:15,550 --> 00:01:17,670
and mentality during those times.
20
00:01:17,710 --> 00:01:19,990
So I am really interested
to understand
21
00:01:20,030 --> 00:01:22,430
where some of those traits
come from.
22
00:01:22,470 --> 00:01:25,990
Awarded a damehood
for services to athletics,
23
00:01:26,030 --> 00:01:29,190
Jess was born and raised
in Sheffield.
24
00:01:29,230 --> 00:01:33,630
So I've literally been rooted
in Sheffield my whole life,
25
00:01:33,670 --> 00:01:36,950
where my family are and all
those people closest to me.
26
00:01:36,990 --> 00:01:43,750
There was me, my mum Alison, my dad
Vinnie and my little sister Carmel.
27
00:01:43,790 --> 00:01:47,110
My mum was born and brought up
in the Peak District,
28
00:01:47,150 --> 00:01:50,510
and my dad's family
are from Jamaica.
29
00:01:50,550 --> 00:01:53,910
And then my grandparents,
particularly my grandad Rod,
30
00:01:53,950 --> 00:01:57,430
was very hands on
with all my athletics.
31
00:01:58,990 --> 00:02:01,750
So many 800 metre sessions
around here.
32
00:02:01,790 --> 00:02:05,030
I can remember how...oh, how hard
it was.
33
00:02:05,070 --> 00:02:07,670
I just wanted to be
the best I could be,
34
00:02:07,710 --> 00:02:11,830
and that was something that was kind
of instilled in me from a young age.
35
00:02:13,590 --> 00:02:17,790
I think to understand what
my ancestors have been through
36
00:02:17,830 --> 00:02:19,550
and the challenges that they faced,
37
00:02:19,590 --> 00:02:22,230
whether there was something
that fed down to me
38
00:02:22,270 --> 00:02:24,790
to help me get to
the top of my game,
39
00:02:24,830 --> 00:02:27,190
would be really interesting
to find out.
40
00:02:27,230 --> 00:02:29,230
I'm maybe a bit of a control freak,
41
00:02:29,270 --> 00:02:32,590
so I'm always kind of prepared
and know what's coming up next.
42
00:02:32,630 --> 00:02:36,190
Whereas with this experience
and this journey,
43
00:02:36,230 --> 00:02:38,350
I don't really know anything.
44
00:02:38,390 --> 00:02:42,030
I don't know what I'm going to find,
who I'm going to find.
45
00:02:42,070 --> 00:02:44,390
Erm, yeah. What details?
46
00:02:44,430 --> 00:02:46,990
It's just a massive unknown.
47
00:03:20,590 --> 00:03:22,870
So this is the Peak District,
48
00:03:22,910 --> 00:03:26,430
and this is obviously an area
that is so close to my heart
49
00:03:26,470 --> 00:03:29,030
because my grandparents
live out here.
50
00:03:29,070 --> 00:03:32,150
Me and my sister would spend
so much time coming out here
51
00:03:32,190 --> 00:03:34,230
for weekends and sleepovers,
52
00:03:34,270 --> 00:03:36,670
so it's a really familiar
place for me.
53
00:03:37,750 --> 00:03:40,790
Jess is starting with her mum's
side of the family.
54
00:03:40,830 --> 00:03:43,870
She's visiting her grandparents
Rodney and Margaret
55
00:03:43,910 --> 00:03:45,870
to find out what they can tell her.
56
00:03:47,430 --> 00:03:50,550
Hi. Hey, Jess. You all right?
Yeah. I'm good, thanks. You? Yeah.
57
00:03:50,590 --> 00:03:52,350
Nice to see you again.
58
00:03:53,910 --> 00:03:56,510
Can you remember when you were
seven and I used to time you
59
00:03:56,550 --> 00:03:57,950
running up and down this yard?
60
00:03:57,990 --> 00:04:00,870
Yeah. And each time
you wanted to do it faster.
61
00:04:00,910 --> 00:04:03,870
Was that you wanting to time me?
No, no, it was you.
62
00:04:03,910 --> 00:04:06,830
It was you.
Because you love competition.
63
00:04:06,870 --> 00:04:10,790
Do you know what? It felt so much
longer than it looks now.
64
00:04:10,830 --> 00:04:13,350
But, yeah, I do remember. Yeah.
65
00:04:15,030 --> 00:04:18,870
So I've come to find a little bit
more about your side of the family.
66
00:04:18,910 --> 00:04:21,350
So is there anything
you can tell me?
67
00:04:21,390 --> 00:04:23,310
We've got some photographs here.
68
00:04:23,350 --> 00:04:25,950
That's you when you were
a little girl with your mum.
69
00:04:25,990 --> 00:04:27,910
Oh, I've never seen this one.
70
00:04:27,950 --> 00:04:29,790
Mum looks so young.
71
00:04:29,830 --> 00:04:31,830
Look at her hair!
72
00:04:31,870 --> 00:04:33,990
She's rocking that hair!
73
00:04:34,030 --> 00:04:37,070
Oh. This is a photograph of you.
74
00:04:37,110 --> 00:04:40,310
I remember that jumper so well.
I loved it.
75
00:04:40,350 --> 00:04:43,790
You did love it.
You wore it all the time. Yeah.
76
00:04:43,830 --> 00:04:46,110
It's a great picture. Yeah.
77
00:04:46,150 --> 00:04:47,990
This is my dad.
78
00:04:48,030 --> 00:04:50,230
Your great-grandad Ray.
79
00:04:50,270 --> 00:04:53,110
Wow! With all his trophies.
80
00:04:53,150 --> 00:04:57,270
Great-grandad Ray Ollerenshaw.
Yeah. That's a collection.
81
00:04:57,310 --> 00:05:00,950
Yeah. It's like he's trying
to outshine me there, isn't he?!
82
00:05:00,990 --> 00:05:03,750
They were all for
sheepdog trialling.
83
00:05:03,790 --> 00:05:07,030
Wow. I did not know this.
This is so exciting.
84
00:05:07,070 --> 00:05:11,110
I mean, obviously, I've
always been super competitive.
85
00:05:11,150 --> 00:05:14,950
I always wondered, is there some,
like, genetic part of it?
86
00:05:14,990 --> 00:05:18,870
It sounds like it probably
came from my great-grandad Ray.
87
00:05:18,910 --> 00:05:22,030
Yeah. Well, he got the OBE
for services to farming.
88
00:05:22,070 --> 00:05:24,270
So between you, you've got them all.
89
00:05:24,310 --> 00:05:27,790
Me and great-grandad Ray... Yeah.
..we've cleaned up!
90
00:05:29,590 --> 00:05:31,350
That's amazing.
91
00:05:31,390 --> 00:05:34,270
So what about your side
of the family, Grandad?
92
00:05:34,310 --> 00:05:38,190
Well, that's one of you with my dad,
your great-grandad Jack.
93
00:05:38,230 --> 00:05:40,150
I remember that one.
94
00:05:40,190 --> 00:05:43,110
You were very lucky, really, because
you had your great-grandad
95
00:05:43,150 --> 00:05:44,830
in your life for 20 years,
didn't you?
96
00:05:44,870 --> 00:05:47,710
Yeah. I feel like I got to know him
really well,
97
00:05:47,750 --> 00:05:49,630
even though I was still quite young.
98
00:05:49,670 --> 00:05:51,790
Such a great sense of humour. Yeah.
99
00:05:51,830 --> 00:05:55,190
That's him with his father,
William Powell.
100
00:05:55,230 --> 00:05:58,310
So that's, like,
your great-great-grandad.
101
00:05:58,350 --> 00:06:02,030
And the girl is Little Maud,
102
00:06:02,070 --> 00:06:04,830
your great-grandad's sister.
103
00:06:04,870 --> 00:06:06,590
Oh, wow.
104
00:06:06,630 --> 00:06:11,230
And that's a copy of Jack's
birth certificate.
105
00:06:11,270 --> 00:06:15,670
So, born 10th August 1911.
106
00:06:15,710 --> 00:06:19,630
So his mother was Emily Maud Powell.
107
00:06:19,670 --> 00:06:23,670
So she was my
great-great-grandmother. Yeah.
108
00:06:23,710 --> 00:06:25,950
Her full name was Emily Maud,
109
00:06:25,990 --> 00:06:27,670
but she was known as Maud.
110
00:06:27,710 --> 00:06:31,070
And we don't really know
anything about her at all,
111
00:06:31,110 --> 00:06:35,550
because one day, William took
Jack and Maud out for a walk.
112
00:06:35,590 --> 00:06:37,550
And when they came back,
113
00:06:37,590 --> 00:06:40,950
they met their mum coming
down the street with a suitcase.
114
00:06:40,990 --> 00:06:44,350
And she just kissed him
and he never saw her again.
115
00:06:44,390 --> 00:06:47,830
Really? Yeah. And where did she go?
Well, we don't know.
116
00:06:47,870 --> 00:06:51,190
So great-grandad
never saw her again? No.
117
00:06:51,230 --> 00:06:53,590
And he never, ever talked about it.
118
00:06:53,630 --> 00:06:55,190
Never, ever.
119
00:06:56,590 --> 00:06:59,550
That must have been so...
It's sad, isn't it? ..awful.
120
00:06:59,590 --> 00:07:02,670
It's sad, really.
So how old was he then?
121
00:07:02,710 --> 00:07:06,230
He'd be, erm, about seven or eight.
122
00:07:06,270 --> 00:07:09,830
It would be nice to know.
I mean, even if it's sad...
123
00:07:09,870 --> 00:07:12,830
Yeah. ..it's nice to know
what happened to them.
124
00:07:12,870 --> 00:07:16,550
Losing your mum and just
not having an explanation. Yeah.
125
00:07:16,590 --> 00:07:18,190
Wow.
126
00:07:18,230 --> 00:07:20,630
I mean, we've started off quite...
127
00:07:21,670 --> 00:07:23,390
..quite deep already.
128
00:07:23,430 --> 00:07:26,870
I wasn't expecting this
from the start. Yeah. Wow.
129
00:07:26,910 --> 00:07:30,150
So I feel like there's
definitely a bit of a mystery...
130
00:07:30,190 --> 00:07:34,190
Yeah, there is. Yeah. ..to solve
already with this one here.
131
00:07:35,390 --> 00:07:37,590
With the help of her grandparents,
132
00:07:37,630 --> 00:07:41,590
Jess can now take her maternal
family tree back four generations.
133
00:07:41,630 --> 00:07:44,470
She's also uncovered
a century-old mystery -
134
00:07:44,510 --> 00:07:49,350
the sudden disappearance of her
great-great-grandmother Emily Maud,
135
00:07:49,390 --> 00:07:52,150
known to the family as Maud.
136
00:07:52,190 --> 00:07:54,870
She seemingly abandoned
her children,
137
00:07:54,910 --> 00:07:59,310
Jess's great-grandfather Jack
and his sister Little Maud.
138
00:07:59,350 --> 00:08:03,590
It's really surprising to find out
that my great-grandad Jack's mum
139
00:08:03,630 --> 00:08:08,830
gave them a kiss one day
and packed her suitcases and went.
140
00:08:08,870 --> 00:08:11,470
And then they never saw her again.
141
00:08:11,510 --> 00:08:13,910
It's just really, really sad.
142
00:08:13,950 --> 00:08:17,350
I'd love to know what happened,
what changed.
143
00:08:17,390 --> 00:08:20,150
You know, how was she feeling
to leave like that?
144
00:08:20,190 --> 00:08:24,590
Where did she go? Did she start
another family? I don't know.
145
00:08:24,630 --> 00:08:28,470
To find out if there are any records
that might shed light
146
00:08:28,510 --> 00:08:31,110
on her great-great-grandmother's
disappearance,
147
00:08:31,150 --> 00:08:33,750
Jess has come to
Sheffield City Archives
148
00:08:33,790 --> 00:08:36,230
to meet historian Dr Jennifer Aston.
149
00:08:36,270 --> 00:08:42,230
So I'm trying to find out more about
my great-great-grandmother Maud.
150
00:08:42,270 --> 00:08:44,670
So my great-grandad's mother.
151
00:08:44,710 --> 00:08:49,230
Erm, and there's a bit of a mystery
around what happened to her.
152
00:08:49,270 --> 00:08:51,510
I think we can show you this
document
153
00:08:51,550 --> 00:08:53,150
that might show you
a little bit more. OK.
154
00:08:53,190 --> 00:08:55,510
If we look in the magistrates court
records,
155
00:08:55,550 --> 00:08:58,110
we can see more about
the relationship
156
00:08:58,150 --> 00:09:00,030
between William and Maud.
157
00:09:00,070 --> 00:09:01,870
Where do we start?
158
00:09:01,910 --> 00:09:03,950
So this is a magistrates court,
159
00:09:03,990 --> 00:09:07,630
which is a smaller local court
in the city of Sheffield.
160
00:09:07,670 --> 00:09:09,550
Yeah. In 1919.
161
00:09:09,590 --> 00:09:12,590
So it says number 48 here,
Maud Powell,
162
00:09:12,630 --> 00:09:15,910
and then defendant William Powell.
163
00:09:15,950 --> 00:09:19,510
My great-great-grandparents. Yes.
164
00:09:19,550 --> 00:09:23,550
So what we have is
Maud Powell as a complainant
165
00:09:23,590 --> 00:09:26,190
and then William as a defendant.
166
00:09:26,230 --> 00:09:31,430
And then nature of offence -
assaulting complainant.
167
00:09:31,470 --> 00:09:34,950
So William assaulted Maud?
168
00:09:34,990 --> 00:09:37,830
Well, that's what
she's accused him of,
169
00:09:37,870 --> 00:09:40,110
and that's the case
that's been brought to court.
170
00:09:40,150 --> 00:09:43,390
I suppose I didn't know
what had happened and why she left.
171
00:09:43,430 --> 00:09:45,670
And my initial thought was, gosh,
172
00:09:45,710 --> 00:09:49,150
how could she have just walked away
and left her children?
173
00:09:49,190 --> 00:09:51,350
And then obviously now,
174
00:09:51,390 --> 00:09:56,070
it looks like there was some kind
of physical abuse in the home,
175
00:09:56,110 --> 00:09:58,910
which is really awful.
176
00:09:58,950 --> 00:10:04,430
So it was June 30th 1919...
177
00:10:04,470 --> 00:10:08,070
..when obviously
she left the family.
178
00:10:08,110 --> 00:10:09,750
Erm...
179
00:10:09,790 --> 00:10:12,550
And then he was found not guilty.
180
00:10:12,590 --> 00:10:16,070
Well, his plea was...
Oh, his plea was not guilty. Yeah.
181
00:10:16,110 --> 00:10:19,910
We can see what happens in the case
if we look in this final column.
182
00:10:19,950 --> 00:10:21,670
"Withdrawn."
183
00:10:21,710 --> 00:10:24,790
Maud decided to withdraw the case...
Oh, she withdrew it. Yeah.
184
00:10:24,830 --> 00:10:27,470
And why would she do that?
We have a clue.
185
00:10:27,510 --> 00:10:30,630
If we look here, it says
to see number 58 below.
186
00:10:32,150 --> 00:10:34,310
OK. So number 58 here.
187
00:10:34,350 --> 00:10:38,550
"Information for order
on desertion."
188
00:10:38,590 --> 00:10:40,550
And what does that mean?
189
00:10:40,590 --> 00:10:43,150
So an order on desertion
can be issued
190
00:10:43,190 --> 00:10:45,190
if a husband deserts his wife.
191
00:10:45,230 --> 00:10:48,430
So if we keep following...
So order by consent...
192
00:10:49,830 --> 00:10:51,310
..to pay.
193
00:10:51,350 --> 00:10:54,990
So the court's ordering him to pay
12 shillings and sixpence
194
00:10:55,030 --> 00:10:56,830
to Maud every week.
195
00:10:56,870 --> 00:11:00,950
And that gives her the money
needed to live respectably. OK.
196
00:11:00,990 --> 00:11:04,550
It's enough for her
not to starve or be destitute.
197
00:11:04,590 --> 00:11:06,430
So by her withdrawing,
198
00:11:06,470 --> 00:11:09,710
was that a way of coming
to a bit of an agreement?
199
00:11:09,750 --> 00:11:13,070
He pays for her to continue
living, but separately.
200
00:11:13,110 --> 00:11:15,030
I think that sounds quite likely.
201
00:11:15,070 --> 00:11:16,950
I think what these events show
202
00:11:16,990 --> 00:11:19,910
is the kind of legal unravelling
of their relationship.
203
00:11:19,950 --> 00:11:24,470
We see the assault case being
brought to court on 30th June.
204
00:11:24,510 --> 00:11:27,670
A week later,
there's a maintenance order.
205
00:11:27,710 --> 00:11:29,670
She's on her own. Wow.
206
00:11:31,990 --> 00:11:36,950
In 1919, getting a divorce was
incredibly difficult and expensive,
207
00:11:36,990 --> 00:11:40,310
but couples did separate,
and women like Maud
208
00:11:40,350 --> 00:11:43,830
could apply for maintenance
on grounds of desertion.
209
00:11:43,870 --> 00:11:47,750
For most women, separation meant
having to leave the marital home
210
00:11:47,790 --> 00:11:50,870
and leaving the children
with their father.
211
00:11:50,910 --> 00:11:57,430
She was obviously suffering
and not living a very nice life,
212
00:11:57,470 --> 00:12:01,430
and then she's the one
that has to leave the home
213
00:12:01,470 --> 00:12:03,910
and leave her kids.
214
00:12:03,950 --> 00:12:07,790
But I suppose the question is,
where did she go? OK.
215
00:12:09,030 --> 00:12:11,150
So this is two years after the cases
216
00:12:11,190 --> 00:12:14,030
that we see in the
magistrates courts.
217
00:12:14,070 --> 00:12:17,350
So this is a census from 1921.
218
00:12:18,390 --> 00:12:20,110
So South Yorkshire...
219
00:12:21,150 --> 00:12:22,630
..Asylum?
220
00:12:22,670 --> 00:12:23,950
Yes.
221
00:12:25,710 --> 00:12:27,110
Gosh.
222
00:12:27,150 --> 00:12:29,310
This is a list of all the people
223
00:12:29,350 --> 00:12:32,790
who were in the institution
on the census day.
224
00:12:32,830 --> 00:12:35,350
They've been identified by initials.
225
00:12:36,750 --> 00:12:38,470
So Emily...
226
00:12:39,510 --> 00:12:41,630
..Maud Powell. Yeah? That's her.
227
00:12:43,070 --> 00:12:44,630
Wow.
228
00:12:44,670 --> 00:12:47,390
I didn't expect to find that.
229
00:12:48,790 --> 00:12:51,030
I'm just, erm, quite shocked.
230
00:12:51,070 --> 00:12:53,750
There's so many questions
I want to know.
231
00:12:53,790 --> 00:12:56,110
I feel like you've helped me
answer a few,
232
00:12:56,150 --> 00:12:58,750
but you've unravelled
so many more questions.
233
00:13:04,630 --> 00:13:06,750
I kind of understand what happened
234
00:13:06,790 --> 00:13:09,630
with their relationship
and their marriage.
235
00:13:09,670 --> 00:13:15,870
But then I found out that two years
later, Maud was in an asylum.
236
00:13:15,910 --> 00:13:19,270
So this is the census for 1921
237
00:13:19,310 --> 00:13:23,910
and it says
South Yorkshire Asylum, Wadsley.
238
00:13:23,950 --> 00:13:25,750
I want to go there.
239
00:13:25,790 --> 00:13:29,710
Erm, I've just got to know
more of what happened to her.
240
00:13:29,750 --> 00:13:35,430
Wadsley is a quiet suburb, three
miles from Sheffield city centre.
241
00:13:35,470 --> 00:13:39,990
Jess has come to the grounds of what
was once South Yorkshire Asylum
242
00:13:40,030 --> 00:13:42,670
to meet historian Dr Alice Brumby.
243
00:13:43,830 --> 00:13:46,790
Hi, Alice. Hello, Jess.
Oh, really nice to meet you.
244
00:13:46,830 --> 00:13:49,350
Pleased to meet you.
Thank you for seeing me.
245
00:13:49,390 --> 00:13:51,390
So is this the original building?
246
00:13:51,430 --> 00:13:54,830
Is this what it would have looked
like for Maud when she was here?
247
00:13:54,870 --> 00:13:56,670
Yes, it would have been.
248
00:13:56,710 --> 00:14:00,150
What we're standing in front of now
is the administration block.
249
00:14:00,190 --> 00:14:04,350
And this is an image
of how big it used to be.
250
00:14:04,390 --> 00:14:06,830
Wow. It's huge.
251
00:14:08,310 --> 00:14:13,270
South Yorkshire was a public asylum
run by the local authority.
252
00:14:13,310 --> 00:14:16,910
It cared for over 1,000 patients
in 1921,
253
00:14:16,950 --> 00:14:20,710
when Maud was recorded
on the census as living there.
254
00:14:20,750 --> 00:14:25,430
I just really want to find out why,
why was Maud here?
255
00:14:25,470 --> 00:14:28,590
I've got your
great-great-grandmother Maud's
256
00:14:28,630 --> 00:14:31,510
admission records here,
if you'd like to take a look.
257
00:14:31,550 --> 00:14:33,590
Yeah. That's the first one.
258
00:14:33,630 --> 00:14:36,190
So name of patient,
Emily Maud Powell.
259
00:14:36,230 --> 00:14:38,030
Female, 35 years.
260
00:14:38,070 --> 00:14:41,470
17th November 1919.
261
00:14:41,510 --> 00:14:44,590
So after the court case?
262
00:14:44,630 --> 00:14:46,350
OK.
263
00:14:46,390 --> 00:14:50,430
So, "I, the undersigned, William
Smith Porter, medical officer,
264
00:14:50,470 --> 00:14:54,150
"I personally examined
the said Emily Maud Powell
265
00:14:54,190 --> 00:14:58,270
"and came to the conclusion that
she is a person of unsound mind.
266
00:14:58,310 --> 00:15:01,590
'She has delusions that she
was communicating secrets
267
00:15:01,630 --> 00:15:03,150
"she heard during the war,
268
00:15:03,190 --> 00:15:05,870
"and she says that
she heard these secrets
269
00:15:05,910 --> 00:15:08,550
"spoken in the streets
under the windows,
270
00:15:08,590 --> 00:15:11,830
"and that her actions
had influence on the war.
271
00:15:11,870 --> 00:15:17,110
"She has also a delusion that she
has been robbed of valuable papers."
272
00:15:18,390 --> 00:15:20,430
Gosh.
273
00:15:20,470 --> 00:15:23,710
"Whether dangerous to others
and in what way?
274
00:15:23,750 --> 00:15:27,150
"Yes. Violent and excitable
at times."
275
00:15:27,190 --> 00:15:29,790
Wow. I didn't expect...
276
00:15:30,830 --> 00:15:32,750
..to read that.
277
00:15:32,790 --> 00:15:36,630
And do we know more about
her actual diagnosis?
278
00:15:36,670 --> 00:15:39,070
If we were going to think about
279
00:15:39,110 --> 00:15:42,750
how it might translate
to today's illnesses,
280
00:15:42,790 --> 00:15:48,990
she's clearly suffering from
kind of psychotic instances.
281
00:15:49,030 --> 00:15:52,910
We could perhaps say potentially
it's schizophrenia,
282
00:15:52,950 --> 00:15:55,070
potentially bipolar.
283
00:15:55,110 --> 00:15:58,710
But she's never actually
given a diagnosis.
284
00:15:58,750 --> 00:16:02,070
And I wonder what kind
of treatment she actually had
285
00:16:02,110 --> 00:16:04,110
when she was there, though?
286
00:16:04,150 --> 00:16:07,830
OK. So there's kind of sedative
drugs that they could give her
287
00:16:07,870 --> 00:16:11,070
because of her excitement,
because of her delusions.
288
00:16:11,110 --> 00:16:14,470
So drugs to make her a little bit
sleepy, a little bit calmer.
289
00:16:14,510 --> 00:16:15,910
OK.
290
00:16:15,950 --> 00:16:18,870
So, "Whether first attack? No."
291
00:16:18,910 --> 00:16:20,950
What does that mean?
292
00:16:20,990 --> 00:16:23,310
That she's been poorly before.
293
00:16:23,350 --> 00:16:25,990
What you need to look at here
is the date.
294
00:16:26,030 --> 00:16:28,990
"When and where previously
under care and treatment.
295
00:16:29,030 --> 00:16:32,630
"The 23rd to 30th of January 1919."
296
00:16:32,670 --> 00:16:34,990
Oh, no. So I'm confused.
297
00:16:35,030 --> 00:16:37,630
So the 23rd to 30th
of January 1919,
298
00:16:37,670 --> 00:16:40,550
she's struggling,
she's having problems.
299
00:16:40,590 --> 00:16:42,590
She's not very well. Yeah.
300
00:16:42,630 --> 00:16:44,630
This happened before the court case.
301
00:16:44,670 --> 00:16:46,950
And then July, she went to court
302
00:16:46,990 --> 00:16:51,110
to put a claim against her husband
for assaulting her,
303
00:16:51,150 --> 00:16:55,870
but actually it seems that
she had the violent tendencies.
304
00:16:56,910 --> 00:17:02,630
And then November 1919,
she suffers another attack...
305
00:17:04,110 --> 00:17:07,230
..before she's then committed? Yes.
306
00:17:09,430 --> 00:17:11,590
It's just awful in every way.
307
00:17:11,630 --> 00:17:15,910
I wonder if my great-grandad Jack
actually knew.
308
00:17:15,950 --> 00:17:17,950
He may well not have done.
309
00:17:17,990 --> 00:17:20,670
There was a huge stigma attached
to mental health care
310
00:17:20,710 --> 00:17:22,030
during this period,
311
00:17:22,070 --> 00:17:24,910
so it's possible that
it would be preferable
312
00:17:24,950 --> 00:17:27,550
to tell the children
that she just left,
313
00:17:27,590 --> 00:17:30,670
as opposed to the fact
that she was poorly and needed help.
314
00:17:30,710 --> 00:17:32,390
Yeah.
315
00:17:32,430 --> 00:17:35,950
I just feel so sad
for my great-grandad Jack
316
00:17:35,990 --> 00:17:38,710
and his sister Little Maud.
317
00:17:39,870 --> 00:17:41,310
Do we know...
318
00:17:42,350 --> 00:17:46,510
..anything else? I think we should
look at the next document. OK.
319
00:17:48,470 --> 00:17:51,630
So... OK, this is
a death certificate.
320
00:17:53,990 --> 00:17:55,550
Oh, my gosh.
321
00:17:57,030 --> 00:17:58,950
Little Maud, the daughter.
322
00:18:00,350 --> 00:18:02,230
Oh, it's really sad.
323
00:18:02,270 --> 00:18:03,830
Oh, God.
324
00:18:03,870 --> 00:18:05,710
I was like, "I will not cry."
325
00:18:05,750 --> 00:18:07,190
Erm...
326
00:18:07,230 --> 00:18:09,390
Oh, so Maud was 11.
327
00:18:11,030 --> 00:18:12,870
This is 1924.
328
00:18:12,910 --> 00:18:16,390
And the cause of death
is mitral obstruction.
329
00:18:16,430 --> 00:18:19,270
It's basically a condition
of the heart.
330
00:18:19,310 --> 00:18:22,270
I can't imagine
how Maud must have...
331
00:18:23,790 --> 00:18:26,990
..taken it...and that
she wasn't there.
332
00:18:27,030 --> 00:18:31,950
We don't know whether she got told
that her daughter had died or not.
333
00:18:31,990 --> 00:18:35,470
For fear of making her worse?
Potentially.
334
00:18:36,710 --> 00:18:38,430
I'm just in shock.
335
00:18:38,470 --> 00:18:41,070
I just did not expect to find this.
336
00:18:41,110 --> 00:18:43,670
I don't know who knew about this.
337
00:18:43,710 --> 00:18:46,550
I don't... It's so sad.
338
00:18:46,590 --> 00:18:47,990
Yeah.
339
00:18:48,030 --> 00:18:50,830
I just know how,
obviously as a mother,
340
00:18:50,870 --> 00:18:54,230
and that emotion of thinking
how would I feel
341
00:18:54,270 --> 00:18:56,430
if I wasn't with my kids,
342
00:18:56,470 --> 00:18:59,750
how Maud must have felt
when she had to leave them,
343
00:18:59,790 --> 00:19:05,870
and then the realisation now, here,
that, you know, she never...
344
00:19:06,910 --> 00:19:11,070
..she would never have got
to see her daughter again. Mm.
345
00:19:11,110 --> 00:19:12,670
It's so sad.
346
00:19:14,990 --> 00:19:16,950
And so Maud stayed...
347
00:19:16,990 --> 00:19:19,390
She stayed in the asylum?
348
00:19:19,430 --> 00:19:24,030
Well, our final document might shed
a little bit of light on to that.
349
00:19:26,270 --> 00:19:27,750
What is this?
350
00:19:27,790 --> 00:19:30,790
"Emily Maud Powell received
at this hospital
351
00:19:30,830 --> 00:19:34,230
"on transfer on 6th January 1944."
352
00:19:34,270 --> 00:19:38,950
So she leaves to be transferred
to another hospital
353
00:19:38,990 --> 00:19:41,870
called Storthes Hall
in Huddersfield.
354
00:19:44,990 --> 00:19:48,110
Gosh. I'm just...
Yeah, just... I'm in shock.
355
00:19:57,350 --> 00:19:59,910
I don't know how much
my great-grandfather knew,
356
00:19:59,950 --> 00:20:03,790
but it definitely changes
the narrative for the family
357
00:20:03,830 --> 00:20:08,230
because the assumption
was that she left one day
358
00:20:08,270 --> 00:20:10,830
for, you know, no reason.
359
00:20:10,870 --> 00:20:14,870
No-one knew why she left,
and it was hard to understand,
360
00:20:14,910 --> 00:20:17,350
you know, why she would do that,
361
00:20:17,390 --> 00:20:21,190
but, actually, we now know
the reasons for why she left.
362
00:20:23,030 --> 00:20:26,470
For her to be in that asylum
for 25 years,
363
00:20:26,510 --> 00:20:30,110
that is such a long time.
364
00:20:30,150 --> 00:20:33,470
And I don't know
if she ever came out.
365
00:20:33,510 --> 00:20:35,270
To find out more,
366
00:20:35,310 --> 00:20:38,790
Jess is heading to what was once
Storthes Hall Hospital,
367
00:20:38,830 --> 00:20:43,430
where her great-great-grandmother
Maud was transferred in 1944.
368
00:20:43,470 --> 00:20:46,870
She's here to meet historian
Dr Stephen Taylor.
369
00:20:46,910 --> 00:20:50,110
Hi, Stephen. Hi. Nice to meet you,
Jess. Nice to meet you, too.
370
00:20:50,150 --> 00:20:53,710
Thank you for taking the time to
speak to me today. You're welcome.
371
00:20:53,750 --> 00:20:57,510
Obviously, I've been on a bit
of a journey trying to find out,
372
00:20:57,550 --> 00:21:00,910
you know, a bit more about
my great-great-grandmother's life.
373
00:21:00,950 --> 00:21:04,630
So I suppose I'd love to just know
more about how long she was here
374
00:21:04,670 --> 00:21:07,510
and what was it like
while she was staying here?
375
00:21:07,550 --> 00:21:09,990
Yeah, well, we've got
these photographs.
376
00:21:10,030 --> 00:21:12,550
There's three that depict
what life was like...
377
00:21:12,590 --> 00:21:14,750
Thank you. ..here in the asylum.
378
00:21:14,790 --> 00:21:16,350
Oh, wow.
379
00:21:18,270 --> 00:21:20,470
So they had hairdressers? Yes.
380
00:21:20,510 --> 00:21:22,070
Gosh.
381
00:21:23,630 --> 00:21:26,350
A shop?
Yes, very much a community.
382
00:21:26,390 --> 00:21:29,070
She would have probably made friends
with people on the wards.
383
00:21:29,110 --> 00:21:31,110
She would have had people
who knew her.
384
00:21:31,150 --> 00:21:33,030
Also, patients worked quite often.
385
00:21:33,070 --> 00:21:35,030
She might have been
in the laundries
386
00:21:35,070 --> 00:21:37,510
or working on needlework
and dressmaking.
387
00:21:37,550 --> 00:21:41,030
So life here would have had
elements of a care facility
388
00:21:41,070 --> 00:21:43,630
rather than a hospital. Mm.
389
00:21:43,670 --> 00:21:47,190
It makes me feel a little bit better
that, obviously,
390
00:21:47,230 --> 00:21:50,470
it wasn't just a case of, you know,
you have your treatment
391
00:21:50,510 --> 00:21:52,470
and whatever that might be.
392
00:21:52,510 --> 00:21:56,670
There was actually space to kind
of live her life in a certain way.
393
00:21:56,710 --> 00:22:00,030
And then I suppose
my next question is...
394
00:22:01,070 --> 00:22:03,710
..you know, did she...did she leave?
395
00:22:03,750 --> 00:22:07,950
So we have a document
that comes from 1970.
396
00:22:09,110 --> 00:22:10,910
OK.
397
00:22:10,950 --> 00:22:13,390
This is the death certificate.
398
00:22:13,430 --> 00:22:19,030
And the date of death on here
is 13th February 1970.
399
00:22:19,070 --> 00:22:24,350
It says here that she died
in North Spring House in Kirkburton.
400
00:22:24,390 --> 00:22:30,510
Yes. So North Spring House was
another name for Storthes Hall.
401
00:22:30,550 --> 00:22:33,830
It was a way of protecting
the family almost
402
00:22:33,870 --> 00:22:36,710
from the stigma
of the mental hospital.
403
00:22:36,750 --> 00:22:40,630
So still just keeping it a secret
and covering it up, essentially.
404
00:22:40,670 --> 00:22:42,710
Essentially. Wow.
405
00:22:44,190 --> 00:22:45,430
So...
406
00:22:46,870 --> 00:22:50,070
..she didn't leave?
She didn't leave, sadly.
407
00:22:50,110 --> 00:22:52,630
And this was 1970?
408
00:22:52,670 --> 00:22:53,990
Yes.
409
00:22:54,030 --> 00:22:58,230
And she came in in 1919,
in Sheffield.
410
00:22:58,270 --> 00:23:01,150
That is such a long time.
411
00:23:02,630 --> 00:23:06,390
My great-grandad Jack
would have been about 58
412
00:23:06,430 --> 00:23:10,310
and my grandad
would have been about 31.
413
00:23:10,350 --> 00:23:12,870
And then my mum would have been born
414
00:23:12,910 --> 00:23:16,230
and she would have been
about four years old.
415
00:23:16,270 --> 00:23:21,710
So Maud had this whole expanding
family that she didn't know about,
416
00:23:21,750 --> 00:23:24,230
and they didn't know about her.
417
00:23:24,270 --> 00:23:26,990
It's almost like she didn't exist,
in a way.
418
00:23:28,550 --> 00:23:30,870
I don't even know
what she looks like.
419
00:23:30,910 --> 00:23:33,510
I might be able to help you
with that.
420
00:23:33,550 --> 00:23:35,710
Oh, wow.
421
00:23:37,030 --> 00:23:39,390
This was her. That's incredible.
422
00:23:40,670 --> 00:23:44,150
It's so, so nice to see
a picture of her.
423
00:23:44,190 --> 00:23:46,230
Yeah. You see a person.
424
00:23:46,270 --> 00:23:48,350
Yeah. This is an actual person.
425
00:23:50,390 --> 00:23:53,590
Hopefully, she had some kind
of life within here.
426
00:23:56,390 --> 00:23:57,750
Oh...
427
00:24:03,190 --> 00:24:05,070
At the start of this journey,
428
00:24:05,110 --> 00:24:08,350
I couldn't understand why
she would leave her children,
429
00:24:08,390 --> 00:24:10,310
her family, her life,
430
00:24:10,350 --> 00:24:13,110
but, actually, she didn't want
to leave her children.
431
00:24:13,150 --> 00:24:14,790
But she had to.
432
00:24:16,150 --> 00:24:19,990
Experiencing something like that
at the age great-grandad Jack did
433
00:24:20,030 --> 00:24:23,550
could have had a really
negative effect on his life.
434
00:24:23,590 --> 00:24:27,270
And from what I saw and the person
he was, that wasn't the case.
435
00:24:27,310 --> 00:24:32,710
You know, he dealt with it
and he created his own future.
436
00:24:32,750 --> 00:24:34,710
And, erm, yeah, that's...
437
00:24:34,750 --> 00:24:36,710
That's really amazing.
438
00:24:48,430 --> 00:24:51,950
Now Jess has found out more about
the maternal side of her family,
439
00:24:51,990 --> 00:24:54,950
she wants to investigate
her Jamaican heritage.
440
00:24:54,990 --> 00:24:59,230
So she's heading back to Sheffield
to meet up with her dad Vinnie.
441
00:24:59,270 --> 00:25:01,950
My dad was always very conscious
442
00:25:01,990 --> 00:25:05,630
that although he'd lived here
for so many years,
443
00:25:05,670 --> 00:25:08,110
he was still very much Jamaican.
444
00:25:08,150 --> 00:25:11,350
And I think he really wanted
me and my sister
445
00:25:11,390 --> 00:25:15,310
to always understand
that side of our heritage.
446
00:25:15,350 --> 00:25:21,230
And I remember my mum and dad
weaned me on liquidised tripe.
447
00:25:21,270 --> 00:25:24,710
And for my dad that was...you know,
that's normal.
448
00:25:24,750 --> 00:25:28,230
He would eat cow's feet
and, you know, that kind of thing
449
00:25:28,270 --> 00:25:31,110
was, you know, a Jamaican delicacy.
450
00:25:31,150 --> 00:25:34,870
You know, my mum and dad both say
that that's why I'm such a...
451
00:25:34,910 --> 00:25:36,830
..well, I was such a good athlete -
452
00:25:36,870 --> 00:25:39,510
because I had a diet
of liquidised tripe!
453
00:25:41,150 --> 00:25:44,590
So I'm heading to Meersbrook Road,
which is in Sheffield,
454
00:25:44,630 --> 00:25:49,670
and I'm going to meet my dad there
to see the house that he moved to
455
00:25:49,710 --> 00:25:52,710
with his family when he first
moved here from Jamaica
456
00:25:52,750 --> 00:25:55,230
all those years ago.
457
00:25:56,350 --> 00:25:59,150
Vinnie Ennis moved to Meersbrook
in south Sheffield
458
00:25:59,190 --> 00:26:01,190
when he was 13 years old.
459
00:26:01,230 --> 00:26:04,990
Hi, Dad. Wagwan, Jess.
You all right? You OK? Yes.
460
00:26:05,030 --> 00:26:07,990
Nice seeing you, girl.
How are you keeping, all right?
461
00:26:08,030 --> 00:26:09,870
I'm good. Good.
462
00:26:09,910 --> 00:26:12,070
This is where it all started, Jess.
463
00:26:12,110 --> 00:26:14,790
Your first house.
This is my first address
464
00:26:14,830 --> 00:26:17,870
when I came to England in 1963. Wow.
465
00:26:17,910 --> 00:26:22,790
The current owners have let Jess
and Vinnie take a look inside.
466
00:26:22,830 --> 00:26:25,790
When your dad first came to England,
this is where we lived.
467
00:26:25,830 --> 00:26:28,790
And my brother, auntie,
uncle, cousins.
468
00:26:28,830 --> 00:26:30,790
I had a lot of fun here, really,
469
00:26:30,830 --> 00:26:33,270
even though there were a lot
of us living here.
470
00:26:33,310 --> 00:26:36,190
Have you got any pictures to share?
Erm, the first one...
471
00:26:36,230 --> 00:26:39,350
Oh, this...
This one's a lovely picture.
472
00:26:41,950 --> 00:26:43,710
I remember that bed.
473
00:26:43,750 --> 00:26:48,630
That... I mean, tapes,
it had an in-built stereo!
474
00:26:48,670 --> 00:26:51,470
And look at Mel's
little cheeky face.
475
00:26:51,510 --> 00:26:54,510
She's still got a cheeky faces.
She's got the same cheeky face.
476
00:26:54,550 --> 00:26:55,950
Yeah.
477
00:26:55,990 --> 00:26:58,710
And your passport? The passport.
Yes, the passport.
478
00:26:58,750 --> 00:27:00,390
That's your dad.
479
00:27:00,430 --> 00:27:03,310
You look completely different.
Totally, isn't it?
480
00:27:03,350 --> 00:27:08,070
That was probably taken, erm,
the year before we came here.
481
00:27:08,110 --> 00:27:10,430
So you were born in Linstead.
482
00:27:10,470 --> 00:27:13,230
Linstead, St Catherine. Yeah.
483
00:27:13,270 --> 00:27:16,790
You've got your stamp
for 24th January 1963.
484
00:27:16,830 --> 00:27:19,590
So I think... That's the day
when you came. Yeah.
485
00:27:19,630 --> 00:27:22,470
I mean, of all the months
to come... Shocking, Jess.
486
00:27:22,510 --> 00:27:24,030
..from Jamaica to England,
487
00:27:24,070 --> 00:27:26,510
January has got to be the worst,
hasn't it?
488
00:27:26,550 --> 00:27:29,070
And the weather was so bad, Jess.
489
00:27:29,110 --> 00:27:31,390
It's just snow.
490
00:27:31,430 --> 00:27:33,270
I literally cried.
491
00:27:33,310 --> 00:27:36,310
I just wanted to be back
on my island, you know?
492
00:27:36,350 --> 00:27:38,710
What other pictures have you got?
493
00:27:38,750 --> 00:27:41,590
Right, this one is where...?
494
00:27:41,630 --> 00:27:43,310
You tell me.
495
00:27:43,350 --> 00:27:44,750
Wow.
496
00:27:44,790 --> 00:27:46,830
Grandma and Grandad.
497
00:27:46,870 --> 00:27:49,350
Winston Ennis. Yeah.
498
00:27:49,390 --> 00:27:54,230
My grandma, they called her Grace,
but her proper name is Muriel.
499
00:27:54,270 --> 00:27:56,910
Muriel? Muriel, yeah. Oh, wow.
500
00:27:56,950 --> 00:27:59,950
I didn't really know them that well.
No, you didn't.
501
00:27:59,990 --> 00:28:02,710
He was a nice dad. He really was.
502
00:28:02,750 --> 00:28:04,990
It's a good picture, though.
503
00:28:05,030 --> 00:28:08,710
So what was life like for
Grandma Grace and Grandad Winston
504
00:28:08,750 --> 00:28:10,710
when they first moved here?
505
00:28:10,750 --> 00:28:14,510
Erm, from what I can gather,
it weren't very nice for them
506
00:28:14,550 --> 00:28:17,390
because there was a lot of racism.
507
00:28:17,430 --> 00:28:23,350
And, you know, they'd go on the bus
and people have a go at them.
508
00:28:23,390 --> 00:28:26,590
But, erm, they just got on with it
509
00:28:26,630 --> 00:28:30,350
because they had kids to support
and things like that.
510
00:28:30,390 --> 00:28:33,470
And what did they do for work
when they came here?
511
00:28:33,510 --> 00:28:36,070
Do you know?
Your grandad's a builder.
512
00:28:36,110 --> 00:28:38,310
I think Mum trained up
to be a nurse.
513
00:28:38,350 --> 00:28:40,670
OK, yeah. I remember you saying.
Yeah.
514
00:28:40,710 --> 00:28:46,270
We came and we settled down
and just kind of got on with life.
515
00:28:46,310 --> 00:28:49,630
So, I mean,
I've never been to Jamaica.
516
00:28:49,670 --> 00:28:52,750
I haven't been for 60 years.
Yeah. You've never been back.
517
00:28:52,790 --> 00:28:54,710
I've never been back, no.
518
00:28:54,750 --> 00:28:59,430
But I just feel like now's the time
where I have this opportunity to,
519
00:28:59,470 --> 00:29:04,310
you know, go to Jamaica, and I want
to find out more about my family.
520
00:29:04,350 --> 00:29:07,110
And I'm really looking forward
to going back. Yeah.
521
00:29:07,150 --> 00:29:09,190
For us to do it together is special.
522
00:29:09,230 --> 00:29:12,950
For us to do it together
is just a special thing. Yeah.
523
00:29:18,150 --> 00:29:22,750
Jess and her dad have travelled
over 4,500 miles to Jamaica.
524
00:29:27,350 --> 00:29:31,150
I don't know what I imagined
it would be like, but it's amazing.
525
00:29:31,190 --> 00:29:34,710
Like, just the little rivers
and all the fruit on the trees
526
00:29:34,750 --> 00:29:36,430
and the heat.
527
00:29:36,470 --> 00:29:38,350
The heat is nice!
528
00:29:40,150 --> 00:29:43,230
It's Jess's first-ever
visit to the island,
529
00:29:43,270 --> 00:29:46,630
and she's starting her journey
by heading to where her dad grew up,
530
00:29:46,670 --> 00:29:50,230
a town called Linstead
in the parish of St Catherine.
531
00:29:51,390 --> 00:29:53,390
So we're on our way to Linstead.
532
00:29:53,430 --> 00:29:56,710
Yes. We're going to go and meet
some of the family.
533
00:29:56,750 --> 00:29:59,990
I've heard names and lots of aunts.
534
00:30:00,030 --> 00:30:02,670
And there's lots of cousins.
535
00:30:02,710 --> 00:30:05,230
But I've never met many of them.
536
00:30:05,270 --> 00:30:07,710
Yeah, I'm so excited, Jess,
you won't believe it.
537
00:30:09,190 --> 00:30:12,750
Jess's extended family of aunts,
uncles and cousins
538
00:30:12,790 --> 00:30:15,870
have gathered in Linstead
to welcome her and Vinnie.
539
00:30:17,430 --> 00:30:19,990
Oh, it's so nice to meet you.
540
00:30:26,790 --> 00:30:29,430
Oh, nice to finally meet you.
541
00:30:29,470 --> 00:30:33,510
I remember Aunt Edna. You
remember Aunt Edna, good. Lovely.
542
00:30:41,030 --> 00:30:42,350
Oh.
543
00:30:42,390 --> 00:30:44,750
I've met everyone.
I know everyone now.
544
00:30:44,790 --> 00:30:46,790
You know everyone. OK.
545
00:30:46,830 --> 00:30:48,830
That's good, that's good.
546
00:30:48,870 --> 00:30:50,270
Hey, man.
547
00:30:50,310 --> 00:30:52,350
Sorry me take so long.
548
00:30:52,390 --> 00:30:56,590
Long to come. Oh, but you are
here now. You are here now.
549
00:30:57,950 --> 00:30:59,230
Mm.
550
00:31:01,030 --> 00:31:05,350
Yeah, it's really surreal to
actually be here because, you know,
551
00:31:05,390 --> 00:31:08,630
I've heard so many stories
that my dad's told over the years
552
00:31:08,670 --> 00:31:10,430
about his time here.
553
00:31:10,470 --> 00:31:15,070
And for me to see it in real life
and meet the rest of the family,
554
00:31:15,110 --> 00:31:18,230
and, yeah, it's just
really emotional.
555
00:31:18,270 --> 00:31:20,950
To help her trace her family
further back,
556
00:31:20,990 --> 00:31:24,510
Jess is talking to Edna, her
grandmother Grace's younger sister.
557
00:31:25,550 --> 00:31:28,110
Jessica, it's so nice to meet you.
558
00:31:28,150 --> 00:31:30,190
Oh, thank you for having me.
559
00:31:30,230 --> 00:31:35,070
I am your great-auntie,
sister of Grace.
560
00:31:35,110 --> 00:31:37,190
My grandmother Grace, yeah.
561
00:31:37,230 --> 00:31:40,150
So you're one of 12?
I'm one of 12.
562
00:31:40,190 --> 00:31:42,710
Seven girls and five boys.
563
00:31:42,750 --> 00:31:46,110
That's a big family.
But I'm the last of the 12.
564
00:31:46,150 --> 00:31:48,190
You're the last one? Yes.
565
00:31:48,230 --> 00:31:52,630
So this house was where we lived.
566
00:31:52,670 --> 00:31:56,870
And it meant a lot to us
as children.
567
00:31:56,910 --> 00:32:00,350
I really cherish the memories
of Mum and Dad.
568
00:32:01,750 --> 00:32:03,190
Look at him.
569
00:32:04,390 --> 00:32:07,150
Wow. So this is... That's my father.
570
00:32:07,190 --> 00:32:10,550
So my great-grandad.
Yes. Your great-grandad.
571
00:32:10,590 --> 00:32:12,870
And his name is James Thomas.
572
00:32:14,230 --> 00:32:16,830
Wow. And we called him Imey.
573
00:32:16,870 --> 00:32:18,390
Wow.
574
00:32:18,430 --> 00:32:20,430
He looks very smart.
575
00:32:20,470 --> 00:32:21,870
Imey.
576
00:32:21,910 --> 00:32:25,590
He really was a lovely man.
You would have loved him, Jessica.
577
00:32:25,630 --> 00:32:27,070
This is...
578
00:32:28,110 --> 00:32:30,070
..a picture of my mother.
579
00:32:30,110 --> 00:32:32,470
Wow. Louise White.
580
00:32:32,510 --> 00:32:35,390
My great-grandma.
Your great-grandma.
581
00:32:35,430 --> 00:32:37,350
She looks so...
582
00:32:37,390 --> 00:32:41,550
Very proper and very... She was.
..you know, very well dressed.
583
00:32:41,590 --> 00:32:45,870
Beautiful white dress. You can
see the buttons down the middle.
584
00:32:45,910 --> 00:32:47,990
Hair's perfect.
585
00:32:48,030 --> 00:32:50,550
Even going down the road,
586
00:32:50,590 --> 00:32:54,350
she would make sure
that she's properly dressed.
587
00:32:54,390 --> 00:32:57,070
She was so well put together.
588
00:32:57,110 --> 00:33:01,310
So where was grandma,
my great-grandma Louise, born?
589
00:33:01,350 --> 00:33:04,430
The area was known as St John's.
590
00:33:04,470 --> 00:33:10,310
Now, in the White family,
they have a lot of farms.
591
00:33:10,350 --> 00:33:15,110
Coffee was one of the main
products, along with sugar cane.
592
00:33:15,150 --> 00:33:17,910
So great-grandma's family,
you know,
593
00:33:17,950 --> 00:33:21,710
they come from quite a wealthy
family, really, with lots of land.
594
00:33:21,750 --> 00:33:24,830
Yes. So we still have
a lot of land here.
595
00:33:24,870 --> 00:33:26,870
And where does it all come from?
596
00:33:26,910 --> 00:33:30,350
From what I can recall,
it was always there.
597
00:33:30,390 --> 00:33:34,790
My mum's side of the family,
they all have big farms,
598
00:33:34,830 --> 00:33:40,750
and all the family around would
seem to be very productive.
599
00:33:40,790 --> 00:33:45,670
Gosh. I'd love to understand
where it all started for them.
600
00:33:47,950 --> 00:33:51,870
Meeting her relatives has helped
Jess trace her Jamaican ancestry
601
00:33:51,910 --> 00:33:56,350
back to her great-grandparents,
James - or Imey - Thomas,
602
00:33:56,390 --> 00:34:00,630
and Louise White, who came
from a landowning family.
603
00:34:01,910 --> 00:34:04,110
So while her dad stays to catch up,
604
00:34:04,150 --> 00:34:08,790
Jess wants to find out how the White
family came to own so much land.
605
00:34:08,830 --> 00:34:11,670
She's come to St John's
Anglican Church
606
00:34:11,710 --> 00:34:14,790
in the parish where
her great-grandmother was born
607
00:34:14,830 --> 00:34:17,390
to meet historian Dr Shani Roper.
608
00:34:17,430 --> 00:34:18,870
Hi.
609
00:34:18,910 --> 00:34:20,910
Hi. Really nice to meet you.
610
00:34:20,950 --> 00:34:23,350
I'm Shani. Nice to meet you, Shani.
611
00:34:23,390 --> 00:34:25,630
Welcome to St John's
Anglican Church,
612
00:34:25,670 --> 00:34:28,070
one of the oldest churches
in the country.
613
00:34:29,510 --> 00:34:32,550
So I've found out a little bit
about my family.
614
00:34:32,590 --> 00:34:36,550
My great-grandma Louise,
her family had a lot of land.
615
00:34:36,590 --> 00:34:40,510
And I'm trying to understand,
you know, where it all started.
616
00:34:40,550 --> 00:34:43,350
OK, so as we start that journey,
617
00:34:43,390 --> 00:34:49,710
I'd like to share this will
with you...dated 1900.
618
00:34:49,750 --> 00:34:53,150
So this is the will
for George McLeod White.
619
00:34:53,190 --> 00:34:56,230
So this is your three times
great-grandfather.
620
00:34:56,270 --> 00:34:57,750
Wow.
621
00:34:57,790 --> 00:35:02,870
So, "I give and bequeath to my
beloved wife, Mary Ann White,
622
00:35:02,910 --> 00:35:05,390
"my dwelling house and furniture,
623
00:35:05,430 --> 00:35:08,910
"with a piece of land
with coffee and fruit trees."
624
00:35:08,950 --> 00:35:15,270
And then he's saying he's giving
to his son, Felix Augustus White...
625
00:35:15,310 --> 00:35:19,510
So this is your two times...
Great-grandfather. Right.
626
00:35:19,550 --> 00:35:22,790
"Two acres of land off Long Hill."
627
00:35:24,030 --> 00:35:27,230
It looks like he owns
maybe about 15 acres of land.
628
00:35:27,270 --> 00:35:29,270
Yes, that's exactly correct.
629
00:35:29,310 --> 00:35:32,430
So he's got a lot of land.
He's got a lot of land.
630
00:35:32,470 --> 00:35:35,790
And then got passed down
through the family to Felix,
631
00:35:35,830 --> 00:35:40,150
to then Louise,
who's my great-grandmother.
632
00:35:40,190 --> 00:35:41,790
Absolutely.
633
00:35:41,830 --> 00:35:45,110
Can we trace this line
any further back, though?
634
00:35:45,150 --> 00:35:46,990
I'm going to show you this record.
635
00:35:48,550 --> 00:35:52,470
So this is the marriage
between George McLeod White
636
00:35:52,510 --> 00:35:54,390
and Mary Ann Smith.
637
00:35:54,430 --> 00:35:57,910
And so they got married
April 21st 1880.
638
00:35:57,950 --> 00:35:59,430
Right.
639
00:35:59,470 --> 00:36:01,950
So I just want you
to look at that column.
640
00:36:01,990 --> 00:36:06,070
Yeah, so the father of George McLeod
White was George Thomas White.
641
00:36:06,110 --> 00:36:07,470
Right.
642
00:36:07,510 --> 00:36:11,990
So we now know that he was
my four times great-grandfather.
643
00:36:12,030 --> 00:36:13,350
Yeah.
644
00:36:13,390 --> 00:36:15,950
But do we know anything
more about him?
645
00:36:15,990 --> 00:36:18,190
Well, now that you've asked!
646
00:36:18,230 --> 00:36:21,630
What do we know?
Yeah, we have another record.
647
00:36:24,110 --> 00:36:26,910
OK. So registered deaths.
648
00:36:28,190 --> 00:36:30,350
And it's for George Thomas White.
649
00:36:30,390 --> 00:36:33,070
So my fourth time
great-grandfather. Right.
650
00:36:33,110 --> 00:36:37,550
And he died on 3rd June 1879.
651
00:36:37,590 --> 00:36:39,150
Mm-hm.
652
00:36:39,190 --> 00:36:41,270
And he lived to 90 years.
653
00:36:41,310 --> 00:36:43,070
Yes. A good age.
654
00:36:43,110 --> 00:36:46,350
And then his occupation
was a cooper.
655
00:36:47,390 --> 00:36:49,230
And what does that mean?
656
00:36:49,270 --> 00:36:54,630
OK, so a cooper is a person
who makes the barrel to hold rum...
657
00:36:54,670 --> 00:36:57,430
Mm-hm. ..for the ageing process.
658
00:36:57,470 --> 00:37:01,870
So it's actually a very important
profession to have at that time.
659
00:37:01,910 --> 00:37:05,430
Do we know anything else
about George Thomas White's life?
660
00:37:05,470 --> 00:37:09,750
Yes. We have one more record
for you to look at.
661
00:37:09,790 --> 00:37:11,350
OK.
662
00:37:11,390 --> 00:37:13,670
This is a baptismal record.
663
00:37:13,710 --> 00:37:16,950
So this is 1823.
664
00:37:16,990 --> 00:37:20,030
OK, George Thomas White.
665
00:37:20,070 --> 00:37:23,310
This record originates
from this church.
666
00:37:23,350 --> 00:37:25,270
So he was here?
667
00:37:25,310 --> 00:37:26,790
Yeah.
668
00:37:26,830 --> 00:37:30,270
That's incredible.
There's some additional information.
669
00:37:31,990 --> 00:37:33,710
So he was aged 28.
670
00:37:34,990 --> 00:37:38,350
"And where belonging -
Water Mount Estate."
671
00:37:39,910 --> 00:37:42,390
So where is Water Mount Estate?
672
00:37:42,430 --> 00:37:45,390
Water Mount Estate no longer exists
673
00:37:45,430 --> 00:37:49,310
because originally
it would be a sugar plantation.
674
00:37:49,350 --> 00:37:51,350
So a sugar estate.
675
00:37:51,390 --> 00:37:55,270
So what this record tells us
is that, more than likely,
676
00:37:55,310 --> 00:38:00,230
based on the time period that
we're talking about, which is 1823,
677
00:38:00,270 --> 00:38:04,430
that George Thomas White
was born into slavery
678
00:38:04,470 --> 00:38:10,150
and he was enslaved
at the Water Mount sugar estate.
679
00:38:10,190 --> 00:38:14,630
So he, you know...
Essentially, he was a slave.
680
00:38:14,670 --> 00:38:16,310
Right.
681
00:38:16,350 --> 00:38:20,350
So the term that we use
in the Caribbean is "enslaved".
682
00:38:20,390 --> 00:38:22,030
He was enslaved.
683
00:38:22,070 --> 00:38:25,470
Right, because slavery is a state
that's imposed. Yeah.
684
00:38:25,510 --> 00:38:28,270
You know, it's not a natural
state of being.
685
00:38:28,310 --> 00:38:29,910
Mm-hm. Right?
686
00:38:29,950 --> 00:38:31,190
So...
687
00:38:31,230 --> 00:38:35,430
And it's one way to recognise
the humanity of the person
688
00:38:35,470 --> 00:38:40,150
who is living and navigating
through the system of slavery.
689
00:38:40,190 --> 00:38:45,390
And so because he's 28 here
and that's 1823,
690
00:38:45,430 --> 00:38:50,030
so that means he was born in 1795?
691
00:38:50,070 --> 00:38:52,150
About that time.
692
00:38:52,190 --> 00:38:55,030
One of the things is that,
for this period,
693
00:38:55,070 --> 00:38:58,270
it's very difficult
to get an exact date. OK.
694
00:38:58,310 --> 00:39:01,190
Because you don't have
birth certificates
695
00:39:01,230 --> 00:39:03,470
for persons born during slavery.
696
00:39:03,510 --> 00:39:07,590
You're considered an asset,
not a person.
697
00:39:07,630 --> 00:39:10,230
So this is a really
important document.
698
00:39:10,270 --> 00:39:12,150
It's a very important document.
699
00:39:12,190 --> 00:39:15,270
And I will tell you
that this is phenomenal. Really?
700
00:39:15,310 --> 00:39:20,110
Because most people cannot trace
their family this far back. Wow.
701
00:39:23,390 --> 00:39:26,190
Yeah. Did not expect
to find all this.
702
00:39:27,870 --> 00:39:31,750
I just want to know more. I want to
know more about George Thomas White.
703
00:39:31,790 --> 00:39:33,790
I want to know about his life.
704
00:39:33,830 --> 00:39:37,630
Just to understand what
he's been through because he...
705
00:39:39,230 --> 00:39:42,070
I feel like it really starts
here with him.
706
00:39:48,910 --> 00:39:53,630
I suppose, in a way, when half
of your heritage is Jamaican,
707
00:39:53,670 --> 00:39:57,910
there's that thought of, you know,
were my relatives enslaved
708
00:39:57,950 --> 00:40:00,110
at some stage in their life?
709
00:40:00,150 --> 00:40:04,270
But to actually be here
and trace right back
710
00:40:04,310 --> 00:40:07,830
and understand that my family
members have been through
711
00:40:07,870 --> 00:40:12,630
the most awful period of time
and been subjected to,
712
00:40:12,670 --> 00:40:18,270
you know, unimaginable lives,
really, erm, yeah, it's hard.
713
00:40:18,310 --> 00:40:21,590
It's hard to see it, you know,
right out in front of you.
714
00:40:21,630 --> 00:40:22,910
So I just want to know
715
00:40:22,950 --> 00:40:26,310
what my four times great-grandfather
went through
716
00:40:26,350 --> 00:40:30,390
because there's a big switch
from when he was enslaved,
717
00:40:30,430 --> 00:40:32,630
and then a generation down the line,
718
00:40:32,670 --> 00:40:35,470
it kind of changed a lot
for our family.
719
00:40:35,510 --> 00:40:39,310
We owned land and we were able
to pass that down
720
00:40:39,350 --> 00:40:41,230
to further generations.
721
00:40:41,270 --> 00:40:44,790
So I'd like to understand,
you know, the real root of it.
722
00:40:44,830 --> 00:40:48,830
What did they have to overcome
and how did they do it?
723
00:40:48,870 --> 00:40:53,350
Jess has now pushed her paternal
family tree back six generations
724
00:40:53,390 --> 00:40:55,390
to the 18th century.
725
00:40:55,430 --> 00:40:57,950
She's discovered land ownership
in the family
726
00:40:57,990 --> 00:41:00,910
as far back as her three times
great-grandfather,
727
00:41:00,950 --> 00:41:03,350
George McLeod white, but his father,
728
00:41:03,390 --> 00:41:07,430
her four times great-grandfather
George Thomas White
729
00:41:07,470 --> 00:41:11,390
was enslaved on a sugar estate,
where he worked as a cooper.
730
00:41:11,430 --> 00:41:15,710
To find out more about what
George's life might have been like,
731
00:41:15,750 --> 00:41:19,270
Jess is heading to Hampden Estate,
which has grown sugar cane
732
00:41:19,310 --> 00:41:22,750
and distilled it into rum
since the 1760s.
733
00:41:22,790 --> 00:41:26,710
She's joined by historian
Dr Suzanne Francis-Brown.
734
00:41:28,470 --> 00:41:30,870
So this is the old rum store. OK.
735
00:41:30,910 --> 00:41:36,110
So this is where the rum
is being kept
736
00:41:36,150 --> 00:41:38,550
in large casks for ageing.
737
00:41:38,590 --> 00:41:42,830
Your four times great-grandfather
would have used metal bands
738
00:41:42,870 --> 00:41:47,430
to hold them together so tightly
that the liquid would not escape.
739
00:41:47,470 --> 00:41:50,230
Wow. So he was...
He was a skilled man.
740
00:41:50,270 --> 00:41:53,430
Absolutely.
He would have been an artisan.
741
00:41:53,470 --> 00:41:57,270
It was one of the major skills
required on the estate.
742
00:41:58,750 --> 00:42:02,430
Jamaica was colonised
by Britain in 1655.
743
00:42:02,470 --> 00:42:06,510
Over one million people were
enslaved and transported from Africa
744
00:42:06,550 --> 00:42:09,590
to labour on the island's
sugar plantations.
745
00:42:09,630 --> 00:42:14,070
It soon became one of the world's
biggest producers of sugar and rum,
746
00:42:14,110 --> 00:42:18,150
generating enormous wealth
for British estate owners.
747
00:42:18,190 --> 00:42:23,590
Hundreds of thousands more, like
Jess's ancestor George Thomas White,
748
00:42:23,630 --> 00:42:25,950
were born into slavery.
749
00:42:25,990 --> 00:42:29,430
I found records of
my four times great-grandfather.
750
00:42:29,470 --> 00:42:34,550
He was enslaved, but I don't
know how long he was enslaved
751
00:42:34,590 --> 00:42:38,550
and I don't know what his life
would have been like.
752
00:42:38,590 --> 00:42:43,550
One of the ways in which we try
and find out a lot of information,
753
00:42:43,590 --> 00:42:48,150
we go back to something called the
slave returns or slave registers.
754
00:42:48,190 --> 00:42:53,430
Erm, and they give certain
sorts of information
755
00:42:53,470 --> 00:42:58,230
about all of the persons
who were enslaved in Jamaica. OK.
756
00:42:58,270 --> 00:43:05,590
So what I have here is the 1817
return for the Water Mount Estate,
757
00:43:05,630 --> 00:43:10,470
the property where your four times
great-grandfather was enslaved.
758
00:43:10,510 --> 00:43:13,030
So do you want to take a look?
759
00:43:13,070 --> 00:43:17,550
It starts here
with the owner's information.
760
00:43:17,590 --> 00:43:21,950
So I can see the owners
were James Williams
761
00:43:21,990 --> 00:43:24,110
and Ann Williams? Mm-hm.
762
00:43:25,270 --> 00:43:26,550
And...
763
00:43:27,750 --> 00:43:31,470
..this is a list of males
who were here.
764
00:43:33,230 --> 00:43:35,030
Erm... So many.
765
00:43:36,790 --> 00:43:40,270
I can see a Thomas there,
but he would be...
766
00:43:40,310 --> 00:43:42,630
He would be on here as George.
767
00:43:42,670 --> 00:43:46,750
Unfortunately, you're not going
to find George. Not like that.
768
00:43:46,790 --> 00:43:49,350
You're four times great-grandfather
769
00:43:49,390 --> 00:43:54,110
was baptised as
George Thomas White in 1823.
770
00:43:54,150 --> 00:43:55,990
This is 1817.
771
00:43:56,030 --> 00:44:00,550
We don't know what his name
was at that point.
772
00:44:00,590 --> 00:44:03,350
He could have had a completely
different name.
773
00:44:03,390 --> 00:44:05,790
He could have had a completely
different name.
774
00:44:05,830 --> 00:44:08,030
This would have been everybody
775
00:44:08,070 --> 00:44:11,990
that was living
on that estate in 1817.
776
00:44:12,030 --> 00:44:14,030
It's like a snapshot.
777
00:44:14,070 --> 00:44:18,230
So do you know how, you know,
the owners of a property like this
778
00:44:18,270 --> 00:44:21,390
would actually treat,
you know, enslaved people
779
00:44:21,430 --> 00:44:24,350
and what it would have been
like for them?
780
00:44:24,390 --> 00:44:26,790
Slavery was a brutal system,
781
00:44:26,830 --> 00:44:32,470
in the sense that it was about
people being used
782
00:44:32,510 --> 00:44:36,390
in the way machines
are presently used
783
00:44:36,430 --> 00:44:40,950
in order to create benefit
for their owners.
784
00:44:40,990 --> 00:44:46,190
On some estates, erm, overseers
would have been encouraged
785
00:44:46,230 --> 00:44:50,310
to use the whip to drive people
as hard as it was possible.
786
00:44:50,350 --> 00:44:54,830
They often worked
from daylight to sunset. Yeah.
787
00:44:54,870 --> 00:44:59,550
These people were part
of what made it economical
788
00:44:59,590 --> 00:45:02,070
to produce these products.
789
00:45:02,110 --> 00:45:04,790
Yeah. And with my four times
great-grandfather,
790
00:45:04,830 --> 00:45:08,670
George Thomas White,
I know that he was a cooper.
791
00:45:08,710 --> 00:45:13,790
Did he see an opportunity in life
beyond his existence here?
792
00:45:13,830 --> 00:45:20,710
So in 1833, an act was passed
for the abolition of slavery,
793
00:45:20,750 --> 00:45:24,790
but it included a number of caveats,
794
00:45:24,830 --> 00:45:29,190
one of the main ones
being that enslaved people
795
00:45:29,230 --> 00:45:35,510
should serve a period of another
four to six years as apprentices.
796
00:45:35,550 --> 00:45:39,070
Within the same estate?
Within the same estate.
797
00:45:39,110 --> 00:45:46,190
And you were bound to work
40.5 hours each week, free,
798
00:45:46,230 --> 00:45:50,430
for your former enslaver.
799
00:45:50,470 --> 00:45:54,110
My four times great-grandfather
must have been here feeling,
800
00:45:54,150 --> 00:45:57,510
"I'm going to be free,"
but then actually no.
801
00:45:57,550 --> 00:46:00,430
Mm-hm. Me sat here listening to that
802
00:46:00,470 --> 00:46:03,830
brings such a level of frustration
and disbelief.
803
00:46:03,870 --> 00:46:06,310
I can't imagine how it
must have felt.
804
00:46:06,350 --> 00:46:08,430
It's almost like
that carrot's been dangled,
805
00:46:08,470 --> 00:46:10,950
like, here's the potential,
this is what you could have,
806
00:46:10,990 --> 00:46:13,550
but it's not going to happen
for four to six years.
807
00:46:13,590 --> 00:46:16,190
Like, that is a long period. Yeah.
808
00:46:17,550 --> 00:46:20,590
Rather than abolish slavery
in Jamaica immediately,
809
00:46:20,630 --> 00:46:23,790
the British government introduced
a transitional period
810
00:46:23,830 --> 00:46:25,990
called the Apprenticeship System.
811
00:46:26,030 --> 00:46:30,830
Now known as an apprentice, Jess's
ancestor George Thomas White
812
00:46:30,870 --> 00:46:34,710
remained in forced labour
for 40.5 hours per week.
813
00:46:34,750 --> 00:46:39,710
Whilst enslaved, people had been
forced to work much longer hours,
814
00:46:39,750 --> 00:46:41,910
so to maintain their operations,
815
00:46:41,950 --> 00:46:45,790
estate owners offered additional
hours in return for a small wage,
816
00:46:45,830 --> 00:46:47,870
known as "work for hire".
817
00:46:49,670 --> 00:46:52,350
So here is another document,
818
00:46:52,390 --> 00:46:56,270
which is a copy of a dispatch from
the governor
819
00:46:56,310 --> 00:46:59,310
to the lord in England.
820
00:46:59,350 --> 00:47:04,590
OK, so the estates where
apprentices work for hire.
821
00:47:04,630 --> 00:47:05,950
Right.
822
00:47:05,990 --> 00:47:09,070
So I'm looking for Water Mount.
823
00:47:11,590 --> 00:47:16,990
So Water Mount here and it says,
"Refuse to work for hire."
824
00:47:17,030 --> 00:47:20,470
Right. So everybody said
they don't want the...
825
00:47:20,510 --> 00:47:22,350
A large number of...
826
00:47:22,390 --> 00:47:25,190
The majority, they don't
want the extra hours.
827
00:47:25,230 --> 00:47:27,790
They don't want to do any more work.
828
00:47:27,830 --> 00:47:30,950
The hope was that whatever extra
hours the planters offered,
829
00:47:30,990 --> 00:47:33,310
the apprentices would take up,
830
00:47:33,350 --> 00:47:36,430
and they would therefore earn
some additional money for that,
831
00:47:36,470 --> 00:47:40,030
and the planters would get
the labour that they needed. OK.
832
00:47:40,070 --> 00:47:43,830
So in in this instance...
It's been refused.
833
00:47:43,870 --> 00:47:47,870
Right. So... So they were offered...
But they absolutely have refused.
834
00:47:47,910 --> 00:47:49,990
At this point, the planters know
835
00:47:50,030 --> 00:47:52,710
that they're losing
their labour force.
836
00:47:52,750 --> 00:47:56,190
Yeah, I suppose that
they were losing control.
837
00:47:56,230 --> 00:47:58,310
You know, the plantation owners.
838
00:47:58,350 --> 00:48:02,510
It just speaks so loudly
that George Thomas White,
839
00:48:02,550 --> 00:48:06,070
he was potentially one
of those people that said,
840
00:48:06,110 --> 00:48:11,110
"No, I'm not giving
any more to this estate.
841
00:48:11,150 --> 00:48:12,910
"Enough's enough."
842
00:48:12,950 --> 00:48:14,430
And that...
843
00:48:14,470 --> 00:48:17,670
You know, that makes me
incredibly proud
844
00:48:17,710 --> 00:48:20,550
that he was one of those people.
845
00:48:20,590 --> 00:48:25,750
So do we know what he went to do,
you know, when he was set free?
846
00:48:25,790 --> 00:48:30,310
We have some good ideas
which we're going to share with you.
847
00:48:32,030 --> 00:48:34,190
Jess and Suzanne are travelling
848
00:48:34,230 --> 00:48:36,710
to what was once
the Water Mount Estate,
849
00:48:36,750 --> 00:48:39,790
the place where George Thomas White
was enslaved.
850
00:48:41,390 --> 00:48:43,470
It's quite a strange feeling to...
851
00:48:44,510 --> 00:48:46,310
..be stood here.
852
00:48:46,350 --> 00:48:51,270
This view probably
hasn't changed that much.
853
00:48:51,310 --> 00:48:53,550
It's what he would have seen.
854
00:48:55,030 --> 00:48:56,990
It feels quite sombre.
855
00:48:57,030 --> 00:48:58,990
It just feels like it's got...
856
00:49:00,030 --> 00:49:03,510
..I don't know, quite a negative
energy I feel walking down here.
857
00:49:06,790 --> 00:49:09,910
So do you think this building
was here?
858
00:49:09,950 --> 00:49:14,310
Well, not in its current state
because this is a modern structure.
859
00:49:14,350 --> 00:49:17,750
Yeah. But it's on old...
It's on old foundations.
860
00:49:17,790 --> 00:49:20,630
You can see... Yeah, yeah.
All the way around.
861
00:49:20,670 --> 00:49:22,390
Oh, look down here.
862
00:49:23,670 --> 00:49:25,430
Is that 1764?
863
00:49:25,470 --> 00:49:27,150
That sure is.
864
00:49:27,190 --> 00:49:29,990
Those are initials at the top.
Can you see?
865
00:49:30,030 --> 00:49:31,870
It's something "W". Mm-hm.
866
00:49:31,910 --> 00:49:34,390
Is this James Williams
that was the owner
867
00:49:34,430 --> 00:49:37,230
on the slave registration forms?
868
00:49:37,270 --> 00:49:42,350
So this would actually
have been James Williams's father,
869
00:49:42,390 --> 00:49:44,790
who was also James Williams. OK.
870
00:49:44,830 --> 00:49:47,590
And he was the earlier owner
of the estate.
871
00:49:47,630 --> 00:49:50,510
And then passed down.
And then it was passed down.
872
00:49:50,550 --> 00:49:52,710
That's crazy to see that.
873
00:49:54,710 --> 00:49:57,550
You feel how deep those
incisions are. Yeah.
874
00:49:59,110 --> 00:50:03,070
But, yeah, it's very strange
to think that it's still here
875
00:50:03,110 --> 00:50:04,990
after all those years.
876
00:50:05,030 --> 00:50:07,070
1764. Mm-hm.
877
00:50:07,110 --> 00:50:11,590
And it obviously carries
so much history and emotion
878
00:50:11,630 --> 00:50:13,750
and a lot of pain.
879
00:50:13,790 --> 00:50:15,670
It feels quite eerie.
880
00:50:15,710 --> 00:50:18,590
You know, that connection
with me standing here,
881
00:50:18,630 --> 00:50:20,830
looking at that, reading that.
882
00:50:20,870 --> 00:50:23,870
It just collapses time. Yeah. Yeah.
883
00:50:26,590 --> 00:50:29,070
I feel like I've found out
so much more
884
00:50:29,110 --> 00:50:31,870
about my fourth time
great-grandfather already,
885
00:50:31,910 --> 00:50:36,070
but I still don't understand where
the land came from in our family
886
00:50:36,110 --> 00:50:38,870
and how did we acquire this land?
887
00:50:38,910 --> 00:50:41,310
I think the first thing to think
888
00:50:41,350 --> 00:50:45,350
is that your four times
great-grandfather had abilities
889
00:50:45,390 --> 00:50:47,590
that allowed him to earn.
890
00:50:49,270 --> 00:50:53,310
He was a cooper,
so after the emancipation,
891
00:50:53,350 --> 00:50:56,910
his skills would have continued
to be important.
892
00:50:56,950 --> 00:51:01,230
Sugar and rum continued to be
important parts of the economy.
893
00:51:01,270 --> 00:51:03,510
So from that period on,
894
00:51:03,550 --> 00:51:07,190
he'd have been more or less
in control of his circumstances.
895
00:51:07,230 --> 00:51:10,030
Yeah. But I think you'll
be interested in this.
896
00:51:10,070 --> 00:51:15,590
So this is actually, erm,
a land conveyance document.
897
00:51:15,630 --> 00:51:19,190
"This indenture made
between James Williams
898
00:51:19,230 --> 00:51:21,350
"of that part of the United Kingdom
899
00:51:21,390 --> 00:51:24,790
"and George Thomas White
of the parish of St John...
900
00:51:26,070 --> 00:51:30,990
"..that in consideration
of the sum of £160."
901
00:51:32,430 --> 00:51:38,070
And it says, "Assigns all those two
several pieces or parcels of land
902
00:51:38,110 --> 00:51:40,190
"being in the parish of St John,
903
00:51:40,230 --> 00:51:42,870
"being part of the
Water Mount Estate,
904
00:51:42,910 --> 00:51:46,270
"the one parcel
containing 25 acres."
905
00:51:47,630 --> 00:51:51,110
So there's obviously been
some kind of...
906
00:51:52,150 --> 00:51:54,470
..transferring of land. Mm-hm.
907
00:51:54,510 --> 00:51:59,710
So it's a legal exchange... OK.
..that is made in 1840.
908
00:51:59,750 --> 00:52:01,950
So in November 1840.
909
00:52:01,990 --> 00:52:04,950
So two years after
the end of slavery
910
00:52:04,990 --> 00:52:08,510
and the land at Water Mount
which is being transferred
911
00:52:08,550 --> 00:52:10,470
had belonged to James Williams.
912
00:52:10,510 --> 00:52:12,830
Yeah. Who's... Who's the owner.
913
00:52:12,870 --> 00:52:14,950
And it's being purchased...
914
00:52:16,270 --> 00:52:18,470
By George Thomas White. Right.
915
00:52:18,510 --> 00:52:21,270
Obviously my four time
great-grandfather. Right.
916
00:52:21,310 --> 00:52:23,350
But how does that happen?
917
00:52:23,390 --> 00:52:25,470
I have so many questions.
918
00:52:25,510 --> 00:52:27,150
Like, how... OK.
919
00:52:27,190 --> 00:52:30,150
Firstly, what happened
to the estate?
920
00:52:30,190 --> 00:52:34,030
You know, did it just
completely shut down?
921
00:52:34,070 --> 00:52:39,470
So in post-emancipation Jamaica,
a lot of estates got into trouble,
922
00:52:39,510 --> 00:52:42,270
and obviously that was the case
with Water Mount.
923
00:52:42,310 --> 00:52:46,590
They subdivided at least
a part of the estate into parcels
924
00:52:46,630 --> 00:52:51,150
and they sold it to
whomever would purchase.
925
00:52:51,190 --> 00:52:55,950
And one of the persons
who had the interest
926
00:52:55,990 --> 00:53:00,630
and the capacity to purchase was
your four times great-grandfather...
927
00:53:00,670 --> 00:53:03,710
George. ..George Thomas White.
928
00:53:03,750 --> 00:53:06,870
But how did he afford
to buy this land?
929
00:53:06,910 --> 00:53:11,750
He had skills
and a set of circumstances
930
00:53:11,790 --> 00:53:15,310
that put him at an advantage
compared to, for instance,
931
00:53:15,350 --> 00:53:17,830
many of the field labourers.
932
00:53:17,870 --> 00:53:22,270
So he would have had potential to
perhaps earn slightly more money...
933
00:53:22,310 --> 00:53:25,710
Right. ..through what he
could do on the estate.
934
00:53:25,750 --> 00:53:29,270
I mean, what an absolute change.
935
00:53:29,310 --> 00:53:33,070
Like massive, drastic
change of circumstances.
936
00:53:33,110 --> 00:53:36,230
I mean, he didn't even have
basic rights, really.
937
00:53:36,270 --> 00:53:39,590
He didn't have, you know,
control over his life
938
00:53:39,630 --> 00:53:42,550
and, you know, how he worked
and what he did,
939
00:53:42,590 --> 00:53:45,550
to then, you know,
come to owning land
940
00:53:45,590 --> 00:53:49,070
and been really in control
of his future
941
00:53:49,110 --> 00:53:51,590
and his destiny is huge.
942
00:53:51,630 --> 00:53:54,710
And if you asked him at the end
of it what was important,
943
00:53:54,750 --> 00:53:56,910
I bet that he wouldn't have
said slavery
944
00:53:56,950 --> 00:53:58,950
was the most important thing. Yeah.
945
00:53:58,990 --> 00:54:02,790
You know, my family are so proud
of the land that they have.
946
00:54:02,830 --> 00:54:04,750
You know, they're always...
947
00:54:04,790 --> 00:54:07,270
"We've got this land
and it's been passed down."
948
00:54:07,310 --> 00:54:09,550
And, you know,
such a sense of pride.
949
00:54:09,590 --> 00:54:12,270
And that all comes
from George Thomas White.
950
00:54:13,830 --> 00:54:17,310
To finish her journey,
Jess is taking her dad Vinnie
951
00:54:17,350 --> 00:54:20,590
to visit the plot that her
ancestor George Thomas White
952
00:54:20,630 --> 00:54:23,470
bought after being freed
from slavery.
953
00:54:25,590 --> 00:54:27,910
Hi. Hi, I'm Jess. I'm Julius White.
954
00:54:27,950 --> 00:54:30,190
Nice to meet you, Julius.
Nice to meet you.
955
00:54:30,230 --> 00:54:33,030
Are you from the White family?
I'm from the white family.
956
00:54:33,070 --> 00:54:35,550
Oh, nice to meet you.
This is my dad. Yes. Hello, Julius.
957
00:54:35,590 --> 00:54:38,550
Nice to meet you, man.
Nice to meet you. All right.
958
00:54:38,590 --> 00:54:41,630
Is this all your land?
This is the land.
959
00:54:41,670 --> 00:54:45,230
So if you'd like to take a look
and whatever, just come along.
960
00:54:45,270 --> 00:54:48,030
Yeah, we'd love to.
Just show us the way.
961
00:54:48,070 --> 00:54:49,870
OK. No problem.
962
00:54:49,910 --> 00:54:54,510
Julius White is also a direct
descendant of George Thomas White,
963
00:54:54,550 --> 00:54:57,070
so the land is still in the family.
964
00:54:57,110 --> 00:55:00,110
It was passed down
through the generations
965
00:55:00,150 --> 00:55:03,070
from what would be
my great-grandfather.
966
00:55:03,110 --> 00:55:04,590
OK. Yeah.
967
00:55:04,630 --> 00:55:07,750
Coming down to my grandfather.
Coming down to my father.
968
00:55:07,790 --> 00:55:10,550
And then it came down to us.
To you. Yeah.
969
00:55:10,590 --> 00:55:13,350
So, George Thomas White
would be what to you, guys?
970
00:55:13,390 --> 00:55:15,550
My fourth time great-grandfather. So
971
00:55:15,590 --> 00:55:19,070
great-great-great-great-grandfather.
Great-grandfather. Yeah.
972
00:55:19,110 --> 00:55:22,230
You see where we're coming from
with this? Yeah, yeah.
973
00:55:22,270 --> 00:55:25,790
So we are just one family.
One family. Yeah.
974
00:55:25,830 --> 00:55:28,510
It's so amazing to be here,
975
00:55:28,550 --> 00:55:32,950
standing in land that goes
so far back in our family...
976
00:55:32,990 --> 00:55:35,430
Yeah. ..and meet
a long-lost relative.
977
00:55:35,470 --> 00:55:38,270
Yeah. You know... It's just...
It's just incredible.
978
00:55:38,310 --> 00:55:39,990
Yeah. Me too, guys.
979
00:55:43,310 --> 00:55:46,070
I didn't imagine
that I would be stood here
980
00:55:46,110 --> 00:55:48,830
at the beginning
of this whole journey.
981
00:55:48,870 --> 00:55:50,710
It's incredible to think...
982
00:55:51,750 --> 00:55:54,070
..what, you know, my fourth time
great-grandfather
983
00:55:54,110 --> 00:55:55,510
George Thomas White
984
00:55:55,550 --> 00:55:58,950
went through in his life,
but he never gave up.
985
00:55:58,990 --> 00:56:02,550
I definitely wanted to find out
more about, you know,
986
00:56:02,590 --> 00:56:05,830
did that kind of grit
and determination that I had
987
00:56:05,870 --> 00:56:08,550
throughout my kind of career
within sport,
988
00:56:08,590 --> 00:56:10,590
did that come from anywhere?
989
00:56:10,630 --> 00:56:13,270
And I've seen that
massively demonstrated
990
00:56:13,310 --> 00:56:15,150
and what he went through.
991
00:56:15,190 --> 00:56:18,230
I think that displays
the most resilience
992
00:56:18,270 --> 00:56:20,790
and determination I've ever seen.
993
00:56:20,830 --> 00:56:24,470
And if I got an ounce of that
from him, then, I mean,
994
00:56:24,510 --> 00:56:27,910
that's, you know,
an amazing thing to have.
995
00:56:29,670 --> 00:56:32,990
I think both my
great-great-grandmother Maud
996
00:56:33,030 --> 00:56:35,630
and also George Thomas White,
you know,
997
00:56:35,670 --> 00:56:38,750
they both hadn't got an identity,
essentially.
998
00:56:38,790 --> 00:56:40,710
You know, Maud was a number.
999
00:56:40,750 --> 00:56:44,310
She was a patient on a ward and
she didn't have a voice to speak.
1000
00:56:44,350 --> 00:56:46,430
And also George Thomas White,
1001
00:56:46,470 --> 00:56:49,550
he belonged to an establishment,
to a place.
1002
00:56:49,590 --> 00:56:52,070
You know, they are
tough circumstances
1003
00:56:52,110 --> 00:56:54,070
to navigate yourself through.
1004
00:56:54,110 --> 00:56:56,950
And, yeah, it's been
an incredible journey
1005
00:56:56,990 --> 00:57:00,270
to uncover more about
those two individuals.
1006
00:57:01,750 --> 00:57:06,830
I think the overriding feeling
that I've come away with is pride.
1007
00:57:06,870 --> 00:57:11,870
It's made me view our family
and where we come from
1008
00:57:11,910 --> 00:57:13,590
in a completely different light.
1009
00:57:13,630 --> 00:57:16,830
And I get to share all these
findings and memories
1010
00:57:16,870 --> 00:57:20,190
and experiences with the
rest of my family back home.
1011
00:57:20,230 --> 00:57:23,830
And that's really, really special.