RANSOME, Bertram Coleby
Bertram Coleby Ransome was born at Orwell Lodge, Belstead Road, Ipswich on 22 October 1870, son of Robert Charles Ransome (1 June 1830-5 March 1886), ironfounder, and his second wife Elizabeth Gibb (1840-6 July 1935), of Old Hall, Hethersett, Norwich, eldest daughter of James Gibb of London & Calcutta, who married at St Matthew's Church, Brixton on 10 December 1864. Bertram was educated at Elstree and at Harrow and then studied engineering for five years at the works of Mirrlees Watson and Garyan Co., Ltd., at Glasgow, spending a further three years at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston, U.S.A., before entering the business of Ransome, Sims and Jefferies, Ipswich for whom he visited Russia, Australia, New Zealand and East Africa. Bertram married at Bramford, Ipswich on 29 April 1899, Phyllis Margaret Packard (2 May 1878-15 April 1970), daughter of Sir Edward Packard. In 1901, living at 'Shirleigh', St Edmunds Road, Ipswich and in 1911, Bertram was a 40 year old agricultural engineer in the firm of Ransome, Sims of Ipswich, living at Westerfield House, Ipswich with his 32 year old wife Phyllis and four of their six children, Philip Coleby 7, David Packard 6, Margaret Hope 4 and John Bertram 1, they retained five indoor servants, their two other children were Charles Edward Cedric (born 1900) and Richard Barrett (born 1915). An amateur artist and a member of the Ipswich Art Club 1913-1916 and of Westerfield House near Ipswich in 1913 and Highwood, Constitution Hill, Ipswich in 1914 but does not seem to have exhibited. Gazetted 2nd Lieut in the Royal Defence Corps on 26 March 1916 and in January the following year transferred to the Mechanical Transport Section of the Army Service Corps, going to France on 5 March of that year. The first part of his service was in connection with the building of large hospitals at Trouville. From there he went to Le Havre where he was attached to the 8th Auxiliary Steam Co., with whom he worked till June 1918. Bertram Coleby Ransome suffered an attack of influenza and died at 2nd General Hospital, Le Havre from subsequent lobar pneumonia on 30 June 1918, aged 47 and buried at Sante Marie Cemetery, Le Havre, France. His estate was proved at £21,450.