Genealogists' Magazine - December 2013 - Burial Records

SoG

I have just received the latest copy of the Genealogists' Magazine, The Journal of the Society of Genealogists.

It contains a useful article on UK Burial Records on the Deceased Online Web Site which lists many municipal cemeteries including the following from Hertfordshire.

• Kingshill Cemetery, Berkhamsted (1947)
• Heath Lane Cemetery, Hemel Hempstead (1878)
• Woodwells Cemetery, Hemel Hempstead (1960)
• Tring Cemetery, Tring (1894)
• Bury Green Cemetery, Cheshunt (1855)
• Ware Road Cemetery, Hoddesdon (1883)

The Hoddesdon Cemetery includes burials re-interred from St Monica's Priory.

There is an article on the Society of Genealogists Apprentice index, produced in 1920 and now being put online, which includes some apprentices from Hertfordshire.

Other articles don't relate to the county but I really enjoyed reading about Dr Thomas Smethurst, The Richmond Prisoner, which has some interesting twists at the end, and I was interested to discover the army pensioners were sent to Western Australia from 1850 to act as guards to some of the last prisoners to be transported.

Berkhamsted Castle and other Prints from c 1787

Berkhamsted Castle in 1787

This engraving comes from Antiquities of England and Wales and I have also posted information about the following Hertfordshire engravings from the same source:

Berkhamsted

Rye House, Hoddesdon

Hertford Castle

St Albans Abbey

The Goal at St Albans (Abbey gateway)

Sopwell Nunnery, St Albans

Don't Forget, Wood was a commercial crop.

It is important to remember that wood was an important crop in 19th century Hertfordshire, and would be widely used, especially in rural area, as fuel and as building materials, and with pigs eating up the beech nuts and acorns. In addition small woods would have been kept as cover for foxes - as fox hunting was had a strong following among the rural well-to do. There were regular sales and this advert from the Herts Mercury gives details of oak trees being sold from several estates in the South East of the County. Many of the older woods that survive today have only survived because the trees were regularly harvested. 

Rye House, Hoddesdon and the Lowewood Museum

I have just added a picture of the ornamental garden at Rye House as it was a century ago. While making the appropriate changes to the Hoddsesdon page I discovered that the link to the Lowewood Museum was broken - so have corrected the fault by creating a Lowewood Museum page which includes some pictures of Cheshunt.

John & Alfred Hopkins, Hoddesdon Photographers

John and Alfred Hopkins were Hoddesdon photographers and I have found an early carte de visite produced under the name Hopkins Bros. In addition I have noted that Alfred Hopkins exhibited his Patent Simplex Slide and Reversible Camera Back at the 29th Exhibition of the Photographis Society of Great Britain in 1884.

I would be interested to hear of other examples of their photographs and wonder if any examples of their camera back survive.

The B.P. Swimming Club visit Hoddesdon in 1910

The BPSC at Hoddesdon in August 1910

The picture shows members of the B.P.S.C. who had visited Hoddesdon in August 1910 and had a half mile race in the River Lea. (in training 100 years too soon for the 2012 Olympics which are to be held just a few miles downstream?). It seems too early to be British Petrolium - as the Anglo-Persian Oil Co was only formed in 1909. So who were they - see The B.P. Swimming Club visit Hoddesdon in 1910 for more details and let me know if you can identify them.
Thanks to Anthony this has now been identified as the Broomfield Park Swimming Club - more details on main page.

Some Photographer updates

Alfred Burton's great granddaughter, Denise, has written to suggest that he may have switched from being a gardener because he had some experience with working with chemicals. Has anyone any other possible suggestions?

I have added details of a numbered (1014) and dated (July 1904) card, of Turvey Church, Bedfordshire, by Ernest Bedwell. It is looking increasingly likely that all the cards in his Bedford Series were published circa 1904.

Alfred Burton, Photographer of Hoddesdon

I recently came across a carte de visite which had been taken by Alfred Burton, who took photographs of Hoddesdon around 100 years ago. I was intrigued to see that he was also a taxidermist. and decided to find out more about him.

I discovered that he had been a gardener and then changed his career in a surprising way. Was he a gardener in a big house and his employer encouraged his interest in photography?  Have a look at some of his photographs - and  tell me if you know how his interest in photography and taxidermy came about.