Nanny's ghost? Goat farmers aim to reunite urn with relatives

Friday 17 July 2020

A local couple has launched an appeal to find the relatives of a husband and wife whose urn they found in the property they recently purchased to set up their own goat farm.

Tim Le Cornu and Marianne Shaw discovered an urn bearing the names of Harry and Hilda Graham earlier this week while having a clear-out.

The couple recently moved into a grade 4 listed farm built in 1797 in St. Lawrence. 

Pictured: Tim, Marianne and some of their goats.

While most of the house was empty, one room needed to be cleared out - something Tim and Marianne undertook earlier this week while enjoying a staycation in the island. 

While going through what looked like a gardener’s cupboard, they found a mahogany linen press at the back and inside an urn bearing the inscription: “To the sacred memory of my beloved husband, a man who played the game: Harry Graham, April 6th 1956, Toronto & Hilda Graham, August 26th, 1964, Jersey."

Pictured: It appears the urn has been in the house since Hilda Graham’s death.

The couple contacted the previous owners of the farm, asking if the urn belonged to their family, but they indicated it was already there when they moved into the house in the 1960s.

Tim and Marianne therefore believe the urn has been in the property since Hilda Graham’s death.

But rather than getting rid of the urn, Tim decided to reach out to islanders through the nearly 18,000-strong Facebook group ‘Jersey Ask! Advise! Advertise!' to try and find Harry and Hilda’s relatives. 

Pictured: Tim and Marianne are hoping to find Harry and Hilda's relative to give them the urn.

“I thought it is not the appropriate thing to dump something like that, which may have been left accidentally,” he explained.

“It’s only right we try and reach out to existing relatives. I would like someone to do that if they found something from my relative.”

The post immediately captured the attention of many members of the group, with some suggesting it was a Jumanji box and warning Tim not to open it. Others noted what an “interesting find” it was and described it as “a treasure”, urging Tim to keep them updated with the progress of his search. 

Pictured: Tim outside the farmhouse with the urn.

Some also pointed out avenues Tim and Marianne could explore to find the relatives, including contacting local funeral directors or visiting Jersey Archive. One contributor even dug up Hilda's last will and testament from the Archive.

Following some of the advice, Tim also contacted the Société Jersiaise, which he hopes will be able to help.

“It’s quite interesting,” Tim said. “He passed away first and she had the inscription about how he played the game, which we are assuming would have been golf. He is from Toronto, so it’s actually spreading a bit further from Jersey.” 

Pictured: Marianne and Tim took over the Jerriaise d’Or Goat Farm earlier this year.

While they wait to track down Harry and Hilda’s family, Tim and Marianne will be establishing their goat farm near their home. 

Earlier this year, they took over the Jerriaise d’Or Goat Farm, which produces artisan cheeses, from a herd of rare breed pedigree goats, all lovingly cared for and bred purely for dairy production.

Until they bought the St. Lawrence farm a month ago, they were travelling between their home in St. Clement and St. Ouen where the farm was based. 

Pictured: The St. Lawrence farm dates from 1797.

Once they build fences to prevent the goats from escaping, the couple’s home will return to its former farming glory. 

“We both still have our full-time jobs,” Tim said.

“In the future, I would like to concentrate fully on the goat's cheese. First, we’ll be moving the goats, then we will look to improving the efficiency of the process. We have lots of grand ideas!”

If you can help reunite the urn with Hilda and Harry Graham's loved ones, contact editor@bailiwickexpress.com.