The Clough branch of the family - Part 2 (Jeremiah Clough)

Jeremiah Clough, born in 1832 and the father of Mary Ann, was one of my great great grandfathers. This post covers his life from his marriage to Grace King in 1854 until his death in 1908. The next post will look at his childhood and upbringing.

Jeremiah and Grace were married at Halifax Parish Church. They were both aged 22. No father’s name is given on the entry for Jeremiah. At the time they were both living in Stansfield. Jeremiah was a weaver.

There were four children from this marriage – Mary Ann (b 1854), my great grandmother, who featured in the last post, Sarah (b 1856), Joseph (b 1860) and Mary (b 1860) known as Polly, who married Joseph Crabtree. In 1861 the family were living in Mill Street, Todmorden. Grace died in 1864, aged only 32.

Jeremiah remarried the following year, to Amelia Jennings at Holy Trinity Church, Littleborough. Between 1868 and 1887 they had 10 children – James Henry, Helliwell, Crossley, Susannah, Herbert, Frank Arthur, Rose and Gertrude twins, Elizabeth A and Sarah J. They lived in Paul Row, Summit, Littleborough, and later in Todmorden Road.

Derrick Kershaw wrote of Jeremiah:

Jeremiah was living at Dobroyd at the time of the ‘great flood’. He later moved to Calderbrook, Littleborough where he lived in ‘Paul Row’ and at Whitfield. His occupations were gardening, labouring, stone waller, carter, weaver, engineer.

Both his legs were broken in an accident caused by firing a cannon placed on the top of Whitfield overlooking Townhouse to celebrate the return from sea of one of the Molesworth family.

My father Wilfrid Kershaw remembers him when Jeremiah kept a garden in the land overlooking the entrance to Summit Tunnel. He was also a visitor to the Duke of York Hotel, Ealees (kept by Joseph Crabtree, an uncle of Wilfrid’s) being quite a noisy customer, clapping down his two sticks on the table and shouting ‘whoever takes them takes me’.

The former Duke of York hotel, Littleborough
(Derrick Kershaw photo)

Entrance to Summit Tunnel (2025)

We know that Jeremiah was buried at Calderbrook church in Littleborough, but there is no record of the burial or grave reference in the church grave book. The photo below show a marker stone with the initials J C but this is only a guess at where he might be buried.

Calderbrook church, Littleborough

Marker stone