Spring Issue of Herts Past and Present

The Spring 2017 issue of Herts Past and Present has just been published by the Hertfordshire Association for Local History.

As always it contains an interesting collection of articles

Hertfordshire men at Passchendale, 1917, by John Cox
In search of "My Lord" Salisbury, by Nicky Webster (about researching and publishing the life of James Gascoyne-Cecil, 2nd Marquis of Salisbury)
William Cecil, 2nd Earl of Salisbury - The Education of a nobleman, by Alan Thomson
'Plenty of Punch and Good Company' - Bringing local history to life about a theatrical production dramatizing the life of John Carrington, farmer of Bramfield
The Enclosure of the Manor of Barnet, 1818, by Susan Flood
Local History Essay Competition - with details of essays on Knebworth, Lemsford and Croxley Green
Report of the 2016 HALH Symposium on Hertfordshire at war through the centuries.
Book Reviews: Watford : A History, by Mary Forsyth; St Albans: Life on the Home Front, 1914-18, edited by Jonathan Mein, Anne Wares and Sue Mann; On Hertford and its Environs: A Portrait in verse of Hertford and the Surrounding Countryside, by Thomas Green (1719-91), edited by Jean Purkis and Philip Sheail.

Dates for the Diary

13 May  - HALH Spring Meeting and AGM, Ware

24 June - Summer Visit, Benington Lordship, Benington

11 November - Symposium: Women of Hertfordshire, Hitchin

19th Century Sport in Hertfordshire

Cricket

The British Newspaper Archive has just loaded copies of the Sporting Life from 1859 to 1909. 

So far I have only had time to do a very quick check to see what is there related to Hertfordshire and found the following entry from May 1860. If you find anything of interest let me, and other readers of this blog, know by commenting below.

Some Early (1850s) Hertford Photographers.

I have updated the information on some of the earliest photographers in Hertford.

The Monson brothers visited Hertford on two occasions in 1853. I have added further information to show how they were related and their later careers as photographers.

Thomas Vipond was another travelling photographer who visited Hertford in 1859/60. I have now discovered he continued as a travelling photographer for some time, based in Aylesbury, but later settling in Grantham. In 1864 one of Thomas's Aylesbury portraits was used by police to try and trace earlier activities of a pickpocket in other towns, which seems to be a very early example of the use of photographs in detective work.

In 1857 James Craddock set up a studio in Hertford with Hart (I have still not been able to identify Hart) but within a year the studio had passed to Arthur Elsden and James had "vanished" - except that I now know that he became a significant photographer in Simla, India, and that he, or one of his sons, was taking photoghraphs in England in 1880,
Arthur Elsden took over from James Craddock in 1858 and I have acquired an interesting carte de viste take in connection with a play "Payment on Demand" put on by the Hertford Grammar School in 1874. It shows "Vincent Elsden" but it is not certain which of the Elsden brothers, Arthur or James, it was. (Arthur Vinsent Elsden continued the Hertford photographic business after his father died.)

I would be interested to know of any surviving pictures from the 1850s taake by the above - or any other Hertfordshire photographer. Any earlier examples of photographs being used for detective work could also be of interest.

Photographer updates

Post Cards

Updates, in most cases involving new CDV images, have been made to the following Victorian or Edwardian Photographers, to help with dating examples of their work.

Atherstane Basebe of Hertford, Hemel Hempstead and Watford
Misses M & A Austin of St Albans
Thomas Milburn Cooper of St Albans
Fred Downer of Watford
Thomas Benwell Latchmore of Hitchin
William Norman of Royston
Samuel Glendenning Payne of Aylesbury, Thame and Tring

Home needed for Briden Bible with Hertford connections

Over 10 years ago I found an large old illustrated family Bible, with cover detached, and the earliest entry was that of the marriage of Robert Briden and Caroline, both of whom were born in Hertfordshire. Robert was a member of the Briden family of bakers who lived in Hertford and I posted details in BRIDEN, Bengeo, Hertford, mid 19th century, and over the years additional information on the family has been added - but no-one has "claimed" the bible. 

Prince of Wales visits Panshanger and Hertford in 1874

The Library at Panshanger

Old News

In 1874 the Prince of Wales visited Panshanger and he and some other gentlemen spent part of the time in shooting, and had excellent sport, bagging in one day no fewer than 760 pheasants, besides partridges, rabbits, and hares. The Princess planted a chestnut tree in the grounds in commemoration of the visit. The visit (which included the town of Hertford) was described by The Graphic which printed engravings based on photographs taken by Elsden, of Hertford.

While doing the update I added a press cutting dating the opening of Elsden's Mill Bridge studios to 1872 - providing a benchmark for dating his old photographs, and also an advert from 1876.

Arsenic in a Hertford "Quack Doctor'" medicine kills Aldbury woman

Old News

Full Article

Ivan Judd has kindly drawn my attention to the following inquest where Mary Ann Parish, of Aldbury, died as the result of using a medicine containing arsenic provided by a herbalist Isaac Chamberlain, of Hertford.

See the 1866 article describing the inquest. 

So what happened to Isaac after the inquest? Don't let me spoil your fun in finding out for yourself. The article describing the subsequent trial appears in the Herts Guardian for 20th July, 1867 and the case was widely reported elsewhere. There is an unexpected follow up to the case reported in the national press in April and May 1869. 

Do you agree with the final outcomes?

You can follow up what happened to Isaac in the British Newspaper Archive (and FindMyPast) or using Google.

The Dining Room Clock at Christ's Hospital, Hertford

Clocks & Watches
		There is a very detailed account of clock that hung in the Dining Room at Christ's Hospital, Hertford, on the web site Early Clocks. The clock hung in the Dining Room from 1879 to 1985 and there are a number of photographs of it in position (including the one above from about 1899), together with information on the clock maker. More Information On Christ's Hospital

"Lost" Hertford War Memorial web site has been found.

The Hertford War memorial was restored and rededicated in 2001 and Tracy Turner set up a web site with a lot of useful information about it and the names on it. I set up a page linking to it the same year, but Tracy stopped updating her site in 2002. In 2009 I discovered that it had disappeared, and the URL I had given no longer worked, apparently because the web site had been deleted.

Jonty has just emailed me to say the site is now on the WayBack archive. ...

Tracy's Hertford War Memorial Web Site

I have also updated my Hertford page to include information on the site.

Victorian Photographers in Hertfordshire

Victorian Photographers

I have introduced a new menu, for Victorian Photographers, starting with those where I have carte de visite examples of their work. All the following photographer pages are either completely new, or include new examples of their work:

Barnard, St Albans

Coles, Watford

Dighton of St Albans

Downer of Watford

Dunn of Hemel Hempstead

Elsden, Hertford

Forscutt, Hertford

Garrood of Hertford

Goodfellow of Ware

Hockett of New Barnet

Lane of Hemel Hempstead

Martindale, Watford

Maxwell, Hadley Green & Barnet

Norman of Tring

Roberts, St Albans & High Wycombe

Sills of Berkhamsted

All the new images provide an enlarged portrait and it planned to add examples of cabinet cards in many cases. If you can provide examples of other Victorian Hertfordshire photographers, or datable images for those already online, I would love to here from you.

Some Hertfordshire Photographers from circa 1870.

Post Cards

For many families the earliest surviving pictures of the ancestors are the Victorian Carte de Visite (CDV) and I have been collecting examples by different photographers to help you date the old portraits from the details printed on the back.

An unknown House by Fred Downer of Watford

Frederick Downer of Watford started out as a photographer in 1862. He started from his father's shop in Watford High Street, before opening a photographic studio in Loates Lane. This picture of an unknown house, and two portrait pictures, were produced before the Loates Lane address appeared on the back of his CDV - so are probably from about 1870, or earlier.

The Basebe family were artists and photographers and Athelstane Basebe was probably the one who took photographs in Hertford in about 1872. He left the county to return to Hemel Hempstead in about 1890, (I have no examples of this period) and Watford about 1900.

An unknown group by Cooper of St Albans

Thomas Milburn Cooper moved to St Albans in about 1865 and practiced as a photographer until his death in 1901. I have added three additional examples of his work, and have arranged 5 different backs into probable date order. This portrait group is believed to be from about 1870.

Samuel Rudd (died 1871)

Thomas Benwell Latchmore of Hitchin started out as a photographer in 1865 and took over the business of George Avery in 1870. The portrait of Samuel Rudd of Hitchin gives the pre-1870 address and the dating is supported by the fact that Samuel died in 1871. The back reveals that he also has a studio at Royston in the early years.

If you have examples with different backs, or known dates, I would love to hear from you - so I can improve the timelines for these , and other, Hertfordshire photographers.

A Visit to Hertford Museum

Hertford

I have decided that when I am travelling around Hertfordshire I should drop into local museums or other historic attractions and write a short illustrated report. So I have posted a short review, with an emphasis on the War displays, of Hertford Museum.

I go to Hertford (First World War, etc)

Military

Yesterday I drove over to Hertford for a meeting of some of the people actively working towards remembering the way the First World War affected us all. It was a very stimulating meeting and over the next few months (at least) there is likely to be more emphasis on war related matters. I was pleased to see that quite a few people are working on the Home front - how the war affected everyday life in Hertfordshire. Because so many men went to the Front the result was that women played a far bigger part in running the country and this had a big effect (including Votes for Women) after the War.

Herts at War photo of meeting

War Memorials

A lot is being done on War Memorials and a Roll of Honour. One of the problems is what names should be included. I discussed this a few days ago in connection with Hemel Hempstead and  it was pointed out that the Haileybury War Memorial contains many hundreds of names of pupils who went to the school but who have no other connection with the county. (This suggests a question, which was not raised at the meeting - of exchanging information with other areas - as there must be Hertfordshire pupils who are recorded on war memorials outside the county.) There is also the problem of people who were never recorded on a war memorial but perhaps should have been. This is a difficult question - what about someone whose lungs were badly damaged in a gas attack, never recovered sufficiently to work, but died of related complications decades later. It was clear that drawing the line as to who to include was difficult and there was some discussion about how records should be preserved in the longer term - especially when later research suggests corrections and update might be necessary.

It is clear that many readers of this Newsletter, and the main Web Site, live outside Hertfordshire - in some cases on the other side of the world - will have family information on soldiers and sailors who died - including photographs of named individuals, and also groups. As a result I said I would encourage such people to make digital images, etc., available to that their relative's sacrifice can be properly recorded.

It is clear that there will be many events, articles and booklets published, information released on CD for use in schools, etc, and where appropriate I will publish details here. I also hope to be able to say that the book The London Gunners come to Town will be available in digital form for any historians carrying out relevant research.

Hertford

I also took the opportunity to walk round Hertford with my camera - a took pictures of the War Memorial, the Museum (including various military exhibits), and some other features of old Hertford - and I will post details once the pictures have been uploaded.

Three Victorian Photographers (Hertford, Hitchin & Ware)

Pictures

I have just added examples of the work of three Victorian photographers linked to Hertfordshire, with short biographies of each.

Cabinet Card by Henry Newton

Henry Martinson appears to have been working as a photographer in Ware for a short time around 1890, moving away and apparently giving up photography as a profession after his marriage in 1892.

Henry Newton was a photographer working in Hertford between about 1891 and 1912, his business having been taken over by J M & C W Sneesby by 1914.

CDV by Nichols

George Albert Nichols seems to have moved around a bit but two carte de visite show he worked in Hertfordshire, apparently in the late 1870s. One is a portrait of an elderly gentleman which give an address in Wormley - which was surely to small a village to support a professional photographer. The other is a school group with a similar back and a Hitchin address.

Charles Forscutt, an early Hertford Photographer

Charles Forscutt was one of the earlier Hertford Photographers who was professionally taking photographs by 1859 and continued at the Old Cross, Hertford, until his death in 1879. I have at last obtained an example of his portraits - an elderly gentleman with a beard and glasses.

[Information on other Hertfordshire Photographers]

Statue to Alfred Russel Wallace (a Hertford schoolboy) unveiled

Hertford

Alfred Russel Wallace

To celebrate the centenary of Alfred Russel Wallace's death a statute has been unveiled at the Natural History Museum and in the run up to this event there has been a lot of interest in the man - as shown by the number of visits to the page on Wallace on my web site and the item on him on this Newsletter.

There has been many pages of information appearing about him in the last few days such as:

• Alfred Russel Wallace (Natural History Museum)
• Alfred Russel Wallace - A very rare specimen (New Scientist)
• Evolution pioneer honoured by statue (BBC News)
• Attenborough: The forgotten story of Alfred Russel Wallace (BBC Science)

Sir David Attenborough unveiling statue

Education

Virtually all the coverage overlooks the fact that if it had not been for his education at Hertford Grammar School he might never have become a scientist. But there was on notable exception. The Hertford Mercury web site has a well illustrated news item Hertford-born Alfred Russel Wallace: His life and times about the special exhibition at the Hertford Museum (Tuesdays to Saturdays until 22nd February 2014)

At the Wallace Exhibition, Hertford Museum

Why was Mike's Ancestor in Prison - A surprising answer

Help Desk

Prison

Mike wrote to ask why his ancestor, Charles Hawkins, was in prison in Hertford at the time of the 1871 census. I often get questions like this but in this case there was a difference. I have had to tell him that Charles may have thought my great grandfather, Jacob Reynolds, was responsible ! ! !

Hertford

Sandridge

What seems to have happened was that Charles, and his brothers John and William, had a walk through Symondshyde Great Wood, on the parish boundary between Sandridge and Hatfield. And on the far side of the wood there were fields - with rabbits in them, and they all thought how delicious rabbit stew would be. The problem was a farm labourer, William Minall, who said they were poaching, and most unfairly told his employer, Jacob Reynolds, of Hammonds Farm, who spoke to P.C. Day.The magistrates obviously felt the hungry poor had no right to fresh rabbit meat and fined them all. As they didn't pay they ended up in prison.

Well that is one way of looking at what happened. For more information about the case, with details of other offences by members of the Hawkins family, the problems farmers faced from poachers and theft from their fields, etc., see HAWKINS, Hertford Goal, 1871. 

More Hertfordshire Church and School Pictures

Post Cards

I have added the following post card images (a click on each gives a higher resolution image) to the main web site:

• Bushey Heath Church - posted in 1907
• St Mary's Church, Essendon. - The picture was clearly taken after the First World War, when the chancel was badly damages by a German bomb. It was published by C. T. Oliver, who ran The Cyclist' Rest

St Mary's, Old Knebworth

• St Mary's Church, Old Knebworth - an interior shot to complement earlier exterior shots.
• St John's Church, Widford - published by J H Robertson, of Widford Stores
• Caldecote Towers School - At Aldenham / Bushey Heath. A veiw of the gardens published by P. A. Buchanan
• Christ's Hospital, Hertford - Interior of the Chapel by P. A. Buchanan. 

While adding these pictures I also took the opportunity to reorganise the Widford pages. 

The First Hertfordshire Photographers

Photographers

David Simkin, who runs the Sussex Photohistory web site kindly drew my attention to the fact that P & C Monson had been taking pictures in Hertford as early as 1853. I decided to follow this up by using the British Newspaper Archive, via FindMyPast, to see if I could reconstruct the early history of commercial photography in Hertfordshire, using references in the Herts Mercury and  the Hertfordshire Guardian, both of which have been digitised for the relevant period.

Newspapers

It turns out that a photographer called Mr Williams had been at the Bull Inn, Hertford, in 1851. The first local photographist was a daguerreotypist called H F Cox in Fore Street in 1856 while Hart & Craddock were operating from North Crescent (later Arthur Elsden) in 1857. Charles Forscutt was operating at the Old Cross by 1859 and a plumber called John Charles Garrood started taking photographs in Ware Road, Hertford, in 1864.

More Information

I have also added many early photographic adverts to the Arthur Elsden page.

Herts Past and Present - Contents of Issue 15

Herts Past & Present

September 2010

Issue No 15

Contents

Brief Guide to Sources: Churchwardens Accounts 

The Hertford Primrose League in 1901

Merchant Taylors School at Ashwell, 1669-2001: The good, the bad and the absent

The Landed Gentry

More Information