Who was the owner of "The Bricky" at St Albans circa 1820

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St Albans

Were the two Captain Fothergill's who owned "The Brickie" in New England Street in around 1820? And if so who was the second one? 
See Captain William FOTHERGILL & The New England Field, St Albans, circa 1820 

I've posted my First World War life

Military

The Lives of the First World War web site is now up and running - and I decided to test it out by posting information on Lt. Col. Adrian Charles Gordon. who was billeted in my mother's house, and who is described in my book "The London Gunners come to Town". If people use it it could be a useful archive - but at present most records have little more than the name.  Why not see if your ancestors or other relatives who fought in the war are there and fill in details - and add pictures. 

Access to the site is free - but there is an associated subscription service that lets you search various relevant data sets if you need them. In addition you may be frustrated that the software puts a limit of 1000 characters on a story - but if you cut and paste (as I do) the systems doesn't tell you of the limit in advance, and does not tell you how far over the limit you are. However adding images is very easy.

What a silly place to build a row of posh semi-detached villas in about 1835?

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Railways

At Boxmoor, Hemel Hempstead, there are a row of early 19th century semi-detached Georgian style villas in what was originally open countryside, although they are now surrounded by a 20th century housing estate. One might expect such a row in a town area - but not in such a rural situation. A row of modest cottages built by a farmer for his labourers might be expected but surely if anyone was building a house with perhaps a dozen rooms in open countryside it would be a detached house on its own plot.

Hemel Hempste

Jeff wanted to know why - and the answer is linked with the London to Birmingham Railway, that opened in 1837.

See the full report

Ten Little Zeppelins - First World War Poem by Winifred Cook

Ten Little Zeppelins
Ten little Zeppelins     Flying in a line, One got far out to sea,     Then there were nine.			Five little Zeppelin     Making such a roar, One exploded with a bang,     Then there were four.
Nine little Zeppelins     Flying rather late, One had a dreadful end,     Then there were eight.			Four little Zeppelins     Buzzing like a bee, The R.F.C. caused one to squirm,     Then there were three.
Eight little Zeppelins     Flying up to Heaven, One pilot had a smash,     Then there were seven			Three little Zeppelin     Bombing Sister Sue. She stuck a pin in one,    Then there were two.
Seven little Zeppelins     Admiring English ricks, One got hay-fever bad,     Then there were six.			Two little Zeppelins     Frightened by the gun, One made off for Germany,     Then there was one.
Six little Zeppelins      Made a swanky dive, One took it much too low,     Then there ware five.			One little Zeppelin     Feeling very lonesome, English gun shot high and sure     Gave it back its ownsome.

Schools

Military

Click here for background notes.

Following the interest in my earlier post Sing a Song of Zeppelins I have decided to publish further First World War School Poetry.

Landed Families of Hertfordshire (and elsewhere)

Ayot House in 1905
(Later became a silk mill)

I have just discovered the excellent Landed Families of Britain and Ireland blog run by Nick Kingsley. 

Current posts with detailed references of pictures and information of houses in the Hertfordshire are:

Alington of Little Barford Manor House and Letchworth Hall

Ames of Bristol (and other places including Ayot House)

Altham of Mark Hall, Oxhey Place and Timbercombe

In addition there is extensive genealogical information on the selected family that lived there for a time. In addition many families which were mainly based elsewhere have links to Hertfordshire. For instance I found this engraving of Pishobury House in the information on the Alston of Odell Castle page.

Pishiobury House from Neale's Views of Seats, 1821

Where to get a drink in Bishops Stortford in 1854

Brewing

I have added a list of about 70 beer houses, inns, maltings, etc., that were trading in Bishops Stortford in 1854 to the page Inns & Brewing, Bishops Stortford. It would be interesting to know how many are still trading in the same premises under the same name today. And perhaps some of you are related to the 1854 publicans!

Anchor Maltings, Bishops Stortford, after the 1907 fire

An 18th Century Mausoleum at Watford carries a hidden message

Post Cards

The postman can easily see what you have written on a postcard, and lovers often found ways of coding a message. Some wrote in shorthand, while others used special codes. The sender of this card, showing an interesting mausoleum which doubled as an ice house, uses a very simple device to obscure the quite innocent message it carried.

Watford

For more information on the card see

Thomas MEADOWS' Mausoleum at Watford, 1781

and for more on how messages were concealed see Hidden Messages

Graham Greene - His Birthplace at Berkhamsted School

St John's House, Berkhamsted School

Schools

Graham Greene, (1904-1991), the writer, playwright and literary critic, was born in this house at Berkhamsted school. At the time his father was a teacher at the school, but later became headmaster. When Graham became thirteen he returned to St John's house as a boarder, living in a part of the building he had not known as a child.  He describes the horrors of the area reserved for the pupils in his biography A Sort of Life. 

Read On ...

The Gower Brothers from Tring in the First World War

Could the children be "German Mascots"?

Grace recently provided five post card images relating to the Gower Brothers of Tring in the First World War. This picture from 1919, which almost certainly includes Benjamin Gower, intrigues me as the message on the back reads "Just a photo of the section with a few German Mascots" Are the "mascots" the children and could the section have been in Germany???

Click here to see all five post cards. Can you help identify any of the cap badges?

Goodbye April, Welcome a relaxing May

I have had asthma all my life - and during April caught a cold which went to my chest. Not too serious except that it has left me exhausted - and relaxing watching the snooker on TV instead of updating the web site! The incompetent changes on FindMyPast (which hosts the Hertfordshire Parish registers) has also left me very frustrated. Despite the low number of posts the visitor activity on the web site and newsletter (both up on April last year) is very satisfactory. This may be because I am now notifying updates on twittter (@HertsGenealogy) and about half the tweets have been retweeted to a much wider audience.

As for May I have decided to take it easy, including catching up on a somewhat neglected garden.  I will be happy to answer suitable questions - and welcome new information and digital images which add to the usefulness of the site, such as the recent picture of Thomas Wright outside the Swan Inn in 1904/5. There could be a "Rural Relaxation" or two. Anything else will be a bonus.