Harriett was married on 10^th August 1872 at the parish church of Chiddingfold to Frederick Tilbury, a bricklayer from Godalming. For some years they lived at George Street, Godalming and had five daughters. She also "adopted" a son named Edward from a young girl. The girl's father was reputed to be a former Mayor of Cork in Ireland.

Her adopted son Eddie, as he was known left home as a young man and travelled to the Southampton area. He successfully pursued the trade of motor mechanic and subsequently opened three garages in the Southampton, Winchester Hampshire areas.

Frederick Tilbury left his wife and heavy drinking resulted in him spending his final years in the Godalming almshouse where he died.

Like so many other working class single parents at the end of the nineteenth century, Harriett had to bring up a family of six children with little or no support from the State. After Frederick left she took in a lodger who must have helped financially, Eddie was also good to his mother and she was part of a large and established family from the Hambledon, Godalming and Compton areas. One imagines her family would also have assisted her to some degree.

She was the owner of a parrot who used to sit in its cage by the front door of 58 Board School Road and it would say "here come the laundry girls mother" when the young women passed by the house having finished their work at the local laundry.