George Edward Smeed was the seventh child of Thomas Smeed & Sarah Dray born November 11th, 1861 at Islington, Middlesex.
In 1871 George, his 2 brothers & 2 sisters & his parents were living at 5 York Square, Ratcliffe, Stepney.
In 1881 George was working as a paper hanger & living with his older brother, Clement, a house decorator, & his wife Eliza & young family at the time of the census. George’s sister Clara was also with them at Mays Villas, Sidcup Hill, Chislehurst, Kent.
In 1891 George was at his parents’ home at the time of the census at Kingswood, Horne, Surrey & he was now described as a farmer’s son. Also there were George’s sister Ellen (now Morison), brother Thomas & his family & sister Clara (now Lowe) & her husband & family.
By 1901 George had taken over the tenancy of Hedgecourt Farm, Horne, from his father as father Thomas had retired. His parents were still living at Hedgecourt as was sister Ellen Morison.
In 1911 George was a farmer at Horne Park, Lingfield, Surrey & employing his nephew Richard George Benjamin Smeed (25) & his ‘cousin’ Cecil Frank Baldwin (16) to work on the farm. They had a housekeeper, Harriett Budgen. Richard was the son of George’s brother Clement Smeed. Cecil was the son of George’s cousin Mary Smeed [sm.11.5] & her husband Charles Baldwin.
On September 26th, 1914 George married Mabel Sarah Heasman at the parish church Oxted, Surrey. Witnesses at the wedding were William Heasman & Alfred Smeed. Mabel Sarah was the daughter of Phoebe Fry & William Heasman, born June 23rd, 1881 at Oxted Surrey. Phoebe Fry [f.2.6.2] was the daughter of George’s aunt Sarah Smeed [sm.5] & therefore his cousin.
The 1939 register shows George & Mabel living at Horne Park Farm where George was a dairy farmer. With them were daughter Mary, George’s retired brother Alfred & a housekeeper Charlotte Sophia Lawrence (who was to marry Alfred in 1946). Also with them was George’s brother Clement’s widow, Eliza M Smeed, & her son Richard George Benjamin Smeed who was assisting on the farm, & his wife Alice C Smeed.
George died on May 31st, 1949 at Horne Park Farm, Horne, Surrey, aged 87. Probate was granted on September 7th, 1949 to widow Mabel Sarah & his effects were £3,955.9s.10d.
Mabel, of Hamlyn, Godstone Rd, Oxted died on November 26th 1951 at Oxted & Limpsfield Hospital, Oxted. Probate was granted on January 29th, 1952 to daughter Mary Gouldsmith (wife of Stuart Cecil Gouldsmith) & nephew Donald Saunders, tin box maker. Her effects were £9,840.15s.8d.
The children of George Edward Smeed & Mabel Sarah Heasman were:
3.7.1 Mary Smeed born February 23rd, 1916 at Godstone, Surrey; died April-June 1968 in Bournemouth, Dorset