 He was born in 1847 at 15 The Crescent, Marino. Stoker was bed-ridden until he started school at the age of seven, when he made a complete recovery. Of this time, Stoker wrote, "I was naturally thoughtful, and the leisure of long illness gave opportunity for many thoughts which were fruitful according to their kind in later years."
After his recovery, he became a normal young man, even excelling as an athlete (he was named University Athlete) at Trinity College, Dublin , which he attended from 1864 to 1870. He graduated with honours in mathematics.
In 1878 Stoker married Florence Balcombe, a celebrated beauty whose former suitor was Oscar Wilde. The couple moved to London, where Stoker became acting-manager and then business manager of Irving's Lyceum Theatre, London, a post he held for 27 years.
Stoker supplemented his income by writing novels; the best known being the vampire tale Dracula which was published in 1897. Before writing Dracula, Stoker spent several years researching European folklore and stories of vampires.
I decided to look him up in the 1881 Census. A quick name search in the London 1881 Census at TheGenealogist.co.uk website gave me only one result for 'Bram Stoker'. When viewing the original census page, I saw that he was listed at 27 Cheyne Walk in Chelsea, with his wife Florence and son Irving:
His occupation, age and place of birth are consistant with the details I gathered from his biography, as well as his family's details, and leave me in no doubt that I have found my man.
Useful Links:
www.uk1881Census.com
www.BritishDataArchive.com
www.TheGenealogist.co.uk |
