Mary Greenwood

Abt 1812 - 1879  (67 years)

• Name	Mary Greenwood
  Born	Abt 1812	Elton, nr Sandbach
  Gender	Female
  Baptism	5 Dec 1813	St Leonard, Warmingham   [1]
  Died	3 Nov 1879	Sandbach   [2]
  Person ID	I69269	Canal Family 1
  Last Modified	2 Jun 2026

  
  

  Father	William Greenwood
  Family ID	F22246	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family 1	Ralph Ruscoe,   b. 1792, Burland, nr Nantwich ,   d. 7 Jan 1848, Elton, nr Sandbach  (Age 56 years)
  Married	20 Feb 1832	Manchester Cathedral   [3]
  Children	1. John Ruscoe,   b. 1833, Elton ,   d. Bef 1911  (Age < 77 years)   2. Joseph Ruscoe,   b. 1835, Elton   3. William Ruscoe,   b. Abt 1836, Elton   4. Ralph Ruscoe,   b. 2 Jan 1838, Elton ,   d. 1838, Elton   5. Martha Ruscoe,   b. 1841, Elton   6. Thomas Ruscoe,   b. 12 Jun 1843, Elton   7. Ralph Ruscoe,   b. 28 Dec 1846, Elton
  Last Modified	2 Jun 2026
  Family ID	F22242	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family 2	Nathaniel Stubbs,   b. 1814, Middlewich ,   d. 7 Nov 1852, Runcorn  (Age 38 years)
  Married	22 Jun 1848	St Michael and All Angels, Middlewich   [4]
  Children	1. Elizabeth Stubbs,   b. Abt Aug 1849, Elton   2. Matthew Stubbs,   b. 10 Dec 1851, Elton ,   d. 25 Jan 1854, Elton  (Age 2 years)
  Last Modified	2 Jun 2026
  Family ID	F22244	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Notes

  Two possible baptisms at St Leonard, Warmingham:- 5.5.1811 to William and Sarah; 5.12.1813 (as Maria) to William and Mary. Maria on Ralph's death certificate. Mary's death certificate states: 'Accidentally drowned in Trent and Mersey Canal.' A lengthy report on the Nov 5 inquest at the Rookery Tavern, Sandbach, appeared in The Advertiser on Nov 8. Evidence was given by Mary's son Thomas, of the Rookery, Ettily Heath, who said that he last saw his mother alive on Nov 1 when he left home on his boat for Runcorn with his wife and family, and he did not hear of her death until the day of the inquest. A neighbour Edward Estcourt, also a boatman, (qv - aka Edwin Estcourt) said he had known the family for 30 years. Mary left his house after tea about 7pm when it was very dark, and would have walked along the towpath. After a few minutes his daughter heard a scream so went out with a lamp and saw her struggling in the water. He went to get a clothes prop to pull her out. She was face down in the water and he pulled her to the bank side, which took about 10 minutes. Water was coming from her mouth. The Coroner questioned why he did not try to restore her breathing, or why he had not jumped in 'like a man to fetch her out'. Estcourt said he had pulled people out five times before but never been recompensed. Summing up, the Coroner said of Estcourt: 'This man, instead of doing what any Englishman with a grain of pluck in him would have done, goes down his garden to fetch a clothes prop when he knew the water was only three feet deep, then stands on the towpath trying to fish her out.' He said there were instructions for treating the apparently drowned which someone on the canal for so many years should have known. He told the jury that the only proper verdict they could return was that 'the deceased fell into the water and was drowned'. They returned their verdict accordingly.

  
  

• Sources

  [S010113] Cheshire Bishop's Transcripts (Ancestry). [S010060] DC. [S305737] Lancashire Marriages and Banns (Ancestry). [S010069] MC.