The Wilk(e)s Family

The Wilk(e)s Family
Straight Bit


Straight Bit	Family tree - please contact me with any corrections

Name Ernest WILKS
Age:25
Date of death: 16 May 1915 France/Flanders
Parents: George Henry & Eliza Emily Wilkes
Parent's occupation: paper maker
Information on Ernest taken from the Buckinghamshire Remembers website.

Name Vincent George WILKS
Age: 25
Date of death: 20 Feb 1919 UK
Parents: George Henry & Eliza Emily Wilkes according to Ruth Bowler's research or John & Eliza Wilks according to the CWGC,
Parent's occupation: ?
Information on Vincent taken from the Buckinghamshire Remembers website.

There seems to be some confusion as to just how many of the Wilk(e)s men were brothers or cousins. However George, John and Frederick Wilks, all listed as the fathers of the five Wilk(e)s men on the memorial, would appear to be brothers and born in Shipton/Fifield, Oxon. They were the sons of Robert and Sarah Wilks of Oxfordshire. It has been ascertained that Vincent and Ernest were brothers, sons of George and Eliza Wilks, but it is also possible that one of the Albert Wilks on the war memorial could also be their brother as another son, Albert James, appears on the census records.
However, please note that an Albert James appears in FreeBMD with the spelling 'Wilkes'. The birth of this Albert James was recorded in 1884 in the March quarter of that year and the death of an Albert J. aged 73 was recorded in 1957 in the December quarter. From this it would seem that it is NOT this Albert (son of George) who is on the memorial.
Harry Wilks, son of John and Martha also had a brother Albert. But the only one we know for certain is Albert Wilks the son of Frederick and Emily.
Whatever the family lineage all the Wilks men were first cousins with one another, if not actually brothers.
They are distantly related to James Witney through the Why family and quite probably to William Why, both listed on the war memorial. Leonard Savill, another war memorial name, is also related through his sister's marriage to Arthur Wilks. (See relevant trees). Wilks descendants still live in the village today.

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