War Dead Congregational Church

The Imperial War Museum has transcribed the memorial to the members of the Congregational Church (as it was then called) in Quoiting Square Marlow who fought in the First World War.  The transcribed names are listed below and I have added some research into those young men.

Bartlett, Gilbert

Batting, Horace

Grove, William B

Keates, Ronald

Loaring, William J

Peddle, Alfred 

Plumridge, Albert E

Robinson, William

Smith, Henry J

Research:

Gilbert Bartlett. Son of Mrs and Noah Bartlett. Born 1891. His dad ran a grocer's shop in West Street overlooking Quoiting Square. I believe Gilbert is also memorialised in the WW 1 memorial in Sir William Borlase School, which he certainly attended. He had emigrated to South Africa by the time the war started and was thus serving in the South African infantry when he died in 1916. More about his parents in this post where you can find a picture of their premises as they are today.

Horace Batting. Born Horace John Batting 1897 to Charlotte and John Batting. Dad was a gardener. He himself was a grocer's assistant. Lived York Road as a small child. As a 13 year old Herbert was soloist in the Congregational Church's choir. Lance Corporal in the Royal Fusiliers. Died 29th April 1917. On the war memorial at Arras. Parents had previously suffered the loss of their 3 year old daughter Gertrude.

William B Grove. Born 1897 to George and Emma Grove. Lived 1901 Cambridge Place, Cambridge Road. Died 1915. Kings Royal Rife Corps. Featured on the Menin Gate memorial. Dad George worked on the river as a boat building labourer, waterman and a steam launch driver as well as being an amateur rower.

Ronald Keates. In full Ronald Sidney Keates. Born 1895 to Anne and James. Grew up West Street Marlow. Age 10 won a prize in Marlow Horticultural Show 1905 for a bunch of wildflowers he had picked. I know it is a minor thing to mention but the image of the child Ronald wandering peacefully in the fields enjoying the flowers struck a chord with me when I read it considering what he would later live through. Private in the Oxford and Bucks Light Infantry. Before the war he was a clerk. His father James was a builder's foreman, elected parish constable and town councillor.

William J Loaring. Private in the Royal Fusiliers 13th Battalion. Killed 4th August 1917 by a sniper. Included on the Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres. Employed at Morgan's the drapers in the High Street before the war. The Morgans were also Congregational Church members. To see an historic photo of the premises where William worked or to read more about the Morgan family see my post here

Alfred Peddle. Born 1894 to Alfred and Helen Peddle.

Above, grave of Alfred Harry Peddle. Killed In Action in France March 2nd 1917 age 22. Of the King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry.  Grave is in Marlow Cemetery. He is buried with his parents who lived in York Road at the time of his death. He was a plumber.

Albert E Plumridge. Albert Ernest. Born 1881 in Bisham. Did not die until some years after the war. It may have been considered that his military service caused his death nevertheless. He was badly gassed in 1917 and was sent home to hospital in Stourbridge England. Albert was a worker at Temple Mills before becoming a motor launch driver on the river. He lived at Bisham with his wife Edith (née Finch) at first before moving to West End Gardens Marlow. These houses still exist but are not now known under that name. They are in Henley Road Marlow. Albert had been a regular player for Bisham football team as a teen / young adult, sometimes serving as the Vice Captain. I think he may also have been a rower.

William Robinson. Possibly born 1885 to Alice and William Robinson.

Henry J Smith. The town's main war memorial gives the name H.W Smith which was Henry William, who may be a relative. Henry J was a Private in the Buck's Battalion.

Researched and written by Charlotte Day.

For detailed posts on Marlow in WW1 see Kathryn's Posts 1914  1915  1916  1917  1918 and 1919

For more church related content see the Church Related option on the menu. There are also A-Z Person Indexes, Graves  and Wills options on the menu.

Sources Include:

Transcription of the memorial is ©WMR-8379. Imperial War Museum. Available on a Creative Commons BY-NC licence. 

Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Details of memorials on the continent and dates of death.

Bucks Herald 25th August 1917. Copy held at the British Library archives. Accessed March 2021 via the BNA.

South Bucks Standard 23rd December 1910. As above.

Reading Mercury 25th August 1917.

1891 and 1901 Census transcribed from microfilm images by me.

World War One Service Records 1914-20 database online. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVBG-1V55 WO 363. National Archives, Kew.

War Memorial All Saints Church, Marlow (commemorates all denominations).

Written and researched by Charlotte Day. 

©Marlow Ancestors. You are very welcome to reuse our research if you link here so that the sources listed above remain credited for the information they provided.

Will of Joseph Stevens 1843

 Joseph Stevens of Great Marlow, tailor. Proved 1843.

All wearing apparel, household goods, furniture, plate, linen, china, ready money, money in funds and all other personal effects to his sister Jane Stevens.

She is made sole executor.

Witnessed by:

William Thomson, Doctor of Medicine 51 Upper Charlotte Street, Fitzroy Square [London].

Francis Oliver Finch, artist of 51 (yes same number) Upper Charlotte Street, Fitzroy Square, [London].

Summarized by me from a will held at National Archives, Kew.

Notes: Joseph was of West Street Marlow. His property is featured on the 1833 parochial assessment here

Will transcription index for the blog here.

©Marlow Ancestors. You are welcome to reproduce this summary if you credit this blog.

Light Fingered Marlow - A List

 Updated Jan 2024

Just for fun here's a list of all the more unusual items (to us) that residents of the Marlows (Great and Little) were accused of helping themselves to during the reign of Victoria. Those names marked with an asterisk were found guilty. The other cases I do not know the outcome of - yet. 

Acorns (2 bushels)- Frederick Brooks and Charles Smith 1848. These would have had good resale value as pig feed.

Aprons- Ann Stockbridge* 1857. Six weeks in jail. A juvenile offender.

A clothes line (part of) from the garden of Henry Aldridge - John Thatcher* 1849. 6 weeks hard labour. 

Bell- Henry Smith* 1850. Three months hard labour.

Herrings (200!)- William Bowles and William Thatcher. 1855.

Lead Trough- Henry Knight* 1840.

Several sacks full of moss, (used for flower arranging etc) - James Perry of Dean Street* 1901. Fined 27s 6d including costs and damages. 

Pair of trousers - removed from their owner's person in a highway robbery 1845. Josiah Brookes* knocked down victim William Blackwell and made off with his trousers as well as a purse of money. A second telling of this event says the "trowsers" of William were in fact carried by him in a parcel as they were newly purchased. Whichever is true, you will be pleased to know that William's trousers were eventually recovered. Josiah was a familiar face to the justices. 

Part of a fence- John Finch* 1856. One month in jail.

Dahlia roots from Spinfield gardens - (and some chickens) James Lomax* and Henry James*, 1837. Henry was transported for life. James was sentenced to a month in jail then transportation for 7 years. He had stolen the birds from his own nephew James Pusey!

Shoe leather- John Wickes 1850. Offence occurred at High Wycombe but John was of Marlow. I am pretty sure he was convicted. In 1852 he was transported for 7 years for stealing a saw in Marlow, the property of Joseph East. He was then 23 years old.

Smelling bottle - John Martin* 1845. Stolen from house of William Curtis. 

Umbrellas, X 2 stolen from the vestibule of All Saints Church. Ellen Gibbons* and Maria Edwards* 1860. They each got 1 days imprisonment. Both plead guilty. The girls however said that they had taken the umbrellas only because it was raining and they had always intended to return them the following week, and indeed had attempted to do so but on seeing the parish Beadle just outside the church, had been too afraid to continue. Their lack of previous convictions helped their case. 

Watering pot (watering can)- Andrew Stuart* and Richard Kibble* 1848 from Alfred Batting. 14 day sentence each.

Whip- William Tilby 1844.

Wooden spokes-  Abraham James* and Thomas Rose*, 1838. Stolen from High Rews Wood. The spokes were the property of John and Thomas Rolls. It seems the spokes may have been being made in the wood. They convinced an 11 year old boy to help them in the theft, telling him the spokes belonged to them. The boy was allowed to escape prosecution if he gave evidence against the two men. Three months in jail and a whipping for both of the accused. In 1839 and 1842 Abraham was fined for poaching.

And for stealing the same horse twice, honorary mention must go to John Edmunds whose full and somewhat odd story you can read here

Related posts: 

 Crime and disorder in old Marlow here

The old police station and police court here

To find other crime/policing related posts see the General Marlow history index here and to find every mention of your ancestor here, use the A-Z Person Index in the top drop down menu. New content added daily. 

Sources:

Criminal research of Jane Pullinger supplemented by Bucks Herald 21st February 1857, 22nd November 1856 and 20th October 1855. Bucks Gazette 6th January 1838. South Bucks Free Press July 14 1860. Copies held at the British Library.

Bucks Advertiser 19 July 1845. 

All Saints Parish records  - my old transcription from the originals.

Censuses, my transcriptions from microfilm.

©Marlow Ancestors. 

Bank Of England, Dean Street History and Landlord Listing *Updated*

 THE BANK OF ENGLAND /THE BANK/ YE OLDE BANK

1833- building of the pub built but it not yet a pub.

1840 - Described as "recently built" (of brick with slate roof) and "now licenced for the sale of beer"  It is let to a "most respectable tenant". Leasehold with 3 years left on it is offered for sale. "Near the turnpike on the Oxford Road". Has bowling alley, coach house, 2 stables, detached wash house, and other outbuildings plus the large yard. Inside there is 4 bedrooms, a cellar, parlour, tap room and pantry. 

1841 - George Clarke, son of Richard Clark(e) who had had the Jolly Maltsters Dean Street. See here for more. That post contains details of some trouble George got into as a young man. George's sister Emma was in turn landlady of the Jolly Maltsters, Mint and Cherry Tree all in Dean Street.

1844 - George Clark

1853 - George Clark

1861 - George Clark ("Ye Old Bank"), also carpenter. Twice fined in the 1860s for opening his beerhouse at illegal hours. In 1867 a suspicious constable secretes himself into a pile of faggots opposite in order to watch the comings and goings, and sees several men enter. These thirsty souls flee on the constable revealing his presence. Pots of beer with some taken out can be seen around  the tap room and parlour.  Fine that time? £5. 

1865 - George Clark. Also sells asses' milk (!) This was considered good for delicate youngsters you could not tolerate cows milk, among other things. 

1871 - George Clark - also carpenter, and has lodgers

1873 - George Clarke "The Bank Beerhouse". Transfer to John Finch who came from The Alma. Wellers brewery only got the licence for the premises renewed on the condition a new tenant was found, as they believed George harboured the criminally inclined. Wellers say that George had already been given notice to quit but he proved difficult to dislodged. Some of the Hussars recently billeted in Marlow when they spent a few days here in 1873 had stayed at the Bank..in the stable with their horses!

1875 - John Finch 

1881 - John Finch (b.1843) "The Bank" Wife Sophia. (Also lodging house) 

1882- John Finch summoned for refusing to let a Constable see inside his premises. Something to hide did you John!? The next year John received a heavy fine and an endorsement on his licence for opening his beerhouse before the legally permitted time on a Sunday. In the space of 15 minutes 10 people were observed going through the open gates into the yard, and through the back door, emerging shortly afterwards with a suspicious looking jug. The constables followed a trail of beer spillages down the passage that lead to the cellar steps, down which they found John with a selection of beer containers with the dregs still in them. John claimed the wet spots in the yard were where he'd urinated! He also said no one had visited him there, and in the cellar he was merely changing the taps on a barrel. The police must have seen people passing up a public footpath nearby he thought. Unfortunately for John, a policeman Constable Birch lived only 500 yards away and had an uninterrupted view of the Bank Of England. The excuses offered by the drinkers are amusing to read. They happened to call on John (at 6.30am in the morning) for all kinds of reason other than buying alcohol apparently. Dropping off some potatoes, showing him a piece of flannel, and talking to him about a pig were amongst the reasons to drop by. One man was not so good at thinking on his feet and said he only stepped into the yard, but couldn't quite remember why. (Four of the drinkers were summoned and fined.)

1883 - H Finch. 2. Charles Grace

1886 - Charles Grace. Wife Mahala leaves Charles this year taking some money and belongings which Charles says belonged to him. So he has her summoned for theft but subsequently asks for the charge to be dropped. He says Mahala had returned the items and had apologised for removing them. It does not seem she had returned to live with her husband though. 

1886 - William Cox? 2. Frederick Cox. 

1889 - Frederick Cox 

1891  - George E Lyons (from London)

1896 - George E Lyons transfers the  premises to William Howard.

1899 - James or William Cottrell /Cotterill. 2.  William Chaplin or Chapman 

1903 - W Dawes

1908 - William Dawes. 2. Edwin Dewey 

1911 - Edward (qv) J Dewey

1915-20 - James Turney and his wife. Their son Private A E Turney was badly gassed in France in 1917.

1926 - Harry Perry. Changes his name by deed poll to Harry Price this year. 

1928 - Harry Price. Sells 5&1/2 barrels of beer a week. Considered for forced closure under the scheme to limit the number of licenced premises in an area, but does not make the shortlist. 

1937 - H Price. It's proposed to demolish the premises this year as part of a slum clearance plan affecting Dean Street, and because the site is wanted as part of the new development of homes for the dispossessed at Seymour Court Road. Brewers Benskins of Watford will be offered the opportunity to purchase a new site in Wethered Road for the re erection of the pub. Due to the disruption of the forthcoming war, the demolition never happens. 

1939 Ye Olde Bank of England - Harry Price and his wife. They continue on the pub to at very least 1960.

Above, the former site of the Bank. 

1959- old building is demolished and a new premises built at the rear of it, back from the road. A matchstick model of the old premises is presented to Mr and Mrs Price by one of the customers in honour of their kindness to his unwell son. The Prices enter into their new premises just before Christmas 1959.

Find more posts like this about pubs in Marlow, Little Marlow, Well End, Medmenham and Lane End listed on the Pub Related option on the menu.

All mentions of a person on this blog can be found on the A-Z Person Index in the top drop down menu. 

Post researched by Charlotte Day and Kathryn Day.

Building now demolished.

This post is updated as new information emerges. All listings are as noted in original sources, including alternative spellings. Note that some listings may in fact refer to father's and sons sharing the same given name so be sure to double check this. Many Marlow landlords changed premises and there can be other family members running other establishments. We mainly focus on pre WW1 or 1920's listings but sometimes list later names if it ties in with research we are helping with. 

See the Pub Related post listing here on the drop down menu to find out about other pubs, beer houses etc. A land lord listing for most will be published here gradually. 

©Marlow Ancestors

1833 Parochial Assessment of Great Marlow Part Eleven

 I have the original handwritten working notebooks used to compile this are kept by my family with correspondence relating to the making of the assessment but they are old and fragile so I thought I would transcribe them onto this blog. There are handwritten additions and corrections up to the late 1830s too. If present they will be added into each part of the transcription and highlighted as such.

Other West Street content including more relevant parts of the assessment, biographies of residents and histories of shops can be found under the West Street sub heading on the "Specific Shops, Streets....Etc" option on the menu. I am transcribing and publishing the different parts in the order they chime in with my general Marlow research.

All mentions of a person on the blog can be found on the Person Index.

©Marlow Ancestors. Please give credit to this blog if using my transcription but you are very welcome to do so.

Formula of transcription is:

Name

Property

Annual value of property.

Any notes of mine are in square brackets.

Madge Hawes Lane and West End Continued [both places together. Most if not all of these are the North side of West End, that is West Street from just after Quoiting Square onwards as you go out of town towards Henley]

Charles King

Cottage and garden

£4

*****

Widow Ball

Cottage and garden

£3 10 shillings

*****

William Finch

Cottage and garden 

£3

*****

George Clark [a bricklayer on 1841 census]

Cottage and garden

£3 10 shillings

*****

Mary Bavin

Cottage and garden

£3

*****

Widow Bradley [1841 census suggests name Lucy]

Cottage and garden 

£3

*****

William Reading [On 1841 census is shoemaker] [Probably in same property 1828]

Cottage and garden

£5

*****

John Plumridge [bricklayer 1841 census] [probably in same property 1828]

Cottage and garden

£5

*****

Clark Chown [elderly market gardener 1841 census. Committed suicide by slitting his throat in 1843. He is alleged to have been driven over the edge by a letter stating how much he'd have to shortly pay in church rates]

Cottage, stable, yard and cart house

£6

Large garden and orchard

£6

*****

Widow Oxlade

Cottage and garden 

£4

*****

William Fullicks

Cottage

£3

*****

William Stratford

Bonnet So Blue [beer house in part of former Albion House], house and garden 

£4 10 shillings

*****

William James

Cottage and garden

£3

*****

John Reading

House and garden

£6

Garden

£1

*****

William Harding:

Cottage and garden

£4 10 shillings

*****

To be continued

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 

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. 

Hooks Farm Occupiers

Historic Occupiers list:

Note: historically part of Marlow Manor holdings.

1607- Katherine Rance. Occupier.Widow. Jorden family were the owners.

1658 - John Jorden, yeoman. Later in this year owned or leased by John Moore the brewer. Later purchased by the Guise and Etheredge families. 

1687- 1717 (at least) Richard Corby "Corbee" rented arable land at Hooks. Occupied the farm house too by 1689 at which time his holdings at Hooks and nearby amounted to 110 acres.

1783 - stock and implements sold after death of gentleman owner William Clayton of Harleyford. 

1833- John Fenner. Farm owned by the Claytons. 192 acres. John died that year age 87. He seems to have actually lived in Bisham, Berkshire. The Reading Mercury 25th November 1833 [British Library Archives] said John had been "a true specimen of the Old English Farmer, plain in his manners, and dress" not to mention always punctual and honest. John was farming in Marlow in 1821 but I can't say for certain he was at Hooks then. There was a younger John Fenner farmer of Marlow who moved to Stoke Poges and became a beer seller and ultimately went bankrupt in 1853. Presumably a relative.

1843- William and John Hewett or Hewitt. Their lease on Platts Farm Marlow expired late 1839 so they may have come straight to Hooks then.  They were later at Hambledon and at Blounts alias Blunts Farm, Marlow. In 1840 John was considered lucky not to have lost a leg after being run over by a load of hay. In the end he had a toe amputated only. 

1850-60 Thomas Frost. Wife Elizabeth. Thomas sold off his stock and left town 1860. In 1850 Henry Finch was jailed for stealing two bushels of barley from him. [Bucks Chronicle 5th January 1850, British Library Archives].

1861- 81 James Fountain. In 1861 turnips stolen from his field and in 1864 twelve fowls were taken. As was traditional on most farms these were in the care of his wife. Note that their daughter married in a Congregational church so the family as a whole may have been Congregationalists.

1900- Executors of Henry William Cripps who had died the previous year sold off farm stock. He was a lawyer by trade so someone else must have ran the farm for him. Survived by wife Julia.

1901-06 Abraham Newton Pratt. Moved into the farm Autumn 1901 having come from a farm at Swallowfield, Berkshire. Wife Emily. She bred turkeys on the farm, 6 of which were stolen in 1905.

1908 - Francis Warne.

1911- James Fountain mentioned as farming here which is puzzling as Francis Warne seems also to have been there then.

1913- F Warne and Sons

1915 Messrs "Warnes and Sons"

1916- Francis Warne who died suddenly that year. He was originally from Cornwall. See here for his grave and that of other family members and more on them.

* For Hooks farm use during World War 1 see here

To read posts about everyday life in old Marlow, see the post listing here

Farm occupants are found by me by studying property records, censuses, adverts, court cases, letters, trade journals, wills and more.

To seek someone on this blog use the Person Index on the menu. Hundreds of people are referenced on this blog.

To seek other farms use the "Specific Shops, Streets Etc" option on the menu.

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