Gertie Hewitt (née Pegg) was Samuel Hewitt's second wife, and younger sister of his first wife Dolly. TB was a big killer in the 1900s and it claimed the lives Dolly and two of the Hewitt children in the space of two years. After Dolly passed away, Gertie stepped into her sister's shoes by supporting Samuel and mothering the children. She and Samuel married on 22nd February 1906, just months after her sister's death. Samuel too caught TB that year but fought on until 1909. He was bed-ridden for the last six months and was looked after by Gertie and Flo.