September 2022. A Policeman’s Life. History and personal experiences of police life. Mick Doyle.
Mick’s career in the police force, started as a Thames Valley Police cadet in Reading after leaving school and eventually rising to the rank of Superintendent in Thames Valley Police.
He firstly gave us a brief history of the police force in England, starting with the introduction of parish constables in the 1200’s. As the population, and crime, expanded the parish constables, assisted by nightwatchmen, were unable to contain the rise in crime. This led to the rise of “thief takers” who were private individuals paid for, or rewarded by, crime victims or the authorities, to recover stolen items and apprehend the criminals. Often the thief takers were corrupt or even criminals themselves, claiming protection money from criminals known to them, or negotiating fees for returning stolen items by using their criminal underworld knowledge and contacts. We were interested to learn how in the early 1700’s a notorious thief taker, Jonathan Wild, gave rise to the theory that the term to “double cross” is based on Wild’s method of recording an X against the name of a thief who had angered him or outlived their usefullness, and a second X meant they were handed over to the authorities.
Mick then talked about the first police force that we would recognise - the Bow Street Runners, formed in 1749 to issue and collect fines and to arrest offenders on the order of the Bow Steet Magistrates Court. Then the Metropolitan Police Force was founded in 1829 by the Home Secretary, Robert Peel, and by 1839 the Bow Steet Runners had been incorporated into the Metropolitan Police.
Mick explained the term “raw lobsters” used at that time as meaning that the police blue uniform had the colour of raw lobsters, unlike the colour of boiled lobster, i.e. red, being the military uniform colour.
Moving on from London’s Metropolitan force, Mick talked about the introduction of Borough police forces, including that of Barnstaple in 1836. The initial three constables, Chanter, Purchase and Davey, were referred to by Barnstaple children in the comic verse:
Chanter’s got the measles
Purchase’s got the gout
Good morning Corporal Davey
Does your mother know you’re out?
The three constables only lasted until 1838 when they were dismissed in favour of a new organisation of the force. Soon there were 22 Borough forces in Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. In 1921 the Barnstaple Borough force was amalgamated into the Devon County force, previously formed in 1856, which in turn amalgated with Cornwall in 1967 to become today’s Devon and Cornwall force.
Finally Mick brought us up to modern times by entertaining us with amusing anecdotes from the lighter side of his time in the police force, clearly illustrating how much he enjoyed his police career.
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October 2022. Thames Lightermen and Watermen. Carol Poulton.
While researching her family tree Carol was surprised to find she had Thames watermen and lightermen as ancestors, and her talk described the history of these occupations.
Carol explained that during the 1500’s watermen provided what was really an early waterborne taxi service, ferrying passengers across or along the Thames in 22’ wooden rowing boats known as wherries. London Bridge was the only river crossing below Kingston upon Thames so there was a demand for direct river travel rather than the longer routes on narrow, poor roads and across the congested London Bridge.
Lightermen unloaded goods from cargo ships and transported them to the Thames quaysides. London was a busy trading centre attracting large numbers of cargo ships; the resulting congestion meant the ships remained anchored in mid-river, relying on lightermen to unload their cargo. As well as oars the lightermen made use of favourable currents and the tide’s direction to propel the lighters. The term ‘lighter’ originates from ‘lightening’ ships by unloading their goods.
Carol gave us amusing anecdotes of the coarse and boisterous behaviour of the watermen, including their colourful language! They vigorously competed for passengers and often reneged on agreed fares in mid-river, threatening passengers with being turfed overboard! Regulation was clearly needed and in 1555 the Company of Watermen was founded to license the operators and control fares. Apprenticeships of one year were also introduced (extended to seven years in 1603) to train young boys in the trade, including navigation and knowledge of the river’s tides. Interestingly, less than half the boys completed the apprenticeship for reasons such as drowning, running away or impressment into the Navy. In 1700 the lightermen joined the company and it became the Company of Watermen and Lightermen.
Finally, Carol talked about the Coat and Badge race, which still exists and dates from 1715. This rowing race, open to the Thames watermen and reputedly the oldest in the world, is held on the Thames on a course of over 4 miles. The competitors originally rowed their own heavy passenger-carrying wherries, although these days the boats are lightweight sculls. The winner’s prize is a traditional red waterman’s coat with a silver badge and was in fact won by one of her ancestors, another ancestor being scuppered! This was a highly prestigious award and when worn by the winner had the advantage of attracting passenger trade. The race was instigated by Thomas Doggett, a London actor and manager of the Drury Lane theatre. Legend suggests he was rescued from the Thames by a waterman or that a waterman offered to ferry him across the Thames in particularly bad conditions and he offered the race prize in gratitude to the Thames watermen.
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November 2022. Consultation with Master Christopher. Chris Braund.
***(Warning - readers of a nervous disposition might wish to skip this!)***
Chris gave us a lively, entertaining and informative talk on 17th Century surgical and medical treatments. Dressed as a barber surgeon from the period, complete with blood-stained skull cap, he “re-enacted” a selection of gruesome treatments and operations on (mostly!) willing audience members.
People in the 17th Century had a choice of firstly consulting a “physic” to diagnose ailments, then an “apothecary” to dispense the medicine and finally a “barber surgeon” for surgery. The term barber surgeon arose from the use of barbers to perform surgery because of their possession of sharp implements such as razors, and dexterity in their use.
With blood-stained and white cloths plaited together in a spiral shape Chris demonstrated one of the ways the familiar red and white barber’s pole is thought to have originated. The red and white stripes represent the bandages used during surgery; red for bandages stained with blood and white for clean bandages. The bandages would be hung out to dry after washing on a pole outside the barber’s shop, the blood-stained cloths often remaining stained red even after washing. Blowing in the wind they would twist together and form the red and white spiral pattern.
The first treatment demonstrated by Chris was the application of an enema with a fearsome looking metal clyster syringe, to treat constipation, diarrhea or “noxious wind in the belly”.
He then moved to the other end of the body to illustrate how the “mumblepins”, or as we now know them, teeth, were treated. Decayed or aching teeth were believed to be caused by a worm in the tooth. The barber surgeon would dig into the tooth with a sharp pick to kill the worm, which usually served only to kill the nerve. This meant the patient would eventually have to return to have the gum cut away and the tooth pulled out. Cleaning of teeth was achieved with crushed rat skulls and lavender paste, with urine to bind the mixture.
The next operation performed by Master Christopher was “trepanning”, put simply the drilling of a hole in the patient’s skull to relieve pressure within the skull following illness, injury or, as is popularly believed, to cure headaches. The scalp was cut away and a hole drilled with a crude hand drill while the patient bit on a leather strap. The wound was left open to release “the pressure”, protected only by the patient wearing a hat. Eventually the scalp was stitched back over the hole, sometimes first plugged with a silver coin that was believed to not react with brain tissue.
Amputation was another operation performed by barber surgeons. As the patient could bleed to death in a matter of minutes the quick method off chopping off the limb was an option. The other more accurate method was to use a saw, but this prolonged the patient’s agony. The wound was then cauterised by plunging into hot oil or tar. Any later development of gangrene was treated by applying leeches to eat away the infected tissue.
The final operation demonstrated was the breaking up and removal of bladder stones by cutting through the pelvic canal into the bladder, the wound being cauterised with a hot iron or simply plugged with a wad of bandage.
The final examples that Chris gave of the barber surgeon’s skills were treating cataracts by cutting into the eye to move the cloudy lens aside, lancing plague boils and inspection of urine samples to diagnose illness, this last skill being known as “piss prophecy”.
In conclusion, Chris empasised that the success rate for all the above procedures was only around 30%, but complaints were rare as in those days patients knew of no better methods. These days we should be grateful that the success rate has vastly increased due to improved medical knowledge and modern technology, not to mention the control of pain with anaesthetics and the prevention of infection.
Well done if you made it to the end of this gruesome report!!
January 2023. History of the gloving industry in Great Torrington. Pauline Allen.
Pauline, a member of the Torrington and District Historical Society, gave a talk on the glove making industry of Great Torrington and a report of her presentation follows.
Leather glove making in the town was first recorded in the 17th Century, leather being a by-product of the local sheep farming. Glove making continued to develop during the 18th Century, with the major growth during the 19th Century.
In the 1830s some 3,000 women were employed, and the industry became the town’s major employer. In 1850 the town had 13 glove making establishments, ranging from factories down to small houses. There were also domestic outworkers in the surrounding area; these were mainly women and young girls who earned a small, but useful, addition to the meagre incomes earned by the poorer rural households. Outside the immediate town the glove materials were usually delivered and collected by pack-horse at central collection points close to the outworkers’ homes. The work was hard on the hands and repetitive, requiring the joining of two halves of the glove with 12 stiches to the inch, probably in poor light. Despite the advent of machine working in the factories, outworking still continued into the 20th Century. Census records show ‘glover’ as the occupation of women and girls in many households in the area.
With the advent of train transport the makers’ trade increased further, expanding into the lucrative London market. At its height the town’s industry was producing some 36,000 pairs of gloves per week. The gloves were mainly made from wool, leather, silk, linen or cotton. Apart from work gloves to protect hands, fashion eventually drove a major part of the trade, and gloves became more ornate and longer, with elaborate cuffs. In particular, ladies with work-worn hands would wear gloves to conceal their lower social status.
By the 1940s a decline in fashion for gloves and the competition of cheaper imports left the town with only three factories, the last one eventually closing in 2010.
The imposing Grade II listed building in Whites Lane, built in the style of a grand chapel and well- known by locals, is the former Vaughan Tapscott glove factory, built in 1884 and closed in 2002. The owner and four times Mayor of Great Torrington, William Vaughan, was a Bible Christian and treated his employees extremely well, even providing them with works outings free of charge. Having been empty for many years the building is due to be converted into apartments, thankfully with the impressive, protected facade preserved.
Pauline ended her presentation by sharing photos of the factories and their workers, as well as numerous artefacts of the glove making industry, including glove patterns/templates, examples of completed gloves and the tools used by glove makers.
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February 2023. A history of East-the-Water, Bideford. Michael Teare.
Michael, who has a specialist interest in maritime history, gave a talk on the history of East-the-Water concentrating on how its maritime connections shaped its development into a thriving port and industrial, commercial and residential centre. A report of his presentation follows:
The eastern half of Bideford bordering the River Torridge, and known as East-the-Water, is connected to west Bideford by the long medieval bridge across across the River Torridge.
Utilising the Torridge’s eastern deep water channel, East-the-Water’s expansion began principally with shipbuilding in the 1500s, reaching its height in the 1800s. Ships were built downstream of the bridge and smaller vessels that could pass under the bridge were built upstream. East-the-Water eventually expanded into one of the most important trading ports in the West Country, initially importing tobacco from America, but by the 1800s it had a cod fishing fleet and the goods traded in the port included timber from Prince Edward Island, coal from South Wales and the Forest of Dean, and wool from Castille in Spain. Empty ships leaving the port to collect goods overseas carried large numbers of North Devon emigrants, mostly to Canada. When the railways arrived it was to the eastern side of the river, further expanding trade through the port. Businesses and industries supporting all this trade were established, as well as housing for the workers, grander houses for the owners and even a hotel.
East-the-Water is also popularly known as Shamwickshire. One suggestion Michael gave for its origin is that many properties were owned by Irish settlers, hence the shamrock association, leading to the name Shamrockshire changing over time to Shamwickshire.
Michael ended his presentation by talking about ‘The Way of the Wharves’, a community charity formed to research, preserve and display the legacy of East-the-Water’s maritime, industrial and commercial history. The latest development in the history of East-the-Water is a planned re-development of the riverside and wharves area into residential apartments, retail and business units, a landscaped public square and riverside walks. The charity has created a heritage walk exploring the area’s history, starting and finishing from the eastern end of the medieval bridge. The charity’s website www.thewharves.org has more information on East-the-Water’s history, including a guide to the heritage walk, and the charity has produced a book ‘A History of East-the-Water, Bideford’.
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March 2023. History of Seaford House, Westward Ho!. Sharon Snell.
Sharon has spoken to the society on four previous occasions about the Braddick family history and she made a welcome return to talk about the history of Seafield House at Westward Ho!. This iconic building at the end of Merley Road, standing between Rob Braddick’s famous ‘free car park’ and the sea, is known to locals and holiday makers as the ‘Haunted House’.
The house was built in 1885 as a holiday home for Brinsley De Courcy Nixon, a wealthy London banker, great traveller and philanthropist of Irish descent. After Brinsley’s first wife died, having born him no children, he married a second time. They had three children; the youngest, Brinsley (junior), eventually lived in Russia for a while, but returned to England to escape the 1917 Russsian Revolution. This connection led to the family entertaining Russian friends at Seafield House, much to the interest of the locals! It was a grand house with many servants, including a cook, Emily Pickard, a daughter of the Pickards Dairy family in Bideford. A sea water swimming pool was excavated and its rectangular shape can still be seen in the rocks below the house.
The house was requisitioned by the army during WW2, but the family returned after the war, remaining there until the house was sold in 1950. It was bought by Mrs Ware who ran the house as a B&B, with 11 bedrooms, dining room and lounge. She retired in the mid-1970s, leaving her unmarried son and daughter, Jean, living at opposite ends of the house! Jean worked at Barnstaple Argos and in later years would walk to The Pier House in Westward Ho! for a coffee. After her brother’s death Jean lived alone in the house; the house and garden declined into a neglected condition and Jean spent many hours sitting at a window, sometimes waving to passers-by. The house’s appearance and an old lady’s face at a window led to the house’s reputation of being haunted!
After Jean went into care Seafield House was bought by Sharon’s brother Rob Braddick. Sharon explained that Rob plans to convert the house into a luxurious, boutique holiday let, but retaining period features where possible, including the many stained glass window panes.
The house has been investigated by paranormal groups to test the haunted house reputation, but no evidence of spirits has been detected. Sharon has visited the house many times and never felt any presence.
The talk ended with photos of the current dilapidated condition of the house and grounds, which can also be seen on the internet by searching for ‘Seafield House’. Despite its neglected condition and needing extensive refurbishment the structure of the house is basically sound, although some remedial support work to part of the cliff edge is required.
As with all her previous presentations to the society Sharon’s talk was thoroughly entertaining, and laid to rest many rumours about the history of the house.
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April 2023. My Family Farm from Roman times. Bobby Farrington.
Bobby has previously spoken to the society about her grandmother’s WW1 experiences as a nurse and she made a welcome return to talk about the history of her family’s farm on the Nottinghamshire/Lincolnshire border.
The farm’s land is close to the River Trent and the Exeter to Lincoln Fosse Way, both important lines of travel and trading from the time of the Romans. The Vikings made inland incursions up the Trent from the North Sea and the River Humber; a Viking torc found on the farm (and now in Lincoln Museum) suggests that Vikings were present in the area. A torc, alternatively spelt torq or torque, is a metal jewellery ring formed from twisted strands.
The farm is known as (The) Weecar, which is Viking for farmstead, and so suggests the land was farmed during that period. The earliest known connection to Bobby’s family is a man named Wells in the 12th century who is reputed to have dug wells for Newark Castle; hence his name. He was granted free usage of one acre of land and a payment of £10/year. This acre of ground formed the basis of the farm and the grant of £10/year is still paid, provided the grantee was born on the land. Bobby was born on the farm and she still receives the £10, earlier paid by the bishop, but now by the parish.
In Bobby’s grandfather’s time the farm had expanded to 402 acres, specialising in the breeding of horses to be sold for farm work. Fifty of the horses were requisitioned in WW1, leaving only two horses for working on the farm. Bobby told us that her grandfather sat down and wept as the horses were taken away to their fate on the Western Front. The farm also produced potatoes and carrots to be sold in Newark market, whilst their sugar beet crop was collected by barges to be transported on the Trent to sugar refineries. Perhaps the greatest value of the farm’s land was its gravel beds, providing high-grade Trent gravel.
Bobby now lives in North Devon, although the farm is still owned by a branch of her family. It was clear from her talk that the farm, and the times she spent there, still mean a lot to her; to conclude her talk she read a beautiful poem she has written evoking her emotions and connections to the farm.