A Merry Christmas from "Genealogy in Hertfordshire"

A Merry Xmas from Fred Spurgin

"F S" produced several different sets of Xmas cards. In 1906 they were published by the London View Co. Ltd. and  appeared with a holly border. The series "Kiss me under the Mistletoe" may have been published the same year.

In 1907 (after the London View Co had closed) the publisher (if any) was Vertigen and the message appears in a box surrounded with holly.

            

In 1908 (when the Crown Publishing Co, St Albans, existed he appears to have produced no Xmas Cards,

In 1909 Spurgin Xmas cards were published by Watkins & Krake and were signed using the name Dauber.

In 1910 similar cards were produced to the previous year, but published by the Avenue Publishing Co in the Paternoster series.

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After a rather disruptive year - when the Genealogy in Hertfordshire site, and this blog, got very neglected - I am now hoping, to get the "Catalogue of F S Post Cards" (related to the Crown Publishing Company of St Albans) into a better long term structure (see latest Updates). In addition I hope to include some updates on other projects relating to Hertfordshire.

Have a good relaxing Christmas

Chris

A Merry Christmas from "Genealogy in Hertfordshire"

Hi All

Enjoy your Christmas and keep up your own researches into family and local history.

Yes I am still here even if my web site and blogs have been rather inactive during 2018 Other matters have meant that I have not been as active on line as I would like. My top priority has been to keep fit and over the year I have relaxed by doing more walking in the wonderful countryside around Tring - and have lost over 10 kg. 

To remain mentally active I have been continuing to work on local history. I have been trying to identify the artist who published the "Karaktus" comic cards in St Albans 110 years ago. The story involves a young and highly innovative artist who sometimes signed his cards "F S" and a whole networks of mainly small short-lived companies (such as the Crown Publishing Company of St Albans). 

Recently I came across firm evidence that "F S" also published some comic cards (such as the one above) under the pseudonym "Dauber" and was also responsible for the Infantastic series of cards of round-faced children. Certain details make it virtually certain that "F S" is Fred Spurgin, who was one of the top comic card artists of the 1910s and 20s.

Over the holiday period I will be actively updating (and correcting) the information I have on the "F S" related comic cards in the light of the latest discoveries. Of course you are welcome to enter the world of Edwardian comic post cards by "F S" at any time as long as you don't mind the occasional "work in progress" warnings.

So relax and enjoy the Christmas break.

Chris

Seasons Greetings

Merry Xmas and a Happy New Year to All

A Christmas post card by "F S" from 1908

Increasing pressures this year on a number of fronts meant that taking time off to relax became a priority - with "keeping fit" walks a priority. Doing research helps me relax, and this year I found I needed a project that that had a significant "fun" element in it. Last October I told you that I was working on:

Who was "F S" and did he work in St Albans with "Karaktus"?

Since then, whenever I feel I need a break I can go online to ebay and search through the many tens of thousands of early 20th century comic postcards on ebay to try and unravel what looks like a complex story involving a postcard printer in Saxony , a wholesale stationer in Brighton, and several very short-lived postcard publishing companies!  Unfortunately there has been no progress in the original problem of identifying Karaktus. It is clear that the pages I put online in October will need a significant rewrite to accommodate the new. information - so expect a few mor ecomic post card blogs in 2017.

My wife and I are planning to enjoy ourselves over Christmas and needless to say Aylesbury duck is again on the menu.

The above picture shows our 2012 Xmas duck
This year we will be separating the crown and having two separate meals

The Parson's Turkey

THE PARSON'S TURKEY. 

Half a century ago, when the income of a dissenting preacher in England was not very large, his salary was often supplemented by a bountiful of provisions from the well-to-do members of his congregation. A Baptist minister in Hertfordshire used at Christmas time to be positively inundated with hampers filled with good things. On one occasion an enormous turkey was sent to him by the thoughtful kindness a neighbouring farmer; but, as the minister's family had already provided for the Christmas dinner, the bird was sent into the market and sold. A passer-by, seeing this fine specimen of poultry, said, "What a splendid turkey! Just the thing for the parson's Christmas dinner." And to the "parson it was sent. The prudent wife sent it second time to the market, and sold it again for a handsome sum. Another friend, similarly struck with the magnificent proportions of the turkey, purchased it, and also sent it to the " parson." Not wishing to fly in the face Providence, the good man said, last, " It very clear that the Lord means us to have this turkey" and, with the entire approbation of the family, it formed part of the Christmas dinner. 

From the Aldershot Military Gazette 18th October 1875

An Advert for Christmas photographs at St Albans.

Lea Latimer Christmas was a photographer  who moved from Stoke Newington to Watford sometime before the 1911 census, and was still in Watford when war broke out in 1914 - and is of particular interest because of his photographs of soldiers. Towards the end of 1914 or early 1915 he moved to St Albans (with many more wartime photographs). I recently obtained a 1917 copy of the Herts Advertiser and found this advert - showing him at the same address as the earlier post card artist Karaktus.

See some of his war time photographs of soldiers HERE

XMAS Challenge 6: The Training Reserve Battalions

Xmas Challenge 5: Photographs by Percy Landon of Watford

Xmas 2014 Challenge - "Rules" - Link to Bigger Picture

In the Autumn of 1916 the way troops were trained was changes. Previously new recruits were allocated to on on the existing regiments, but the new arrangement was to have Training Reserve Battalions and the men were only allocated to regiments when their training was complete.  The picture here is the 20 Platoon, F Company,  22nd T.R.B. and was taken by L. L. Christmas, of St Albans. Most of the men in this photograph are wearing the General Service cap badge - but six in the middle of the 2nd row are wearing distinctive cap badges.  

A Military Christmas in Hertfordshire

The following article is based on part of Chapter 18 of The London Gunners come to Town and was published in the December 1995 issue of Hertfordshire Countryside.

It was reprinted in Margaret Ashby's book "A Hertfordshire Christmas"

Tring at War - Latest News 19th December, 1914

Christmas in Tring is looking good, as the the decision to based the headquarters of the 21st Division in the town, and the billeting of some 3,000 men now means that the shops are busy, although they would be even busier if local people shopped locally rather than in London. The paper was full of Xmas adverts and Tring Consolidated Charities distributed tickets for bread and coal. Over £25 was raised at the Tring Stock Sale for the Belgium Relief Fund and the big local news was the death of Dr Brown. There are brief mentions of the success of  Evelyn A. Freeman and Norah Jeffery in music exams, the vocalists at the Gem cinema, a lecture by the Rev. E. J. Whitman at the Baptist Chapel at Wigginton,  and the fact that Mr. H. W. Bishop, of Pendley, was a judge at the Smithfield Show.

     The military plans to use the High Street Schools as a military hospital were  progressing, which will allow them to vacate the Victoria Hall. Several Councillors launch an appeal for Xmas gifts for the soldiers in the hospital. Meanwhile military training carries on in the area. The nearby village of Marsworth provides a list of men from the parish serving in the armed forces. The very rainy weather was causing problems in the construction of the large army camp just over the county boundary at Halton, where "The continual heavy rains have, if anything, added to the wretched conditions that prevail, and the roads in the vicinity of the camp are almost impassable to anything but heavy motor vehicles." These problems may be why James Putnam was offering 30/- a week, plus lodgings, for "Pair and Single Horse Drivers" to work at the camp. Elsewhere in the paper there is a mention of the problems farmers are having with preparing the fields for the crops because so many farm workers have volunteered for the forces. [Later in the war a single track narrow gauge line was built between Wendover Station and the camp]

     Bombardier P. Seabrook, 35th Brigade, Royal Field Artillery, son of Mr. Edwin Seabrook, of Albert-street, wrote home and while such letters do not normally mention the location or the fighting he can report that "Yon can read of my Battery in the Daily Mail of Nov. 26th. The heading 'Sticking to the Guns.' and 'The Heroic Defence of --- by a Single Battery commanded Major Christie.'" [Has anyone got a copy???]

Extracted from the Bucks Herald, 19th December, 1914

See the Latest Old Tring News

Other Tring "Old News .  

Tring at War - 5th December 1914

Old News

Military

The Bucks Herald prints a report from the Front about the Hertfordshire Regiment  which includes the following:

   All reports received show that the regiment displayed great gallantry in the face of great odds end terrific artillery bombardment.    They have not come through scathless, as they have lost 15 killed and 35 wounded, 4 seriously. The full list has not yet received, but among the known wounded are:

 Lieutenants Boyd (injured hack) and Hunt (shock).

Private Capel (Kimpton),

F. Brockett (Hitchin).

L. French (Hitchin).

T. Foster (Hitchin).

W. Wilkinson (Letchworth),

A. Garner (Letchworth).

Corporal Broadman (Letchworth).

Lance-Corporal T. Weston (Royston).

Private B. Kent (St. Albans),

Sergeant C. Garment (St. Albans).

 Private E. Brown (Hertford'),

Corporal Kettle (Watford),

 and Privates Reid. Castle, and O'Brien.

There is also a long list of men from Tring who are involved in the war effort  (in most cases with their units, and letters from the front lines by local men. Another account shows how Monsieur Rayée and his family came over from Belgium and have settled into a house in Park  Road, Tring.

For Full details see the Latest Old Tring News

Other Tring "Old News .  

The Queens at St Albans in 1914-5

Military

The 24th County of London Regiment (The Queens) was a territorial regiment that had its origins in the 4th Volunteer Battalion of The Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment).

St Albans

When the War broke out this was one of the battalions which came to the St Albans area in August 1914 with the 2nd London Division and went to France as the 1/24th County of London Battalion in March 1915. However the 2/24th Battalion remained in the area between April and June 1915. Can you help? I don't know which part of the St Albans area (including surrounding villages) they were posted.

This picture of an unknown soldier in The Queens was taken by L. L. Christmas, a photographer who moved to St Albans from Watford in the latter part of 1914 and took many more photographs of the troops.

Some newly acquired post cards

I have added a varied batch of new Hertfordshire views(all with higher resolution images) as follows:

Military

A View of Batchwood Camp, St Albans, taken by L. L. Christmas in September 1915. It  shows the North Staffordshire Lines, and was in the St Albans area at about the same time as Briton's Camp (location unknown) was in existence.

I have created a page for four early 20th century pictures of New Birklands School, St Albans, two of the exterior, one of the dining room, and one of the garden. Three were taken by a London firm of photographers, Elliott & Fry, who had photographic works in Barnet. The other was taken by Montiville Evans, of St Albans. I have added details of the schoolthen just called Birklands, in the late 20th century, but have not yet researched it foundation.

Marsworth is on the Grand Union Canal on the birder with Hertfordshire, and close to Tring, so of interest despite being in Buckinghamshire. About a dozen post cards (possibly mostly amateur snapshots from about 1905) appeared recently on ebay and I purchased a number - some of which are good enough to justify high resolution scanning. As it is always a pity when a contemporary collection like this gets dispersed I have also included reduced sized thumbs to record those I did not win. 

Also included in the update were two pictures of Chorleywood, a picture of Radlett parish church before the wider nave was added, and a picture of  Nether Hall, at Widford.

Army Orderlies learning how to cook at St Albans

Orderlies, 23rd T.R.B.

Military

This picture shows a group of orderlies, described as "23rd T.R.B." All are carrying a cooking implement - apart from the one in the back row carrying a large beef bone.

They were photographed by Lea Latimer Christmas from his St Albans address (1915 or later).

Does anyone know what "T.R.B." might stand for? There was a Military School of Cookery at St Albans during the First World War, and it is know that classes were given numbers.

Obviously it would be nice to able able to identify some of the individuals but that is a long shot. However you may know of similar pictures of orderlies being trained to cook at St Albans - perhaps with different class(?) number? There was also a set of photographs of the School of Cookery but I only know of some of the numbered copies, and would love to know the titles (and even better have images) of the missing numbers.

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Peter has drawn my attention to the relevant page of The Long, Long, Trail, and I have updated the main site with:

The Training Reserve Battalions were created in September 1916 as part of a significant reorganisation of the infantry reserve battalions. "The TR units dropped the cap badges and shoulder titles of their former regiments and instead wore a large General Service button on a red disc on the cap and the letters TR as a shoulder title." An examination of the picture shows that one of the soldiers has a "TR" shoulder title. The 23rd Battalion was formed out of the 10th (Reserve) Battalion, the Royal Sussex Regiment, which was based at Shoreham. In May 1917 there was another reorganisation and the Battalion became the 25th Young Soldier Battalion.

An Unknown School Group, circa 1915, almost certainly at Harpenden

Harpenden

St Albans

This photograph of a school group, identified on the back as Miss Cooper's class, was taken by the St Albans photographer, L. L. Christmas, in 1915 or later. Could the Miss Cooper be the Miss Gertrude Cooper, assistant mistress, living in Harpenden in 1911 - and if so which school is it? Because of the date there may be visitors to this site whose parents (or grandparents, or even great grandparents) are pictured here. Can you help identify the school and any of the pupils? At least 40 other copies were produced - some mounted and some as post cards - so perhaps you own one of them!!!  Perhaps you have a similar photograph taken in the same school room.

Click here for a larger image and a list of possible schools.

An Outrageous Coincidence - Small details in pictures can be important.

Click for bigger image

Armed Forces

I recently purchased this post card on ebay because it was taken by a St Albans photographer who took pictures of soldiers during the First World War. The scene could be almost anywhere but might just be somewhere in St Albans. Because it was a "lost" picture with not supporting notes on the back to say who it was or where it was taken no one else wanted it - so I brought it because it was going cheap.

However I scanned it and a small detail became visible and my eyes almost popped out of my head.

Have a look at the larger image and see if you can see what made me excited. It may not make you excited - but if you compare what you see with other information on the front page of this Newsletter you will be able to understand my I was so surprised..

To find out what  I discovered about the photograph click HERE.

P.S And if you can help identify the soldier on the horse (or event his unit) let me know...

8th London (Howitzer) Brigade Royal Field Artillery at Apsley in 1914/5

The Military

When I was writing the book The London Gunners come to Town I looked in vain for pictures of known soldiers of known units who were stationed in Hemel Hempstead in 1914/5 as part of the 2nd London Division. Well, I'm not quite there yet. This picture was taken by L. L. Christmas, of St Albans, almost certainly early in 1915 and the gun looks very much like a 6 inch howitzer. Unfortunately I can't name any of the clearly identifiable men. (Can you help?)

And who had such weapons in the area at the time. Why the 8th London (Howitzer) Brigade of the Royal Field Artillery - who were based at Apsley, including Shendish. And my research into the book  included many details of what the Brigade was doing between August 1914 and March 1915, when they sailed for France. 

Click here for larger images and extracts from the London Gunners listing their officers and describing what the Brigade was doing while training.

Why did James and Ann marry on Christmas Day?

One of the joys of family history research is that when you answer one question several new questions immediately present themselves.

Last October I gave Carolyn some advice about the Ashby/Sherman family of Aldbury and Northchurch (part of Berkhamsted) and she has now sent me details of the marriage certificate. It appears that, having already got quite a large family they decided it was about time they got married. Obviously there would be people around who would be concerned about the souls of this couple who were "living in sin." Was a Christmas Day marriage - perhaps involving other wayward couples - part of a recruitment drive by the local Baptist Minister to enlarge his congregation? While I have not done so, it might be worth looking at adjacent entries in the Chapel register to see if others were married at the same time.  Were the earlier children already baptised prior to the wedding - perhaps by the Church of England - perhaps at Aldbury? For full details of the research so far see Ashby/Sherman, Aldbury 1840/1851.