The Shill family came to Ufford from London and in 1891 were living in the cottages of Melton Hamlet. John Shill was working as an attendant at St Audry’s, the County Asylum in Melton, and his wife was Ellen Mary (nee Bartholomew). Their daughters, Caroline and Marion, were pupils at the school in Ufford and their son, John (Jack), was a year old.
By 1901 the family had moved to the neighbouring village of Bredfield and four more children had arrived three of whom, Annie, Herbert and Grace, were born in Ufford and Ellen, their youngest daughter, in Melton. In 1908 the family emigrated to Canada and were living in Montreal.