Can you help find relatives of Guernsey-born Lily Thomas?

The search is on to track down any surviving relatives of the amazing, Guernsey-born Lily Thomas.

May 19th 2026: I have now edited this post thanks to the comprehensive information I've received from generous and helpful members of the Guernsey Family History group on Facebook who have filled in many gaps. But at this time I am still following up leads and looking to find descendants of Lily's siblings and half-siblings.

Lily Thomas pictured with her daughter Marguerite and some of the gifts she received from returning soldiers at the end of the war and her fellow volunteers who joined her prisoner of war fund. Image from her 1920 self-published memoir Memories Grave and Gay.

Lily is one of our forgotten Burton stories and she is well overdue for recognition for the way she took this town to her heart after moving here in 1906 when she married Edward Thomas an export manager from Salt & Co Brewery. After Edward died, at Christmas 1911, Lily stayed on with her toddler daughter Marguerite. She never remarried. When World War One broke out she decided to do what she called a 'little bit of war work' sending parcels of food, medicine and clothes every two weeks to Burton men held prisoner in German camps. To begin with, there were just five men, and Lily didn't think there would be many more and that the war would be over soon. But by the end of the war she had sent out 25,750 parcels and 90% had been safely delivered with returning soldiers say she had saved many lives and improved their health, happiness and quality of life immeasurably. She also developed advanced communication networks, and even a secret code, to get news and information between captured soldiers and their families back home.

There is now the possibility of a long overdue way to pay tribute to all she did for this town and its families during World War One. But first, EVERY attempt must be made to trace any living descendants.

What follows is all the information I have managed to gather so far on Lily's life, firstly here in Burton and then her earlier life in Guernsey. I am hoping that this may reach people and organisations, especially those in Guernsey, who might recognise some of the details.

Birth, marriage and death of Lily Thomas, nee Harris

Lily was born on March 27th, 1875, in St. Peter Port, Guernsey. Her full name was Heny Lily Fridel Harris (sometimes there are alternative spellings of Henny/Hessy and even Henry!) but she always used the name Lily once she was in Burton upon Trent. She married Edward Thomas, an export manager from Burton's Salt & Co Brewery, in 1906 and began a new life here in the brewing capital of England. Edward was born around 1854 in Rochester, Kent. He and Lily had a son who died at, or shortly after, his birth towards the end of 1906. On February 1st, 1910, their daughter Marguerite Alicia was born. In the April 1911 census the family was living at 31 Malvern Street, Stapenhill. Edward Thomas died on Christmas Eve 1911 and afterwards, Lily and Marguerite moved to 6 Rosliston Road.

In 1932, Lily’s daughter Margeurite married Thomas Wileman Spencer, who was born on December 25th, 1903. In the 1939 census his occupation was given as ‘radio electrical (dealer engineer)’. They had no children. By 1939 they were living at Springdale, 135 Bretby Lane, and Lily had moved in with them. Lily died on March 10th, 1941. Thomas Spencer died on December 20th, 1994. Marguerite died on March 6th, 2007.

Lily's Guernsey Family

Lily Thomas, a photograph from her 1920 memoir.

As Lily’s only surviving child had no children of her own, it is the siblings and half-siblings she left behind in Guernsey that might provide the best chance of tracing a living descendant.

Lily’s father was Lazarus Harris, most likely born in 1842 in what was then called Russian Poland. After fleeing to safety he became a naturalised British citizen.

His first wife was Margueritte/Marguerite/Margaret Guilbert who was about four years older than him. They married at Guernsey’s registry office in St Peter Port, on September 30th, 1869. In the 1871 census they are living in Le Vauquiedor, St Andrew. Lazarus is a dealer in watches and jewellery. Margueritte is ‘a grocery shopkeeper’. The couple had a son Edward Coleman Harris in 1870 but he died when he was only a week old.

Thanks to Guernsey Family History group, I now know that the couple went on to have three daughters: Sarah Louisa Hannah Harris, born on July 7th, 1871, our Lily, named as Heny Lily Fridel Harris, in 1875 and finally Mina Rebecca Rose Harris, born in July 1876.

Marguerite Harris died at the age of 40 in January 1877 and on 16th October, 1877, Lazarus married Emma Jane Guille at the Guernsey registry office. They seem to have had seven more children, all half-siblings of Sarah, Lily and Mina.

In the 1881 census, the family is living at 14 Cliff Street, St Peter Port. Sarah is nine, Lily is six and Mina is four. They have also been joined by Samuel Davis (younger than two), Hashil (younger than one) and Walter Joseph (eight months). Lazarus is described as a jeweller/pawnbroker.

In the 1891 census, Lazarus is described as a financial broker and the children living with him and Emma are Sarah (19) and a schoolteacher; Lily (listed this time as Hessy L) who is 16; Mina (14) and Walter (10). There is also now Clara Z (nine), Heshelina (eight), Ethel (seven) and Reuben I (four).

Lazarus died on December 21st, 1891, and Guernsey Family History Group has found me the probate announcement that says he left everything he had (worth £116 16 shillings and 4d) to his unmarried daughter Sarah. The Bank of England inflation calculator tells me that £116 then would be worth almost £13,000 today.

In the 1901 census, Emma J Harris is a 56-year-old widow, living 'under her own means' at a house called Emma Place, Pedvin Street, in St Peter Port. Living with her on census night were her son Walter Joseph (20) an accountant; daughter Clara (19) a schoolteacher; Heshelina (18) a milliner; Ethel (17) and Reuben (14). Lily (26) was now a schoolteacher and on census night she was a visitor at the home of Frederick Stephens (35) on Little St John Street, a fruit grower and the export agent of a fruiterer. In the house were Frederick’s wife Alice E Stephens (37) and their daughters Alice (nine), Olive (eight) and Mabel (six). Also there that night was Charlotte Brown (35), described as single and a ‘retired domestic’. I don’t know if Lily was a friend or relative of Frederick, his wife Alice or Charlotte, who might have been a lodger. I then lose track of Lily until she marries Edward and moves to Burton upon Trent.

If you can, please share this post on your own social media channels and with any history or family tree research groups that you know. The more it is shared, the more chance we have of finding a relative. Please contact me here if you learn any new information..