George Swain

George Swain, born 1878, Hastings, Sussex. Died 1941, Surbiton Hospital, Surrey.

George Swain was one of seven children born to Mercy-Ann Reeves and Philip J. Swain. Most of his family descended from Hastings in Sussex and many lived just behind the seafront. George and his childhood family lived in Hastings, but George moved to Surbiton in Surrey after his marriage, though just why is unknown. His mother, Mercy, was living at 10 Denmark Road in Kingston, confined to a wheelchair most of the time, so maybe they moved together after his father died.

Presumably whilst in Sussex George met Sarah Ann Tarr and married her. George had his own business, working as a painter and decorator, like his father, and his father before that, and so on. He had many tools and ladders with ‘Swain Painter and Decorator’ or ‘Mr. G. Swain’ written on them, most of which his grandson Martyn still has and uses today.

He was a very kind man with a wonderful temperament. Despite having 5 children and a hard life, he was never known to lose him temper. However, he drank very heavily, which was hardly advisable as he had gastric ulcers which must only have been agitated by his drinking. His favourite pub was located at the top of Villier’s Road in Kingston – at the bottom of this road, Len Simmons (Phyllis’s future husband) lived with his family. Phyllis recalls going to the pub with her mother to drag him home. When he did make it home by himself, he would stagger up the stairs to their upstairs flat and would often give little Phyllis a Florin! Even when drunk George never lost his temper.

George also suffered from leg ulcers, which he had to re-bandage himself. Phyllis remembers this as being particularly gruesome and they must have caused him quite a lot of pain. It was his bad legs that prevented George walking his youngest child, Phyllis, down the aisle on 7th June 1941. Instead her eldest brother Fred gave her away.

On 28th July 1941, only 7 weeks after celebrating his daughter’s wedding, George was in bed when the house was hit by a bomb and he was badly injured, dying 11 days later in hospital, “the result of enemy fire”. He was buried in Surbiton Cemetery and a plot next to him was reserved for his wife.