John Mayall Wilde: the three sisters’ paternal grandfather “Grandpa”
John was the only son of George and Sarah Wilde (née Wolfenden). He had a sister, Florence Elizabeth (1869-1937).
- born July 16, 1866, Saddleworth, Yorkshire
- married Sarah Alice Jackson, June 30, 1898, at St. John the Baptist, Hey, Oldham
- died 26 March, 1949, age 82
John Mayall and Sarah Alice– Jack and Sallie to one another– were childhood friends. Sarah was beautiful and had many suitors, including John. Her father disapproved of John and said that he would never do her any good. But he was popular, good company, and Sarah loved him. They were quietly married shortly after her father’s death in 1898. Sixteen years later, when their son George was 11, John left Sarah.
He worked as a printer compositor in Blackpool and then Southport. It was a skilled occupation which involved setting type in reverse so the text was right way round when printed.
When he retired in 1934 he returned to live with Sarah for a couple of years until her death, and then lived with her sister, his Aunty Florrie, who died a few moths later. By then his son George was married to Nora, and John went to live as a lodger with Nora’s mother, Eunice. He was there for ten years then had a stroke and was moved to Clatterbridge Hospital where he died nearly a year later in 1949.