From: Adrian Casey
Date: 2002-05-20
Time: 11:06:03 -0400
CLARKE with an "E", please. I kept in touch with "Bon" by correspondence - he gave me his address in Grange-over-sands - for some years on an irregular basis. In his later years, his wife would reply, as "Mr Clarke suffers badlky from angina." The explanation that I was told for his nickname was as suggested elsewhere in this forum.
To avoid confusion with at least one other CLARKE, also called "NOBBY", it was reversed to YBBON and then quickly cut down to BON.
The origin of NOBBY CLARK(E) comes from Old English: '(the) noble (lord), his clark (=clerk)'. 'Noble' was corrupted to 'nob' and eventually 'nob his' became 'nobby'.
There you all are. Two mysteries for the price of one membership fee. (Miracles take longer!)