Avis Butler married William Perry in Great Marlow in 1829. She was baptised there in 1805, the illegitimate daughter of Ann Butler. William's census entries indicate that he was born in Marlow too but I can't find his baptism. There were certainly other Perrys about the town, including in Dean Street where Avis and William settled.
William was an agricultural labourer early in life, with a significant sideline in poaching! An attempt by two Marlow constables to arrest him on one such charge in 1840 led to a riot of some 100 people (and an angry bulldog) in Dean Street and the virtual lynching of one constable who was left unconscious by a blow to the head. The reports on the case tell us that William and his friends used backwards speech to secretly communicate with each other when anyone else was listening. That is if I wanted to say "look out!" to you I would say "tuo kool!" instead. I was aware of such speech in London amongst the "criminal classes" but this case was the first I heard of it being used in Marlow. Full story here
None of the rioting helped William ultimately avoid arrest however. On the 1841 census he was in Aylesbury gaol. Avis was home in Dean Street Marlow on the same census, living with Ann and Richard Carr.
William, a large man, also made some money from cudgel fighting. A sport in which the more heads you split open the more you won! For a report of a cudgel match organised at the Crown in Marlow see my post on "The Crown Inns" here. Competitor names then are not known.
By 1851 Avis and William had the Fox and Pheasant beer house in Dean Street. Given his notoriety as a poacher and fighter it seems extraordinary that William could get his name on an alcohol license! You were supposed to be a person of good character. On a day to day basis Avis probably ran things as William still worked as an agricultural labourer during this time. As the license was officially in his name he was the one fined in 1859 when a constable found the premises open during illegal hours. The charge was not denied. He was also fined for using short measures for his alcohol and twice more over the years came convictions for selling beer during illegal hours.
Most Dean Street pubs operated as lodging houses too but there is only minor evidence of that with Avis and William.
The couple were apparently without children.
Shortly after the 1871 census the licence of the Fox and Pheasant was transferred to a Mr Larkin. More on him and other landlords of the pub here.
William continued to work for John Langley the Marlow fruiterer, farmer and keeper of the Verney Arms also in Dean Street. Sent by him to Datchet to pick apples, William fell from a ladder. He was carried, paralysed from the waist down, to the hospital in Windsor. The next day aged 73 he died.
To spare Avis, his body was formally identified by his niece Harriet Bowles.
Avis became a pauper dependent on the parish, still living Dean Street on the 1881 census. She died in 1882.
John Langley the fruiterer mentioned above has a long biographical post here.
Researched and written by Charlotte Day.
Related Posts
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Interested in other pubs or beer house keepers? See the list of pub etc related posts: here
Crime and disorder in old Marlow here
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©Marlow Ancestors. You are very welcome to use the content of this post for family or local history purposes if you credit this blog and provide a link here.
Sources included:
Census my own transcriptions from microfilm.
Newspaper copies at the British Library accessed via the BNA October 2020: Reading Mercury 14th July 1860 and 26th March 1864.
Great Marlow Parish Registers.