HUNGERFORD VIRTUAL MUSEUM - Key Persons
Alfred Geoffrey Turner (AGT) was born on 20th May 1886 in West Derby which, despite its name, is a suburb of Liverpool. His father, Alfred Morrison Turner (AMT), was also a "scouser" - born in Liverpool in 1853.
The east front of Chilton Lodge, from a postcard dated 13 Oct 1905.
There was a house called Chilton Park by 1595, when it was owned by Sir Thomas Hinton, Sheriff of Berkshire, and Commissioner of Wool. It stood to the west of the current house, across the county boundary in Wiltshire, and just to the east of where Park Farm now stands.
In 1663 it was bought by Sir Bulstrode Whitelocke, the English lawyer, diarist, writer, Parliamentarian, and Lord Keeper of the Great Seal of England. He was a distinguished character during the Civil War and Commonwealth period, and after the restoration of Charles II he retired to live quietly at Chilton Lodge, dying there 28th July 1675.
The estate was afterwards sold to John Holwell, a nabob, and one of the survivors of the 'Black Hole' of Calcutta (1756). He was subsequently governor of Bengal in 1760.
Christopher Derrick was born in Hungerford, the son of the artist, illustrator and cartoonist Thomas Derrick and his wife Margaret, née Clausen.
He was educated at Douai School 1934-39, and at Magdalen College, Oxford, 1940 and 1945-47, his studies being interrupted by service in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. In 1943 he married Katharine Helen Sharratt, who graduated from Bedford College the same year. They had nine children, eight sons and a daughter. From 1953 to 1965 he was Printing Officer of the University of London, as well as working as a reader for Macmillan. Thereafter he worked independently as a literary adviser to various publishers, as a book reviewer, and as a writer and lecturer. He died on 2 October 2007 at the age of 86. His surviving literary papers have been deposited in the archive at Douai Abbey, Berkshire.
David John Colin Pinckney (always known as "Colin") was born at Hidden Cottage on 6th December 1918, the second son on Hugh and Winifred Pinckney. His older brother was Philip Pinckney. who joined the SAS, and was killed in 1943. Colin was educated at Eton and Trinity College Cambridge University. He joined the University Air Squadron in 1936-7 and was commissioned into the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve as a Pilot Officer on 6th December 1938.
At the outbreak of war he was ordered to report to No.1 Initial Training Wing at Jesus College, Cambridge on 25th September 1939. From here he joined 603 Squadron, flying from RAF Drem in Scotland with Spitfire Mk1's at the start of the Battle of Britain.
At the end of August 1940 the squadron moved south to Hornchurch, and joined that later weeks of the Battle of Britain, during which he shot down five enemy aircraft.
On 29th August 1940 Colin Pinckney, who was flying Spitfire R6753(XT-G), was shot down in combat with an ME 109. He parachuted safely to the ground, sustaining minor burns to his face and hands. These kept him off flying duties for some weeks. From the letters he sent home it seems that he spent some time with his old House Master at Cambridge whilst recovering and that he was enjoying walks across the Fens, occasionally taking a shotgun with him for some sport.
Once he had recovered from his injuries he returned to 603 Sqn, now back at Drem. Following his escape from his Spitfire he wrote to the Irvin Parachute Company asking to be enrolled as a member of the Caterpillar Club. This club was open to anyone who had been saved by one of the Irvin parachutes and they would receive a silver caterpillar to be worn on the lapel.
Early in the New Year P/O Pinckney was posted to the Far East, arriving in Singapore on 11th March 1941 aboard the steamer SS Aquitania.
He helped form a new squadron, 67 Sqn, with a draft of five officers and 111 airmen who came out with him from England. The squadron continued to grow to full strength by May 1941, with many of the new pilots coming from New Zealand. Few of these pilots had any combat experience and had until then only flown bi-planes, but now they had to become familiar with the new American Brewster Buffalo single wing fighters. The training took place at Kallang and it was while they were there that Colin received his promotion to Flight Lieutenant as from 6th July 1941, details of which he received in a letter from his Commanding Officer on 13th August.
Coral Rosemary Atkins was born on 13th September 1936 at Kingston on Thames and died, aged 80, on 2nd December 2016 at the West Berkshire Community Hospital, Thatcham. At the time of her death, she had been living at Edinburgh House, Priory Road, Newbury with Keith Skinner, her partner for the previous 16 years.
Her gravestone in St. Saviour's Cemetery bears the inscription "Actress and Children's Campaigner". It is hardly surprising then that these two activities featured largely in her life.
Coral's father Eric was an electrician by occupation but was also a budding painter whose works were exhibited at the Royal Academy.
The family were on the move for many years. By 1939, the Atkins family were living at 57 Langley Avenue, Sutton but just a few years later, during WW2, Coral and her sister Sylvia were evacuated from Tooting, in London, to a remote farm in rural Wiltshire. Just after the war, Coral's parents moved to Bucklebury and then to Kingsclere and Coral attended Shaw House School in Love Lane, Newbury.
After leaving school, she tried following her father's passion for art and attended Winchester School for a short period. She finally realised it was not to be her vocation and instead joined Armstrong Productions, a travelling rep company.
In 1960, she first appeared on TV in a bit part in Emergency Ward 10 and in following years enjoyed roles in Dixon of Dock Green, Deadline Midnight, No Hiding Place and The Likely Lads, to name a few.
Her big break came in 1970 when she starred as the downtrodden and neglected wife Shelia Ashton in the ITV drama Family at War (1970-72) which followed the lives of a lower-middle-class Liverpool family from 1938 to 1945. At its peak this TV series had over 20 million viewers.
Later TV appearances included Callan, The Sweeney, Flesh and Blood and finally the soap opera Emmerdale in 1993 in which she starred as Frank Tate's former girlfriend.
In 1970, she opened a fete on behalf of a children's home near Manchester where she encountered a disturbed young girl who seemed to be ignored by her carers. This had such a dramatic effect upon her that she turned her back on her acting career at the end of the Family at War series and decided to open up her own home for disturbed children.
Around 1972, she rented a 20-roomed thatched cottage set in a couple of acres of land called Crossways in Marsh Benham, near Newbury, and after renovation, which she did herself, she opened up her premises for disadvantaged children with behavioural problems in the latter part of 1972. In 1981, she qualified as a psychotherapist.
In 1985, Coral opened up a second children's home, in Putney, south-west London. Five years later, both homes were merged into Gyde House, in Painswick, Gloucestershire. Over a period of 26 years, she cared for a total of 37 children aged between 10 and eighteen months old. Sadly, her home had to close in 1996 after suffering financial difficulties.
Job Titles:
- Manager
- Manager of Gas Works 1911 - 1917. Photo C1912
The website is a one-man band! I (Hugh Pihlens) have done all the website development single-handed. However, I am very grateful to the following for their help, contributions and support with specific areas of the Virtual Museum:
You are in [People] [Local Historians] [Jimmy Whittaker]
In 2022 Dr. Jimmy Whittaker wrote: Jimmy Whittaker was born in Liverpool but spent his formative years in the sleepy West Berkshire town of Hungerford enjoying an idyllic life of fishing, being a "Mod," birding (all sorts!) and musical pursuits together with his "gang." He left for university, little knowing that his studies were to occupy the next ten years of his life!
Jimmy spent most of his working life in schools, colleges, and universities teaching subjects ranging from mathematics to materials science. He holds post-graduate degrees in polymer science, organic chemistry and materials science and has Qualified Teacher Status He originally qualified as a chemist through the Royal Institute of Chemistry (now the Royal Society of Chemistry).
He has lived in Florida over the past 17 years where he developed a keen interest in all matters green and graduated from the University of Florida as a Master Gardener and is a certified teacher of Square Foot gardening,
In retirement, he enjoys (more) fishing, traveling, ornithology, genealogy, and writing. His recent books include The Pike Text Book, Tales of Three Men in a Boat (a comedy travelogue), Illustrated Tales of Three Men in a Boat, Introducing Succulents and a semi-autobiographical work, Teenage Tales of Hungerford.The Changing Faces of Hungerford three volumes covering the history of the town and more recently Memorial Benches of Hungerford
He is a fan of The Beatles, Liverpool Football Club, and Real Ale. He has three children: Adam (Young Lockhart), Lucy (Lucifer) and Chaanah (Best Girl). He lives with his wife Kat in southern England but has spent the last 17 winters in Florida.
(Dr. Jimmy Whittaker has contributed many articles to the Virtual Museum, for which I am grateful. HLP)
You are in [People] [Local Historians] [Fred Bailey]
Fred Bailey was born on 20th September 1932 in Southfields, London, SW18. He started work at 15 as an office junior in the post room of a wholesale woollen merchants in Saville Row, W1. He remained with the same firm for 22 years, rising to Export Manager.
In 1969 he moved to Hungerford having been offered a job in Lambourn, but that folded after seven months. He had three further sales jobs, often travelling to Europe, Scandinavia and the USA.
Fred married twice and had four childrend and four grandchildren.
He retired in 1997 although continued a part-time job as a Sales Consultant for some years.
Fred joined the Hungerford Historical Association in 1981, served on the Committee, as Secretary and as Chairman on various occasions. He researched and gave talks on John of Gaunt, Robert Bruce and the North American Civil War 1862-91. He was Archivist from 2005-2009.
He was a keen badminton player, and enjoyed watching sport especially football and cricket.
In 1999-2000 he was chairman of the committee that researched and wrote the book "Hungerford - A History" (published Nov 2000), and was successful in gaining a grant from the Millenium "Awards for All" Lottery Fund.
You are in [People] [Artists & Painters] [George Shepherd]
You are in [People] [Landowners & Gentry] [Gerald Ward]
Gerald Ward was a well-known and popular local man - part of the Ward family of Chilton Lodge. He died suddenly in September 2008.
Mr Walter Hall objects: This raised great alarm and opposition in the eyes of Mr Walter Hall, who, on 8 Jan 1846 produced a large public notice strongly opposing the plans, for fear that the Rates to be charged were out of the control of the ordinary citizens. The notice (which was printed bu a Marlborough printer) was couched in the strongest of terms. Follow this link for full details of Walter Hall's Opposing Proposition.
There were two replies in defence from H.E.Astley and J.O.Culyer. Mr. Astley explained about the misrepresentation by Mr. Hall, and accidents had occured in the unlighted streets,and Mr. B, Alexander (Grocer) and Mr. George Martin (carpenter) were recovering from the accidents:
Mr Astley supports: The notice produced by Walter Hall spurred Mr Astley, the local solicitor, and supporter of the scheme, to write a responding, and venomous, paper countering much of what Walter Hall had said four days earlier. Follow this link for full details of Mr Astley's counter claims.
Henry Quelch (30th January 1858 - 17th September 1913), known exclusively as Harry Quelch, was one of the first Marxists in Great Britain. He was a socialist activist, journalist and trade unionist. His brother, Lorenzo "Len" Quelch, was also a socialist activist, while his son, Tom Quelch, achieved note as a prominent socialist activist.
Harry Quelch was born 30th January 1858 in Hungerford. He was the son and grandson of a village blacksmith; his maternal grandfather had been an agricultural labourer.
Circumstances forced the eldest child, Harry, into the world to contribute to the family's maintenance from a very young age, with Harry taking his first job at the age of 10. He worked variously in an upholsterer's shop and later for a local dairyman and cattle dealer. At the age of 14 he left Berkshire for good to make his way in the big city of London.
In London the boy worked a succession of jobs in a biscuit factory, in a tannery, and in an iron foundry before landing a better job as a packer in a paper warehouse. This last job allowed the boy sufficient free time to teach himself French. It was in this language that he first read the writing of Karl Marx as part of the process of his self-education. It was in this way that he was converted to the ideas of Social-Democracy. He also later taught himself German, the de facto official language of international socialism.
Harry Quelch joined the Democratic Federation (forerunner of the Social Democratic Federation, SDF) in 1881 at the age of 23. Just two years later the young man was elected to its executive. In April 1884 Quelch became an international delegate of the British socialist movement for the first time when he and Hyndman were sent to Paris to attend a congress of the French Workers' Party.
When a large section of the party's active membership, led by William Morris, departed the SDF in 1884 to form the Socialist League, Quelch stayed behind, redoubling his efforts on behalf of the organisation. it was around this time that Quelch's abilities as a speaker and journalist began to fully develop.
Quelch became the full-time editor of the SDF's newspaper, Justice. He also represented the SDF on bodies including various strike committees and the Trades Union Congress, and at socialist conferences across Europe. He was heavily involved in the London dock strike of 1889, and was the main organiser and first general secretary of the South Side Labour Protection League, a union for dock workers founded after the strike. He was elected several times as the chair of the London Trades Council, and was one of the founders of the Labour Representation Committee. From 1892 until the end of 1908, he was also the business manager for the 20th Century Press, a radical publisher.
In 1901, Quelch arranged for the SDF to print Vladimir Lenin's newspaper Iskra which had been banned in Russia. A thin partition was installed in a small corner of the printing works and Quelch was forced to "squeeze up" into these cramped quarters as a makeshift editorial office to make room for the Russians. There was only room for a small writing desk with a bookshelf above it and a single chair.
Quelch was a perennial representative of the British socialist movement to international gatherings of the Second International. He attended Congress of the International in Paris in 1889, Brussels in 1891, Zurich in 1893, London in 1896, Paris in 1900, Amsterdam in 1904, Stuttgart in 1907, and finally at Copenhagen in 1910.
It was as a delegate of the SDF to the 1907 Stuttgart Congress that Quelch achieved his greatest notoriety as an international socialist. There in a speech he condemned an international conference of diplomats then sitting at The Hague, attended by Tsar Nicholas II, as a "thieves' supper." Government authorities were swift in expelling Quelch from the country for his remarks, an action which boosted British esteem in the eyes of their radical peers.
Harry Quelch was chronically ill from about the beginning of 1912 until his death in London on 17th September 1913, at the age of 55. Sanitariums and bracing sea air proved insufficient to cure whatever the illness from which he suffered. His funeral was a political event, attended by socialists from all over the country. He was buried at Camberwell Old Cemetery, Southwark, on Saturday 20th September.
James E. Talmage, the first son of Susannah Prater and James Joyce Talmage, was born in Hungerford on 21st September 1862. He was raised in Hungerford and Ramsbury.
He was born in the Bell Inn or alehouse, Hungerford (now 115 High Street, often mistakenly identified in articles about Talmage as the Bell Hotel), where his father was the manager. Talmage's parents converted to the LDS Church, probably in the 1850s before his birth.
Neighbours and local clergy did not like the Talmage family's membership in the LDS Church or their innkeeping business, which included serving alcoholic beverages during the temperance movement. Shortly after Talmage's birth, his family moved into a cottage in Eddington, where most of his ten younger siblings were born.
At the age of two, Talmage moved to Oxford Street, Ramsbury to stay with his grandfather (a cordwainer and grocer). There he attended infant schools and received some schooling from his grandfather.
He returned to Hungerford to live with his parents at age five. As Talmage was spending his time helping take care of his siblings and helping at the inn, he attended school sporadically for the next three years.
Nonetheless, at the age of twelve, he graduated from elementary school, passing the Oxford Diocesan Association exam for a second-class certificate. Talmage received a distinguished primary education and was named an Oxford Diocesan Prize Scholar after six years of schooling.
You are in [People] [Hungerford Characters] [James Money]
James H. Money (1834-1918) was an architect based in Newbury. He was born at The Dene in Donnington near The Castle Pub, the youngest son of John and Maria Money. His father ran a brickworks at Donnington House before moving on to create an architect and surveyors business in Newbury. James had two older sisters and an older brother, the famous local historian Walter Money, FSA, who wrote "An Historical Sketch of the Town of Hungerford" in 1894.
James Money designed over 70 buildings in and around Newbury. In Hungerford he was responsible for the design of such iconic buildings as the Victorian Town Hall and Corn Exchange (1870-71), the Plough Inn (1879) and St John's Mission Hall (1899-1900).
You are in [People] [Landowners & Gentry] [Jethro Tull]
Prosperous Farm, a mile or two south of Hungerford on the Salisbury Road, was the home for over thirty years of the famous agricultural inventor, Jethro Tull, once described as "the greatest individual improver that agriculture has ever known."
In c.1704 he moved to Prosperous Farm in Hungerford, apparently taking it over from his great-uncle, also called Jethro Tull, who had run the farm since 1680.
Follow this for much more on Helmes, Helmes Farm and Helmes Heath, and also Richard Hawkins involvement in the bancruptcy of Jethro Tull senior.
Four years later he decided to travel around Europe to improve his health and study agricultural techniques there. He visited France and Italy between 1713 and 1715, and noted the methods of cultivating the vineyards in the Languedoc area of France and in Italy, where it was usual practice to hoe the ground between the vines rather than manuring.
On returning to Prosperous in 1715 he tried this on his fields of grain and root crops - he pulverised the earth between the rows, believing that this released nutrients and reducing the need for manure. While apparently successful - he grew wheat in the same field for 13 successive years without manuring - it is more likely that he merely prevented weeds from overcrowding and competing with the seed.
You are in [People] [Artists & Painters] [John "Tom" Simson]
Mr John "Tom" Simson was a retired Lloyds underwriter, and moved to Canal Walk in the 1970s. He was a keen artist, and as well as the painting he placed on the wall of his garage in Canal Walk, he most notably painted the three pictures purchased by the Town and Manor in 1984, and hung on the wall of the Corn Exchange:
"John Rennie being welcomed by the Constable of Hungerford at the opening of the Kennet and Avon Canal from Kintbury to Hungerford"
John Alan Smith was born in Cambridge on 16th February, 1921 and later baptised on 24th April 1921 at the Holy Trinity Church. His parents, John and Annie Winifred Jackson were living at St. Peter's Cottage, Chesterton near Cambridge. His father was a publican. His daughter Angela Ford kindly emailed (December 2020) to add that "one of his pubs was the Blue Ball in Grantchester where he was well known as Jack Smith".
John Hollister was born in Wokingham in 1947, the eldest son of Frederick Hollister and Kathleen Dempster who married locally in Newbury. John had four siblings: Joan, Valerie, Paul and Diana. His father Fred was a local man who was born in Hungerford and at the time of the outbreak of WW2 was working on a farm at Upper Denford. Research suggests there have been Hollisters in Hungerford since at least the late 1770s.
My family moved to Hungerford in June 1961 where we lived in Coldharbour Road next door to John's family. The Hollister family were some of the earliest residents in Coldharbour Road and took up residency there in 1958. John and his brother Paul were virtually the first Hungerfordian teenagers I met. We would hang about the "rec" in those early days, playing football and cricket and secretly smoking in the park shed!
When John left school around 1963, he went to work for local building firm Gibbs and Son and remained there until 1988 when he was made redundant due to the economic recession.
He then started his own business carrying out building maintenance and a range of handyman services until around 1995 when his chronic arthritis brought about his retirement.
John was very much into sports and I (Jimmy Whittaker) played cricket with him for a couple of seasons in the mid-1960s and football in the Hungerford Minors with his brother Paul. John was quite a tall, gangly boy and so it was no surprise that he became a goalkeeper. By the early 1970s, John had matured as a player and eventually ended playing in goal for Hungerford's first team. Such was his love of football that after his retirement as a player around 1979, he co-managed Hungerford Reserves with Colin Moyle. His managerial career continued for a short time when he became the joint manager at Lambourn Football Club. On his return from Lambourn FC in the 1980s, he joined Hungerford Town's committee and towards the end of the 1980s, became Match Secretary. In1989 whilst he was Match Secretary, Hungerford Town reached the semi-final of the FA Vase. In addition, John served on the Hungerford Cricket Club committee for a number of years.
You are in [People] [Local Historians] [John Newton]
John Newton (1937-2019) lived much of his life in Hungerford. He became a business man, property owner, and local historian. He was a Commoner and held most of the offices of the Town and Manor, including Constable in 1972.
John Newton's funeral was held on 21st June 2019 - and a number of steam engines and showman's engines were displayed to honour his contribution. See the pics (pdf) of the wake (with thanks to Tony Bartlett).
John Pearse was director of the Bank of England (1790-1791, 1793-1808 and 1812-1828), deputy governor (1808-1810) and finally as its governor (1810-1812). He was later MP for Devizes 1818 to 1832.
John Pearse commissioned the well known architect Sir John Soane to demolish the old 16th century house and design a new villa, closely following his design for Saxlingham Parsonage in Suffolk. The new house was built between 1789 and 1793.
Lord Fermoy, who lived at Eddington House, was born Edmund Maurice Burke Roche on 20th March 1939 in Westminster, London. He was the only son of Maurice Roche, 4th Baron Fermoy and a former Conservative MP. His grandmother Ruth, Dowager Lady Fermoy, had been lady-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother for 30 years. Lord Fermoy's sister, Frances Shand-Kydd, was the mother of Princess Diana, making Lord Fermoy her uncle.
Job Titles:
- Gas Engineer from Bicester
The initial proposal for a gas works in Hungerford came from Mr Thomas Atkins, a gas engineer from Bicester. He came to Hungerford in early 1845 with the idea of building a gas works, and lighting the town with gas. He persuaded Benjamin Keen and Henry Astley (a solicitor who had just come to the town, and who was later, in 1863, to marry Benjamin Keen's widow) to carry out a "canvass" of the town to judge the interest of such a scheme.
A public meeting was held in the Town Hall on Friday 13th June 1845; there was general support for the Gas Company, and a committee was formed.
Mr Atkins had a printed proposal made, dated 16th June 1845, outlining his full proposal, along with the commercial implications. Follow this link to read the full details of Thomas Atkins proposal. A further meeting was held on 20th June.
Initially, plans appear to have progressed smoothly.
Neil J. Sweeney (left) with his father, James J. Sweeney, who was a merchant marine and captained several liberty ships during WWII. He wrote in his logbook about visiting his son at Hungerford in May 1944, right before they both participated in D-Day. (from Julia Kenny)
Philip Hugh Pinckney was born 7th April 1915, the elder son of Hugh and Winifred Pinckney of Hidden Cottage. Philip's younger brother was Colin Pinckney. Both were to lose their lives in the 2nd World War.
Philip was educated at Eton and Trinity College Cambridge as was his younger brother, Colin. However, he left Trinity after about a year and prior to joining the family tea business he visited India. At the outbreak of war he enlisted with the Berkshire Yeomanry, as did many young local men.
However, early in 1940 he had transferred to the newly-formed Commandos serving with 'E' Troop of 12 Commando, and was to encourage others from the Yeomanry to join him, one of these being Tim Robinson who became a Sergeant in Capt Pinckney's unit. There was much to learn in this new service and training took place in Scotland, Northern Ireland and various places in England.
Prince Harry's godfather Gerald Ward has died after suffering a heart attack at Sunningdale Golf Club. Mr Ward, 70, a close friend of the Prince of Wales, collapsed on the first tee of the famous course while taking part in a charity tournament.
You are in [People] [Clergy & Teachers] [Vicars of Hungerford] [Rev Tom Gray]
The Reverend William Edward Thomas Seccombe Gray was always known as Tom. He and his wife Edith had two daughters, Mary and Jean, and one son, Gordon who was known as Peter.
He was Vicar of Hungerford from 1909 until 1924, and was much involved in the community life of the town during these years. He was the son of Rev WAG Gray, Vicar of Hungerford 1895-1900.
He was a very popular man and a keen sportsman, fishing and shooting being his special interests. Indeed he wrote a book on fishing under the pen-name 'Silver Devon' entitled 'Leaves from an Angler's Notebook'. He was an active member of the Hungerford Volunteer Fire Brigade, rising to the most senior rank of captain, and skillfully managed to combine his 'dog-collar' with his fireman's uniform!
E L "Jim" Davis wrote "His book "Pike Fishing" included "a vivid description of the killing of a 30lb female pike in teh river Wye on 16 Jan 1905" (the day Jim Davis was born!). He goes on to say "I moved to Hungerford in 1954 and shortly after visited the Railway Tavern where an old friend of mine, Percy Ecles, was Mine Host. Above the bar was a large cased pike, which upon examination proved to be the one I had read about - the one killed on the day I was born. I then learned that Thomas Seccombe Gray had been Vicar of Hungerford and that, upon leaving the parish, he had given the pike to the Hungerford Angling Association. The fish was kept as whichever inn the Association was currently using for their meetings. I last saw it at The Lamb Inn at the time when the late "Bill" Barnes was the Secretary, but its present whereabouts is a bit of a mystery. The Rev Gray ...fished the Kennet and went to Scotland regularly for the salmon. He devoted a few chapters of his book to the pursuit of salmon."
Extract from "Scottish episcopal clergy, 1689-2000" by David M Bertie - Page 276. Contains a synopsis of the careers of both Tom Gray and his father
Rev Tom Gray's 30lb mounted pike, caught 1905 - auctioned 2008. (Kindly sent by Alastair Honeybun)
- Rev Tom Gray in "dog-collar" and uniform of the Hungerford Volunteer Fire Brigade, c.1920.
Robert James has a great interest in the history of Hungerford.
Involvement in the Town & Manor is something of a family tradition. Robert's grandfather, Ernest Frank James, was a Tutti Man (in 1938), Fishery Secretary and Trustee. It was Ernest who ran James & Co. at the Great Western Mill.
Robert James has a long history of service to the Town & Manor of Hungerford. He was a Tutti Man in 1967, Trustee since 1971, and Constable from 1978-80. In addition, Robert has been Commons & Land Secretary for over 20 years from 1998, Hocktide Court Steward from 2002-2017, and served for many years on the Fishery and Finance Committees. His commitment to looking after the land owned by the charity has seen careful management of Hungerford Common Port Down, Freeman's Marsh and the purchase of Hungerford Marsh. The care of the charity and land has all been with the aim of benefiting Hungerford as a whole.
Robert was awarded the British Empire Medal in the 2018 New Year's Honours List, in recognition of over 50 years of voluntary service to the Town & Manor of Hungerford charity.
The award was presented by the Lord Lieutenant of Berkshire, James Puxley at a cermony at Reading University on 22nd March 2018. His citation was read by the High Sheriff of Berkshire, Sarah Scrope.
Samuel Chandler was born in Hungerford, the son of Henry Chandler (d.1719), a Dissenting minister, and his wife Mary Bridgeman. His father was the first settled Presbyterian minister at Hungerford since the 1689 Act of Toleration.
In 1714 Chandler began a preaching ministry in London. During this time he shared a house with Secker, who had returned to England after studying in Leiden. In 1716 he was chosen as minister of the Presbyterian Hanover Chapel in Peckham and ordained in December of that year.
On 17 September 1719 Chandler married Elizabeth Rutter at St Giles, Camberwell. Elizabeth was the daughter of Benjamin Rutter, leather dresser of Bermondsey, and his wife Elizabeth. They had six children: Elizabeth (d. before 1772), wife of Thomas Mitchell, tailor of Bucklersbury, London; Sarah (d.1791), wife of the classical scholar Edward Harwood (1729-1794); Catherine ("Kitty"), wife of William Ward, packer of Sise-lane, London, and Mary ("Polly"), who remained unmarried. His two sons pre-deceased him.
Through the South Sea Bubble crash of 1720 Chandler lost the fortune which his wife had brought to their marriage. This left him in straitened circumstances, and from about 1723 he supplemented his income by working as a bookseller at the Cross Keys in the Poultry, London. In 1725, having read his recently published Vindication of the Christian Religion, Archbishop Wake wrote to him expressing surprise that 'so much good learning and just reasoning in a person of your profession, and do think it pity you should not rather spend your time in writing books than in selling them'.
It was partly due to the success of Vindication, which brought together sermons he had delivered at the Old Jewry meeting house in defence of Christian revelation, that Chandler was invited to be the assistant minister under Thomas Leavesley at the Old Jewry in 1726. During this time he continued to preach at Peckham. In 1728 he was appointed pastor at the Old Jewry, the congregation offering him an extra £100 a year on the condition that he give up bookselling. He held this position for the rest of his life.
Over time he came to play a leading role in the affairs of London Dissenters. From 1730 he was a member of the Presbyterian Board, and from 1744 of Dr Williams's Trust. It was largely as a result of his influence, particularly among wealthy dissenters, that a relief society for widows and orphaned children of Protestant dissenting ministers was established in 1733. In a similar way he co-ordinated the formation of The Society for the Propagation of the Knowledge of God among the Germans, formed in 1753 to assist German dissenters in the British colony of Pennsylvania.
You are in [People] [Landowners & Gentry] [Simon de Montfort]
Simon V de Montfort, (23rd May 1208? - 4th August 1265), was a French-English nobleman, who became Earl of Leicester, owning large estates in England. These Earl of Leicester estates included Hungerford, which he used as an administrative centre for his local business affairs. Simon de Montfort developed Hungerford Park as his personal deer park.
Simon de Montfort came to England in 1229 (aged 21), and found that all his Leicester estates were in the hands of the Earl of Chester. Having relinquished all rights in France (to his brother Amaury), Simon de Montfort successfully petitioned King Henry III (1216-1272) for the English inheritance, which he received the next year, although he did not take full possession of the estates until 1231, and did not inherit the title of 6th Earl of Leicester until February 1239.
Simon marries Eleanor: In January 1238 Simon de Montfort married Eleanor, daughter of King John and sister of King Henry III. Whilst this marriage took place with the king's approval, it was performed secretly and without consulting the great barons, as a marriage of such importance warranted.
The English nobles protested the marriage of the King's sister to a foreigner of modest rank; most notably, Eleanor's brother Richard, 1st Earl of Cornwall rose up in revolt when he learned of the marriage. King Henry eventually bought off Richard with 6,000 marks and peace was restored.
Relations between Henry III and Simon de Montfort were cordial at first. Henry supported Simon when he embarked for Rome in March 1238 to seek papal approval for his marriage. When Simon and Eleanor's first son was born in November 1238, he was baptised Henry in honour of his Royal uncle. In February 1239 Simon de Montfort was finally invested with the Earldom of Leicester. He also acted as the King's counsellor and was one of the nine godfathers of Henry's eldest son, Prince Edward, who would later inherit the throne and become Edward I.
Shortly after Prince Edward's birth, however, there was a falling out. Simon owed a great sum of money to Thomas II of Savoy, uncle of Queen Eleanor, and named Henry as security for his repayment. King Henry had evidently not been told of this, and when he discovered that Simon de Montfort had used his name, he was enraged. On 9 August 1239 Henry confronted Simon de Montfort, and threatened to imprison him in the Tower of London. Simon and Eleanor fled to France to escape Henry's wrath.
Simon de Montfort sent out representatives to each county and to a select list of boroughs, asking each to send two representatives to parliament. This parliament of 1265 ("De Montfort's Parliament"), was a packed assembly. (This was not the first parliament in England, but what distinguished it was that Simon de Montfort insisted the representatives be elected). It is from him that the modern idea of a democratic representative parliament derives. The list of boroughs which had the right to elect a member grew slowly over the centuries as monarchs gave out more Royal Charters. (The last charter was given to Newark in 1674.)
The weak point in his scheme was the establishment of a triumvirate (consisting of himself, the young Earl of Gloucester, and the Bishop of Chichester) in which his colleagues were obviously figureheads. Many barons who had initially supported him now started to feel that Simon de Montfort's reforms were going too far, and his many enemies turned his triumph into disaster.
The Battle of Evesham (1265): Only fifteen months later Prince Edward escaped captivity (having been freed by his cousin Roger Mortimer) to lead the royalists into battle again and he turned the tables on Simon de Montfort at Kenilworth, capturing more of Montfort's allies. Simon de Montfort himself had crossed the Severn with his army, intending to rendezvous with his son Simon. When he saw the army awaiting him at Evesham, Montfort initially thought it was led by his son. But the army belonged to Prince Edward, flying the Montfort banners he had captured at Kenilworth, and so leading Simon into a trap.
Simon de Montfort died on 4 August 1265 at the battle of Evesham, and was buried at the nearby Evesham Abbey.
Soon after Simon de Montfort returned to England in 1229, he successfully petitioned King Henry III for the return of the Earl of Leicester estates, which was granted in 1231. These English estates were very extensive, and largely based around Leicester and Kenilworth, but they also included the vill of Hungerford, and the fee of Sanden.
"Slight attention has been paid by Simon de Montfort's early biographers to his manor of Hungerford; there are two small references by C. Bemont, and none at all by M. W. Labarge. As de Montfort and his wife held lands in more than twenty different counties, it may not be altogether surprising that an outlying and relatively undeveloped manor such as Hungerford has secured so little attention. It is perfectly true that de Montfort's two great power bases, Leicester and Kenilworth, lay in the Midlands; but a recent historian, D. A. Carpenter refers to Simon's lesser but nevertheless important bases outside this area "for example at Hungerford in Berkshire".The earliest reference to Hungerford which involves Simon de Montfort relates to the Hospital of St John. We do not know when this was founded, but in 1232 King Henry III issued, from nearby Wallingford, letters of protection to "the house and brethren of the Hospital of St John the Baptist of Hungerford". Whether this protection was obtained through Simon's influence, we do not know.
You are in [People] [Landowners & Gentry] [Sir Robert de Hungerford]
This article can now forms part of the Hungerford Family article - see Sir Robert de Hungerford.
Sir William Pearce made a major investment in 1891 when he installed the water supply for the estate, including the pump house on the Kennet below the house, along with river-powered turbines which pump water to the 40,000 gallon water tower built on the highest part of the estate, from which Chilton Lodge and all the estate properties are supplied.
He also added a number of properties in Chilton Foliat as well as the "model" farm and dairy at Leverton, and the lodges at the east and south gates.
Sir William Pearce was an extremely generous benefactor to Hungerford. In July 1892 he issued an open invitation to all the inhabitants of Hungerford and Chilton. Thousands of people were treated to "an excellent and abundant dinner, served in an enormous tent. The weather was delightful. There were two admiral bands".
You are in [People] [Hungerford Characters] [Sir William Pearce]
Sir William Pearce came to live at Chilton Lodge. He died young, and without an heir. He and his wife were great benefactors to the Hungerford area.
William George Pearce was born on 23rd July 1861 in Chatham, Kent. He was the only child of William Pearce and Dinah Elizabeth Scooter.
He was educated at Rugby Public School after which he attended Trinity College Cambridge, where he read law and graduated in 1884. He was called to the bar at The Inner Temple, London in 1885. In 1888 he was awarded a Master of Arts degree from Cambridge.
Despite his education, he never practised as a lawyer or barrister but tried to follow in his father's footsteps.
His father, William Pearce (senior) who was born in Brompton, Kent in 1833, trained as a naval architect and was to become one of the most enterprising and successful shipbuilders of his time.
In 1864, he was appointed manager of Napier's shipyard in Govan, Lanarkshire and five years later became a partner with John Ure and J L K Jamieson in John Elder & Co. He became sole partner in 1878 and in 1886 converted the firm to a limited company, the Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Co. Under his direction, the firm became a world leader in ship design and marine engineering and was most famous for the development of the triple expansion engine. He later became MP for Govan from 1885 to 1888 and was knighted on 21st July 1887 to become Baronet of Cardell in the County of Renfrew, in brief Sir William Pearce.
William Pearce (senior) died of a heart attack in London in 1888, leaving over £1,000,000 in his will, approximately equivalent to £1 billion in today's money.
You are in [People] [Thomas Fruen]
Thomas Fruen served for 47 years as Parish Clerk and Sexton.
Tim Robinson recalls following him out of the aircraft but on landing and re-grouping, Philip could not be found. It was agreed that the parties should split into two sections to carry out their tasks, Sgt Tim Robinson leading in place of Capt Pinckney.
This team was able to blow up the target bridges and railway lines, even catching one train in a tunnel. They returned to the allied lines after approximately 53 days, only one man short who was taken ill and had to be left behind to spend the rest of the war in a POW camp. Had he not lied about his identity he would have been shot as a Commando.
It was later discovered that Capt Philip Pinckney had himself been captured and shot. It is recorded that he died on 7 Sep 1943. There is also some evidence that all of the other section were caught and shot.
William Robert Young (born 20th January 1979) is a British singer-songwriter and actor from Wokingham, England, who came to prominence after winning the 2002 inaugural series of the ITV talent contest Pop Idol, making him the first winner of the worldwide Idol franchise. His double A-sided debut single "Anything Is Possible" / "Evergreen" was released two weeks after the show's finale and became the fastest-selling debut single in the UK. Young also came in fifth place in World Idol performing the single "Light My Fire" written by the band The Doors.
As a teenager, Young studied politics at the University of Exeter before moving to London, where he studied musical theatre at Arts Educational School. Young put his studies on hold in late 2001 to become a contestant on Pop Idol. After winning the competition the following year, he released his debut album From Now On (2002) which went straight to number one. Friday's Child (2003) followed and enjoyed greater success, eventually going platinum five times in the UK and spawning three top five singles. His following albums Keep On (2005), Let It Go (2008) and Echoes (2011) also went multi-platinum and his most recent release 85% Proof (2015) became his fourth UK number-one album. His albums have spawned many songs that have achieved top ten positions in the UK, four of which went to the number one spot. Young has also undertaken numerous concert tours, and has accumulated multiple honours, including two Brit Awards from 12 nominations, and the estimated worldwide sale of over eight million albums.[2] Young's net worth was estimated at £13.5 million in April 2012.[3]
Alongside his music career, Young has acted in film, on stage and in television. For his performance in the 2013 London revival of the musical Cabaret, he was nominated for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical. He has also participated in philanthropy and released books Anything is Possible (2002),[4] On Camera, Off Duty (2004) and his autobiography Funny Peculiar (2012).
Will Young was born on 20th January 1979 in Wokingham, Berkshire, and is the second-oldest child of Robin Young, a company director of an engineering firm, and Annabel Young (née Griffith), a plant nursery gardener. Born six weeks prematurely, he is ten minutes older than his twin brother, Rupert. He also has an older sister Emma.
Young was brought up in Hungerford, and was initially educated at Kingsbury Hill School in Marlborough, Wiltshire, before attending Horris Hill Preparatory School, Newbury, between the ages of eight and thirteen.
His first appearance on stage was at the age of four when he played a fir tree in a school production and had one line to speak. At Horris Hill, Young was head chorister in the school choir, and at the age of nine he learned how to play the piano. Young recalls that at Horris Hill, pupils were taught that they were more privileged than pupils from state schools, and that one day he wrote a letter stating, "I must pass common entrance to take me to public school, otherwise I'll be going to state school and everyone will be very disappointed." At thirteen, Young and his brother were enrolled at Wellington College in Crowthorne, Berkshire, a public boarding school. Young appeared in several school productions and often gave speeches in assembly, despite later admitting that he never felt completely comfortable being the centre of attention.
He went on to have an active career as a singer (2001 - present) and later as an actor (2005 - present).