Brown Grave, Marlow

 For other graves of individuals with the surname Brown in Little Marlow rather than Great Marlow see the Graves tab in the drop down menu above. 

This grave is in Marlow Cemetery. 

Augusta Scott Brown born December 1850, died January 10 1931. 

Grave also contains inscription for :

Sydney Phillip W----, born March ----, Died June ----

Index of other grave images - here

To look for general information about any individual ancestor use the A-Z person index on the top drop down menu. 

©Marlow Ancestors. You are very welcome to use this grave photo for the purposes of family or local history with credit to this blog.

Early 20th Century Shopkeepers In Queen's Road Marlow

Queen's Road was fields before residential development began, slowly at first, from the mid 1800s. In Victorian times it had at least a pub and a grocers. This post deals with the early 20th century.

Virtually all historic buildings have been destroyed in this road so that any street numbers given here bear no relationship to any modern property in the road with the same number. 

Henry and Margaret Brown(e). Margaret Brown(e) grocers. Not here 1907 but this husband and wife are censused together with Henry named as a grocer in 1911. Margaret seems to have started operating alone from late 1911, suggesting that Henry had died. She was still there running the shop in 1915 but not 1920.

John Bryant general shopkeeper at number 24 from at least 1911 to at least 1921 but not before 1901. This shop was on the Cambridge Road side of the street, not far from Eton Place. He had previously operated a greengrocery shop in Spittal Square (c1890-1901) and lived there with his family. He was also a market gardener. John was a retired soldier who came originally from Flackwell Heath, born circa 1846. Probably still running the shop in 1924. Wife Anne (Annie) assisted in the business. The couple had previously ran the Fighting Cocks pub in Dean Street for a few months before it was closed down. This doesn't mean that John gave up vegetable selling, many Dean Street landlords earned extra money by selling potatoes in particular, but other greens too from their premises. John and Annie had also lived possibly at Newtown Road Marlow before arriving in Queen's Road and opening the shop there. Their son Robert was killed in action in WW1, thankfully other sons George and Harry survived. During ww1 John was charged with profiteering by selling potatoes at inflated prices at High Wycombe. He grew the potatoes on his allotments in Marlow. He'd probably need more than an allotment to consider himself a market gardener so there was likely land elsewhere in his keeping. There were market gardens in Queen's Road itself at the time which he may have hired part of. His sons Harry and George who helped in his shop later became wholesale and hawking greengrocers on their own account with a smallholding off Little Marlow /Wycombe Road. It is possible this same piece of land has previously been in their father's cultivation. George as a married man lived at no 27 Queens Road while Harry moved to 88 Newtown Road. By 1939 John Dawkins ran John Bryant's former Queen's Road shop on a day to day basis, though John still lived there.  The shop, adjoining bakers and cottages were all built by the Plumridge family of the Duke of Cambridge. 

William Buckland a general shopkeeper cum grocer at number 41 from at least 1907 (but probably not before 1905) until at least 1939. This was on the corner of Prospect Road. It was later turned into a house. William was born circa 1865. 

Mary Grantham (Mrs) called herself a sweetshop keeper in 1901 but later was a grocer. Mary was originally from Wiltshire and the widow of Thomas Grantham. She died aged 55 in 1915. The business was taken over by her daughter Elsie Grantham who ran it as a general shop. Elsie was born circa 1894 and looks to have married Harry Armstrong in 1935. The shop was almost on the corner of Oxford Road, on the Cambridge Road side of the street. A popular stopping place for school children. 

William Henry Saunders at no.26. On Cambridge Road side of the road not far from Eton Place. Bakery by 1907 to at least 1920. Assisted by wife Jane (nee West, whose parents lived at Keynsham's Farm, Cadmore End when their daughter married in 1896). This couple were Wesleyans. They lived in nearby York Road before being based in Queen's Road. Number 28 was later converted into a house without the removal of the bread ovens and so was often still referred to as "The old bakery". 

Just as a bonus, another business in Queen's Road in this period though not a shop:

Frederick Dunn insurance agent at no 36 at least 1911-20. Wife Louisa. He was born Lane End 1870. They moved to Marlow from High Wycombe but had also previously lived briefly in Manchester. Frederick had previously worked as a chair caner. The couple's son Frederick jnr worked at the paper mills as a boilerman.

And also mention must be made of:

J East a general dealer in 1907 (Cambridge Road side of the road). Uncertain whether he had a shop or dealt more informally which was common in that occupation.

And the Grace family whose shop was on the corner of Dean Street and Queens Road in this period and earlier with the main entrance however on Dean Street. More on them and other Graces here.

Some Sources:

England and Wales Census, 1911," , FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X7VP-VH9 : 22 July 2019), Mary Grantham, Marlow, Buckinghamshire, England, United Kingdom; from "1911 England and Wales census," database and images, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : n.d.); citing PRO RG 14, The National Archives of the UK, Kew, Surrey.

"England and Wales Census, 1911," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X7VP-J4M : 22 July 2019), Fred Dunn, Marlow, Buckinghamshire, England, United Kingdom; from "1911 England and Wales census," database and images, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : n.d.); citing PRO RG 14, The National Archives of the UK, Kew, Surrey.

Marlow Almanack and Directory 1907.

Marlow Guide 1905 

Kelly's Directory of Buckinghamshire etc 1911, 1915 and 1920 editions 

1891 census of England  and Wales Great Marlow transcribed from microfilm by Jane Pullinger and 1901 census transcribed by me. Census information is Crown Copyright

"England and Wales Marriage Registration Index, 1837-2005," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QV8Z-KYB5 : 8 October 2014), Elsie M Grantham and null, 1935; from "England & Wales Marriages, 1837-2005," database, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : 2012); citing 1935, quarter 2, vol. 3A, p. 3266, Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England, General Register Office, Southport, England. 

Personal Interviews - thanks to all!

South Bucks Standard 4th September 1896.

Reading Standard 7th September 1916. This edition from British Library Archives via the BNA. As was Bucks Advertiser and Aylesbury News April 17th 1917.

.

More Cadets of Marlow's Royal Military College

 Others are mentioned in a detailed post about life for the boys at the college here.

*Sir Henry De La Beche, entered the College at Marlow in 1810. Continued his training at Sandhurst. Soon abandoned military life and became instead an eminent geologist and fossil hunter. Went on research trips to examine the geology of England, Ireland, France, Switzerland, Italy and Jamaica. With William Conybeare the first to name a species of plesiosaur. Wrote a pioneering practical manual for geologists. Also a geographer. Awarded medals by the kings of Belgium and Denmark for his work in geology. 

*Lt Col John Bonamy. Born no later than 1796. Served in the Peninsula War. He was a member of the 6th Royal Warwickshire regiment.

*Sir Edmund de Gonville Bromhead. Born 1791. Soldier who rose to rank of Major-General. Became a baronet after the death of his brother. Father was a Lt General in the army. Home was Thurlby Hall, Lincs. Had at least 10 children with his wife Judith.

*General Sir George Brown. Scottish.

*Archibald Elijah Chasters.

*Sir John le Couteur, of Jersey. Born 1794. Entered the college at  the age of 14. Whilst there he spent a short time in the hospital sharing a room with George FitzClarence the illegitimate son of the then Prince William, later King William 4th. Another of William's illegitimate sons was untrusted to his protection when he took entered the college and the pair became friends. John became a Lieutenant aged 17. Published his memoirs of fighting in Canada during the Anglo-American War of 1812. Made Aide de Campe for Jersey by King William who had never forgotten his kindness to William's illegitimate sons at the Royal Military College. Conducted research on and published works about the science of agriculture. Pioneer of the use of tarmac on roads.

*Sir George Everest. Of Welsh origin. Born 1790. Served the East India Company in a military capacity and in the Bengal Artillery. Surveyor General of India 1830+. Mount Everest is named after him in honour of his previous work in the area. Refused to stop working at his surveying job even when an illness temporarily paralyzed his limbs. Was winched into a seat to supervise work as he couldn't move himself. Had the nickname of Never Rest. Left India in 1847.

*Major General Humphrey Robert Hartley. Born 1794. Was cadet Under Officer at the College. Served in the Peninsula War and also in America, France and Australia. Encouraged the establishment of regimental savings banks for soldiers who wanted to put money aside for their future lives.

*"Captain Hawley". Fought at Waterloo.

*John James Rowe. Possibly served in the Peninsular War.

*Sir Henry Watson. Soldier and M.P.

1833 Parochial Assessment Marefield Passage

 My family has the original working notebooks used to compile this assessment by the surveyors and I am gradually transcribing them. The point of the assessment was to set tax rates for the year 1834. The occupiers rather than the owners for each property were recorded. The notebooks contain pencilled in additions and correction up to circa 1839. Where these occur on this assessment I have added the relevant notes in square brackets. Any research notes about the people mentioned are also in square brackets.

Marefield Passage [This address no longer exists. It was behind Dean Street, running between what is now Queen's Road and Cambridge Road. This was a poor neighborhood on the edge of town in those days]

Each occupying a cottage and garden with an annual value of £5:

Richard Moores

Edward Smith

Thomas Garner

William Mead

William Frith

Thomas Frith

William Clark

Robert Roberts [in pencil added later name George next to Robert but Robert not crossed out]

James Lomax

*****

Each in house and garden with annual value of £6:

Edward Aveling

John Harris

Thomas Brookes

Charles Ford [he died 1837 aged 55. His widow Elizabeth Ford may be the woman of that name who ran a baby linen business in West Street in 1839]

Richard East [he also down as having a gravel pit with an annual value of £2 10 shillings]

*****

In a cottage and large garden with annual value of:

George Clark

*****

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

Joseph Clark [19 year old labourer Joseph and his new wife Maria nee Harding]

Joseph Smith

Ann Carr

Richard Price

Charles Brown

William Blake [a labourer, wife Mary]

Thomas Johnson

John Goldswain

*******

Occupying cottage and large garden worth £8:

George Clark (second one of same name Marefield)

Annual value of property: £8

*****

Each occupying a cottage and garden with an annual value of £4 10 shillings:

William Heffard

Elizabeth Harding

Thomas Mitchell

*****

Each occupying a house worth £5 and an additional garden each with an annual value of 10 shillings:

William Heather

John Holloway

*****

Each in a cottage with an annual value of £3:

Ann Archer

Joseph Keep [who married his wife Mary nee Godfrey in 1827]

Thomas Easley

Robert Almond

*****

Occupying a house worth £8:

School of Industry [trained poor children].

*****

To find more posts about historic residents of Marefield Passage or other Marlow streets please see our streets index here.

Thousands of people are mentioned on this blog. Look on the A-Z index for every mention of any individual.

©Marlow Ancestors.

An Edwardian Christmas In Marlow

 

A Victorian Christmas in Marlow was the subject of a previous pair of posts. So this one is about how the Edwardian Marlow residents enjoyed their festivities but I recommend you read the Victorian posts too as much remained the same. 

The streets still sound with the music of carol singers performing their rounds. The Church choir was only one of many to tour the streets. Most were making collections for charity, but a few reports show that children formed impromptu groups and went about hoping to part generous minded adults with their spare cash to be used as pocket money. Some of the less well off have more money than usual thanks to the annual share out of the Slate Clubs which continue in most of the pubs and some of the chapels. The Slate Clubs were a savings club and a kind of friendly society. In exchange for paying in a regular weekly sum, workers could access sickness and unemployment benefits paid out of the funds recieved. Payments were usually made to pay doctors fees and for funerals of the member (and sometimes their spouse). Anything left over in December was then shared out between the members. The share out was a big event, and was usually accompanied by a celebratory dinner or "smoking concert" or both. Many of these have now been running for decades in Marlow but show no sign of loosing popularity. On the contrary, many report higher levels of membership than they did during the previous century. Some of those definitely having a slate club that was active in Edwardian times include the Clayton Arms, Greyhound, Prince Of Wales, White Hart, Verney Arms, King's Head (Little Marlow), Bricklayers Arms and the Jolly Cricketers and Royal Oak in Bovingdon Green. The Verney club was now one of the biggest, with 216 members in 1910. (You can read more about Slate Clubs and poverty in Victorian and Edwardian Marlow here)

A "rather young looking Santa Claus" was said to be stationed in the somewhat unlikely location of poulterer Mr Rippington's shop in 1908. This was presumably a figure in a window or other display. Father Christmas does not seem to visit Marlow very often in the run up to Christmas during these years. During the children's parties run by schools and clubs the children tend to get invited to pick a small gift directly off the tree or are handed a small bag of modest (in our eyes only)  treats by a benefactor hosting the event. (Standard gift bag offerings seem to be an orange, some nuts and a piece of cake.) 

Although Marlow has always been well supplied with dedicated toy shops, during the festive season other businesses introduced or expanded their own range of toys and festive novelties. This especially applied to drapers and stationers. Morgans the draper in Market Square for example bought in a range of dolls and toys to tempt shoppers. W B Langston's* (William Bradley) the boot and shoe warehouse open a "Christmas Bazaar" inside their already crowded premises in the High Street. Inside can be found "mechanical toys, picture books and dolls in great variety." Elsewhere in the High Street Timberlake's, who sell bicycles and phonographs, also have a special Christmas "department" offering more mechanical toys, and magic lanterns as well as "talking machines" and records. (A selection from 1905.) C J Bateman, the cycle depot in West Street (now also describing themselves as motor engineers) was one place to go for model steam trains, priced at 6d and above, as well as models of Bleriot, Wright and other planes. 

By now the shops are all closed on Christmas Day and most but not all are also shut on both Boxing Day and January 1st. The fact they are closed is something of a source of pride for some traders who want their customers to know that they follow their religious and social duty, as they saw it. Of course for those in domestic service, and in many other roles, the festive season included much less free time than average. 

Now for some of the delights available in the Marlow grocers and other shops. Alfred Ilsley in the High Street offers ready made mincemeat from Chivers, as well as the most plump fruit for making your own puddings. He had home cured smoked hams on sale too. Ready made Christmas cakes could be picked up at Carter's (now Berger's) and also at Browns in the High Street. Browns also offered Christmas stockings, perhaps not the obvious place to look for the latter! They made "Marlovian Shortbread" from 1910, a snip at 8d a lb. And Carter's could supply mince pies and plum puddings if you didn't wish to make your own. "Why bother about making puddings and mincemeat this Christmas time when Carter supplies some of the best at reasonable prices?"

Above, the former Morgan's store. 

But for those that did, Christmas pudding charms in solid silver could be bought at Rowes the jeweller for just a shilling a set. Mr Rowe, who could probably sell sand to Egypt, said they were selling by the hundreds and "great fun". 

The tradition of shops holding "Christmas shows" over one of two days to showcase their very best goods continues. The butchers and poulterers sometimes decorate the outside of their premises with animal carcasses (or imitation ones) for these events, but this is less often mentioned in Marlow specifically compared to other towns such as High Wycombe. The best quality meat is not put outside to get dusty in any case, it can be viewed in relative comfort inside. Some of the customers may have been a spectator at the Fat Stock shows held near the train station just before Christmas. The animals now lying on the butchers slab were paraded before them. All animals entered into the show are auctioned off at the end, and the butchers try to outbid one another for the animals that win their classes. They advertise their success so prospective buyers will know where to head to buy the best beef for example. The members of the Christmas Fat Stock Show Association include most of the dairy, mixed and beef farmers in the neighbourhood. They have an annual dinner hosted by the Crown, and held in the old assembly rooms. This is a big event at the time, with the numbers attending reminding us of just how many local families continue to be involved in agriculture. (More than 100 attendees in 1905) And for every farmer and landowner attending their dinner, there are many farm employees both casual and full time. The prizes from the show are distributed at the event. Afterwards there is music from a band performing in the minstrels gallery, and dancing. Here's a sample menu from 1903 - roast turkey, roast beef, boiled mutton, ham, boiled cod (yes, boiled), cauliflower, boiled turnip tops (greens), three types of potatoes (roast, boiled and baked), soup, Christmas pudding, mince pies, apple tart, cheese and celery. But no sprouts.

Many families would have dreamed of such a spread. The Salvation Army** did not forget the less well off. They hosted special Christmas teas and entertainments for the youngsters belonging to the large number of poorer families in town. In 1903 they hosted 200 of the poorest children for tea followed by an entertainment for 400 youngsters. Each child left with a bag of cake and an orange. The SA congregation was relatively small and the amount of fundraising they must have done to cater for such numbers is large, even if some goods were donated by kind hearted shopkeepers. In addition Sister Cole at the Cottage Hospital in Cambridge Road organised a Christmas tree for the patients there. In 1909 she was also organising a little party not just for any young patients spending Christmas there, but former ones who had been discharged as well as the children of current patients. All this with the help of Emily Dickson the untiring fundraiser and wife of Dr Dickson. 

All of the churches were decorated in their own ways, with evergreens, and if they were lucky, with the flowers forced in the hothouses of the larger gardens. Little Marlow Church used bunches of white chrysanthemums. In 1908, the Catholic Church of St Peter's was garnished with holly, ivy, and other evergreens as well as a host of blooms. Midnight mass was a full house so many could enjoy the display. Five years later, the children attending the Catholic day schools had a particularly fun treat. Not all of the young scholars were Catholic incidentally. The children had a Christmas tea with lots of cake, followed by dancing. The more eagle eyed of the guests may have noticed a large "curtain" partitioning a certain portion of one end of the room. After the dance, this curtain was whisked aside to reveal a tree with a branch bending under the weight of little gifts. There was "an elaborate collection of toys of every description." Once these were distributed the fun was not yet over. Father Arthur gave a show as an illusionist and then the children were lined up to receive yet another gift - a bags of nuts, sweets and oranges. 

 Written and researched by Kathryn Day. 

Related Posts:

Victorian Christmas in Marlow part 1 here and 2 here

New Year traditions here

Skating on the Thames etc here

Bonfire night in Victorian Marlow here

A listing of other posts about every day life in old Marlow  here

Easter and May day here

*More about William Langston's boot stores here

**The Salvation Army in Marlow here

©Marlow Ancestors

 

Part 2 1820s Marlow Trade Directory

After exhaustive trawling of wills, property records, court cases, adverts etc I have put together a trade directory for Marlow in the 1820s. It will never be complete, especially for women who make less of a mark in surviving records, but it may be interesting to you anyway. For some of those listed the exact premises are known, and some of the traders have dedicated posts about them already on the blog. See the A-Z Person Index for any mention however small of any particular person or Biographies of Individuals for full length dedicated posts only.

This is ongoing work. I have lots more names to add.

Part one contained occupations Auctioneers to Insurance Agents alphabetically and is available here

Can't find your ancestor? Look at my 1820s Street Directory of Marlow. This lists for every street not just those with a known trade but anyone we have found as a tenant of land or property there but for whom no known trade has been identified.

Ironmongers

John Henry Badger. 1822+ High Street.

Lydia Lane, West Street. To death 1844. More on Lydia here.

Lace Makers

Samuel Washbourn (business owner). Probably Chapel Street, was later.

Lace Merchants

John Glover. Dean Street. 1822

Henry Lovegrove. West Street. From pre 1820s. In 1822 Henry was injured when his gig was run into by the Greenwich stage coach. He received £10 compensation for his injuries and the damage to his vehicle.  

Lawyers / Solicitors

Henry Allnutt. Died 1821. Keen amateur gardener whose detailed notebooks of his success and failures in his Marlow kitchen garden were used by grandson Henry to produce "A system for Cropping a Kitchen Garden" published 1867. 

Henry Goldsmith. Chapel Street. 1823. Started as clerk to Robert Goldsmith, in Marlow.

Ralph Spicer 1826 to after 1820s. Biographical post on him here.

Mr Wright. Pre 1820s. High Street 1822-29. Probably John.

Liquor Merchants

Charles Wethered. 1820+. High Street. Earlier described as a malster.

Malsters

Samuel Barnes. St Peter's Street.

James House. Medmenham.

Thomas Webb.

Millwrights

Charles Moss. 1828.

Papermakers

John Dell. Will proved 1821.

John Jacques.

Francis Pepper. From pre 1820s.

Joseph Wright. From pre 1820s.

Pawnbrokers

James Clark from at least 1806 to at least 1823.

Daniel Humphries 1821. Will written 1826. Also a substantial landlord. Market Place. Someone tried to sell him a stolen velveteen waistcoat in 1822.

Plumbers

Mr Cox. Market Square. 1826.

George Goldsmith. Dean Street. 1823.  In business to at least 1836 but not necessarily in Dean Street. 2. George Wilmer Goldsmith, plumber and glazier, died July 1834.  

John Rance Lovegrove. West Street. Also glazier. Pre 1820+. Died 1827. Will proved 1828. First wife was Susanna. Second was Henrietta. Third wife Harriet (all as per will). Business left to his son James Thomas Lovegrove who worked with him by 1823. John witnessed the will of fellow West Street resident William Sawyer. See  here. Will summary of John's daughter Mary is available here

Joshua Phillips. Little Marlow. Also Publican etc. See here

Postmaster 

James Field, also insurance agent. Also teacher, see schools below. Will here

"Publicans", Innkeepers, beer sellers etc - for more on all these pubs and publicans see our Pub Related Index of posts here NB publican as job description was not in common use at this time, it is included to aid modern readers. 

Thomas Archer. White Hart number 2 (Spittal Square) see Mary Fletcher below. 1823 to post 1820s. 

James Biddle. Unknown premises. 1826.

Thomas Bowen. Red Lion. 1823 to post 1820s.

William Bowles. Greyhound Inn. 1825. Greyhound landlord listing - here

William Bowles. Six Bells. 1823-24. Probably same as above.

Richard Clark. Jolly Maltsters. Dean Street. More here The name Clark has a very long pub / innkeeping heritage in Marlow. Later at Rose and Crown Dean Street.

William Clark. The Ship. West Street. 1823-24. Wife Ann.

Robert Collins. Victualler. Will 1826. Premises unknown.

William Cresswell. 1823 to post 1820s. Complete Angler/ The Angler(s), Angler Inn. Read more on him here

George Davis. The Chequers.High Street.

George Phelps Dell. Barge Pole, to into the 1830s. See the grave of him and some others of his family here

Mary Fletcher. White Hart number one (Chapel Street). To post 1820s. There were two White Hart pubs at the same time.

Richard Furnell. Upper Crown. Died on premises of a fit of apoplexy 1820.

John Green - at the Three Horseshoes, Burroughs Grove. 1826. More on him.and his family 

William Harding. Throughout period. Turks Head. High Street.  Also shoemaker.

George Hawkins. Two Brewers 1823. Wife Mary. This may be a mistake for John.

John Hawkins. Two Brewers. Died 1826. Wife Mary then ran.

Mary Hawkins (nee Hewett). Widow of John above. Two Brewers. 1826+. 

William Hoare. Three Horseshoes Gun Lane. 1823+

William Lloyd. The Roebuck, Causeway. 1823+ A man of the same name was a butcher. Probably not the same man though many beer sellers had other occupations at the same time.

Robert Mossenton. Greyhound Inn. Started 1819. Left 1825. Also a horse dealer. Went Uxbridge. Coach from his premises to and from London Piccadilly via Maidenhead. Only a five hour trip each way! For more than on this and other stagecoach services, see here

Joshua Phillips. Kings Arms, Little Marlow. See here.

John Pierce / Pearse. Coach and Horses. West Street. 1823+ There was another man who was a butcher with this name in town at the same time.

Richard Ruddle.1829. Was a few years later at the Hare and Hounds and was most likely already there in 1829 too. Earlier in the 1820s was described as a tallow Chandler.

William Sparkes. Black Boy.

Richard Westbrook. Upper Crown. 1823-24. Mr Westbrook 1826.

Robert White. The Swan. 1823.

Thomas Wyatt. Horns Inn. 1823 to post 1820s. Much more about him and his family here 

Rope Makers

Richard Gibbons. From at least 1822. Also Hemp and Flax Merchant. In the 1840s Gibbons of Marlow provided ropes for ringing the church bells at Hambledon on several occasions. Lived St Peter's Street. Also brewer etc 

John Muspratt. 1819+. Labourer rope spinner.

Saddlers 

Hackshaw and Son. (And harness makers) Thomas and John. Partnership dissolved 1821 (insolvent) West Street. Thomas provided ropes for ringing the bells of Hambledon church 13 times between 1803 - 1839. He may be the parish constable mentioned here. John was again insolvent 1823. See under harness makers for more on him.

Sawyers

Robert Rose. 1828+

Shoemakers - see Bootmakers and Cordwainers. 

School Teacher's see the Education section on the General Marlow History menu here for more on these schools and teachers.

Misses Bond. West Street. Perhaps Mary Ann and Elizabeth who were apprentice teachers early in the 1800s to Sophia Tylecote at Albion House set up their own school later.

George Cole. Day School for boys Chapel Street. 1812 to post 1820s.

William Faulkner. Great Marlow School at Prospect House. 1826 to post 1820s.

William Francis. Borlase.

James Field. High Street. Also post master. To post 1820s.

Misses Field. West Street. To post 1820s. Probably Matilda and her sister.

Mary Garland Lovegrove. 1829+. West Street. Day and boarding g school for girls. Her will on the blog and more on her here.

Misses Rolls. Brampton House. High Street. 1823 to post 1820s.

Henry Terry. Prospect House. 1823-26.

Servants (selected)

William Hackshaw. 1822.

Skewer Makers -more on this trade in Marlow here

Mr Robinson. 1829. (Business owner)

Mr Todd. 1829.

Stone Masons

Theophilus Clifford, High Street 1823 to post 1820s. Post on him here

Surgeons

Robert Colbourne. Started in town in 1823. Also apothecary. To post 1820s.

John Creighton. 1828. 

Henry Riggs Goodman.  1825-27 at least. By 1831 he was living in Portland Place Islington and was the Surgeon for an orphanage. Looks to have emigrated to Canada with his second wife shortly afterwards.

John Goodman, High Street 1823,24.

William Hickman. Pre 1820s to post 1820s. See here for more on him.

John Shaw. From pre 1820s. Will proved 1823. Also apothecary. High Street. See his grave and will summary here. Robert Colbourne takes over his practice. 

Robert Colbourne : see Shaw above. 

Tailors

James Allum. 1821.

William Allum. Through period to at least 1840s. High Street. A Mr Allum senior tailor died 1830. Perhaps a father to William?

Henry Clark, West Street 1823

Samuel Clark. West Street. To post 1820s.

Joseph Grey. 1824+. In High Street 1830s, may already have been.

William Massey. 1820.

Tallow Chandlers

John Gibbons. See Grocers above, same man. 

Mary Horniman. West Street. 1825.

Richard Ruddle. 1823. By 1829 was a publican at unknown premises and by 1833 ran the Hare and Hounds pub. 

Thatchers

William Higgins. Died 1829. Well End near Little Marlow. 

Tinplate Workers

William Harper. West Street. 1823.

Turners

George Ball. 1828.

James Ball. 1826.

George Bavin. 1825. Brother of William below.

William Bavin. Chair maker and publican later. See here

Henry Hawes. 1823+

James Pusey. To 1822.

Watchmakers

Mr Costar. Chapel Street. 1829. May be same as below.

John Coster. Chapel Street. 1821

Edward Jackson. West Street. Pre 1820s to 1823.

Wheelwrights

George Butler. 1820.

James Cox. 1826+ Probably working for Thomas below.

Thomas Cox. Oxford Road / Quoiting Square. To post 1820s.

Stephen East. 1823 to post 1820s. Was later in Spittal Street running the Wheelwrights Arms pub too.

John Green. Chapel Street.

Wine Merchants

Charles Wethered. High Street.  Earlier described as malster.

Wire Manufacturers

John Washbourn. Bankrupt 1822.

Wood Cutters

Francis Friar. 1827.

Related Posts:

Recreated 1600s trade directory Part One

Recreated 1700s trade directory here

Index of posts related to specific shops and businesses here

Call the Apothecary! here

 

To find every mention of a family or individual here, use the A-Z person index in the top drop down menu. 

By Charlotte Day. Additional research Kathryn Day. 

©Marlow Ancestors. You are welcome to reuse this material for family or local history purposes with credit to this blog.

Little Lives Lost in the Thames

 The grave of young drowning victim Thomas Brown of Little Marlow.  Died July 17 1855 age 12. Also on the grave is his sister Ann who died age 4 in 1850. (Grave at Little Marlow)

When we published a post on the lives of the bargemen who lived and worked in Marlow, we included some information about a few of those that were drowned in the river. This was sadly only the tip of the iceberg and this post is dedicated to a sample few of the children who died in the water pre 1920..  

Most of the children died after deliberately entering the water to bathe, or because of a boating accident. The current, weeds, sudden drops in water depth, obstructions, and for the girls in particular unwieldy clothes and lack of swimming instruction all played their part. The case of a little girl who tumbled into the river when trying to retrieve coins thrown from a passing steamer was a little different. She is dealt with in a different post, along with the death of a 14 year old barge hand. 

The grave pictured above of Thomas Brown age 12 belongs to the second boy of Little Marlow to drown within the space of 4 years in the 1830's. Thomas went to bathe at Marlow Bridge and was swept out of his depth by the current. Another boy who went to his aid was nearly killed also. It is interesting if sad to read that the water was so clear that the body of young Thomas could be seen lying at the bottom of the river and so it could be recovered almost immediately. 

The following year 2 more children were claimed by the water. With the water high and stream running fast, 8 year old James Johnson stood little chance when he overbalanced while crossing Hurley Lock. He was carrying a rake and bucket as he had been helping his dad cut some grass. Despite his fathers frantic efforts, the boy could not be reached in time to save his life. The second victim was Miss Croxon who fell from a punt while playing. On this occasion, the water certainly was not clear enough to find her quickly. It took some time to recover her body. 

This last death had an unfortunate echo when 14 year old Grace Simpkins drowned at Temple Lock in 1904. She was the daughter of the lock keeper*. The circumstances are not absolutely clear because the only witness was across the other side of the river. He saw Grace fall from her bicycle down the steep bank adjacent to the lock and within sight of her home. But he did not see what occasioned her fall. This witness James Davis was a gardener at Temple Lodge and he had been mowing a lawn there. He shouted to gain the attention of the lock keeper but could not be heard. He ran to get a boat but the delay meant that it was 20 minutes before the alarm was successfully raised. When William Simpkins, Grace's father, came running to help he had no idea that the young lady victim was his daughter. On seeing her bicycle in the water, he is said to have exclaimed "My God, it's my poor girl". The most likely explanation is that Grace over balanced as she was carrying a milk can, having stopped to buy some on the way home from school as she had done many times before. They believed she had perhaps hit her head as she fell or was washed out of her depth by the current or by the wash of a steamer which passed through the Lock while Davis was getting the boat. The people on the boat had not seen the girl in the water but had tragically seen a floating milk can. 

The lack of a proper safe public bathing place was constantly raised after the death of a child or adult in the Thames. As time passed there was some provision made by private individuals or clubs such as the Boys Life Brigade - the story of swimming in the Thames can be found elsewhere on the blog. The last drowning we will feature in this post shows how urgent the need for such a facility was. In 1904 George Finch, age 15, who could not swim, nevertheless decided to have a bathe. He went to the (unmanned) Boys Life Brigade bathing place in the back waters behind the lock, although he was not a member and had not obtained a ticket. It seems the bathing shed was unlocked and he undressed there. Later his clothes were found inside but there was no sign of the boy. A search was made and his body was recovered near the back of the Compleat Angler, just 4 yards from the bank. George worked at Wethered's brewery. 

This is just a small sample of the young victims we could name. There are also children who had a narrow escape and were saved thanks to the bravery of other young swimmers or adults. 

*Grace was the second lock keepers daughter to drown at Temple. 11 year old Ellen Lawrence Wood died there in the summer of 1888. (Daughter of William John Wood) And at Hurley in 1909 lock keeper Henry Wise lost his 4 year old son Teddy to drowning. The child was supposed to have climbed into a punt to play and then fallen in. Even after the doctor had declared the boy dead, his father was seen to still attempt to resuscitate his son, hoping against hope for a miracle that never came. 

For information on the bargemen and others who drowned while working on the river - see this post 

Bargemen of Marlow here

Floods in Marlow History, and plans to "embank and canalize" the river between Marlow & Henley here

Bellows, bricks and brandy - reviving the drowned here

Avert your eyes, bathers about! Victorian nude bathing at Marlow and swimming races here here

Biography Robert Shaw, king of the river here

Sources

Fennell, John Grenville - The Rail and the Rod - or Tourist Anglers Guide to Waters and Quarters (H Cox 1867)

Royal Commission on River Pollution -Third Report of the Commission appointed to inquire upon the best means of the pollution of the River Thames - 1866 (G E Eyre and W Spottiswoode 1866) 

Berkshire Chronicle - 25 July 1835, from British Library.

Bucks Gazette - 1 August 1835, as above

Reading Mercury - 23 May 1836, as above

South Bucks Standard - 26 June 1896, 12 June 1908, as above

Henley Advertiser 20 August 1904, as above. 

Humane Society for the reviving of persons apparently dead by drowning - (Royal Humane Society London 1783.)

Researched and written by Kathryn Day. 

©Marlow Ancestors 

William Brown Little Marlow

Grave Little Marlow churchyard of William Brown, died March 20th 1839 aged "LXIV" [64].

Brown Graves, Little Marlow

 

This Grave, obviously well worn, is at St John the Baptist church, Little Marlow. 

William Henry Brown. 

Died January 3 18(6?)3 aged 46. 

Above, Ann, daughter of William and Susannah Brown. Died January 16 1850 age 4. 

And:

Thomas their son who was drowned while bathing in the River Thames July 17 1855 age 12. 

This grave is also at Little Marlow.

For more graves in Great Marlow, Little Marlow and Hurley see the Graves option on the menu.

All mentions of someone on this blog can be found under the Person Index.

General Little Marlow content can be found under Other Places on the menu.

©Marlow Ancestors. You are welcome to reuse this post content for family or local history purposes with credit to this blog.

The Wheelwrights Arms list of landlords *updated May 2026*

UPDATED by  Kathryn June 2025

THE WHEELWRIGHTS ARMS AKA THE WHEELERS (Usual address Spittal Street)

Wheelwrights Arms, above as the building is today. Central chimney gone, upper windows shrunk and lower half obviously changed significantly. The pub name was at one time painted on the upper centre of the building, with Fullers brewery name below. 

1833 - Stephen East.

1839 - St. East.

1840 - Stephen East.

1844 - Robert Rockell (possibly the same Robert as at the nearby Prince Albert in 1841)

1852 "Crown Lane" suggesting at this point an entrance, perhaps even the main entrance, was on the side there.

1853 - Robert Rockell (also offers cartage and lodgings).

1861 - Robert Rockell (also a carter).

1864 - Robert Rockell.

1866 - Robert Rockall summoned for having his beerhouse open at an ilegal hour. He was serving customers at 4.30 am instead of the permitted 5am. This might seems ridiculously early but agricultural labourers were often required to be at work by 5am, or even earlier in the summer. He was fined 10 shillings.

1871- Robert Rockell (also carrier).

1872 - Robert Rockall.

1875 - Robert Rockell died, and son James took over. James defined himself as a carriage maker in 1871 when he was living at the Wheelers with his dad. 

1878 - James Rockell transferred business to James Tilbury (moved from George and Dragon).

1880 - Proposed transfer to William Lloyd refused. James Tilbury transferred licence instead to Charles Freegard.

1881 - James Freegard (born Wiltshire) .

1885 - James Freegard transferred business to James Arlett / Harlett.

1890 - Henry Ecklin passed the premises to John Henry Drewe / Dewe [probably should say John Henry Jeffs]. The pub got its swing sign board this year - useful for dating photos, although it disappears again in later Edwardian images. 

1891 - John Henry Jeffs passed it to Jesse Parsons. Jeffs was born in 1837 Warwickshire according to the census. His wife Lucy died in 1891 after a long battle with consumption which probably sparked him into wanting to leave the premises. Also in 1891 Jesse was burgled and cigars and cigarettes stolen from him. To read the sad circumstances of Lucy's death, read the post here. 

1892 - Jesse Parsons transferred licence to George Rogers / Rodgers. George was Sergeant in East Surrey Regiment. Jesse went to take over the Sportsman's Arms Inn in North Dean, Hughenden, Bucks.

1893 - George Rogers/Rodgers. 

1894 - "Mr Roger's Widow" [Ann]. George was buried at Holy Trinity Church but we have been unable to locate any surviving gravestone. Some members of his old Surrey regiment attend the funeral. He was only 47. 

 

1895 - Ann Rogers transferred premises to Edward Sims. Possibly a Frank Rogers might have been given a holdover in between times (conflicting evidence).

1896 - James William Rowe. 2. William Richard Rose.

1897 -  W R Rose 2. John Reading.

1898 - John Bradley.

1899 - John Bradley transferred premises to Charles Brown. John wad forced to leave as his licence had been endorsed for second time related to unruly conduct at the Wheelers. On the second occasion, it was for allowing "quarrelsome conduct" in the taproom, specifically a foul mouthed arguement between Mr & Mrs Anson that could be heard from some distance outside. When P C Marks entered the pub he also found two men drunk in there which was another black mark. The worst affected of these two drinkers, Charles Slade of Trinity Rd, was separately fined for his conduct. 

1899 - 1904 Charles Brown. Born circa 1860 in Nuffield Oxon according to the census. Wife Jane.

1907 - C Smith.

1908- structural alterations to the premises allowed.

1909 - Mr Smith. He organised a Christmas Day football match to raise money for the Cottage Hospital.

1910 - Arthur E Smith 2. Richard Lane.

1911 - Richard Lane transferred licence to George Branch.

1913- George Branch transferred licence to Wesley Hodge.

1914 Wesley Hodge transferred licence to Arthur Strange (holdover).

1915 - Arthur Strange 2. Wesley Hodge temporarily back again??

1916 - Arthur Strange transferred licence to William King of Greys, Essex.

1917 - William King to William Roberts.

1917-27 William Roberts. In 1921 he decided to sell the pub's coin-operated automatic piano. Penny a time, and it will pay you one of 10 tunes. Either he couldn't sell it or he replaced it with another model as when the pub closed in 1928 it still had an automatic piano.

1927 - Messrs Nicholson's and sons owned pub. Licenced transferred to Richard J T Marsh a retired timekeeper of Marlow Bottom.

1928 order for closure under scheme to limit the number of licenced premises in a given area. Richard J T Marsh landlord of the time (Richard James Thomas). The representative of the local J.Ps who nominate it for closure said it was a "small, rather dark and the conditions are rather poor." Sells 1&1/2 barrells of beer a week (compared to for example 5&1/2 barrells at the Bank of England in the same year). Richard said that that provides enough income for him as he receives a pension to supplement his earnings.  He had only taken in the premises that year.

To find all pub content, see the Pub Related index here. Non pub Spittal Street content is indexed here. To find all mentions of an individual see the A-Z person option on the menu. Happy hunting! 

SOURCES included

1833 Parochial Assessment working notebooks and correspondence owned by my family.

1853 Mussons and Cravens Commercial Directory

Pigots Directory 1844

Kelly's Post Office Directory -

1869,1877,1883, 1903.

Census - 1861,1871,1881,1891 

 Robson's Directory 1839

 Windsor and Eton Express, Apr 10 1875, held at British Library Archive and accessed via the BNA. 

Bucks Herald 10 Jan 1874, 26 December 1874, 18 June 1887, as above.  

Reading Mercury 19 Sept 1874, as above

South Bucks Standard, 06 January 1893, 08 Nov 1895, 2 July 1897,  19 May & 22 Sept 1899, 2nd October 1902, as above

Bucks Free Press 24th November 1911 and August 14th 1914  Bucks Free Press Archives.

1872 list of pubs and the breweries that owned them, held at Buckinghamshire County Council Archives. 

Numerous ads, licence session reports etc.

©Marlow Ancestors. You are welcome to quote from or use this research for family or local history purposes if you credit this blog and link back here.  

Musical Chairs At The Chairmakers Arms, Dean Street, Marlow

 THE CHAIRMAKERS ARMS Great Marlow

Updated by Charlotte April 2026.

The Chairmaker's Arms in Dean Street seems to have been a pub dogged by misfortune. No one seemed to want to stay there long. As a fully licensed house, it was not subject to quite as much competition from its numerous beer shop neighbours in Dean Street as might be supposed but it never seemed to thrive.

IMPROPER PERSONS ALERT

The pub is known to have existed in August 1874, but was no more than a few years old then. It was on the Queen's Road side of the street, at the town end, very close to the Jolly Malsters pub. The first few years of the Chairmakers were marked by a rapid turnover of landlords and intermittent closures.

In 1885 John Hodgkins left the pub after a couple of years at the helm. The previous year the pub has been shut up for a while and not trading and then John had tried to have the pub transferred to a Thomas White of Wendover but this was unsuccessful. In February 1885 the brewery holding the premises was granted "holdover"  of the licence from John Hodgkin's to the brilliantly named Neighbour Wilcox, who had come from London with excellent references including from a clergyman. Neighbour Wilcox applied for a permanent licence transfer in March but this was refused after the police objected. They said that Wilcox had been harbouring "improper persons" - known thieves, prostitutes and poachers -on the premises. He was also caught in possession of nets the police believed that he was hiring out for the purposes of poaching on land and in the river. Neighbour said he'd accepted the animal catching nets as part payment of a debt from an ex lodger or, according to other reports, as security on a loan made by him to an associate at Ealing.Wilcox explained away the fishing nets on the basis he had formerly been a fisherman. He insisted that had not been aware anyone drinking on his premises had a bad reputation, he being but an innocent stranger to town. The police answered that they had physically pointed out to Wilcox those he must not serve but spot checks had found that he did serve them. Some spent what was considered a suspicious amount of time there. It was also said that on one occasion when a policeman had entered the pub, Wilcox had made a signal to another man who then hot footed it out of the premises a little too quickly for the suspicious constables liking. Especially as the man concerned was convicted thief Mr Boddy. And the so called undesirables on his premises had come by just to pay for some beer. Their habit of suddenly scrambling over the back fence of the pub on other occasions when the police were about had apparently gone unnoticed by Wilcox. (They are not named other than "Butcher" Lloyd. This is convicted poacher etc George Lloyd ) After Wilcox had the transfer refused, the pub was closed for several weeks. 

In May the temporary holdover licence was granted to Reading publican Thomas White on his second attempt. But only a month later, White said he wanted to give it up. He declared he was ill and asked for the licence transfer to A H Neighbour (Alfred Henry Neighbour previously of the Red lion and Dog & Badger, not to be confused with Neighbour Wilcox. See link below for biography of Alfred.) The bench impatiently refused yet another change so White said he'd continue a while longer. A month later a continuation of this licence was refused as the police again strongly objected to it's continuance. They said that Thomas White was in charge in name only, and in fact did not live on the premises, a condition of the licence. (Although the brewers lawyers argued the necessity of this point.) 

Of course the magistrates were more than a little annoyed by this merry go round and asked the brewery Fullers a few awkward questions about how they were choosing their candidates to put forward for licencing. 

The authorities favoured stable guardianship, with tenants there for the long term. In Marlow, they were more often disappointed in this regard than satisfied. The magistrates expressed frustration at brewery owners for effectively borrowing experienced landlords with reputations for running steady premises and parachuting them into more notorious haunts to avoid those premises being closed. There was no intention of making them stay long term. They hopefully turned a place around, or at least left as soon as the brewery could find someone else to take over. This new person was often someone less experienced who was just treading water there and getting basic experience until a more profitable pub became available. 

A full as we can landlord listing for this pub at the end of the post.

THOMAS WHITE IN CHARGE ...OR IS HE?

In the case of Thomas White, the police alleged that the person actually resident at and presiding over the Chairmakers arms was A.H Neighbour who the authorities had already refused a transfer of the licence to. Mr Neighbour denied this..but applied for the licence anyway in August. The magistrates were not impressed and refused the application. However Mr Neighbour was a determined man and applied again, only to to be refused. (You can read about him in detail here). They noted White appeared to be one of the landlords who'd never intended to stay at the Chairmakers, and in fact his wife and children had never joined him there (assuming White himself had actually ever taken up residence himself.) White admitted he'd spent a number of nights away, and that his family did not live with him. He now said his wife had taken objection to the Chairmakers and refused to come and live there, and this was in fact the real reason he wanted to give the place up. 

The town was awash with rumour that the Chairmakers might finally be breathing its last. But the brewery Fullers would not let that happen just yet. They found a man who they thought the authorities could not object to in experienced landlord and Marlow man, James Edwards of Trinity Court. (Aka Trinity Place) He was able to call several people to attest to his good character, so at last the Chairmakers had an acceptable custodian. But if the authorities breathed a sigh of relief at this, it was premature. Because just 2 years later, James Edwards was on the move again, to the Verney Arms elsewhere in Dean Street. In fact James moved around premises fairly often as a sort of "fixer" and temporary safe pair of hands for the brewery. You will find him listed under many pubs in our landlord listings.

 This latest move was not quite to the liking of James though. The Chairmakers lease had been sold by Fuller's to Henley brewery Holmes and Harper and James had been given notice by the former. Holmes & Harper asked him to stay on as manager on a temporary basis once his notice period was up, for £1 a week. This was because, surprise surprise, they did not have someone immediately available to take over. When they did, James demanded his full notice again. The brewers disputed the need for this, tried to get him ejected and were not immediately successful. Ambrose Frith eventually took over the Chairmaker's Arms.

A CRIME AGAINST YOUNG EDITH

In 1904, the pub was the scene of a crime that gives a window into life in the area at the time. Eleven year old Edith Hillsdon (in some reports Hillsden) of Dean Street was sent by her father Joseph to sell a bag of walnuts. In doing so she called at the Chairmaker Arms. Walnut trees grew at a number of locations around town and there have been many many convictions of those allegedly trespassing to gather them, or indeed steal them. There's no suggestion Edith had got hers in any underhand way, but the crop had more value relatively speaking than would be obvious to us now. On entering the pub, Edith put the bag of walnuts down on a table and turned away for a moment to speak to the landlord. Turning back round she found them missing. A tearful Edith had then to explain to her father what had happened. A witness saw her receiving a beating for the loss. Edith managed to tell her father that she believed a drinker in the pub, William Collins, had been the one to take her bag. A furious and apparently drunk Joseph went into the Chairmakers and collared Collins, throwing him to the floor and pinning him to the ground. A passing constable heard the furore and rushed in. He conducted a search and (acting on a tip off according to some) found the bag, with just one nut in it, hidden amongst timber in the yard. Collins denied wrong doing, but was charged. He later claimed to have legitimately bought the walnuts but he could not say from whom. He was fined 10s for the offence, as it was not his first conviction. 

LANDLORD LISTING-

1878- pub to let (September 14th Reading Mercury advert). Doing good trade it was said and able to sell spirits. "Chairmakers Arms Inn". A Fullers Brewery of Maidenhead pub. A Mr Cooke applied to the magistrates for the licence later that year but was refused as he could not offer sufficient testimonials as to his character.

1880 - 1.) William Holford who left the pub in March 2.) John Treadwell. He was sent to the pub by Fullers brewery several days before the Magistrates' licensing meeting could officially grant the licence to him. It was understood that though the licence was going to be in John's name, his son Frederick would run the business on a day to day basis, and both would live on the premises. The brewery and the Treadwell's thought that the magistrates would not mind a slight gap between the Treadwell's arriving and getting their alcohol licence. However an undercover police inspector charged Frederick for selling beer without a license within minutes of the pair opening the premises, which resulted in Frederick being fined 3 shillings - he was the one behind the bar. Nevertheless John was allowed to take on the licence officially. He lasted 6 months at the pub 3.) Thomas Miles.

1881 - 1). Thomas Miles 2.) John Hodgkins (alt. Hodgeskins)

1884 - John Hodgkins (proposed transfer to John Windsor falls through. For more on John Windsor see the Bricklayers Arms landlords listing) to Neighbour Wilcox then to Thomas White, (then unsuccessful attempt to transfer to A. Neighbour), then to James Edwards. See above for explanation.

1887 - James Edwards  2. Ambrose Frith.

1888 - 1. James "Jim" Stonor 2. James Millett.

1889 - 1.William Brown. 2. Alfred Lee.

1891 - Alfred Lee.

1893 - Alfred Lee -transfers premises to William Henry Taylor (latter had been granted holdover previous year).

1894 - WHF Taylor/William Taylor 2. William Herniman.

1895 -William Hernaman qv. Proposed transfer of licence back to Alfred Lee refused. Alfred would later run a grocery shop and dairy in Dean Street.

1896 - William Oliver Hernaman 2. James Cox.

1897 - Fred Herniman/Hermanean (authorities don't seem to know what spelling to fix on!) James Edward gets a holdover for the premises late this year, a second stint. See above.  He is the usual choice to temporarily take charge of a premises in Marlow when a landlord leaves until a permanent choice is made. As such he's served behind the bar in a large no of Marlow's pubs. 

1898 -  James Stroud.

1903 - James Stroud.

1906 - is reported to be shut up for a few weeks. James Stroud has left and a holdover was granted to James Henry Belchar. 

1907 - James Belcher* Fully licenced. 

1911 - James Belcher. Moved to the Carrier's Arms, Wycombe Road. More here.

1913 - Closed Permanently? Yet 1915 trade directory gives Mrs Belcher as landlady. It is common for these books to contain out of date information however.

* For more on James Belcher, see Here.

Researched by Charlotte and Kathryn, written by Kathryn.

For similar posts look under Pub Related menu here. And to find every mention of your ancestor here, use the A-Z Person Index in the top drop down menu. More Dean Street content can be found on the menu under "Specific Shops, Streets ...ETC".

SOURCES 

Numerous adverts, licence hearing reports, premises details, and crime reports and:

Maidenhead Advertiser,19 March, 1st October 1884, held at the British Library Archive and accessed via the BNA. 

Bucks Herald, 09 February, 22 March 1884, as above. 

Bucks Free Press 21st March 1884 Bucks Free Press Archives.

South Bucks Standard 14th October 1892, 06 January 1893 , 04 November 1904, as above. 

Kathryn's landlord listing index and Charlotte's property ownership research. 

Kelly's Post Office Directory, 1903, 1907, 1920 Kellys Directories Ltd. 

The Marlow Turnpike Toll Gates

This post isn't about the history of the Turnpike trusts and roads but we will give a quick mention of the toll gates within or close to Marlow to answer a specific query. The Great Marlow and Stokenchurch Turnpike Trust was incorporated in 1791 to deal with the 8 and a half mile stretch of toll road between the two towns. (In its previous state it was described as in a  "very ruinous" condition and too narrow in places.) This was renewed every 21 years until 1851, when no application for renewal was made. The trustees had indicated that they wished to be relieved of their duties and that the position of the trust was no longer sustainable. The level of tolls collected had dropped significantly and so the income was no longer sufficient to pay for the maintenance of the road. The railway was blamed for this decline, rightly or wrongly. The two toll gates on this road were known as the Well End and Holly Gates. The former was in Marlow, as Well End at this time refered to Dean Street as well as the village near Little Marlow. Later the road is described as having "several" toll gates. There were also gates on the Hatfield turnpike road at Bisham, at the junction of Little Marlow and Wycombe Roads (Chapel End), and at Greenlands towards Henley and so on.*

The Well End/Dean Street gate location is uncertain. It is on at least one occasion called the Seymour Court gate. But in 1840 the newly built Bank of England public house in Dean Street, (near the junction with Queens Road) was described as "eligibly situated at entrance of the flourishing and improving market town of Marlow near the turnpike on the Oxford Rd". In this instance, they do not mean our modern Oxford Rd, then usually called Oxford Lane, but the road to Stokenchurch which was then in Oxfordshire. Might the gate have been about where Berwick Lane begins now? The toll house keeper of 1838 George Clark, was the first proprietor of the Bank of England of England. Perhaps he saw a way to a money-spinner, refreshments right near the toll gate!  In June 1831 Richard Webb had purchased the cottage "formerly occupied by Mr Oxlade, now used as the toll house at Well End" for £200. The property was sold by the trustees of Dr John Brown but the ownership of this toll house seems to have been contentious before this. The trustees had notified the Turnpike Trust of their ownership of the property in 1828/9 so perhaps the latter were subtenants? As it was successfully sold by the trustees a little later, their claim was presumably substantiated. 

The toll gate at Aggleton Green (Aggerton) was also in Marlow, this referring to old name for Dedmere Rd end area of what we call Station Rd. This is advertised as up to let (or rather the ability to collect tolls there was up for auction) along with the Marlow Toll Gate in 1780 and for a few years afterwards - the Marlow gate being the Wycombe / Little Marlow Road one. Why was the Aggleton gate there? It is not seemingly located on one of the major routes into town although Dedmere ("Dudmere" "Deadmere" ) was referred to as a highway. Later on complaints were sometimes made that people tried to avoid using Little Marlow Road, for example to escape the tollgate further on, or take a short cut. They used what was intended as service "roads"  for those farming the Marlow Fields (common fields). So perhaps the tollgate at Aggleton was to cut off this potential getaway. Presumably it then became uneconomic to maintain this secondary gate. It is probably the side gate referred to in a newspaper article of 1832 which says the side gate had been erected by the trustees of the Hatfield turnpike trust to prevent toll evasion. It had then been removed for 3 years.  In 1878, we are told the former toll house in Station Rd has gone and has been replaced by a house. The very first keeper there, Richard Guy,  was required to be present only during the daytime and so was not given a house as such but "sufficient lodgings" were found for him. He recieved 2s6d a week for his part time role. 

The leases of the Turnpike toll gates tended to be short, just for a year often, 3 years at most. Finding someone reliable for the job seems to have caused much angst. For example in 1787 the lease of Bisham toll gate was cancelled because the incumbent had failed to perform his duties. He could keep the profit of the tolls but had to meet the expense of collecting them, eg paying someone to do the physical collection if not himself. This time around the leasee would have to pay 1 months rent in advance. And in 1789, a notice for the auction of the Marlow toll gates (plural) states that the current occupiers need not reapply unless they had settled their rent arrears. William Croxon, who operated both the Holly and Well End Gates in 1849, was also sued for rents owed. The money that could be made by the toll keepers gradually declined but in 1830 it was stated that £110 profit had been made from the gates on the Marlow - Stokenchurch turnpike road, over the costs of collecting them. 

 In 1831, it was agreed to remove the gate at the Wycombe and Little Road junctions, also known as the Chapel End gate. It had been the subject of constant bickering. Inhabitants of Marlow technically had the right to pass through without payment, but many complained that this was not what was happening in reality. The gatekeeper had been summoned for taking illegal tolls because of this. On the other hand, charges of riding through the Chapel End, Bisham and Well End/Dean Street gate without paying when required were common. The proximity of the Bisham and Chapel End gates was also an issue as some people complained they were unfairly charged twice for travelling on the same Turnpike Trusts short stretch of road. The gates were little more than a mile apart they said, and was it fair to pay a toll every mile? Deciding who should pay only once, or not at all caused yet more acrimony with accusations of unequal treatment and regulations not followed. The first toll taker at Chapel End Gate was shoemaker William Robinson who recieved 7s a week plus a house. 

I am not sure when the Aggleton/Aggerton gate passed out of active use. The tollgate house gets mentioned in passing in 1835, it's noted that part of some waste ground near The Pound (just past Marlow Place in what we call Station Road) was going to be enclosed to turn it into a garden for "the turnpike house". It may of course have passed into domestic use at this time. There are records of several now demolished 2 room cottages in the area in property deeds, wills etc so perhaps one will be identified as the old toll house in time. In the same year, the trustees of the Reading and Hatfield Turnpike Trust conveyed to W J Atkinson land in "Church Street" [Chapel Street] Great Marlow, for £156. The Atkinsons were at the Rookery so possibly this relates to land where the toll house or gate stood. At least one toll keeper at this gate recieved an allowance in lieu of accomodation. 

The toll gate keepers probably had a thankless job. They were referred to as greedy even though they were not the ones setting the toll fees or conditions. Poor Christopher Bain, a former sergeant and keeper of the Bisham Gate in 1866, was incensed when a rumour was circulated that he had attempted to charge even the Queen when she had passed through. Some said he had closed the "bar" eg prevented her carriage passing, until his demands for the payment of a toll had been met. He wrote to the local papers to clear his name. But many residents must have muttered that this sounded just the sort of thing a toll keeper would do! 

*Hatfield Turnpike Rd - In 1771 the newly opened Reading to Hatfield Turnpike Rd was advertised as offering a connection to the Bath road at Reading, and to a branch of the "Great North Rd" at Hatfield. It went via Henley, Wycombe, Amersham, Watford, and St Albans. The Upper Crown and the Crown and Broad Arrow inns at Marlow were both recommended by the Trust as places to get good post chaises, able horses and accommodation. (The Crown and Broad Arrow was the Lower Crown in the High Street.) In 1831 the Bisham Gate on this road took tolls worth £360 and the Greenland Gate £225. An example of the penalty you could get for avoiding the tollgates was the 12s fine including costs inflicted on George Wood in 1846 for evading the Greenlands gate. In 1770 the trustees through their secretary Mr Allnutt advertised for tenders to erect 50 milestones along the route. Capital letters were to be 3" high and a quarter inch deep, with smaller letters in proportion. The final meeting of the trustees was held in the petty sessions room at the police court in January 1882 to wind up its affairs. 

Written and researched by Kathryn Day. 

Related posts:

Marlow stagecoach services here

Trouble at the Toll House - convict William Neighbour here

For all mentions of an individual here, see the A-Z person index in the top drop down menu. For other transport related posts, head for the General Marlow History listing here

SOURCES

Extract of the annual returns of the Great Marlow and Stokenchurch Turnpike Trust. Great Britain House of Commons. 1851, Vol 18

Conveyance of Well End Toll House, 1831. Commissioners appointed to direct and approve sales made by corporate bodies,  Oxford University Digital archive. 

Reading Mercury 19 March 1770, 17 May 1780, July 8 1771 British Library Archive,accessed via the BNA

Pigots Directory 1830, 1831,1842, 1844

Bucks Herald 3rd October 1840, as above

Bucks Chronicle and Bucks Gazette  24 November 1849, as above

Enrolment books, deposited with Clerk of the Peace, ref Q/RX 1835, Bucks Archives. 

Slaters Commercial Directory 1851

High Wycombe Directory and Handbook 1885

Dutton, Allen and Co Directory and Gazetteer 1869

Weekly News 30 September 1838, thanks to Riley Hammond. 

St James Chronicle  12 September 1839, digitised by Google. 

Reading Mercury 30 September 1830

Berkshire Chronicle May 20 1832

Journal of the House Of Commons August 1790 - December 1791, Great Britain House of Commons. 

Bucks Advertiser and Aylesbury News 11th April 1846, British Library Archive. 

Windsor and Eton Express 21 July 1832. As above. 

©Marlow Ancestors

Above two, marker to be found at Bisham, near the side turning for the church and school. 

This marker above can be found in Wycombe Road, Marlow. 

Other markers are just beyond Seymour Court Lane off Seymour Court Rd as you leave Marlow, and on the Henley Road near Hooks Corner. 

The Cherry Tree - landlords and timeline

*UPDATED BY CHARLOTTE May 2026*

The early few years of this pub / lodging house are currently being further investigated due to new information coming to light. It was listed in 1872 as a pub with a start date of 1830. However it is not named within the exhaustive 1833 parish assessment. The building on the site, is listed then as the premises of fruiterer James Bowles, compete with orchard and fruit sheds. The Bowles family would have a long association with the Cherry Tree and he may have had a licence to sell beer at this earlier time. The assessor does not list all the uses the building is put to, but does generally list a beer shop's name. A short distance away and also occupied by a Bowles is The Royal Oak, Dean Street and we initially wondered if there had been some confusion over the pictorial sign and the assessor meant the Cherry Tree. However the Royal Oak appears to be a little further along Dean Street in the direction of the Jolly Maltsters and in the  approximate location later occupied by the later Travellers Friend lodging house/beer shop. 

 There was also a well known Cherry Tree beer house at Flackwell Heath. The Marlow one was located in Dean Street, Spittal Street end. It has now been demolished. 

1830 - premises first mentioned as a lodging house with the name of the Cherry Tree. It had a large cherry tree in the yard. It functioned as a low doss house early on, famed amongst the poor and marginalised across a wide area as a place they could find welcome, but was more "respectable" later on.

[1837- possibly Mrs Fry. In that year she had a lodgings house close to the Jolly Maltsters which would fit this location, though there are other possibilities]

1841- Ann Bowles?

1851 -  Elizabeth Bowles? Or is it Ann?

1861 - William Price (and lodging house keeper) See also Travellers Friend, Dean Street for him.

1864 - 80 Emma Brown, widow (Formerly of The Mint and Jolly Maltsters)

1880 - Emma Brown died. Richard Bowles granted a holdover of the license.

1883 - John Finch who came from the  Bank of England, Dean Street.

1886 - Richard Bowles. Faces closure this year as it does not meet the minimum rateable value then required to be a licenced premises. It was decided to incorporate a small adjoining cottage into the Cherry Tree to nudge up the value. Several licensed premises were forced to do similar things this year. At first the licence renewal was delayed as it was noted the cottage had no interior communication with the pub and also was in the name of a separate tenant. The cottage exterior door was therefore bricked up and an interior communication door knocked through. 

1888 - Richard Bowles. 2. George Pusey.

1891 - George Pusey. May be the same man who was the pot-man at the George and Dragon in 1882. 2. Owen West.

1893 - Owen West transferred to Sidney East.

1896 - Sidney Herbert (alt. Sidney Frederick) East.

1897 - "Cherry Tree Inn" Sidney East.

1900 - Sidney East. 2. Frederick William Crump. "Spittal Square".

1901 - Frederick Crump (moved to Lane End to run The Old Armchair pub there 2. F Clark

1902 - Survived an attempt to close it down based on the number of other licensed premises nearby. In the end the licence was renewed on condition the rear access to cottages behind was stopped up, as it made the premises hard to police.  At this point trade is called good, and there are 5 bedrooms, one for family use, others are let out. Fred Clark. 

1903 - Fred. Clark

1907 Frederick Clark. A man hawks wool cardigans (a newish invention usually worn by men) in the taproom that year.

1909 - Fred Clark. His wife Sarah supervised the premises all day although his name was on licence - a common state of affairs. It had at this point it had 4 guest bedrooms, let to 7 lodgers between them, including one family who were long term residents there. The rooms not let to the family were occupied by single men in rooms of their own. The rest of the premises consisted of a bar, tap room, and two parlours plus the landlord's bedroom. Their trade of 104 barrels a year is described as  very good for a beer house e.g they are not fully licensed and can't sell spirits. Referred to Compensation authority for potential forced closure in 1909, but it survived this threat. 

1912- Sarah Clark landlady bought stolen tokens for deliveries of coal and coke from the nearby gasworks. She paid 3 pints of beer, a packet of "fags" and a shilling sixpence for them and sent one of her lodgers to redeem the voucher at the gasworks. She was not charged with any wrongdoing herself. Perhaps because she bought the vouchers from a gaswork's employee who was drinking in her pub. She had mentioned in conversation that she'd need some coke from his workplace soon and he told her she could buy the voucher from him. The amount paid for the items may have been low enough to warrant suspicion in a more thoughtful buyer but payment wholly or partly in goods rather than cash to businesses was not uncommon for poorer customers. It seems vouchers were bought ahead of time for a certain weight of coal or coke plus delivery if required and these vouchers were presented at the gasworks when the coal or coke was wanted. The vouchers should have been put away in a box as used and redeemed but had been taken away by an employee. We are not quite sure why customers could not just pay for the coal at the gasworks when they wanted it or on receipt of invoice. They may have been vouchers intended for one of the charities that distributed them to the poor. 

1918- T J Willis /Thomas Janes Willis. Also a painter.

1919 Premises altered and repaired .

1928 ; Thomas James Willis. Pub threatened with forced closure by the authorities yet again. Thomas was then selling 2 barrels of beer a week plus bottled beer and mineral waters and did a good trade in tobacco he insisted. Pub survives until... 

Closure agreed 1931, finalised 1932. Last landlord - William George Marshall.  At this time it was described as having a nice exterior (or as one in favour of its closure put it, a "somewhat pretentious" one) but the interior made it the "most inconvenient, darkest, dingiest, and least comfortable house." At this point only one room was in use by the public and this was divided to form the bar and tap room. It was also noted the house did a good "working class trade" which had actually increased significantly in recent years. No doubt the constant threats of closure had caused the landlords to restrict their investment in the property.  But it is sad that a historic pub with a landmark green tiled exterior and a good and increasing trade was seemingly chosen for closure because the licensing and compensation committees didn't find the interior to their taste. Of course there were many other licenced premises very close by which was also a factor. 

Immediately after this closure the Cherry Tree housed the council's winter soup kitchen. It was a time of high unemployment in Marlow and was no doubt much appreciated. 

This post is updated as new information emerges. All listings are as noted in original sources, including alternative spellings. 

The site of the Cherry Tree pub, now demolished. 

Additional research by Charlotte Day.

Related Posts:

There are posts on this blog about individual families associated with certain pubs, as well as on individual pubs themselves so have a look at the Pub Related index here  & don't forget the Person Index for all mentions of someone on this blog. Find it on the top drop down menu. 

Posts about life in Dean Street and neighbouring streets here

More beer sellers than bakers -Temperance in Marlow here

Lists of posts about everyday life in old Great Marlow here

SOURCES

1853, 1863 Mussons and Cravens Commercial Directory from University of Leicester Archives.

Kelly's Post Office Directory - 1859, 1864, 1869, 1877,1883, 1915,1920. By Kelly's Directories Limited.

1833 Parish Assessment. Original record held by my family and transcribed by Charlotte Day.

1872 Beer House Listings, Old Bucks County Council Archives

Pigots Directory 1844

Census 1841,1861,1871,1881,1891 transcribed from microfilm by Jane Pullinger.

Bucks Herald 17 July 1841, 9th August 1873, 22 May 1902 - held at British Library and accessed via the BNA March 2021.

Bucks Advertiser and Aylesbury News 14 July 1860, as above

Reading Mercury -24 April 1847, 10 November 1855, 29 November 1890, as above

South Bucks Standard July 14 1876, 20 September 1899, June 10 1904, December 25 1908, March 25th 1909 as above. 

Windsor & Eton Express January 25 1868, January 9th 1909 as above

South Bucks Free Press July 14 1860, July 24 1891 as above

Maidenhead Advertiser September 4 1889, as above

Report of the Compensation Committee, 1931. 

Bucks Free Press 2nd March 1928, Wycombe library. 

©Marlow Ancestors. 

The Mint, Dean Street Great Marlow

 Updated by Charlotte Feb 2026

The Mint was also a lodging house.

Timeline:

1850- License first granted [Old Bucks County Council Archives]. However it occupied the site of the former Elephant and Castle beer house which was there by 1833.

1851 William Brown.

1853 - William Brown. Fined 10s for opening during illegal hours this year. 

1861- Emma Brown landlady. Lodgers include grocer Thomas Davis and his wife Emma. 

1862- Pub described as having 4 bedrooms and 4 attics, a cellar, shop as well as the taproom and parlour plus out the back a yard, garden, water pump with "good water" and wood house.* It is in "a populous and much frequented neighbourhood". Emma Brown, widow is still the landlady. She was born Emma Clark in Marlow 1811 daughter of Richard Clarke of the Jolly Maltsters Dean Street. She was the widow of Thomas Bowles, with whom she had run the Jolly Maltsters across the road in Dean Street, and William Brown. By 1872 she had transferred to the nearby Cherry Tree pub and lodging house also in Dean Street. She died 1880. Mr Croxon had the lease until Lady Day 1865, and in theory had underlet it to William Weller (presumably of the brewery) but Emma Brown is indisputably the  licensee still. Emma's daughter Elizabeth later spent some 25 years at The Plough, married to the landlord there. 

1864- Emma Brown has moved to the Cherry Tree nearby in Dean Street.

1871- Thomas Bowles, landlord. Son of Emma Brown above. He had moved to  the Jolly Maltsters also in Dean Street by 1872 but returned to the Mint by the 1881 census. Wife Sarah. 

1872- Thomas Bowles who left to go to the Jolly Maltsters 2. James Edwards (James went to many many pubs as temporary landlord to keep things going while permanent replacement for previous landlord was found).

1873- William Price landlord, taking over from William P Edwards who took over the licence briefly from James Edwards. In the same year Charles Bowles fined for being in the beer house during illegal hours.

1881- Thomas Bowles back as landlord if not before. 

1891- Thomas Stroud hauled to court after being found "drunk and notorious" in Dean Street 1891 after popping into the Mint for a drink or twelve. Thomas Bowles still landlord.

1905 - Thomas Bowles retired. It was said he had conducted business there for nearly half a century (ignoring his earlier brief departure) and done so in an "exemplary manner".

1905-8 Samuel Skinner landlord.

1908 John Wiltshire. Property described as having 8 bedrooms. These must have been very tiny.

1912 Charles Bye Tillion. Wife Alice Jane. Charles had previously been a poulterer and tripe dresser in Spittal Square Marlow. In 1914 his lodger John Mason, a horse and dog dealer, arrested on the premises for an unspecified offence. When he was searched he was found to have several dozen  letters in the right leg of his underpants (long ones of course in this era!) which incriminated him over a series of thefts of pedigree dogs. Jailed for 2 months or to pay a £10 fine instead. John had earlier that year escaped conviction for dog stealing at Reading on the grounds of insufficient evidence. The dog in question when brought into court dived into the witness box in joy at being reunited with his proper owner who was giving evidence there. John had lodged at the Mint for some months. 

1919- Forcibly closed down in a district wide suppression of beer house numbers. Last landlord : Charles B Tillion. Mrs Tillion went to the magistrates to appeal against the loss of her family home and business without success. She and her husband moved to The Horns, Chapel Street. 

* Advert South Bucks Free Press 18th July 1862. Copy held British Library and accessed via the BNA June 2020.

South Bucks Standard - 17 March 1905, as above

The Berkshire Chronicle, March 6, 1914. British Library Archives via the BNA.

Any census information: my transcription from microfilm images 

Marlow parish registers, transcription from original books by Jane Pullinger.

Related Posts:

There are posts on this blog about individual families associated with certain pubs, as well as on individual pubs themselves so have a look at the Pub Related index here  & don't forget the Person Index for all mentions of someone on this blog. Find it on the top drop down menu. 

Posts about life in Dean Street and neighbouring streets here

More beer sellers than bakers -Temperance in Marlow here

Lists of posts about everyday life in old Great Marlow here

©Marlow Ancestors. You are welcome to share and reproduce this information with credit to this blog and a link here.