In 1975 Bessie Hunt married Reginald E G Simmerson in Hounslow area. She was 49 years of age.

It states that her previous marriage was dissolved and her father was John Prosser.

She died in 2016 and her death name was Betty.

I thyink I have found her birth registration in the West Ham area and her mother's maiden name was Badrick.

John Prosser married Bessie/Elizabeth Badrick

What I am struggling to find is a Bessie Prosser to a Mr Hunt so somewhere I reckon there is a second marriage involved ie Prosser to **** then **** to Hunt.

If any of you superb genealogists on this forum can enable me to solve this it would be really appreciated.

John

Reginald Ernest Garrick Simmerson, the MP? If you can get a profile for him it might help you.

Obituary for "Betty".
https://www.brugesgroup.com/blog/obituary-betty-simmerson
Hunt not mentioned.

There are other bits and pieces on Betty Simmerson, but no hint of an earlier marriage. Quite a character. There is a YouTube interview about an encounter with Ted Heath.

Terry, thank you for the link, I have just read it, very interesting, I think she left a will so I might purchase that to see if any clues.

The only place I have not checked yet for a first marriage is Scotland, I mean born in 1926ish could have married young. Will check this out

Hi John,

I couldn’t find any Hunt children with MMN Prosser. However I found a few newspaper items for this lady where she was called Betty Hunt-Simmerson. I can understand her keeping her ex-husbands name if she had children and wanted to have the same surname as them. But if there were no children, why give herself a double barreled surname using the name of her ex-husband?

Heths

Victoria Australia has a 1949 marriage of a Geoffrey Hunt & a Bessie Prosser.
https://www.bdm.vic.gov.au/search-your-family-history
No parents names in the index.

Can't find a marriage announcement (or divorce) in the Australian newspapers.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/ so can't say if it's your target couple.

Ordering the record would provide further detail. But information about "Betty" on line gives no hint of an Australian connection.

Have you seen the daughters names in the memorial at Chichester:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/253991321/betty-simmerson
Don't see their Hunt / Simmerson births at FreeBMD for England / Wales.

What is the connection with Chichester?

Australia birth indexes generally have a 100 years minimum search.

Terry, thank you for the link, no idea what the connection with chichester is and no nothing on the daughters. I might then purchase her wil because if she has chikdren they might have inherited something.

John

A possible scenario is that after Reginald died she went to live with one of her daughters, presumably in Chichester
Dave

That could be correct as she died in Selsey, West Sussex

ps if you look at the GRO index for wills the document type is Probate so would that give me lots of info?

John, I believe you have FMP. On there you will find Bessie Prosser travelling to Melbourne in 1949. There are 2 entries because she was booked on one trip (May) but then crossed off and she then travelled on a later boat (August).

The probate record will give the names of who obtained the grant. Most probably one or more of her daughters.
Dave

Dave, thank you for that.

In the Ancestry versions:

Ship Ranchi, 5 May 1949 from London, for Melbourne, struck out: Prosser Bessie, age 22, Brighton General Hospital, Elm Grove, Brighton, S.R. Nurse Country of intended future residence Australia.
Ancestry indexed the forename as Bassie.

Ship Cheshire, 9 August 1949 from Liverpool.
Prosser, Miss B, 155 Balmoral Road, Watford, Herts, for Melbourne, Nurse, age 22, Country of intended future residence Australia.

Also on the Cheshire was a Mr. G Hunt a trnee tchr age 21 from Kiddermister. Might be, or not be, Geoffrey.

https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/ has a passenger list for the Cheshire's first Australian port call at Perth 12 September 1949. Among the passengers is Hunt, Geoffrey, trn teacher, 21.

The Oronsay arrived Southampton 3 November 1951. Passengers include Hunt Mr G. 23, and Hunt Mrs. 24. He a clerk she a nurse. Their proposed address: 155 Balmoral Rd, Watford Herts. No children with them.

Betty Simmerson is on the electoral rolls on FMP. Sh was living with her married daughter in Chichester in 2016.
Dave