People on board

WARBROOK, James Alfred

James & Annie Warbrook (source Marie Dardis)

James Warbrook was born in 1867 to George Warbrook and Julia McKenny, the eldest of seven children. George died before the 1901 census so it is not known where he was born, but Julia was from Co Meath which is where they were married in 1866. James was born in Rathmoyle near Edenderry, King’s Co (now Offaly), the first of many moves the family were to make. George’s occupation, as given on the birth certs of his children, was a ‘Labourer’ or, on one occasion a ‘Ploughman’ and they lived in Youghal and Navan before moving to Dublin about 1875. Again in Dublin there was a variety of addresses, all in the south inner city area. George died in 1888 and the same year James married Annie Dunne who had been born in Manchester, but was then working as a ‘Servant’ in Ranelagh.

James, known as Jem, and Annie had three children, Alfred, Anne Emily and Maud, and again like his parents, each was born at a different address; Dorset St, North Frederick St and Muckross Parade off the North Circular Road. In the 1901 census they were at Longwood Avenue in the Wood Quay area.

James gave his occupation as ‘Sorter GPO’ at the birth of his three children, but at the time of the final birth in 1893 he was a ‘Marble Stone Cutter’. However in both subsequent censuses he was back as ‘Sorting Clerk and Telegraphist GPO’ and by 1911 they were living at Wolsely Street off the South Circular Road. This remained the family home for some decades.

James was working in the mailroom of the RMS Leinster on the 10th October 1918 and was declared missing. His body was never recovered, but his name is recorded on the memorial to the deceased Post Office workers in both Dun Laoghaire Post Office and the G.P.O.. He had thirty-one years’ service with the Post Office.

There was further misery for his widow Annie when their youngest daughter Maud died in 1924 from T.B. and Annie herself died the following year. Their only son Alfred died in 1927 also from T.B. All were buried in Glasnevin cemetery.  Emily married in 1937 at the age of forty-six.