Friends of Hastings Cemetery

Key to finding George Woods grave, buried under the grass

• Red - Carpenter Annie Palmer 24/12/1892  DE U35
• Yellow - Hadden Edwin Alfred 18/01/1893 DE U34
• Green - Glenister William Montague 20/12/1894 DE T39
• Blue - Rolfe Arthur Thomas 28/02/1893 DE T38
• Magenta - Bedwell Jane 19/07/1898 DE S39 / Barham Edward 24/03/1930 DE T36 Buried in DE S39
• White cross - Woods George 81 14-04-1934 DE S38

George Woods, amateur photographer, was born in St. Albans, Hertfordshire in May, 1852. The son of a draper, he ran a drapery business in Wokingham, Berkshire with his elder brother, William, during the 1870s.

Woods’ father, William, died in 1880, leaving his sons some share investments. By 1883 the drapery business had been sold and Woods had begun to develop a private income from successfully trading on the stock market – this later allowed him to devote his time to photography.

George, his wife Mary and their daughter Margaret probably came to live in Hastings, in Mount Pleasant Road, because Mary was in poor health, and the seaside was then believed to have special curative powers for invalids. But Mary had an operation for breast cancer in 1893 and died in 1896.

In 1902 George married Ethel Beatrice Rant, daughter of George and Sabena Rant

Hastings and St Leonards Observer - Saturday 13 December 1902
WEDDING AT MOUNT PLEASANT MR. G. WOODS—MISS E. B. RANT.
On Monday morning, at Mount Pleasant Congregational Church, the marriage of Mr George Woods, of Hastings, with Miss Ethel Beatrice Rant, youngest daughter of Mrs. Rant and the late Mr. George Rant, of Banavie, St. Helens-road, Hastings, was solemnised by the Rev. T. H. Cooper, pastor of the church. The bride is well known and highly esteemed at Mount Pleasant Congregational Church, having been a member of the Choir, and for some time conducted the Band of Hope there, also taking part in various other organisations connected with the church.

They set up home with his daughter Margaret, at 75 Priory Avenue, Hastings.

Woods dedicated his time to photographing local people and scenes, taking thousands of photos on his plate camera of everyday people and life. 2,000 of his photos still exist.

Woods died at his Priory Avenue home in 1934, aged 8l, leaving his photographic collection to Ethel who donated most of the prints to Hastings Museum shortly before she died in 1962.

George Woods: Photographs from the 1890's Paperback – 1 Oct. 1987 by Irene Rhoden (Editor), Steve Peak (Editor)

See also - https://www.hastingshistory.net/images-alias