Georgian Victualler And Lock Keeper George Phelps

 This post is dedicated to George Phelps, the first collector of tolls at Marlow pound lock when it opened in 1773. George kept the role up until his death more than 30 years later. 

Born around 1735, George was most likely the son of the Marlow miller also known as George and his wife Elizabeth. Millers had a big role in managing the earlier flash locks both in terms of manipulating the water to suit their milling needs, and when convenient, providing the flash of water that allowed barges to progress up the river. So George probably learnt many useful things about the River Thames from his father. When Marlow got a brand new pound lock for the first time, George junior was therefore a good candidate to be appointed toll collector there. Boats passing through had to pay a fee to use it. He would also need to manage the lock with a view to preventing excess flooding of the farmers fields about Marlow during bad weather.

 It's hard to be sure how often George was required to open the gates for passing barges. The flash lock at Marlow wasn't opened every day as it took too long for the water levels to recover afterwards enough to allow the millers to get on with their work. The pound lock did not suffer in the same way so could be opened much more often. No more extended waits to pass on for the bargeman arriving at Marlow to find they had missed the flash. Having studied the lives of other early lock keepers on the Thanes of the time, it's obvious that most had another job too. In fact some complained that the increased water traffic represented too much work for them as it prevented them getting on with their occupation. Clearly at least some didn't consider it a full time job but obviously some locks were busier than others. This is probably why later regulations for lock keepers specified that they had to be physically present at the lock must of the time.  For some the occupation was easy to slot around lock keeping anyway such as baking bread at Hambledon Lock to sell to bargeman and others passing by. Advertising the fact you offered refreshments at the lock house was prohibited in the 1860s but that didn't mean the provision of food actually stopped. 

So it's perhaps not surprising that lock keeper George is also identified as the keeper of the small riverside "Bowl and Pin" inn or beer house. I have found several lock keepers who brewed beer to sell on before it was frowned upon. The Bowl and Pin was in what was known as The Old Bridge House which was demolished in 1790. The year before a new bridge had been completed at the bottom of St Peters Street, and the Pin was removed to improve access to it. It was one of a number of properties than belonged then to the Bridgewardens of Marlow and so the income from its rent was supposed to be invested in the upkeep of the bridge. You can read more about this "new" bridge, the fore runner to our current suspension bridge in a post here. It was therefore only a short distance from the lock. It's likely that George's family looked after the Pin day to day, despite his name on the licence. This was common in Marlow and elsewhere with the innkeepers taking on other roles that took up so much of their time they could never physically be serving beer or ale at the same time. (Such as the many carriers come beer shop keepers who were away from home for several days a week.) George still identified himself as a victualler in his will. I had assumed the two George's were relatives initially until I ascertained they died on the same day. 

George received a weekly wage for collecting the lock tolls. This was 5s 6d a week in 1773. Later the wage was withdrawn and the keepers were compensated by the provision of free accommodation and the ability to keep the tolls from pleasure boats. In George's day there was no lock keepers cottage at Marlow. None of the neighbouring locks such as Temple and Hurley constructed the same year were provided initially with accomodation either. They did get some before Marlow however. Presumably George was happy to live nearby. 

When George died in 1811 he was in his 70s. He was succeeded as lock keeper by John Dell who had married his daughter Sarah. A summary of his will can be read here

You can see the grave of George and wife Elizabeth at All Saints: here

Written and researched by Kathryn Day. 

 Further information 

To find all mentions of any individual  check the A-Z Person Index on the top drop down menu. Thousands of people are listed. 

A tribute to our bargeman here

Other posts related to the River Thames at Marlow here

List of 100+ old Marlow pubs/beer houses/inns etc here

Victorian female lock keeper Martha Lomax of Hambledon here

© Marlow Ancestors.

Davison Grave, Great Marlow All Saints

 

Eliza, wife of George Davison of Brampton House. Died Mar 5th 1881 Age 47.

"Until the day breaks and the shadows flee away".

The couple were also of White Cross House, Hereford.

Transcribed by Charlotte Day. Photo by Kathryn.

More graves for Marlow, Little Marlow and Hurley indexed here.

To find a mentions of a family or individual here, see the A-Z person in the top drop down menu. Now 6,000 people are mentioned there, new content added weekly. 

©Marlow Ancestors. You are welcome to use this photo or transcription for family or local history purposes if you credit this blog and link here.

Gardening with wolves- Albert Bridgman

  Albert Bridgman (Bridgeman) was the Victorian head gardener at Thames Bank House in Marlow. The riverside garden was not as big as that of those of similar grand houses in the neighborhood so you may think Albert's job was comparatively easy and peaceful. But not many of his brother gardeners can have had to garden under the eyes of a pet "wolf" with tame squirrels and otters galloping across his carefully maintained lawn. Albert worked for the Somers Cocks family, one of whom, Alfred Heneage Cocks, maintained a menagerie of tamed British wild animals at Thames Bank. Many of these were sadly constantly caged..at least in theory. But there were escapees, including a Scottish wild cat that was never recovered. Albert was naturally drawn into the search at such times. The so called wolf said to live at Thames Bank was in fact a large hunting dog which had been trained to pursue elks in its native land, or so it was said. Polecat Snap (named due to its habit of nipping fingers) was allowed to run about the lawns but was tethered when the gardeners tended the grass, for obvious reasons! Albert also had to put up with the visits of local men and boys bringing bags of dead rats and mice which Heneage Cocks used to feed his collection, along with skinned hedgehogs! 

Albert was born in Wiltshire, the son of a carpenter. He arrived in Marlow with wife Elizabeth to take up his role in the early 1870s. (By 1873) The garden at Thames Bank included lawns, flower beds, and a glasshouse as might be expected. The pride of the garden was always it's fruit trees however.  All the local "big houses" entered the fruit of their gardeners labours into the local, regional, and sometimes national horticultural shows. Different gardens had different specialities, and Albert was often crowned supreme in the fruit growing categories. This is a great credit to Albert, as he was working in a smaller garden than his rivals, and without a large team of assistants to aid him.  He always had a garden boy to do the more menial tasks, but did not always have a full time adult assistant. I can however find records of several live-out journeyman gardeners who were brought in to assist with particularly busy times. 

In addition to sending his prize grapes and apples to horticultural shows, Albert provided flowers which decorated the parish church at times like Easter. And then there were the blooms used to adorn the stage and walls at the St Peters Street public hall (aka the Music Room, now the Masonic centre) during untold numbers of fund raising events. It's fair to say a large proportion of Marlow got to enjoy Albert's horticultural skill, beyond his employers. The gardens themselves were sometimes open to the public. For example in 1876 it hosted a church bazaar to raise funds to pay off money spent on recent improvements. Albert provided some specimen plants for sale - all available for 1s each.  Visitors also had the chance to view the menagerie for an extra fee. 

A Tragic Accident At Thames Bank

In the summer of 1875, Albert was engaged in watering some plants at Thames Bank. The water was stored in a large lidded cistern, and there was a metal grill over part of the opening below the cover. Albert had to remove the lid to fill his watering pot at the open part (a pot is a watering can as we would call it), replacing it as soon as he finished. Halfway through he was disturbed by a visit from a family friend, who was carrying Albert's two year son. Little William was set on the ground while the adults talked. He amused himself by playing with his dad's empty watering pot, pretending to water the earth while Albert and friend walked away to look at some flowers in another part of the garden. When they returned there was no sign of the toddler. A horrified Albert realised that he had not yet replaced the cistern lid. Tragically, the little boy had done what no one thought possible, and climbed up the cistern side to fill his can. He had tumbled in, and his lifeless body was seen under the grill. The watering can was also found in the water. Dr Shone was sent for, but there was never any hope of recovering the poor child's life. An inquest was held at the Prince of Wales pub, at which Albert gave evidence. Verdict: Found drowned. How hard it must have been to  walk past the cistern every day and be reminded of such a terrible accident. 

Wife Elizabeth would also be lost to Albert all too soon. She died aged 52 in 1888, when daughter Catherine* was 12 years old. He subsequently remarried, to Susannah. 

Happier Times

In the year 1878, the Gardener's Chronicle horticultural journal visited the gardens at Thames Bank. They concluded the grounds were "the model of good and clean cultivation" and that Albert was an "intelligent gardener." A particular marvel at this time was a wall trained pear that took up some 262sq feet of the north east wall. This tree had  1,390 pears and this in a variety that was usually bi-annual bearing.  (That is one that did not naturally always fruit every year.) 

Albert was involved in setting up the Chrysanthemum show which ran from 1886 (earlier ones had petered out) raising funds for the Royal Berkshire hospital. Before Marlow secured our own cottage hospital, it was to the Royal Berks that the very sick of Marlow would be sent. 

Afterwards

Albert spent around 20 years at Thames Bank. Between 1892-4 he left in order to start up as a seedsman and florist in Station Rd. He is also described as a nurseryman at this time. He was in other words growing plants to sell to others. Station Rd was an area long used for nursery gardening. In 1895 Albert also leased a triangle of land opposite the station which was described previously as an "unsightly mess".  He turned it into a small decorative garden, presumably as a kind of advert for his gardening skills. On top of this he had the contract to care for The Enclosure or the now unfenced grassed area on the Causeway near the church and war memorial. Wife Susannah also let rooms at their home "Inglewood" to short term visitors coming mainly to Marlow for the summer or "river season". As such she was a host the national Queen magazine/ newspaper  recommended as suitable one for respectable young ladies to take lodgings. A recommendation indeed! 

*Daughter Catherine would later be a servant to LJ and Alice Smith in Beaumont Rise. Later still she went to Cambridgeshire to act as a housekeeper for a Roman Catholic priest with whom she would stay for decades. 

 Researched and written by Kathryn Day. 

Related Posts

To find every mention of an individual here, see the A-Z person index in the top drop down menu. 

For other posts relating to Thames Bank, see the index here

Biographies of other head gardeners, and general life in Marlow during Albert's life here

List of  gardeners at the big houses locally -here

Sources include:

Census 1881,1891 - Transcripts from the originals by Jane Pullinger and Charlotte Day. 

Bucks Herald, 31 July 1875. 

Gardeners Chronicle 1878 digitised by Google. 

Gardeners Chronicle 1880, courtesy of InternetArchive.org. 

Reading Mercury 26 May 1888. 

South Bucks Standard 14 February 1886, 10 May 1895 - these editions from the British Library partnership with the BNA. 

Kelly's Directories of Buckinghamshire 1883 and 1885. (Kelly's Directories Ltd) 

The Victoria History of the County of Buckingham, 1905. Editor William  Page F.S.A. (James Street 1905)

The Queen, June 1895 &  June 1896. 

© MarlowAncestors 

Will Summary And Notes For Mary Garland Lovegrove

 Mary Garland Lovegrove spinster of Great Marlow. Will written 1832, proved 1835, see below. 

To mother Harriet Lovegrove: testator's best piano upstairs, a small work table downstairs, testator's table linen and  the two mattresses and everything else belonging to her bed, a handsome trunk with all the wearing apparel, books and articles in it. Says something like (I can't quite make it out) she considered these things to be equally her mothers anyway.

Also says if her school is let to someone then the fixtures are to be valued and then sold if she has funeral or other expenses to be met and there is insufficient funds in her estate to do so. She has kept papers to show what she paid for them. 

The children's mourning clothes to be paid for out of testator's estate (presumably the pupils of her school, see below). Any surplus to go to "my workers".

To brother John: testator's best glass salt cellar and to his wife a lace veil.

To (niece?) Ada Augusta Lovegrove: a brooch and 4 rings that belonged to testator's mother.

To brother James: a pair of silver salt cellars, and salt spoons.

To brother William a small amethyst ring and two tablespoons.

Will signed by Mary but not by any witnesses.

William Henry Lovegrove ...... warehouseman of numbers 4 and 5 Wood Street, Cheapside London and George Lovegrove of Great Marlow plumber, painter and glazier swore on oath that they knew Mary, her handwriting and her signature well and could therefore say that the unwitnessed will was nevertheless genuine.

Administration was granted a few days later to Mary Lovegrove's "mother" Harriet who had married John Hackshaw and had thus become Harriet Hackshaw. Family trees online suggest Harriet was the step mother rather than birth mother of Mary.

New administration granted 1871 (!) to James Thomas Lovegrove brother of Mary and "son"(could be step son) of Harriet.

Summary created from my transcription of a P.C.C will held at the National Archives, Kew from where you can obtain your own copy.

Notes:

Mary died on 23rd August 1832. Her short obituary in the Reading Mercury (27th August, British Library Archives) called her "much respected". She was only in her early 20s at death.

Mary Lovegrove's school was a day and boarding school for girls in West Street Marlow. She took it over in 1829.

For more on James Thomas Lovegrove see here

Mary was the sister of Marlow grocer George Lovegrove and aunt of the tragic Walter Lovegrove, both of whom feature in this post.

Harriet Lovegrove / Hackshaw was nee Saunders and died in 1869.

Mary's father was John Rance Lovegrove, plumber and glazier.

For other Lovegroves see our A-Z index on the drop down menu. This blog contains mention of thousands of historic Marlow people.

For more Marlow will posts see my index here.

Post by Charlotte Day.

©Marlow Ancestors. You are very welcome to use this will summary for family or local history purposes with credit to this blog.

The Lives Of Owen Sawyer and Joseph Russell

Sometimes we pick a random individual from Marlow's past and decide to flesh out the bones of their life. So now is the turn of Victorian West Street and Queens Rd resident Owen Sawyer. 

Owen was born in 1847 to West Street bakers James and Charlotte Sawyer. They and their business feature in a post here which includes a photo of their premises. Charlotte had the reputation of being an accomplished businesswoman and she continued the business after her husband's early death. In this she was assisted by Owen's brothers Henry and James. Subsequently James would take over the management of the bakers from his aged mother, and indeed continued to run it after her death. 

Owen however was apprenticed to High Street cabinet maker Daniel Walker, who also ran The Hope public house later. Daniel did not just make furniture, he also engaged in more general carpentry tasks. So Owen would later recall engaging in work such as making and even erecting fencing. It was good training if hard work and Owen would later strike out on his own as a skilled carpenter. He initially moved to Dean Street after marrying wife Mary Ann and that was the setting for the event below. Subsequently he spent several decades living in Queens Road. 

Murder! 

A dramatic incident in the life of Owen occured when he was 28 and found himself in court charged with assaulting Thomas John Pattison Junior. Thomas said Owen forced himself through his front door and attacked him although it isn't clear what the motive would have been. Fortunately for Owen, the witnesses supported a quite different version of events. Owen had heard Sarah, the wife of Thomas screaming "Murder! Murder!" as he was going pass their home. He, Sarah's sister and her neighbour rushed in and found that Thomas had Sarah by the neck and was threatening her with her knife, despite the fact she was holding one of their children. He had apparently been offended by the fact Sarah expressed the wish to stay in their current home rather than move to Strong Beer Acre as Thomas had announced they would shortly be doing. Thomas was bound over for a year to keep the peace for one year, and Owen was found not guilty of the assault. 

Diving superstar

Owen was a renowned swimmer and diver, and a member of the Amateur Rowing club. In 1875 he won a regatta competition which involved diving as far as possible off Marlow Bridge. The entry point into the water was marked and whoever got furthest from the bridge was the champion. Owen's winning distance was 40 yards. It was noted that he was a hard man to beat when in form! Other events included "diving for eggs" and water polo in canoes. The Rowing club also had monthly competitions running at this time, which Owen took part in. In the 1890s he operated the telegraph system at Bourne End Regatta that transmitted the official results from the umpire. They were then announced to the crowds who couldn't all see the finish clearly. He was also a member of other sporting institutions in the town - and one of the players who made up The Royal Victoria Working Mans FC, Marlow's "other" football team which subsequently amalgamated with Marlow FC. (Read more on them here)

Another institution in the town that Owen had great involvement in was the Clayton Arms Slate Club, a friendly society.  This provided invaluable support to working men in the event of accident or illness robbing them of the opportunity to earn their living. Owen was one of the founding members, and also served on its organisational commitee. You can read more about it here. He was also a member of the Marlow Volunteer fire brigade. Even after retirement from that he sometimes lent a hand at fires, such as one at the George & Dragon during the October street fair of 1898. Civilians were often utilised in such occasions, and someone of Owen's experience was obviously all the more welcome. Owen suffered a house fire of his own that nearly cost the life of two of his children - you can read more in this post about his father in law John Langley here

Lastly we should mention Owen's role as one of the collectors of contributions for the local Transvaal Relief Fund around 1900. This dealt with cases of need in families who had a member serving in the South African wars then ongoing. Furthermore he was elected to the committee of this group. 

Owen could also be found as a member of the Bucks Rifle Volunteers. He was the oldest Volunteer when he retired after 34 years diligent service in the autumn of 1902. Owen had by then attained the rank of Corporal. He said on his retirement that the hours spent with his fellow rifle volunteers were amongst the happiest of his life. As a member of the Volunteers Social and Shooting Club, he had spent many happy days with these comrades at the rifle range and in local pubs. You can read more about the volunteers here

Two sad events - the first

In 1890, Owen was working at a house in Mill Lane. He saw a young man who he knew slightly coming along the lane. This was Joseph Lionel "Joe" Russell* age 25, who had been crippled for life in a childhood accident.  He had been born into a military family in India, but shortly after their return to England, his father had died.  His mother had worked at Bray Court, and the lady of that house and subsequently Marlow Place (Mrs Haig) had tried to support Joseph with an allowance when his mother had in turn died. She had also paid off some of his debts. It had once seemed doubtful that Joseph's physical condition would allow him to fully support himself. But he had nevertheless started work as a commercial clerk to Thomas Butler the wine and spirit merchant. And so the allowance had finally been stopped, although Mrs Haig still provided his clothing. However, Joseph was subject to fits of depression and had taken to drinking. When he passed Owen, he asked to shake his hand, and told Owen they would not see any such other again. Joseph then proceeded along Mill Lane towards the Mill and river. Owen was naturally suspicious at such ominous words, and watched the other man carefully. When he saw his destination, he ran a short distance down the lane to the Mills and called for help. Mr Wright and Owen found a muddy and wet Joseph at the bank of the Thames attempting to wade in. He could not swim and had a suicide note in his pocket. He was bought back to the Mills to receive medical attention. Suicide was a criminal offence then, and so Joseph was bought before the court and Owen had to give evidence as to what he had seen. Joseph was let off as he promised not to attempt his life again. Sadly, he did not keep this promise, and three years later he drowned after throwing himself off Marlow Bridge. 

A tragedy close to home

In 1903 Owen appeared at another inquest. This was sadly that of his brother James Sawyer the baker. For reasons that are not always easy to grasp, the Sawyer family bakers was no longer doing well in the few previous years. A severe fire in 1897 can not have helped although both the building and contents were insured. By May 1902 it had closed, and James was out of work. (The business was sold to Charles H Carter who ran the Bridge Restaurant and bakers on the Causeway, where Burgers is now. As he already had a West Street branch, the business was moved there) I believe he may have worked for another baker in town at first but this did not last. When leaving the bakery he had of course also lost his home. (He went to lodge with Jane Thornton.) He was 67, and perhaps he could not face "starting again". One evening Owen met his brother in the Carpenters Arms and noted his downcast look. He gave him some money, as the baker was significantly in arrears with his rent.  The two parted and no one saw James alive again. His person was spotted in the river near Thames Bank by labourer Thomas Munday. Thomas retrieved the body with the assistance of equipment provided by the Marlow Lock keeper, and the aid of George Budd. It was taken to the Two Brewers, where a copy of his and Owens parents' marriage certificate was found in his pocket. 

A happier event of that year was the marriage of daughter Ada to Edwin Meadows Madeley. Ada was a former school teacher at the national school. 

Owen's own death was less dramatic and he passed away age 78 in 1926. 

*Joseph came to Marlow from Holyport near Maidenhead shortly before his first suicide attempt. He lodged for seven years with plumber George and Louisa Davis in Cambridge Rd. George and Louisa feature with their daughter Annie in a post here - but be warned it's another sad post! Joseph was said to have been in a fearful state when Mrs Haig took him under her wing, unable to go up stairs for example. He had spent much time in Maidenhead hospital. Louisa Davis believed that his first suicide attempt had been precipitated by her threat that if he continued such heavy drinking he must leave her home. She believed the second was due to a guilty conscience, as she considered it likely that he was stealing from his employer. He had too much money to spend on drink she said, given his other expenses and level of wages. Joseph had two brothers and two sisters, whom Mrs Haig had also helped get a start in life. The boys were in the Army at the time of his death. He was buried in a paupers grave at Cookham, with no family to attend the service. His body had been found by Spade Oak ferryman Jonathan Sparks. The jump from the bridge was witnessed by carpenter Mark Creswell.

 Mrs Haig remarried and went to live at Fox Court, Maidenhead with husband Captain Masey. 

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Written and researched by Kathryn Day. 

To find all mentions of an individual or family here use the A-Z person index in the top drop down menu.

 Use the General History tab to find out more about everyday life in Joseph's and Owen's Great Marlow. 

©Marlow Ancestors.