WORCESTER’S connection with one of the most famous maritime disasters in history, the sinking of The Titanic on April 15, 1912, has finally been marked by the unveiling of a Blue Plaque on the wall of an Indian restaurant in Foregate Street.

For it was here more than a century ago that 39-year-old Henry Morley ran his sweet shop before deciding leave his wife and child and elope to America on the luxury liner with his teenage counter assistant Kate Phillips.

 

The Blue Plaque unveiled in Foregate Street, Worcester

The Blue Plaque unveiled in Foregate Street, Worcester

 

Henry went down with the ship, but Kate, who was 19, escaped on the last lifeboat and nine months later gave birth to a little girl.

 

Kate Phillips and daughter Ellen in 1914

Kate Phillips and daughter Ellen in 1914

 

The campaign to recognise that baby as the “youngest survivor of The Titanic” has been a long one, but in December last year Ellen Mary Walker’s granddaughter Beverley Roberts and Duncan Morley, a relative of Henry Morley, achieved a DNA match which proved the indelible link between the two families. 

“My grandmother fought tirelessly  all her adult life to be recognised as Henry’s daughter, but sadly she died in 2005 at the age of 92 without that proof,” said Beverley. “However, in December 2020, myself and Duncan, the grandson of Henry’s younger brother Louis Morley, finally took DNA tests and we had a match, which confirmed that Henry Samuel Morley was indeed Ellen’s father.”

 

Titanic victim and Worcester sweet shop owner Henry Morley

Titanic victim and Worcester sweet shop owner Henry Morley

 

It would have been final consolation for a lady who suffered a lengthy series of frustrations and bitter disappointments during her lifetime, mainly in being refused membership of the Titanic Association and invitations to its survivor reunions, as the association firmly shunned her “youngest survivor” claim.

The installation of the Blue Plaque funded by Mrs Roberts, was arranged through Worcester Civic Society and chairman Phil Douce together with numerous members of the Morley and Walker families attended the unveiling.

 

A mayoral procession through Worcester in the early 1900s passes one of the Morley shops

A mayoral procession through Worcester in the early 1900s passes one of the Morley shops.

 

Henry and his elder brother Arthur Morley ran three sweets shops in Worcester, for as well as the one in Foregate Street there were others in Broad Street, which later moved to larger premises on The Cross, and The Shambles, plus a fourth in Belle Vue Terrace, Malvern. They also had three in Birmingham.

 

The Morley shop at 12, Belle Vue Terrace, Malvern

The Morley shop at 12, Belle Vue Terrace, Malvern

 

“The businesses were very successful and running well, but the same could not be said for Henry’s marriage to his wife Louisa,” added Beverley, a Kidderminster antiques dealer. “In the meantime, Kate and Henry, working close together, fell in love.

“But it was to be kept a secret, especially as there was a 20-year age gap and Henry being already married. In 1910, it would have been scandalous.”

With the businesses thriving, Henry began plans to escape and start a new life with Kate in San Francisco, intending to open a confectionery shop there. He made sure his wife and daughter Doris would be financially secure by leaving them the business in Malvern.

On March 3, 1912, Henry and Kate left Worcester and went to stay with brother Arthur at 73 New Street, Birmingham, from where Henry purchased the ticket for the voyage, paying £26 for a second class berth.

The booking was made under the names Mr and Mrs Marshall to try to cover their tracks.

Arthur together with Kate’s parents  accompanied the couple to Southampton on April 9 and they all stayed at the South Western Hotel. The next morning they went to Titanic’s Berth 44 where Arthur and Kate’s parents waved goodbye to Henry and Kate. Henry perished when the ship sank and his body was never found, but Kate survived. 

Beverley added: “She was taken in by the Red Cross in New York. At that time she had been pregnant with my grandmother Ellen, who was either conceived just before they set sail or on board the Titanic itself. Kate returned to Worcester to be with her family in Waterworks Road and on January 11, 1913, Ellen Mary Walker was born.”

 

Beverley Roberts, granddaughter of Titanic survivor Ellen Mary Walker, unveils the plaque

Beverley Roberts, granddaughter of Titanic survivor Ellen Mary Walker, unveils the plaque

 

As well as the Blue Plaque in Worcester – on premises now occupied by Cafe Mela –  a memorial plaque funded by the British Titanic Society will be going up at Breakspear Crematorium in Ruislip, Middlesex, where Kate’s ashes were scattered on April 2, 1964.