The relatives of a man who wrote a note in a bottle 80 years ago that asked the finder to ‘send a photograph’ have been found.
Carol Hatter, 75, said her husband, John, 80, is the nephew of John Stapleford – the original author of the message.
Nigel Hill, 55, found the bottle at Bel Royal on the Channel Island of Jersey on Tuesday while walking his pet dog and was pleasantly surprised to find a message written on cardboard inside.
Nigel Hill, 55, found the bottle at Bel Royal on the Channel Island of Jersey on Tuesday while walking his pet dog and was pleasantly surprised to find a message written on cardboard inside
The note was signed by a John Stapleford and dated September 5 1938, and asked the finder to ‘communicate with a photograph’ to an address 245 miles away in Barnet, Hertfordshire.
Mrs Hatter said that John Stapleford threw the bottle into the sea when he was on Jersey for a wedding.
She said that John, who was known as Jack, was on the Island with his wife Nell, for her brother’s wedding.
Nell’s brother, Cecil Hatter, married a woman named Muriel Larbalestier at St Luke’s Church in La Route du Fort.
The note was written on the back of an old cake box from Cawley Bros Ltd, and was placed in a Smith’s bottle, both of which were based on the island
Nigel said: ‘I was just walking along and saw it and thought it looked interesting. Then I saw the note inside.
‘Unfortunately, I had to break it to get the note out.’
Mr Hill sparked a hunt to find the relatives of the writer – and was astounded when social media helped him to track down the current owner of the address on the message.
The note was written on the back of an old cake box from Cawley Bros Ltd, and was placed in a Smith’s bottle, both of which were based on the island.
The message read: ‘Will the finder of this bottle please communicate with: John Stapleford, 18 Fitzjohn Avenue, Barnet, Herts, England. With a photograph.’
The note was signed by a John Stapleford and dated September 5 1938, and miraculously it has survived 82 years in the water
Nigel, who has worked in the finance industry, shared his find on Facebook and was soon able to track down the current resident of 18 Fitzjohn Avenue.
He said: ‘I thought at first this might be a hoax but it’s definitely not.
‘As is the way with Jersey, I had lots of people contact me to help and I have been able to track down the lady who currently lives in the property.
‘She says she does not recall a John Stapleford and she has lived there for 30 years.
‘But she has looked into the deeds of her home and found that a John Stapleford did buy the place in 1921.
‘If he bought it then and was presumably in Jersey in 1938 it’s likely that he may have passed away.
Carol said: ‘I heard the tale on the radio and thought it was funny that they were talking about someone with a similar name to Jack. But then we read more details in the Jersey Evening Post and that’s when it started to drop… In those days people called John were quite often known as Jack.
‘My husband’s aunt is Nell, who married Jack [John] Stapleford. It’s true he was a civil servant and worked for Customs and Excise. By the time my husband, who was born in 1939, was a young person Jack [John] Stapleford had gone to live in Herne Bay, Kent, with his wife. We used visit them down in Kent.’
Mr Hill sparked a hunt to find the relatives of the writer – and was astounded when social media helped him to track down the current owner of the address on the message
Carol added that John had two adopted children – Tony and Joyce. She said: ‘Tony was a master mariner, but I think he may have passed away now. I think Tony did have children. He lived in Norwich in Norfolk.’
According to the Jersey Financial Services Commission’s public registry, Cawley Brothers Limited was first registered as a company in 1931.
It ceased to be registered on 3 August 1976. Another firm called Cawley Bros Bakery was registered in 1956 and was dissolved in 1993.
Birth and death records show that Mr Stapleton was born on 4 August 1889 and had worked as a civil servant as well as chief accountant with Customs and Excise.
It is believed he died on 2 December 1980, aged 91. His address then was St George House, 11 London Road, Norfolk.