Probate is defined as the official proving of a will and the legal process involving this. It also refers to the officially verified copy of the will delivered to the executors, together with a document issued under the seal of the court, certifying that it has been proved and granting them authority.
The land was leased by John Pateman of 4 Weymouth Terrace, Hertford Road, Lower Edmonton, a nurseryman and florist, to be cultivated as nursery or market garden ground, with greenhouses, fixtures and fittings.
In 1852 Preston Farm consisted of 243 acres, most of which was later bought by Harrow School and used for playing fields. The rest of the farm was sold for development in the 1920s.
The manor of Uxendon, first so named in 1373, consisted of a collection of interests and property on the eastern borders of Harrow parish. In 1606 the manor was passed to Richard Page [mentioned in the documents in this collection] and remained the property of the Page family until 1825; when Henry Page, of weak intellect and frequently drunk, was cheated out of the deeds by a Henry Young, who lived in the house until 1869. He left instructions that the estates were to be sold for the benefit of his wife and children. By 1914 the house was being used by the Lancaster Shooting Club. It fell into decay and in 1933 the railway line from Wembley Park to Stanmore was built across the site.
Source: A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 4: Harmondsworth, Hayes, Norwood with Southall, Hillingdon with Uxbridge, Ickenham, Northolt, Perivale, Ruislip, Edgware, Harrow with Pinner (1971).
Lady Cooper, born Isabella Ball Franks, of a rich Jewish business family, married William Henry Cooper, clerk and baronet (as he is frequently described). She inherited a considerable amount of money from her father Moses Franks and her mother's father Aaron Franks. Her considerable property she inherited from her aunt Priscilla (see Franks family tree), both the estate at Isleworth, and several West Indies Plantations.
On the death of her only son, William Henry, without issue (1835) the estate was settled on her eldest surviving daughter, Lady Mary Anne Honywood, who in her will provided that on her death, or that of her mother, if she should survive her (which she did) the estate should be sold and the proceeds divided among her own children, By Lady Cooper's will, apart from numerous pecuniary legacies, she leaves her estate of Chilton Lodge in Berks/Wilts to Lady Honywood's son William.
The sugar plantation of Dukinfield Hall, Jamaica fell into Franks' hands in payment of a mortgage debt and by 1822 belonged to Priscilla who bequeathed it along with her other property to Isabella, one of the original third part shares having belonged to Isabella's father Moses. There is no record at all of any of the owners ever visiting the plantation. It was left by Lady Cooper's will in trust for Mrs. Dawkins and was eventually sold in 1877. Under its earlier owners it was heavily mortgaged, and soon after it passed to Lady Cooper slavery was abolished, so it is unlikely that the family ever derived any great profit from it.
Members of the Emanuel family mentioned in this collection include Morris Emanuel and Henry Joel Emanuel.
A bargain and sale was an early form of conveyance often used by executors to convey land. The bargainee, or person to whom the land was bargained and sold, took possession, often refered to as becoming 'seised' of the land.
From the British Records Association "Guidelines 3 - Interpreting Deeds: How To Interpret Deeds - A Simple Guide And Glossary".
The Connop family is a large one, but the dominant figure in the collection is the first Newell Connop. His date of birth is unknown; his father, Richard Connop, married the daughter of George Newell (hence Newell's unusual Christian name) evidently a man of some substance, since Newell and his sister Susanna inherited 12 houses in the Mile End Road through their mother (ACC/0801/0951). Newell himself married in 1775, Sarah the daughter and heiress of John Woodham, a wealthy distiller whose business, with which Newell also seems to have connections, was in Shadwell, but who owned substantial lands in the Enfield area.
Newell and Sarah had eight children; none of their three daughters Sarah, Emma and Ann married, and of their sons, John the eldest went into the Church, and married Katherine Stewart the god-daughter and heiress of Stephen Wilson. She inherited from him Bradfield Hall and other property in Berkshire, and in Hatfield, Herts, which in due course descended to their only child Emma Wilson Connop (ACC/0801/1054-1080). Richard and Henry both entered the army and were successful, Richard becoming a general and Henry a lieutenant-colonel; the former as far as we know never married but Henry had three children by his marriage to Mary Lucas.
Newell junior had no children, but Woodham, the last brother, and his wife Emily Burgess had 2 sons and 5 daughters, the eldest son William Woodham becoming the senior member of the next generation. His brother, the third Newell, married Ann Yarde Ball whose marriage settlement and related papers form part of the collection (ACC/0801/1140-0055) and had 10 children, including boys with the names Richard, Henry, Woodham and Newell. This repetition of family names does not always make it very easy to disentangle the generations. As mentioned before, a certain amount of Connop land found its way into their hands through marriage or inheritance; thus Newell's uncle John Connop married Elizabeth Bridges, niece and heir of John Dell; his namesake, Newell's son married Stephen Wilson's heiress, and John's brother Woodham married Emily Burgess whom one must assume to be John Burgess' heir, since the Burgess property is not sold to the Connops. In 1830, before his death Newell transferred a good deal of his property to his children, the deeds forming a group in collection (ACC/0801/1081-1125). His own affairs form the preceding group, much concerned with his property, but also including the affairs of people whose executor he was (ACC/0801/0950-1053). The last group concerns the miscellaneous affairs of his children and grand-children (ACC/0801/1126-1225).
Haringey Park Estate, Hornsey, had been laid out by 1855, with 15 large houses in 1861 and 25 in 1871. It was situated near Crouch Hill, which runs between Stroud Green and Crouch End.
The 1962 series Bucknell's House showed a 39-week BBC project led by Barry Bucknell, DIY presenter, to renovate a derelict house in Ealing.
Weir Hall was an estate and house situated at the west end of Silver Street, Edmonton. It was well established by 1349. In 1609 Sir John Leake sold the Hall to George Huxley, a haberdasher from London, and the Hall stayed in the Huxley family until 1743, when Thomas Huxley died, dividing the estate between his daughters Meliora Shaw and Sarah Huxley (see ACC/0815/004 for various claimaints to the estate of Sarah Huxley).
Sarah Huxley received the Weir Hall portion of the estate. In 1801 her estate was divided between 5 cousins, but in 1814 four-fifths were reunited by James George Tatem. Tatem's son (of the same name, James George) died in 1895, leaving the estate to his nieces Ellen Anna and Elizabeth Margaret Harman. The other fifth of the estate passed to the Parrotts, then to Richard Booth Smith and his son and then to Edward C Roberts.
In 1887 the estate, comprising some 306 acres, was put up for sale, but only 57 acres were sold. For many years the Harman sisters refused to sell despite pressure from the Smiths and Roberts. However, from 1898 they began to sell off portions to builders, and by 1930 the estate had been developed.
The Leake family had a mansion house, substantially renovated in 1611 and described as spacious. The Huxleys lived there but by the time James George Tatem inherited the building was dilapidated and was demolished in 1818. The site was used as a market garden.
From: 'Edmonton: Other estates', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 5: Hendon, Kingsbury, Great Stanmore, Little Stanmore, Edmonton Enfield, Monken Hadley, South Mimms, Tottenham (1976), pp. 154-161 (available online).
Worton House, Worton Cottage and freehold and copyhold lands in the parish of Isleworth and in the manors of Isleworth Syon, Twickenham and Hounslow were the inheritance of Elizabeth Anne Ramsay nee Robinson.
Richard Robinson bequeathed money to the parish of Isleworth in his will of 1763. The money was to be used for various purposes: to provide bread for the poor on the anniversary of his funeral; to pay the vicar to preach an annual sermon on charity, for a lecturer to read lessons at this sermon, and for the children at the Isleworth charity school to be present; and for the preservation and repair of his tomb.
The Castle Bar Estate in Ealing was established in 1423 by Richard Barenger. In 1650 it was purchased by Sir William Bateman, who held other land in Ealing, and left to his descendants. William Bateman (d 1797) and his children William (d 1820) and Mary (d 1833) were all lunatics and the estate was disputed among Mary's heirs. The estate was bought by Francis Swinden in 1854. A three-storey mansion, called Castlebar House, stood on Castlebar Hill. It was built around 1641, but was dilapidated by 1855 when it was demolished. Tenants included Isabella Cunningham, countess of Glencairn; Lt-Gen Sir Frederick Augustus Wetherall (1754-1842) in 1818, and Sir Jonathan Miles in 1819.
From: 'Ealing and Brentford: Other estates', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 7: Acton, Chiswick, Ealing and Brentford, West Twyford, Willesden (1982), pp. 128-131 (available online).
Cambridge Road, Oxford Road and Chichester Road are all situated near Kilburn Park tube station.
A conveyance is a type of deed recording transfers of land from one party to another, usually for money. Early forms of conveyance included feoffments, surrenders and admissions at manor courts (if the property was copyhold), final concords, common recoveries, bargains and sales and leases and releases.
From the British Records Association "Guidelines 3 - Interpreting Deeds: How To Interpret Deeds - A Simple Guide And Glossary".
In Domesday the manor of Hendon was assessed at 20 hides, 10 of which were in demesne. In 1312 the abbot of Barking took the manor into his own hands, and thereafter Hendon manor was retained by the abbey until the Dissolution, although it was leased in 1422 and 1505. In 1541 the king granted the manor to Thomas Thirlby, bishop of Westminster. With the suppression of the bishopric it reverted to the Crown but was granted in 1550 first to Thomas, Lord Wentworth, and afterwards to Sir William Herbert, created earl of Pembroke in 1551. In 1757 the manor and estate was purchased by James Clutterbuck, who conveyed it in 1765 to his friend David Garrick, the actor. Garrick died in 1779, leaving the manor in trust for his nephew Carrington Garrick, later vicar of Hendon. It was sold in 1825 to Samuel Dendy, who was succeeded in 1845 by his son Arthur Hyde Dendy. In 1889 it was held by Arthur Dendy's widow, Eliza, on whose death it was conveyed to Sir John Carteret Hyde Seale, Mrs. Russell Simpson, and Major H. Dendy, who were joint lords in 1923.
From: 'Hendon: Manors', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 5: Hendon, Kingsbury, Great Stanmore, Little Stanmore, Edmonton Enfield, Monken Hadley, South Mimms, Tottenham (1976), pp. 16-20. Available online.
A conveyance is a type of deed, used to transfer land from one party to another, usually for money (when you sell your house a conveyance is involved). Early forms of conveyance included feoffments, surrenders and admissions at manor courts (if the property was copyhold), final concords, common recoveries, bargains and sales and leases and releases.
From the British Records Association "Guidelines 3 - Interpreting Deeds: How To Interpret Deeds - A Simple Guide And Glossary".
A recovery was a collusive law suit in the Court of Common Pleas, normally used to destroy (bar) or alter an entail; its result were recorded in an Exemplification of a (Common) Recovery. A Deed to make a tenant to the Precipe precedes a Recovery, transferring the property involved to a trustee and declaring the uses for which it is held.
Hanworth Manor was sold in 1670 to Sir Thomas Chamber. The latter died in 1692 and was succeeded by his son Thomas. Thomas Chamber left two daughters and co-heiresses, and Hanworth passed, through the marriage of the elder, to Lord Vere Beauclerk, who was created Baron Vere of Hanworth in 1750. The manor was inherited by his son Aubrey Lord Vere in 1781, who succeeded his cousin as Duke of St. Albans six years later. He still held the manor in 1802, but conveyed it very shortly after to James Ramsey Cuthbert. Frederick John Cuthbert was lord of the manor in 1816, but it passed before 1832 to Henry Perkins. After the death of his heir Algernon Perkins, before 1866, it was in the hands of his devisees, but was bought before 1887 by Messrs. Pain & Bretell, solicitors, of Chertsey.
From: 'Spelthorne Hundred: Hanworth', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 2: General; Ashford, East Bedfont with Hatton, Feltham, Hampton with Hampton Wick, Hanworth, Laleham, Littleton (1911), pp. 391-396.
North Thames Gas Board (1949-1973): one of 12 Area Boards formed when the gas industry was nationalised in 1949, following the passing of the 1948 Gas Bill. Supplied area of 1,059 square miles stretching from Bracknell, Marlow and High Wycombe to the south east coast of Essex. When formed it was made up of a merger of 12 statutory gas undertakings: Ascot and District Gas and Electricity Company, Chertsey Gas Consumers Company; Commercial Gas Company; (Chartered) Gas Light and Coke Company; Hornsey Gas Company; Lea Bridge District Gas Company; North Middlesex Gas Company; Romford Gas Company; Slough Gas and Coke Company; Southend Corporation (Shoeburyness); Uxbridge Gas Consumers Company and Windsor Royal Gas Light Company. The North Thames Gas Board was dissolved in 1973 when it became a region of the British Gas Corporation. Note - Consumers Gas Companies were set up in consequence of dissatisfaction with the existing supplier.
Gas Light and Coke Company (1812-1949): founded in 1812, this was the first company to supply gas to London. The Company absorbed 27 smaller companies and several undertakings during its period of operation, including the Aldgate Gas Light and Coke Company (1819), the Brentford Gas Company (1926), the City of London Gas Light and Coke Company (1870), the Equitable Gas Light Company (1871), the Great Central Gas Consumer's Company (1870), Imperial Gas Light and Coke Company (1876), the Independent Gas Light and Coke Company (1876), the London Gas Light Company (1883), Pinner Gas Company (1930), Richmond Gas Company (1925), Southend-on-Sea and District Gas Company (1932), Victoria Docks Gas Company (1871) and Western Gas Light Company (1873). In May 1949, after the passing of the Gas Bill 1948, the Company handed over its assets to the North Thames Gas Board.
Brentford Gas Company (1821-1926): founded in 1821 at the instigation of Sir Felix Booth, the company had works at Brentford and retorts at Southall and covered a wide area including Hammersmith, Kensington, Southall, Twickenham and Richmond. Merged with the Gas Light and Coke Company in 1926.
Harrow and Stanmore Gas Company (1872-1924): Harrow Gas Works founded in 1855 by John Chapman and rebuilt in 1872 as the Harrow Gas Light and Coke Company Limited and became a statutory company as the Harrow District Gas Company in 1873. In 1894 it became the Harrow and Stanmore Gas Company. Merged with the Brentford Gas Company in 1924. Both merged with the Gas Light and Coke Company in 1926.
Hornsey Gas Company (1857-1949): formed in 1857, became statutory in 1866, controlled by the South East Gas Corporation from 1939 and merged with the North Thames Gas Board in 1949.
North Middlesex Gas Company (1862-1949): founded in 1862 with works at Mill Hill.
Pinner Gas Company (1868-1930): founded between 1868 and 1872, merged with Gas Light and Coke Company in 1926.
Staines, Egham and District Gas Company (1833-1915): founded 1833, merged with Brentford Gas Company in 1915.
Sunbury Gas Consumers Company (1861-1915): merged with Brentford Gas Company in 1915.
Uxbridge and Hillingdon Gas Consumers Company (1854-1949): formed in 1854 in competition with the Uxbridge Gas Company; became statutory in 1861; after 1918 expanded rapidly and purchased surrounding companies including the Beaconsfield Gas Company, Great Marlow Gas Company and Maidenhead Gas Company. Known as the Uxbridge, Wycombe and District Gas Company from 1921; the Uxbridge, Maidenhead, Wycombe and District Gas Company from 1925 and the South East Gas Corporation from 1936. It merged with the North Thames Gas Board in 1949.
A lease is a grant of property to a tenant for a specified period, usually a term of years, by the lessor to the lessee. Types of lease include life lease: lease for the life of the tenant; three-life lease: lease until the deaths have occurred of three named people (with an upper limit of 99 years); 'perpetual' lease: intended to continue indefinitely, granted for a very long period, e.g. 1,000 years; building lease: lease, generally for 99 years, including an agreement for the tenant to build a house.
From the British Records Association "Guidelines 3 - Interpreting Deeds: How To Interpret Deeds - A Simple Guide And Glossary".
The early history of the Brewery begins in 1699 when Thomas Mawson of Chiswick, brewer, was admitted to two cottages, a granary, orchard garden, and curtilage abutting on the road leading to Bedford House, Chiswick, on a conditional surrender by Thomas Warren which was made absolute in 1704, when the property was described as a messuage and brewhouse. Remaining in the Mawson family the Brewery passed to Matthias Mawson, Bishop of Ely and benefactor of Ely Cathedral and Kings College Cambridge. On his death in 1770 his estates were inherited by his niece Amy, wife of Charles Purvis of Darsham, Suffolk. The Brewery, with other properties in Chiswick, was sold by her son Charles in 1791, and bought by John Thompson of Chiswick, brewer, passing, on his death in 1808, to his sons Douglas and Henry. By this date the brewery was known as the Griffin Brewery. They became partners in 1822, but neither the partnership nor the Brewery prospered, and when their partnership was dissolved in 1829 financial difficulties were acute.
In 1829 John Fuller and Philip Western Wood, invested in third shares in the Brewery with Douglas Thompson, one of the previous owners. Wood died in 1832, and Thompson was finally bought out by Fuller in 1842. The partnership of Fuller, Smith, and Turner at the Griffin Brewery dates from 10 November 1846 when John Bird Fuller (son of John Fuller), then owner of the Brewery, entered into a partnership with Henry Smith and John Turner of Romford, brewers.
Fuller, Smith and Turner Ltd was registered as a limited liability company in August 1929 and in 1987 owned 135 public houses and 55 off licences.
Harrow Manor belonged to the archbishops of Canterbury from the early middle ages until 1545 when Henry VIII forced Cranmer to sell the manor to him. Henry sold the estate to Sir Edward North. The North family sold the manor to the Pitt family, whence it came to Alice Pitt and her husbands, Edward Palmer and then Sir James Rushout. The Rushouts acquired the barony of Northwick in 1797. Harrow stayed in the family until the death of the 3rd Baron, Sir George Rushout-Bowles, in 1887. His widow left the estate to her grandson Captain E. G. Spencer-Churchill. He sold the land in the 1920s.
Harrow Manor described both the manorial rights over the whole area and the chief demesne farm in the centre of the parish. This farm was known as Sudbury Manor or Sudbury Court. The ownership of Sudbury Manor followed that of Harrow, hence the name Harrow alias Sudbury.
From: 'Harrow, including Pinner : Manors', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 4: Harmondsworth, Hayes, Norwood with Southall, Hillingdon with Uxbridge, Ickenham, Northolt, Perivale, Ruislip, Edgware, Harrow with Pinner (1971), pp. 203-211 (available online).
The Manor of Harrow Rectory alias Harrow-on-the-Hill originated in land owned by priest Werhardt in the 9th century. From 1094-1845 Harrow Rectory was a peculiar of the archbishopric of Canterbury within the deanery of Croydon. The rector had sole manorial jurisdiction over Harrow-on-the-Hill and Roxborough, and collected tithes from a large area. This was a prized position which attracted ambitious and important men, and the rectory house was accordingly fine and spacious. In 1546 the rectory was impropriated to Christ Church, Oxford, but in 1547 the college alienated the rectory, the advowson of the vicarage, and (from 1550) the tithes to Sir Edward North, lord of Harrow alias Sudbury Manor. The grant was made in fee farm in perpetuity, North paying the College an annual fee. North sublet the rectory and tithes while retaining the manorial rights, and enjoyed the rights and profits of the rectory. In 1630 the rectory was conveyed to George Pitt and thereafter descended with Sudbury Court Manor until 1807, when the rectory house and 121 acres of land north of it were sold to James Edwards; the remaining land becoming part of Harrow Park.
From: 'Harrow, including Pinner : Harrow church', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 4: Harmondsworth, Hayes, Norwood with Southall, Hillingdon with Uxbridge, Ickenham, Northolt, Perivale, Ruislip, Edgware, Harrow with Pinner (1971), pp. 249-255 (available online).
Taken as a whole, this collection builds a picture of Enfield at different times. Leases of the market and the surrounding area in David's and Prounces property show the development of the Market Place. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, for example, there was a market house, a market cross, a gatehouse with a room over it and a staircase, and a little weigh-house. There were a number of wooden stalls of posts and rails for the Saturday market, and a shambles of 24 stalls for butchers. There were also some little shops of not very substantial structure in the middle of the Market Place; in one William Greene sold bread, flour and meal, and there was a blacksmith and a glazier. On the west side there were a number of more permanent shops, probably quite small as some had been divided, while on the east were a few other buildings used as shops. The Greyhound Inn with its stables and outbuildings stood on the east, and near the churchyard was the Kings Head Inn with its garden and bowling green. By the nineteenth century the Kings Head also had a 'skittle-ground' with a pantiled roof. The Free Grammar School and the schoolmasters house was next to the Kings Head. Although they were three distinct charities; the Market Place and the two estates which surrounded it, David's and Prounces, made up the Market Place area and were frequently leased as one unit and were administered by the same trustees.
Property in the rest of Enfield was mostly scattered in strips in various fields, and information is given of early field names and place names too numerous to mention, such as Donnefield (later Dong or Dung field), Lockers Croft, Swetyngs, Folswell field, etc., etc. Early names of roads and lanes appear such as Tokystrete or Tokestrete which in the eighteenth century turned into Turkey Street. Baldwins Lane, Perkyns Lane, Plesance Strete and others are also mentioned. Many of the names seem to be connected with personal names (although it is difficult to say whether a family gave a name to a place or took their name from the place where they lived); for example we find John Toky in 1376, and John White Webb in 1437 and Walter Ponder in 1394. Some of the family names of prominent parishioners occur right through the period, in varying spellings, for example Hunsdon (earlier Honnesdon, Hunnisdon), many of whom were tanners; Cordell (often maltmen), Loft and Curtis.
The deeds do not provide much information about the administration of the charities themselves, such as would occur in early minute or account books if any have survived. The original purpose of the charity is sometimes recited in the appointments of trustees, although the originating deeds or wills have not usually survived. Most were for alms or clothing for the poor or orphans and for the education of children. There are also some early deeds giving property for the support of chantries, discontinued at the Reformation. An interesting example of "insurance" is Mrs Gillett, "a poor auncient woman" who conveyed her cottage to the churchwardens in 1692 in return for her maintenance (see No. ACC/903/142). Peter Hardy described the charities in his Enfield Charities of 1828.
An assignment was the transfer of a right, usually a lease, or a mortgage. Copyhold land was land that belonged to a Manor and was, notionally, property of the Lord of the Manor.
From the British Records Association "Guidelines 3 - Interpreting Deeds: How To Interpret Deeds - A Simple Guide And Glossary".
The Association was formed in 1946 for the purpose of furthering the cause of education; strengthening the organisation of the Union [National Union of Teachers]; promoting the friendly co-operation of all Teachers' Associations in Middlesex; and facilitating prompt and united action in matters affecting teachers serving the Middlesex Education Authority.
Following the re-organisation of local government in the Greater London area as a result of the London Government Act, 1963, the Association was reconstituted as the Middlesex Teachers' Association in 1965, but survived for only one year as the National Executive did not see "fit to extend the life of the Association beyond 31 December 1965".
The Causton family were noted Highgate residents. Reverend Thomas Henry Causton was perpetual curate at St Michael's, Highgate, from 1838 to 1854.
John Cordy Jeaffreson (1831-1901) was a barrister at Lincoln's Inn. He also tutored in classics and lectured on English Literature. After receiving tuition in palaeography from Sir Thomas Duffus Hardy he became one of the inspectors of ancient writings under the Commissioners on Historical Manuscripts, 1874.
Jeaffreson was a prolific author of both fiction and history. Some of his works include: Novels and Novelists, from Elizabeth to Victoria, 1858; A Book about Doctors, 1860; The Life of Robert Stephenson, CE, FRS, 1864; A Book about Lawyers, 1866; A Book about the Clergy, 1869; The Annals of Oxford, 1871; A Book about the Table, 1875; A Young Squire of the Seventeenth Century, from Papers (AD 1676-1686) of Christopher Jeaffreson, of Dullingham House, Cambridgeshire, 1878; The Rapiers of Regent's Park, 1882; The Real Lord Byron, 1883; The Real Shelley, 1885; Lady Hamilton and Lord Nelson, 1888; The Queen of Naples and Lord Nelson, 1889; and Victoria, Queen and Empress, 1893.
The Custos Rotulorum (Keeper of the Rolls) was responsible for the care of the county records. Appointed (since the fourteenth century) in the Commission of the Peace (see MJP/C), he was a leading justice, unpaid and holding the post for life; and from the seventeenth century usually also holding the office of Lord Lieutenant of the county. His Deputy was the Clerk of the Peace who was in practice the actual keeper of the records, and who drew up, registered and oversaw the storage of the records.
Biographical information from 'JEAFFRESON, John Cordy', Who Was Who, A & C Black, 1920-2008; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 2007 (available online).
In 1485 William Hobbayne left his house and 24 acres of land for the benefit of the poor of the parish of Hanwell. The trustees of the charity used the income from the property for various parish purposes, including the repair of the church, provision of an annual sermon, and relief of the deserving poor. In 1790 the trustees built almshouses for the use of the parish, and in 1779 they founded a parish school.
Source: 'Hanwell: Charities', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 3: Shepperton, Staines, Stanwell, Sunbury, Teddington, Heston and Isleworth, Twickenham, Cowley, Cranford, West Drayton, Greenford, Hanwell, Harefield and Harlington (1962), pp. 236-237.
Hamhaugh Island is situated in the River Thames, near Shepperton. It is accessed by bridge. It was first used for holiday camps around 1900, from which a small community began to grow on the island and small timber shacks or bungalows were erected. In 1920 the residents bought a communal green in the centre of the island on which they held entertainments such as dances. The housing was gradually modernised.
Conveyances are transfers of land from one party to another, usually for money. Early forms of conveyance include feoffments, surrenders and admissions at manor courts (if the property was copyhold), final concords, common recoveries, bargains and sales and leases and releases.
From the British Records Association "Guidelines 3 - Interpreting Deeds: How To Interpret Deeds - A Simple Guide And Glossary".
Hornsey Lane runs between Crouch End Hill and Highgate Hill and includes the bridge of Highgate Archway. It forms the boundary between Islington and Haringey boroughs. The street did not become built up until the 1870s, when a train station (now closed) was constructed at the Crouch End Hill end of Hornsey Lane.
A deed is any document affecting title, that is, proof of ownership, of the land in question. The land may or may not have buildings upon it. Common types of deed include conveyances, mortgages, bonds, grants of easements, wills and administrations.
Court rolls are documents (originally a 'roll' of parchment) on which all the business of a manorial court were recorded, including decisions relating to property ownership including admissions to and surrenders of land and proof of the right of ownership.
From the British Records Association "Guidelines 3 - Interpreting Deeds: How To Interpret Deeds - A Simple Guide And Glossary".
James Strudwick of Ealing, was a builder. He died in 1855, leaving his wife Sarah.
Conveyances are transfers of land from one party to another, usually for money. Early forms of conveyance include feoffments, surrenders and admissions at manor courts (if the property was copyhold), final concords, common recoveries, bargains and sales and leases and releases. A bargain and sale was an early form of conveyance often used by executors to convey land. The bargainee, or person to whom the land was bargained and sold, took possession, often referred to as becoming 'seised' of the land.
From the British Records Association "Guidelines 3 - Interpreting Deeds: How To Interpret Deeds - A Simple Guide And Glossary".
The Court of King's Bench was founded circa 1200 to hear common pleas, although it came to specialise in pleas of special interest and concern to the king, such as those which involved his own property interests, or breach of his peace, or an error of judgment by another royal court. By 1675 the King's Bench was the highest court of common law in England and Wales, with jurisdiction over both civil and criminal actions. Civil business was conducted on the 'Plea Side' and criminal business on the 'Crown Side'. It was absorbed into the High Court in 1875.
Source: The National Archives Research Guides "Legal Records Information 34" and "Legal Records Information 36"
The turnpike system dated from 1663 when Parliament authorised the erection of toll barriers along the Great North Road. The principle was that each person should contribute to the repair of the roads in proportion to the use he made of them. A barrier was placed across a road and a toll taken from each road user except pedestrians; the monies were then used to support the maintenance and improvement of the road. Turnpikes were placed under the control of bodies known as Turnpike Trusts. By 1770 there were over 1100 Trusts, administering 23,000 miles of road, with 7800 toll gates.
In 1618 Elizabeth, widow of Sir Thomas Berkeley (d 1611), the eldest son of Henry, Lord Berkeley (d. 1613), purchased the Manor of Cranford. Thereafter both manors remained in the possession of the Berkeley family until 1932. (fn. 81)
In 1810, on the death of the 5th Earl of Berkeley, the Berkeley estates devolved successively upon his two eldest but illegitimate sons, created Earl and Baron Fitzhardinge (d 1841 and 1867 respectively). The Fitzhardinge branch of the Berkeley family retained the estates until the death of the 3rd Baron Fitzhardinge in 1916, when they reverted to Eva Mary Berkeley, great-niece of Thomas Moreton Fitzhardinge Berkeley, the eldest legitimate son of the 5th Earl of Berkeley (d 1810), as the heir-general of the 5th earl. From 1866 to his death in 1882 Thomas Moreton Fitzhardinge Berkeley, the eldest legitimate son of the 5th earl, and de jure 6th Earl of Berkeley although he never assumed the title, is described as the chief landowner in Cranford. Presumably the Cranford estate was settled upon him as it reverted to Lord Fitzhardinge in 1882.
Between 1916 and 1935 over 350 acres of the estate were sold, the bulk being dispersed in 1932. This included the sale of Cranford House and park to the Hayes and Harlington urban district council in 1932; they resold it in 1935 to the Middlesex County Council, who leased it back to them for 999 years as an open space. The manorial rights are vested in the county council.
From: A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 3: Shepperton, Staines, Stanwell, Sunbury, Teddington, Heston and Isleworth, Twickenham, Cowley, Cranford, West Drayton, Greenford, Hanwell, Harefield and Harlington (1962), pp. 179-181 (available online).
Enfranchisement was the process by which a copyhold title was changed to a freehold. Copyhold land belonged to a Manor and was, notionally, property of the Lord of the Manor. The Lord, through his steward, ratified any transfer of land by surrender of the transferring party at a manorial court and admission of the new owner. Gradually copyhold land was enfranchised until the Law of Property Act 1922 abolished copyhold status, converting all such land into freehold land which is said to be land held in fee simple, absolute in possession and subject to no conditions or uses.
From the British Records Association "Guidelines 3 - Interpreting Deeds: How To Interpret Deeds - A Simple Guide And Glossary".
Conveyances are transfers of land from one party to another, usually for money. Early forms of conveyance include feoffments, surrenders and admissions at manor courts (if the property was copyhold), final concords, common recoveries, bargains and sales and leases and releases.
From the British Records Association "Guidelines 3 - Interpreting Deeds: How To Interpret Deeds - A Simple Guide And Glossary".
John William Couchman acted as surveyor and agent to the lords of the manors of Tottenham and Edmonton. He was a civil engineer (in particular of waterworks). Harold Seymour Couchman was his successor.
Ruislip Church School was founded in 1812. In 1862 the school was moved to a permanent building in Eastcote Road. A new, enlarged building was constructed on the same site and opened by Bishop Winnington-Ingram in 1931 (when the school was renamed). In 1968 the school moved to a larger site on Southcote Rise.
Information from http://www.bwi.org.uk/ (accessed August 2010).
Conveyances are transfers of land from one party to another, usually for money. Early forms of conveyance include feoffments, surrenders and admissions at manor courts (if the property was copyhold), final concords, common recoveries, bargains and sales and leases and releases.
Lease and release was the most common method of conveying freehold property from the later seventeenth century onwards, before the introduction of the modern conveyance in the late nineteenth century. The lease was granted for a year (sometimes six months), then on the following day the lessor released their right of ownership in return for the consideration (the thing for which land was transferred from one party to another, usually, of course, a sum of money).
A deposition was a statement providing evidence, taken down in writing to be read in court as a substitute for the production of the witness.
From the British Records Association "Guidelines 3 - Interpreting Deeds: How To Interpret Deeds - A Simple Guide And Glossary".
The Monro family of Hadley were a cadet branch of the Munro baronets of Foulis. They settled in London in the late seventeenth century, providing a series of distinguished doctors who ran Bethlem Hospital throughout the following century, when the care of lunatics was far from fashionable. They also owned two private asylums, Brook House, Clapton, and the Palace, Much Hadham (ACC/1063/049-057 and 164-5).
James, the second son of Dr John Monro (1715-1791), entered the East India Company's service, becoming captain of an East Indiaman, and most of this archive consists of letters written by himself, his sons and his grandsons. Apart from those of Captain James himself there is a series from his eldest son James, who became a writer with the East India Company in 1806; from his son Edward who went to India; another group of papers relating to his son George, a midshipman who was killed in action on board the "Menelaus" in 1812; and numerous other letters and papers relating to this same generation of the family.
The youngest son of James's first marriage, Cecil Monro (1803-1878), entered the law, eventually becoming chief registrar of the Court of Chancery, and it was he who finally inherited the family home which Captain James had bought at Hadley. He was an antiquarian of some repute, editing The Letters of Queen Margaret of Anjou for the Camden Society in 1863; he was zealous in collecting details of his family history, which he incorporated into a "Family Book" (ACC/1063/001). There are also several documents relating to the disputed entail created by Sir Harry Munro of Foulis in 1776, which probably owe their preservation to Cecil Monro. The latter married Elizabeth, daughter of Colonel Knight Erskine of Pittodrie, Aberdeenshire, which accounts for the presence of a few documents relating to that estate.
The largest group of letters are those written by Cecil's three sons, Cecil James (1833-1882), Charles (1835-1908), and Kenneth (1818-1862). The letters to their parents began when they were at preparatory school, and in the cases of Cecil and Kenneth continue until their respective deaths. All three were sent to Harrow and their letters at this period throw a vivid light on school life in the early Victorian era (ACC/1063/966-1146). Both the older boys went on to Cambridge, but Kenneth, who was not academically inclined, joined the Army and his letters continue from various camps in England and then from Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he was posted in 1857 (ACC/1063/257-579). The climate there undermined his health and he returned home to die of consumption at Hadley, aged 24.
The rest of the letters centre round his eldest brother Cecil, who read classics and Mathematics at Cambridge and then read for the Bar. Before he could take up a career, symptoms of the family consumption manifested themselves in him too, and dictated that his winters be spent abroad in the more salubrious climates of Madeira, North Africa, or the south of France. His letters home to the family are full of the trials of an invalid expatriate: the difficulties of obtaining suitable lodgings, the vagaries of climates, the dependence upon unreliable mails from home, and the intolerable boredom. He was not, however, self-pitying, and the last-named problem he tackled by teaching himself languages, writing articles, and corresponding with learned men on a variety of subjects (including theology, classics, philosophy, mathematics physics, linguistics and politics). His correspondences included J. C. Maxwell, professor of experimental physics at Cambridge; Darwin's son-in-law Richard Litchfield; William Donkin, professor of astronomy at Oxford; C.M Ingleby, the Shakespearean critic; and Charles Tawney, registrar of Calcutta University. He spent the last years of his life at Hadley, a semi-invalid, dying in 1882 four years after his father. The letters virtually cease at this date, but there are a few written to Charles, the last just before his death in 1906.
A militia force was raised from the civilian population of a county, in order to supplement the regular army in cases of emergency. In 1554 a muster of men from the hamlets near the Tower of London was ordered, including Bethnal Green, Poplar and Stepney, then separate, rural villages. By 1605 East London had become an official military unit with the name Tower Hamlets, and the right to muster the militia was held by the Lieutenant of the Tower.
Information from The London Encyclopaedia, eds. Weinreb and Hibbert (LMA Library Reference 67.2 WEI).
This collection of deeds relating to the manor of Mockings in Tottenham 1340-1653, provides useful information about the ownership of the manor. The manor originated in the grant made by Edward III to Richard Spigurnel in 1335 of a third part of the manor of Bruces in Tottenham. Spigurnel conveyed his property to John de Mockyng of Somerset, which transaction was confirmed by an indenture of final agreement of 8th July 1340 (the earliest deed in this collection). John de Mockyng died in 1347 leaving the property to his son John, who died in 1360. The Mocking family gave their name to the manor, as is shown by a deed of 1427 first describing the property as the ""manor called Mokking"".
About 1360, it came into the hands of Roger Shipbroke and his wife Margaret who settled it on their daughter Margerie and her husband Helming Leget. Their grandson Thomas inherited it in 1427 but mortgaged it to John Gedeney, a wealthy draper and alderman of the City of London. John Gedeney retained Mockings and also acquired the remaining two thirds of Bruces and the other two Tottenham manors, Dawbeneys and Pembrokes. The four manors remained united after this and passed to Gedeney's daughter and her husband, and their daughter Thomasina and her husband John Risley. The Risleys left no surviving children, and the manors were regained by the crown and granted to Sir William Compton.
It is perhaps worth noting that the holders of this property probably did not live in Tottenham themselves but may have "farmed" or leased the manors to other people. Helming Leget was described as "of Essex", and John Gedeney leased Mokkings to Thomas Remmy, a goldsmith, in 1442, when the manor was in the tenure and occupation of Richard Pigot.
Bush Hill was a small estate in Edmonton with a house situated between the New River, Bush Hill and Bush Hill Road. The estate was held by Robert Waleys in the 1560s, and then by Robert Estry. Estry sold the property to Sir Hugh Myddleton, who constructed the New River while he was living there. He left the estate to his wife and younger son, who seem to have sold it by 1650. John Bathurst, a London alderman, owned it in 1664. His daughter sold it to John Clarke (d 1701), merchant of London. The estate passed to John's brother Samuel Clarke (d 1742), and then to William Clarke (d 1783) who left it to his daughters Anna Clarke and Mary Forbes. The estate was auctioned in 1784, when the house and 39 acres were purchased by John Blackburn. His son sold the estate to Isaac Currie, a banker from Cornhill. The Curries kept the estate until 1878 when they sold it to Horace Barry. After his death in 1908 the house, now knoen as Halliwick, was held by the Fenton sisters. In 1911 the house was purchased for use as a home for diabled girls, while the land was bought by builders.
From: 'Edmonton: Other estates', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 5: Hendon, Kingsbury, Great Stanmore, Little Stanmore, Edmonton Enfield, Monken Hadley, South Mimms, Tottenham (1976), pp. 154-161 (available online).
The documents in this collection are of two types, here divided into three parts. The first relates to the career of Gen. Sir Henry Charles Barnston Daubeny, G.C.B., 1810-1903, and includes his commissions from the rank of ensign in 1830 to that of colonel in 1857. He subsequently rose to the rank of general, and retired from the army in 1880. He was closely connected throughout his military career with the 55th Regiment of Foot, later the Border Regiment, and achieved the colonelcy of the 2nd Battalion in 1879. Besides being successively created C.B., K.C.B., and G.C.B., (ACC/1096/015,017,020), and honorary commander of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, he was created Knight of The Legion of Honour (15) and Officer of The Imperial Turkish Order of the Medjidie. The latter two decorations were granted as a result of his service in the Crimea, for which he also gained a pension of 100 p.a. (ACC/1096/012,013), and he served in the East Indies and China. He was a justice of the peace for Middlesex, and for Co Clare, Ireland. His appointment to the Commission of the Peace for the latter is included in this collection (ACC/1096/007). For the later years of his life he lived in Spring Grove, Isleworth, and devoted much of his time to a study of family history.
The final two parts of the collection deal respectively with pedigrees and genealogical notes, and with tombs, heraldry, and property connected with the Daubeny family. The division is not altogether clear cut, as some original bundles whose contents fall preponderantly into one category contain a few items from another. The Daubeny family was of direct Norman descent in the male line, and the head of the South Petherton branch was successively Baron Daubeny by tenure, by writ of summons to parliament (c 1295-1486) and by letters patent (1486-1548). The last of this line was Henry Lord Daubeny, later Earl of Bridgewater, who died without issue in 1548; his uncle and heir, James Daubeny of Wayford, never laid claim to the barony.
Later Daubenys had distinguished careers in the Church and the army. Colonel Henry Daubeny, 1779-1853, the father of H.C.B.D., who was also a keen genealogist, collected information concerning the Daubeny family and the related family of Hungerford, and compiled a manuscript pedigree (ACC/1096/041). His son continued his work on the pedigree with additions and corrections, and it was printed in 1884, but only as far as 1841. H.C.B.D. also arranged for the restoration of family tombs at South Petherton, Somerset, and Westminster Abbey. He collected material relating to families connected with the Daubenys by marriage (Hichens, Barnston, and Carpenter) and by name (the D'albinis, Delbenne and Theodore Agrippa D'Aubigne, grandfather of Madame de Maintenon). A recognised authority on the history of the family, he was consulted for advice and information by other Daubenys. Many members of the family took an active interest in the subject, not only in his lifetime, but also after his death, as can be seen in the correspondence concerning Philip D'Aubigni the Crusader (ACC/1086/130-137) and the shields of the barons of Magna Carta (ACC/1096/130-137). After his death the manuscript pedigree (ACC/1096/41) received further limited additions.
A large number of items in this collection have no indication of date, and can only be dated approximately. It should also be mentioned that the spelling of the family name differs between branches of the family, as well as varying at times in the family history; while Col. Henry and Sir Henry Charles Barnston favoured the form "Daubeney", other branches usually used the form "Daubeny". Sir Henry is often described as "Charles" to distinguish him from his father and three of his brothers who also bore the name "Henry" as a first Christian name. The best guide to the various Daubeny branches is the book of pedigrees (ACC/1049/041).
Probate (also called proving a will) is the process of establishing the validity of a will, which was recorded in the grant of probate.
The church of Saint Mary is situated on Church End, Hendon. It appears that a church has existed on the site since the 9th century. The church has been rebuilt, enlarged and restored several times, including in the 13th, 15th, and early 16th centuries, with restorations in 1783, 1827 and 1915. The church includes the monument of Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, founder of Singapore; while Charles Johnson (1679-1748), dramatist; Sir Joseph Ayloffe, Bt. (1709-81), antiquary; Nathaniel Hone (1718-84), portrait painter; George Carter (1737-94), painter; and Benjamin Travers (1783-1858), eye surgeon, are buried in the churchyard.
Source of information: 'Hendon: Churches', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 5: Hendon, Kingsbury, Great Stanmore, Little Stanmore, Edmonton Enfield, Monken Hadley, South Mimms, Tottenham (1976), pp. 33-37 (available online).
The Tottenham and District Gas Company was founded in 1847 as the Tottenham and Edmonton Gaslight and Coke Company. In 1914 it absorbed the Enfield Gas Company and became the Tottenham District Light, Heat and Power Company, and in 1928 it absorbed the Waltham and Cheshunt Gas Company, becoming the Tottenham and District Gas Company. Two years later the Ware Gas Company was absorbed, and in 1938 the Southgate and District Gas Company.
The Southgate and District Gas Company was formed in 1858 as the Southgate and Colney Hatch Gaslight and Coke Company. In 1866 it was re-incorporated as the Colney Hatch Gas Company, and in 1904 it became the Southgate and District Gas Company. It was finally taken over in 1938 by the Tottenham and District Gas Company.
In 1948 when the gas industry was nationalised the Tottenham and District Gas company came under the Eastern Area Gas Board which covered Cambridgeshire, Huntingdonshire, the Isle of Ely, Norfolk, the Soke of Peterborough, Suffolk and parts of Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire and Middlesex.
The site of Kneller Hall, Whitton, appears to have been occupied by a less important building in 1635. Court painter Sir Godfrey Kneller had alterations made to it by Vanbrugh in 1703; subsequent additions and changes have, however, made the house in effect a different building, and the present appearance of the grounds also dates from a later period. The last large house of 1635 had apparently been built since 1607 and stood west of Hounslow Road, nearly opposite the present church, on inclosed land projecting on the heath. It was rebuilt in 1724-5 by Roger Morris for its owner, the Earl of Ilay (later Duke of Argyll), though it was subsequently destroyed.
Kneller Hall was rebuilt as a government college for the training of teachers, later passing to the War Office for use by the Royal Military School of Music as a military music school. James Phillips Kay-Shuttleworth, (created a baronet in 1849), whose signature is present on all drawings, was secretary to the Privy Council's committee on education.