Annie Scarce (buried 1937)

Annie was born in 1886, the daughter of Richard and Elizabeth. Her father was a coachman. She was baptised at Heene church on 4th April 1886. Annie's father died in 1892 and Elizabeth moved the family to 3 Gratwicke Road which she ran as a boarding house. Annie found work as a confectioner's assistant. On 19th January 1911, Annie married Ernest James Scarce, a dairyman, at Holy Trinity Church in Shelley Road, Worthing. Ernest had a dairy business at 17 Rowlands Road and the couple moved in above the shop. They had four children; Betty, Olive, Iris and Mary. Also living with them was Annie's mother Elizabeth who acted as housekeeper. In 1914, Ernest joined forces with Harold Fuente who ran a dairy at 33 Rowlands Road. He started as a manager but eventually formed a partnership Fuente and Scarce. The shop was on the corner of Queens Road with the dairy situated at the end of Edinburgh Cottages in Western Row joining the rear of Queens Road. Annie worked in the shop and helped run the dairy. In May 1928, the firm was taken to court, accused of selling milk under false pretences. The milk had been certified as "free from TB" which it was not. Annie's husband as manager had given evidence in the morning. The court was adjourned for lunch and when Ernest did not return a warrant was issued for his arrest. He was later found drowned in a bath at 17 Rowlands Road, his old business. At the inquest, the verdict returned was of "suicide whilst of unsound mind". For full details of Ernest's inquest and the court case, please see Ernest James Scarce page. A year after Ernest's death, Annie joined in partnership with Harold Fuente and they continued to run the dairy until Mr Fuente's death in 1936. Annie died in a London nursing home on 30th November 1937. At the time she had been running The Priory, a hotel in West Tarring. It was not a successful venture and she was eventually declared bankrupt.