John Benjamin Stone was the fifth child of James Stone & Sarah Langstone born July-September 1871 at West Bromwich, Staffs.
John was living with his parents & older brother at 18 Dudley St, West Bromwich in 1881.
John was still at home in 1891 at 302 High St, West Bromwich & he was now an apprentice woollen draper. He was living with his father & step mother & older brother James.
John married Laura Corbett on June 1st, 1898 at All Saints, Newton Linford, Barrow upon Soar, Leics. Witnesses at the wedding were Charles Corbett & John’s brother, Alfred Edward Stone. Laura was born Jan-March 1869 at Birmingham, Warks & christened July 20th, 1879 at St Matthias, Birmingham, the daughter of Mary Adams & Frederick Corbett, a gold beater.
In 1901 John & Laura were living at 20 Wellington St, Leicester where John was an innkeeper. They had a 7 month old son Harold V & also living with them was a barmaid, Florence Gardener (22) & a general domestic servant, Lizzie Astle (28).
On July 4th, 1906 John, the licensed victualler of the Hare & Pheasant Hotel, High St, Leicester wrote a will in which he left all his property to his wife Laura.
By 1911 John & Laura had moved to 62 Harrow Rd, Leicester & John was now a boot manufacturer. Son Harold was still at home & they had another son, John Leslie, aged 6. It was noted on the census that John & Laura had had 3 children, only 2 of whom survived.
John, the licensed victualler of the White Swan Hotel, 17 Market Place, Leicester died on May 14th, 1915. Probate was granted to widow Laura on June 12th, 1915 & John’s effects were £299. 2s. 6d.
An obituary in the Leicester Evening Mail of May 14th stated that John had been suddenly taken ill & developed pneumonia. He had come to Leicester 16 years ago & was well known in the town & especially in sporting circles. He was of genial disposition & was held in esteem by a large number of people. After being licensee of the White Swan for 3 years, he managed the Hare & Pheasant Hotel for 3 years before returning to the White Swan. He was treasurer of the Hope Lodge of the R.A.O.B., a member of the Hand-in-Hand Cage Bird Society, President of the Leicester Bulldog Club, a keen supporter of the Leicester Fosse Football Club & Leicester Tradesmen’s Cricket League & one of the principal members of the organising committee of the Leicester Harrier’s Athletic Club. In his early days he was prominently connected with West Bromwich Albion F.C.
Son John married Marian A Clark in 1925 in Leicester & in 1939 they were living in Malvern Ave, York & John was a lithographic printer.
In 1926 son Harold married Edna Lois Glover in Leicester & in 1939 they & their 2 daughters were living in Duffield St, Leicester & Harold was a foreman carpet planner, house furnisher. Harold served with the RAF during WW1.
The children of John Benjamin Stone & Laura Corbett were:
st.2.5.5.1 John Corbett Donald Stone born July-September 1899 at Leicester; died July-September 1899 at Leicester
st.2.5.5.2 Harold Victor Stone born August 4th, 1900 at Leicester; died July-September 1982 at Leicester
st.2.5.5.3 John Leslie Stone born October 28th, 1904 at Leicester; died January 14th, 1981 at 54 Malvern Ave, York