John Kirby - humble beginnings to Professor of Music
Whilst looking through the 1851 Census for Halsall, I spotted a little boy by the name of John Kirkby [KJGJ-ZCG] who was 4 years old and listed as a scholar. He was one of the youngest pupils attending the school at that time; the school was actually situated in a part of St. Cuthbert’s church – what is now the choir vestry in fact.
John was the son of Ellen Porter [M66G-QLQ], a dressmaker and Thomas Kirby [M66G-Q2K], a farm labourer and the family lived on New Street. John was born on 11th November 1846 and baptised at Halsall church on 29th November 1846. The couple also had a daughter, Ann [9JN3-216] who was born in 1845 and she too attended school in 1851.
Some Family Background
Thomas Kirby and family lived in the centre of the village of Halsall, close to the church. His parents were Martha West [MRQZ-366] (originally from Yorkshire) and John Kirkby [MTQZ-3DB], a labourer. In 1841, Thomas Kirby was listed as living and working in Renacres Lane for Michael Charnock, a farmer. No doubt, this is how Ellen and Thomas met; they were married at St. Nicholas Church in Liverpool on 15th October 1843.
On Wednesday 12th August 1858, at the age of only 35 years, Ellen passed away; she suffered haemorrhaging from the lungs and anaemia. Her husband Thomas would have been at work no doubt and their children at school. Richard Blundell the Registrar was with Ellen at the time of her death. Her daughter Ann was 13 years old and son John only 11 years old at the time.
A few years later, Ellen’s husband Thomas formed a relationship with another woman, Ellen Parkinson [LW5R-VRN] and they had a son together, James Kirby [P9J2-GY9] who was born in Halsall on 9th December 1860, a half-brother for Ann and John. After their marriage on 5th February 1861, Thomas and his new wife Ellen and their baby boy were living in Bootle, Liverpool. They later moved to Birkenhead and had 4 more children – half-siblings of John. Thomas worked as a coal merchant. The year 1877 however proved to be extremely cruel – Thomas died in June and his wife Ellen died in December – therefore leaving 5 orphaned children to fend for themselves.
John had remained in Halsall when his father moved to Bootle with his new family. He lived with his uncle, Richard Kirby [MRQC-XYP] and grandmother Martha Kirby in the centre of the village – very convenient for the church and the school, both of which had a profound effect on John Kirby as we will see as his story unfolds…
By 1861 John had become a Pupil Teacher at Halsall School. It was in this year that the school moved from its home in the church to the old tithe barn on Summerwood Lane; therefore John would have been involved in this transition and one of the first to teach at the school in its new location. Pupil teachers were often bright children chosen from working class backgrounds. They trained ‘on the job’ and took examinations to become National School teachers
Moving forward to the 1871 census, John Kirby had secured a position as a schoolmaster in the village of Thornes, Wakefield, Yorkshire. He was also the organist and choirmaster of St. Michael’s church in Wakefield and of the West Yorkshire Plain Song Choral Union.
A year later, on 29th August 1872, John married Elizabeth Bradley [P9JB-BVG], the daughter of an iron founder who also lived in Thornes with her family. On the marriage certificate John’s occupation was given as organist. Initially the couple lived in Moor Cottage, Horbury Road, Westgate Common, Thornes. Not long after however they were living in King’s Sutton, Oxfordshire and had two children – Kathleen Helen [GNNM-ZW1], born in 1873 and Oswald Farquhar [P9F9-8VH], born in 1875.
On 28th October 1875 John Kirby’s name appeared in the Banbury Advertiser referring to the fact that he had passed his first examination for the degree of Bachelor of Music.
Professionally John was the organist and choirmaster of King Sutton’s church, Banbury and of the Peterborough Diocesan Church Association. In addition he was an examiner in musical theory to the National Society and conductor of the Brackley Music Association. It seems John had been a pupil of the English composer and organist, Sir John Stainer who, amongst many other achievements, was the organist at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London. John Stainer – Wikipedia.
Tragically, in the summer of 1876, history repeated itself, like his mother, his wife, Elizabeth passed away, at an early age just 29 years old, leaving John with two very young children.
In 1877, in his early thirties and also the year his father and step-mother both died, John applied for the post of organist at St. Mary’s Episcopal church in Aberdeen and was successful. By 1880 he had been appointed as the organist to the Aberdeen Music Hall Company and in 1881 he was the conductor of the Aberdeen Choral Union and the Aberdeen Madrigal Choir. As leader of the Madrigal Choir , he performed on several occasions for Queen Victoria at Balmoral Castle and was said to have received hearty congratulations and several tokens of thanks from her.
John met his second wife in the mid 1880s; Jane Robson [P9F9-2D1] was born in Aberdeen and also trained to be a teacher. They were married in 1886 and by 1891 the couple were living in 3 Craibstone Street, Aberdeen with their two children Percival Robson [MCCD-VRS] and Gladys May [P9F9-14D] aged 3 and 1 respectively. John’s teenage children from his first marriage were also living with them.
John’s two older children left home to train as teachers themselves; Oswald then emigrated to South Africa. Kathleen moved to Fulham in London where she continued to teach. She also co-authored a book with Heinrich Heine ‘Poems: Translations from Heine’ which was published in 1949, the year of Kathleen’s death. John’s youngest daughter, Gladys May married John Munro and they emigrated to Perth, Australia.
John’s youngest son, Percival Robson Kirby became a teacher and eventually a Professor of Music like his father. He also emigrated to South Africa where he wrote many books, becoming an internationally acclaimed historian and musicologist. Percival collected rare musical instruments (600+ in total) which are now kept at the South African College of Music; they can be viewed on the University of Cape Town’s website.Home · Percival Kirby Musical Instruments · Ibali.
Follow the link to read more about him Percival Kirby – Wikipedia
John Kirby died on 12th August 1905 in Aberdeen. In his obituary, published in the Aberdeen Daily Journal on 14th August 1905, we are told ‘Mr. Kirby was a Lancashire man having been born at Halsall near Liverpool in 1846’. In addition to his many roles and talents, we learn that he was the conductor of the Aberdeen University Choral Society and was ‘very popular with the students’. He was also a professor of singing and theory of music at the church of Scotland Training College in Aberdeen. ‘He had no equal as a choirmaster or conductor of choral music’.
As to his personality, we gather a lot about him throughout his life:- ‘Mr. Kirby was a keen, alert, active and enthusiastic young fellow – a year or two over thirty – and full of ambition’… ‘the secret of his lasting popularity, perhaps, was to a very large extent, dependent on his marvellous magnetic personality’ … ‘agreeable and attractive fluency of speech, a quick, keen wit, subtle humour – mild and inoffensive, though pungent – cynicism and sarcasm that delighted’.
After his death, such was his popularity, that it was proposed that the people of the city of Aberdeen would be asked to contribute, by subscription, to a memorial in his honour. This became a reality and an impressive head stone was erected over his grave in Allenvale Cemetery, Aberdeen.
We never know where genealogy will take us or what interesting stories we will encounter; this has to be one of the more inspiring discoveries I have made in recent times. Overcoming such heartache and adversity is admirable and shows the character of the little four year old boy from Halsall. I wish I could have met John Kirby!
If anybody is related to John Kirby and has a photograph of him, we would be grateful to receive a copy. Many thanks.
