Alice Sarah Jane

Father: Thomas Jane (1829-1873)

Mother: Sarah Coad (1830-1869)

Born March 4, 1869, at Blackheath, Lanhydrock, Cornwall.

Died July 21, 1943, at St. Austell, Cornwall

Spouse: John Clarke (1863-1939)

Alice's mother died at her birth, and her father died only four years later. After her father's death, relatives took care of the eight children, but after two years decided to put the three youngest and Eva in the George Muller Home in Bristol. We believe she was fairly happy there. She loved to talk about it. Life was not easy there; it was very strict. They were required to do a lot of work: washing, cleaning, making beds. Food was very plain and not very much of it. They had some recreation, games, and fun. They had prayers morning and evening. George Muller was very religious and always wanted to be a missionary. He started the orphanage with a small building and kept getting larger buildings. All the money and food to run the home came through prayer. Alice said there were times when they were not sure if there was enough food for the next meal, but it always came.

Alice left the home between 16 and 17 years of age, and went to Sennen, Cornwall. She worked for a Church of England Vicar there for five pounds a year. The Vicar had three girls to do the work. The food was poor and sometimes barely enough to eat. Alice sang in the church choir there. She had a very good soprano voice and loved to sing.

After about three years at Sennen, she went to St. Austell, Cornwall, to work for John Lovering. He had a big interest in the china clay industry. This was a much better place to work--better pay and more food. One of the girls she used to work with asked her to go to her home on the other side of St. Austell, at Carclaze. It was there she met John Clarke, who had come home from America. It was only a mile and a half from where she worked, but after they were acquainted, John used to go to get her and take her home in his pony and trap. She loved that--it was something she hadn't been used to.

Children:

  1. F Bertha May Clarke (1895-1963)
  2. M William John Clarke (May 31, 1897-June 16, 1970)
  3. M Percy Clarke (March 2, 1902-February 14, 1909)
  4. M Alfred Clarke (1903-1980)
  5. M Fred Clarke (October 1, 1904-April 22, 1956)
  6. M Thomas Henry Clarke (1905-2000)

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Modified January 27, 2018