Post Office Blues

 This is a brief run down of the post offices in the 1800s and early 1900s in Great Marlow. 

The Regency Post Service 

At the start of 1800 Marlow was looking forward to its first official "cross post" between Marlow and Maidenhead and certain other places in Berkshire and Oxfordshire. A cross post means letters between the two places didn't have to go up to London and then back down to the intended recipient but instead went direct which obviously saved a lot of time. I say the first official cross post because unofficially letters had been taken by carriers and coachman and other commercial travellers. It makes sense for these people to take post but it undercut the post service so was not officially allowed. After the cross post for Marlow actually started in 1801, adverts were placed in the newspapers threatening dire consequences to these unofficial letter carriers if they continued. They faced a £5 fine per letter carried and £100 for every week the practice continued. A very high price to pay. The official letters were left at the post masters who then saw them distributed to the actual recipient. 

From at least the 1820s the Post Master at Marlow was James Field of the High Street. With only one post delivery and dispatch to deal with, posting did not occupy all of James time. The family ran a school, and James also worked as a tailor and insurance agent. Latter people would remember the post office was almost an afterthought, a cramped room with the school room up a somewhat rickety staircase. (You can read more about the Fields school here  and read their wills here). James died in 1849 and it seems his widow continued to be in charge for a little while. 

Early and mid Victoria post office

A common complaint was Marlow didn't get frequent enough deliveries of mail. But in 1848 after much effort, the town secured a second post as the mail coach running between High Wycombe and Maidenhead would now stop at Marlow in both directions. John Moss the High Street iron monger, inventor and agricultural machinery manufacturer was credited for a relentless campaign to secure this benefit. He considered improved postal communication essential for a successful businessman like himself to operate - and compete with those in other better supplier towns. At this point the post office was in West Street with the Tyler family in charge. The premises tended to change when the postmaster did. 

In 1852 the post from Maidenhead arrived at the very precise time of 5.10 am and 2.15pm and left at 10.45am and 8pm. If you wanted to send a letter after that you had to go to a town with a later dispatch and people really did trouble to do so which shows how important the post service was. When I say the post arrived I mean it came by mail cart. Later the train would bring in much post, but it had yet to reach Marlow. Even then letters were still brought by mail cart from Wycombe. The post arrival times were subject to change over the years and so therefore was the time you might get your post delivered at home. 

In 1860 the mail cart contractor between Marlow and Maidenhead, Mr Hall suffered an accident near Pinkneys Green. His horse was startled by shooting in a farmers field, bolted and crashed. The cart was smashed to pieces, mail scattered  and Hall was much injured. In fact a cart wheel was supposed to have passed over his head which if true makes the prognosis that he'd be able to resume work  seems quite miraculous. They did not mention how long the poor man's recovery was expected to take. In 1875 it was announced that the midday mail to Marlow would now arrive by train from Maidenhead rather than cart. No mention is made of a change in transport method for the other delivery yet so either it was already bought by train or there was going to be two ways it came to town.

The next milestone was probably the opening up of telegraphic services at the Great Marlow Post Office from 1870. This meant recruiting more people to deliver the messages. And in 1877 Marlow got it's long awaited third post arrival and dispatch, thanks to the 4.15pm train to Maidenhead. 

In 1880 it was possible to officially use a rival parcel delivery option in Marlow. Sutton & Co promised a cheap service through local agents, and the Marlow one was Banbury's the chemist. The Victorian equivalent of an Evri parcel stop! In the following decade there were still three post deliveries a day to the town, and one on a Sunday. The post boxes were cleared in time to get the post to the station at the right hour. If you realised you'd left it too late to post your letter in the usual way, you could go to the West Street post office and pay an extra fee to have it placed directly in the mail bag, up to around 20 minutes after the official time the bags were made up. After that you'd have to wait until the next dispatch.  In this decade the mail cart contractor was John Creswell who employed others to actually drive it (I think they were mainly bringing post from High Wycombe). Time keeping was taken very seriously and this lead John getting into trouble in 1881. His horse fell and cut its knee. He tried to secure another one in time to take the mail out at the right hour but could not. So unfortunately he decided to allow his driver Charles Shephard to take out the injured horse. This was reported to the police, and so John was bought before the magistrates and given the maximum fine of £5 for cruelty to the horse. 

 Snow drifts and other difficulties 

Everyday difficulties in the town for our Victorian postman included vandalism of the post boxes (the enamel tablets giving the collection times were constantly removed), the occasional theft of mail bags and complaints at the posties spending too much time waiting at the door for someone to answer when not all had letter boxes. Then there was the possibility of the Wycombe mail cart getting stuck in a snow drift as happened in 1893 at Borroughs Grove. The dedicated driver abandoned the cart and bought what mail he could on horseback, but it arrived a day late. 

The 1890s

 At this time our main post office was still in West Street, and John C Butler was postmaster. It opened from 7am-8pm and on Sundays from 7am - 10am for letter or telegraph business. But if you wanted to take advantage of one of the other services offered over the counter, such as buying insurance or a money order, or a licence you had to wait until after 9am and couldn't buy these at all on a Sunday.  By now the post was dispatched from the town 4 times a day, while post arrived three times. The boxes were emptied either 4 or 5 times a day and actual household deliveries were usually twice daily. You could however call at the post office to collect a letter possibly waiting for you if you were really in a hurry to receive it. And it was still possible to pay extra and slip your last minute letter across the counter if you'd just missed the last posting time. The main boxes were described as positioned at Thames Lawn (not the house currently known as Thames Lawn, this one was adjacent to the lock and you will still see a little wall box there in Mill Road), near the parish church, (may be referring to the wall box currently at the church hall but photographs show one at this period in a wall opposite Station Rd on the other side of the High Street), in York Rd (gone), Station Road (gone), and in Chapel Street (gone). 

The distant outpost known as Institute Rd...

In the mid 1890s the increased trade at the Post Office made some in the town question whether we didn't need a bigger and more modern building to host it. It had been slightly enlarged in 1883 to accommodate an increased parcel traffic but this wasn't enough. This issue would rumble on a very very long time. The post authorities agreed the existing building was not only too small for current demand, but "unsanitary". They had secretly planned to find an alternative for several years they claimed. This claim would infuriate post master John Butler. He said he'd constantly complained in private letters to his bosses about how dire the conditions were in West Street. The health of his staff had suffered he said. But he'd been rebuffed as the Post Office said the income at Marlow didn't justify the expense of either finding a bigger premises or making good the old. After two years of threatening to resign as his health was worth more than any lost income, he did so in September 1897. He saw out his 3 months notice and wrote to remind the Post Office that the lease there expired in a few weeks, and he wondered what exactly they planned to do about that. This was all happening behind the scenes. 

 One proposal was to build a purpose built premises in Institute Rd where there were plenty of undeveloped plots available. The Post Office went as far as to draw up a plan of how the building might look but if they hoped the locals would be impressed they were wrong. They said Institute Rd was not central enough, despite running directly off the High Street. If the post office had to move, it should be in the High Street itself they said. A vote at a public meeting in 1894 condemned the Institute Rd site as unsuitable. They said the 30 or so commercial travellers who came to the town each week usually put up at The Crown at the other end of the High Street to Institute Rd and would be inconvenienced by having to walk to the new site. It's slightly baffling that a walk of probably 3 minutes would be considered something that would put off these commercial men from visiting Marlow but the residents of West Street were also unhappy that their convenient branch would be lost to the very slightly further away High Street let alone Institute Rd. (Three times as many people signed a petition for the office to stay in West Street as signed one to move it to the High Street.) One advantage of the new Institute Rd site was considered to be that it would be (slightly) nearer Shaw's boat house and that as a large number of letters and telegrams came their way relating to the hire of boats, it would save some delivery time. But the needs of the locals should come before tourists it was declared. 

There were more public meetings and an unofficial group of local citizens were tasked with finding a possible High Street site that would suit the Post Office but without initial success. Some locals were sceptical that the local committee would make  any progress anyway because they said the gentleman could shortlist any site they liked but it would be no good if the owner didn't wish to sell.  And knowing the town was desperate the owner would probably charge a high price for the building. A deputation even met the Post Master General. He agreed to stay the Institute Rd plan to give time for a more locally supported alternative to be found. The Post Office would be willing to rent somewhere they said, if the rent was reasonable. (They eventually said they'd only be willing to rent an existing building and would not fund a purchase or a new build after all.) An alternative plan to improve the existing West Street premises were considered but this was found to be too difficult and expensive. A proposal to raise a private subscription to pay for a new build in West Street never got off the ground. 

So what would the never to be built Institute Rd alterative have looked like? It would have had a resident for the Marlow post master next to and connected with the main post office building. You'd have entered through a spacious lobby in which all the post office notices would be displayed. Then proceeding through some swing doors, you'd enter the main room 22ft square with polished mahogany counters. Leading off this would be an office for the Marlow post master and a 40ft long 22ft wide sorting office fitted with "swing seats" for the postman. Then there were rooms for the telegraph staff and various other offices and a separate entrance for parcels. Sounds very efficient and much different to the "cribbed, cabined and confined" West Street premises. (Or as a letter writer to a local paper called it, "a miserable excuse for a post office".)

A home at last

The list of potential properties on West Street or the High Street considered as a potential site is indeed long. It included the old malt house and Langston's original boot stores, both in the High Street as well as numerous residential properties. Many of these look no more spacious than the existing post office, and the residents were not usually very receptive to the idea of being turfed out. Someone had the idea that the new stables of New Court that fronted the High Street (next to what's now W H Smith) should be demolished as an eye sore and affront to the town and the post office put up there. 

Finally, after three years of public meetings, protests and indignant letter writing, Cromwell House in the High Street became available, almost opposite old Mr Fields premises.  At first the fact the drawing room was on a different level to the front room was considered to scupper the plan to use this part as a sorting office. But after a little more investigation it was felt the levelling of the two would not cost as much as initially feared. Still it seems the Post Office originally rejected Cromwell House when it first became available. The reminder sent by retiring  Marlow post master John Charlton Butler that the lease on the West Street premises was due to run out in a matter of weeks seems to have panicked them into action. A deputation came to John and asked him if he'd allow the premises to be used for longer under a new post master but he utterly refused. It was against his conscience to allow what he considered a dangerously unhealthy place to continue in use. 

So alterations were made to Cromwell House and a nice new lamp was affixed outside.  John Charlton Butler later revealed that the move there from West Street was done at such speed that it was chaotic and a lot of property had been left behind with him. After a few weeks and more reminders a frustrated John said he'd begun using the left behind papers as fire lighters and would continue! He was very bitter at both his former bosses and members of the town council - "parasites" as he referred to them - who he said were taking credit for getting a new premises. The new post master was John William Langdon. 

Still the Post Office was satisfied. The residents of West Street were not, and successfully petitioned to get a sub post office in their Street which opened in June 1898. This was described as nearly opposite the old one, and in the premises of clothier A E Sutton. (Sutton occupied three different premises in West Street, the last was the former Sycamore House boarding house which he took over in 1901.) I should mention that there was also a sub post office at this time in Station Rd at the corner of Mill Rd in a grocers. It was proposed that if the authorities thought Marlow a little over supplied this could be closed in exchange for allowing the West Street sub to open but it survived. I expect the poor post master general had had more than enough of Great Marlow by then and had no appetite for an avalanche of letters from disgruntled Station Rd residents! 

Edwardian Era  and beyond 

So did the post office live happily ever after? Hmm, some people are never satisfied. A 1904 visitor to the town said Marlow couldn't count as a modern sort of place as its post office closed at 8pm on weekdays and  5pm on Sundays. In Maidenhead you could visit the post office at 9pm he said, and at Wycombe you could still post letters to London at 11.30pm. What they would have thought of our current arrangements? 

The mail cart was still running between Maidenhead and High Wycombe via Marlow to supplement the use of the train at the time of the first world war. In 1911 the cart was struck by lightning at Pinkneys Green. Both horse and man were rendered senseless but amazingly after 30 mins they were recovered enough to continue onwards. The driver did admit to feeling "a bit queer" for sometime afterwards as well he might. 

As for additional sub post offices, the residents of Marefield petitioned for one in their area for many years but it did not open there until June 1939. (In the Dean Street grocery shop of Mr Porter). 

Written by Kathryn Day. Researched by Kathryn Day and Charlotte Day.

Related Posts: 

Victorian Postman Plumridge here (also covers workings of late Victorian post office here)

Will of postmaster James Field 1849 and his wife Sarah 1855 here

Life of the poetic postmaster, radical and friend of Shelley William Tyler -here

For biographies of other post office staff eg postmen/letter carriers see the General History index occupations section here

General posts about Marlow history here 

To find every mention of an individual here, use the A-Z person index in the top drop down menu. There's over 6,000 people listed there. 

SOURCES INCLUDE: 

Kelly's Directory for Buckinghamshire 1852, 1854, 1883, 1889, 1905, 1911, 1920, 1939. (Kelly's Directories Ltd) 

Notice - Changes to Postal Delivery - 1874, 1875, 1877. Thanks to James Purdsey for a view of these. 

Marlow Guide 1903 & 1905

Census, 1841-91 - Transcript from the microfilm made by Jane Pullinger. 

 Berkshire Chronicle 29th April 1848, Gloucester Journal 30th March 1801, South Bucks Free Press 27th October 1860, Bucks Advertiser and Aylesbury News 9th April 1870, Bucks Herald - 17th February 1877, 30th July 1881 & 3rd June 1911, and South Bucks Standard 24th April 1891, 18th & 25th May, 6th July & 31st August 1894, 15th Feb 1895, 6th August 1897, 12th Feb & 24th June 1898, 9th September 1904 - these copies via the BNA. 

Slough, Windsor and Eton Express Oct 31 1885 - Slough Libraries. 

Slater's Commercial Directory 1850

Maidenhead Advertiser 31st March 1880, 22nd November 1883 - Bayliss Media Archive. 

© MarlowAncestors

Elizabeth Lee / Tyler of Great Marlow - Clayton Arms

Elizabeth was born circa 1795. By 1817 she had married Marlow baker William Lee of Chapel Street and was mother to a daughter Rose Ann, known usually as simply Ann. 

I have not located the marriage of Elizabeth and William. He was baptised into a nonconformist Christian family which may explain that. I believe the couple worshipped at the Salem Chapel, Quoiting Square now known as Christ Church.

According to an obituary for Rose Ann, her father William Lee was hung in Aylesbury Gaol for forgery, one of the last to suffer this punishment for the crime. This must have been traumatic and embarrassing for Elizabeth. I believe the offence was actually fraud.

By the time of the 1841 census she had remarried Joseph Tyler and they were running the Clayton Arms pub in Quoiting Square. Joseph was there personally, with or without Elizabeth, by 1838. He was the first landlord of Clayton Arms, which was owned by the Clayton family. 

Prior to this pub job Joseph had been a linen draper, at first in Watlington, then by working with John Meadows in the High Street, before striking out on his own with a business in Quoiting Square (probably next door to the Clayton Arms). He gave up the latter and sold it in 1830.

Joseph had a reputation for providing excellent dinners at the pub - or was that really Elizabeth's doing?

On the 1841 census Elizabeth had her daughter Ann with her. The girl would go on to marry Henry Moss. On the 1851 census Ann and Henry were living with Elizabeth who by then was a widow and running the pub alone.

The licence was transferred to someone else in 1858 following her death.

For more posts like this see the listing Biographies Of Individuals and Pub Related Index.

For more Quoiting Square (formerly Quoiting Place) content see this index

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

Sources:

Newspaper copies held at the British Library and accessed by me October 2020 via the BNA- South Bucks Standard May 17th 1895 [Rose Ann's obituary], Reading Mercury 15th March 1830 [Joseph Tyler information].

GRO death index online.

1841 and 51 censuses transcribed by me from microfilm images of census pages.

Buckinghamshire Baptism Index, baptism of William Lee. Find My Past. Accessed October 12th 2020.

© MarlowAncestors 

Will Summary Mary Dorell Of Great Marlow 1849

 I obtained a copy of this PCC will from the National Archives, Kew. This I transcribed and now summarize here.

MARY DORELL / DORREL WIDOW. WILL PROVED 1849.

Asks for burial at Great Marlow Church.

Executors to invest £130 in public stocks for the benefit of her grandson John Dorell Bowen son of Thomas Bowen of Great Marlow until John is 21 when he is to receive the £130. If he dies before 21 both the lump sum and the income from it's investment go equally to testator's children= Joseph Dorell, Elizabeth Brooks, Jane Harding and Eliza Moss.

Son Joseph £130.

Daughters as above equal share in testator's wardrobe contents.

Household furniture and effects to be equally divided between son and daughters.

Rest of personal estate after debts paid to her three daughters as above.

Son in law Thomas Bowen and friend Robert ... executors.

Witnesses W.L Ward of Great Marlow and Henry Anthony bookbinder of Great Marlow. [Ward was the solicitor]

NOTES:

Mary Dorell widow of Great Marlow [Aka Mary Dorrell] Written 1847. Proved 1849.

Asks to be buried Marlow Churchyard.

Executor to invest £130 and take the dividends, interest and produce of that until testator's grandson John Dorell Bowen son of Thomas Bowen publican of Great Marlow is 21 then John gets it himself. If John died before then it to be divided between testator's son Joseph Dorell and daughters Elizabeth Brooks, Jane Harding and Maria Moss.

£130 to son Joseph Dorell.

Her wardrobe to be divided equally between her daughters.

Household goods divided equally between her son and daughters.

Anything else remaining in her estate after funeral costs and debts paid to be divided between her daughters.

Executors: son in law Thomas Bowen and friend Robert Footitt.

Testator made mark rather than sign.

Witnessed by W.L Ward solicitor and Henry Anthony bookbinder, both of Great Marlow.

Notes:

Mary was the widow of John Dorell / Dorrell. The family came from Oxfordshire. Mary lived in a cottage in Quoiting Square Marlow, very close to the Red Lion, owned first by Thomas Bowen senior, father of Thomas Junior, and then passed by will to Mary Dorrell's daughter in law also called Mary Dorrell who had married George Dorrell. If you are scratching your head at that- Mary of the will's son George and daughter Priscilla both married Bowens, the children of Thomas Bowen senior. I hope that helps explain the family!

Mary's daughter Priscilla, wife of Thomas Bowen Junior, predeceased her. The Bowens, a father and son both called Thomas, ran the Red Lion in Marlow for many years. Sadly young Thomas Dorell Bowen did not live to see his legacy payable at age 21. He died aged 16 and shares a grave marker with Mary. See the image  here

Mary's son George, not mentioned in the will, was also a Marlow publican.

Will witness W.L Ward was William Lakin Ward, solicitor of the High Street. 

Executor Robert Footitt was a High Street chemist.

Transcribed and then summarised from a will held at the National Archives Kew by Charlotte Day.

©Marlow Ancestors

To find all mentions of an individual here use the A-Z Person Index in the top drop down menu where you will also find a link to our other will posts and a grave marker image index.  

©Marlow Ancestors. Reproduction permitted with credit.

Will Amey White Of Great Marlow 1795

Widow. Will proved 1796. Written 1795.

Says she is sick and weak.

All just debts and funeral expenses to be paid.

Son William 2 messuages with all the yard, garden, stable, barn, buildings and outhouses in the occupations of Thomas Davis and Robert Howard, and a close adjoining these properties in the occupation of Robert Moore the younger.

Daughter Ann Moss the wife of John Moss gets a cottage and garden in Gun Lane Marlow [now Trinity Road] in the occupation of Edward King Colines. From that property Ann and John are to pay the £15 John Moss owes to surgeon George Trash. If they refuse to pay it then they don't get the property. Instead it goes to testator's other daughters: Elizabeth Edmunds, Jane White, Sarah Hammond and Martha Camden and they to pay the £15 to Trash.

Daughter Sarah Hammond gets 2 cottages in Gun Lane in the occupation of William Stevens and Jasper Howard.

To daughter Jane White a messuage with a yard, garden and outhouses in Chapel End, Marlow [Chapel Street] in which testator now lives. She to pay out from it's value £10 to daughter Elizabeth Edmunds.

Executors son in law John Moss and Mr Joseph Plumridge both of Great Marlow. [Probably Joseph the brewer]

Witnessed by .... ?Laws shoemaker of Great Marlow, William Ba...r maltster of Great Marlow and Robert Goldsmith attorney of Great Marlow.

This PCC will is held by the National Archives, Kew. From them you can obtain a copy.

Transcription and summary of it by Charlotte Day.

©Marlow Ancestors. If quoting from or reusing my transcription (which you are welcome to do) please credit this blog.

Lane End Historic Landlords #3 Clayton Arms

Clayton Arms, Lane End>

Compiled from adverts, censuses, court cases, property record etc. 

*UPDATED FEB 2026*

 This pub is not to be confused with a pub of the same name in Marlow. Both were under the jurisdiction of Great Marlow for licensing and census purposes.

The pub was sometimes used for property auctions and coroner's inquests. It was also the site of the Lane End Agricultural Society annual dinner from at least 1838. The pub usually seems to have been let along with nearby meadows. Sir William Clayton used the pub for the resurrected Court Leets for his manor in the 1860s and 1870s. (The one held on 21st June 1866 was the first for 18 years)

Post ©Marlow Ancestors. If using this research content give credit to this blog and link here.

1844 - Charles Fletcher?

1852- David Bigg.

1859- William Savage. Also a farmer. Described as a "working millwright and publican" in 1864. 

1864-67 Jane Savage, widow of above. She died in 1867. Also a farmer. The contents of the pub and farm were sold off by auction following her death. From this we can see that she grew fir trees for wood, raised a crop of wheat and had a few milk cows.

1870- Mrs Hatch, later Samuel Sears.

1870-75 Joshua Seers / Sears. Regarded as a generally "well conducted house" so got away with 50s fine for staying open outside of allowed hours in 1873, and the licence was not endorsed. 

1875-76 Zilpah Sears widow of Joshua Sears above.

1876-85 Charles Bird.

1885-87 Frederick Goodchild. He had transferred from the Osborne Arms Lane End.

1887- 91 Frederick Moss. Also farmed. Sold up and left the village.

1891-92 Albert Hanks.

1892- Mary Lucinda/Lucina  Hanks, widow of Albert above briefly.

1892- William Barley? Most likely Varley. 

1893- Henry Hawes.

1897-1901 Sarah Varley took over from her deceased husband William Varley who had died suddenly at the age of 49. She had found him unconscious in bed. The parish nurse Kate Byrne tried and failed to revive him with application of mustard and water to his throat and legs and by artificial resuscitation. Found to have had an apoplectic fit [South Bucks Standard reporting Feb 5th 1897, British Library Archives].

1907 - Harry Darton. 2. James Henry Coles

1909-15 William Oakley.

1921- Mr Oakley

1939- Jack Oakley

Many more landlords to to come!

 Look at the Pub Related option here for previous posts.

To find every mention of an individual here see the A-Z person index in the top drop down menu. There's over 6,000 people listed there. 

To see every post relating to Lane End and around see the index here

© Marlow Ancestors

Marlow in the Swing Riots 1830

 In the November of 1830, a number of anxious farmers, and prosperous Marlow citizens gathered for a public meeting in the Upper Crown. The reason for their concern was repeated reports of the "incendiaries" as they called them, who had been targeting the hay ricks in the wider neighbourhood. Farm workers unhappy with their low pay and working conditions, had been making their points by commiting acts of arson, destroying property worth large sums. This was not a meeting to discuss how legitimate any of the grievances were, and the papers stressed it was the principal citizens that were in attendance. The purpose was to decide the best way to protect property. Two courses of action were decided on, to swear in extra special constables, and to mount a foot and horse patrol of the neighbourhood hay ricks. Handbills were also circulated in Hambledon and Medmenham encouraging men to come forward to be sworn as constables to "assist in the preservation of peace."

 

Those Marlow men who kept a close eye on national news would have been aware that trouble was likely to strike close to home. Throughout the South East there had been so called Swing Riots since the summer. These were named after the fictional "Captain Swing" whose name was used to sign warning letters to local farmers and employers, threatening them with acts of arson and property destruction if they did not give in to paticular demands. One act of rebellion seems to have inspired others, and the focus locally began to be on "machine breaking" or putting out of action threshing machines and other mechanical devices that were reducing employment opportunities. Some of these contentious threshers were made locally, by Marlow ironmonger, engineer and agricultural implement maker John Moss. Reports of the excellent amount of work one of his machines was able to achieve in a short time at a farm in Rickmansworth, may have inspired some farmers locally to invest in one themselves. They could also be hired. 

A LETTER IS RECEIVED

Farm labourers looking for threshing work were only too aware of which farms had the threshing machines on hand to partially replace their labour. In November 1830 Mr Wright at the Marlow Paper Mills, Richard Webb at Marlow Bottom Farm, Joseph Biddle of Town Farm/High Wycombe and James Phelps of Temple Farm were amongst a group of local farmers and paper mill owners who received a dreaded Swing letter. Their property was threatened unless they did away with the machines that were taking away jobs. 

Joseph Biddle had read enough reports of the violence occasioned by a refusal to cooperate with the rioters, and was in no mood to take chances. He immediately had his new threshing machine taken down. He had a large number of ricks in close proximity and said it would be impossible to save the whole should one be ignited. Mr Phelps of Temple followed his lead. Richard Webb was said to have burnt his own threshing machine to pre-empt any action. And then they waited. 

A week or two later these letters were followed up by some targeting smaller landowners and gentleman farmers including William Atkinson (Marlow Bottom, Town End and the Rookery farms), Mr Wethered and  Mr Lovegrove.  

THE NEWS FROM WYCOMBE

Most reports of a Swing Riot starting begin with some mention of suspicious strangers being seen in the town and those at High Wycombe were no exception. Some of the rioters gathered at Flackwell Heath, first in the beerhouse of John Sarney (the Leathern Bottle) and then on the Heath itself before proceeding to attack a number of the paper mills in the vicinity of Loudwater. Some of the mill owners tried to reassure the men that the machines had been taken out of use, but it was usually to no avail and the mills were broken into and equipment destroyed. An 'express message" was sent to the Town Clerk at Marlow, to warn him to prepare for a similar attack on the Marlow Paper Mills. What happened next is subject to wildly different eye witness accounts published within the next few days. 

Some accused the town clerk of panic. But this is with hindsight. He had no way of knowing which direction the rioters would come next. He first had to spread word, without the aid of telephone, around the town. So he ordered the alarm bell at the Town Hall to be rung, usually reserved for announcing a fire. We might expect the church bells to be rung, but there is no mention of this. This summoned the town criers to the Crown, who then went to their appointed places to make a public announcement. This was apparently to alert householders to a looming risk to their home and persons, and to request they gather to decide the best course of action. This was considered to be to dispatch a message to Colonel Clayton, the magistrate, at Harleyford. Unfortunately, Clayton had already decided on his own best course of action. That was to go shooting, and leave things to the special constables he had seen sworn in. The differing reports of the rest of the days action can partly be explained by those who seem to support Clayton and were therefore keen to dismiss the riots as over hyped and nothing that justified Clayton staying at home in case he was needed. Clayton said he thought the constables could have dealt with things, and he would not want to burden the parish with any added costs that other protective measures might entail. 

But our town clerk needed someone to take charge and so he sent a message to our two MPs, Mr Williams senior and Junior at Temple. They were thankfully at home and immediately came to Marlow and set up at the Crown. They then began to swear in a number of additional Special Constables, and were joined by other magistrates.

Some eyewitness accounts declare there was panic in the streets with woman rushing home with children in their arms, and householders arming themselves with whatever was to hand. Shops were barricaded and shutters closed. Other eyewitnesses, said that while a few "old women" and "gentlemen commonly denominated as dandies" were alarmed, the only panic was seen in the actions of the Clerk and MP (who was a political rival to Clayton). The streets were perfectly quiet they say. On the other hand others stated that it was decided to send a horse and cart to fetch a "depot of muskets kept in the neighbourhood" and they also considered sending for Colonel Clayton's small cannons that were kept at Harleyford and used on ceremonial occasions. These might be taken to the Mills as a deterrent they thought. It isn't clear if this messenger was sent. But an unnamed man was despatched to Reading to fetch the military. Unfortunately he was told he should have gone to Windsor barracks instead so it was after midnight that help arrived in the form of 30 Grenadier Guards and their officer, travelling in a coach, post chaise and cart. 

In the end, the rioters never made it on to Marlow. We may never know how many Marlow men travelled to Flackwell Heath or Wycombe to join in. But 21 year old Little Marlow ploughman and agricultural labourer William Knibbs (Nibbs) (born Flackwell Heath) was one of several Buckinghamshire men sentenced to 7 years transportation for role he played in the "riotous assembly" at Loudwater and resisting arrest at the scene. This was an immediate commutation of a death sentence. He left the UK on the ship Proteus with 111 other prisoners on 12 April 1831 and arrived in Van Diemens Land, Australia on 3rd August. He died there age 75 in 1884. 

Flackwell Heath's John Sarney (Sawney) received a pardon after spending several years on the prison hulks. He was buried at Marlow in 1840 so presumably had moved there. Aged 53/4 when convicted. John had originally been sentenced to death before it was reduced to transportation for life, and he was moved to the prison hulks for something like 5 years before a decision to pardon him was made. His offence related to machine breaking at the paper making mill of William Robert Davis.  A large petition from local residents was presented to the authorities shortly after the conviction appealing for mercy for John and this was followed by a similar letter from many of the mill owners and others who had been attacked or threatened including William Davis and Marlow's Mr Wright. They no doubt felt that calm would better be preserved if mercy was shown to those not considered to be the most strident ringleaders. Farmer Edmund Collins, overseer of Wycombe continued to write campaigning for John's release from his extended stay in the hulks. Edmund said the delay in making a decision in the case had prolonged the torture for wife Sarah who was "almost out of her mind" with stress and worry.  Indeed Edmund offered to employ John should he be released.  

Other local connections:

(All of the below spent time on the hulk York at Portsmouth before being transported on the Proteus as above, unless stated)

 Aylesbury's John Blizzard, whose wife Mary was living "on the parish" at Little Marlow at the time of her husband's trial. He was sentenced to death but this was commuted to transportation for life. He had been involved in the destruction of Zachary Allnutt's paper making machine at High Wycombe. 

William Butler was a native of Little Marlow then living in Woburn. A farm labourer, he was sentenced to death commuted to 7 years transportation for his involvement in the machine breaking at Allnutt's paper mill as above. 

John Moody - 26 year old ploughman and Little Marlow native. Offence again relates to Allnutt's mill. Death sentence commuted to 7 years transportation. 

William Moody age 22, of Little Marlow. Probably brother to above. Death sentence commuted to 1 years imprisonment. 

Related Posts

1847 election riots Here

Chartist Edmund Stallwood here

Every mention of an individual here can be found listed in the A-Z person index in the top drop down menu. 

SOURCES - a selection

A Guide to Early Modern History, 1830- 1835, Cory, William Johnson. C Paul &Co 1882. 

The Life & Times of Swing, the Kent Rick Burner. "Swing, Francis".  R Carlisle, 1830.  

Berkshire Chronicle - 27 November 1830. Copy from the British Library and accessed via the BNA March 2021

The News (London)  21 November 1830, as above

Reading Mercury 20 September & 29 November 1830, as above

Windsor and Eton Express 28 August,  27 November, 4 & 11 December 1830, as above

Oxford Journal 27 November 1830, as above

Albion and The Star 26 November 1830, as above

Sun (London) 25 November 1830, as above

History Of England from the year 1830- 1874, Volume 1. Molesworth, William M. Chapman & Hall, 1886. 

https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/proteus. Accessed April 2021. 

Hampshire Machine Breakers, Jill Chambers. (J Chambers 1990)

©MarlowAncestors

Lydia and John Moss of Great Marlow -

 John White Moss and Lydia, who was apparently his second wife, were resident in Marlow by the late 1820s, if not before.

Like so many men of the 1800s John pursued more than one trade. A cloth dealer who sold it seems predominantly at auction (often from a pub in Duke Street Reading), he was also an inventor and maker of agricultural implements and a millwright at Marlow.

Lydia herself is in a trade directory of 1839 as a clothier. It looks like she took over that side of John's enterprise as his machinery and millwright's business became bigger as he was not much mentioned as a cloth dealer after 1840. As well as broad cloth they sold more luxurious materials like silk.

I don't know what Lydia felt about it but John doesn't seem to have been too keen on paying his taxes as he twice was fined for assaulting tax gatherers who came to his Marlow premises.

Perhaps we'll put that down to a creative temperament- John was the inventor of a vegetable cutting machine which cut up vegetables for livestock to eat (guaranteed light enough for a child worker to use!) and instigator of improvements in cider presses amongst other implements. In 1830 it is likely that a threshing machine he owned and hired out was involved in the accidental injury of a worker (through no fault of John or his machine). See here.

In 1840 the use of child and teen climbing boys to clean chimneys was outlawed. John was quick to promote a chimney cleaning machine which meant chimneys could be cleaned without anyone shimmying up the flue. Given his designing of the cutting machine described previously so that it could be used by a child I don't think we can interpret this machine as a sign John was against child labour per se! But clearly he recognised that a child did have a child's limitations on what they could safely manage which was more than many people of the day would accept.

Organising employment for poor children would have been part of his role as one of the Marlow Poor Law Guardians, a role he took on in 1835 and held for some years. He was renowned for never missing a meeting and never being a minute late.

The poverty the guardians dealt with, or tried to, was deep in the 1800s and led to high levels of thieving by those struggling to survive. Lydia and John had linen stolen from their wash house in 1841 and John at other times lost a horse whip to thieves as well as a saw from his business premises.

John died in 1848. Lydia as his executor and sole legatee organised the sale of his agricultural implement stock- threshing machines, turnip drills, horse hoes, wheelbarrows, a Suffolk drill, bean mill, turnip drill and all kinds of other items from our vanished agricultural past. John had made most of them himself, and many  had been hired out to local farms rather than offered directly for sale. 

Lydia was giving up the family home in High Street so some of their household effects were also for sale. These items show that Lydia and John had a comfortable home life enjoying four poster beds with feather mattresses, fancy japanned furniture and the use of a chaise carriage. Also up for sale in 1850 was Lydia's stock in trade of ready made clothes. This included 9 great clothes, 48 men and boys jackets, 43 fancy waistcoats, 20 pairs of "small clothes" , 20 pairs of "trowsers" , 34 pairs of shoes and gaiters, and 164 town made hats. 

She also went to court to pursue those who owed her husband's estate money. Don't mess with Lydia!

She went to live with her son William White Moss, a carpenter, and his wife Eliza (née Sparks) in West Street Marlow. Lydia worked as a dressmaker initially but by the 1861 census she had retired to Wraysbury near Eton in Bucks and was living on an annuity.

She remained there until her death at home in Albert Place, Wraysbury in 1883.

To find all mentions of someone on the blog use the A-Z Person Index menu option on the top drop down menu. 

Read about John's campaign to improve early postal services in the town here

Research sources included:

My transcription of John's will, copy obtained from the National Archives Kew.

Census transcriptions of mine from microfilm except Wraysbury census which is courtesy of Jane Pullinger.

Newspapers from the British Library via the BNA accessed September 2020: Reading Mercury 1st June (auction) and Bucks Gazette 23rd January 1841 (wash house robbery).

Marriage and death registrations from the GRO online search tool. Death certificate copy from GRO.

Great Marlow Parish Registers, my transcription.

1833 parochial assessment book, my transcription of the original book which is held by my family.

©Marlow Ancestors.  You are welcome to use this research but please link here if you do so that the research sources I used remain properly credited.

Clayton Arms - Landlords and history

 *This post is updated as new information emerges. Last update August 2025*

1837 - pub existed (which it did not in 1833, having been most likely a carpenter's premises previously). Hosted dinner for more than 100 people in honour of Queen Victoria's Coronation. For more on the Coronation celebrations in Marlow, see here.

1838 - J. Tyler (Joseph, formerly draper of Quoiting Square, possibly previously operating as a draper in the shop next door to the pub).  Joseph was a liberal supporter. Sir William Robert Clayton was their frequent election candidate in this era, he was also a substantial landlord. When not at work in the pub Joseph served as umpire at Marlow cricket matches which were then played on Alder Meadow mostly.

1839 - Joseph Tyler started a branch of the Royal Standard Benefit society. For more information on the Slate Clubs and Benefit Societies of the Clayton Arms see our post here on poverty in Victorian Marlow. 

1847 - Jos. Tyler.

1851 - Joseph Tyler died 24th March. Age 61. 

1853 - 58 Elizabeth Tyler, wife of above.  Her first marriage was to William Lee. Biographical post on her is available here. Elizabeth died in 1858.

1859 - 72 Thomas Hall. In 1863 and 1871 said also to be a carrier, and in 1869 to be licenced to let horses and carriages. Gave evidence at an inquest when a man who came to hire a carriage to take him to Bourne End station fell down dead in the yard of the Clayton Arms. The man was a London based pianoforte tuner who had been visiting various houses in the area for his job. He died of natural causes it was found. In 1872, Sarah Hall wife of Thomas Hall died at the Clayton Arms aged just 32. Thomas moved to the Coach and Horses in West Street later that year. More here. In 1861 the Marlow Co-Operative movement started in the pub. Members clubbed together to buy cheaper groceries.

1875 - William Hall advertised that he runs Hanson cabs, and other vehicles to hire from both the Clayton Arms and the Angel Inn, Maidenhead. Getting married? William can provide a suitable vehicle for the happy couple with strictly matching horses for smartness, in a choice of grey or bay. He also had a private omnibus and large waggonette available to hire, and offered horse clipping services too. 

1877 - Robert Hall.

1878 - George Heslett.

1879 - George Heslett transferred premises to William Clifford

1883 - William Clifford. In 1890 William escapes a fine for opening his beer house before the legally permitted time on a Sunday (12.30pm at the time.) He was only 15 minutes early in opening, which he put down to having a cheap unreliable watch! He had set it by the town clock that morning. The court considers his premises to have been otherwise well conducted. 

1892 - 1.) William Clifford

             2.) Charles Smart Mitchell. The 10 month old daughter of Charles died at the Clayton Arms, Ruth Emily Mitchell.

1897 - C S  or W G Mitchell to W J Cross (holdover).

1898 Mr Cross to F Lester.

1899 - 1906 Frederick William Lester, (Born Suffolk, his children born in London. Wife Eliza born Wembley. For the grave of the Lester children see here ). Eliza is a talented pianist and presides at the Clayton Arms piano during selected gatherings such as the Christmas Suppers of the Clayton Arms Slate Club. This was a huge affair with 150-200 members on average, providing life changing benefits for the working men who were members. You can read more about them and the Clayton Arms one in particular here. 

1906 - Frederick Lester. (Moved to the Red Lion in 1909) 2. William John Steel.

1907 - W J Steel 2. Arthur William Towers. In 1907 the pub had an air rifle range on the premises - hopefully restricted to the lighter drinkers! 

1907 - 1914 Arthur William Towers. Left 1914 to move to Bisham where Arthur ran a boot and shoe business. He died 1944.  Wife Alice was born in Suffolk and came to the Marlow area to enter service with a local family. She died 1961, a much loved Bisham resident known for her care and attention to the sick. 

1914-15 - Francis Thomas White. Summoned for selling watered down brandy 1915.

1920 - 26 Walter Sadgrove. See grave image below.

1926 - 28 Bertha Sadgrove, widow of Walter Sadgrove. She transferred the licence eventually to Herbert? White. Sanitary arrangements were described as "disgraceful" in the building in 1928. Bertha became a live in domestic housekeeper after she left the pub before retiring to Deansfield Close. Licence transferred early in the year to Mr E. White.  The club room was then being used as a paint and furniture repair workshop. The local magistrates weren't very happy with that and wanted the internal doorway between the workshop and the rest of the pub stopped up. This would have been due to concerns that the workshop could act as a front for beer service during illegal hours. Anyone going in to the workshop as a customer could sneak through into the bar when the bar was supposed to be closed. Of course there is absolutely no evidence that anyone intended to do that. More likely Mr White was simply trying to carry on two businesses because the pub trade was very much in the doldrums. Even when times were good many landlords in order to survive had to work in supplementary trades. Mr White agreed to return the clubroom into normal pub use however as he was told that he could have a dance and music licence if he did so, with the clubroom used for the dances.

1929 - Mr E White transferred to A H Wilder.

1930s  - (from at least then, going onwards for many years) pub had a team in the Town League for darts. Always a successful team.

1930- 35 (at least) William Christopher Tilbury. Pub had some upgrade work done in 1933.

1939 - Mrs Annie Mabel Tilbury. Previously of The Queen, until it's forced closure in 1928. Annie was a native of Stokenchurch and died in Marlow in 1952. 

WW2 - During the second world war the cellars were used as a bomb shelter for the children in nearby Oxford Road infants' school.

1946- a veteran's club for those who served in the 1939-45 war was started at the pub. It met monthly.

1950 - Mrs Tilbury. Presumably the same one as above.

1950s - Pub often hosts pigeon racing club meetings and shows (and 1960s).

1954 - the brewery's live-in manager was James Wishart.

1958 - pub hosts basket and lampshade making classes for women under the auspices of the Townswomen's Guild.

Complied by Kathryn Day and Charlotte Day.

The grave of landlord Walter Alexander Sadgrove, landlord. "Alick" D. July 28 1926. (Grave in Marlow Cemetery).

Use the Person Index option on the top drop down menu to search for all mentions of a person on this blog. Thousands of people are mentioned.

For a full list of old pubs, inns, beerhouses of Marlow (more than 100 listed!) see this post here

Landlord listings for other Quoiting Square premises can be found here

Post about the raucous temperance meetings held outside the Clayton's can be found here!

Also check out the Pub Related option on the top drop down menu. 

SOURCES

Numerous cross referenced wills, property deeds, and the like. 

Reports of licencing sessions, related court cases and general news reports from The South Bucks Standard, Bucks Herald and Windsor and Eton Express, held at the British Library and accessed via the BNA including :

South Bucks Standard 27 December 1879, May 17, July 5 1895, as above

Kelly's Post Office Directory 1859, 1863,1869, 1877, 1903, 1915, 1939

1853 Mussons and Cravens Commercial Directory

Robson's Directory 1839

Census 1871, 1881. Transcribed from microfilm by Charlotte.

Marlow Directory and Almanack 1907, 1915. 

Marlow Guide 1903. 

©Marlow Ancestors. You are welcome to quote from this research if you credit this blog and link back here. 

1833 Great Marlow Parochial Assessment Part Two

 Updated by Charlotte October 2023

The original handwritten working notebooks used to compile the parochial assessment have been in my family for a time but are now very fragile so I thought I'd better transcribe them for posterity. The books were used for corrections to this information up to circa 1839 and include slotted in correspondence on the issue.

This is part 2 of many parts dealing with the houses and buildings. 

Post by Charlotte Day.

©Marlow Ancestors. You are very welcome to quote from / use this transcription for family and local history purposes with credit to this blog.

Town houses and buildings

High Street, West side continued

Format is =

Name

Description of property

Annual value

Any notes or comments from me in square brackets

John Meadows [a draper. Retired 1839]

Dwelling house and garden

£8

Stable and loft 

10 shillings

Barn

£1

Shops and dwelling house

£14

*****

Ralfs [only bit of name given] [property owned by the family from before 1826]

Dwelling house, yard and large garden

£22

*****

Mayor [Again this is the whole name given. Almost certainly a butcher].

House and garden

£6

*****

Susannah Clark [Grocer and tea dealer who also ran a coach. Her stagecoach was the first vehicle to cross Marlow suspension bridge when it opened. Present here 1830. Widow.]

House and garden

£8

*****

John Broome [he seems out of his proper place in the assessment. Died aged 89 in 1845. John was of Irish birth and had spent 26 years in the East Indies before returning to England in 1807. This return date precludes him from being the John Broome of Westthorpe Little Marlow in 1793]

House and garden

£11

*****

Robert Colbourne [Surgeon. I have a copy of the will of a Robert Colbourne that is this man's father. A transcription of it is here].

House, yard, stable, pleasure ground and garden

£26

*****

James Field [he ran a school, was a tailor and became Post Master. The wills of himself and his wife are available on the blog here].

Dwelling House, school room, offices and garden

£22

*****

William Harding [shoemaker and beerseller]

The Turks Head beershop [also known as the Saracen's Head], house, yard and garden

£10

*****

James Maclean [tin plate worker and ironmonger].

House, shop, and garden

£13

*****

Samuel Carter [shoemaker]

House, yard and garden

£15

*****

Richard Hawkins

House and other buildings

£12

****

Joseph Grey [a tailor]

House

£6

*****

John Moss 

House, Kitchen with room over Smith's shop, stable, large workshop, sheds, yards, foundry, gardens and part of house adjoining [John and his wife are the subject of a biographical post on the blog here. His main business premises described above as workshops, foundry etc were down by the Mills later and I thought at this time too but he is listed High Street which was his home address so not sure. He also a little later rented some arable land, stables etc in Spittal Street]

£21

Barn and part of a yard by the Meeting House [Oxford Road]

£2 10 shillings

Gardens by Oxford Lane [modern Oxford Road]

£3

*****

James Coster

House and garden

£12

******

To be continued

To search for people on this blog look at the Person Index option on the drop down menu.