Bovingdon Green and Marlow Common Parochial Assessment 1833

 Updated August 2023, with additional research notes.

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

Transcribed by Charlotte Day.

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

Bovingdon Green

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

Thomas Frith [still in Bovingdon Green 1838]

Richard Fletcher

Thomas Jones

*****

Ephraim House

House and yard 

£5

*****

William Davies

House, yard, garden and woodhouse 

£10

*****

Marlow Common

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

John Swadling

Thomas Mead [Described as in Bovingdon Green 1838]

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

James Winkworth

*****

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

Cottage and garden

£4

*****

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

John Rose

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

*****

Joseph Keep

Cottage and garden

£3

*****

John Blackwell [he was a blacksmith]

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

£9

Piece of ground on the Common

10 shillings

*****

William Howard

House and garden

£6

*****

Edward Collins [more on him including will notes here]

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

£9

*****

James Martin

Cottage and garden

£5

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

For more posts on either place see here

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

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

Blounts / Blunts Farm Marlow

Historic occupier list. Occupiers are not necessarily the owner. Dates given are where I find firm evidence of someone being in occupation at the farm, they may have been present earlier or later too. 

Note= the name of the farm may spring from William Blount who was present in Marlow in the early 1400s. Perhaps he or his family owned or rented land that was or would become this farm.

Updated April 2026.

1587 Thomas Ponde sold it to Brinkhurst of Lane End, his relative. The later will of Thomas is on the blog here. 

1640 - John Langley.

1783 & 1788 William Brookes. Tenant to Nathaniel Micklem of Hurley. 

1815-18 Joseph and William Brooks. Probably brothers.

1833-1850 John Gibbons. Tenant to a Mr Micklem in 1833. Blounts then consisted of 173 acres. John also occupied Copy Farm in 1833. He retired from Blounts in 1850. Also at Widmere Farm. See here. At the time of John's retirement, there is a grand sale of stock. The animals on offer include "7 short legged powerful cart-horses", a 4 year old "well bred brown nag" who is a good roadster and hunter, and two handsome heifers. Also available to buy are 4 market waggons, 3 strong dung carts, a market cart, plough and cart harnesses for 8 horses, and the usual selection of ploughs, ladders, troughs, hurdles, turnip and chaff cutters etc. 

1854- Richard Blackwell, bailiff to the non residential owner who I think was still a Micklem.

1857-60 "Messrs Hewett", that is John and William. In 1857 sheep and corn stolen from them in different incidents. In 1859 their ploughman was charged with horse cruelty. William died aged 68 in 1860 on the farm. 

1860-67 John Hewett above. John died age 67 in 1867. Wife Sarah. Their daughter Sarah later married James Curtis of Wood Barn Farm, Little Marlow. Sarah senior died in 1893.

1869-76 William Thomas Bird. In 1871 summoned his carter John Edwards for allegedly stealing a pint of beer from him [Henley Advertiser 8th April 1871]. William moved to Abbey Farm Little Marlow but went bankrupt 1878. Note that earlier occupiers Joseph and William Brooks were related to the Bird family.

1883- Thomas Elliott? Kept sheep on the farm but was he the farmer?

1886- J and E Micklem owners but not living there. Bailiff Richard Sumner.

1888-89 Farm and the stock on it up for sale.

1889- 1899. Dr Francis Laking. Knighted 1893.  Resident only during the summer. Runs very exclusive West End doctors practice, with royal clients. In 1892 bailiff is John Warren. In that year a temporary worker on the farm George Cellam died from his burns after a fire there. George came from a Mr Mitchell of Burnham with a threshing machine hired to thresh barley at Blounts. He and other workers went drinking in the Royal Oak Bovingdon Green in the evening then returned to the farm to sleep the night up against the barley rick. Some of them had pipes and it was thought later that hot ash from one of those must have ignited the rick. That and the threshing machine were destroyed. George was taken to the Royal Oak and from there in a cart to Marlow Cottage hospital but died. [Some details from South Bucks Standard 26th February 1892]. There was no water sufficiently nearby to douse the rick and without that the Fire Brigade could not assist. In 1894 mains water was ran up to the farm for the first time. 

In 1893 Francis hosted a children's athletics sports event, with "useful" prizes such as cruet sets and teapots which perhaps does not strike us as the most exciting gifts for the youngsters. However each also recieved  a silver coin minted that year. Guy Laking is the starter. Over 200 children enter the races. A sumptuous tea is provided thanks to Mr Carter of Marlow and the Town's Drum & Fife band also attend. 

Dr Laking also raised pigs and heifers and grew oats and wheat on the farm. He purchased Clarefield, Maidenhead Thicket, on leaving Blounts. 

Gardener to Dr Laking  - Alan Axten 1894. (Lived Blounts Cottages.)

1899-1926. Walter Wethered. His farm manager and gardener was James Platt from at least 1903. James was still the farm manager in the late 1930s but I am unsure if this was for Walter or someone else.

1940- Mrs Heath. Lives with a butler, cook and other servants so property perhaps more of a home with land now.

Farm occupancies are compiled by me from advertisements, trade journals, censuses, court cases, property records and more. As I sort my research notes mountain I will probably add more information.

To search for other farm posts like this see the Specific Shops Streets Etc option on the top drop down menu. To look for a particular person use the Person Index.

© Marlow Ancestors. If using this research credit this blog and link here but you are welcome to do so. 

Landlords / History Royal Oak Bovingdon Green

 

Updated May 2026

Historic landlords listings are compiled from censuses, court cases, advertisements, wills, property records (some uniquely held by us) etc.

The pub building dates from the 1600s apparently. In the 1800s it was often used for coroner's inquests and sometimes for auctions too. A lovely place now but a pretty rough establishment in late Victorian times. You can find out more about Edward Collins and the pub in general in my Bovingdon Green in the 1800s post here

1794- Mr Langton the brewer leased it. 

1833-54 Edward Collins. Licence upgraded to alehouse from beerseller 1843. This was at first refused by the licensing magistrates as Edward had done nothing to stop two of his arguing customers from taking their disagreement out onto the green and brawling until one of them died. What's more he was alleged to have given the fighters lights to see by during the brawl. After the license upgrade refusal many Marlow and Bovingdon Green people wrote to the magistrates in support of Edward saying he was a man of good character who could be trusted to sell more than beer responsibly and they relented. There were greater standards expected of those who sold more than beer because other drinks were seen as more potent and thus more likely to result in addictive or unsavoury behaviour. Edward died 1854. In his will written in 1848 and proven 1854, he left all he had to his daughter Sophia Collins and niece Elizabeth ?Foley?

1859-63 Joseph Lee. A William Lee, James Lee both mentioned as living on the  premises 1863, presumably family.. James fined for being drunk at Bovingdon Green and "putting himself in a fighting attitude near the public pump" (?!?).

1863-69 James Leach

1869 - up to let for an annual rent of £15. 

1871-80 James Twitchen. Wife Alice nee Croxon. James later became a cattle dealer. James had moved from the Prince of Wales pub in Marlow when he came to Bovingdon Green. A different, older James Twitchen was at the Queen's Head Little Marlow.

1881-91 William Robinson who was originally from Scotland.

1891-93 Henry Tilbury. Wife Fanny. Henry became a farmer at Fingest. In 1892 came to assistance of a badly burned worker following a fire at nearby Blounts Farm but sadly the man passed away in Marlow Hospital. The man with his fellow workers had been drinking in the pub earlier that evening.

1893-97 Leonard Wheeler. Wife Mary. Became a farmer at Copy Farm Marlow after he left the pub. He came from a farming family at Wargrave.

1897-1902 George James Baigent. (Often referred to as James) Also a building contractor who occupied a field next to the pub in that capacity. Grew peas in a field near the pub. Victorian pub landlords often had their fingers in many business pies! Sold up 1902 and later moved to Haddenham to run a pub (Ye Olde Cider House) and building contactor business but became insolvent 1906. In 1897 James finds a dead body in a meadow adjoining his field of peas. The man thankfully died of natural causes while out gathering firewood. It was 82 year old farm labourer Richard Harris of Oxford Terrace, Marlow. 

1905-12 Charles Chantler who also kept pigs and cows and cultivated hay at Oak Farm Bovingdon Green. In his free time he played for the Marlow Working Men's Cricket Club. Wife Elizabeth. In 1909 James Chantler the brother of Charles was killed in a fight with Charles in the kitchen of the Royal Oak that began after Elizabeth refused a drunk James any whisky when she was serving at the bar. He then insulted her in her kitchen calling her a "dirty skunk". She fetched her husband saying James must be turned out of their house. James tried to hit her and attack Charles himself and so Charles fought him. James died after hitting his head when Charles pushed him down. A coroner's jury decided James had died due to his own misadventure and Charles did not have to face a manslaughter or murder charge. He and Elizabeth emigrated to Australia in 1913. Afterwards Charles wrote a letter to one of the local papers here describing his long voyage to Fremantle via South Africa on an "assisted passage scheme" He travelled to St Pancras Station, thence to Tilbury Docks where he took a tender out to his ship the Demosthenes. After examination by a doctor, he is free to find his cabin which he finds rather nice. A stop at Plymouth sees many more emigrants arrive on board. He finds the food better quality on board than he expected if very monotonous. He is also pleasantly surprised with how he manages the heat at South Africa, and the fact they are allowed a full day off ship to do some sightseeing at Cape Town. Other pleasant surprises are the good humour the other passengers manage rolling sea conditions near Africa which sees many meals upset and the fact Charles himself does not seem to have been very sea sick. On the negative side he is surprised at how roughly the luggage is handled, with many trunks burst open before they've even left London. He also encounters several fellow passengers not traveling under the assisted scheme who say they did not want to travel on an emigration ship, and that emigrants should be put in their own vessel. Charles says they did not know he himself was an emigrant when stating their prejudices! The ship crew he says treat all third passengers the same (and well ) regardless of their status otherwise however. 

1912- Joseph Podmore given licence. 

1913- Joseph Podmore transferred licence to Samuel Cluett.

1913-15 Samuel Cluett.

1915 - Temporary transfer of licence to Maurice Pitcher from Samuel Cluett granted.

1916 - Maurice Pitcher, aged 34, ran the pub and a small 20 acre farm where he raised sheep and bred cattle. He had recently married but didn't think his wife would be able to manage his businesses if he was forced to fight in WW1. There was a large number of soldiers up at Marlow Common training so there was a much larger clientele at the pub that had ever been known before. In April Maurice was granted temporary protection from military service. At the end of June his appeal for a further exemption was denied. He had tried unsuccessfully to dispose of his business in the meantime.

1917 - 39 Herbert Church.

1939-51 at least Hugh Bartlett. Hugh was an ex police sergeant who spent 4 years serving at Marlow immediately before retiring to run the Royal Oak. Hugh was one of those in the Welcome Home committee for Bovingdon Green that raised funds for returning service personnel men and women as the war came to an end.

Compiled by Charlotte Day and Kathryn Day.

For more pub related content see the Pub Related option on the top drop down menu.

For all posts related to Bovingdon Green, Marlow Common and nearby see the index here

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

Marlow Heroes Arthur Corby and Charles Bonny

I always like to highlight the great things some of your ancestors may have done. Today here's a look at Arthur Harry Corby and Charles Bonny whose determination and quick thinking ensured that a child molester was brought to justice.

The incident occurred in the Spring of 1903. Arthur and Charles were in a relatively new partnership together as coach builders. They were already doing well having supplied the water company and a while later would beat other older firms to win the contract to build a new sewage cart for Marlow too. Their workshop was in Prospect Road a short distance from Arthur's family home in the same street.

Whilst working one afternoon Arthur noticed two children on the nearby footpath on Hanging Hill (alongside the allotments now) collecting flowers. Walking towards them with an umbrella was a man. A horrified Corby saw the man apparently feign the dropping of his umbrella near one of the children Annie Davis, so as to have excuse to pause by her. It then appeared that he "interfered" with her. She struggled from his grip and fled in great distress to Corby and Bonny's workshop. The man adjusted his clothing and continued his way up the path towards Bovingdon Green. Bonny took the girl inside their premises where Corby sought confirmation from her of his suspicions that she had been attacked. While Bonny took Annie home to her mother Corby flew off in pursuit of the offender.

As soon as the child was safe Bonny joined the chase. They caught up with the man, later revealed as a James Pauley, in the stable of the Royal Oak pub at Bovingdon Green. He refused to come with them back to Marlow but strong arm tactics meant he had no chance of escape. They hauled him back to their workshop where they held him while Annie's father went for Sergeant Crook. In the meantime Bonny let him know if it was up to him he would be shot! Pauley tried to feign drunkenness as an excuse for his behaviour. 

The judge was having none of that excuse and a sentence of 9 months hard labour was imposed.

Despite their success the partnership between Corby and Bonny broke up within months. The reason is not known by me. 

Background:

Arthur Harry Corby was born in Marlow in 1873 to Ambrose and Harriet Corby. He grew up in Prospect Place which in it's early days was called Marefield Place. The historic homes there no longer exist. He became a wheelwright as a teenager before starting the coach building business. In 1903 he and his wife Ada and toddler son Frederick lived with his widowed father Ambrose, a bootmaker. He later lived as well as worked in Prospect Road.

In 1912 he was again a witness in a court when he found one of his Prospect Road neighbours dead in bed. Arthur appeared as a witness at the coroner's inquest.

He himself died in 1957.

Charles Bonny spent his childhood in Canada though his parents were of English origin. He returned to England to live with his maternal grandfather Robert Shaw the Marlow boat builder by the time of the 1901 census. They lived down by Marlow Bridge and Charles was listed as a coach builder then. Following the break up of his partnership with Corby he returned to Canada.

Annie Davis was 9 at the time of the attack.  She was the daughter of George and Louisa Davis. She later became a dressmaker. I think she married. George and Louisa suffered another sad event when their disabled young lodger committed suicide - you can read more here

For a post about another local hero, poverty campaigner Andrew Mearns see here

To find every mention of an ancestor on this blog use the Person Index option on the drop down menu. Hundreds of people are mentioned.

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

©Marlow Ancestors. You are very welcome to use this research for family or local history purposes. Please give credit to this blog if quoting from this research and link here so that my sources remain credited for the information they provided.

Sources included:

Canada passenger lists at National Library of Canada.

Canadian census from the LDS family search website accessed August 2020.

Other census returns my transcription from census page images on microfilm.

South Bucks Standard 15th May and 3rd July 1903. Paper at the British Library, via BNA. Accessed August 2020.

Great Marlow Parish Registers. Old transcription of mine.

GRO death index on their website, accessed August 2020