Fight to the Death at The Bear

In its early life The Bear in Chapel Street was known as a "Tom and Jerry shop" or small-scale beer shop. Its landlords always had another job to run along side the beer selling, usually shoe making, a traditional pairing in Marlow and elsewhere. And on top of that a few lodgers were squeezed in too, until The Bear became just as known as a "common lodging house" as a beer seller. It led a quiet life for much of its existence, but in the 1870s that would all change in shocking circumstances. 

In the late 1860s the premises was taken over by the very experienced couple of Charles and Charlotte Hoare, formerly of the Travellers Friend, Dean Street and The Three Horseshoes, Gun Lane (Trinity Road) Charles died shortly afterwards, but the capable Charlotte continued. 

At the time of the 1871 census Charlotte had 9 male lodgers aged between 34 and 67 plus one female one with two children. It's clear from the complaints made about common lodging houses, that the sharing of rooms, and sometimes beds was normal. It would be inevitable in a premises the size of Charlotte's. But to those needing affordable lodgings they were a lifeline.  She managed to attract a number of longer term lodgers which must suggest they were happy with her accomodation  - there was plenty of rivals within Marlow, chiefly in Dean Street. (David Banks mentioned below had been with her 8 years for example)

A little minor trouble affected the Bear in 1872 when the vigilant P C Parsons heard some sounds coming from within at 11.15pm, after last orders should gave been called. He tried the door to the taproom which was unbolted. Within were 4 of Charlotte's lodgers plus a female visitor with an incriminating "cup of beer" on the table next to them. Charlotte was hauled before the magistrates to explain her apparent selling of alcohol after hours. The constable made something of the fact that the other woman present was a Mrs Brewer who was, according to him, a known prostitute. Charlotte was indignant. She said Mrs Brewer was a married mother of two, quite respectable and what's more had merely called in on the subject of some washing she was doing for Charlotte. Perhaps the constable thought it a little late to be making such a errand. No charge was made in relation to harbouring prostitutes in any case. It was the fact a non lodger was on the premises, seemingly drinking alcohol that was the problem. But Charlotte wasn't pleased with that accusation either. She said she had been selling alcohol for 30 years and never had a single complaint been made against her before. She had just lost track of time she said, blaming the fact it was hay making season, and she so had been especially busy (many of her lodgers were agricultural labourer, full time or seasonal). She bought forward one of her neighbours, coal merchant Mr Brown, to speak up for how quiet the Bear usually was and even Inspector Breene agreed it was a well conducted beer house. So she was let off any fine with a mild finger wagging and a reminder to keep a closer eye on the clock in future. 

Two years later things were very different. Quiet as the Bear may seemingly have been, it was a premises where a lodger might pass out drunk on the floor and be left to come to in their own time. This was to have a tragic consequence. 

Two lodgers, George "Topper" Frewin(g) and George Blewitt, had fallen out. Frewing had borrowed tuppence from Blewitt, and the latter thought its return was over due. So late one evening in the tap room, he asked for it back. Frewin didn't have it, Blewitt wasn't happy and drunkenly suggested he would go and fetch a policeman. Frewin told him to do just that, it would do no good, at which Blewitt lost his temper altogether. He hit the seated Frewin, and a tussle ensued. Frewin was knocked to the floor (possibly hitting a fire place) and on attempting to get up, was kicked back down by Blewitt. He was by this time unconscious with a bloodied face. The reaction of those present, (Charlotte Hoare, two other lodgers, a young couple and the 8 year grandson of Charlotte, Charles Neighbour) suggest such an encounter was not unusual in the tap room. For no one did anything at all for the injured man for half an hour. A female customer coming inside, not known to those present, was concerned at his state and asked Charlotte for a basin of water to wash the blood away from the face of Frewin. She then thought she had made him fairly comfortable. A little later Charlotte shut up and left Frewin lying where he was. The answer everyone gave was they did not think he was really hurt, more drunk than anything, and because he very often slept things off lying on the tap room floor, they thought he may as well stay there. Time and time again the lack of understanding of potential head injuries or the dangers of concussion comes out in similar Marlow tales. 

Lodger David Maxwell Banks, aged about 38, came downstairs at 4am for a glass of water (or so he said later). He heard moans coming from the tap room but was surprised to find Frewin where he had been left. He told him to get up "my dear fellow" and try and get to bed. Poor Frewin could not answer and so..Banks went back to bed himself. Eventually another guest came down and Charlotte was fetched. She now suspected something was wrong and called a doctor but it was too late. Topper died, aged in his early 40's. 

Blewitt was  supposed to be aged 30 and at the time was working as a general labourer. He plead guilty to "feloniously killing or slaying" Frewin. His punishment was 6 months in gaol. In 1875, as a resident of the Wycombe Union workhouse in Saunderton, he was accused of a savage assault upon another resident. This earned him another trip to the assizes and a 14 day prison sentence. 

Frewin was the son of Joseph and Amey of Chapel Street. As a younger man he had lived with his widowed 66 year old mother in the Oxford Lane Almshouses. Later Amy would lodge with the Allum family, also in Oxford Lane at which time she was described as a lacemaker. 

Charlotte Hoare gave up the licence of the Bear later that year. She herself died rather young  - you can read more on that and see her grave here

 Written and researched by Kathryn Day. 

RELATED POSTS:

Life of Charles and Charlotte Hoare at the Three Horseshoes here

Bear landlady Catherine Neighbour nee Sparkes here

List of landlords of The Bear, Black Horse etc here

Link to the Pub Post Index here

Post about Charlotte's son in law Alfred Neighbour, an innkeeper here

More beer sellers than bakers - temperance in Marlow here

Everyday life in old Great Marlow post index including crime related content - here

To find every mention of an individual or family here use the A-Z person index in the top drop down menu. (4,000 names and counting) 

Sources include:

Kelly's Directory Bucks 1847 

Parish Assessment 1833, original notebooks in our possession. 

Duttons Directory 1863. 

Reading Mercury 25 July 1874 ,British Library Archive 

Bucks Advertiser 25 July 1874, 7th January 1878 as above 

Northants Mercury 25 July 1874, as above. 

Bucks Herald 18 July 1874 - thanks to Jane Pullinger for view of this. 

1841,51,61,71,81,  - transcript from microfilm made by Jane Pullinger and Charlotte Day. 

© MarlowAncestors

Lady Of The Riverside - Catherine Sparkes/Neighbour

  Catherine Spark(e)s was a women who must have wondered whether it wasn't the River Thames running through her veins in place of blood, so strong was her connection to it. Born in 1814 to Thomas and Ann, Catherine's family were involved in the barging business. Uncle William Sparkes was the landlord of the Black Boy inn at Church Passage, although as a bargemaster himself, he was frequently a long time away from home. As was often the case in reality, the everyday business of keeping the place running was down to Catherine's aunt. By the time Catherine was a teenager she was living in the Causeway, very close to the river. Nearby was the Swan Inn, run by another bargemen, George Cresswell. The property leased by young Catherine's family was a fairly valuable one, valued at a higher amount than the Swan, and significantly more than any of the cottages in the streets adjacent. Thomas and Ann were clearly doing well for themselves at this time. 

A few years later, Catherine's parents took over the Barge Pole Inn.  The adjacent Black Boy was also in the Sparkes family for many years. (See the link below for more information on these other family members and landlord listings for all those licensed premises). This was close to the river and associated with bargeman drinking and lodging there, although a close study of records shows the clientele was actually quite mixed. Although those connected to the barge trade had a tough reputation, there are fewer incidents of trouble recorded for the Barge Pole than at other inns not so associated with the trade. It is likely that many of the people the young Catherine associated with were involved with river trades in one form or another. She almost certainly followed the path of most innkeepers daughters and helped her parents run the premises. She also followed that well worn path of growing up to marry someone who was involved in the alcohol trade.

Her spouse was Henry Neighbour whom she married in 1837. I believe they had began to run the waterside Waterman's Arms (aka The Waterman) by 1841. The Neighbour family may well have been there longer. Right on the river front, at a location sometimes known as Limbrooke Wharf, The Waterman was just a few minutes walk from the other Sparks family premises. You could say they had the river side trade quite sewn up! It was a smaller affair, and does not seem to have taken lodgers, at least on a regular basis. Catherine was again most likely to be the one to be found within dealing with the customers, despite Henry's name on the licence. Henry had another job, which he would continue in for decades, that of a cordwainer. Beer or ale retailers who followed one occupation only were very much in the minority in Marlow at this time, and the most common "other" trade to follow was  that of a cordwainer or shoemaker. How the worker gets described depends on the context, often only the most relevant one to the circumstances gets mentioned or just the one that generates the most income. While some "side" businesses were minor in scale, Henry employed assistants. In 1851, a pair of shoes was stolen from him by one of his employees, John Wicks. Perhaps Catherine attended the court session that saw the guilty John sentenced to 4 months hard labour. It was a punishment that took into account the fact John was considered to have committed a particularly serious theft as it was from his employer. The Neighbours  clearly forgave John as he continued to be involved with the family.  John was subsequently convicted of another theft, and with that being his 3rd conviction he was sentenced to 7 years transportation. He was 23. (1852). The last item stolen was a saw taken from Joseph East and taken to Henry and Catherine. They say Wicks claimed it as his own and that he was short of money and so they lent him 6d with the saw as security. 

In 1854 Catherine and Henry moved premises, to The Bear in Chapel Street. It must have felt strange to be living out of ear shot of the river at last, although it was just a few minutes walk away. The Bear was a fairly small concern as regards the selling of alcohol but it also acted as a common lodging house. The Bears lodgers tended to single men working as general or agricultural labourers.   Records of trouble on the actual premises itself were virtually absent. A fight to the death in the tap room lay in the future and occured under another proprietor. (Details will follow in another post!) It's fair to say The Bear was not the most luxurious place to stay in Marlow but it was quite peaceful relatively speaking during the time  Catherine and Henry were in charge. The number of lodgers increased afterwards and some of those staying there became associated with petty crime.  There was one incident that did see the couple appear in court as a witness however. 

In 1855 John Simson of Marlow had been in the Bear drinking heavily. Some of the drinkers had (while fairly inebriated themselves) decided to play a practical joke on John and blacken his face with soot. He was apparently in no state to resist and they then attempted to paint his face with tar, but Catherine intervened and took the tar away. Catherine herself would later deny ever even seeing the tar however. Things took a more serious turn when John then went missing and some of those in the Bear on the last night he was seen alive were found to be in possession of his coat, a handkerchief and an umbrella. Three weeks later John's body was found in the river near Marlow Mills. Further investigation did however reveal that John had been seen alive by several people the morning following his Bear drinking session, when he was unsuccessfully enquiring for work in the fields. It was also revealed that he was subject to epileptic seizures, especially when he'd been drinking heavily, and there were no marks of violence on his person. Those who'd been found in possession of John's coat etc said they given him money for them on the understanding he could buy them back at the same price in a few days. A sort of unofficial pawnbroking service. Henry Neighbour was the one who'd had the umbrella and a handkerchief from John but he said he'd been drinking through the two days before as it was Marlow Fair and he couldn't recall that much about it all. This caused Henry to be censured heavily by the JP who also felt both he and Catherine had prevaricated in their evidence. They were told they were lucky not to be pursued on a charge of perjury. Henry was obviously not in much of a state to police his taproom, and Catherine seems to have been busy elsewhere in the premises during the sooting. No doubt she subsequently wished to play down the raucous behaviour on the premises rather than admit she had  harboured a group of badly behaved drunks. 

Henry and Catherine remained at The Bear until at least 1863. Henry had continued to work as a cordwainer after his move here. There is a possibility they moved back to the Church Passage area (or nearby) the following year, with the couple retailing beer from an unknown premises but this requires more investigation. (To rule out other members of the Neighbour family, a number of whom had similar roles). What is sadly certain is that Catherine died when she was only 55 years old. Henry had a long widowhood. By the time of the 1881 census the 67 year old was an inmate in the Union Workhouse at Saunderton. When the census enumerator came by 10 years later, Henry was still there. Despite working at two occupations, the poor man could not support himself in his old age. 

Researched and written by Kathryn Day. 

Related Posts:

The Sparkes Family of The Bargepole etc here

Fight to death at The Bear here

List of landlords of the Black Boy/Waterman's/ Bargepole here

A tribute to our bargemen here

All mentions of a family or individual can be found in the A-Z person index in the top drop down menu. (4,000 + names and counting)

Index for other inn/beer seller etc  related posts: here

100+ Marlow Pubs/Ale Houses/Inns etc list here

General posts about everyday life in Catherine's Marlow here

 

Sources:

Parish Assessment 1833, original notebooks belonging to our family. 

Census 1841,51,61,71,81 - transcripts from microfilm made by Charlotte Day and Jane Pullinger. 

Slaters Commercial Directory 1852 

Dutton, Allen & Co Directory 1863. 

Robson's Directory 1839

Bucks Herald 05 July 1851.

Windsor and Eton Express 1 December 1855, Slough Borough Libraries. 

Petty Session records transcript by Nick & Jane Pullinger -1987, with thanks. 

© MarlowAncestors.

Mistresses and Blunderbusses - Oxford House Marlow Timeline and People

 A house up Oxford Road, close to the future Cambridge Road and Queens Road turnings and next to the former almshouses. Looks then to be the original name for Tilecotes / Tilecoates. The Tilecotes listed building notes call it vaguely "circa 18th century". IF it was originally Oxford House then a date of 1820s looks more probable. Anyway not the same as Oxford Cottage, or The Cottage, Oxford Road the latter of  which despite its cottage name was a large 8 bedroom residence. The garden of Oxford House is almost never mentioned when the house is sold, assessed or let suggesting it was relatively insignificant. 

1827 - For Sale or to let. Five beds. Beer and wine cellar. Separate wash house. (Morning Herald, 4th June. British Newspaper Archives) Charles Henry Bouverie (see below) left for St Lucia that year so it was likely him wishing to sell or lease the house. Evidently it was only leased in the end as Charles still owned it in 1836.

1832 - up for sale or let again. Now described as having 3 principal bedrooms, a water closet, principal and secondary staircases, dining and drawing rooms, and 4 servants rooms. Plus a cellar, good courtyard, a flower and kitchen garden (this the rare mention of the garden), 3 horse stable and a coach-house. The furniture was also available to purchase. 

1833- late in the year, Charles Henry Bouverie Esq. House with coach house and stabling worth an estimated £30 a year. (Parochial notebooks in my possession, my transcription). He was away working in St Lucia out and leased the house to others. Looks to have returned in 1834. When he died aged 54 in 1836 he left a will (P.C.C. held at the National Archives, Kew, transcribed by me) in which he left Oxford House and the furniture in it to Maria Julia Hedges his partner and the mother of his children Charlotte and Charles. The couple had never married. Their son Charles died in London age only 23 in 1847. Charles junior was bequeathed a portrait of his father and his fishing tackle. The rest of the family portraits went to Charles senior's sisters. Earlier in his life Charles Senior had served as an M.P though a pretty inactive one, and not for Marlow. He was buried at Betchworth Surrey. He had previously lived in Betchworth House there. He was the grandson of the Earl of Radnor.

1839- Robert Richmond. Leaving town so selling off a nearly new pony chaise, mahogany four poster beds, chintz and damask furniture. He was a cattle and sheep dealer. Moved to Shillingford, Oxon. A few months earlier had fallen victim to a forged bill of exchange worth over £1000. His move may have been due to financial distress. 

1841- Probably Samuel and Mary Horrod as below. They were certainly in Oxford Road then. For Samuel's role in the circumstances surrounding the 1847 Election riots in Marlow see here.

1851 census- Samuel Horrod age 67 originally from Middlesex and Mary his wife aged 79 originally from Durham with their 39 year old daughter Mary Ann born in Yorkshire and two servants. The family appear to have had Canadian connections. Samuel was a "government pensioner in 1847" when he supported the nomination of Sir William Clayton as Marlow M.P. He himself served as a Guardian of the poor in Marlow.

1853- Henry Sibley Esq. Kelly's Directories by Kelly's Directories Limited. Perhaps a relative of the Herrods?

1856-. Samuel Horrod died there early in the year. Mary the widow of Samuel Horrod died at Oxford House, seven months after her husband. Some of their possessions were auctioned off at the house afterwards by the executors of the estate. These included a phaeton and a gig, a mahogany pianoforte and, more unusually, a blunderbuss. (Reading Mercury 13th September 1856. British Newspaper Archive).

1857- Mary Ann Horrod. Daughter of Samuel and Mary. She must have been resident in name only as nearly all the house's furniture had been sold the previous year. Later that year a new temporary occupier was in place:

1857- T. A Pope was leaving the neighborhood so selling off some of the household goods from his home, Oxford House.

1860 - For sale. "MODERN HOUSE". [Probably 30 odd years old]. Coach house, stables, walled garden. Property surrounded by brick wall and entered by folding gates. Views of Beech woods, short walk to church and river. Being let at £45 a year. [Bucks Herald 26th May via the BNA.]

1861- Peter and Louisa Bossier and their children. 

1862. On "edge of town" as the town then was. With coach house, stables, paved yard, walled garden. Ample supply of water. [ Reading Mercury 24th May via the BNA.]

1871 Edmund Mudie and his sisters Eugenia, Elizabeth, Mary and Margaret. All born Venice, Italy plus their English-born cousin Edmund and 3 servants. [Census, my transcription from microfilm. Census information remains Crown Copyright.]

1881. Eugenia and Elizabeth Mudie. Annuitants. Plus a cook, housemaid and needlewoman. Census as above.

1883- Kelly's Post Office Directory -  Misses Mudie.

1889 - Frederic Clay composer of light opera music and a number of extremely popular songs and collaborator with Gilbert and Sullivan died there aged 50 after a six year period of debility due to a stroke. He had been left paralysed on his right side and was sadly unable to write another note of music thereafter. In distress at this and the rest of his restricted life Frederic committed suicide during the brief absence of his attendant. Usually unable to walk unaided, he'd struggled to his bath tub which was awaiting emptying and plunged his head under the water in order to drown himself. He left a note apparently, presumably with his non dominant hand. Frederic was born in Paris, the don of J Clay the "famous whist player" and British M.P. He was living with his unmarried sister Emily Clay at Oxford House. The Mudies sisters are not mentioned but Frederic and Emily were related to them. (Source: 1 The Annual Register Compiled and printed 1890. By Edmund Burke. 2, The Musical Times, December 1889. 3 The Referee December 1st 1889 and for more on him see  https://garrick.ssl.co.uk/names/SCL00)

1891. Emily Clay born Italy, single as above. Living with her were her cousins Eugenia and Elizabeth Mudie as above plus servants. The sisters Margaret and Mary Mudie both acted as "lady visitors" to the outpatients of the Marlow Cottage Hospital and were obviously still resident in Marlow that year. Perhaps they were temporarily absent at time of census and thus do not seem to live with their family at Oxford House. Emily Clay went to live near Maidenhead in the next few years, taking Eugenia and Elizabeth with her.

1895. A C Tearle was leaving the house. A cricketer, footballer and athletics umpire for Marlow. Teacher at Borlase school.

Address seems to vanish about then. Tilecotes pops up 1896. That house was occupied in its very earliest years by Borlase teachers.

Researched and written by Charlotte Day.

Other sources:

Debretts Complete Peerage 1837.

https://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1790-1820/member/bouverie-charles-henry-1782-1836

All mentions of any individual on this blog can be found on the A-Z Person Index in the top drop down menu.  There are thousands of people there! For more Oxford Road content see this index.

©Marlow Ancestors. 

Head Gardener at Court Garden - William Neighbour

If you have Neighbour from Bucks or elsewhere in your family tree, you ought to be very green fingered. A large number of them worked as gardeners both domestic and market. The subject of our list today is Marlow's William Neighbour, head gardener at both Court Garden and Harleyford (Medmenham) in the 1860s and early 1870s. 

There were more than one William Neighbour in Marlow at the time. The subject of our post is William, born 1834, the son of John Neighbour the gardener living at Potlands/West Street. William is the brother of Alfred Edmund Neighbour, inn keeper who featured in a post here .

Young William (and at least three of his brothers) would follow in his father's footsteps. He grew up in an area of Marlow populated by domestic and market gardeners and their staff. His dad worked for a time as the head gardener of the nearby Remnantz estate in West Street, which occupied around 12 acres including a meadow. Young boys wanting to start in the trade usually did so by the age of 14, if not before. It's possible that William had a position under his father at Remnantz but it seems more usual for the sons of head gardeners (or garden foreman as they were sometimes known) to get their basic training in a different garden. It was an era where the heads of a large team did not need to get their hands quite literally dirty but the most junior member "the boy" most certainly did. Washing out the clay plant pots between uses, filling the water "pots" (water cans), damping down the glass house floors, and the endless sifting and mixing of compost to strict recipes were a few of their tasks. Although some gardeners moved up into a higher position within the team on the estate they started out on, most seem to move on when they are ready for a new level of responsibility. In his leisure hours we know that William the boy liked to go "bird nesting" around Bovingdon Green and Chisbridge. This means collecting birds eggs and nests, then a common hobby and a legal one at the time. We know this as William happened to mention it when describing his familiarity with certain Clayton owned areas of land during an 1885 court case relating to the removal of hedging and fences in which he was purely a witness. You never know from which unlikely  source the personal nuggets about an old Marlovian may come! 

Wherever William started out, by the time he was 27 he was working as a gardener at Court Garden in Marlow. The grounds of this are now Higginson Park and Court Garden Leisure centre.  He may or may not have assumed the head position straight away, but he certainly had this role by 1863. He was accompanied by wife Emma and their little daughter. William's employer Frederick William Berger was at this time president of the Great Marlow Horticultural Society - an organisation that has had many incarnations. As such the 1864 Horticultural Society show was held within the then private riverside grounds of Court Garden. Berger opened up his gardens as a whole to the curious (or at least those able to pay the entry fee!) Did host gardener William enter any of the classes? Absolutely, and he came away with a few prizes too. 

Berger seemed to spare no expense with his garden. His pride and joy was the  magnificent 75ft long "orchard house" and it was William that was credited with making it a horticultural marvel within the trade. An orchard house is a glass house that is designed to house fruit trees, usually dwarf cultivars. The climate can be more carefully managed, as can pests in an enclosed environment. This allowed the trees to produce fruit earlier in the season safe from the damage frost might bring to their blossoms, and ripen earlier too. Berger was the one to erect the building at Court Garden, to his own design. Sadly no trace of it remains. 13 ft high at the apex, and 30 foot wide, it housed 144 dwarf trees - mainly apples, peaches, nectarines, apricots, cherries and plums - plus traditional greenhouse borders used to grow things such as lettuce and other "saladings". The trees were planted in 13-16" pots to restrict their roots and therefore their growth. This mean they were technically always under stress and needed very careful feeding and watering. William developed this system to a fine art and managed to get the sort of crops expected from full size trees from his dwarf ones. Not to mention some pretty impressive fruit - apples 1lb in weight for example. The downside was that William said the orchard house took at least an hour to water every morning and in the summer would need top up watering. And the gardeners still had the other greenhouses to attend too! Nevertheless William's fruit growing skill meant that representatives of the national horticultural societies and journals (there was a LOT of Victorian garden newspapers) came to see the orchard house and the "very intelligent" Mr Neighbour.  He also experimented with growing miniature versions of cabbages and cauliflowers. And flowers were not neglected. William bagged prizes for petunias, roses and asters locally to name but a few. . 

The market for celebrated head gardeners was a competitive one and he was poached by the nearby Sir William Clayton of Harleyford in 1866. The Harleyford estate was a step up in size compared to Court Garden. Clayton was also interested in his new head gardener entering and winning horticultural shows both local and in London. But he was also interested in technology and so around the time William arrived, a telegraph system was installed around the estate. This allowed Clayton to communicate with his gardeners, the coach man, lodge keepers and gamekeeper from his study. There were 6 circuits in all, with three miles of underground copper wires "laid by plow". An extension to the system was described as imminent in 1867. William was also responsible for maintaining the hedges and the management of trees at Harleyford. As the foreman of the garden team, he had a lot of responsibility. He still found time to exhibit at the Royal Botanic garden in 1872 where his azaleas were regarded as the star attraction bar none. 

William remained at Harleyford until 1874. I have not traced him to another garden at this point. But by 1881 he had moved out of our area to set up as a market gardener at Grange House, Top Locks, Southall. (1891 Norwood, 1901 Manor Farm, Southall) This was a common path for gardens to take moving from domestic service to running their own market garden, nursery or seed merchants. There were other Neighbours working in similar fields in the general area and it was a location full of market gardens and nursery grounds. At the time of the 1891 census, the half brother of William, 25 year old John is staying there. Occupation? Market gardeners assistant of course! 

There is a sadder end to Williams usual tale of success. In 1906 the Ealing Gazette and other papers carried adverts for an auction of all of his commercial equipment plus household effects due to the fact William was "in distress of  rent" and had other debts. They really did sell off everything from the carpets and kitchen utensils to the night commodes and bed linen. The commercial part included two market carts, a manure cart, a cob, a number of rabbits, and the crops from 12 acres of orchard as well as some vegetables and flowers, mainly carnations. The following year William died. I am sure his passing was mourned by many lovers of fine fruit and flowers. 

Related posts:

People of Potland's - about the area of Marlow William grew up in and his dad John: here

Where your gardener ancestor worked: here

Scandal involving a previous gardener at Court Garden: here

General posts about every day life in old Great Marlow: here

To find every mention of an individual or family here see the A-Z person index in the top drop down menu. It currently lists 4,300+ individuals about whom we have some info on the blog. 

Researched and written by Kathryn Day. 

Sources include:

Census 1841,51,61,81 - transcript from the microfilm by Charlotte Day and Jane Pullinger. 

The Floriculturalists Cabinet And Florists Magazine Volume 5 1863 (Whitaker and Company 1863)

Journal of Horticulture and Cottage Gardener - Article by George W Johnson FRHS and Robert Hogg LLD  27 September 1864, digitised by Google. 

England and Wales Census, 1891," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QD7K-VMM : 22 February 2021), William Neighton, Norwood, Middlesex, England, United Kingdom; from "1891 England, Scotland and Wales census," database and images, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : n.d.); citing PRO RG 12, Middlesex county, subdistrict, The National Archives of the UK, Kew, Surrey.

Uxbridge and West Drayton Gazette 14 July 1906, copy from the British Library archives and accessed via the BNA partnership. 

Berkshire Chronicle 19 May 1866

Bucks Herald  17 September 1864, as above

Ealing Gazette 14 July 1906 - thanks to Paul Martin for this. 

Gardeners Chronicle and Agricultural Gazette, May 25 1872, digitised by Google. 

 Journal of Horticulture and Practical Gardening, Volume 22

Published 1872

Original from Cornell University

Digitized by Google 29 Oct 2009. 

© MarlowAncestors

Alfred Carter Grave, Marlow Cemetery

 

In Loving Memory of Alfred Carter who died December 11th 1914 age 48 years

"Not as I will but as Thou will"

©MarlowAncestors. Reproduction welcome if you credit this blog and link back here .

Will Summary of Jane Thomas 1794 of Great Marlow

 I transcribed this will from a copy I ordered from the National Archives Kew. This is a summary.

JANE THOMAS SPINSTER. WRITTEN 1793. PROVED 1794.

Honored and dear mother Mary Thomas for life all stock and property invested in public funds. 

After her death this to teststor's uncle Clifford William Phillips and aunt Hannah his wife. They also get after the mother's death £100.

To Joseph Clifford of Beaconsfield, nephew of Mr Joseph Jogger there £100 after the mother's death.

All rest of personal property equally divided between testator's brothers and sisters (not individually named) at 21.

Executors mother Mary Thomas and brother John Thomas of Portsmouth Hampshire.

Witnesses: Elizabeth and John Phipps of Great Marlow (does seem to be Phipps not Phillips)

To find all mentions of a family or individual on the blog use the A-Z person index on the top drop down menu. There are now 4,300 + people listed there, and more added weekly. 

For a list of wills summarised here 

see the index 

here

©Marlow Ancestors

Prospect Road, Marlow

Above a decaying street sign for the road. Its very first sign was put up on a Mr Taylor's house in 1899. This will be a later replacement presumably.

 Originally called Marefield Place then Prospect Place and then finally the modern Prospect Road. The first six homes there had an additional collective name Prospect Row but be warned cottages in Wycombe Road near Prospect House were also referred to as Prospect Row (not to mention there being elsewhere Prospect Cottages and Prospect Villas- in case you haven't already noticed it Marlow people were very careless when inventing house names and haphazard at rendering addresses).

The road was built up from circa the 1850s but it was never fully developed, with market gardens and allotments rather than homes taking up most of the space down one side. A carriage building premises was the only commercial property firmly within Prospect Road. More on that in the post "A heroic former resident" linked below. There was also by the early 20th century a shop on the corner of Prospect Road and Queens Road but the entrance was in the latter.

In 1891 4 brick cottages within the road each consisting of 5 rooms and having a garden and outhouse were put up for sale "with good tenants" in place. The character of the street was what Victorians would have classed as "respectable working class" but there were several "rough" streets in the immediate vicinity and conditions weren't physically great in Prospect Road either. The road was taken over by the council in 1892 because its private owner had left the road surface in a "disgraceful state".

In 1894 Dr Dickson complained that a well used for drinking water by 6 of the cottages was at high risk of contamination due to it having been dug only a few feet from a privy and scarcely any further from a cess pit. He finally managed to get the well closed off six years later. 

You have to wonder if gas was not laid on until late in the street for in 1905 some wind blew over the lighted candle that George Sadler was using to light his room, nearly burning the house down. Thankfully both he and his neighbours were on the ball and sprang into action swiftly both to fight the fire and summon further help. It is possible George did have a partial gas supply as in this period some people did not fit gas lighting upstairs even if they did below. There was a fear of dying in your sleep from a gas leak if gas lights were used upstairs.

Prospect Road residents didn't cause much trouble compared to their nearby neighbours elsewhere in the Marefield area or Dean Street but there were a few incidents of fallings out that came before the courts. Eliza Allen newly arrived in 1901 from the virtual shanty town outside Marlow known as "Cape Town" soon fell out with her neighbours Nellie Harvey and Edith Howse. She was fined 5 shillings for assaulting each with the threat of a week in jail per fine if she didn't pay them. She hadn't turned up to court. Her husband William, who worked at the paper mills and as a bootmaker, had previously spent a month in jail for stealing a barrel when they lived at Cape Town. Eliza sometimes worked as a needlewoman. There's a post all about Cape Town on the blog here.

William and Elizabeth Todd, residents of Prospect Road, lost two sons during the First World War - William and Augustus. William had just married while Augustus died in Turkish custody in 1917 after months as a prisoner of war.

The road today, above, shows no historic buildings. The first homes there were all on the left side of the street with market gardens and allotments on the other side and at the end.

More related posts:

Grave of one time resident John Lunnon Taylor here.

An heroic historic resident here

Grave photo and info about former resident Alfred Peddle here

Sources Included:

Maidenhead Advertiser 22nd July 1891. South Bucks Standard 10th November 1899 and 8th September 1905. British Newspaper Archive.

England censuses, my transcription from microfilm.

Private correspondence.

1833 Parochial Assessment Great Marlow Part 42

 The next part of my gradual transcription of the original handwritten working notebooks used by the assessors to compile this assessment. These faded notebooks have long been in the possession of my family, and also contain some pencilled in corrections from the later 1830s, though not in these parts.

I am uploading the parts out of order that they appear in the assessment. Instead I transcribe and add them as they chime in with research I am doing for myself or others.

©Marlow Ancestors. Use this transcription with credit to this blog.

Name

Property occupied

Annual worth of that property

Any notes by me in square brackets

Hooks Cottages

Woodrow [no first name]

House and garden

£6

*****

William Stevens

House, garden and shop

£6

*****

Edward Pratt

Cottage and garden

£4

*****

Oakengrove

William Smith

Cottage and garden

£4

*****

Jordan [no first name]

Cottage and garden

£5

*****

William House

House, garden and stable £6

Part of a garden at Lane End 

10 shillings

*****

Thomas ?Fulton

House and garden

£5

*****

Burrough's Grove

John Green

Horse Shoes House [pub], garden, stable, woodhouse and garden

£8

*****

Wymers

Henry Webb

House, lawn, flower garden, stable, chaise house, garden, a cottage and small garden

£21

*****

Handy Cross

William Earies (Earis/Eyres/Ayris)

The Blue Flag house [Pub] shop, shoeing house, cottages, stable and garden

£9

*****

Each occupying a cottage and garden with an annual value of £3:

Jeffrey Sears

John Plumridge

George Wye

*****

Ragman's Castle

William Dance

Cottage and garden

£4

©Marlow Ancestors. Reproduction very welcome for family or local history purposes with credit to this blog.

Elizabeth Hensberch Grave, Little Marlow

 

Stone for Elizabeth, relict of James Hastings Hensberch May 8 1840 in the 84th year of her life. 

This grave is in St. John the Baptist Church, Little Marlow

©Marlow Ancestor

To find a mentions of an individual here, use the A&z person index in the top drop down menu. There's over 4,000 people listed there! 

Grave/memorial image index here

Posts related to Little Marlow here