News Letter 10 Final.pub (Read-Only) - The Binns Family

As related in Binns ConnectionsNo. 9, Jack Robinson Binnsgained fame for being the first touse wireless telegraphy for summoninghelp to rescue passengersfrom a sinking transatlantic liner in1905.Sadly, his claim to the Binns surnamerest only on the maidenname of his mother Mary AnnaBinns, who was born at Brigg inLincolnshire on the 17 th February1864. Her parents were JohnBinns, who was born at Ashby,Lincolnshire, in about 1816, andAnn, probably also a Binns, whowas born about 1825 in Wheldrake,Yorkshire. Interestingly,John was the son of William Binnswho originated in Escrick, nearYork and only about 4 miles fromWheldrake, which provides strongevidence that this Binns familythat emigrated to Lincolnshirefrom the York area maintainedcontact with their home groundover a period of at least ten years.John Robinson Binns, alwaysknown as Jack, was born in theBrigg Union Workhouse atWrawby, Lincolnshire on the 16 thSeptember 1884, but by the timehis mother Mary Anna marriedFred Gamble at Holbeck nearLeeds in December, 1891, she hadtwo daughters, Laura and Annie. Inthe census of 1891 Mary AnnaBinns was recorded as an unmarriedhousekeeper living in thehome Fred Gamble in Grimsby.Also present were her daughters,Laura Gamble, age two, and fourmonth old Annie Gamble.In the same census, Jack RobinsonBinns was recorded living withhis Uncle William Binns, hismother’s brother, in Peterborough.The identity of Jack’s father istherefore open to speculation but itseems most likely to have been aMr.Robinson, who for some unknownreason “disappeared”shortly after Jack was born.After Jack settled in New York hemarried a New Yorker, Alice AnnMacNiff and they had two daughters,Grace A, and Alice Virginia.Virginia Utermohlen, granddaughterof Jack and Alice, remembersthat during and afterWW 2 her family packed and sentfood parcels to family in Englandand in 1949 she and her familyvisited aunts, uncles, and cousinsin England. In return the Englishaunts knitted sweaters whichwere sent to Virginia and her sisterGrace. The last visit Jack andhis family made to England wasin 1954 or 1955Jack died in New York in 1957.We are indebted to Nicola Pikefor providing much of theabove information.#No more sightings of the Bradfordbased inpressario,Ernest Binns,have been reported since hismention in Binns Connections No.9. However C. J. Mellor, in hisbook “The Northern Music Hall”,attributes the ‘discovery’ of MaxMiller to Ernest who “gave him abreak at the old Lidget GreenPavillion in Bradford in 1921 and ayear later at the Shay Gardens inHalifax as a pierrot.”Another very well-known Northerncomedian, Albert Modley, washighly regarded by Ernest, who presentedhim to the Morecambe holidaymakers during the 1930 season. !!