Edwardian /WW1 Trinity Road Part One

 This was previously Gun Lane and at times during the Edwardian era was also referred to as "Trinity Lane".

A poor area with many homes consisting of just three rooms (two bedrooms and a kitchen come family room) and at least one having only two rooms. Piped water arrived here at the close of the 1800s but not before the only well for the residents had run dry. The road surface was not properly made up until near the end of the era. Most houses here were demolished long ago.

It is likely some residents have been missed due to the rapid tenant turnover in poorer streets. We will endeavour to add in anyone found to be missing as research opportunities permit. 

Odd numbered* properties were on the left as you came in from Dean Street. Numbers given as they were then=

1.) Richard Cook, born circa 1861, unmarried farm labourer. Richard seems to have lived in Trinity Road or in Trinity Place just off it all of his life. He was the son of Richard and Keziah Cook.

3.) In 1907 Mrs Price. Then carter Robert Bowles and his lodgers the Hall family headed by laundress Mrs Hall. After that Bertie (agricultural labourer bn circa 1885) and Jane (bn circa 1883) Bryant and their children. 

Mrs Price was PERHAPS Clara Price who lived at an unknown number in Trinity Road in 1901 with her husband Francis, a vegetable hawker, and their children. However she wasn't a widow at this point so the 1907 Town Guide wouldn't usually list her as the head of household, and the guide says Francis is in Dean Street. You would expect Clara to be with him there but this couple did go on to separate in later years so PERHAPS this is evidence of an earlier separation that didn't last. They were together in Dean Street in 1911. The couple's son Nathan died at Trinity Road aged 7 months in 1895. They had a daughter called Freedom!

A Wesley Hall, presumably of the above Hall family was in 1912 fined for swearing in his home in Trinity Road for two whole hours! It was a risky business raising your voice in Trinity Road, or swearing with the window open given the fact that the Police Station was in the same street. Prosecutions for swearing so that it could be heard outside were very common in Edwardian and Victorian Marlow. Trinity Road was a major hotspot for such offences. You definitely needed to stop up your ears if you went by.

The Bryant's two month old baby daughter Rosamond suffocated while sharing her parents bed in 1913. The potential dangers of co-sleeping were understood at this time but the benefits in most people's eyes outweighed them and it was a very common practice. A verdict of death by misadventure was recorded.

Jane Bryant was the daughter of Joseph and Charlotte Budd who will feature in the second part of my Edwardian residents of Trinity Road post as they lived on the other side of the street. Her baby daughter Rosamond was named after her sister.

5.) W Aldridge. Then uncertain others. Then Rose and George Jones and their children. This couple came to Marlow from Wooburn between 1912 and 1914. At Wooburn George (bn circa 1879) had been working at the board mills as well as assisting at times in a coal business. He admitted stealing a small piece of coal from that business and was bound over as a result. It is possible that this precipitated the family's move to Marlow. He was a private in the Royal Berkshires when he was injured in 1914 and was evacuated to an English hospital. Still resident 1915 however in the next few years the couple separated and only Rose (nee Harmsworth) and the children remained at no 5.

 7.) A Winkworth then labourer James Bowles. The latter was born circa 1855 and continued to live here for many years.

9.)William Beaver a domestic gardener /labourer, born circa 1852-54 but has a variable birthdate. Moved in to number 9 late 1901 or very early 1902. Continued to live in this tiny cottage for many years. He lived alone as he had separated from his wife Rachel (nee Stacey). In 1902 he took out an ad in the paper warning traders in the town he would no longer be responsible for any bills she ran up. They were already living apart at the time of the census the previous year. Rachel had taken the children and gone to live in High Wycombe. William was the uncle of Richard Cook, above. That is, he was the brother of Richard's mother Keziah who was born a Cook. 

11.)Rapid turnover of tenants. Charles Higgins and his wife Esther, Miss Hunt, then laundress Selina Austin (who gives her address on the 1911 census as no 6 but she can't live there as it was certainly the home of someone else at that time and her censused neighbors show her to be in fact in no 11. See the note far below about Marlow's atrocious street numbering record).

Charles Higgins was born in the early 1840s Bucks and grew up in Skirmett. He was a labourer. Esther's birthdate wanders on censuses. They moved to Trinity Road from Hayes Place Marlow between 1901 and 1907. They also lived up at Marlow Common and out at Burroughs Grove for a time. While at the latter Esther was called to give evidence at the inquest into the death of a newborn baby. The mother of the child could not afford even the cheapest midwife. These typically attended not only the birth but visited washed and dressed the newborn child for the next day or few days. When Esther heard about the mother's situation she offered to help in any way she could and said to send word to her when she was needed to attend. Unfortunately Esther fell ill at the crucial time and the mother decided she could not fairly call on her. Instead she gave birth without assistance and passed out towards the end. The child died within minutes of being born for want of attention. Another woman fetched by one of the mother's children, saw that the mother was unwell immediately after the birth but did not check on the child or stay with them because she had supper to prepare. She did return 45 minutes later but found the child dead. The coroner's jury were not impressed by her actions.

As a young man Charles Higgins spent a short time in jail for failing to pay the fine levied on in for assaulting a man helping to clear a Skirmett pub of some disorderly customers.

Selina Austin moved to Marlow some time between 1908 and 1909. She lived in Trinity Road with her children / step children. Selina was born circa 1868, the daughter of Richard and Ruth Jewell of Turville. As a young woman she worked as a servant in Henley and got into trouble for obtaining a silk blouse under false pretences. As a first time offender she was bound over rather than jailed. She married her recently widowed husband Thomas Austin in 1901. Within a matter of weeks he had deserted her and his children so Selina had to ask for poor relief. Though he returned to her he deserted again in 1908. At this point he was a rag and bone man. She wished for a separation order but he promised to return. Shortly afterwards she moved to Marlow, seemingly without him but taking her children and step children.

In 1909 her stepson Henry Austin age 15, of "weak intellect" was convicted of stealing 6d from her. She had sent him to pay for certain goods she had requested but he instead spent it on toffee and having fun in Cookham. This offence saw him ordered to a reformatory school. Soon after his return he was arrested for begging for food and jailed for 14 days. The local police inspector had found him a job but said the young man was "idle" and ended up in the workhouse, from which he stole clothes. In 1914 he was jailed again for stealing sacks from a barn.

Selina moved to Dean Street, probably by 1915, and then later went to Berwick Road.

13.) William Collins or Colyer, a council employed road scavenger and his wife Florence for most of the era followed by Henry and Emily Nash and their children. The Nash family moved here from Chapel Street. Henry was a carpenter born circa 1864. Emily was born circa 1860. Towards the end of the era Henry as a widower became the lodger here rather than the tenant and the household head was Henrietta Bidmead (nee Rockell, widow of William Henry Bidmead). Henrietta was the niece of John Lovegrove and she had previously lived with him on the opposite side of the street and therefore both these residents feature mostly in Part Two of this Edwardian Trinity Road post. Later Henry Nash moved to number 22 Trinity Road to live with his then adult and married son Reginald. 

15.) A brick and timber semi detached house with some stucco. Two bedrooms. Initially the home of John Boot (bn circa 1855), beater at the paper mills and his wife Harriett (born circa 1859), their son also called John plus Harriett's widowed sister Mary Ann Francis. The Boots were very long standing residents of Trinity Road. They paid 3 shillings 6d a week rent in 1905. Their son John became a postman.

After the Boots left Mr and Mrs Harry Bowles made it their home. Harry was already a soldier in the Royal Berkshires before the First World War and then saw active war service before his capture and retention in a German POW camp in 1917. He was held in Westphalia.

Police Station and Court (17-19) - the Sergeant and his family typically lived in. Police officers will form separate posts on the blog so are not included here. Buildings stand but in different use.

Holy Trinity Church

21.) Trinity Cottages Brick, Flint and tile two up, two down home attached to number 23. Alice Player, then Mr Smith (not the Eli Smith who appears in Part Two of this post) who was followed sometime between 1905 and 1907 by Samuel Todd, a carter born circa 1880, his wife Mary born circa 1878 and their children.

This cottage still stands.

23.) Trinity Cottages . A two up two down brick, flint, and tile cottage. James (bn circa 1859) and Annie Mitchell (bn circa 1868) with their children occupied the cottage at the start of the era along with the teenage Florence Cheetham who was cousin to James. The Mitchells, who paid 3 shillings a week rent in 1905, Were followed by  A Hickman, then Eliza Atkins and her husband James Atkins a brewer's labourer. Both the Atkins were originally of Stokenchurch. They moved into this particular house between 1905 and 1907. In 1901 they lived in Chapel Street, Marlow. Eliza was born circa 1853 and James circa 1846. 

This cottage still stands.

Even numbered properties will be in Part Two along with some Edwardian Trinity Road Residents that can't be certainly placed in any particular house number.

*Note= Marlow was beyond terrible at organizing street numbering, displaying house numbers, or making sure everyone knew what number they lived at. Some people refused to acknowledge the fact that their home had been officially renumbered and carried on using the old number. Others don't ever seem to have understood what their house's number was even after it was officially given one. Some people without moving house would give a different number for their home each different time they were asked, based presumably on guesswork. We often have to use multiple sources to repopulate an Edwardian street in this town reliably.

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

Similar Posts 

Victorian residents of Trinity Cottages Jeremiah and Emma Harding here

General earlier history of Trinity Road here

Edwardian St Peter Street here.

Edwardian Cambridge Place here

Edwardian Spittal Street and Spittal Square Part One here and Part Two here

Edwardian wedding gifts in Marlow here

Some Sources=

Marlow Town Guide and Almanack 1907 and 1915 editions. Marlow Printing Company.

South Bucks Standard 24th July 1913, South Bucks Standard 18th April 1912, . Reading Mercury 24th November 1914. South Bucks Standard 12th November 1909. All British Library Archives via the BNA.

South Bucks Standard February 7th 1902. Directly from the British Library.

Maidenhead Advertiser 17th October 1888. Baylis Media Archives.

Williams estate sale papers, copy kindly given by Adam Baxter of the Marlow Society.

Rent receipt from Jane Pullinger.

Excerpt Henley advertiser 26th June 1897.

GRO marriage Index, GRO online.

https://www.rootspoint.com/record/1881-UK-Census/Slian-Jewell-1869-Turville-Buckinghamshire-Turville/45eac361-6400-40dd-968a-5910b9edb3fd/l

https://www.rootspoint.com/record/1901-UK-Census/James-Atkins-1846-Stokenchurch-Buckinghamshire-Marlow-Urban/50235109-fac7-40e6-ae41-0874082aee1d/

https://www.rootspoint.com/record/1901-UK-Census/John-W-Boot-1859-High-Wycombe-Buckinghamshire-Marlow-Urban/d4b375a0-a0ad-44f9-842a-51474bcabaea/

Other 1901 census information from the transcription from microfilm by Jane Pullinger.

"England and Wales, Census, 1891", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:4GGX-Z3Z : Thu Jan 16 07:18:41 UTC 2025), Entry for William Beaver and Rachel Beaver, 1891.

"England and Wales, Census, 1901", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X9YY-186 : Thu Feb 13 03:33:37 UTC 2025), Entry for Henry Lunnon, Robert Lunnon, Rachel Beaver 31 Mar 1901.

Edwardian St Peter Street / St Peter's Street

 Marlow St Peter /St Peter's Street residents in the Edwardian era (taking the popular definition for the era as extending 1901-1914). Some earlier and later incidents in the lives of those mentioned are also given to give a rounder picture.

EDWARDIAN PROPERTY NUMBERS (used here) ARE NOT NECESSARILY THE SAME AS THOSE OF TODAY. Some of these properties no longer exist. A few people may be missing here, we will work to get them added. 

Odd numbered properties=

The Old Parsonage - Mrs Fanny Havell  Morgan, a widow with her unmarried adult children Alice and William James. William was the manager of the Morgan family draper's shop in the High Street / Market Square. More on this long standing business and William here . By 1915 Mr H L Slocock was the resident.

The Deanery - Heneage Legge, a retired unmarried army colonel from 1907 to 1911. Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds 1906+ and former Conservative M.P for St George's Hanover Square constituency in London. One of the many Vice-Presidents of Marlow Regatta. He gave a speech to the local schoolchildren as part of the Empire Day celebrations in 1909 in which he told them that within the British Empire there lived a total population 90 thousand times greater than that of Marlow. All of the children present should work for the Empire and pray for the King he said. He then warned the little boy's amongst them that they might have to fight to defend the Empire one day and they should be prepared to die as a result. Way to go top of the list of people not to invite to a children's party, Heneage. You can see a photo of him on the National Portrait Gallery website here. Heneage died November 1911. The Deanery seems to have been empty for a little while afterwards.

Catholic Church. Exterior restored in 1904. Interior redecorated 1910.

Catholic Mixed School (infants) This was considered upon official inspection in 1910 to be poorly lit and with too few toilets. Grace Crowther of the Convent School (see below) also supervised this school which had around 90 pupils. Unlike the Convent  School this was not a private school.

No 7 Catholic Rectory  Canon Bernard Smith until his death in 1903 (full biography of him on the blog here ) then Father Squirrell, then from 1909 Father Arthur Tillet (bn c 1875-76). Arthur was the priest at Marlow for many years. He had been a student at St Mary's Roman Catholic College, Erdington, Warwickshire though he was of Norfolk origin. In 1912 he held a mass for those who died in the Titanic disaster.

Convent School (the Catholic Upper School) - supervised by Miss Grace Crowther who also lived on the premises. This school on this site was formerly ran by nuns hence the popular name but they left in the early 1880s. Back then it has been a mixed school for children of all classes but in Edwardian times it had been transformed into a school for girls. Grace had been the head since at least 1886. In 1889 money was stolen from her desk in a robbery by a hungry and homeless Henry Lacey, a boy whose father routinely locked him and his siblings out of their home and refused to let them back in. He wanted to buy himself some food. He was jailed for 2 weeks for the offence but no one seemed to do anything to punish the father, the real cause of the problem. The Convent upper school of the Edwardian era was described as a prestigious if small school for the children of rich Catholics. Four of her pupils aged between 12 and 18 boarded with Grace at the time of the 1901 census and she had two live in domestic servants. She later described herself as working for Buckinghamshire County Council as a teacher, at the Catholic mixed school above. Grace originated from Todmorden. Her date of birth wanders all about in the census but it would appear that it was correctly 1856 and that her parents Crossley and Mary and her siblings emigrated to the USA in 1873 on the Royal Mail Steamship the SS Algeria. Grace was already living away from home in 1871. Nevertheless to be willingly left behind in Britain without her parents or siblings at the age of just 17 must have been quite something. It certainly suggests a spirit of independence. 

Unplaced property somewhere around this point in the street later Victorian times to early 1900s - The boarding house of William and Mary Ann Betts (nee Hawks). Mary was the main head of the business and was assisted by her niece Sarah Godfrey who lived in. The Betts had previously operated the Queen public house in Quoiting Square. Following the death of her husband Mary took her niece and moved away from this street. Her "boarding house" seems to have consisted of two rooms rented out as one piece of accommodation. For many years  Charles Gibbons a commercial traveller for the wine and spirits trade had taken the rooms. He had once had a brewery in St Peter Street but the business collapsed. Though he moved to Maidenhead in around 1876/77 he kept up his friendship with Mary Ann and visited her whenever his business brought him to Marlow. Sadly in 1880 Charles was found dead with horrific injuries on the train line between Marlow and Maidenhead. It was supposed four different trains had gone over him while he lay on the track. Earlier in the day he had been visiting the Betts. Mary Ann Betts gave evidence at the inquest into his death, saying that both she and her niece had spoken to Charles and though he had some new money troubles he did not seem to be in low spirits. An open verdict was recorded.

The Nook - W Gibson then Charles Berry who remained into the 1920s. Not to be confused with Glade Nook in Glade Road.

River Cottage  mysterious. Seems to have been empty or non existent for most of the era but just afterwards in 1915 the home of Mrs Zuccani.

No. 13 William John Hutchins / Hutchings, sometimes known simply by his middle name and his wife Florence. Their ancient cottage consisted of just two rooms. William had worked as a boilersmith for Great Western Railways as well as formerly being the lock keeper at Temple Lock. Florence informally provided food for some of those who camped at the lock or passed through it in a boat. The campers, most of whom were from privileged backgrounds, often rented a spot on the lock island for the whole season and left their tents up whether they were there or not. Back in 1896 a teenage boy presented himself to Florence at the Lock Keeper's cottage and said he had been sent by one of the absent campers to keep an eye on his tent and he was to be kept and fed by her, bills to be sent to the camper at home in London. The boy disappeared after 3 days. Investigations revealed the camper had never seen him before in his life!

No. 15 Mary Butler born circa 1871, a self-employed needlewoman. Her niece Ethel Butler a teacher lived with her. She was appointed to the Infant School in St Peter Street in 1902. Their home was a very old cottage.  Ethel has retired and was still living at no 15 in the late 1930s.

No 17 a very old cottage of just three rooms at this point. Mrs Kezia(h) Corby, a widow, and her sister Caroline Smith. Earlier in the Edwardian era Kezia's children Charlie (bn circa 1873 a hotel barman) and Kate (bn circa 1886 an embroiderer) lived at home too. When Keziah died Caroline continued to live there alone. Both of these women were embroiderers too. Keziah had lived in St Peter's Street for some years with her husband Henry before his death.

No 19 Mrs Sparks early in the era. 

Fishermens Retreat former pub now small hotel ran by Mrs Elizabeth Hoddinott assisted by her daughter also called Elizabeth. Catered for boating and fishing parties. Was seen as a "high class" place of accommodation. More info here

Buckinghamshire Chair Company (behind)- detailed history of this business here.

Weir House let out as apartments 1903 by John Clark(e) Truss (see below). Had been split into apartments for at least 12 years at this point. Members of the Truss family were still hiring out apartments there in the late 1930s. In 1911 Eliza and Hugh Sutcliffe (a bookmaker) seem to have let the whole premises and sublet one or more rooms to a man described as their lodger, Stanley Smith. Jack Langley who was later a very successful bookmaker on his own account worked for him and became a St Peter Street resident himself when he bought Bridge House in 1913. See below. A Miss Lupton by the end of the Edwardian era was also a tenant of Weir House.

The Two Brewers pub Emily Sophia Truss then John Clarke Truss and his wife Henrietta. Like many pubs of the Edwardian era this one had a Slate Club. Pub was popular with early motoring visitors as it had a lock up garage.

Even numbered properties=

The Public Hall / Cinema combined. Both under the management of Horace Lacey of Station Road. A detailed post about the silent era film shows in the building is already on the blog here.

6-8 National School, Girls (built 1871) and Infants School (built 1868) front part of the site had  two houses for the head teachers. National School (Girls) =Miss Elizabeth Hunt head in 1907, previously head of the Infant's school on the same premises. She retired due to ill health in 1909 after 40 years of service to education at the school. In a presentation upon her leaving Elizabeth was given a gift of £35 collected by well wishers. A little more about Elizabeth can be found in this post. The girls' school had been expanded with two new classrooms and additional cloakrooms during the Edwardian era but was still considered cramped. After Elizabeth left she was replaced as head teacher by Mrs Mary Collins. As Mary lived with her husband Henry /Harry in Chapel Street the live in accommodation due to her within the school premises (numbered no 6 St Peter Street) was  instead let out to William and Annie (nee Jesty) Alloway. William was a house painter. / Infants School (built 1868) whose head was Victor Kibblewhite in 1907. In 1905 he became the Secretary of the Marlow Literary and Scientific Institute. He was also a member of the Rifle and Cricket clubs in the town. Victor was later a town councillor. The school heads usually resided on the premises in St Peter Street and Victor, his wife Ella and their children were no different (their living portion was officially no 8 St Peter Street).  When the new Boys' C of E school opened in Trinity Road he transferred there and the family made a new home at St Ronans Claremont Gardens. During the First World War Victor served on the town Food Control Committee. 

Dial House- Mrs Winter and Selina White, at end of era Mrs Ward. I have a post on the blog already about the Winter family of Dial House see here.

Dial Cottage - ?

The Old Malt House Mrs Emma Hoare of next door Bridge House bought this property in 1897 for £1600 from the executors of Mrs Greenwood. It was used as a summer home by some of her children. Rear Admiral Sir Sydney Marow Eardley Wilmot (bn 1847) made the property his home from circa 1909 and remained there till at least the early 1920s with his wife Grace nee Hoare daughter of Emma Hoare above. The property may have in fact been Grace's inheritance from her mother. Sydney was a twice published novelist and the author of two naval history books. One of his novels The Battle Of The North Sea was written during the time he was officially a resident of Marlow however he and Grace often travelled abroad so I can't guarantee that he actually sat down and wrote any pages in Marlow. He was knighted in 1909 for his Naval services. In an accidental explosion during a training exercise he had lost one of his hands.

Bridge House - Mrs Emma Hoare, widow of Thomas Rolls Hoare who had died in 1892. House put up for sale by auction in 1909 following her death aged 86 at her London house. Bridge House was described then as a Jacobean style home with 15 bedrooms, 3 reception rooms, a boat house, summer house and tennis court. Emma had apparently lived in Hastings and London jointly prior to moving to Marlow but she had visited the town as a regular summer guest before the move. She bought Bridge House in 1898 and if she was away on her summer holidays let out it out to tourists for the river season. She found the garden prone to flooding and her home to have drainage issues so soon after moving in asked the council to improve the drainage and provide a curbed pavement for St Peter Street down both sides. She offered to demolish the part of her stables that jutted 8 feet into the road to enable this. The council accepted her offer but did not end up kerbing the whole street as she had asked. The was the cause of an inordinate amount of discussion and trouble. 

After Mrs Hoare, Mrs Stephenson Smith briefly kept Bridge House as her summer holiday home. She was robbed while the house was shut up. The teenage thief got away with her fur lined coat, a pearl cross, an ornamental dagger and various other items. Not all those pieces of property were successfully recovered.

In 1913 Bridge House was bought by John "Jack" Langley, the chairman of Marlow Urban District Council. See here for a biography of John and Jack Langley. See above also. 

Sources=

Regatta Programme 1911.

Marlow Directory and Almanack 1891,  1907 and 1915 editions by Marlow Printing Company.

Kelly's Post Office Directory of Bucks etc 1895, 1911, 1915 editions.

1901 census of England and Wales, transcribed from microfilm, National Archives by Charlotte Day or Jane Pullinger except 1901 Erdington Warwickshire which was https://www.rootspoint.com/search/?CollectionKey=UK1901&FirstName=Arthur&MiddleName=&LastName=&BirthPlace=&LivedIn=Warwickshire+erdington+court&BirthYear=&MatchType=defaultex&submit=Search

South Bucks Standard June 1909 and 11th March 1898 from the British Library Archives, accessed via the BNA.

Maidenhead Advertiser clipping March 18th 1914.

Maidenhead Advertiser 12th June 1889, via Baylis Media Archives online.

Wikipedia article on Eardley-Wilmot https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sydney_Eardley-Wilmot

Advertising literature, personal letters.

 G.R.O death registrations from the G.R.O online except m of William Alloway which was 

"England and Wales, Marriage Registration Index, 1837-2005," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2D6G-DLL : 13 December 2014), William Thomas Alloway, 1909; from "England & Wales Marriages, 1837-2005," database, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : 2012); citing 1909, quarter 4, vol. 3A, p. 1554, Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England, General Register Office, Southport, England. 

Edwardian Spittal Street and Spittal Square Part Two

EVEN NUMBERED PROPERTIES SPITTAL STREET.

Note: Our Marlow ancestors were terrible at giving precise or consistent street addresses for themselves or others, knowing exactly what number they lived at (!), and the authorities made some confusing even bizarre property numbering decisions (don't get us started on Berwick Road... ). Some properties in Market Square at the bottom of Spittal Street were officially numbered as if in Spittal Street and would be described as being in Market Square or Spittal Street depending on the whim of the describer. They are included here. Properties in Spittal Square were also numbered as if in Spittal Street. Most of those were given even numbers. Throughout history Spittal Street and Chapel Street which run into one another were repeatedly confused. Never believe any property is definitely in one street rather than the other without multiple pieces of evidence!

***Edwardian building numbers are not necessarily those of the modern day*** Several of the properties mentioned below no longer exist.

In this post I follow the popular perception of the "Edwardian age" as extending 1901-1914. Some incidents in the earlier lives of the named residents are also included. Spittal Square addresses are very sloppy and reconstructing this street was tough.  If anyone has been missed we hope to remedy that as soon as possible.

2 - 4 George Dorsett's grocery shop. Really in Market Square but numbered as Spittal Street at this time. Bacon curer too. 

6 - 8 William Fisher's butcher's shop. Managed in a day to day basis by Frank Fisher from 1905 but William still in charge of the business overall. William was involved in an accident in 1910 when his horse drawn trap was in collision in the High Street with another vehicle and he was thrown out of it. William was much injured but fortunately had no broken bones. In the Edwardian era William supplied meat and groceries to the Union workhouse school in Bledlow Bucks which took children from Marlow and elsewhere. The quality of the meat he provided was questioned more than once. It has be said that the premises of William were considered a continuous serious health hazard by his Spittal Street neighbours and he was multiple times in court over sanitary breaches. The details are somewhat stomach churning and as you may have recently eaten we'll just draw a veil over the details. Like many butchers he kept some animals for slaughter - mostly pigs- out the back of his premises. In the Victorian era he had kept a stall at Marlow market too but it isn't clear whether he was still doing that in this era. By the end of the Edwardian age William no longer lived on the premises of his shop, but in Glade Road. His wife Elizabeth was nee Webb of the Webb of Field House Marlow family. William himself came from Aylesbury originally.

Premises on the edge of Market Square.

10  Sometimes given as Market Square but numbered as Spittal Street. Shop of Thomas "Tom" Rippington (bn 1879) fishmonger in 1907 and 1908. He also dealt in game and poultry. Smoked haddock a speciality! He was an assistant fishmonger on the 1901 census so must have come into his own business after that. Thomas is not to be confused with his dad Thomas Rippington of nearby Chapel Street who was not a fishmonger but a shorthand writer and marine store dealer. Tom and his wife Ruth moved to Great Missenden in late 1910 or 11 and his former Marlow premises were taken over by Nelson and Sons butchers. 

12 Sydney Smith's greengrocers. Members of this family continued the shop there for some years.

14 - 16 Bernal Harman chemist until his death in 1906 when his son Henry "Harry" Harman took over. A full biography of both Bernal and his son is already on the blog here. Long term chemist premises. 

18 William Smith, draper's shop. Wife Martha Jane ("Jane") born circa 1853 Maidenhead but William was a Londoner of origin. He was one of Marlow's volunteer firemen. Martha died after what was said to be a long and painful illness in 1908 at their home The Garth, Beaumont Rise. William continued to live at The Garth as a widower with his children Herbert and Dora. (Currently a greengrocer & sweet shop) 

Advert, 1905. 

20 Ironmongery ran by George Meakes until his death in 1903. Assisted by John Eddowes who then took over. A biographical post on these two is already on the blog here. Currently M&S food. 

22 - 24 Arthur Barnard's stores which were built at the very end of the Edwardian era. He already has a biography on the blog here where you will also find information about his two other shops. Prior to that three very small cottages stood on the site. Those properties were previously occupied by Thomas Andrews the hairdresser (wife Elizabeth), H Carter and the Steele family headed by William and Rosanna "Rose" Steele. William was a french polisher on his own account. His and Rosanna's son Sydney died of wounds he received while fighting in the First World War at Salonika. The Steele family previously lived at Bovingdon Green but had to leave when their thatched cottage burned to the ground. It was thought a spark from their fire of furze ignited the thatch. No one in the family was hurt and the family's possessions were saved. A lack of available water for the fire brigade and the fact the road from Marlow was so bad that the fire engine got stuck had contributed to the fire's destruction of their home. Using furze for fire would have been common at Bovingdon Green and Marlow Common as it could be gathered easily in the vicinity. Currently Marlow Bookshop. 

26 - 30 The Greyhound. For the Edwardian and other landlords of this historic  inn / hotel see here. (Demolished) 

32 Jacob's family home & store. Ralph Jacobs was a "marine store" dealer - that is a seller of secondhand items that would largely be of interest to those in trade or craft occupations (e.g carpentry tools or lead piping). They also traded in secondhand items a householder might use for gardening or home maintenance tasks. Examples of such items would be cloths  that could be used for cleaning, slop pails and garden tools. He later also operated as a rag and bone man and offered shoe repairs. His shop was at 32 but he also kept a storeroom for larger items in Duke's Place. His sons John and Ernest both helped in the business. Sadly Ernest was killed in action while fighting in the First World War. The mum in the family was Emily Margaret. This property no longer exists. In the first world war the Jacobs collected many items for the war effort. Demolished. 

34 Over the Edwardian period George Dean boot and shoe maker and Ellen White needlewoman both occupied this cottage at different times. This property no longer exists. The cottage was a very old one that had in Georgian and Victorian times been a grocer's shop. To read about the grocers who operated from no 34 in the 1800s see here (Eagle Family) or here (East and Harriman). The latter post contains some upsetting content. Demolished. 

36 - 38 a largish property divided up in several ways. Wiggington family premises for many years. Robert Wiggington the coal dealer with a sideline in timber dealing operated from here as apparently did George Aughton a timber dealer who had a sideline in coal. George was also later recorded as a greengrocer and haulage contractor. Robert Wiggington died unexpectedly while out on his coal van in 1915. The property incorporated a shop (officially 38) which was ran as a general shop in the Edwardian era by Miss Emma Glynn Jones the Wiggington's granddaughter and later by George Aughton's wife Charlotte. This property no longer exists in any way.

40 - by the 1920s incorporated into number 38. This property no longer exists. In 1915 just after our era R Hawkes.

42 -cottage considered unfit for human habitation in 1907, owned by a Mr Collins. Probably lived in then by Mr J Edwards. This property no longer exists. 

44 cottage considered unfit for human habitation in 1907, owned by a Mr Collins. Probably lived in then by Mrs Young. Must have been refurbished as in 1915 just after our era no 44 was lived in by Walter Tew. This property no longer exists.

46 The Cross Keys SPITTAL SQUARE properly. Historic landlords listing here

48 at the end of this era the home of John Baxter. In earlier Edwardian times it was George Baxter, "wardrobe dealer" (that was a second hand furniture dealer not just selling wardrobes) who lived here.  SPITTAL SQUARE. Note the Rippington's wardrobe dealers was at no 2 Chapel Street next to the Cross Keys. Due to the bizarreness of the street numbering no 48 Spittal Square was actually on the opposite side of the street from the Cross Keys at no 46 which from bare numbering you would think would be next to it.

50 the home of widow Mary Ann Walker embroiderer at the start of the Edwardian era. She lived there with her niece Miss Mary Ann Stockbridge born 1857, who was a maker of embroidered baby bibs for her aunt's business, and then following her own death on her own account. Both women were beneficiaries of the will of Mary Ann Walker's husband Henry (who ran the baby linen and bib manufacturing business with his wife) following his death of bronchitis in 1894. The family had occupied this property since at least the 1870s. The Walkers employed many women in the town as embroiderers. Henry had spent his youth in the army, where he rose to the rank of Sergeant, not an easy thing for an ordinary man to do in those days. During his time serving in India he was part of the force which seized the famed Koh I Noor diamond and fought against the Indian Mutiny. After he left the armed services in 1864 he returned to Marlow, married and set up the embroidery business with his wife. SPITTAL SQUARE.

52-54 bakery of Walter Harris (also confectioner) and then Mr W Clark. SPITTAL SQUARE.

56 Mrs Mary Holland seamstress, self-employed. SPITTAL SQUARE.

58  John Birdseye. Baker there since at least the early 1890s. Spittal Square. He was in the same block of 4 properties as Frank Harvey the chimney sweep see above, so was an even number. John was born circa 1831 in Chesham. His wife Eliza was of Marlow origin. She died in 1904 and so late in the era as a retired widower John went to live with his daughter Sarah and son in law James Gray (a grocer and rent collector) at the impressive house Thamesfield near the river. Back in 1897 when Queen Victoria's jubilee was being celebrated in Marlow John put on an unusual public display when he exhibited some bread and cakes which he had made for the 1887 Jubilee, 10 years previously still in very good condition! John as a younger man served as a parish constable. The graves of Eliza and John are on the blog here. Both were members of the Baptist Church in Marlow and helped to raise money for its Glade Road building. Their daughter Sarah was a Congregational Chapel member.

When John Birdseye retired Edward Harvey baker and confectioner (wife Alice nee Barnes) took over. Early in the Edwardian era John sold bread and beer in nearby Chapel Street. They lived York Road.  Harvey's bakers was in operation for many years and was fondly remembered by many people. This property no longer exists. SPITTAL SQUARE.

60 the home of the West family headed by couple Emma and Owen West. Late in the Edwardian era Emma lived here as a widow supporting herself by working as a charwoman. SPITTAL SQUARE .This property no longer exists.

62  Francis "Frank" and Annie Harvey. Frank was a chimney sweep. In a block of 4 properties in SPITTAL SQUARE not far from the corner with Chapel Street. This property no longer exists.

Unplaced people of Edwardian Spittal Street, may be on either the odds or evens side of street unless otherwise stated. By unplaced I mean not certainly placed, there is often conflicting information:

Samuel and Rose Higgs. Samuel was a boot maker.

Mr Price who had a shop here in 1905 in which a fire broke out.

Mr Ransom butcher?

Mrs Elizabeth Sexton dressmaker and furrier. Born circa 1848 in Dorking Surrey. A widow who lived with her daughters Eleanor and Winifred, sister Eliza Plumridge and a lodger. Elizabeth had moved to Marlow from Maidenhead. Initially she lived with her daughters in Oxford Road. Eleanor married into the Gurney family of Glory Farm, Penn. Before marriage she worked as a stationary shop assistant.

Annie Trash milliner late in the era. Even numbered side of the street.

And in Spittal Square unplaced people =

Mrs Atkins or Adkins. Near the corner of Chapel Street. Sometimes because of the property's corner position described as being in Chapel Street itself. 

John and Jane Bryant early in the Edwardian era. John was a shopkeeper.

M Fisher the greengrocer.

Charles and Emma Hawkes. Charles was employed as a shoe maker. 

Joseph Hawkins carpenter.

Tillion family. In the same block of four properties as Frank Harvey the chimney sweep so an even numbered property. Charles Tillion was a packer for a fisherman. See also The Horns, Chapel Street landlord listing. 

Researched and compiled by Charlotte Day. ©Marlow Ancestors. You are very welcome to use my research for family or local history purposes with credit to this blog. 

For selected sources see Spittal Street part one which deals with everyone who lived in odd numbered properties

1833 Parochial Assessment Great Marlow Spitalcrofts, Marlow Bottom etc

The next part of my gradual transcription of the original handwritten working notebooks used to compile this assessment. These faded notebooks are in the possession of my family, and also contain some pencilled in corrections from the later 1830s, though not in these parts, and related correspondence with some landowners etc.

This properties are all on the outer limits of the historic Great Marlow parish.

Transcription by Charlotte Day.

©Marlow Ancestors. Feel free to use this transcription with credit to this blog.

White Hill

Late Richard East, George Carr [not clear whether the late Richard and George had been joint occupiers or if George had recently replaced Richard]

Property Occupied:

Cottage

Annual worth of property:

£3

*****

Hill Green

William Ryder

Cottage and garden

£4

*****

Dirty Bottom [!] [Nr Marlow Bottom]

John Wing

Thomas Holmes

[Illegible property]

*****

Red Barn [Farm]

William Collins

New cottage and garden

£4

*****

William Hobbs

New cottage and garden

£4

*****

Booker Common

William Li... (Illegible)

Cottage and garden

£3 10 shillings

*****

Alfred Hawley

Cottage and garden

£3 10 shillings

*****

Charles Johnson

Cottage and garden

£3

*****

Widow Barlow

Cottage and garden

£3

*****

Spittle Croft [Aka Spittalcroft, Spitalcrofts etc]

John Stanmore

Cottage and garden

£3

*****

James Hawkes

Cottage and garden

£4

*****

George Brooker of Juniper Hill

Cottage and garden

£4

*****

Will Summary John Rolls Proved 1857

 John Rolls of Great Marlow, coal and timber merchant. Written 1854. Proved 1857. See codicil below too. I found this will quite hard to read. I have done my best but recommend you obtain your own copy from the National Archives if this will is particularly important to your family.

Wants just debts and funeral expenses paid.

John Rolls Hoare and Thomas Rolls Hoare sons of my sister Ann Hoare 1 shilling each to mark my ....e of their....

My brother and I occupy a freehold property at the foot of Marlow Bridge in the parish of Bisham Berkshire which formerly belonged to our father. It comprises grounds, warehouses, ....., a meadow and gardens bounded in the North by the River Thames, and in the East by the Compleat Angler's Inn and in the South partly by the road to the Compleat Angler's Inn and partly by the old road called Bisham Lane and in the West by Church Meadow or land belonging to ...Davenport Esq. This property is being used by the brothers in their joint business partnership as coal and timber merchants. This all to my brother's use for his life, him keeping the buildings in good repair. Afterwards estate to go to Reverend Green of Shepton M...w in Gloucestershire who was the son of Mary Green who used to live in Great Marlow and his heirs. If he has none then estate to Osmund Rolls Green another son of Mary Green. If Osmund has not disposed of the said property in his life or in a will and has no legal heirs then property to the eldest of my bothers or sisters then living.

Dial Cottage on the Causeway which is in the occupation of Frederick Berger under a lease assigned by me to Robert Collins is willed to "the said" John Green (the Revd?). If John has no heirs, and has not disposed of it in his lifetime or by a will then to Osmund Rolls Green and his heirs. If he too has no heirs and has not disposed of the property in his lifetime or by way of a will then property to the eldest then living brother or sister of mine.

£10 each to brothers Thomas, Charles and George Rolls. Thomas's is in addition to what he is left as a thank you for being an executor of the will.

Sisters Ann, wife of John Hoare, and Jane Rolls £10 each.

£10 to be equally distributed between the sons and daughters of my bargeman Thomas Sparkes late of the Barge Pole pub. [More on Thomas here]

Executors £10 each as thank you.

My residual estate to the said John Green with one moiety of it left to Osmund Rolls Green.

Executors brother Thomas, John Green as above, Osmund Rolls Green as above, Edward Mason of Thames Side Windsor, coal merchant.

Witnessed by MJ Rippingham Great Palson Street London and Charles Tompkins of 20 Colet Road, Commercial Road, East London.

CODICIL. WRITTEN 1855.

John Green my gold ring and the rest of my jewellery to Osmond Rolls Green.

The legacy given to the children of Thomas Sparkes to be divided equally between John and Osmond above.

Codicil witnessed by Ralph Spicer*, solicitor of Great Marlow, and William Weaver, clerk to Mr Spicer.

The will was proved by three executors only. Edward Mason had renounced his role as executor.

Transcribed and summarized here by Charlotte Day from the original will at the National Archives, Kew.

*biographical post on Ralph Spicer here

©Marlow Ancestors.

Jesse Collins Widow Research And Will

 Will of widow Jesse Collins of Great Marlow. Will written 1838, proved 1843.

Says she of sound mind and understanding.

Executor to pay any debts, funeral expenses and probate costs she has.

To the sons of her niece Mary Brown - Henry, James, Robert and  William £5 each.

To Mary Jane Blackwell and Sarah daughters of her niece Mary .... £5 each.

To Robert, Mary and Jesse [Jesse is female] children of her late nephew Robert Harper £5 each.

Jane, Rebecca, Robert and Stephen children of her nephew William Harper £5 each.

James, William, Rebecca, Robert and Jane children of her niece Jesse Bavin £5 each. And to Jesse Bavin herself £5 too plus a chest of drawers, brass warming pan, a ... pot and all her wearing apparel.

To Charlotte Carter, widow of her nephew Robert Carter £10 and to Charlotte's children Jane and Robert £5. 

To Robert son of her niece Mary Carter £10, a plain oak chest,a pair of blankets, a pair of sheets, one quilt.

To widow Elizabeth Walters of Little Marlow £5.

To widow Catherine Butler late Catherine Carr daughter of George Collins £5.

Her silver watch to William Collins son of John Collins. This watch was previously owned by that John Collins.

All residual property to Jesse Bavin daughter of her late sister Jane Carter [presumably the same Jesse Bavin niece of testator mentioned above].

Executor Robert Harper son of her nephew Robert Harper appointed executor.

Witnessed by Henry Beckett carpenter of Great Marlow and W.L Ward solicitor of Great Marlow.

Notes:

Jesse was born Jesse Harper. She married Robert Collins in 1789  when aged about 32. Robert was a publican whose precise premises are unknown. He died in 1826 aged 73. Jesse was one of the executors of his will and inherited half his possession with other relatives getting the rest. Jesse lived in a medium sized cottage with garden at Marlow Common in 1833.

Jesse Bavin was the wife of turner / chair maker and publican William Bavin. More on him here.

Will transcribed by Charlotte Day and then summarised here by her from a will held at the National Archives, Kew. Research also by Charlotte Day.

Bovingdon Green and Marlow Common Parochial Assessment 1833

 Updated August 2023, with additional research notes.

The next part of my gradual transcription of the original handwritten working notebooks used to compile this assessment along with related correspondence. These faded notebooks are in the possession of my family, and also contain some pencilled in corrections from the later 1830s, though not in this section. The assessment was compiled Autumn 1833 and was to be used to calculate tax rates for Marlow for the following year.

Transcribed by Charlotte Day.

©Marlow Ancestors. You are welcome to use this transcription with credit to this blog.

Bovingdon Green

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

Thomas Frith [still in Bovingdon Green 1838]

Richard Fletcher

Thomas Jones

*****

Ephraim House

House and yard 

£5

*****

William Davies

House, yard, garden and woodhouse 

£10

*****

Marlow Common

Each in cottage and garden with annual worth of £4 10 shillings:

John Swadling

Thomas Mead [Described as in Bovingdon Green 1838]

William Howard [see below for another man of this name]

James Winkworth

*****

Henry Higgins [a Mr Higgins, poor man, was threatened and burgled by two men who forced themselves into his cottage home at Marlow Common in 1840. This may well be the same Higgins as here. If so his cottage was on the edge of Wolmer Heath "some three or four hundred yards from the other cottages on the Common"].

Cottage and garden

£4

*****

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

John Rose

Jesse Collins [ Will coming up on the blog in the next few months]

*****

Joseph Keep

Cottage and garden

£3

*****

John Blackwell [he was a blacksmith]

House, shop [this would mean workshop], garden and orchard

£9

Piece of ground on the Common

10 shillings

*****

William Howard

House and garden

£6

*****

Edward Collins [more on him including will notes here]

The Royal Oak House [pub, actually in Bovingdon Green]

£9

*****

James Martin

Cottage and garden

£5

Note: a "Mrs Butler", probably Ann,  died at Marlow Common a few weeks before the assessment. She was perhaps the widow of the "Mr Butler" who died there in 1825. Mrs Butler may have lived in one of the households above, or it may have been that one of those households was one that has just moved in to Mrs Butler's property after her death.

For more posts on either place see here

To see more of the 1833 assessment for individual streets in Great Marlow see this index

All mentions of any individual on this blog can be found on the A-Z Person Index on the top menu. Thousands of people are mentioned.

1833 Parochial Assessment Lane End Part One

 As Lane End was part of the parish of Great Marlow in Buckinghamshire it is covered by my original 1833 parochial assessment notebooks for that parish, which are held by my family. These were the working notebooks used by the assessors to compile the local tax assessment for 1834. My notebooks also contain additions and corrections for several years afterwards and scrap related correspondence related to the assessment.

©Marlow Ancestors. Freely use quotes from this transcription for family or local history purposes if you credit this blog.

Any notes by me are in square brackets.

Corrections and amendments to the original notes seems to have been done in the notebook up to circa 1839 and will be noted in my transcription too if they occur in these parts of the assessment.

Charles Fletcher

Property occupied:

Crown Inn house, garden, "etc"

Annual value of property: £9 10 shillings

Also occupies:

Shoemaker's shop

£2

Small orchard

£1

Orchard by Marks 

£3

*****

William Jarvis

House and garden

£5

*****

William Collins

Cottage and garden

£4

Meeting House [note added in brackets afterwards "if rated"]

£7

*****

Jeremiah Almond

Cottage

£3

*****

William Catton

Yard, barn, shop, sheds and garden

£6

House and garden

£6

Orchard, stable and shed

£4

Small garden

10 shillings

*****

James Bird

Cottage and garden

£4 10 shillings

*****

Thomas Hackstraw

Cottage and garden [pencil note added later: " part of garden"].

£3 10 Shillings

*****

Thomas Marks

Beer shop house, yard, stable [pencil brackets later put around the word stable] and garden

£7

*****

?Ramsey [no first name, last hard to read could be Ramey, even Rancey. Later the name "Denham" added in pencil without Ramsey name being crossed out]

Cottage and garden

£3

*****

Joseph Lovegrove

House, yard, stable, carthouse, sheds and garden

£10

*****

Edward Tundall

House and garden

£5

*****

William Janes

House, yard and garden

£5

*****

William Lee

Cottage and garden

£3

*****

Widow Biggs

Cottage and garden

£3

*****

Thomas White

Cottage and garden

£4 10 shillings

******

Joseph Dean

Cottage and garden

£3

*****

Samuel Harris

Cottage and garden

£3

*****

Henry Gray

Cottage, garden and stable

£5

*****

Martha Bateman

Cottage and part of yard

£3

****

To be continued..

Look at Nearby Places on the menu for more Lane End content.

The Person Index lists every mention of any individual on this blog. Find it in the top drop down menu.

1820s Address Directory Great Marlow

 After exhaustive trawling of wills, property records, court cases, advertisements and more I have compiled a directory of addresses for Marlow residents in the 1820s. To find address references isn't easy. Nowhere near everyone will be included here of course but I will add any future finds as I wade through my mountains of research notebooks. House numbers were not used in this period. This is to supplement our recreated 1820s trade directory which is available Part One here  Part Two here

Many of these people have multiple mentions on this blog. See the A-Z Person Index to find every mention of anyone. Several thousand people are listed there!

This post does not cover Little Marlow or Lane End.

Beech Lodge

Wyndham family. 1823+. Biographical post about them here

Bovingdon Green

Joseph Pratt. Tenant of land. 1820.

Burford Farm, Marlow Bottom

Richard Webb. 1817-32. Also at Marlow Bottom Farm, see below.

Causeway

James Brooks. Baker. 1823+

William Lloyd. Roebuck. 1823+. A man of the same name was a butcher at the same time in an unknown location.

Robert White. Swan landlord. 1823.

Chapel Street

Thomas Archer. Running White Hart 1829 to post 1820s. Possibly 1827+. More here

James Bowles. Fruiterer.

John Collins. Tenant 1824.

John Coster. Watchmaker.

James Creswell /Cresswell. Baker 1823+

William Crouch. Corn merchant. 1822-25

Mary Fletcher. Running White Hart 1824 to at least 1829 More here

Henry Goldsmith. Attorney. 1823.

John Green wheelwright.

Joshua Meakes. Blacksmith. 1823.

Thomas Meakes. Blacksmith. 

John Mossenton. Cordwainer/ shoemaker. 1819-24. John was probably the "Jno" Mossenton who in 1814 witnessed this will.

Charles Plumridge. Bricklayer. 1823.

Church Passage

George Davis. Landlord Barge Pole.

William Sparkes. Landlord Black Boy 1823+

Court Garden

J.C Stroude. More here

Dean Street

...Blackall. Tenant 1826.

Ann Beaver. Tenant 1826.

Richard Clark. Landlord Jolly Masters. 

Ann Davis. Tenant 1826.

Martha Downer. Tenant 1826.

Zachariah East. Butcher. 1823-25.

Ambrose Frith. Tenant 1826.

John Glover. Lace merchant.

George Goldsmith. Plumber. 1823.

Mary Gray. Tenant 1826.

James Grove. Tenant of cottage there.

John Hackshaw. Harness maker. 

William Plumridge. Grocer 1823. (Probably also beer seller)

John Price. Tenant 1829.

William Sparks. Tenant 1826.

Gun Lane (now Trinity Road)

John Gunnell. Tenant 1826.

William Hoare. Landlord Three Horseshoes beerhouse 1827+

Handy Cross

James Ayres. (Ayris) Blacksmith 1827.

Harleyford House

John Beaver, servant there aged in his 90s.

Sir William Clayton. Owner.

High Street

Thomas William Allum. Bricklayer. 1823+

William Allum. Tailor 1821-23. 

Richard Aveling, grocer. Find out more about him here

Benjamin and Sarah Baines, he a confectioner 1822+. She died 1824. For more on him see here and here.

John Badger. Ironmonger. To at least 1825. In business the previous decade, unknown street address but likely the same.

Emily Blackbourne. Bookseller. 1823-24.

Thomas Burrell. Blacksmith. 1823. See here

Samuel Carter. Bootmaker.

William Cock. Bootmaker.

Theophilus and Sarah Clifford. Theophilus was a stonemason. 1823+. More here

George Davis. Landlord the Chequers.

John Goodman. Surgeon. 1823.

East and Harriman. Grocers. 1828 to post 1820s. A tragic pair. Both would go on to commit suicide in 1837. Said to have lived together 30 years on their deaths. More here

George and Mary Ellison. Alfred House, now known as Cromwell House. Pre 1820 to post 1820s. More here

Mr Flint. Tenant of a cottage. 1829.

Avis Gibbons. Lived with John and Charlotte Ralfs, see below. Had done so for years.

George Hammond. Tenant 1824.

Sarah Hatch. Baker. Before 1820 till 1840s. Her son William assisting later. The notorious William Hatch! More on him here

Francis Hewitt. Tenant of a cottage 1829.

Thomas Hewett. Tenant 1824. [A butcher of this name was in High Street 1832].

John Hone Esquire. Died 1823 aged 32. See also one in West Street below.

William Humphrey. Harness maker.

William Irving. Insurance Agent. 1824+

James MacLean, High Street. More on him and his wife here

William Mathews. Grocer and tea dealer. 1817 to post 1820s. Wife Ann. More  here

John Meadows. Draper. 1829 to 1839. More here

John Morris. Draper, and family. Pre 1820s to post 1820s. To see the site of his premises and more about the family see here

Thomas Jonathan Oxlade. Draper. Will 1822.

Charlotte and John Ralfs and children. John was a draper. 1824. He owned his property. This was West side of street. John died 1826. He was also an insurance agent.

John Rolls draper.

Misses Rolls. Running school in Brampton House. 1823. 

Rolls and Sons auctioneers. Pre 1820 to post 1820s. Also estate agents by 1829.

William Rose. Died at his residence High Street 1829. Aged 94. A William Rose was a cooper in the High Street earlier in the 1820s but this likely a younger man.

John Shaw. Surgeon.  1822. See his grave and will here

John Tonge. Bookseller. Selling up 1823.

Mr Wright. Attorney. 1822-29.

Frederick Wyatt. Coach proprietor. Tenant 1824. Began business 1820 but not sure if then in High Street. In business post 1820s. More here.

Market Square

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

Daniel Humphries. Pawnbrokers 1821-26.

Richard Westbrook at Upper Crown. 1824. Mr Westbrook 1826 [a George Westbrook was there 1830-35].

William Westbrook. Butcher. To post 1820s.

Marlow Bottom Farm

Richard and Mary Webb. 1829+ More here

Marlow Common

Mr Butler. Died 1825. His widow died 1833.

Medmenham Mills

Mr Thatcher. Died 1827.

Moor Farm

Joseph Webb giving it up 1827.

Munday Dean Farm

Thomas Oxlade. To 1822. Also at Widmere Farm.

Elizabeth Oxlade and Thomas Wyatt. 1829. Elizabeth became by marriage Meadows and then Sawyer.

Oxford Road 

William Robert Clayton. The Cottage (a reasonable sized house!) 1826.

Ann and William Hales. William owned a messuage, warehouse stable, garden and yard by Oxford Road next to Marefield stile in his will written 1824, proved in 1826. He was 75 at death. Left the property to Ann. William looks to have been of Deptford Origin. Ann moved to 19 Lower Phillimore Place Kensington in 1827 and died there in 1831.

Prospect House (junction of Wycombe Road / Chapel Street)

Henry and Mrs Terry. Running a boys boarding school till went bankrupt 1826. More here

William and Rose Faulkner. William there 1826+ running it as a school. He married Rose, daughter of Ann and William Bond in 1828. More here

Quoiting Square

William Bowles. Six Bells landlord 1823-24. Probably moved to the Greyhound.

Thomas Cox. Wheelwright. To post 1820s. These premises later burnt down.

Joseph Langley. 1820+. Draper.

Seymour Court Farm

George Lunn. 1822 till death 1830, seemingly jointly with Mr Poulton.

Mary Lunn. Wife of George Lunn above. Died 1822.

Mr Poulton. Seemingly jointly with George Lunn 1822. Also there 1824.

Spinfield Lodge

Caroline and Henry Pearson

Spittal Street

William Bowles. Greyhound Inn 1825 to post 1820s. Mrs Bowles his wife died there 1825. Probably previously at the Six Bells.

Robert Mossenton. Greyhound Inn before William Bowles took over. 1819-25.

St Peter's Street

William Cresswell. Tenant of a cottage 1823. Probably sub let it as William was of the Compleat Angler.

James Downer. Tenant of a cottage 1823.

Richard Gibbons. 1823. His father Thomas owned this property and left it to him 1824.

Thomas Gibbons. Coal merchant.

Thomas Grovesnor. Tenant of cottage 1823.

George Hawkins. Of Two Brewers. Died of smallpox 1826.

Richard Heath. Tenant of a cottage 1823. Still in the Street 1833 and 1841. Labourer. Also Mary Heath his wife.

Mary Horniman. Tenant and chandlers shop keeper. West Street 1825+.

James Peters. Blacksmith.

Joan Sparks. Tenant of cottage 1823.

Temple House. Also called Templegate House.

Owen Williams. 1820-post 1820s.

Thames Bank

Sir James Morris. 1820.

Town End Farm

Mr William Bullock. Pre 1820s -1824.

"Under The Bridge"

Elizabeth and John Rolls the Elder.  John was a coal merchant. Also had property Bisham.

Sarah Russell. Servant to Elizabeth and John Rolls above 1820.

West Street

Misses Bond. Running a school.

Thomas Bowen, Red Lion 1824 to post 1820s. More here

Mrs Burrows. Albion House, leaves for London 1825. 

Mrs Carter. Albion House West Street. Circa 1821.

Joseph Fryth. Tenant 1826.

Abraham Clark - 1825, house  adjoins that of John Langley. 

George Clark. Tenant 1826.

Henry Clark. Tailor. 1823.

Samuel Clark. Tailor. To post 1820s.

William Clark. Landlord the Ship. 

Edward Collins. Tenant 1826.

Richard Cowper. 1824. Clearly well off. Leaving his home 1824. Wife of unknown name died earlier that year.

William Cox. 1828. Tenant but had sub let to another.

...Dalby / Dolby. Tenant 1826.

William Derrick, Tenant 1825. A small tenement "behind" his property is let to Sarah Sparks 1825. (In another source she is merely "adjacent". William possibly the shoemaker active in the 1810s. 

Misses Field. Running a school. Probably Matilda Field and her sister.

John Gibbons, grocer and tallow chandler 1820 to post 1820s. For more on him and his family see here

Elizabeth Guppy, tenant 1825. Her home lies between the residences of Mary Horniman and Moses Wyatt. 

Rachel and Robert Hall. He was a butcher. More here

Henry Harmon. Tenant 1826.

William Harper. Tinplate worker.1823 to post 1820s.

Charles Herbert. Resident 1825. House known.

Ann Hone (Miss). Owner and occupier 1827. Will 1831.

Mary Horniman. Chandler. 1825 to post 1820s. Tenant. Shop and residence. Adjoins the residence if Sarah Guppy. 

Mr Howard. Tenant 1826.

Edward Jackson. Watchmaker.

Lydia Lane. Ironmonger. More here

Mr J Langley. Late resident 1825. Believe he was evicted when he was foreclosed upon. Next to Abraham Clark. His house is described as recently built in 1825. It has a stable as well as a yard, garden and wash house. 

Henry Lovegrove. Lace Merchant. 1823.

John Lovegrove. Died at his home there 1827. 

Joseph Mead. 1823+. A painter and glazier.

Mrs Mossenton. Tenant. 1827.

Mr Owen. Tenant 1826.

John Pierce. Landlord Coach and Horses. 1823.

John Plumridge. Tenant 1828 but had sublet to another.

John Prytherick / Prytherock, tenant 1825. Adjoins the home of Moses Wyatt. 

John Sadler. Butcher.

Wethered family. Remnantz.

Moses Wyatt. Resident 1825. Tenant. House adjoins Elizabeth Guppy's. 

Widmere Farm

Thomas Oxlade to 1822. Also had Munday Dean Farm.

John Webb. Lately in 1829.

Wood End (near Medmenham)

William Townsend. Pre 1820s to at least 1820. (Townsends were at Wood End for a long time)

Researched and written by Charlotte Day.

 

Link to index which includes posts about specific trades and general Great Marlow social history  here

©Marlow Ancestors. You are very welcome to use this research for family or local history purposes with credit to this blog and a link here.

Monkton Farm Little Marlow

Description 1860= 240 acres 1875= mixed farm including fruit orchards. One reference I found of the farm, in the 1600s, called it "Monken" Farm. The farm house is in part very old. The farm is thought to represent the site of the medieval Monkton Manor.

Historic Occupiers:

Note that these are rarely the same as the owners of a property in the past.

1561 - John Borlace / Borlase  (even Burlas)

1698 - "Moncken farm" Thomas Harding. 

1781 - John Simons who had come from Great Missenden.

1784- William Curtis. Came from Oxfordshire to farm here.

1846 - William Simmonds senior, assisted by Aaron/Aron Simmonds. Charles Frith sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing a sheep from the farm, his second such offence. A full biography of Charles will follow soon. 

1851 - William Simmonds. Born circa 1785. Wife Mary. 

1860- Mary Simmonds. Widow of William above.

1861 - Young farmer William Simmonds age 28 on census. Child of William and Mary above. His cousin Aaron Simmonds had Wymers Farm. For more on Aaron and Wymers see here.

1875 - Sale of stock and machinery (including animals and crops of wheat, barley, vetches, oats and peas over 130 acres) following death of tenant Mr Rickett.

1880 - 1882 John Pennington. Insolvent 1882.

1883 - 1887 William Collins. Summoned twice for not paying his poor rates.

1899 - 1901 William Stallwood born circa 1867. As was traditional on farms his wife Ella kept and managed the poultry side of the business.

1920 - John Seymour

1929 J Seymour

1939 - E J Miller. Escart Miller? Mixed farm . He was assisted by his sister's Minnie and Gladys once war broke out if not before. Also at this point if not before the farm had a worker's cottage as well as the farm house.

For more farm occupier posts for Little Marlow and Great Marlow see the Specific Shops, Streets Etc option on the menu. You will also see an A-Z Person Index option on the menu to help you find every mention of a person on this blog. For more Little Marlow content in general see here

Researched and compiled by Charlotte Day.

Farm occupancies calculated from wills, adverts, trade journals, censuses, property records, court cases etc.  I hope to fill in the gaps in dates as I wade through my Everest sized mountain of research notes. 

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

Skating And Snowballs - Winter In Marlow

The winters of 1891/2, 1892/3 and 1893/4 and the early spring of 1895 saw the Thames at Marlow frozen to some degree for 4 years in a row. By the end of  January 1891 there had been 9 weeks of frost. It was hoped that the Thames or one of the flooded meadows adjacent would freeze sufficiently to host a cricket match on the ice, along with torch lit skating races at Cookham but all of a sudden the thaw set in and the ice disappeared quickly. The river had frozen most completely nearer Maidenhead and so many Marlow residents were noted as having made the journey to a "splendid piece of ice" extending from Boulters Lock to "beyond Mr. Woodhouse's boathouse at Cliveden Reach." Reports suggest "fully a thousand persons" were disporting themselves on this stretch. Some Marlow people were among those who found a way to make a profit out of the excited visitors. They laid planks to help skaters access the river from the bank and charged people for help getting onto the ice and also for fixing and unfixing skates onto boots. At Cookham Lock several people were seen to ride or drive horses onto the ice and cyclists also put in an appearance. 1891 also saw several hundred people gather on the flooded and frozen meadows at Bisham and Temple. A large number of skaters also gathered at Mr George Jackson's pond at Westhorpe and one man was seen skating on the weir pool at Marlow on Christmas day 1891. The committee of the National Skating Association's negotiations to bring some races off in the neighborhood came too late to beat the thaw but some locally arranged handicap races did occur at Marlow. These male-only races were organised by Alfred Davis and John Langley, who also acted as a starter.  The main event was won by Edward Shaw, which was they say "a very popular win". The number of spectators was enormous, despite the cold. (See below for a partial list of those men and boys competing.) A correspondent for the Fishing Gazette in early January 1891 says that one afternoon he had witnessed fully 200 persons on the river ice opposite Shaw's boathouse including a great number of "skatists and hockeyists". Such a sight he said was not within memory of "the middle aged generation" with the ice 6 inches deep in some places along the upper Thames. The thaw was still ongoing into February, the hard ground causing most of the water from the riverside to run into the river itself. The water level rose by 2ft within a few days of the thaw beginning. 

Unfortunately timed as that thaw may have been, it was not as dramatic as the so called "silver thaw" of 1867 when the sudden break up of a frost lead to showers of minute ice crystals that destroyed many umbrellas wielded against them. 

Thin ice proves a peril

Heavy snow in 1893 saw drifts of 12ft depth in places reported between Cressex and Marlow. The roads from Wycombe were understandably blocked. Those skating and sliding on frozen ditches and ponds were said to be of both sexes and all ages. The stretch of frozen Thames was much more limited than in 1891, but the ice formed near the Berks and Bucks shores was regarded as "moderately safe" which was enough to get large numbers of skaters out near Bisham Church. Under Marlow Bridge the ice seemed to stretch across the whole width of the river, and so naturally some of the curious tried to edge their way across from one bank to another, despite warnings the ice was very thin in the centre of the span. A few made it across safely to cheers but then a young man tried to make the return journey and fell through the ice. The water beneath him was said to be 22ft deep. A very difficult rescue was accomplished after the youngster had spent 10 mins in the frozen water, very largely thanks to Mr J G Meakes who had laid a very long ladder across the breach and so allowed rescuers to approach. The young man was very lucky to be alive, if very cold. 

In February 1895 a little girl from the Grace family fell through the ice after trying to skate on it just beyond the end of the St Peter Street slipway. The screams of her young companions bought Mr Jones, the coachman of Thames Bank to the scene and he was able to mount a successful rescue. 

Incidentally, anyone curious to know the temperature in the 1890's could wander  - or slide along -  the High Street pavements to Messrs Smith & Co who had a very large thermometer on the outside of the building.  

Beware of snowballs! 

One way of keeping warm might be to engage in an energetic snowball fight. But as always reports of some over enthusiastic throwing resulting in broken windows come to the surface. In the heavy snowfall of 1904, Supt Summers received so many complaints of bad behaviour that they did their best to catch groups of boys lurking suspiciously with snowballs at hand. Three naughty boys who went too far in pelting a little girl walking up Institute Rd saw themselves hauled before the magistrates. William Boddy, Jack Hall and Charles Collins received a fine of 1s each for their efforts. 

Edwardian scenes

Although the Victorian era frozen river scenes are probably the most famous, January 1908 saw the Thames frozen from bank to bank beneath Marlow Bridge. And vast scattered sheets of ice stretched between Meakes Boat House and Bisham Church. However the ice was not thick enough to bear a persons weight so the crowds that came to see the sight were restricted to the towpath. But they still went skating. The reason is the Thames was in flood and so the riverside meadows were used as improvised skating rinks as they had been used for generations, private property or no. For decades the premier skating spot was however Cockmarsh, and so Marlow crowds made the journey there. They were not the only ones. It is said that even Londoners made the trip to Bourne End to enjoy the neighbourhood skating. Reporters from the Daily Graphic also made their way to Marlow and took images of an ice hockey match proceeding on the iced over floodwater. This freeze made the conditions difficult for the swans and a decision was made to remove them from the river and hold them inland for a couple of months. Catching them seems quite a task however, as most had moved inland themselves, some by "several miles". 

Not all fun and games

Snow and ice maybe gives romantic image of Marlow in the the winter. But there's another side. Cold and wet conditions made life a misery for those needing to work outside especially if they had poor quality clothes and boots and came from a poorly heated home. In 1872 the torrential December rain made the working conditions of those employed on laying the Marlow railway dangerous. So the work had to be temporarily abandoned to a sea of mud. 

Others working outside whose labour did not stop were obviously very vulnerable if poorly clothed in freezing temperatures. Rag and bone man Charles Slade of Gun Lane was believed to have died of exposure while doing a round at Hambledon in early 1895. He was found insensible in the road alongside his donkey cart near the Dog & Badger at Medmenham. He could not be revived.  In fact he was dead by the time he was returned to Marlow by Thomas Stroud of Dean Street who had been drinking at the Dog and Badger. The conclusion was the extreme cold had bought on heart failure which had in turn caused the fall from the cart. Wife Sarah tells the inquest that her husband had been suffering much from the low temperatures and that they had sometimes had a lack of food over the winter. 

Fog was sometimes bad enough to be described as a serious interference for both pedestrian and vehicular traffic and the trains did not escape disruption. Frozen pipes deprived many households of water, so water sellers were back on the streets after they had ceased to be a common feature throughout the town. (Eg several enterprising souls were seen selling water in February 1895. The Marlow Water Company endeavoured to supply those homes normally connected to their supply with water from the standpipes too.) 

 Regular collections were made to help the poor afford coals for the winter. But for those without a home, the situation was worst of all. The last word will go to the case of "tramp" James Healey. In January 1908, James came into the town and tried to find somewhere to stay. He did not succeed.  Described as "quite an old man" he was frightened at the prospect of spending the night outside during an extremely cold spell. So he picked up a stick and deliberately broke the glass of one of the council owned street lamps in Trinity Road where the Police Station was located. He then went to them and confessed to his act of desperate vandalism. He knew they would have no choice but to arrest him and keep him in the - relatively- warm cells overnight. He got a longer stay than he hoped for, as he was subsequently sentenced to 7 days gaol with hard labour. In the same week beggars were caught in West Street, Institute Rd, and Station Rd and also received 7 day sentences.  

List of competitors in 1891 Marlow ice skating handicap races:

Boys:

C P Lovell (winner 500 yards junior race), Frederick Plumridge, Frank Langley, A Smith. 

Adults:

E Shaw, A Shaw, Reggie Shaw, C Shaw,  J Payne, Taplin, Bowles, Hooker, Smith, Grove, Tom White, Rowe, Cox, H Harman, W Davis, Lees?, Collier, Bailey, Lovell, Ashtead, Nicholls. 

Veterans: 

W Lunnon, ? Langley, E Flint, W Shaw, A J East, W Toovey, 

Researched and written by Kathryn Day

Related Posts:

Victorian Christmas in Marlow part 1 here and 2 here

Edwardian Christmas in Marlow 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

Selected Sources

The Fishing Gazette: Devoted to Angling, River, Lake, and Sea Fishing, and Fish Culture, Volume 3. ( Charles William Bradley & Co 1895) & The Fishing Gazette 10 January 1891, ditto.

Reading Mercury 21 December 1872. From British Library, accessed via the BNA October 2020. 

South Bucks Standard 23 January 1891, 24 November 1893, 2 December 1904, 10 January 1908, as above. 

Notebook of Miss E Morton. 

©Marlow Ancestors

Homers Farm Marlow *updated Feb 2026*

Updated April 2025

Although historically within Great Marlow Parish Homers Farm /Holmers Farm  was about 3 miles from it, closest in fact to Booker. It was about half a mile from the turnpike road between Marlow and High Wycombe.

Description 1834= 123 acres 1910= arable and pasture farm.

Historic occupiers (these are not normally the same as the owners) and history timeline:

1742 Samuel Wellesley. 

1781-1784 at least - Barabbee Fastnedge (a man with a name destined to be spelled a 100 different ways!) Mr Fastnedge was at Triphooks farm 1786 (possibly in addition to this) Also farmed at Finnemoor. Possibly Homers was owned by James Batting of High Wycombe at this time. 

1823= up for sale. It's proximity to the turnpike road between Marlow and Hug Wycombe is considered a distinct advantage. 122 acres of enclosed arable and meadow land and orchard, plus farm house, barns, etc. It's in "the highest state of cultivation, lying extremely compact, divided by quick hedges, in well proportioned fields in a ring fence completely surrounding the homestead." Has been occupied by the same (unnamed) family for 40 years who also have the freehold. (Windsor & Eton Express, 10 May 1823)

1833= Edmund Collins. Owned by Mrs Rose.

1840- George Hunt occupier leaving and selling off his farm stock including a crop of oats, 28 "meaty ewes", 8 horses or colts, some pigs, a barren cow, 70 fowl and bits of household furniture [Auction notice Bucks Advertiser 24th July 1840] .

1841- 1862 Thomas Greenslade. One of the parish Guardians of Great Marlow. In 1851 he has 120 acres employing 5 labourers. In 1861 92 acres being farmed (so some of farm may be let to others or sub let) and Thomas is employing 3 men 2 boys. Two geese stolen from him 1859. The actual owner of the farm in 1862 was still Mrs Rose.

1867 Mrs Greenslade, presumably a widow of Thomas above, left the farm selling up all her stock and household furniture. She mainly seems to have been operating as an arable and sheep farm though she also had a few pigs.

1869- Richard Child. 

1870 - Freehold up for sale, tenant Richard Smith to quit at Michaelmas. The owner William Rose had recently died and his executors are to sell up. Includes residence, barns etc plus a "well sheltered farm yard" and a pair of workers cottages. 123 acres. Shooting in the estate was let separately to Lord Carrington whose land also adjoined the farm. 

1876-83 John Campbell. Wife Elizabeth. Both originally from Scotland. He was farming 123 acres 1881 and employing 2 men and 2 boys. 

1888- duck and drake stolen from the farm.

1891-1901 John Campbell. Son of John and Elizabeth above. Sister Marion lived with him. Raised pigs and crops. Worker James Goodall who lives at the farmed fined 1893 for not sending 3 children to school. They may have been helping on the farm.

1903-1916 Miss Marian Campbell, leasee. Daughter of John and Elizabeth above. Born 1851. Her premises were very close to the Booker isolation hospital and Marian herself took in some residential patients for "open air treatment" as well as supplying produce to the hospital. In 1904 Marian gave evidence in the trial of a nurse at the hospital accused of burning it down out of anger for not being promoted to matron there. Marian had been told by the accused that she felt like setting fire to the bushes outside it but replied that it was a foolish idea and would set the whole place on fire. As it was two blocks went up in flames simultaneously which immediately made police suspect arson rather than accident. However nurse Isabel Livingston who was so hysterical in the dock the trial proceeded only with great difficulty was found not guilty of arson. See the South Bucks Standard 10th June 1904 for much more on this case.

In 1910 the farm was bought by Lord Carrington from an unknown previous owner but Marian continued as tenant.

Marian died at the farm 1916. Buried High Wycombe. Worshipper at Handy Cross church which no longer exists.

1920 Mr A Stacey.

1939 William Wiltshire, dairy farmer assisted by his son also called William.

For more farm occupier posts Great Marlow see the Specific Shops, Streets Etc option on the menu here. For Little Marlow use the Nearby Places option here. You will also see a Person Index option on the menu to help you find every mention of a person on this blog. The General Marlow History option here contains other posts which may be of interest to you such as information on local harvest home celebrations or historic agricultural wages in Marlow. 

Farm occupancies identified from wills, adverts, trade journals, censuses, property records, court cases etc. I hope to fill in the gaps in dates as I wade through my Everest sized mountain of research notes.

Written and researched by Charlotte Day.

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

Munday Dean Great Marlow History -UPDATED November 2025

 First some photos taken March 2021:

Denelands Farm, above

Munday Dean Farm, above

Munday Dean farm barn, above

Monday Dean Farm, above 

Munday Dean Lane, above, was widened in December 1905. 

Some History:

Richard Corby, yeoman had Munday Dean Farm in 1721. In his will proved the next year he left the farm house with pasture, arable and wooded lands to his son Robert. Possibly the lease only.

In a will written 1788 and proved the next year widow Elizabeth Plumridge widow of William left her messuage (house), cottages, garden, yard and land at Munday Dean, apparently the farm, to trustees for the benefit of Richard Corby of Red Pits near Marlow her "poor kinsman" until Richard's son Thomas was 21 then to Thomas himself. At that time the property was being rented by James Hollworthy. She also Richard and Thomas a cottage with barn, small meadow and garden at Hambledon which a Thomas Stallwood then occupied. Thomas Corby was to pay his brother Ambrose a guinea from the estate. Elizabeth's will was very long and detailed even specifying that the soil in the ground on her land belonged to Richard then Thomas! She didn't bequeath the worms in the earth to them but she probably just forgot about that... 

Elizabeth Corby had married William Plumridge at Hughenden 1757.

A Thomas Corby Senior, probably the same man as in Elizabeth Plumridge's will, still occupied some 67 acres of land at Munday Dean in 1833.

William Webb was a husbandmen also working part of Munday Dean Farm by 1773 until his death in the late 1790s.

Thomas Jonathan Oxlade left in his 1822 will his one third part of Munday Dean Farm with several cottages and woodland amounting to 20 acres. It was then in the tenure of Robert Oxlade and Richard Russell.

In 1829 the farm was in the occupation of Elizabeth Sawyer and Thomas Wyatt.

In 1861 Munday Dean Farm was in the tenure of John Simmonds and amounted to 87 acres. John lived there with his wife Catherine children and 2 young employees- 11 year old shepherd Matthew Bird and 15 year old George Wells who was working as a carter.

In 1883 labourer Henry Beaver was convicted of stealing 14 pieces of wool from the farm, which was then the property of General Owen Williams. The estimated value of the wool was £14 12 shillings 6 pence.

The farm bailiff in 1885 was James Langford.

In 1905 the farm was up for sale and consisted of a 5 bedroom farmhouse, cowhiuse, granary, carthouse, piggery, stable, orchard and 4 cottages. It was then reckoned to be 104 acres.

It was the home of Lady Joan Hartwell in 1930 when she was summoned for driving her motor car without a licence in High Wycombe.

*****

In 1895 further down Munday Dean Lane, nearer to Marlow, Frank Collins was found to be gambling in the highway with a game of chance and summoned to court to be fined. Slightly out of the way country lanes or little frequented town alleys were favourite places for young men to gather together to play illicit games of dice and marbles for money.

Researched and written by Charlotte Day. Photos and additional research by Kathryn Day.

Sources:

Will Richard Corby, PCC. Transcribed by Charlotte. Copies can be obtained from the National Archives.

Bucks Herald, Dec 1883. Copy held at the British Library Archives and accessed via the British Newspaper Archive.

South Bucks Standard July 1895, 2 March 1906. As above.

Will from the National Archives Kew transcribed by Charlotte: Elizabeth Meadows 1857, Elizabeth Plumridge 1789.

Kelly's Directory of Buckinghamshire 1883. Published by Kelly's Directories Limited.

Property records held by my family.

©Marlow Ancestors. You are very welcome to use these research or images for family or local history purposed with credit to this blog and a link here so that the sources listed above do not lose credit for the information which they provided.