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Marjorie Beryl Pearse
Member of the Women’s Police ServiceBiography
Information supplied through Research Project led by Nigel Crompton.
Full name of worker at H.M. Factory Gretna (and any other names they are known by): Marjorie Beryl Pearse
Gender: Female
Date and Place of Birth: 3rd August 1888, Flitwick, Bedfordshire
Date and Place of Death: 1978, Bromley
Nationality: British
Childhood: She had five siblings.
Parents: Alfred & Mary Blanche (nee Lockwood)
Parent’s occupations: Alfred, her father, was a well renowned illustrator.
Schools / universities attended and years of attendance: N/K
Occupation: Secretary
Place of residence at Gretna: Women’s Police Barracks No1, Gretna
Job title at Gretna: Police Constable.
Marital status: Married William Silas Pearce in 1921.
Children: She had 1 son.
Travels: In 1913 she visited Canada with her sister, Dulcie, returning during September 1916, on the SS Grampion.
Awards/recognitions: N/K
Trivia / any other information:
Marjorie was born on 3 August 1888 in Flitwick, Bedfordshire, into the family of Alfred and Mary Pearse. She had 5 siblings, four of which were older than her.
Alfred, her father, was a well renowned illustrator for newspapers and publications such as the Illustrated London News, The Sphere and Punch. However he is possibly best known for working as an illustrator for 45 years on Boys Own Paper. His drawings also appeared in Girls Own Paper.
He was also an accomplished artist, inventor and campaigner. During February 1909 he also was a founder member of ‘Suffrage Atelier’ which was an artists collective campaigning for women’s suffrage. Alfred was responsible for producing several hard hitting posters especially regarding force feeding of suffragettes in Holloway Prison.
During 1918 he became an official war artist with the rank of Honorary Captain in the New Zealand Rifle Brigade.
After living in Flitwick, the family moved to the Hampstead area of North London. Marjorie was working as a secretary although who she was employed for has not been found when the 1911 census was taken.
In 1913 she visited Canada with her sister, Dulcie, returning during September 1916, on the SS Grampion. Dulcie returned to Canada later in 1916.
Marjorie’s name appears on the 1917-1918 valuation roll for Gretna serving in the WPS and living in Women’s Police Barracks No1.
By 1921, Marjorie was a ‘Lady’s Help’, still living at home in Hampstead. However within a few months she had married William Silas Pearce, moving to Norwood, South London. In 1924, the couple were blessed with the birth of their son, John Kenneth. The family moved around South London.
Marjorie passed away in late 1978 in the Bromley registration area.
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