Subject

Churchwarden, St Pancras Vestry in 1897. Andrew Behan has researched this man:

Edward Cox was born in 1838 in St Pancras, London, a son of William James Cox and Mary Ann Cox. His father was a Coal Merchant. On 24 May 1838 he was baptised at St Pancras Parish Church and the 1851 census shows the family living at 9 Gloucester Place, St Pancras. On 9 September 1862 he married Rachel Fisher at St Pancras Church and gave his occupation as a Law Clerk. The 1871 census shows him living with his wife, four children and two servants at 3 Bartholomew Villas, Kentish Town and his occupation as a Clerk to a Barrister at Law. The 1881 and 1891 censuses show that the family remained at this address and his occupation was unaltered.

It would appear that at some point between the 1891 census and 1897 the family started using the surname of of Cox-Sinclair and the 1901 census lists all the family members as such at 26 Camden Square, Camden Town. Edward Cox-Sinclair's occupation is recorded as Living on Own Means. The 1911 census show that he and his wife are still at 26 Camden Square and had a total of ten children, eight of whom were still alive. His occupation was given as a Retired Law Clerk. His wife died in 1915 and he survived her for several months until he too died, aged 78 years, on 20 January 1917 in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire. Probate records show that he had been living at 37 Lewin Road, Streatham Common, Surrey and probate was granted to his two bookseller sons, Herbert Henry Cox-Sinclair and Arthur Stanley Cox-Sinclair. His effects totalled £1,736-5s-9d.

The change of name and the "own means" occupation suggest that Edward Cox may have inherited significant funds from someone named Sinclair.