#On This Day: 3rd December

Today, I reflect on the life of my 2x great grandmother, Alice Tilbee, who was baptized on this day, 3rd December in 1826 in the village of Charing, Kent. In this year the Menai Suspension Bridge connecting the Isle of Anglesey to the northwest coast of Wales opened. It is considered to be the world's first modern suspension bridge.

Alice Tilbee, the daughter of Henry Tilbee (c. 1798-c. 1866) and Dorcas Vant (c. 1795-c. 1884), was born in 1826 in Charing, Kent, England. She married Samuel White in 1842.  She died of Diseased Lungs; Bronchitis. in Egerton on 14 Mar 1877 aged 52. At that time she was living in Egerton and buried on 18 Mar 1877 in Egerton aged 52.

The name Vant always brings to mind the phrase by Charles Dickens, “Dorcas is willing!” that he used in his book, David Copperfield.  Alice lived her entire life in Kent, moving only as far as Egerton, a nearby village. It is more than likely that Alice couldn't read and so didn't read this book and appreciate the connection I made.

It was on this same day in 1836, a tragic event occurred far from Alice’s home in Kent. The first fatal railway derailment took place at Great Corby near Carlisle in Cumbria, resulting in the deaths of three people. At ten years old, Alice was living in a time when railways were not yet common in Kent. At that age it is likely that she was unaware of this mode of transportation that would soon revolutionize travel and industry.

She witnessed many changes throughout her life, which spanned from 1826 to 1877. Despite these changes, it's doubtful that she ever had electricity in her home or could have imagined the future invention of televisions, telephones and electric appliances.  

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