From the left:
- Horatio Thomas Barrett Lambourne, known as Barrett, born 1880.
- Robert George Heptinstall Lambourne, known as George, born 1888.
- Thomas Barrett Lambourne (father).
- Dora Annie Lambourne, born 1885.
- Alfred William Lambourne, known as Fred, born 1881.
- Amy Eveline Lambourne, born 1886.
A baby girl, Eliza Mary, who was born between Fred and Dora, died in 1883 when she was just three months old.
Although there are other studio pictures of the children taken around this time, either as individuals, or in groups, this is the only family group picture I have come across, so it is very precious.
For me, there is a poignancy about this picture; Eliza, the wife of Thomas is missing from the photograph, having died twelve days after the birth of their youngest child, Robert George Heptinstall Lambourne in 1888.
Including Eliza’s maiden name ensured that she would never be forgotten by the family. It was quite common to include a wife's maiden name in the name of a child. Indeed the inclusion of the name Barrett as part of the name of the first born son originated with Thomas Barrett Lambourne; his mother’s name was Fanny Barrett.
The name Barrett has now been included in the name of five successive generations of Lambourne children, as well as through the son in the female line of the most recent generation. Interestingly, the inclusion of the name prompted the little lad (then aged six) to ask for an explanation about the name prompted, I suspect, by his teacher; he proudly reported back to school, and now, age 9 has a real interest in history and family photos.