Some of the group are busy rehearsing for the church concert, Jenny mentioned the Battle of Wiggaton, I have found this reference:
http://www.heritagegateway.org.uk/Gateway/Results_Single.aspx?uid=MDV17281&resourceID=104
There is a suggestion that local history groups will be asked to arrange an event to commemorate the 100 year end of WW1, the group suggested afternoon tea, a weekend event, a coffee morning, this would take place around the 11th Nov 2018.
George has been working on his family tree, and has come across a murder!
Bob nattered about the Légion d'honneur medal, David spoke of a General 2nd class Iron Cross owned by an acquaintance who served on the Russian Front and held at prisoner of war camp in Scotland, and married a local girl.
Brenda showed us her display for the school project she has been working on with the Devon History Society, the land owners were against the children going to school as they would not keep their station in life and be cheap, or even free labour on the farms, these comments were found in the speeches given at ploughing match dinners! The non-conformist churches wanted children to be able to read the bible and supported education.
Maggie recalled the young children that went to work in the coal mines. Brenda’s research also coverers Buckerell School, one of the rectors, Edwin Coleridge, a cousin of Samuel the poet encouraged school and ran a night class.
I too have a poetical link in my own Oxfordshire family tree, Captain Simon Hatley was the seaman who shot the Albatross in Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”,
David has finished transcribing the diaries written by William Channon and has some words to find the meaning of:
Polling apples, could be this hand pollinating the trees? Brushing the trees is done to stop aphids attaching to the bark.
Tied wood, is a term used for making wooden hurdles or wood sledges, or could be cord wood, a measurement of a stack of thinings from a wood. He could just have tied wood into bundles or faggots for the fire.
Seared hedge, this is term used in hedge laying where the hedge is trimmed out and the long stems cleared of twigs (seared) ready to part cut through and laid.
Furze cutting, is cutting gorse, this would be collected, dried and used on the fire.
Alan gave us his memories
on Ottery St. Mary Railway Station.
Pupils going to the King’s
School from Honiton would ride eight to a compartment, including a prefect to
keep an eye on them. Some village children also went by train.
Alan would call into Townsend’s
sweetshop in Mill Street.
Ottery had a cinema, the “Scala”,
he would dash to catch the 10:33 train back to Sidmouth Junction after the
film.
Alan suffered an accident
while shunting wagons for Sidmouth, catching his sleeve between buffers. The
goods train guard walked him from the Ottery goods yard to Ottery Hospital,
here he met a young nurse and a friendship ensued.
Summer Saturday traffic
came down from Waterloo, with through trains to the seaside. Seven coaches went
to Exmouth and five to Sidmouth. On the return service two branch line engines
would struggle on the gradient up from the Otter Valley, and on occasions a
third engine went to the rescue. To remedy this, the station stop at Ottery was
discontinued for the Summer trains.
The group has received a query regarding the Manor of Hayes, which seems to be part of Feniton and Talaton. With the help of Roger this is the reply I sent:
There was no “Manor House” until later when the house called Radcliffe was built on the Manor of Aunke, this is on the Clyst Hydon Road out of Talaton at the T junction signed Clyst St Lawrence and Broadclyst.
The English Heritage listing for the more modern house is found here:
https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1098166
There is also Young Hayes and Blue Hayes on the right of the Old A30, as you leave Rockbeare and head towards Clyst Honiton, possibly part of the same Manor.
We spoke of the Northcote family, who lived in Feniton Court, George junior, Civil Engineer was granted patents for “improvements to apparatus for scraping and cleaning boots in 1874 and for a cask measuring apparatus for quantity of liquid held in the cask granted in 1872.
Don’t forget the talk in the church with Martin Howell on Thursday 19th at 7 pm to set up,
Thank you all for a fascinating evening, we meet next on the 2nd Nov in the Nog Inn 8 pm
