Third Generation

4. Mary Ann HARRIS [101243] (Elizabeth Ann TREGLOWN², William¹) was born in Feb 1865 in Clifton Bristol Gloucestershire England and died on 28 Jan 1941 in Aylesbury Buckinghamshire England at age 75.
            Another name for Mary was Maria Flora Barbara CONNOR.

General Notes: In a Document received from Roasmund [Bryn] Anthony in August 2013, she included the following, including extracts from Marie's Book, "Tempestuous Petticoats":
Marie Connor was educated at Marquise, in the Pas-de-Calais district of Northern France, and at Tunbridge Wells.Tempestuous Petticoat reveals that Marie told the story of how she had her first "love affair" with a window cleaner (married with eight children) at the age of 10; their passion discovered there was a terrible row: "The poor window cleaner was threatened with the law, and my parents sent me off to a convent in Northern France. They thought I'd be safe there, but actually I proceeded to fall in love at one and the same time with the Mother Superior and the priest, and ended up by becoming a devout Catholic." Something in her letters alerted her parents and she was brought back to England.
She had "short stays" at an unfashionable "finishing school" in Tunbridge Wells, but was taken out of school when funds were low and allowed to do as she pleased at home. "Her parents had no interest in her education. Although they liked her to associate with these diplomats' daughters, they sent her to school chiefly in order to keep her out of mischief, in the same way that she had been dispatched to a convent in France." The school, run by Miss Fanny Dothie, was called The Elms.
"Her Trelawny mother and her Irish father had little interest in her. Left to her own devices, she had devoted her time to writing. When she was only just able to form her letters she saved her pocket money for many weeks, and with this accumulated wealth bought a large supply of paper, pens and ink. Little Pattie, as her parents called her, was always a quiet child, and so nobody wondered what kept her satisfactorily occupied in her bedroom all the day long. But a few months later they discovered, for someone from a London publishing house came to visit her. It seems she was copying an entire novel by Mrs. Henry Wood, word for word, and sending it to the publisher as her own. The trick was found out, but the publisher was so puzzled by the childish handwriting that he took the trouble to come and see what sort of person had undertaken such an absurd labour...
"On her return from the French convent, she fell in love with Wilson Barrett, a well-known actor of those days, and he became the inspiration for her poems. She was also stage-struck. This caused many family tussles. Finally her parents decided that the only thing to cure her would be a short time on the stage, in order that she might see how glamourless it was. And so, when she was about fifteen, Wilson Barrett took her on tour. She was chaperoned and accompanied by her self-sacrificing Aunt Pollie..."
The tour cured her of her of any ambitions to take to the stage. "I found no romance anywhere--only hard work and the tiredness of everybody," her daughter quoted her as saying, although she remained in contact with Wilson Barrett, even during his trips to America. On her return home she informed her family that she had made up her mind to write books. She had her first novel published in 1884. The rest, as they say, is literary history.
In the Final Paragraphs of her Document, Rosamund states:
Of her birth I can still find no record. However, there is perhaps a vital clue in Clare Leighton's account of her mother, Tempestuous Petticoat, which mentions in passing that Aunt Pollie [Mary Trelawny] later moved to Canada to live with Marie Connor Leighton's half-brother in Toronto. Presumably this would be Valentine Alexander Nenon Connor, known to have moved to Canada.
The term "half-brother" implies that she was either born during James Nenon Connor's first marriage to Eliza Jones (1857-64), or was, perhaps the daughter of Elizabeth Ann Trelawny, who's marriage to James Nenon Connor was registered under the name Elizabeth Ann Harris. I've yet to find a marriage of a Trelawny to Harris and have no idea if this resulted in any children.

Mary married Robert LEIGHTON [101244], son of Robert LEIGHTON [101245] and Elizabeth [101246], in 1889 in Marylebone Middlesex England. Robert was born circa 1858 in Ayr Ayrshire Scotland and died on 11 May 1934 at age 76.

Children from this marriage were:

   8 U    i. Unknown LEIGHTON [101252] was born before 1895. The cause of her death was accidentally smothered by a Nurse. (Infant Death)

   9 M    ii. Roland Aubrey LEIGHTON [101253] was born on 27 Mar 1895 in St John's Wood London England and died from 1939 to 1945 at age 44.

Noted events in his life were:

• Birth: at "Vallombrosa", 40 Abbey Road, 27 Mar 1895, St John's Wood London England.

   10 F    iii. Clare Marie Veronica LEIGHTON [101254] was born on 12 Apr 1898 in St John's Wood London England and died in 1989 in America at age 91.

Noted events in her life were:

• Birth: at "Vallombrosa", 40 Abbey Road, 12 Apr 1898, St John's Wood London England.

   11 M    iv. Evelyn Ivor Robert LEIGHTON [101255] was born on 31 May 1901 in St John's Wood London England and died in 1969 in Oxford Oxfordshire England at age 68.

Noted events in his life were:

• Birth: at "Valoombrosa", 40 Abbey Road, 31 May 1901, St John's Wood London England.

7. Valentine Alexander Nenon CONNOR [101242] (Elizabeth Ann TREGLOWN², William¹) was born 2 Qtr 1875 in Marylebone Middlesex England.

Valentine married Nora Blanche GUTTENBURG [101249].

Valentine next married Florence Mary STEELE [101250].

The child from this marriage was:

   12 M    i. Nenon James CONNOR [101251] was born on 22 Dec 1908 in York Co. Ontario Canada and died on 1 Jan 1945 at age 36. The cause of his death was Casualty of WWII.

Noted events in his life were:

• Military Service: a Member of the Canadian Armed Forces.