family history society - cadfhs.org · please note photocopied ... making kit cars ... american...
TRANSCRIPT
ISSN 0141 – 3821
Nottinghamshire Family History Society
Volume 14 No. 09 January 2015
Plumtree Church
2
PROGRAMME 2015
Date Speaker Title
21 January Keith Hucknall Nottingham in the 1950’s and 1960’s
18 February Chris Richardson ‘City of Light: Tracing your 19th
century Chartist,
Socialist, and Co-operator Ancestors’
18 March Members & Friends Projects Evening
15 April Madeline Cox A heavenly county:
Nottinghamshire’s Astronomical Heritage
Journal If any member has difficulty reading this Journal, please apply to the Journal Editor for alternative
formats.
All Copy should be sent to the Journal Editor. Copy only, with all SURNAMES in BLOCK CAPITALS.
Clear presentation greatly assists in avoiding errors. Illustrations ideally should be black on white paper, with
acknowledgements and permission to reproduce, if these apply. Photographs can be sent on the
understanding that whilst every care is taken, the Editor can take no responsibility for loss or damage. When
sending photographs it is advisable to write ‘Please Do Not Bend’ on the envelope. PLEASE NOTE
photocopied illustrations do not reproduce to a high enough quality for publication. Computer text (Word 98)
and image files (jpg, bmp or tiff) can be sent either on floppy disc or CD-ROM. No acknowledgement of
receipt will be sent unless specifically requested with a s.a.e. In the belief that all items sent are copies, items
will not be returned unless specifically requested with a s.a.e.
The deadline for the next issue is 1st March 2015
PRINCIPAL CONTENTS The Pembletons of Arnold 4
Finding relatives in every continent 5
Richard Boyell 9
My First World War Ancestor 13
Members Interests 14
Help Wanted 15
Tollerton Airfield during World War II 18
Computer Group – Nottinghamshire Parish Registers 22
The observations and opinions expressed in the various articles and notices in this Journal are those of their
authors and not necessarily those of the Society.
Nottingham Family History Society
Annual General Meeting 2015
Notice is hereby given that the 2015 AGM of the NFHS
will be held at the Mechanics Institute, Nottingham on Wednesday 20 May 2015
commencing 7.00pm. The business of the meeting is to receive reports from the Honorary President and Honorary Secretary; to
receive a report, including a financial statement, from the Honorary Treasurer; and to elect an Honorary
President, an Honorary Secretary, an Honorary Treasurer and 6 Council Members for 2015-2016.
The business meeting will be followed at about 7.30 pm by a Quiz. Tea and coffee will be available.
3
From the President
By the time you read this we will
be well into our new year. I hope
the festivities over Christmas and
the New Year proved to be
enjoyable and – if children or
grandchildren are involved –
maybe exciting too!
This reminded me of how our
ancestors would have celebrated
at this time of year. In Victorian
times, excepting Sundays,
Christmas Day was about the
only day off work within the
whole year. Virtually everybody
would have attended services at
their church or chapel of course,
and then the family would have
gathered together and exchanged
gifts and enjoyed a hearty meal,
followed perhaps by some
traditional games or story telling
or carol singing.
At Newstead Abbey in
Nottinghamshire – the ancestral
home of Lord Byron – there was
a curious incident that occurred
on Christmas Eve 1864, when a
certain Dr David Livingstone
(yes, the famous African
explorer) was staying there as a
guest of the then owner of the
house, William Frederick Webb.
The two had been good friends
for some years after Livingstone
had apparently saved Webb’s life
in Africa when the latter had
caught a fever there. That
Christmas Eve Livingstone,
along with his own daughter
Agnes, was playing the game of
blind man’s bluff with Mr
Webb’s young daughters, in the
Great Hall at Newstead. After
being spun round he attempted to
find the children, but instead
crashed into the great stone
fireplace and badly bruised his
head! He was shaken but
fortunately was not too seriously
hurt – though I bet he never
played that game ever again…
Although servants may have
found themselves working hard
to cater for the needs of their
employers at Christmas,
depending on the generosity of
their employer, they may have
been rewarded with some gift
and a share of the food on offer.
What if they were in the Prison
or the Workhouse? Well, as the
newspapers frequently testify,
the inmates were frequently
treated to a roast beef dinner
with plum pudding rounded off
with some ale – all of which had
invariably been donated by a
local landowner. So even those
who were considered the most
unfortunate were given some
comfort at this time of year.
It seems to me that Christmas in
those days meant so much more
than it does now, especially in
terms of its significance and
meaning, and there was very
little of the commercialism that
we witness today.
So you are probably relieved that
it is now all over for another
year. But wouldn’t it be
interesting to be able to go back
in time and re-live Christmas as
some of our ancestors might
have known it? I wonder who
got the better deal?
Peter Hammond
From the Editor
As you read this I will hopefully
be ‘playing’ with my Christmas
present from my husband – the
latest upgrade to Family
Historian. This is my preferred
software for documenting my
ancestors as I find it very easy to
use. The upgrade however
promises the addition of
mapping tools which will be
very interesting. I hope no-one is
expecting meals on time…
As always you the members are
coming up trumps with
wonderful articles for the
journal. Several people have
complimented me on the journal
excellence but it’s all down to
you the member. I only put the
stuff into some kind of order.
You write the articles – and long
may you continue.
Tracy Dodds
Illustration from Glover’s 1825 Directory of Nottingham
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE FAMILY HISTORY SOCIETY JOURNAL
4
The Pembletons of Arnold Clifford Hughes
This is the first of a series of
intended articles on rare
surnames associated with
particular settlements in
Nottinghamshire.
In 1881 there was a remarkable
concentration of people with the
rare name Pembleton, in Arnold.
Of the national total of 129
Pembletons, 84 were in Notts,
and 63 of these, nearly half the
national total, were in Arnold.
With the exception of east
Derbyshire, there were very few
in other counties. How did this
concentration come about?
Looking back to the several
available 17th
century sources, no
Pembletons lived in Notts. The
first occurrences of the name I
have come across were a
Pembleton burial in Mansfield in
1794, and a Thomas Pembleton
marrying Alice Bottom in
Edingley in 1796. Thomas was
buried in Edingley in 1831, at
the age of 73, so must have been
born in 1758. This village saw
several Pembleton births early in
the 19th
century, and was the
centre for this name at that time.
However the Arnold Pembletons
had different forenames and I do
not think they originated in
Edingley.
There is the possibility that the
name was introduced into the
county by migrants from
elsewhere – possibly Lancashire,
as websites give the derivation of
the name as a corruption of
Pemberton, a Lancashire name.
However there are so few
occurrences of the name outside
Notts in 1881, and earlier, in
1841, that an in-migration
explanation seems unlikely. I
would like to suggest an
alternative explanation. In my
view the name could well be a
corruption of the
Nottinghamshire surname
Pendleton: the substitution of -
mb- for -nd- in the middle of a
word would not be uncommon in
a population not too familiar
with reading and writing.
In 1841 Arnold had become the
undisputed centre of the name's
distribution (25 in Arnold, 15
elsewhere in Notts, and 8 in
Pleasley, out of a national total
of 75). Every one of the adult
males in Arnold was a
framework knitter, and there was
none of the variety of
employment, including lace
making, found in the nearby city.
This suggests to me that Arnold,
although close to the city, was
independent of it. Robert
Pembleton in Hucknall was a
cotton stocking maker (living in
Widdowson's Building with
many others in the same
employment), but the
Pembletons in the other villages
in the county were agricultural
labourers. These people married
very young, but this was not
uncommon at the time.
There were still a large number
of framework knitters amongst
the Arnold Pembletons who were
males and heads of households
in 1881. Several wives and
daughters were seamers or hose
finishers, probably working at
home, like Mrs Morrell in Sons
and Lovers. However Samuel P
of Arnold and Frederick P of
Bulwell had risen to be hosier
and hosiery manufacturer
respectively. Samuel's son
Arthur was also a hosier, and
Frederick's son John a farmer.
Elijah, a machine builder, also
seems to have been successful,
and his daughter Lucy was an
assistant schoolmistress. A
detailed account of Frederick's
life and descendants can be
found on the Framework
Knitters' Museum website.
Samuel lived at Arnold Grange,
Gedling Lane. He seems to have
died by 1891 but his son Arthur
was still a hosiery manufacturer,
living as a bachelor in
Nottingham. By 1911 he was
married and, no doubt like other
successful men, had moved out
of the urban area, to Bingham
Road, Radcliffe on Trent.
The name remains very strongly
a Nottinghamshire name,
although it is relatively more rare
than it was in 1881 – the number
of Pembletons has increased, but
not by much, and certainly at a
slower rate than the general
population. You are about 17
times more likely to come across
a Pembleton in the Nottingham
area as you are in Great Britain
as a whole.
The name is known in the USA.
In fact, by 1840 there were 18
heads of households with this
name in the USA, mostly in
New York state. By 1940 there
were 360 Pembletons in the
States, more than twice as many
as in Britain, but of course in a
larger population. It would be
surprising if most of these were
not descendants of emigrants
from Notts, perhaps in some
cases seeking to escape from the
low wages of the framework
knitting industry. In 1851 there
were 10 Pembletons living in
just 2 townships in Ontario,
Canada. The number had grown
to 81, still mostly in Ontario, by
1925. The Pembletons who
settled in Australia seem to have
chosen Queensland as their
initial port of call.
5
Googling the surname now
reveals that there is a Pembleton
Motor Company based in
Kidderminster, making kit cars
and having quite a following.
Frank Pembleton is a fictional
American detective in
Homicide:Life on the Street.
Nikita is an athlete from Sutton-
in-Ashfield, while Shirley
Pembleton is a (male) American
boxer.
It will be interesting to see
whether research into other
unusual local surnames will
reveal similar characteristics and
patterns.
Finding Relatives in Every Continent William Buchanan
When I started family research in
1989 I knew very little about my
Scottish ancestry as neither of
my parents were very
informative on the subject. My
father only mentioned to me
three of his cousins but early
research at New Register House
(NRH) in Edinburgh soon
indicated he had at least 74 1st
cousins. Information about them
was successfully achieved due to
the excellent facilities at NRH.
The first indication I had
overseas relations came when I
discovered that a MARY
AGNES MEIKLE, one of my
father’s cousins, had married
WILLIAM ANDERSON SOGA,
a black South African medical
missionary. With help from a
Meikle relation, I was able to
compile William’s family tree.
Williams’s grandfather was a
tribal chief with 8 wives and 39
children and his father was
TIYO SOGA (mentioned on
internet). Tiyo was brought to
Scotland by a Scottish
missionary and a Glasgow
Church supported him
financially whilst he was being
trained as a minister. Tiyo
married a Scottish textile worker
and they had four sons who all
obtained degrees at Scottish
Universities. This study of the
Soga family was really
fascinating.
The major breakthrough in
finding more overseas relatives
came from a memorial card and
meeting a 99 year old lady. The
memorial card related to a JOHN
BOYD BUCHANAN who was
killed in a an accident at a
Clydebank school. Research
indicated John was the son of
WILLIAM BUCHANAN,
youngest brother of my paternal
grandfather. William had five
sons namely William, George,
Robert, John, Andrew and
Archibald and two daughters
Margaret and Jessie. Except for
Archibald I was unable to find
their marriage or death details in
Scotland. The informant of
Archibald’s death was his
daughter, ALICE BURNS who
lived near Glasgow. Alice told
me six of the family had
emigrated, five to USA (George,
Robert, Andrew, Margaret and
Jessie) and William to Australia.
Alice gave me the addresses of
the grandson of Margaret, son of
Robert and daughter of Andrew.
By email the grandson of
Margaret, married to a Danish
lady, who lived in Illinois, gave
me all the details of Margaret’s
descendants. After some delay I
eventually got a letter from an
accountant in Reno Nevada
stating that Andrew’s daughter
Jean and her husband had both
died in the 1980’s. Later on a
visit to California I was able to
meet Margaret’s granddaughter
and her Norwegian husband. She
gave me the information about
Andrew and her big family who
live in four USA states. The
family had lost contact with
George but I was told he was
initially in the building trade in
New York. My daughter when
she visited New York had a day
on Ellis Island and found that
George came to USA in 1908.
Jessie BUCHANAN married a
MARK FINLAY and the 1940
USA census shows the latter in
New York as an unemployed
plasterer. My letter to Robert’s
son Robert was the most
productive as he immediately
invited me to visit him in Seattle.
So in 1996 I flew out to Seattle
on a visit to Robert which was to
prove to be a disaster. Robert
had invited his two widowed
sisters Alice and Beatrice who
lived near San Diego to fly up to
meet me after I had arrived. As
soon as I arrived Alice phoned
her brother to enquire if I had
arrived. I spoke briefly to Alice
who stated she was looking
forward to meeting me. Next day
we were informed that Alice had
died of a heart attack. As Robert
and his Dutch wife had to go
down to San Diego, I arranged to
make an early return to England.
In 1999 I visited the Canadian
Rockies and met relatives in
Vancouver and Vancouver
Island. From Victoria I took a
boat down to Seattle and was
able to meet Robert, Beatrice and
one of her daughters.
On my visit to the farm where
my paternal grandfather was
6
born, the present occupier told
me there was an old lady in the
village in her 90’s GRACE
MURDOCH COOPER who was
descended from my great great
grandfather Rev ARCHIBALD
MURDOCH. Before visiting
Grace in 1991 I checked her date
of birth in Edinburgh and found
she was born in September 1892.
She met me at the front door of
her home and told me “If the
Good Lord spares me for another
2 years I will be 100”. Grace had
brought up her niece Margaret
and nephew John after the death
of their mother. Rather than have
an argument on the doorstep, I
told Margaret that her aunt’s age
was wrong and she later
confirmed my research. Grace
celebrated her 100th birthday in
1992 but died six weeks later. I
visited her three weeks before
her death and she instructed her
niece to get her out of bed to
thank me for making her 100th
birthday possible. My three visits
to meet Grace were most
productive as she gave me
details of Murdoch descendants
who had gone to New Zealand
and Chile. I have a branch of
Buchanan relations based in
Paisley and in 1993, one of them
visited MARGARET COOPER
and she gave him my address.
On my next visit to Scotland I
visited Paisley and was told there
were descendants of the Paisley
branch living in Canada,
Australia and New Zealand.
In 1998 I decided to give up
driving a car and at the age of 75
decided to see the world and on
my visits to every continent
endeavour to meet my overseas
relations. The world tour lasted
seven years with two overseas
visits annually. My first visit in
1998 was to New Zealand where
I met many Paisley descendants
who were sheep farmers in the
South Island. We all met in a
restaurant in Invercargill and our
talks lasted 7 hours. I then
moved over to North Island
where I met descendants of
JAMES MURDOCH who came
out in 1895 as a teacher. He
established a school in a remote
part of the island and my guide
was the son of one of James’s
pupils. He told me about the
acres of vegetation that had to be
cleared to establish fields for the
livestock. A South Island
relation faced similar problems
when he arrived there in 1909.
In 2000 I visited Australia and
was able to meet relations in
Canberra, Sydney and
Melbourne. WILLIAM
BUCHANAN did not emigrate
from Scotland until 1920 with
his wife and two sons William
and John. Most of his research
has been done by sending for
certificates. William settled in
Bairnsdale Victoria as a draper
but died of heart trouble in 1929.
William junior was a theatre
manager in Bairnsdale and in
1972 was knocked down by a
train and died from injuries
received. I only found details of
the other son John in 2012 with
help from an Australian family
researcher. John served in the
RAAF in the last war and was
mentioned in dispatches. My
friend informed me he had a son
BARRY BUCHANAN living in
Queensland and that John died in
Sydney in 1961. I sent for his
death certificate which stated he
had been found dead in a Sydney
park and a suicide verdict was
given. Australian certificates are
usually good and follow the
Scottish pattern. On this
certificate there were no family
details and the coroner had made
no attempt to check on his
military service. I then contacted
Barry who told me that his father
suffered from post traumatic
stress after the war. The family
had been on a visit to Victoria
and at Sydney the father told the
family he was going to look for
better employment and would re-
join them later. Despite searches
they never saw him again and the
first details they had of his death
was when I sent them a copy of
their father’s death certificate. A
JANET BUCHANAN of Paisley
and her family settled in Perth in
1913. Her son had six daughters
and finding details of Janet’s
family was rather a struggle. In
desperation I put “a Can You
Help” letter in a West Australian
newspaper and that produced
immediate results. My letter was
seen by one of Janet’s daughters
who immediately got into
contact with me and provided me
with a wealth of information.
I visited South Africa I was
advised by an Edinburgh retired
South African missionary not to
try and establish contact with
Soga relations. He told me that
there were hundreds of Sogas
living in Eastern Cape. I met the
son of ALICE BURNS who has
an administrative job at
Witzwaterand University at
Johannesburg. The visit was
mainly taken up by seeing wild
animals, meeting Zulus in Natal
and viewing the scenery which
included a visit to Victoria Falls.
ARCHIBALD MURDOCH
MCQUEEN and his brother
WILLIAM LENNIE
MCQUEEN, grandsons of Rev
MURDOCH emigrated to Chile
about 1850. Archibald had an
importing/exporting business in
fancy goods and William was
involved in banking, both living
at Valparaiso. The latter married
an Italian lady but died of TB in
1879. They had one son and two
daughters. The son’s two
marriages only produced six
daughters. Archibald married a
Scottish lady in Chile and they
had a daughter Mary. After his
brother’s death Archibald
7
returned to London and
succeeded in setting up a
successful business. The family
lived in style in the Hyde Park
area. He also took over his
mother’s former home in
Scotland for relaxation. My
Chilean research was done in an
unorthodox manner. In South
American countries you usually
have at least two Christian
names, one of which is a
surname. I asked a receptionist in
the Santiago Hotel to try and find
some telephone numbers with
the McQueen name on. She
found three suitable names and I
immediately noted one with the
name HELEN MCQUEEN
JOSTE BONE. Williams’s son
married a SYBIL JOSTE
belonging to a family which
originated from Switzerland. I
phoned Helen and we had a very
productive chat. She said she
would be following me back
home as she and her daughter
were coming to Europe to visit
relations. When she phoned me
in England, she told me that her
niece JANE BOUGRINE (nee
McGillvray) would be coming to
Nottingham shortly to attend her
daughters graduation at
Nottingham University and
would bring me a detailed
Chilean family tree. Jane taught
English in Paris and her late
husband was a Russian refugee.
Jane and her brother John lived
their childhood days in Lima
Peru where her father was a bank
manager. She also told me that
her father was born in Trinidad
and died in Spain. Her
grandfather was involved in the
Trinidad sugar industry. It could
be argued that I need not have
gone to Chile but that would
have meant me missing the long
climb over the Andes into
Argentina, those wonderful
waterfalls on the border of
Argentina/Brazil and a visit to
Rio.
For a period when a man called
Allende was Chilean president
people of British descent
suffered hostility from him and
some of the McQueen relations
left Chile for the Northern
hemisphere. They can now be
found in Brazil, Florida, Texas,
San Francisco, England, Spain
and Switzerland. I met the latter
on a holiday in Switzerland.
JANET BOUGRINE’S mother
BEATRICE McGILLVRAY
(nee McQueen) celebrated her
90th birthday at her son’s home
in London in 2010 and I was
invited. It was quite an
international gathering with
relations from England, USA,
Chile, Cub, France, Spain and
Switzerland. The Cuban lady
was British Ambassador in Cuba
and now has a similar post in
Tanzania.
JAMES BUCHANAN and
MARY BUCHANAN two of my
Paisley Buchanans emigrated to
Toronto in 1906. Mary died after
a few years in Canada and James
committed suicide in 1922 after
poisoning his son with
strychnine. The death of James
was fully researched by another
Paisley relation who studied a
digital version of the Toronto
Star. It is rather a long story. My
grandfather’s sister Jean proved
a difficult one to research. JEAN
BUCHANAN married a JOHN
WADDELL and for twenty five
years they lived on a farm just
west of Stirling. About 1885 the
family just vanished and it was
not until the issue of the 1901
census that I found the family all
living in Suffolk. I was able to
contact a great grandson of Jean
who provided me with much
Waddell information. One of
Jean’s sons George eventually
took over a farm in Suffolk
which had been badly neglected
by a previous owner. In 1923
George’s son John decided to
emigrate to Canada. He used the
“Harvester’s Special” to take
him from Montreal to Winnipeg.
After working on farms in
Western Canada, John returned
home in 1926 and found his
father’s farm losing money. He
persuaded his parents to retire
and live with their unmarried
daughter who was a teacher in a
neighbouring town. John
returned to Western Canada,
married there and had a family of
four sons and one daughter. A
Canadian Waddell living in
Calgary sent me complete
information about John’s
descendants.
My research in Scotland was not
confined to the paternal side of
the family as I did a lot of
research on the maternal side. I
was greatly assisted in my
maternal research by Lady
MARY HAY who lived at her
retirement home near Hawick.
She and her late husband Sir
ROBERT HAY lived in India for
thirty years. Sir Robert was a
doctor and eventually became
Head of the Indian Medical
Service until 1947. Their only
son was killed in the 1934 Quetta
earthquake and to overcome their
loss they spent several weeks
pony trekking in Nepal. On my
frequent journeys up to Scotland
in the 1990’s, I used to stop
overnight at Lady Hay’s home
and review with her my Hay and
Erskine research on my mother’s
side. She often spoke to me
about the Nepal visit so I decided
to complete my overseas visits
by visiting Nepal. The highlight
of that visit was a flight round
Everest, the top of the mountain
was exceptionally clear that day
and I was able to take good
photos.
A feature of my Scottish
research is finding that I have
thirty church ministers in my
8
family tree. In addition to those
mentioned in South Africa, I
found that relations on the side
of the husband of my aunt JEAN
DYKES (nee Buchanan) had
spent years on missionary work
in both India and China. The
China missionary retired to a
church on the south side of Loch
Ness and was found dead in his
church.
It is often said that one of
Scotland’s chief exports is its
people. I think this article
supports this view.
A Batch of Beauties Extract from The Nottinghamshire Guardian,
Thursday Evening, September 18, 1851 by Phil Hand
COUNTY HALL, NOTTINGHAM
A BATCH OF BEAUTIES. – Matthew Burton was charged with having, on the 4th
of September, at Bulwell,
damaged some glass, in the house of William Hind. The complainant, in methodical, set phrases, said, - I
was in my own chamber, looking through my own window, when I saw the said Matthew Burton pick some
thing from the street, and throw it towards me, and consequently I scrootched down in this way (suiting the
action to the word) and escaped being hit, but by consequence nothing came but sink-dirt. I went down at the
said time, gentl’em, and when I got into the house I heard a crash; and when I went into the room afterwards
I found this here stone (producing one as large as his fist.) The defendant (elevating a rusty old can): Did’nt
you’r wife hurl this can filled wi’ manure at me? – Complainant was proceeding to give a preface to his
answer when he was told that he must say “yes” or “no”. He thereupon replied tartly – Yes, she did, but I
can’t say whether it was full or half-full-gether’d manure. The reason my wife did so, gentl’em, was, this
man’s wife and my wife’s sister got to a falling out. – Defendant: As his wife was throwing this at me she
smashed the window out, and broke the panes! – Samuel Robinson, a witness called on behalf of the
complainant, said the defendant and Hind (the complainant) married two sisters. He remembered the window
being broken. He saw Mathew Burton pick up a stone, and break three windows with it. – They had been
quarrelling. There was a can full of manure thrown out of the window on to him, but it was dry. – The
defendant: His wife and my wife were fighting. – A strong female voice, which appeared to belong to the
complainant’s wife, exclaimed, excitedly: You’re a story teller, you are. – Jemima Selby, on behalf of the
defendant, stated that she saw Mrs. Hind throw the can at defendant, and being in a passion she pushed the
window open and dashed it against the corner of the wall and “demashiated it”. – There being a cross-
warrant against Mary Hind, charged with breaking Burton’s windows, it was deemed advisable to take it
before deciding upon the previous case. She was accordingly placed before the bench, exhibiting to the
magistrates a miscellaneous collection of artificial flowers crowded upon her bonnet and in her cap border.
Her flushed cheek, undaunted glances, and voluble utterance, bespoke that Sir John Barleycorn and she were
rather close friends. - Burton stated that he was sitting at his frame on the 4th
instant when the defendant went
to the window and filliped several times, cracking a pane; that she called him all the false villains she could
think of; and as a climax to her ill-usage she “nipped up a rail and jabbed it through the window”, breaking
four panes. - Noah Bembridge deposed to seeing the defendant “sending a rail through Burton’s window”. -
The defendant (speaking confidentially to the magistrates) said – I’ve witnesses who can tell you how many
panes there was broke, - because there’s not so many broke in the whole house as she says there was broke in
the window; and I have known one on ‘em broke ten years. I sent the constable down to count on Saturday
night (continued she triumphantly), because I know it’s well to be on the guard when there’s rouges to deal
wi’. – Constable Leamington, for the defence, stated that on Saturday night, in compliance with a request
made by Mrs. Hind, he went to the complainant’s house and counted the broken panes, which were three in
number. Defendant (to the magistrates): I to’d ye so; I’ve known one on ‘em broke, as I’ve said afore, for ten
years, because I’ve gen him (the complainant) leeks through it many a time. I’ve another witness – Sarah
Radford – shout her name out! – Sarah Radford deposed to three panes having been broken three weeks. –
Each defendant was convicted in the penalty of 15s. 6d., including costs.
9
Richard Boyell Phil Hand
Richard Boyell was born in 1814 in the
Nottinghamshire village of Flintham, one of six
children born in Flintham to Richard and Alice
(nee Parnham). After finding his baptism, later
marriage and entries on a couple of the early
censuses, his life appeared pretty much the same
as most of our ancestors experienced (from the
brief glimpses we find of them that is). But then
the odd ‘discrepancy’ for him seemed to creep
into my research, and over the years, as more
and more information became available online
and through various repositories, I’ve gradually
been able to piece together a more complete
picture of his life.
The first mention of him after his baptism is in
1835, when he married Mary Redfern, the
daughter of a wealthy landowner, at Radford
Nottingham. After failing to find Richard and/or
Mary anywhere on the 1841 census, I checked
the 1851 census and came across them living in
Radford with a 5-year-old son Henry. But more
helpfully, I found an older son, William Richard,
living with his grandfather (Mary Redfern’s
father) on the next road. This son’s birthplace
was given as Neath, South Glamorgan. Using
this son and Richards’s occupation, I then
managed to find the family living in Neath on
the 1841 census. This was in the early days of
my research, so although Richard Boyell was
using the name William Edwin Boyle (for the
1841 census, his son’s birth and also his baptism
entry), I didn’t think it was that strange and just
assumed that he was maybe using a forename
and surname more suited to the town in which
he was residing at the time - but since then, I’ve
discovered at least two reasons for the change of
identity.
I’ve not found out why he chose or where he
learnt his initial trade as a plumber and glazier,
but he seems to have been quite successful as he
was listed as a home owner, living at Castle
Gate, Newark on the 1840 voters’ list. In the
same year, there is an announcement in the local
newspaper to say that - “Richard Boyell,
Plumber, Glazier, etc, respectfully returns thanks
to his friends for their kind support since his
commencement in business, and begs to
acquaint them that he has disposed of the same
to Mr. G. J. Lilly, for whom he begs to solicit
the support of his friends in general”. This is
followed by an announcement from G. J. Lilly
stating that he has taken over the premises and
business and is - “most anxious to execute any
work with which inhabitants of Newark and its
vicinity may be pleased to entrust him”.
It must be at this point or shortly after when
Richard and his wife Mary leave
Nottinghamshire for South Wales, as in the
following months, more announcements in the
local newspapers start to appear, but these are of
a slightly different tone:-
Newark Sessions, Saturday April 4th
1840
Edward Unwin v Richard Boyell. This action
was brought to recover the sum of £10. lent by
the Nottinghamshire Banking Company to the
defendant on a promissory note. Verdict for the
Plaintiff £10 11s 2d and costs.
&
William Hoe v Richard Boyell. This was an
action to recover £13 5s the balance of an
account due to the plaintiff for horses and
carriages let for hire. Verdict for the plaintiff
£13 5s.
It looks like Richard left for Wales just in time.
At this point, I also thought that the above debts
were the main reason why Richard was using the
name William Edwin Boyle whilst in Wales, but
after finding an entry for him as William Edwin
Boyle in Burkes Peerage* which shows descent
from the 2nd
Earl of Shannon, I realised that he
might have also been trying to impersonate
someone else. I’ve since spoken to descendants
of Richard Boyell, and also to a descendent of
one of Richard’s siblings regarding the use of
the surname Boyle, and despite proof otherwise,
they are convinced that the line back to the
above Earl is correct. I’ve even been shown a
ring passed down one branch of the family
which contains the ‘family crest’!
The family’s stay in South Wales was only brief,
as by 1845 at the latest, they are back in
Nottingham for the birth of their second son
Henry. Going by the newspaper reports and the
following abridged entry from The Gazette of
January 28th
1842, it’s pretty likely their return
happened in 1842:-
Whereas a Fiat in Bankruptcy is awarded and
issued forth against William Edward (sic) Boyle,
10
of Neath, in the county of Glamorgan, Plumber,
Dealer and Chapman, and he being declared a
bankrupt is hereby required to surrender himself
to the commissioners on the 18th
day of February
next at the Bush Inn, in the town of Swansea.
As the family are back in Nottingham and
‘William Edwin Boyle’ is now back to being
just plain Richard Boyell, I don’t think, and I’ve
not been able to discover yet, whether he ever
answered the above call to surrender himself.
Richard then seems to have had a period of
stability with his family life and his plumber and
glazing business. He even invented and
successfully patented one or two items in
relation to his business. But then in 1854, we
have more of the bankruptcy newspaper reports
about him, such as:-
To appear before the Judge of the County Court
of Nottinghamshire, holden at the Shire Hall,
Nottingham, on the 11th
July 1854 – Richard
Boyell, late of No 38, Derby Road, Nottingham,
Journeyman Plumber and Glazier, previously of
Friezland, Radford, Journeyman Plumber and
Glazier, formerly, of Forest House Lodge,
Mansfield Road, Nottingham, out of business or
employ, and before then in lodgings at Mr.
Richard Boyell’s, Mansfield Road, Nottingham,
Plumber and Glazier.
The above is the last sighting or mention I’ve
found of Richard in Nottingham. The above
action may have been the cause of him moving
again, but also a few weeks before the above
announcement, his father-in-law, whom he had
been living with, died. Richard’s wife and two
sons stayed in Nottingham.
On the 1861 census, Richard is residing in a
lodging house on Marylebone Lane, London.
Shown as un-married and with the occupation of
Engineer and Plumber.
We then have the start of a new family as
Richard is shown as the father on a birth
certificate for a child born in December 1861 in
London. He has the additional middle name of
‘William’ and his ‘wife’ is recorded as Giener
Boyell, nee King (no sign of any marriage). Up
until Giener’s death in 1870, she has a total of 4
children, all with Richard being recorded as their
father. In between, he managed the following
couple of court appearances:-
The London Gazette, April 30th
, 1867
Richard Boyell, of No. 43, Park Road, Bow, late
of Argyle Lodge, and formerly of No. 19,
Brunswick Parade, both in Annerley Road,
Norwood, Surrey, manager to an Engineer and
Commission Agent, and now a prisoner for debt
in the County Gaol, Horsemonger Lane,
Newington, having been adjudged bankrupt, is
required to surrender himself before the
Registrar, on the 15th
day of May next.
And an appearance at the Old Bailey on a charge
of deception and fraud:-
15th
August 1870
684. RICHARD BOYELL (55) , Unlawfully,
by false pretences, obtaining from Alfred
Maddux the sum of £1 2s. 6d., and other sums
amounting to £24.
The Court considered that there was no evidence
against the prisoner.
NOT GUILTY .
Giener Boyell’s death occurred 2 weeks after the
above court case, and although her death
certificate records phthisis (TB) as the cause, I
wonder if the strain of living with Richard was a
contributing factor.
In 1871, Richard is in lodgings in London and
again recorded as being un-married. His two
surviving children from his relationship with
Giener King are living with Giener’s
family/sibling.
A few years ago, a lady I managed to trace who
was married to one of Richard’s grandsons,
kindly sent me copies of two letters Richard had
written from London to Blisworth in
Northamptonshire. Although they contain
general chit-chat, both are addressed to “My
Dear Wife” and signed “Your affectionate
Husband”. I found the beginning of the first
letter quite interesting, and probably quite
telling:-
12th October 1872
My Dear Wife,
What Mrs. H and S says about me you
know it is only spite. When you come to think
about it a second time they are such known liars
it is hardly worthwhile to think about them.
The ‘Dear Wife’ was an - Elizabeth Ann Ayres,
who took his surname and bore him two
children; a daughter born in London in 1873 and
a son born in Birmingham in 1874. Two months
after the birth of this son, Richard died and was
buried in Birmingham.
The surviving children from Richard’s second
two ‘relationships’ went on to lead normal lives.
11
The two sons from his ‘first’ marriage carried on
the family tradition of leading, shall we say
‘interesting lives’! The Elizabeth Ann Ayres
mentioned above, married under the name of
‘Elizabeth Boyell Ayres’ in 1876. She then
appeared to have lived a normal life; until I
came across the following newspaper report
which shows her using a slightly different
name:-
The Northampton Mercury, April 12, 1879.
Special Petty Sessions, Towcester.
Elizabeth Ayres Boyell, a respectable-looking
young woman, a native of Blisworth, was
brought up, on remand, charged with concealing
the birth of her child.
The report then gives quite a lot of detail about
the trial:- Elizabeth had been working as a cook,
when she fell pregnant to a butler called James
Ellerton. The case initially centred on the
question of whether the child had been born and
murdered or Elizabeth had miscarried. A baby
had been found in a hatbox in the canal with a
ribbon tied around its neck. The coroner
couldn’t say if the strangulation had been the
cause of the child’s death, or if it was a stillbirth.
Elizabeth admitted to placing her miscarried
child in the canal, but denied that the one found
with a ribbon around its neck was hers. She was
committed for trial the following month.
Elizabeth pleaded guilty to a charge of
“endeavouring to conceal the birth of her male
child”. In sentencing her, “His Lordship said he
had looked over the depositions and considered
the case, and he did not think it was one which
called for severe punishment. – Prisoner was
sentenced to three months with hard labour.”
*The entry in Burkes Peerage may have come
about sometime around 1902, as in May of this
year, someone went to the trouble of having
most of the details changed on Richard’s son’s
marriage entry from 1875 (and also the details
on the birth certificate of 1878 of what was one
of Richard’s granddaughters). Just another little
puzzle from a family branch which has kept me
occupied for many years!
A Tale of Two Mary’s Dick Harrison
My great great grandfather,
Frederick Clark(e), was born
in Aylestone Leicestershire on
the 16 May 1827; he was the
second son of Joseph and
Esther (nee Miles). Frederick
married three times in ten
years, his second and third
wives were easy to identify but
his first was a little more
trouble.
Frederick married Jane Neal, a
20 year old spinster at
Hallerton, Leicestershire. They
had four children; Edward
Neal (1861), Thomas Miles
(1864), Frederick (1867) and
Mary Ann (1870). Edward was
my great grandfather.
I thought initially that my
great great grandmother, Jane
Neal, was his only wife, since
the 1851 census showed him
as a bachelor and he was
married in the 1861. It was not
until I obtained a copy of their
marriage certificate that I
learned that Frederick was a
widower. My practice was to
search the town centre St M’s
(Margaret, Mary de Castro,
Matthew and Mark) parishes’
records first. Working back
from the date of his marriage
to Jane, I found his marriage to
Mary Grimes a 30 year old
spinster on 21 June 1855.
Their daughter, Ellen
Elizabeth, was born on 26
June 1856. Mary Ann died of
bronchitis on 27 January 1857.
Again I was surprised to see
him given as a widower in the
marriage register. Eventually I
found that he had married
Mary Frearson, a 31 year old
spinster, on 23 October 1851
and he was given as a
bachelor. So, Mary Frearson
was his first wife but when did
she die? Freebmd gave me six
candidates which I managed to
whittle down to two. There
was no alternative but to buy
the death certificates.
Naturally I got the wrong one
first; Mary Clark, 31, widow
of Robert Clarke, a
wheelwright. She died on 16
December, 1851. So my great
great grandfather’s first wife
was the other Mary; she died
aged 34 on 13 September,
1854 of ulceration of the
intestines. (Is that cancer?).
Although I now knew she was
not connected to my family, I
was interested in the first Mary
Clarke, in particular the cause
of death; “From accidental
burns” and the certificate was
signed John Gregory, Coroner.
A visit to the Record Office at
12
Wigston was called for and so
the tragedy unfolded.
Robert Clark and Mary Lee
had married in their home
village of Empingham,
Rutland on 11 August 1840;
both signed their names in the
marriage register. The 1841
census has two Roberts both
age 25 and again there were
two Marys: a 13 year old
living in Oakham with a
Robert. Unfortunately the
1841 does not give marital
status so they may have been
brother and sister although
girls of that age could legally
marry then. The other Robert
appears to be at home with his
parents; the other Mary is
listed as aged 20 and born in
Rutland living with William
and Fanny Lee in Empingham.
A Fanny Lee is shown visiting
a Robert and Mary in the 1851
census. So it looks like the
second Robert and Mary in
each case. Their first child, a
daughter they called Jane, had
been born in July 1851 but she
died aged 3½ in January 1845.
The 1851 census was taken on
the 30 March. Mary (30) was
living in Morcott, Rutland
with her three children; Fanny
(7), Mary (5) and Robert (1), it
must have been about this time
that she had conceived
although she probably would
not have been aware of it. She
is recorded as married but her
husband, Robert, is absent and
I have been unable to find him,
however, he is unlikely to
have been very far away as he
was by then seriously ill with
tuberculosis. He died one
month later on 1 May. The
death was actually given as
Consumption and registered
by Mary, “In attendance.” By
then she must have suspected
that she was pregnant again.
Sometime during the next few
months Mary moved her
family to Leicester where she
met her death on the 16
December 1851. The inquest
report has not survived but the
“Leicester Journal” of 19
December described it as an
“Awful Death” at the head of a
brief paragraph.
A much more comprehensive
account is given in the
“Leicester Chronicle” of 20
December. Under the heading
“Death by Burning” it
reported:
‘On Wednesday, an inquest
was held in the parish of St
Mary, upon Mary Clarke,
deceased. It appears that she
was the widow of Robert
Clarke, a wheelwright, and
had recently come from
Morcot (sic) Rutland, to reside
in Hill-street, Leicester, with
her three children. A little after
10 o’clock on Monday night,
her eldest daughter, whom she
had put to bed between eight
and nine, was awakened by a
smoke in the room, and on
going down stairs found her
mother sitting on a little chair
near the clock, and leaning her
head on a large chair, with her
clothes all on fire. She made
an alarm, and the neighbours
came in, threw water over the
deceased, and extinguished the
fire; after which the deceased
was taken to the Infirmary,
where she died the following
night. Her own account of the
accident was that her child was
very tiresome, and she had lain
down in the hearth and fallen
asleep. Further inquiry
elicited, however, that she had
drunk a quartern of rum that
evening. She was very near
her confinement, and only 31
years of age. Verdict,
“Accidental Death.”’
I have been unable to find a
reason for her move to
Leicester or what became of
her children after her death,
the workhouse is a strong
possibility but records from
this period have not survived,
nevertheless the children
should have appeared in later
censuses.
Dick Harrison.
Advertisement from Wright’s 1913 Directory of Nottingham
13
My First World War Ancestor
Great Uncle Harry Edmund Priestley Mrs J Goodman
I always knew that Harry Priestley had died in
WW1, his grave is close to that of his brother-in-
law, Harry Brown, whose grave I visited regularly
with my grandmother; she always told me that her
brother’s was the first military funeral in Beeston,
as he died in July 1915.
I had no idea of his service record, only that he was
with the Sherwood Foresters, Private 5778. Some
years ago I attended a talk about the Sherwood
Foresters and to my great delight obtained a
photograph of Harry, and also details of his army
record. I had assumed that he died of wounds, as he
was transferred to Netley Hospital, Hampshire, and
died there in 1915.
But back to the beginning. Harry was born in
Attenborough in 1879, third child of Tom and Hetty
Priestley; my grandmother, Harriett, was born the
previous year also in Attenborough, the Priestleys
had for generations lived in Barton in Fabis but for
some reason this side of the family decided to move
and soon settled in Beeston. Harry enlisted in 1898,
signing up for 7 years with a further 5 years in the
Reserves. He served with the 1st Battalion, No 4
company 28th
Mounted Infantry in the Boer War
1899-1902, he was a Boer POW and driven back to
the British Lines. He embarked with the 1st Btn
from Capetown for Hong Kong 8.9.1902, but
reverted to Private at his own request on 16
September 1902.
This later information was found in “Exploring
Beeston’s History”, and the Roll of Honour for
WW1. He married in 1907, a widow Elizabeth
Spowage who had a daughter, they subsequently
had two daughters. He was involved with the Notts
& Derby Militia. He re-enlisted with the 1st Btn on
their return from India in August 1914, arriving in
France in March 1915. His was a short war for he
was wounded at Ypres in May, recovered by July
but was sent to Havre Hospital shortly afterwards
suffering from “a mystery illness”. A week later he
was transferred on the Carisbrooke Castle to Netley
Hospital, where he died on 26th July 1915. Cause
of death was “acute nephritis” (i.e. kidney failure)
with uraemic poisoning and dropsy. He also had
bronchitis.
Whether his family knew exactly the cause of death
I obviously don’t know, mine was the natural
assumption that he died of wounds received in
action. His job was described as labourer in the
census records, I assume that being a Reservist he
was called immediately. His brother-in-law Harry
Brown (my maternal grandfather) also re-enlisted in
August 1914 with the RFA aged 42, he had also
served in the Boer War.
To see Harry’s rather grainy photograph, with big
moustache, but only head and shoulders, was great.
His was a short war, through illness and a winter in
France and probably a hard life at home as an
unskilled labourer he didn’t have much of a chance
– like thousands of others no doubt. I have no idea
what happened to the step daughter and his own two
daughters, my research has concentrated on the
earlier Priestleys, which began many years ago.
Member 255, Mrs J Goodman. 57 Windermere Rd,
Long Eaton. NG10 4DQ
Linby Burials
1881 July 01 John DYSON, 65. For 30 years Postman at Lynby, killed by engine on the line at Station, 29
Jun 1881. A most excellent man - beloved, respected and lamented by everyone'
North Muskham Baptisms
1838 July 26 Frederic son of Wm & Ann BROWN cottager. Note in margin since dead by accident on the
railway
Scarrington Burials
1860 June 10th William KIRK, Lenton nr. Nottingham, aged 24. This person was killed by the train passing
over him between Bottesford & Orston on the 8th June as he was coming home to the Orston
Club.
1866 June 15th Daniel SLATER, 18, Orston. This boy belonged to the Parish of Granby and was porter at
the Elton railway station where he was crushed between two railway carriages, June 13th.
14
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15
Help Wanted
Please keep your entries as short and concise as possible. Entries that are too long or confused will be edited
or omitted. Do try to explore the usual sources such as GRO Indexes, Censuses and IGI etc. before using this
page. Will members responding to these requests please send me a copy of their reply so that they may be
published in the journal. Please print or type clearly with all surnames in CAPITALS and send to:-
The Editor, 39 Brooklands Drive, Gedling Nottingham NG4 3GU.
PEPPER Mrs Y Raven, 10 Sunnindale Dr,
Tollerton, NG12 4ES
My maternal grandfather Herbert Pepper born
Radford July 1871 married Ann Scrimshaw (bn
June 1895). They had 4 children:- Lewis bn 1896,
Claud bn 1898, Ivy Evelyn bn 1904, and Mirriam
(Nancy) bn 1908. From what little I have been able
to research, during the Great War Herbert was in
the Cameronians Scottish Rifles as a Driver. His
son Lewis was in the same regiment as a Groom
and he served in Salonica. Can anyone help in
identifying any of the soldiers in the photo and
confirm it was the Cameronians. Also any history
of their postings. (Photo Herbert bottom right,
Lewis top left) The photo also has the names R
Liebich, Photograph and Rousfchouk
Ed’s Notes: The cap badges seen on the photo do
match the Cameronian’s cap badge, as does the
headgear. I also googled the name R Liebich and
found a photo credited to R Liebich of
Roustschouk, Bulgaria. This would fit with the
Salonica campaign but also implies that Herbert
was in the same campaign to be present on the
photo. According to the Long Long Trail, a
fantastic Great War
resource online, the
11th Battalion
Cameronians were in
salonika as part of the
77th Brigade in the 26
th Division. Also the 1/5
th Battalion Cameronians were
there in at least 1915 as part of the 19th
Infantry Brigade, 27th
Division. The
Long Long Trail gives a good description of the Salonika campaig and also
what the different divisions were doing.
SMEDLEY Tina McKernan, 61 Barlows Lane, Andover, Hants SP10 2HB
I was wondering if anyone could help me find information on my Great Grandad
Samuel Smedley born 1 Dec 1881 in Stapleford Shardlow. Married Ellen Coward in 4 Jun 1900 in Sheffield
who died, then he married Ellen Roe/Simpson on 15 Jan 1911 in Sheffield. I have been researching Samuel
Smedley for years and hit so many brick walls hence asking if you could help or advise me on WHERE I can
research more information. In 1923 he deserted his second wife for the second time and was never seen or
heard from again. I have a death certificate which tells me he died 10 Nov 1960 in Paddington Hospital,
Paddington, London and lived at 96a Talbot Road, Paddington. Not being that experienced in family
research I don't know where to go from here. Is there any way of tracking where he went when he left
Sheffield. Did he remarry etc etc. I would be so grateful for ANY help. I am doing this research for my mum,
who just wants answers
16
LYONS Sandra Clarke, Woodland View, Hagg Lane, Egmanton, Newark, Notts NG22 OHJ
I am trying to trace the birth of my grandfather Robert LYONS born c1870. I have hit a brick
wall and have checked many places. He married Miriam WILKINSON 1900 in Nottingham and he died
1944 in the City hospital Nottingham. In WW1 he was in the Royal Engineers as a pioneer. His number was
117287. He was a Fur Skinner down Lenton on the 1901 census and after that he was a labourer and worked
at the John Player Factory. Any information and help would be appreciated.
ARKWRIGHT Pam Cram, 86 Pontardawe Road, Clydach, Swansea, SA6 5PA
Email: [email protected]
Does anyone have any information about a link between Thomas Arkwright born around 1773, and married
to Ann Crafts/Crofts in Costock 1804, and Richard Arkwright of Cromford (supposedly his father by a single
mother in Notts or Derbyshire).
COMERY Colin Comery, August House, Redbourn Lane, Harpenden, Herts AL52NA
E-Mail [email protected]
I am putting together a photograph album of my ancestors and have one Great Grandparent
missing. He is John COMERY born in Mansfield on 25 March 1844. He married Mary SPOWAGE (1847-
1934) in Radford in 1867 and they had 10 children. He died on 19 August 1920 in Long Eaton.
Given both John and Mary came from sizeable families and then had 10 children I am sure there must be
many descendants around. I have contacted all my known relatives but to no avail. If anyone does have a
photograph of John Comery they are prepared to share I would be most grateful if they would contact me.
MALTBY Anne Shack, 993 Northaw Close, Brentwood Bay, BC, Canada V8M 1A4
I am researching Charles Maltby 1848-1928 and his wife Eliza Ann Long 1847-1914 who
lived at Dalby House for many years. I am their Great granddaughter. Their youngest child: Margaret
Evelyn Maltby (Gibson) was my grandmother. It appears that my line is the only one with progeny. I am
looking for general information about the family, especially in regards to any of Charles siblings who may
have had children. I believe they are Emma, George & Frank. I did find that one of his daughters Edith Mary
Elizabeth Maltby (Long) had a son Clifford who died in 1927.
Letters to the Society
Family history write up.
I have just read The President’s article in the October 2014 society journal about writing up one's family
history. I don't know whether you would consider what I have done so far as being a proper write-up or not.
It is certainly incomplete, even in terms of what I have so far discovered.
What I have done is put quite a bit, (but by no means all I have), of information on the subject on my
personal web site. The family history section of the site is split into several main sections. After one giving a
list of all the surnames of interest to me (direct ancestors of my wife and myself) (at
http://www.jimella.me.uk/famtree.cfm), there is one section on my family history, another on my wife's and
a third on the places where our ancestors lived.
The section on my ancestry (at http://www.jimella.me.uk/ahnntfl1.cfm), like the one on my wife's (at
http://www.jimella.me.uk/ahnntfl2.cfm), consists of an ahnentafel showing all the direct ancestors, together
with, where known, the places of birth/baptism, marriage and death/burial, with links in some cases to
separate pages dealing with all ancestors having a particular surname. An example of the latter is that of my
wife's ATHEIS ancestors in Newark and Radcliffe on Trent at http://www.jimella.me.uk/atheis.cfm.
The pages on places consist of one or more each for each county concerned (although Caernarvonshire is yet
to be done), with a small section on each of the towns, villages and hamlets of interest, such as that for
Nottinghamshire at http://www.jimella.me.uk/notts.cfm (the towns and villages in that case are on the
subsidiary page http://www.jimella.me.uk/nottplac.cfm). In a few cases, eight in all, there are sets of separate
pages for one town or village, such as the set of 27 (I think) pages for Newark at
http://www.jimella.me.uk/newark.cfm
17
I have not quoted sources on the web site, but suggested in many places that anyone interested should contact
me for that sort of detail. I have included, both on that site and on my own database, the best information I
have to date, which varies in reliability from, for example, my own marriage at which (surprise!) I was
present and have not the slightest doubt about the details, to such unreliable things as individual submissions
to the old IGI and ancient records of Welshmen who fought against invading Saxons. I have, however,
discounted one on-line record that appears to show that I am descended from King Arthur and related to
Merlin! I think some people let their imaginations run away with them.
The site also includes a few other pages not directly related to my own family history but intended to be of
help to others, such as the (apparently popular) page on the history of administrative areas in England and
Wales (and some related names of places) at http://www.jimella.me.uk/counties.cfm
Jim Fisher
Portrait Silhouettes
With the help of the Heritage Lottery Fund The Regency Town House Heritage Centre in Brighton & Hove
is currently developing a project about historic British portrait silhouettes.
As a part of this, they are attempting to assess the prevalence of silhouettes within the general population
and within groups that have a self-declared interest in history. To this end, they would like to survey the
prevalence of such works amongst the membership of the Nottinghamshire FHS.
If you would like to participate in their survey please email [email protected] with the following entry in the
‘subject title’: ‘The Name of your FHS’ and the word ‘Silhouette’.
The team does not need details of the work/s you hold, as they are just trying to assess the percentage of
members with silhouettes. They will not pass on your email details to others as a result of your participation
in this survey but they will reply to your email to provide information about the silhouette website they are
building.
You may be interested to know that they have already run this survey successfully with the Sussex FHG and
that, over the last year, they have been working on several digital initiatives with our Vice-President, Lady
Mary Teviot.
On Line Documentation The Society are trying out a new on line system of transcribing and proof reading our parish register, non
conformist register and headstone recording projects.
Each person who volunteers to help with this work is allocated a personal data area on the Society's web site
(www.nottsfhs.org.uk). Images of register pages, inscription recordings etc. are placed in each personal area
together with a template spreadsheet. Working at their own pace, transcribers read the image and fill the
spreadsheet with the image information; proof readers will check an already completed spreadsheet against
the image and make corrections where necessary.
Current work is transcribing the non-conformist marriage registers of Nottinghamshire and the inscriptions
of Mansfield Cemetery.
If you would like to help, this is what to do:
Register with the web site (www.nottsfhs.org.uk) – you will need to provide a username, a password, and an
email address.
Complete the authentication process when you receive an email from the Society.
Send an email to [email protected] if you are interested in the non-conformist registers.
Send an email to [email protected] if you are interested in the cemetery inscriptions.
When prompted, log on to the web site and go to your personal data area to begin work!
Spreadsheets will be in Microsoft Excel .xls format, but can be read and created by other office suites such as
OpenOffice and LibreOffice. A good image viewing software package is XnView from www.xnview.com.
NFHS Society News
18
Tollerton Airfield during World War II Brian Hancock
Introduction
I was inspired to write these
memories of my time at
Tollerton Airfield after reading a
book about the Lancaster
bomber. There was reference to
the civilian repair organisation of
the manufacturer, A. V. Roe &
Co. Ltd. at Langar, but sadly no
mention of Tollerton, and
knowing the important and
significant part they played in
the war in getting damaged
Lancasters back into the air
again, I felt it was perhaps down
to me to create some record of
those memorable times before it
was lost forever.
I have tried to record names,
places and events, as best I
remember them, but hope I may
be forgiven for any small errors
or omissions as the events were
now over sixty years ago. This is
the final article in the series and
mainly discusses the actual work
done by the site.
I don't think anyone at Tollerton
in those wartime days fully
realised the significance of their
contribution to the war effort.
The explanation for this is
overwhelmingly simple. No one
knew the overall state of affairs,
and I think the full truth was kept
from us in order to maintain
morale. What we didn't know
wasn't ours to worry about!
44 Squadron
Mention has previously been
made that in the early days of the
war No's 44 and 50 Squadrons of
the RAF used Tollerton as a
scatterfield. No.44 (Rhodesia)
Squadron was actually based at
Waddington, Lincolnshire, and
started flying the Handley Page
Hampden at the outbreak of war.
They were the first squadron to
change over to the Lancaster,
taking delivery of the three
machines on 24th December,
1941, and a further four
machines on 27th December.
The squadron was commanded
by Wing Commander Rod
Learoyd, V.C., but the training
up to operational fitness was
under the direct supervision of
Squadron Leader John Nettleton.
The first Lancaster operation was
when four aircraft of 44
Squadron were engaged in
minelaying in the Heligoland
approaches on the night of
3rd/4th March, 1942. This was
followed by the first bombing
raid on 10th/11th March when
two Lancasters of 44 Squadron
formed part of a force of 126
aircraft attacking Essen.
Squadron Leader John Nettleton,
a South African, had served with
No. 98 Squadron at Hucknall,
later becoming an instructor on
Hampdens. On 17th April, 1942,
he was leader of a formation of
six Lancasters of 44 Squadron
detailed to attack a diesel engine
factory in Augsburg, Southern
Germany. Losses from intensive
enemy fighter action resulted in
only two aircraft reaching the
target, and with one aircraft shot
down by ground defences after
attacking the target, John
Nettleton was the only one to
safely return to base. He was
subsequently awarded the
Victoria Cross. He spent some
time at a Conversion Unit before
returning to 44 Squadron as CO.
in January, 1943. Twenty six
year old John failed to return
from a raid on Turin on the night
of 12th/13th July, 1943.
Tollerton Workshops
Tollerton was one of four
civilian workshops engaged in
the overhaul, modification and
repair of Lancaster. In addition
to the LMS Railway Workshops
at Derby the aircraft
manufacturer, A.V. Roe and Co.,
had its own repair establishments
at Bracebridge Heath, Lincoln,
set up in 1940, and at Langar
Notts, which came into operation
in September, 1942. All notice of
design changes and
modifications, fitment of new
equipment, technical notes,
alterations in procedures, and
new drawings etc., were issued
to Tollerton by Bracebridge
Heath.
Spares, replacements, new
equipment, and virtually
everything from a screw to a
complete Merlin engine was
supplied by an RAF
Maintenance Unit - No. 16 M.U.
at Stafford. Deliveries were
made by road with either RAF or
civilian lorry drivers. They
needed to be hardy types to
withstand the cold of winter, for
cars and lorries of those days did
not have the luxury of a heater
with demist and defrost facilities.
They needed good eyesight
because with the winter darkness
of early morning and late
afternoon the blackout
regulations meant a complete
absence of street lighting, and
masked headlights provided
somewhat poor visibility. With
all road signs removed the need
for map reading skills and a
sense of direction is fairly
obvious, and a good memory
was a great aid in undertaking
future journeys to the same
destination. Somehow or other
the drivers managed to deliver
their loads, often in appalling
weather conditions, and they
must have welcomed the summer
when their task was so much
more comfortable and easier.
19
The photograph taken in Club
hangar shows mainly tail unit
components under various stages
of repair. On the right side,
however, against the wall appear
to be two part wing sections, and
further down towards the corner
are two engine covers under
repair. The skeleton frameworks
on the left appear to be elevators.
The fabric covering was
tightened by the application of
aircraft dope prior to cellulose
painting. It was discovered that
the fabric was ballooning during
a high powered dive and this
fault was cured by inserting extra
wooden ribs, but at a later stage
elevators became metal covered.
The photograph of the main
hangar was taken from the open
balcony giving access to the first
floor executive offices in the
main office block. A total of nine
aircraft are in various stages of
repair and reassembly, with one
aircraft near the exit soon to be
taken to a dispersal point ready
for engine runs and test. This
photo clearly shows how the
fuselage was made up of
sections, and these were
interchangeable between aircraft,
and a section damaged beyond
repair could be replaced with
either a new one, or one salvaged
from another aircraft. The
sections were known as D1
(Nose and Cockpit), D3 (Centre
Fuselage), and D4 (Tail Unit),
each being approximately 20 feet
long, with D2/F1
(Mainframe/Wing Spar) making
up the fuselage length of 69 feet.
The two fuselages nearest the
camera have their D3 and D4
sections joined together, all gun
turrets have been removed, and
the one on the right has yet to
have the cockpit cover replaced.
The markings on those same two
fuselages reveal further details
about them. The serial number
LM 420 on the right hand one
indicates it was built by A.V.
Roe & Co. at their Yeadon
works early in 1943 under
Contract No. 1807, while ED
856 on the left was produced by
the same company at Newton
Heath/Chadderton around the
same time under Contract No.
B69274/40. The code letters CE
on both fuselages indicate the
squadron which flew them and
although the actual squadron no.
is not known there is an
indication on the photo it was an
operational unit rather than a
training one.
A set of wooden platform steps
has been placed against the main
crew entrance on ED 856, and a
little further behind must have
been damage caused by enemy
action as a large square of the
aluminium skin has been
removed. A closer look shows
the remains of two fuselage
formers at both the top and
bottom of the cut-away.
20
A few more details of the
Lancaster are worthy of note to
gain the correct impression of
just what the Tollerton work
force were dealing with. The
wings spanned 102 feet and
covered an area of 1300 square
feet, while the tail span was 33
feet and the overall height of the
aircraft was 20 feet. Comprised
of 55,000 separate parts, it was
estimated that a half million
manufacturing operations
involving 35,000 man hours
were required to produce one
aircraft at a basic cost of
£60,000. Those are just some of
the factors which explain why
such strenuous efforts were made
to repair as many damaged
aircraft as possible. Apart from
their size, they were also a little
heavy! Weight of the aircraft
was 41,000 lbs. (over 18 ton),
with each of the four Merlin
engines contributing a basic
weight of 1450 lbs. and each
propeller weighed 500 lbs.
The name was frequently
shortened to 'Lanc' and like all
aircraft was considered to be of
female gender, being referred to
as 'she' and more affectionately
as 'old girl'. Each aircraft on a
squadron would be allocated an
individual code letter and the use
of the phonetic alphabet resulted
in them being recognised by
male names, e.g., C for Charlie,
F for Freddie.
The Lancaster proved to be
excellent in design, reliable in
the air, easy to fly, and equally
popular with both air and ground
crews, but it was a complex
fighting machine needing skilled
maintenance. Some of the
damaged aircraft that managed to
return to base after a bombing
raid would have dead and
severely injured crew members
aboard. Before it was sent for
repair the ground crews would
remove all the guns from the
turrets, remove all unused
armaments and flares, clear out
all debris, and generally clean up
the interior of the aircraft. Some
parts of their task were not
pleasant, and while they
generally did an excellent job a
Tollerton worker would
sometimes find a small part of
human remains lying in a
crevice. Even the smallest part
could be very upsetting for the
finder.
Not every aircraft suffered
damage and the rather lucky
ones to have survived long
enough to accumulate 500 flying
hours were then required to have
a major overhaul. Such aircraft
would be flown to Tollerton by
an ATA pilot, and in due course
would be taken into Bridge
hangar. All four engines would
be changed for new or
reconditioned ones, all systems
would be rigorously checked,
any mechanism or part showing
signs of wear would be replaced,
and all necessary Mods,
(modifications) would be carried
out to bring the specification
right up to date. As good as new!
In addition to every work stage
being checked by the company's
inspectors in their white boiler
suits, it would be subject to the
eagle eyed staff of A.I.D.
(Aeronautical Inspection
Directorate), and without the
approval of this independent
organisation there was no further
progress. They occupied a
ground floor office in the main
block to the right of the central
entrance door. Initially I could
only remember Bill Noble as a
member of this unit, but then
recalled they had a female
inspector, Miss Jennie Marshall.
The inevitable question arises of
what was the output at Tollerton.
A figure of between six and eight
aircraft per week has continued
to dominate my thoughts, and I
suspect this is about right, in the
book 'Nottinghamshire &
Derbyshire Airfields in the
Second World War" by Robin J.
Brooks the author states "With
victory in 1945 it was estimated
that Field Aircraft Services had
completed 1,700 aircraft for the
Ministry of Aircraft Production,
plus 2,000 components." At an
average production of a little
over six aircraft per week it
would possibly total over a 1,000
aircraft for the approximate 3
year period of Lancaster repair
contracts. Assuming the figure
provided by Robin Brooks is
correct that would mean
something approaching 700
Hampden and Boston aircraft
had been restored in the previous
three years. At that time there
was no Bridge hangar and air
operations were not so intensive
so the figure of 700 appears to be
a little high to me. My
'guesstimate' of six to eight
aircraft per week could well be
right, and I think it safe to say
that well over 1,000 Lancaster
aircraft were restored at
Tollerton.
Field Aircraft was the latter
name of the company, but for the
major part of the war it had been
Tollerton Aircraft Services.
Undoubtedly the figures
embraced the output under both
names, but either the author was
unaware of the name change or
did not wish to clutter his work
with such detail.
In comparison with the output at
Tollerton the Langar
establishment of A.V. Roe & Co.
refurbished 322 Lancaster
aircraft between September 1942
and July 1954. However, Langar
was a smaller unit, and there
would have been few
refurbishment's earned out after
1945. Those that were I imagine
would have been surplus aircraft
sold abroad to France, Egypt,
and other nations for their air
force. I have not seen any
21
comparative figures published
for the output of Avro
Bracebridge Heath or the LMS
Railway Workshops at Derby.
At work you had the great
satisfaction of knowing you were
doing a good job and making
your contribution to the war
effort. Some regarded them as
just lumps of metal, but to me it
was all magic. I was in love with
the aeroplane and enthralled by
the sound of those powerful
Merlin engines. The stink of
aviation fuel, dope and cellulose
paint were all like a beautiful
perfume to my nostrils! Each
broken aircraft seemed to
warmly respond to the TLC it
received, and eventually, when
its turn came, it would take to the
sky like a big eagle, its spirit
restored
By comparison, the wonderful
jet aircraft of today incorporate
many great advances in
technology but to me they appear
like cold calculating automatons
with very little character. Maybe
that's how it appears when you
are wallowing in the nostalgia
created by advancing years!
In those war time days we knew
that Bomber Command suffered
quite heavy losses at times but
little did we realise that the
average life expectancy of an air
crew member on operations in
Bomber Command was just three
months. Figures were not
published until after the war but
of the total 7,377 Lancasters
built, 3,800 were lost on
operations, destroyed or
damaged beyond repair, and
55,573 air crew lost their lives.
In the book 'The Lancaster Story'
author Peter Jacobs states - The
rate of Lancaster production did
continue to increase throughout
this period, (winter of 1943/44)
and, when comparing the
number of Lancasters delivered
to squadrons to those lost on
operations the statistics prove
just about favourable: for every
three Lancasters delivered to
squadrons, two were failing to
return from operations.
However, when taking into
account the number of aircraft
severely damaged during
operations or lost on training
flights, the rate of Lancaster
replacements was probably
averaging just about parity.
Nevertheless, this fact was
significant in that it meant that
Bomber Command could keep
up a sustained effort."
Winston churchill’s words to me
signify just how vital it had been
to get every possible Lancaster
repaired and back into the air,
and what an important and
significant role the employees at
Tollerton had played.
The navy can lose us the war, but
only the air force can win it.
The fighters are our salvation,
but the bombers alone can
provide the means of victory.
(Winston Churchill).
Brian Hancock
34 Stanstead Ave, Tollerton,
Nottingham, NG12 4EA
Directory Dipping
PLUMTREE
Extract from Post Office 1876 Directory of
Nottinghamshire Plumtree is a parish and village, formerly the capital of a
hundred or wapentake of it’s own name. The Nottingham and
Melton Mowbray branch of the Midland railway, now in course
of construction, passes through the village. The Rectory is a
handsome building, with a good garden and shrubbery. There is
a National School in the parish. John Elliott Burnside Esq. who
is lord of the manor, and the Rev W Burnside MA, are the
principal landowners. The chief crops are wheat, barley, oats and
beans.
Extract from Kelly’s 1904 Directory of Nottinghamshire Plumtree on the high road from Nottingham to Melton Mowbray,
with a station on the Nottingham and Melton Mowbray branch of
the Midland railway, half a mile south of the village. John Elliot
Burnside Esq, of Gedling, who is lord of the manor and the
rector are the principal landowners. Letters from Nottingham at 7.25am; dispatched at 6.30pm. The nearest
money order is at Keyworth. Public Elementary School (mixed) erected in 1840.
22
Nottinghamshire Parish Registers Geoff Harrington
In the earliest days of the Society, some 40 years ago, it was decided to embark on the massive task of
transcribing the parish registers of Nottinghamshire up to the beginning of the 20th century, and make the
data available to members and others who might be interested. Most of those registers had survived and
could be viewed at the County Archives and in the intervening years many hundreds of Society members
have shared in the work which has now almost reached its conclusion. As most members will be aware, the
results of this mammoth exercise have been compiled into three databases (one each for baptisms,
marriages* and burials) the latest versions of which are available on CDs stocked by the Society Bookstall.
For those with extensive Notts ancestry, these CDs (at present priced at £20 each or £55 for the set of three)
represent an invaluable source of information.
However, it is also possible to request searches of the databases, either online or by post, and even though a
charge is made for these services, it might well be a more economic way forward for those who have
relatively few Notts ancestors. If you visit the Society website at www.nottsfhs.org.uk/shop you may either
submit and pay for an online search or download the form for submission of a postal search. You may notice
that, although the two services are identical, there is a difference in the price which reflects the different
costs involved in providing the results..
Members who decide to use either of the above services should bear the following points in mind:
1. The transcribed records do not include the 20th century.
2. It is advisable to consult the detailed list of those registers which are included in the databases. The list
may be found on the ‘research’ page of the website.
3. The databases include relatively few registers of non conformist churches. The work of transcribing
these outstanding registers is now in hand and it is hoped that it will be completed in the next year or so.
4. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the records contained in the database, the
Society cannot guarantee their accuracy and advises that the data should be checked against the original
records which can be consulted at the Nottinghamshire Archives, County House, Castle Meadow Road,
Nottingham, NG2 1AG. (At the time of publication the Archives is currently closed for refurbishment).
5. In the case of surnames which are commonly spelt in a variety of ways (eg Elliott), a ‘Soundex’ system
has been employed to identify all records which contain the various spellings of that name. The use of
‘Soundex’ in the search may be apparent from the varied spellings of the surname in the printed report of
that search.
6. Searches cover an appropriate period of years before and after any year which may be specified in the
search request.
7. While every effort is made to respond to search requests quickly, there are inevitably times when delays
occur.
8. In cases where the search provides no valid results, the fee is reimbursed.
… Computer Group ... Computer Group ... Computer Group … Computer Group …
… Meets 12.15 second Wednesday of Month at Research room, Galleries of Justice …
23
As will be apparent, these three databases are the result of countless
hours of work carried out by willing volunteers over many years. It
would be a fitting tribute to all those people if those members with
Notts ancestry for whom the purchase of the CDs would not be
worthwhile were to make full use of the search services and so
ensure their continuing availability.
* Please note that the marriage database is effectively an index
which contains only the date, parish and the names of bride and
groom. It does not record the more extensive data which can be
found in registers after 1812.
The Big Family History Fair Saturday May 2nd 2015
The Burgess Hall , St Ives, Cambs. PE27 6WU
10am to 4pm
FREE Admission (children must be accompanied)
Light refreshments available to purchase Free Parking
Displays and sales by family history societies from around
the country & local history groups/museums/archives.
HOSTED BY HUNTINGDONSHIRE FAMILY
HISTORY SOCIETY
See website for full details of stall holders and talks
www.huntsfhs.org.uk
Who do you think you are? LIVE NEC Birmingham
16 – 18 April 2015
9.30am to 5.30pm
Admission £22 on the door
Stands by Family History Societies, Specialist Exhibitors,
Commercial Groups etc, plus a full programme of
Workshops and Guest speakers
See website for full details
www.whodoyouthinkyouarelive.com
Website Wandering
Website address
https://probatesearch.service.gov.
uk/#wills
Government webpage for locating
wills.
Search for the will of a soldier who
died while serving in the British
armed forces between 1850 and
1986 or
Search for the will or probate of
any person in the UK who died
from 1858 to the present.
For the Soldiers wills their name,
regimental number and date of
death are shown.
For UK wills 1858 to 1995 grants
show the images of the calendar
pages. This image can be saved to
your computer (right click and
select save image). Wills from
1996 search results will show
name, date of death and date of
probate and the Registry.
It is then possible to order a copy
of this will at a cost of £10.
Worth noting that search rooms
around the country will be closing
eventually. The idea being that this
is a one stop shop for copy wills
NB: By the time this journal is
posted it is possible that the
London search room will have
closed.
24
The Appointment of the First Postmaster of Nottingham Transcribed by Phil Hand
An historical note on the letters
in the Postmasters Letter Book
concerning the Nottingham Post
Office of the Stuart era:-
The period in question is the
middle of the reign of King
Charles II - the Restoration
period (1660 - 1685). The
General Post Office with its
office of Postmaster General had
been "confirmed" along the lines
of the organisation set up in 1657
by Oliver Cromwell. In 1660 at
the Restoration the Post Office
was granted "in farm" to Henry
Bishop at a rent of £21,500 a
year for a term of seven years.
After holding the office for
nearly three years Bishop, - who
is best known for his
introduction of date stamping -
disposed of the remainder of the
lease to Daniel O'Neale. O'Neale
died in October, 1664, when his
executrix and widow, Katherine,
Countess of Chesterfield became
the nominal farmer of the Post
Office during the remainder of
the lease. She had a general
manager, Colonel Philip Frowde,
and James Hickes was in charge
of the London General Post
Office. It was in Frowde's regime
that the London office was
destroyed in the Great Fire of
London. Lord Arlington and
Lord Berkeley were appointed
joint farmers of the Post Office
from October, 1667 at an annual
rental of £25,000 with a lease of
10 years. Each had a manager.
Sir John Bennett acted for his
brother, Lord Arlington, and
Andrew Ellis acted as Deputy or
manager for Lord Berkeley. In
1672 Andrew Ellis took over the
entire management, but died in
his first month of sole
management. The widow
transferred her interest in the
Post Office to Colonel Roger
Whitley, and there is on record a
declaration from the Earl of
Arlington, Postmaster General
dated 29th
July, 1672 notifying
the appointment of Roger
Whitley as Deputy Postmaster
General. Roger Whitley was in
effect a sub-farmer and held
office until midsummer 1677,
but continued in office a few
months later until he was
succeeded by Philip Frowde
junior, under the title of
Governor for the Postmaster
General, the Earl of Rochester.
The following letters therefore
appear to be those of Colonel
Roger Whitley writing to the
"Deputy Postmaster" of Newark
on the Edinburgh or Great North
Road about the management of
his branch post to Nottingham,
then a sub-office of Newark.
Two points should be borne in
mind in dealing with these
letters. Firstly, the year then
changed its numerical sequence
on the 31st March/1
st April each
year and not as now on the 31st
December/1st January, so that,
for example, March 12th, 1673
was really March 12th
, 1674
under the present style of
reckoning.
Secondly, it was the local
practice in many places to exact
an additional ld on the delivery
by the Postmaster of main post
letters. This charge was retained
by the Postmaster as his own
perquisite (see Joyce's History of
the Post Office p.197). In 1772
the ld was being charged at 76 of
the 440 post towns, but in 1676
the arrangement was probably
very exceptional. It was
introduced into London with the
Penny Post by Dockwra in 1680,
and at Hungerford in 1700. The
practice was adjudged irregular
in 1774.
With these two explanations let
us proceed. –
The first letter notifies Baldock,
the Postmaster of Newark, that
several complaints had been
received that his agent at
Nottingham was in the habit of
holding letters two or three days
before delivery, and was
allowing the Nottingham bag
from Newark to be opened en
route from Newark. This first
malpractice was totally
inconsistent with the nature of
Post Office employment,
contrary to the interests of the
service and galling to persons
who were inclined to use the
postal service in preference to
the irregular, illegal, but albeit
very efficient common carrier
service which competed with the
State Posts on all roads. To
overcome the second difficulty
the Postmaster of Newark was
instructed to prohibit the opening
en route of the Nottingham bag
and to include any letters for
delivery en route Nottingham in
an (unsealed) bye bag.
A year later (10 April, 1675)
Colonel Whitley again writes to
the Postmaster of Newark
notifying him that the people of
Nottingham were so dissatisfied
with his management of the
Nottingham branch post and, in
particular, with the additional
charge, over and above the main
charge of postage, of ld for local
delivery or collection, that they
intended to petition Parliament
and to sue him or his agent for
extortion. Hs was asked for a full
report; whether any salary was
ever paid to him or his
predecessors in office for
managing the Nottingham
branch post; whether the
25
Nottingham agent had ever been
paid by the Newark Postmaster
and if so how much; and how
long the Nottingham post had
been "ridden" (established), and
under what authority or
agreement the special charge of
ld per letter was imposed.
Pending a ruling on the point the
exaction of the extra penny was
to cease, for the Deputy
Postmaster-General would
"never owne any Postmaster in
their illegal exactions".
Colonel Whitley ended by
thanking the Postmaster of
Newark for his kind present -
possibly venison or game - but
pressed for early payment of
money still due.
Colonel Whitley's next letter to
the Postmaster of Newark is
dated 14 August, 1675. He again
refers to the dissatisfaction of the
Nottingham public at having to
pay for their letters more than the
law required. They had renewed
their agitation, he said, and were
now demanding withdrawal of
the extra charge and for the
appointment of their own
Postmaster directly dependent on
London. Colonel Whitley
pressed for information as to
how long there had been a letter
office at Nottingham, what was
the salary, by whom was it paid.
The people of Nottingham
claimed that the salary had been
paid by the Post Office since the
restoration (1660).
Colonel Whitley again refers to
the money due to him. He makes
a point of' time he had allowed
the Postmaster of Newark to
remain in office in succession to
his late father without requiring
him to take out a bond or legal
articles. He could have admitted
another person to the Post with
greater profit but had not done so
out of respect for his late father.
It was high time a contract was
negotiated, but first he should
pay the money due.
There is an undated letter, which
appears to be a reply from Mr.
Baldock, the Postmaster of
Newark, to Colonel Whitley, in
which he says that when he was
appointed to Newark he found
Nottingham to be served by a
Branch post from Newark -
(which was itself served direct
from London out of the post to
Edinburgh) and he had continued
the arrangement. His post boy or
rider who conveyed the mails to
and from Nottingham and whom
he employed under contract was
a Mr. Baldock - possibly a
relative - and the arrangement
had apparently been in force for
about 14 years or more, that is
since the Restoration of Charles
II in 1660. He expressed the
hope that the people of
Nottingham would not disturb
the arrangement until the
contract came up for renewal at
Midsummer. If, however, they
persisted he would violate the
contract, employ a temporary
rider and fix up a new contract at
Michaelmas. He asked Colonel
Whitley to name a suitable
person, and trusts that his terms
for the appointment will be
moderate and in accordance with
those observed elsewhere, and
that steps will be taken to urge
the magistrates to enforce the
Crown monopoly of carrying
letters so as to discourage the
illegal despatch of letters by
private means, e.g. carriers.
On the 28th of October, 1675
Colonel Whitley writes to Mr.
Baldock of Newark again
pressing for payment due,
presumably, for postage on
letters delivered in his area. He
thinks it a "great kindness" to
both of them to remind him of it
frequently and not to allow the
sum outstanding to rise "to a sum
too troublesome for him to pay
or for Colonel Whitley to-
forbear".
Colonel Whitley goes on to say
that he cannot avoid putting the
Nottingham Branch post service
on another basis. The
Nottingham bag must be sealed -
apparently the Postmaster of
Newark had suggested an
unsealed bag -, but letters for
important persons on the way -
he asked for a list from both
Newark and Nottingham - would
be tied to the outside of the bag
and delivered en route by the
Nottingham Post boy.
On the 13th
November, 1675
Colonel Whitley wrote again to
Mr. Baldock of Newark. He says
that he was with Mr.
Sacheverell, the local M.P. for
Nottingham, at the door of the
House the previous day when a
letter from Nottingham was
delivered to Mr. Sacheverell
open and the seal torn off; and
more over, it was not an isolated
incident said Mr. Sacheverell.
This was an offence in any case,
but it was a misdemeanour when
committed against a member of
Parliament with the House
sitting. If Mr. Sacheverell
complained to the House the
consequences, so Colonel
Whitley said, would be serious.
The abuses on the Nottingham
post, Colonel Whitley went on to
say, had reached such a pitch,-
irregular exaction of excess
postage, i.e. the delivery penny,
opening and miscarriage of
letters etc - that he was about to
make a change.
The next letter (of the 13
November) is addressed to Mr.
Green at Nottingham. Green's
mother, Mary Green, was the
Postmaster elect and Mr. Green
was her son and assistant, it
seems Mrs. Green's demand for
salary for the Nottingham office
was regarded as unreasonably
26
high according to levels
elsewhere, but the existing state
of affairs was intolerable and a
change was imperative; and Mrs.
Green was given timely notice (7
days) to prepare to take over
from Mr. Baldock's relative, Mr.
John Baldock. The mail would
be made up direct from London
for Nottingham for the first time
on the 20th
of November, 1675. It
would be a sealed enclosure bag
in the Newark mail. Mrs. Green
would have to employ a trusted
person to fetch the bags from
Newark, one who could read, so
that he could deliver letters en
route between Newark and
Nottingham. The 20th of
November, 1675 therefore
appears to be the date of
introduction of direct vouching
between London and
Nottingham via Newark
On the 20th
of November, 1675
the Postmaster of Newark was
formally notified of the
appointment of Mrs. Green as
Postmaster of Nottingham and of
the introduction of a direct mail.
The Postmaster of Newark was
to hand over the sealed bag to
Mrs. Green's representative,
together with unenclosed letters
for Lord Dorchester and other
important people residing on the
route between Newark and
Nottingham. These letters were
to be delivered specially by Mrs.
Green's post boy, who would
collect and account for the
postage to Mr. Baldock at
Newark. - Good scope for
dispute here: - The closing
injunction to the Postmaster of
Newark makes interesting
reading. He was "to be careful
that the Bag be always readily
delivered and sealed, to let no
more letters be opened in his
office. He had eyes upon him
and some would willingly
question him. For opening letters
and other miscarriages Colonel
Whitley would stand and remain
his friend so long as the office
was well conducted, but no
longer."
On the 25th of November,
Colonel Whitley writes that he is
much concerned to learn from
the Postmaster’s reply of the 22nd
inst. that, notwithstanding his
explicit instructions to hand over
the Nottingham mail to Mistress
Green or to her son when he
called, the bag was still being
delivered to the former postboy
(Mr. John Baldock of
Nottingham) who was accused of
opening letters, losing letters,
slow delivery and other neglects
and miscarriages. Colonel
Whitley was cross, very cross. It
made him cheap and other
people angry. His orders must be
obeyed and he would continue to
make up the sealed bag for
Nottingham and keep the
account direct with Mistress
Green.
But by the 27th
November, 1675
matters were still in status quo.
Colonel Whitley's orders had
been slighted, and he warned
Baldock of Newark that if his
authority continued to be flouted
he would be forced to put his
(Mr. Baldock’s) stage also into
other hands. To Mrs. Green on
the same day he expressed regret
for his late disappointment at
Newark. He had "writ his
resentment to Mr. Baldock" and
would replace him if he didn't
better comply with his orders.
By the 22nd
of December,
however, the situation appears to
have cleared a little, but not
much. Mr. Baldock had written
in a conciliatory strain to
Colonel Whitley. He was now
employing a Mr. Fairbrother as
his rider on the Nottingham
Branch. Mr. Fairbrother was, he
said, very acceptable to the town
of Nottingham, and to Lord
Dorchester, and was prepared to
pay a lump sum of £21 to
continue on the post and £25 a
year for the right to collect
postage on the bye letters, that is,
on all letters passing between
Nottingham and Newark or
between points en route, in other
words, local letters. Colonel
Whitley reply was, however, to
the affect that the Nottingham
stage should be operated on the
same basis as other stages and no
collection of ld for delivery
made over and above the
standard statutory postage. Mrs.
Green had been recommended as
Postmaster and the matter had
proceeded too far to be
cancelled. No consent had ever
been given for the charge of 1d
for delivery at Nottingham nor
would it be given, and there was
reason to believe that Mr.
Baldock and his agent (Mr.
Fairbrother) would be indicted at
the next session for their illegal
exaction. He was advised to see
Mrs. Green and her son and
make his peace before the
beginning of the new year.
Nevertheless, one point of
concern emerges from the
correspondence at this stage.
Colonel Whitley had not as yet
received from Mrs. Green, who
was clearly Mr. Sacheverell's
nominee, her idea of what she
wanted in the way of an annual
salary and he was a little anxious
in case her demands should
prove unreasonable.
Baldock, however, still pressed
his point. Mr. Fairbrother he said
was acceptable to Mr.
Pierrepoint and the town of
Nottingham, and on the 30th
December Colonel Whitley was
offering to accept him if Mr.
Sacheverell M.P. would also
approve his appointment. Until
he had definite evidence on this
point he still wanted Mrs. Green
to have the post. It appears that
Mrs. Green was asking £30 a
year but this was regarded by
Colonel Whitley as "a thing most
27
unreasonable". The delivery ld
was still being charged at
Nottingham, but apparently Mr.
Baldock was becoming
reconciled to the fact that it
would have to go and he be the
loser.
On the 7th
January, 1675 (1676
modern style) Colonel Whitley
writes to Mr. Baldock saying he
is glad to learn that the delivery
ld is taken off and that Mrs.
Green's appointment had been
recognized. Would he let Mrs.
Green know what terms had
been offered by Fairbrother -
which seems to indicate bad
business inasmuch as Mrs. Green
had been appointed in advance
of any agreement as to
remuneration etc. -. Colonel
Whitley was now all smiles: he
intended no unkindness to Mr.
Baldock, but he had undertaken
to withdraw the 1d charge for
delivery at Nottingham and to
appoint Mrs. Green and her son,
and he could not go back on his
word. If a vacancy occurred Mr.
Fairbrother would have first
refusal of the Postmaster-ship of
Nottingham.
But Mr. Fairbrother had a friend
among the Peerage to pit against
Mrs. Green's friend in the lower
House Mr. Fairbrother's friend
and patron was Lord Byron and
he wrote pressing for
Fairbrother's appointment as
Postmaster. Colonel Whitley
replied that he wouldn't give Mr.
Fairbrother the post as yet, he
must wait and see whether Mrs.
Green accepted the terms
offered. If she didn't then
Fairbrother could have the post.
By the 15th
of January -
according to a letter from
Colonel Whitley to Mr.
Sacheverell M.P. – Mr. Green,
although his mother was
apparently in office in 1st
January, he had not written
concerning her salary, her bond
or her offer in respect of the
revenue from the bye letters.
There were a number of other
good offers for the post
including that from Mr.
Fairbrother, and it behoved Mr.
Green to hurry up and conclude a
firm agreement.
Mr. Green wrote firstly to
Colonel Whitley on the 26th
of
January, but his letter was
apparently not very satisfactory.
Mrs. Green was apparently not
prepared to carry on the terms
offered and wanted to quit at the
quarter's end. Colonel Whitley
asked for a positive decision one
way or another, but what
happened between then and mid
June is not clear as there is a
hiatus in the correspondence.
Mrs. Green however did not
resign, for on the 13th
June
Colonel Whitley writing to Mr.
Baldock describes Mr. Green -
acting no doubt for his mother -
as “wilful" as regards refusing to
undertake the Nottingham
Branch at a more reasonable rate
or to increase his offer for the
Bye letter revenue. He (Colonel
Whitley) was therefore sending a
"servant" (he means a surveyor)
northward who would be there
on Friday and wanted Mr.
Fairbrother and the
Gainsborough Sub-Postmaster,
to meet the Surveyor and bargain
for the Nottingham post on more
reasonable terms than those
demanded by Mr. Green - all this
to be done in secret. And on the
22nd
of June Colonel Whitley
was pressing Mr. Green (really
he meant his mother Mrs. Green)
for a positive "offer" as regards
the sum she was prepared to
receive as salary and the sum she
was prepared to give for the Bye
letter revenue.
He had "gratified" the town of
Nottingham and taken off the
"extraordinary" charge and felt
that he was free to make the best
bargain he could for the service.
By the 29th of June the surveyor
had returned to London but
without satisfaction. Colonel
Whitley's terms were, “No salary
at all for the main post work at
Nottingham, the postmaster to
pay £25 a year for the Bye letter
revenue” Mr. Green was
however asking for a high salary
for the main post work and
offering very little for the Bye
letter work. Mr. Fairbrother was
apparently not now disposed to
repeat his previous offer and no
other person could be found; and
Colonel Whitley was therefore in
a quandary. "Why" he asks Mr.
Baldock, "cannot you do it or
some other friend at Newark?"
But Mr. Baldock does not seem
to have risen, for on the 1st July,
1676 Mrs. Green's salary was
ordered by Colonel Whitley to
be drawn up at the rate of £30
per an. "which is more" he writes
"than others are content with
according to the number of miles
and works performed and if this
will not content her I am worse
used at Nottingham than I
expected." The Bye letter
revenue he estimated at £20 a
year and if Mr. Green didn't like
that rate he was to give a daily
and exact account of the Bye
letter bills which would be
checked against the bills of the
neighbouring Postmaster e.g.
Newark.
But Mr. Green was still pressing
his claim for a higher salary than
even £30 a year and on the 8th
August, 1676 Colonel Whitley
writes that he was far from being
satisfied with Mr. Green's
demand of salary as altogether
disproportionate to the work. He
had had offers to perform so as
to give general satisfaction at
even less than £30 and at that
rate he offered it to his mother
and "if she will not accept it (for
this year) I shall be sorry for it".
However, Mr. Green appears to
have finally accepted the £30
28
offer on the 20th August,1676 for
Colonel Whitley's deputy "RE”
writing to Mr. Green on the 22nd
of that month notes that he is
willing to comply with my
master's (Colonel Whitley's)
proposal bout his salary. Colonel
Whitley was out of town but he
would be glad to learn of Mr.
Green's decision and would
forbear making the alteration (in
the Postmastership) which his
persisting in his former demand
would have forced him (Colonel
Whitley) to.
And so ends the story of the
appointment of Mistress Green
the first "Postmaster" of
Nottingham. All that can
usefully be said is that things
were "arranged" differently in
those days.. The correspondence
which we have been examining
reveals another slight tie up
between the history of the
Nottingham Post Office and that
of England in 1693. William III
had firmly supplanted the Stuart
James and all who had a claim or
held that they had a claim to his
gratitude petitioned him
accordingly.
Christopher Reynolds who was
Postmaster of Nottingham at the
time of the abdication of James
was "sacked" in 1689 by King
William's first Postmaster-
General, Col. Sir John Wildman,
one of his adherents, who
remained in office for eight
months when he too was
"sacked". In 1693 the Post Office
was pressing Reynolds to pay up
the sum of £51 which his books
showed was owing to the G.P.O.
Accountant in London at the
time of his dismissal. Reynolds,
however, maintained in a
petition to the Treasury that at
the time of King William III's
landing at Torbay that he had
provided men and horses to carry
express letters for William’s
supporters at a considerable
expense and in respect of which
he had not been paid anything.
The Petition was referred to the
Post Office by the Treasury and
on an assurance from the
Postmaster General, Sir Thomas
Colton and Mr. - afterwards Sir
Thomas Frankland, the debt was
presumably written off.
23rd
May, 1945.
Mr J E BEARD, Glover, Hosier, and
Fancy Draper,
61, Mansfield Road, and 1, Bluecoat Street,
NOTTINGHAM
A leading business of its kind in this district is that
carried on by Mr J E Bears, Glover, Hosier, and
Fancy Draper, etc. The Premises occupied are
extensive and commodious, and present a good
Street frontage. The Show Windows are always
most tastefully dressed
with Samples of the
many Choice Goods
appertaining to the
trade.
The interior is
conveniently fitted, and
is well arranged into
Departments for
carrying on the various
branches of the
business. A large stock
of goods is constantly
held, and consignments
of Gloves, Hosiery,
Underwear, Umbrellas,
Ribbons, Lave, Veilings, Ladies’ Ties, Belts, Shirts,
Handkerchiefs, Corsets, Divided Skirts, Collars,
Cuffs, Haberdashery, etc., are being continually
received from the best known sources of supply.
Mr Beard is Sole Agent in Nottingham fir the
‘Benbro’ Corset. He also makes a great speciality of
Gloves, and offers Two Leading Lines, such as
Coloured Pique Kid, 2/6 per pair; Tan Pique Lamb,
2/- per pair.
The connection maintained is large and influential,
and among his permanent customers, Mr Beard
numbers many of the best classes of patronage in
Nottingham and
district.
He is well known in
Commercial Circles,
and is esteemed and
respected by all with
whom he deals.
Mansfield Road is the
first in Nottingham to
have the Electric
System of Tram Cars,
and Mr Beard would
respectfully draw the
attention of his
patrons to the fact that
outside his premises is
one of the regular stopping places for both up and
down Cars. Extract from Nottingham Illustrated Review © 1903
29
Imposture and Extraordinary Credulity Extract from The Guardian, November 29, 1848 by Phil Hand
For some time past, but more particularly since the weather has indicated the near approach of winter, a tribe
of gipsies have been prowling about the suburbs of Nottingham, imposing upon the credulous, and helping
themselves to any little valuable that might seem, in their eyes, to require better protection. Many anecdotes
are in circulation of their cunning, daring, and dodging; but none illustrates the nature of their tactics so well
as the one we are about to relate. In the centre of Ison Green, resides a poor man named BEARD – poor,
because unfortunate, he being a lace maker, and during the last few years having been very short of
employment, or, when in employ very badly remunerated. BEARD’s wife, a somewhat thrifty, but very
weak woman, in order to supply her husband’s deficiencies, and to procure family comforts, has for some
time past kept a little shop, for the sale of groceries, provisions, &c. in which she has been tolerably
successful. In the course of their perambulations, some weeks since, a portion of the tribe alluded to, had
occasion to call at this shop for a trifling article, when an old witch of the party threw her comether over the
good wife of the house. From that time their visits were frequently repeated, “Old Madge,” as the witch-like
personage we have alluded to was called, always being one of the number, or going alone. Thus an intimacy
sprung up between Mrs. BEARD and the sybil. In the course of a little friendly chat one day, the latter was
informed of the misfortunes of the family, when she said better luck would soon follow, and intimated that,
perhaps that very night, some one would call to give the husband a more lucrative situation. This prediction,
if such it may be called, was literally fulfilled; and, subsequently, other little coincidences occurred, which
caused Mrs. BEARD to look upon the old hag as something supernatural, and induced the latter to take
advantage of the command she had evidently gained over a weaker mind. One day last week, the gipsy
woman told Mrs. BEARD that she could cause her still better luck than any which had yet befallen her; in
fact, that within six days, a certain person she knew would die, and leave her a thousand pounds, providing
the sybil’s hands were only crossed with five sovereigns, and they two only knew about it; but it was
imperative that the fact should be kept a solemn secret, for if it became known bad luck would follow instead
of gold. The foolish woman borrowed the money of a relation, and gave it to her enchantress, promising, nay
swearing, that she would never divulge the secret; and this oath, partly of a scriptural and partly of a
cabalistic nature, was dictated to her in solemn tones, and with much formality, by the gipsy hag. Shortly
afterwards, seeing a somewhat valuable coral necklace round Mrs. BEARD’s neck, which she had worn for
many years, the old wretch screamed, and snatched it off, saying, “Never, never, wear a thing like this; it is
sadly against you!” and she coolly pocketed it. From that time for five days, three or four of the tribe were
constantly in and about the house, whenever the husband was away; and they helped themselves with
whatever they choose to carry off, for it was part of the contract that whatever they did should not be
objected to; and if the slightest insult were offered the promised legacy would never come. Matters had got
to this pitch when the husband, Mr. BEARD, by various means became acquainted with the whole
transaction, and the case was placed in the hands of the police; but the gipsies have decamped. It has been
discovered that from this one place alone they have obtained money and property to the value of £7 and
upwards, - Nottinghamshire Guardian.
Advertisements taken from Wrights Directory of Nottingham 1910 (left) and 1913 (right)
30
Nottinghamshire Archives Additions to Collections July - September 2014
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31
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Useful Addresses
Nottinghamshire Archives and Southwell Diocesan Record Office
County House, Castle Meadow Road, Nottingham NG2 1AG
Nottinghamshire Local Studies Library
Nottingham Central Library, Angel Row, Nottingham NG1 6HP
The Department of Manuscripts and Special Collections (at Nottingham University)
Kings Meadow Campus, Lenton Lane, Nottingham NG7 2NR
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OFFICERS OF THE SOCIETY
President
& Programme Secretary
Peter Hammond
17 Lady Bay Road, West Bridgford,
Nottingham NG2 5BJ
Email: [email protected]
Hon. Treasurer
Peter Banham
20 South Street, Long Eaton, Nottingham NG10 1ER
Email: [email protected]
Hon. Secretary
Mary Ellis
24 Rowan Court, Larkfields, Nuthall, Nottingham
NG16 1FR
COUNCIL
Council Member
Peter Duke
8 Grove Avenue, Beeston, Nottingham NG9 4ED
Journal Editor
Tracy Dodds
39 Brooklands Drive, Gedling, Notts NG4 3GU
Email: [email protected]
Dominic Johnson
33 Redhill Lodge Drive, Redhill, Notts, NG5 8JH
Stuart Mason 26 Acorn Bank, West Bridgford, Nottingham NG2 7SH
Membership Secretary
David Greenall
10 Sherwin Walk, St Ann’s, Nottingham NG3 1AH
Email: [email protected]
Bookshop Manager
Sheila Greenall
10 Sherwin Walk, St Ann’s, Nottingham NG3 1AH
Email: [email protected]
E-Journal Administrator Marian Green
16 Whitelaw Place, Cramlington, Northumberland NE23 6HX
Librarian & Margaret Watt
Exchange Journals 40 Wadsworth Road, Stapleford, Nottingham NG9 8BD
N.F.H.S. Web Site www.nottsfhs.org.uk
All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
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without the prior permission of the publisher and copyright holder.
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IF UNDELIVERED PLEASE RETURN TO
The Membership Secretary, 10 Sherwin Walk, St Ann’s, Nottingham NG3 1AH