It seems a very long time since we were last able to say "Here's the latest GLHS newsletter". It is a very long time. For this I apologise. I hope this edition will prove to be up the mark of our earlier efforts. The material is exclusively from members of the Society, and I thank them for their efforts, and apologise to them too for taking so long to put them into print.
The committee hopes that you have been enjoying this season's series of talks. Ever since the GLHS began, I have been impressed with the quality and variety of our speakers. Very few have fallen below par. This season, I think we have been particularly lucky. This is not the place to select a "best" or "top of the pops", but to have experienced the delivery of Roy Tricker, Adrian Gibson and Ralph Ambrose in a few short months makes me feel privileged. I hope you agree. We have two further talks this season, followed by our summer excursion, and next season's programme is falling smoothly into place.
As we near the end of this season, I wish to thank all the committee for their hard work on behalf of the Society. Without them, the Society would not operate, and the monthly meetings would simply not happen. In particular, the preparations for the President's Evening put a good deal of pressure on the Committee, and the fact that it was such a resounding success is very much to their credit. Mention of the President's Evening cannot pass without an expression of the Society's and my personal thanks to our hosts at Chequers. George has been President since our inception, and has always supported us to the hilt.
In an earlier edition of this newsletter, I made a plea for members to begin recording the character of life in Glemsford in the late 20th century, and to record the memories of the older residents of the village, for the benefit of the future. There is even the suggestion that such work should be the Society's contribution to the Millennium activities. I am pleased to say that my suggestion did not fall entirely on deaf ears. Maisie Gentleman, among others, has been busy noting memories. Dee Hamilton has carefully transcribed Ted Hartley's memories of the village, originally recorded by Richard Deeks for Clare Middle School. Sid Watkinson is trying to collect any remaining examples of the ephemera of local businesses - bills, invoices, accounts, letterheads etc.
Much of the material in this newsletter falls in to the category of the sort of work I was intending. In fact, there is so much come in that there is already the start of the next edition. Look out for Gilman's work on the silk industry and a fascinating record of village nicknames (which may, it must be said, cause a few red faces!). Meanwhile, lets see more of us contributing to this fascinating and valuable activity.
Thanks to Joan Totman, direct descendant of William Hempstead Pearman, for bringing it to our attention
William Hempstead Pearman was born in Glemsford in 1817. the double surname probably indicates the name of the father, as, two years later, in October 1819, Sarah Pearman and William Hempstead were married in Glemsford. William grew up with them as their eldest child and they went on to have 8 more children before Sarah died in 1837. William married another Glemsford girl (Keziah Byford) in 1841, and five more children were born.
William Hempstead Pearman was transported to Tasmania in 1841, after being convicted of stealing wheat and receiving stolen pigs. He was convicted at Suffolk Quarter Sessions in March 1841 and sentenced to 14 years transportation. He left behind him his wife Susan, whom he had married in 1837, and two small children. He was 23 years old. William Hempstead Pearman paid his debt to society by working in the penal colony and helping to establish Tasmania. However, back in Glemsford, in 1845, Susan gave birth to a daughter she called Ellen, reputedly fathered by William's eldest half-brother, Edward Hempstead. Susan lived with her parents around this time, in Hunts Hill, and worked as a silk weaver.
In June 1849, William was granted a Ticket of Leave and so was allowed to move more freely around the colony, and perhaps earn a small wage. He must have received a full pardon in 1852, as he left Hobart and travelled to Victoria, Australia, where gold fields had been discovered in 1851.
By 1854, William returned to Glemsford a fairly wealthy man. On discovering Susan's mistake and remembering his own misdemeanour, William is reputed by family legend as saying "You broke the saucer and I broke a plate, so we'll call it quits".
The family bought a property on Tye Green and on Hunts Hill. Susan ran a pork butcher's shop and William took up his father's trade of blacksmith. The couple had four more children. William died at the age of 80, and was buried in Glemsford churchyard in 1897. Susan lived to the age of 86 years, dying in 1903. (In the 1861 census, Ellen, living at the blacksmith's shop and cottage in Egremont Street, was listed as William and Keziah's grand-daughter).
The abstracts of the wills (1421 - 1547), given to us by Peter Northeast after his talk, contain a wealth of information for anyone interested in the history of Glemsford during this period spanning the reigns of 7 monarchs - Henry V (his last two years), Henry VI, Edward V, Richard III, Henry VII and Henry VIII. Several families appear in more than one will, notably Bigge, Brewster, Everard, Golding, Hedgeman, Holden, Howe, Petywatt, Roote, Scott, Smith, Strawe, Strut, Ward and Wood. It would be possible to compile family trees from the information they give as to their children, grand-children and other relatives. Eleven testators were connected with the cloth trade, many give no occupation but are wealthy, so may also have been weavers etc. Unusually, very few asked to be buried in the church apart from John Denyson, "parker"/yeoman, and John Dowthie, senior, also "parker"; as employees of the Bishop of Ely (who was Lord of the Manor), they would presumably merit special treatment. Even John Golding was buried in the churchyard and left money to have his chapel built over him.
The Scotts were a wealthy family, owning land and property in Wickhambrook, Stradishall, Denston, Boxted and Glemsford, none of which is specifically named except "Clases" in Boxted. It is from a much later will (1640) that I learned that they owned, and most probably lived in, "the capital messuage or tenement ... called the Place" - easily identified!
The then rector of Glemsford and Hartest, William Lecheman, whose will was proved in 1488/9, left 20 shillings, and six of the best trees in the rectory orchard, to the "building of the new house in Glemsford next to the church" and in a later will there is also mention of a house in the churchyard. Was this a "church house"?
Personal possessions are sometimes described, i.e. clothes, armour, bedding, jewellery etc., but much more would be found in inventories if only they existed.
Interesting place names appear, including streets called: Acarman Street, Brook Street, Padel/Podelstrete, Nether Street, Churchstrete, Egremont Street, Fernhill, Freman Street, Hare Way from Glemsford Bridge to Cavendish (the prefix Hare/Here usually suggests a pre-Roman road), Mill Street, Park Lane, Rye Lane, Struts Tye, The Tye, and Tylneys Way. I would love to be able to identify Rye Lane as this was where John Mondes lived, so perhaps his house could be found.
Can anyone help in identifying some of the less obvious streets? Field names are many and varied, some of which still survive, but they are too numerous to mention in this short article.
In all, this is a valuable addition to Glemsford's history, and much could be learned from a detailed study of various subjects. The wills are filed in date order, indexed alphabetically, with separate subject and place-name indexes; the writing is Peter's, so you do not have to cope with mediaeval script! If anyone would like to see and/or borrow any of them, you would be welcome to do so: please ring me.
Eileen Lynch
Perhaps the most strenuous of pub games is steel quoits. The game has been played in England since the fourteenth century, but sadly is largely extinct now throughout the country.
There were important differences in the rules of quoits played in the different regions. The most popular variation was played in the large industrial towns and cities where the international matches with Wales and Scotland were played.
However, as far as Suffolk was concerned, the game was played on two opposing circular inclined beds of clay, 18 yards apart, with a steel "pin" in the centre. Each player had two quoits weighing about 3pounds each and 7 inches in diameter. Each player threw alternately. Their quoits scored 2 points if it encircled the pin (called a "ringer"), otherwise scoring 1 point for nearest the pin. Usually, the first player to 21 points was the winner.
Nearly every pub had a team, and competition was very keen, with sometimes a remarkable degree of accuracy on the part of the players. Among the Glemsford pubs where quoits were played in living memory were The Cock, the Black Lion, the Prince of Wales and The Crown. No evidence now remains in Glemsford, but if you get the chance to see a game being played in one of the few remaining Suffolk quoits pubs, it is well worth seeing before it disappears forever.
Sid Watkinson
My interest in this delightful cottage was reinforced when I learnt from the previous owner that his deeds show that it had been the home in the 1770s of my namesake Grandfather (4 times removed), his wife Diana, and family. When it was sold, and restoration works were being carried out, it gave me an opportunity to examine the construction details. This confirmed what I had suspected, that the cottage was originally a 4 bay Yeoman's House, Medieval (Gothic), a 15th century Hall house (circa 1470), similar in original form to Read Hall, Mickfield (circa 1450).
Heavy oak timber frame
Front and rear stepped eaves line of thatched roof. Central area - Hall. East and West ends, 2 storey solar/parlour, service rooms with additional roof height to permit windows in the 1st floor.
Close spaced heavy diagonal section window mullions at east end, ground and first floors (original windows to east end rooms filled in when 18th? century addition built. frame and mullions still remaining.
Dormer windows and 2 chimney stacks added at later 18th? century date. The west stack involved reframing roof of gable end.
Central cambered Tie Beam, with arched braces with octagonal moulded Crown Post, supporting braced collar purlins
Ground floor "internal gable" partition to west end with Gothic head door frame (and opening in frame possibly for steps to solar above).
First floor solar partition to Hall - Heavy frame post supporting braced collar purlins.
Mortice in frame (and pegholes) for original Gothic centre arch framing to front entrance door
Smoke blackened rafters over Hall area, ceiling inserted later
False beam cleated to studwork of "internal gable" to support later addition of 1st floor with Hall area.
This cottage is of outstanding historical interest, always regarded by the local residents as the oldest cottage in the village. Despite its obvious features as a 15th century Hall house, it was listed by the local authority as a 17th century cottage.
The only other cottage I can recall in Glemsford with similar features to Chequers stood opposite Duffs Hill Farm; regrettably, it burnt down in 1960.
John Slater.
Printed and published by Glemsford Local History Society March 1998. Edited by Steve Clarke. The views in this newsletter are those of the contributors and do not relect necessarily the views of the society as a whole.