William James Shergold born circa 1856 in Basingstoke Hampshire arrived in Little Marlow to take over as the Head Teacher of the school on the 18th February 1888. With him came his wife Mary Ann born circa 1850 in Sidmouth Devon who was to act as the assistant and their three children Maud, Ethel and infant Frank.
The family had arrived from Ardsley in Yorkshire where Mary Ann and William also ran the village school with great success. They left however in something of a state of embarrassment as William had resigned his job at the National School because he was led to believe a job as head of the more prestigious Board School newly built in Ardsley was basically his for the asking. Actually it wasn't and the board appointed a different man leaving William and through him his wife without a job. Still the locals sympathised with him. Thanks to donations from over 200 people William was presented with an illuminated letter of thanks and best wishes plus a purse of gold coins. You will note Mary Ann who has also taught at the school for 11 years and is also leaving doesn't get a mention. The sexism of the time! The couple beat 4 other candidates to the Little Marlow role.
Little Marlow's school dated from the early 1860s and catered for boys, girls and infants. The average daily attendance in 1894 was some 110 children out of a maximum capacity of 114.
The Shergolds fitted into the village straight away and their teaching was soon getting rave reviews from inspectors, the local press and their public. Mary Ann helped set up Mothers Meetings in the village. These were conducted in concert with the Mothers' Union, a Christian group devoted to promoting excellence in motherhood and the pooling of ideas, spiritual support and general encouragement between mothers of all social backgrounds. It was founded in 1874 by Mary Sumner and still exists. In the 1890s there were Mothers Meetings in Well End and Flackwell Heath as well as Little Marlow all united in the belief that no one could influence the future of the world for the good more than the mothers of the next generation.
William meanwhile was conducting the church choir. He and his wife taught their school children to sing. Concerts by the pupils packed out.
The Shergolds may have taken a pay cut to come to Little Marlow thanks to William accidentally rendering them both unemployed. In Ardsley they had kept a live in servant but it took a few years to be able to employ household staff in Little Marlow. Things were obviously going well for them by 1905 when William advertised in the Maidenhead Advertiser for a live in cook. His family he said had a coach. Why was this information relevant? Because telling an applicant that you had a coachman reassured them that you were a gentleman and that you had plenty of money thus hinting at respectability and the means to pay a competitive wage. Secondly because those living in country villages without train stations suffered a high turnover of staff who found their situation too dull and isolated. Not to mention exhausting if they had to run errands on foot into the nearest town. The Shergolds suggest the cook could at least sometimes be dropped into town by the coach. A gentry family would not behave in this friendly way very often but William and Mary Ann sprang from humble origins. It is extremely unlikely that they could afford a coachman so William Shergold would be the driver himself.
On the 10th anniversary of the Shergolds arrival at Little Marlow, the managers of the school passed a resolution to put on record their absolute approval of the teachers work. Both had worked with "perfect fidelity, sound judgement and remarkable success". The Rev Thompson added that the pair had shown great loyalty to the school (probably acknowledging they could be better paid elsewhere) and had always met him with earnest spirit of co operation.
Daughter Ethel trained as a pupil teacher under her parents. Once qualified in 1887 she was offered an assistant teacher's post in Trinity Schools Reading. The South Bucks Standard said that she would go there with Little Marlow's "warm esteem and cordial wishes".
By 1915 daughter Maud was acting as an assistant schoolteacher at Little Marlow too. On the 1881 census in Ardsley she had been entered as a three year old scholar so William and Mary Ann started them young!
In 1915 William was still the head but his assistant teacher is a Miss Ellen Frost so Mary Ann had perhaps died and Maud moved on. She married first a Mr Johnson and then in 1924 a William Berrey.
Son Frank became an electrical engineer who lived in Enfield with his wife Gertrude.
Researched and written by Charlotte Day.
For more Little Marlow related posts see this index or for Little Marlow grave pics see here.
©Marlow Ancestors.
Some sources:
Kelly's post office Directory of Berkshire and Buckinghamshire 1911 and 1915. Kellys Directories Limited.
"England and Wales Census, 1901," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X9Y1-MXY : 20 May 2019), William Shergold, Little Marlow, Buckinghamshire, England, United Kingdom; from "1901 England, Scotland and Wales census," database and images, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : n.d.); citing Marlow subdistrict, PRO RG 13, The National Archives, Kew, Surrey.
"England and Wales Census, 1881," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q27Y-73JJ : 11 December 2017), Wm Jas Shergold, Ardsley, Yorkshire,Yorkshire West Riding, England; from "1881 England, Scotland and Wales Census," database and images, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : n.d.); citing p. 15, Piece/Folio 4600/45, The National Archives, Kew, Surrey; FHL microfilm 101,775,291.
South Bucks Standard 10th December 1897. Burnley Chronicle 3rd March 1888. Maidenhead Advertiser 14tg June 1905. British Library. Via the BNA.
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XWHM-BZB
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