A life
The story, in order
1931
Born in Whitby
Eldest of four, born above the family bakery.
1952
Qualified as a teacher
Trained at the college in Scarborough.
Spring 1956
Married Edward
At St. Hilda's, in the rain, by all accounts happily.
1956–1996
Forty years of the infants' class
Three generations learned their letters with her.
1960s onward
The August gatherings
The whole family, every summer, at Sandsend.
2019
At rest
In the churchyard she taught beside for forty years.
Her life, in full
A written life
Marguerite was born above her father's bakery in Whitby in the spring of 1931, the eldest of four. She trained as a schoolteacher, married Edward in 1956, and for forty years taught the infants' class at St. Hilda's — where, it's said, three generations of the same families learned their letters at her knee.
She kept a garden that spilled over its walls with sweet peas, and a habit of writing letters that outlived the people who received them. When the family scattered — to London, to Toronto, to Lagos — it was her weekly letters that held them together.
She is remembered for her patience, her ginger cake, and an unshakeable belief that no story was ever truly lost as long as someone still told it.
Photographs
As we remember
In her own voice
Recordings
Marguerite reading aloud, recorded 2016.
From those who remember
Tributes
“She taught us to read. We have not forgotten.”
“I never met my great-grandmother, but I have her ginger cake recipe and now, her voice. Thank you for keeping her.”
“Grandma's letters are still in my drawer. I read them when the world feels far away.”