Q 0 6n1:n.,,..4 NEWSLETTER - Mernick 3/2010 3-08.pdfVolume 3 Issue 08 Winter 2010,Vile End Road E. Q 0 6n1:n.,,..4 NEWSLETTER Wickhams before and after 1927 CONTENTS: Editorial Note

Winter 2010Volume 3 Issue 08

,Vile End Road E.

Q 0

6n1:n.,,..4 NEWSLETTER

Wickham's before and after 1927

CONTENTS:Editorial Note 2 Sporting Trail 12Dr. Gilda Ann O'Neill - Obituary 2 West Ham 1928 to 1945Programme 2010 -2011 3 Reflections and Memories. Part Two 12Cover Picture -Wickhams 3 The East End (Site Only) 16Correspondence 4 -Good Clean Soot. Lady - 18Warminster. Wapping, Shadwell and Russia 8 Bookshelf 20

ELHS Newsletter Winter 2010

Editorial Note:

The Committee members are as follows:Philip Mernick. Chairman. Doreen Kendall. Secretary.Harold Mernick. Membership. David Behr. Programme.Ann Sansom. Doreen Osborne. Howard Isenberg andRosemary Taylor.

All queries regarding membership should be addressedto Harold Mernick. 42 Campbell Road. Bow, LondonE3 4DT.

Enquiries to Doreen Kendall. 20 Puteaux House.Cranbrook Estate. Bethnal Green. London E2 ORE. Tel:0208 981 7680. or Philip Mernick. email:[email protected]

Check out the History Society's website atwww.eastlondonhistory.org.uk.

Our grateful thanks go to all the contributors of thisedition of the newsletter. Letters and articles on EastEnd history and reminiscences are always welcome andwe make every effort to publish suitable material.Whilst hand-written articles are acceptable. items ofinterest, and any queries can be emailed to PhilipMernick.

David Behr. our Programme Organiser. has finalised thelectures for 2011 . We are indebted to David for the timeand effort he puts into contacting potential lecturers.and arranging the programme.

The Newsletter is edited and typeset by RosemaryTaylor with assistance of Philip Mernick. and aneditorial team comprising. Doreen Kendall. David Behr.and Doreen Osborne.

Our Olympic Site images can he seen on theELHS web site at:http://www.inernick.org.uldellts/Stadium/Stadium.htma

Seasons Greetings to all ourMembers

Dr. Gilda Ann O'NeillAuthor and Historian25 May 1951-24 September 2010

The untimely death of Gilda O'Neill. one ofthe best known and loved writers of books onand about the East End of London, has left avoid that will take years to fill.

Gilda Griffiths, born and raised in BethnalGreen and Bow, spent her formative years inan East End where poverty was the norm.Having left school at 15 to work and earn herown keep. she returned to complete hereducation at the East London Polytechnic. andthen the Open University. She knew shewanted to write and quickly realised that shehad an inexhaustible fund of knowled ge andinformation she could draw on. her own firsthand experiences of growing up in the EastEnd, and the stories she drew out of localpensioners, precious snippets of social historycollected before they were lost.

Gilda O'Neill knew how to entertain too, andwas a welcome Speaker at numerous Clubs,including our own. She lectured widely andher positive, bubbly personality and passionfor local history was a major influence inchanging people's stereotypical views of theEast End. Hers was not an account of East Endsocial history seen through rose colouredglasses. but a down to earth view of life, wartsand all.

Gilda's literary output included several novels,too, all based firmly within the East End. Shemay not have been a Booker Prize contender.but her novels were eagerly sought after andread by those who knew best – the past andpresent residents of the East End of London.

The East London History Society offers itssincere condolences to the O'Neill andGriffiths families.

Rosemary Taylor

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ELHS Ne %letter Winter 20[0

East London History SocietyProgramme 2010 - 2011

Thursday 9 December 2011

FAIR SHARES FOR ALL-rationing inBritain during and after the Second WorldWarSpeaker: David Evans

Thursday 6 January 2011

400 YEARS OF BENGALI HISTORY INLONDONSpeakers: Ansar Ahmed Ullah and JohnEversley

Thursday 17 February 2011

WHO DO YOU THINK WE ARE:Stories from the old and new BoundaryEstateSpeakers: Jean Locker and Naseem Khan

Thursday 31 March 2011

LIMEHOUSE KING ALFRED AND THEOLYMPICSSpeaker: Jeremy Batch

Thursday 7 April 2011

EIGHTEENTH CENTURYWHITECHAPELSpeaker: Derek Morris

Thursday 12 May 2011

OPEN EVENINGRay Newton & John Tarby showing filmsabout East London.

The lectures are usually held on Thursdayevenings at 7.30 pm in the LatimerCongregational Church Hall, Ernest Street,El. Ernest Street is between Harford Streetand Whitehorse Lane, off Mile End Road(Opposite Queen Mary and WestfieldCollege). The nearest Underground Stationsare Mile End and Stepney Green. Bus No.25.

Suggestions and ideas for future topics and/orspeakers for our Lecture Programme arealways welcomed. If you can suggest someoneor indeed if you would like to give a talkyourself, please get in touch with David Behr,our Programme co-ordinator, either at one ofour lectures or. alternatively, email ourChairman Philip Merrick with your commentsand suggestions. Email: [email protected]

Cover picture - Wickhams

Wickham's department store, comprising 69 to89 Mile End Road. hut famously not 81.Views before and after their rebuild around1927. Upper image from a postcard posted in1906. the lower from an advertising card fromthe stone supplier, which states "built 1922-,probably a printing error..

Starting in 1850 as Thomas Wickham. linendraper at 69 Mile End Road. they graduallyexpanded to become "Barkers of Mile End"but closed in the 1960s. The western end isnow a Tesco Metro while the eastern end is aBlockbuster. There are outstanding planningapplications for the mid section. including the,now vacant. Spiegelhalter/Carmel number 81.

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Bethan Bide, Flat 2, 11 Chester WayLondon, SEll 4UT

I was wondering, if it is not too much of animposition, whether you might be able to passthe following onto your members, or to anyparticular members you think might heinterested in helping me with this project:

I am a postgraduate student, studying Historyat The London College of Fashion andCambridge University. I am researching intothe clothing of the period, and how peopleviewed fashion at the time and am looking totalk to people (particularly women) who livedin or near London durin g the Second WorldWar. Anyone who might be willing to speakto me, either in person or by phone. at theirconvenience, or who would just like to findout more about the project, should contact me:

Bethan BideTel: 0207 586 5455Mobile: 07810808328Email: [email protected]

Roy Hayes, 1, Lodge Close, Coppins Road,Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, C015 3HU

I was interested in your piece. Why go to theWest Ends in the Summer Newsletter. Iremember- very well, both Boardmans andBearmans from pre and post war daysrespectively. The other name I seem to recall.from Stratford. was Roberts: a visit there inDecember was a highlight of our Christmasactivity. It started with an after school trainride from Victoria Park Station to Stratfordfollowed by the walk to the store which, to asix or seven years old, appeared to heenormous. Once inside we began the walkalong carefully arranged corridors to the left ofwhich was a series of animated, panoramic.scenes, full of light and colour which broughtforth all the cries of wonderment from thesmall viewers and their parents - mothers.mostly, as the dads would all have been atwork.. I believe Roberts suffered during thebombing and never re-opened under that

Correspondence

Alan R Armstrong Lomond, High Green.Great Moulton, Norwich. Norfolk NRI 52HU:

I was born in August 1929 in a disused, oldcoal-fired fish and chip shop at the southernend of Bath Street. Poplar next to, what wasthen, Shaws cooperage. where we lived untilSeptember 1939 and were evacuated toChipping Campden with Millwall CentralSchool.

My younger sister and I are both committingour childhood memories to paper for thebenefit of our great _grandchildren and those ofour brothers and sisters in the United Statesand Canada to provide them with a glimpse ofour happy childhood.

To assist us in this project I write to you toenquire if you. or any members of your societyis able to supply us w ith copies of any of thefollowing pictures, either from any collectionthat your society mi ght hold or from anyprivate collection in the hands of yourmembers I am particularly anxious to obtainpictures, if any exist anywhere, of IvyCottages. a row of whitewashed cottages. thatran North/South located between the northernhalf of Bath Street and the hack of GroveVillas. I am also seeking any pictures of thefarriers located. I believe, on the corner ofNewby Place and Beazley Street and which wepassed each day on the way to school atWoolmore Street School. I will of courserefund any cost incurred.

I thank you in anticipation of your kindattention and enclose herewith a stampedaddressed envelope for your convenience ofany reply which I look forward to withconsiderable interest since bein g housebound Iam unable to make visits.

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name. Subsequently, the premises were usedby the Co-op.

I got to know Bearmans after the war.particularly as they had a good recorddepartment. but I had moved away fromLondon prior to their demise. At the back ofBearmans there was a very good cinema.independent of the three major chains. Themain entrance was in Church Lane. close towhere Leytonstone Underground Station isnow, although the station was not there inthose days and you crossed the railway via a

level crossing. The cinema could also bereached from inside the store, walking along aglassed aisle. or corridor. The fascinatingfeature of the cinema was its organ. whichappeared to rise from the cellar to play duringthe interval.

Many of the big stores had interestingarran gements for a secure collection ofpayments. hearing in mind that transactionsthen were nearly all in cash. Some usedvacuum tubes in which a capsule containingmoney and receipt were sucked away to thecashier's kiosk in the centre of the floor,change being returned in similar fashion.There is a picture of one of those inDepartment Stores, by Claire Masset, in theShire Books range. The cash system I likedbest. though, was the overhead. miniature. skirailway, where the 'buckets' were propelled bya pull on the handle which released a very hightension spring - again to the central cashier'spoint.

Incidentally. I am part way through reading AJourney Through Ruins - the last days ofLondon, by Patrick Wright. Mainly aboutHackney hut well worth a read.

From Nigel Pitt:

I have recently moved to Wanstead havingmoved away from the area 30 years ago. I wasbrought up in Woodford Green and know thearea from old, although much has changed in

the intervening years. One of which is ofcourse the sad demise of Bearmans.

As you say. Bearmans was taken over by theco-op but this was not widely known and itcontinued to trade as Bearmans for manyyears. My grandmother. who was a snob, onfinding this out marched in. closed her accountand never set foot in the place again!

Leytonstone was a very good shopping centrewith shops such as Russell & Bromley and afurriers (Puddicombes) where grandma's furwas stored in the summer. There was a Lyonsteashop where I would he treated to lunch if I

was lucky. The High Road was ruined by thetraffic pouring through. When they put uprailings and a footbridge that killed it.

Have you seen the old Bearmans poster thatwas discovered at Leytonstone Station. nowcovered with perspex "The store with thepersonal touch"? They also had a huge posteron the Eastbound platform which saidsomething like 'London's finest suburbandepartment store'.

The store struggled on but was eventuallydemolished in 1984 and the co-op builta supermarket on the site but this failed andMatalan is now there. McDonalds occupy thesite of the Bearmans furniture and carpet storewhich was a later build (1950s?).

Adjacent to Bearmans and reached along anarcade from the High Road was the RialtoCinema. orginally a skating rink converted inl911 and then named the Rink Cinema. Rialtofrom 1927. Granada managed it from 1928 butonly acquired it fully in 1965 re-naming itGranada in 1967. It closed in 1974.demolished and this became a car park forBeannans.

In Stratford. you can still see Boardmans firstfloor showroom windows. I can rememberthat store for the overhead cash carryingsystem. There is also the very good 1950sfrontage of the LCS store (now Wilkinsons

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and others). That was a huge store and I canremember my mother going there to get herdividend paid.

Hope this is of interest. When I get some timeI will start some local research and if I findanything more I will he in touch. I did wonderwhether the LCS archives in the BishopsgateInstitute might hold some information onBeannans.

The Mystery of the 'Missing' ChineseLaundries.

Since retiring. I have taken more of an interestin my 'roots' which has meant amongst otheractivities, researching Chinese laundries. I wasborn and grew up in one in Liverpool. Therewere many in Liverpool and over 100 in the1930s, 1940s and early 1950s – after whichtime they began to decline drastically innumber because of competition fromlaunderettes and eventually home washingmachines. Until the 1960s. the two largestcentres for the Chinese community in the UKwere London and Liverpool. I always believedthat there were an almost equal number ofChinese laundries in London compared toLiverpool, if not more. This was in agreementin what I had read in articles on the earlyChinese community in London. A radioprogramme said. 'there were dozens ofChinese laundries in the East End of London'.hi an article by Douglas Jones in NewCommunity in 1979. he writes. 'During thenext ten years (after 1901) about thirtyChinese hand-laundries were established inEast London, where Lee clansmen dominatedthe trade'.

Imagine my surprise. when last year. I spent afew hours at Bancroft Road. local studieslibrary consulting the Kelly's commercialdirectories and found very few listed! In 1911there were four, in 1919 there were five and in1926 only three. In 1935 there were none! Iam aware that some were probably not listedfor various reasons and I have seen a

photograph of a laundry in Caster Street whichdoes not seem to have been listed in Kelly's.But why should there have been such massnon inclusions in Kelly's? I can understand thenon inclusion of maybe a small number, hutnot 'dozens!' I have been to many other townsand cities such as Sheffield, Stoke-on-Trent.Southampton and Newcastle-upon-Tyne whereI know there were Chinese laundries – some ofthem operated by distant cousins andacquaintances of our family and have foundfairly large numbers – more than I expected insome cases – but why so few in London'? Ifany member of the East London HistorySociety can shed some light on this issue. orwould like to make any comments, they arewelcome to get in touch with me.

Walter [email protected]

Tour Guide opportunities for Newhamresidents.

I hope the following would he of course andemployment opportunities will be of interest toyour members.

Talk-Tourism has si gned a contract with amajor tour operator that requires us to recruit aminimum of fifteen people to become selfemployed tour guides for East London andNewham. We will start interviewing inJanuary 2011. We would look favourably onrecruitin g candidates taking the followingcourse. Details of the course are attached.

We are working in partnership with BirkheckCollege who will provide a part time two termcourse starting in January.The course timingslikely to he of 2hr session one evening perweek and one practical session 4hr session atweekend. These timing may change.

The first year course will provide a HigherNational Certificate of Education with theoption to continue in second year to completea BA I'm the History of East London. The one

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year course cost £250 with Birkheck statingthat depending on personal circumstancesthere maybe some financial support. A tastersession for the course will take place atBoardman House from 5pm on Wednesday8th December 2010.

We are promoting the course in local presseducational, and Libraries throughout EastLondon. The 5 Olympic Boroughs are awareof this initiative and I am asking them torecognise the Certificate.Please do not hesitate to contact me if youneed more information. Any potentialcandidates wishin g to attend the session on 8 th

December should contact me our Mike Berlinat Birkheck.

Ian KirbyDirector Talk-Tourism LtdThe Tourism Agency for LondonBusiness 020 3137 1109Mobile [email protected] Associate Member Institute of Tourist GuidingMember Tourism Society. City of LondonGuide.

Bancroft Library Phase 1 building worksProject update

The Phase I building works are now wellunderway. It is anticipated that the majority ofthe works will, as planned. be complete by theend of November. This includes the new firealarm system and the new emergency lightingsystem as well as the new disabled accessiblew/c to the ground floor and all the firecompartmentation upgrade works.

An interesting discovery was made whilstundertaking the latter works. Two art-decostyle grilles were uncovered behindpartitioning at the top of the staircase at firstfloor level. The grilles were in excellentcondition and the background and surrounds tothe grilles are being refurbished to enhance theimpact that the grilles will have.

The completion of the remaining work.namely to the external steps / ramp will not becomplete until early in 2011. This is becausewhilst the planning condition has now beencleared regarding the choice of materials. thePortland Stone is on a long delivery and is notexpected to arrive on site until the middle ofDecember. Consequently. this element of theworks will not be completed until the middleof January 2011.

Peter Fox

From Malcolm Barr-Hamilton:

Regrettably. the Bancroft Library building willnot reopen to the public until the new year.Unforeseen delays have been experienced inthe Phase 1 essential health & safety workscurrently under way, including a long waitto receive the necessary plannin g approvals forthe type of Portland stone and London brick tohe used. The relocation of stock within thebuilding. cleaning of the collection storageareas and reconfiguration of the reading roomis also likely to take longer than planned.We apologise for the inconvenience thisextended closure will cause to our users. We

expect to re-open in mid-January 2011 andwill keep you updated. We continue to offer alimited remote enquiry service by phone andemail during the closure - call 020 7364 1290or email [email protected]

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WARMINSTER, WAPPING, SHADWELLAND RUSSIA

Introduction

In our book Wapping 1600-1800 Ken Cozensand I drew the reader's attention to the trading.links with Russia and the Baltic states but wehave now discovered a family that linksWarminster to Wapping, Shadwell and StPetersburg in Russia, and which needs furtherresearch.

William Hubbard. the son of a DissentingMinister in Mile End Old Town. went toRussia about 1770 and established there astrong merchant family group that survived forover a century. In turn this has led to thefollowing discoveries on the family'sconnections with Wiltshire. and London'sriverside parishes.

The men involved are Ebenezer Butler ofWarminster. John Thompson and WilliamHubbard of Shadwell and Wapping. ThomasWalters of Portsea. and Gregory Seale.Together they are an excellent example of aneighteenth century' merchant group firmlybased on trusted family links in which they allprospered greatly. The mystery remains ofwhy were the daughters of Ebenezer Butler ofWarminster so popular with these EastLondon-based merchants?

The centre of their commercial activities wasthe Thames waterfront in the parishes ofWapping and Shadwell. and especially NewCrane Stairs, and their reli g ious centre was theStepney Meeting House in Bull Lane.

The Butler Family of Warminster

'The 18 1" century was a prosperous time inWarminster: the maltin g and woollen tradesand the market all flourished. In 1751 it wasdescribed as a 'Populous place with good inns'and by 1781 the town had about 2,600inhabitants. We also know that many WestCountry clothiers insured their stock in the

London warehouses of George Whitehead, aBlackwell Hall factor, who was based inBasinchall Street.

Ebenezer Butler of Warminster married MaryBayley in 1729 and three of their daughtersmarried London merchants, who became wellestablished in the commercial life of Wappingand Shadwell.

On 20 February 1753 at St Denys.Warminster, Rachel Butler married CaptainJohn Thompson of London and Shadwell.

On 5 December 1765 at St Denys.Warminster. Susanna Butler married WilliamHubbard. widower of Wapping. This wasHuhbard's third marriage.

On 23 June 1767 Gregory Seale married JaneButler. at Sutton Veny, near Warminster.Wiltshire.

In turn on 23 May 1780 at St Paul's Shadwell,Thomas Walters. born at Portsea in 1756.married Anne the daughter of Rachel and JohnThompson.

The subsequent developments of these fourinterlinked families are described below.

Captain John Thompson

Captain Thompson is described as being fromYorkshire and at some time to have beenCommander of H. M. Transports. He was veryfirmly based in Shadwell from 1763 andpossibly earlier until he moved in 1781 to themore 'middling sort' hamlet of Mile End OldTown. where he died in 1787. He lived at thevery large Fitzhugh house, on the south side ofthe Mile End Road. He had a prosperousropemaking business in Shadwell, which wassubsequently run by his son, also John, as wellas being a member of the Russia Company.

We know that in 1781 that Thompsons. fatherand son. insured their joint property inShadwell for the considerable sum of £2,100.

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This covered a wheel-house, a rigging house.stable and twine warehouses plus the ropehouse and stocks of hemp and tar.

William Hubbard

He was baptised the 31 January 1733, at theBull Lane Meeting House. Stepney. the son ofJohn and Sarah. and in 1748 was apprenticedto Benjamin Finch, Citizen and a member ofWax Chandlers' Company. The'consideration' of £110, indicates both thewealth of the Hubbard family and theprestigious position in the City's mercantilelife of Benjamin Finch. London Directoriesshow Finch in 1749 in Cheapside. and he canbe traced until 1754. He I or someone with thesame name' then re-appears in 1761 and isdescribed as a 'merchant of Bishopsgate StreetWithin' and by 1767 he was at 21 Poultry.

William Hubbard appears in the land tax forWapping in 1760. The £11 rent of his firstproperty on the north side of Wapping DockStreet indicates a modest house but his'personal estate' of £100 already indicates amerchant of some substance. His neighboursincluded Edward Staple and Zephaniah Eade.both prominent merchants. He then moved in1765 to a large property on the Thameswaterfront. which he rented from JosephCurtis. with a rent of £42. His personal estatewas still evaluated at £100.

In the Directories from 1765 he is described as'hosier, draper. near Execution Dock'. By1769 Hubbard is described as of "nearWapping Dock, Broderer broker", whichindicates his increasingly wide range ofbusinesses. In 1767. William Hubbard "drapernear Execution Dock insured his stock for£2700." The total insurance was for £3,000.This amount of stock confirms that he wasnow a man of some substance. comparable tothat of his brother-in-law John Thompson.

Other references to Hubbard can be found inthe Freemason's Archives, London, which

record that in 1767 he was Secretary to abranch of the Freemasons in Wapping.It is thus clear that by 1767 Hubbard was awell-established Wapping merchant.integrated into the local society, but then adecision was made to emigrate to Russia. Partof the preparations for this change occurred on20 April 1769 when in the Broderers'Company records. appears:

" William Hubbard linen draper, WappingDock, made free by order of Lord Mayor".

This is just before he moved to Russia and heprobably needed to be free of a London liverycompany to be acceptable to the merchants hewas going to work with in St Petersburg. Hebecame free of the Russia Company on 5November 1771.

But why did Hubbard decide to up root hisfamily on the Thames's waterfront for thefrigid delights of Russia?

Russia

Whilst the production of linen in Russia haddeveloped in the 17 th century it was not untilthe mid-18 th century that cotton manufacturingmade an appearance. following the granting in1753 of a monopoly in cotton-weaving givento two English industrialists - Chamberlainand Cozzens. From the beginning the Russianindustry relied on the imports of Englishcotton yarn and it was not until the 1840s thatimports of raw-cotton were greater thanimports of cotton yarn. So Hubbard and hiscommercial partners entered the market at thebeginning of a period of great growth withmany opportunities to develop theirbusinesses.

It is well known that in the last half of the I8thcentury that raw cotton became a veryimportant element in Britain's import tradeand in the re-export trade to Russia, Europeand North and South America. 'Itscontribution to national income increasing

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from less than 1/2% in the 1770s to 4-5% in1802.'

It was not until 1808 that the first privatelyowned cotton-spinning mill was established inRussia. and by 1812 Moscow alone had 12spinning mills, including 780 spinningmachines.

Having established a successful businessWilliam Hubbard returned from Russia and re-established himself in Mile End Old Town.where he lived from 1779 until his death in1783. The rent of £20 indicated a substantialhouse and it was located on the east side ofStepney Green. This was a new house built in1776 and the first occupant was CaptainZachariah Norman, whose child was baptisedat Bull Lane, so he probably knew theHubbards socially.

Hubbard's widow Susannah continued to livein this house until 1786. Then in 1787 shemoved to a better house in Assembly Row. onthe south side of the Mile End Road. Her renthad now increased to £24 and she can hetraced here until 1798 but after that date theland tax registers are not complete.

Susannah Hubbard was a close neighbour ofElizabeth Cook, the widow of Captain JamesCook, who for a year or so lived only sixdoors away in Assembly Row.

Thomas Walters

Thomas Walters was born in Portsea in 1756.and as a young boy came up to Wapping in1770 as an apprentice in the ship chandlersbusiness run by Nathaniel Eade and JamesWilton. He was a well-read young man andseveral of his letters describing conditions inWapping have survived. He was made a liverymember of the Merchant Taylors' Company in1783 and Warden in 1795-96.

In 1776 he was involved in a business venturein West Florida, USA. but he returned toEngland a few years later and was married in

Shadwell in 1780 to Anna, the daughter ofJohn Thompson.

The Sun Fire Office insurance policiesdescribe him as a 'biscuit baker', and thus hewas probably a major supplier of sea biscuitsto the Victualling Office of the Royal Navy,based on the east side of Tower Hill. This wasan important part of business activities in theriverside parishes.

In 1780 he is at a house 'over-lookingPennington Street' in the parish of St George-in-the-East, hut in 1781 and 1782 he is at 201and 202 New Crane. Shadwell, which was atthe bottom of New Gravel Lane. He appears tohave been in partnership with George Seale.and their stock in Seale's bake house wasinsured for £700. This link between thefamilies is confirmed by the baptism 16November 1797 of Gregory Seale, son ofThomas and Anna Walters, who later enteredAbel Gower's a merchant banker in London.

Thomas Walters has been traced in theShadwell land tax from 1780 until 1818 forproperty in New Crane, where his neighbourswere John Thompson and Gregory Seale, hisbrothers-in-law, and Ralph Keddey, anothermember of the Russia Company and a memberof the Stepney Meeting House.

By 1787 he was rated for two adjacentproperties on New Crane Stairs, one hadbelonged to Gregory Seale and the other RalphKeddey, and the total rents of £34 and hispersonal estate of 1(X). are indicative of hisprosperity.

In due course Thomas Walters moved toHackney and was sometime a DeputyLieutenant of Middlesex, but he maintainedhis business links in Shadwell.

Gregory Seale

Gregory Seale married Jane Butler. thedaughter of Ebenezer and Mary on 23 June1767. He then appears in the land tax for

II)

ELHS Newsletter W inter 2010

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Shadwell from 1770, and possibly earlier, until1786 and his trade was that of a baker and hislinks to Walters have been described above.

Speculation

It looks increasingly likely that the linkbetween William Hubbard. Warminster and StPetersburg was the clothing trade and theexport of cotton and linen. William isdescribed in the London Directories as a 'linendraper' and his rents, personal estate andinsurances all indicate his increasin g success.

The fact that he established himself in theriverside parish of Wapping might reflect theinfluence of his brother-in-law Captain JohnThompson, who was already well establishedin the nei ghbouring parish of Shadwell. It alsomeans that he was not receiving woollengoods directly from Warminster, as thesewould have been brought by carriers toLondon and stored in warehouses near theBlackwell Hall. the centre for this trade on thewest side of Basinghall Street in the City ofLondon.

To have warehouses by the Thamesdemonstrates that Hubbard was probablyinvolved in both the export and import of rawmaterials, such as wool and cotton, clothingand textiles, given his experience as a linendraper, and possible links with the woollenmerchants and clothiers of Warminster.

Hubbard's brothers-in-law were wealthy meninvolved in the Russia trade. ropemaking.biscuit baking and probably shipping. so theywere always on the look out for new businessopportunities.

Through the Stepney Meeting House therewere well-established contacts with RalphKeddey of Mile End, who in 1775 and 1778was trading in St Petersburg and Riga. He. andhis son Thomas Keddey, were both free of theRussia Company and had a warehouse on NewCrane Stairs.

We also know that Hubbard's premises inWapping were rented from Joseph Curtis. oneof the important local merchant families. SoHubbard was working and socialising withother merchants who were involved in theimport of sugar. nun. tar. timber, from theCaribbean. North America and Scandinaviaand the infamous triangular trade betweenEn g land, Africa and the West Indies.

I speculate that Hubbard and his brothers-in-law realised that there would be an importantopportunity to export cotton and linenproducts to Russia, and this led to the decisionfor William to move to St Petersburg about1770.

So the Hubbard's 'English Shop' in StPetersburg was probably a centre for theimportation of cotton and woollen goods fromEngland.

But given the well-developed recognition thatmerchants needed to diverse their businessactivities. Hubbard and his business partnerswere also looking at, and possibly invested intimber, tar, hemp and iron exports to England.thus making profitable use of the availablereturn shipping.

By the 1890s the Hubbard Company ownedover one million trees in the forests of north-east Finland but then ran into financialdifficulties.

Derek Morris

Acknowledgements:

I am very grateful to Mrs M. Wilton-Pett whobrought the marriages of the Butler sisters tomy attention, to Shirley Gaunt in Australia.one of the descendants of the Russian branchof the Hubbard family, and to Alwyn Hardy.Hon. Curator. Warminster Dewey Museum.

Further ReadingP. I. Lyashchenko: History of the NationalEconomy of Russia to the 1917 Revolution.1970

ELHS Newsletter W inter 2010

D. Morris: Fitzhugh House. Mile End OldTown. Stepney. 1738 - 1849, Newsletter. No.48. May 1999. London Topographical Society.D. Morris & K. Cozens: Wapping 1600-1800. A social history of an Early ModemLondon Maritime Suburb. 2009DNB: John Gellibrand Hubbard. first baronAddington. (1805-1889)Victoria County History, Wiltshire, vol. 8.Warminster, Westbury and WhorwellsdownHundreds, 1965F. Walters: The Family of Walters: Dorset:Hants. 1907. Guildhall LibraryWiltshire FHS: Wiltshire Marriages. vol. 20.Warminster 1587-1837

Sporting Trail

With the Olympics in mind. Doreen and Dianeare hoping to put together a walk aroundTower Hamlets Cemetery Park highlightinggraves or memorials with a sporting connection.To date they have come up with six, but theyneed a lot more to make this a viable project.

If any members have information on anyonewith a sporting connection buried or connectedto the cemetery. please email them at [email protected] or write to Doreen Kendall,address at the front of the newsletter.

If you would like to join Doreen and Diane.and other volunteers of the East LondonHistory Society in the Tower HamletsCemetery Park. on the second Sunday of everymonth, recording memorials off gravestones,you would he most welcome. but he warned –it can become addictive!. Every memorialyields clues to the family interred such asrelationships and careers. With moderntechnology it is possible to call up at theL.M.A. all leading newspapers till 1900. Thethrill of discoverin g another fascinating nuggetof information and uncovering yet anotherfacet of history hidden within the walls of thecemetery keeps our members working away. Arecent discovery was the grave of thegrandparents of Stanley Holloway. and adescendant of Oliver Cromwell.

West Ham 1928 to 1945Reflections and Memories, Part Two

As soon as I had completed my memories ofWest Ham and read the draft. another groupformed in my mind, taking me back to thosedrab little streets that lead on to the morecolourful areas that abounded with shops andbusinesses of all kinds. One such oasis wasalmost on our doorstep and that was VicarageLane. It ran from the fringe of West HamChurch at the Portway end to Romford Roadat the other where the magnificentshowrooms/offices of the Electricity Boardwere located. (Windows smashed during theunemployed workers demonstrations referredto in part one). Vicarage Lane was used towalk to Deanery Road School: no cars ortransport in those days. The range of shops wsdiverse: Cats Meat. Cooked Meats, Butchers,Slaughter House adjacent. Bakers. Grocers.Cheap Sweets. Bicycle and Radios. Drapersand so forth. You could buy 120V batteriesand acid accumulators with recharging service(radios were known as wirelesses and usedboth rather than mains electricity) my memorytakes me to the so called Cats Meat Shop. runby a one-armed man: he wore a collarless shirtof a flannel like material and always lookedthe same. Huge legs etc of horse meat hung onhooks and effused a very distinctive odour.We were led to believe that the Belgiumpeople eat such meat but it was not for theBritish. (Little did we know that we would hefacing whale meat in the war years to come.)This one armed man would strap down a slabof this meat on to a wooden block with chainand locking device, then pick up a fearsomecarving knife and slice away. It was wrappedin old newspaper and this was his sole meansof making a living; what a lesson for today'speople.

The Butchers Shop backed on to the slaughterhouse and livestock were driven up the sideentrance to appear on a hook in the butchersshop: not for the squeamish.

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ELI-IS Newsletter Winter 20 10

An example of this cycle was when a flock ofsheep bolted from this alley to death, and ranin every direction. The round up took hourswith one young lad finding out that sheepcould leap and butt when cornered. Life in ourstreets was exciting and varied.

All these trades, skills and enterprises, somach activity and the ritual of the daily shop:it was the era of the housewife. Little did weknow that the war would come and change allthat as women began to fill the workshops andbecome a permanent feature of our way of lifetoday.

Throughout the maze of streets many pubsexisted supplied by Brewers drays: usuallydrawn by a team of shire horses. Woodenbarrels were slid down into the cellar of thepub as the empties came up. Beer bottles werereturnable and ha a refund value of 2d. and 3d.each. A useful addition to a lad's pocketmoney if such bottles were found. These pubswould discharge their clientele after 10 pm.closing time by law, and they would wendtheir way home singing all the way. Fried Fishshops were everywhere and kept open tomatch the pub closing time. A portion of fishand chips wrapped in yesterday's newspapercost 2d. or 3d. Those who worked in the fishand chip shops tended to reek of cooking oil.

Saturday night was late shopping hours withmeat being sold on open stalls or from a 'holein the wall' for as little as Id a pound! Massivelong shallow crates of eggs were brought on tothe shops forecourt and sold off by the dozen.everything that was perishable had to go forSunday was holy and literally a completeshutdown except for the odd corner shop.Sunday and Good Friday were solemn days:days of rest, except for vital services. Thesewere the days when you put on clean clothesand went for a walk in the park or to Wan ' tendFlats, the so called Sand Hills at Manor Park.Street games were suspended and so forth.

Other shops that existed/thrived were thecooked meat butchers, live eels. and the so

called Oil shop. The latter was an Aladdin'sCave where hundreds of household productsfilled the shelves, hung down on long stringswith a counter somewhere in the midst of allthis merchandise. A bank of bundles offirewood was usually stacked in front of thecounter. The source of this firewood wasdisused railway sleepers: they had beenimpregnated with creosote so the whole shophad a strong coal tar aroma. (definitely a NoNo today with the Health and Safety Acts).that blended with the smell of paraffin.Paraffin was sold from the dnim into your owncontainer. Close by. lar ge earthen jars with alarge open top contained mustard and otherpickles that were sold loose into yourcontainer (usually a pudding basin). I cannotrecall any hand washing or fire precautions orNo Smokin g notices with this mixture ofwares.

The semi-detached house at 88 Gladstone hada side way that was bordered by a wall thatseparate us from two businesses. One was arag trader plus a greengrocer. It had its ownyard, cart, storage cellar, horse. stable, shopfor fruit and veg.. plus tinned jams. The otherwas a sweet shop. café and coal merchant.

ith its yard. coal stocks, stable, horses anddung heap. Across the road we had the typicalgrocers shop that also stocked firewood.paraffin and loose pickles together with aVantas soft drink dispenser – a fascinatingcontraption. It had a large glass bulblike vesselfull of water that bubbled as it shot in gas: thisfizzing water was then discharged into a bottlewith a flavour of your choice.

Another delight was the cooked meat shopwhere saveloys were pulled out of a platedmetal steamer in a string, shiny and hot. andthe required number were cut off. Also, youtook a pudding basin for hot faggots with asmuch gravy as you wished. Then hot saltedbeef and boiled pork joints sat on china standfor carving off the required slices. The onlyother item sold was pease pudding from ahuge steam heated vat.


Ice cream was sold mainly from mobilesources: bicycle carts or stationary barrows.The tricycles were company brands such asWalls. Eldorado and Larkins. 'Stop me andBuy One' was a typical caption on the cartsides. The barrow had two metal containerssunk into ice: one was vanilla flavour, theother was lemon ice. The favourite was amixed wafer, the device for making up thewafer bein g dunked into a basin of water forcleansing, although the water got cloudier asthe day proceeded. One half of the wafer wasvanilla and the other half lemon ice. You couldhave a standard thickness or by a click of acatch in the handle, have twice the thickness.It was all labour intensive with many tradersselling their wares, but then labour was cheapand the dark cloud of unemployment lurked inpeople's minds.

Winter time and it was hot roasted chestnutbarrows, with their glowing coke stove thatcame on to the street corners or in the busymarket areas. How we fumbled to get the skinoff those burning hot chestnuts! Anotherattraction was the coke brazier of the nightwatchman sitting in his canvas covered shelterguarding the tools and equipment of a roadrepairing task. As lads, we would gatheraround this glowing device and the weak lightfrom the hurricane lamps. I think the nightwatchmen enjoyed our company: they alwaysseemed to be very old or crippled. more of asymbol than a deterrent. Such simple pleasuresand reassures of childhood in Stratford EIS.

The Chemists Shop in the Portway near AmityRoad — large glass decanter shaped flasksstood on a high shelf in the window tilled withred. green and blue fluids: the sign of theApothecary? The interior had rows of chinavessels, many wooden drawers all labelled,with a glass screened area for compoundingand dispensing. How I dreaded those sulphurtablets that were meant to purify the blood.Another horror was brimstone and treacledispensed in a conical carton. Why did we useso much sulphur?

There were no limitations on sales, and beinginterested in chemistry. I found thecomposition of gunpowder and the chemicalsor substances to colour the flames of myhomemade fireworks. I was able and permittedto purchase saltpetre, sulphur. barium sulphideetc without question as all these substanceswere available quite freely. (N.B. Poisonswere controlled, however). My fireworks werepretty but I never managed an explosion. thankGod.

At the back of this chemist's shop a GentsHairdresser carried out his trade. The normwas a short hack and sides for 3d.

So. this was the West Ham I knew, manyskilled men everywhere. Green Street, byUpton Park Station. had a furniture shop withthe craftsmen working in the window.Churches. cinemas. Music Halls, shop uponshop, noise, and bustle. Friday night at theKinema West Ham Lane was amateur night aswell as a B film. cartoons, news, main film,organ with sing along and amateurs. Costabout 6d but a long queue in the clod, there aremany more such memories, hut no matter.What mattered were the spirit and the vibrant,honest and hardworking scenario of thosedays. when your town hall produced a recordof proud achievement of a borough of 50 yearsexistence and its residents were proud to hepart of it.

So. to complete this scrap hook of reflectionsand memories. I recall the periods thatfollowed the major onslaught on London whenseveral intensive raids were followed bysudden smaller raid when you least expectedthem. A major night raid occurred when heavybombs dropped on Caister Park Road and itsjunction with Plaistow Road and Bull Road.After the raid my father and I went to view thescene, the damage was so complete at thePlaistow Road site that I asked my father.'Where is it?' The four corners that had shopswere sloping heaps of nibble with raging firesrising from the heaps. a skeletal frame burningfiercely was all the remained of a trolley bus.

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fELHS Newsletter Winter 2010

and the power lines just hung in great loopsover the scene. We walked back, recalling howeach bomb whistled down louder and louderuntil we thought: 'This one is ours.' But thenearest shook the floor of the AndersonShelter violently, but did not explode. Thenext day the area was cordoned off as it wasan unexploded bomb that had gone through theroof and floors of a nearby house. We hadwalked past it twice that night. The bombsquad removed it the next day. In anotherepisode. I was visiting a bombed out. rehousedfriend at the West Ham Station area known asthe Buildings, when the siren sounded. Wetook cover in a surface shelter and grovelled asa string of bombs fell, getting nearer, then pastus: the same awful experience that this one isyours. We emerged to find a huge crater closeby with wisps of smoke and huge bombsplinters the size of saucers lying about. Thestring had straddled the railway lines andBerks chemical works. I was to spend time atthis site later on as it was converted to a HomeGuard Anti-aircraft Rocket Establishment andI had to man one of these Heath Robinsoncontraptions: two 3.5 rockets of 2 metreslength per launcher and 32 launchers per site.

Although I was working 64 hours per week. Iwas made to become a Home Guard. train oneevening and man a launcher another night fora 12 hour shift, and go straight to work after anarmy style breakfast with roll call at six in themorning. We slept in blister shelters on top ofa stack of the rockets. I never fired thelauncher but did track an aircraft, so it was anearly. I wonder how many such sites existedin West Ham as it was in the direct firing lineof so many raids, on the docks. railwaysnetwork and industries.

The devastation at Plaistow Road describedabove was cleared up and boarded up windowsfitted, and the traders restarted their activitiesand trading resumed. By this time myapprenticeship had been served and I wasconscripted into the RAF in 1944. Ten weeksbasic training in how to fire weapons various,throw a grenade, drill. march, unarmed

combat. and 1 was on embarkation leave! Mybeloved and I got married before I left forIndia and Singapore and our floral items camefrom one of those hoarded up shops inPlaistow Road. when flowers were almostverboten to the war effort. h was February18th , 1945. and the wartime restrictions were ata peak. Greenhouse flowers were nonexistentbut that poor little shop made up bouquets etc..of snowdrops and violets.

I never returned to live in West Ham but asyou can see, that book of 50 Years a Boroughhad an impact on my life (I wonder if there areany copies in existence?)

Will West Ham rise again to its former placein the East End of London with the Olympicventure?

Eric R Percival

The East of London family History Societywill once again he holding the AGM and Fairin January 2011. at Stratford Town Hall.Check with your local library for details, orcontact Doreen Kendall.

There will also be a Family History Fair at theBarbican on Sunday 29'h May 2011. in whichall the Family History Societies will beparticipating.

Ship to Shore – Histories of Tower Hamletsthrough the lives of its peoplecommemorated in Tower HamletsCemetery Park. ISBN 978-0-9564779-0-3A5 booklet. Price £3.50.

This booklet has been produced by TheFriends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park andfeatures research by Doreen and DianeKendall, and Bradley Snooks. Email:[email protected] for information.or write to The Secretary, The Friends ofTower Hamlets Cemetery Park. The SoanesCentre. Southern Grove, London E3 4PX.

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The East End (Site Only)

Since joining the East London HistorySociety, I've thoroughly enjoyed receiving theNewsletters, and learning so much about thedistrict I had the good fortune to grow up in.

I've particularly enjoyed reading RosemaryTaylor's book: Exploring the East End. andcan only imagine what a labour of love it musthave been to plan out so many fascinatingwalks and uncover so many historical facts.

One rather poignant thing that comes across inthe book, however, is the number of 'SiteOnly' references there are, along with themany Blue Plaques to be found on numerouswalls.

Of course it's very important to note thenames of the great and the good who oncelived in the area, because in no small extent, itwas their input that made the East End thecolourful place it evolved into. But I think itwould he rather sad if we skipped over theindigenous population that also gave the EastEnd its character and colour.

I speak of the many hundreds of 'ordinary'people who lived in the 'ordinary' terracedhouses with no bathrooms, and a Loo in thebackyard.

Having been born in Poplar before theoutbreak of WW2. and living there for manyyears. I remember those people as honest andunassuming people, who what you saw waswhat you got. as the saying goes.

My grandparents had lived Hind Grove for thewhole of their married lives, bringing up sixboys in quick succession. (Boys. incidentallywho managed to survive the German bombthat dropped on Upper North Street School on13 th June 1917.) One of those boys was tobecome a professional boxer. often training atthe Mile End Arena.

My grandparents was an ex-marine, and hisdignified bearing showed that in every respect.He was well known throughout Poplar. and formany years served as a commissionaire at TheQueens Theatre in Poplar High Street.

Around and about 1 had uncles and aunts, asdid all of my street pals. All the houses wererented. and as each generation grew up andmarried, they rented a couple of rooms from arelative or neighbour until a house of theirown became available. Thus it was that thecommunity had survived for generations.

So what was to change all this? Well, in nosmall part, the outbreak of war, and Hitler'sbombers wiped out whole swathes of property,leaving many wide-open spaces for a decadeor so to come. Many people died in those raid.whilst others were evacuated to somewheresafer. For the most part however, theremaining population accepted the situationwith the typical staunch defiance that hasbecome legendary. coming to accept thoseopen spaces as an 'added facility' to their wayof life, rather than an encumbrance. For thelocal kids, the debris became their playground.for others, they became ideal place to use asallotments to grow much needed vegetables.

I can remember as a boy. being able to stand inHind Grove and see across the open spaces offour streets: Gough Grove. Canton Street.Peking Street and Swale Street: only thebeautiful church of St Stephens at the cornerof Upper North Street prevented me seeingEast India Dock Road beyond. St StephensChurch had been blasted early I the blitz butremained structurally sound throughout thewar. until ironically struck by a V2 rocket in1945.

I remember watching with schoolboyfascination as huge diggers excavated a holethe size of a football pitch in the open spacebetween Gough Grove and Canton Street tomake a reservoir for fire-fighting purposesduring raids. The earth they removed was thendumped on the open space between Canton

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Street and Peking Street. where it becameknown thereafter as 'The Hills'. Those 'hills'were set to become the playground for localkids to play 'Cowboys. and Indians' and aplace for adults to walk the dog for years tocome.

Crime as I recall, was virtually, at leastamongst local residents, mainly because therewas nothing to steal! Everyone knew everyoneelse, and had watched each generation growup from the cradle. Almost every family wasknown by name in the street to which theybelonged, and when walking further afield toChrisp Street for the weekly shopping. manymore nameless faces were recognisable withnods and grins as they passed by. Such wastheir confidence in their security, that mosthousewives poked a cocoanut mat under theirfront doors to 'keep them ajar' when they wetshopping. This was to save fumbling for a keyon their return with two heavy shoppin g bags.

Very few streets were without a public house,where residents met occasionally for chat anda 'sing-song' whilst someone played the piano.It's also difficult now to recall the numerouslittle shops that lined the roads, catering forjust about anythin g the housewife might need.Roads such as Upper North Street andStainsby Road were virtual High Streets, withrows of shops on either side.

So what became of this indigenouscommunity? A community that two worldwars failed to dislodge! Ironically it was not tohe war that dispersed them, but the drawinghoards of the peacetime Planners. To he fair, ithas to be said that the Planners were facedwith a dilemma of alarming proportions afterthe war. With hundreds of troops returningafter demob. the demand for housing wasenormous, and somehow there had to be aninstant solution..

For a while this 'instant solution' was to he inthe form of prefabricated houses, whichsuddenly began to appear on every open spaceavailable. But by the government's own

admission, they were just a temporary stopgap,and a more permanent long-term plan had tohe decided upon. and the options were limited.

Were they to infill the open spaces created byHitler with updated versions of modernterraced houses? Should they fill the largerspaces with high-rise blocks of flats? (whichthey tried with only semi-success). Or shouldthey simply bulldoze the whole area and startagain?

Sadly, in my view, it was the third option thatwas decided upon. and a new phrase came intobeing throughout the area, a phrase that was oneveryone's lips for years to come: SlumClearance. Sadly, too. no thought was given tothe preservation of the indigenous communityalready existing there, the priority it seemswas to disperse the existing people to the fourwinds, and focus on a complete rebuild.

Thus it was that whole streets were despatchedto Harlow, Dagenham and Becontree an othersuch places, never to he heard of again, whilstthe bulldozers were let loose on the housesthey left behind: houses, where generations ofmemories were bulldozed away with the dust.In hindsight, if challenged about theirdecisions, the Planner would argue that therewas no other choice, and that this was'progress'. I would counter that argumenthowever by suggesting that with so manyderelict streets lying empty, such as PekingStreet, Swale Street, Canton Street, along withmany others in the area. whole new rows ofmodern terraced houses could have been built.replacing those that had previously existed.Tenants of adjacent streets could then havebeen transferred into those new houses, whilsttheir previous homes fell to the bulldozers.Thus the indigenous community would havebeen preserved for generations to come. But asa pundit once said: 'Hindsight is an exactscience!' On recent visits to Poplar I see newbuild everywhere, and concede that allresidential properties now have bathrooms andinside toilets. But I also see around me hi gh-rise blank brick walls, having a claustrophobic

17


aura. The colour has gone. along with theindigenous people that lived there. Walkingalong what remains of Hind Grove. I see highbrick walls on both sides. and not a soul in thestreet. This is because the dwellings areaccessed by high-level walkways overheadthat cast a shadow over the street below: astreet once fronted by doors with familiarfaces peering out.

The Victoria Public House (site only) nolonger exists, nor does the tinkling of the pianofrom within. Further along, the rear entrance tothe Waterloo Hero Pub (site only) is just ablank wall. At the top of the street the onceimpressive Farrance Street School (later tobecome Sir Humphrey Gilberts) has beenobliterated by high rise additions, and nowmasquerades as 'luxury dwellings'. PiggotStreet. where once the number 86 bus trundleddown at the end of its long trek fromUpminster, doing a tight turn into StainsbyRoad before parking outside the PoplarHippodrome (site only). is now blanked off.

If I circumvent the high buildings that nowexist. I come to the junction of Burdett Roadand East India Dock Road. where once I couldhave looked up at the beautiful St AnnesChurch towering majestically over thatjunction, as it had done for generations. Sadly.the church has now been obliterated by a highrise building, where once Russells thehardware shop once stood. St Annes is nowrelegated behind the surrounding buildings,and must be approached more closely before itcan he adequately appreciated. I supposepeople of my age group who remember howthings had once been must tug their forelocksrespectfully. and accept that this is 'progress'.I wouldn't presume to challenge the expertiseof the architects who sit at their drawingboards designing piles of bricks. Their skillsare unquestionable. But their knowledge ofSocieties and Communities leaves much to bedesired.

Bill Langworth

"GOOD CLEAN SOOT, LADY"

"Chimney smoking again? It's the poor qualitycoal, the soot builds up so quickly. You need asmall boy to climb up there and sweep it out."

That was before 1875: in that year theexploitation of 'climbing boys' finally ceased.But it had taken many injuries and deathsamong the boys. a long campaign and anumber of Acts of Parliament. More than acentury earlier the philanthropist. Jonas .Hanway. had spoken out about the conditionsunder which the boys worked. Hanway was anestablished social reformer on behalf of theless fortunate members of society. being agovernor of the Foundling Hospital andpioneer of the Marine Society. encouragingboys to consider careers in the Royal orMerchant Navies. Of lasting benefit to manyof us was his popularisation of the umbrella.

My own recollections of 'having the chimneyswept' date from the 1930s when the fireplacewas the main point of heating, and, often inwinter, cooking as well. The coal toutedaround the streets was offered in two varieties- 'nuts' and 'best', the latter being somethingof a misnomer. A few adventurous soulsattempted to clear the soot by setting fire to thechimney - not popular with the landlord. Themore circumspect employed a chimney sweep.for a fee of about 6d. (2V2p.). to do the job forthem. We usually called on Mr. Meggs or Mr.Reynolds. the starting time being fixed foraround 6.00 a.m. The action really began.however, the night before, when the room wasemptied of everything that moved. That, initself. was quite a feat considering there washardly ever any spare space in the averageEast London home. Anything that could not hemoved was covered over as well as possible.

Promptly on the big day the sweep arrived.One of those we used carried his brushes on ahandcart, along with a sack for the soot. If hehad come from an earlier job, the sack wouldalready contain a good quantity of soot but itwas dropped. unceremoniously, on the floor

18


with the comment "All good clean soot, lady"which, before the operation had really started.ensured a thin film of grime was distributedover walls and floors. A tatty sheet was hungin front of the fireplace. ostensibly to preventtoo much finding its way into the room.although. by then. it really did not matter.Gradually, the rods were screwed to the brushwhich was eased. slowly, up the chimney,negotiating a few bends on the way.

Unsurprisingly. I was banned from the centreof operations but lurked outside the closeddoor awaiting the call that I should go into thegarden and watch the brush emerge from thechimney pot. To a small boy, it was a grandsight as, first, a large quantity of soot wasexpelled. followed by the triumphant exit ofthe brush head. Undeterred by the sootdescending on the garden. and on me inparticular. I watched the two or threeoscillations, carried out to ensure all was clear.and then ran hack indoors to report. The sweepgathered up some of the soot piled in thefireplace. put it in his sack, tied his rodstogether. collected his fee and departed. Thatleft us with the job of clearing up andreplacing the room contents although 1 wastidied-up. washed off, and sent along toGainshorough Road School. where my teacherprobably mused that 'climbing boys' had beenre-instated.

When WW2 finished there were signs thetraditional chimney sweep was nearly finished.The 'brush and bag' men were gradually beingreplaced by operators toting a portable vacuumcleaner, said to he more efficient than a brush,for dislodging the soot from the chimneywalls. The method was also said to be cleaner.obviating the need for the preparation carriedout on the eve of the appointment. Diehardsstill swore by the old methods - if you couldfind the right man. The knock-out blow camewith the Clean Air Act, passed in 1956. afterover 3.500 lost their lives in the polluted air of1952 and local authorities had powers to set upsmoke-free zones. The domestic use of coal inLondon had already been diminishing as more

and more people switched to gas or electricheating, or full central heating, and thechoking 'smogs' disappeared. We are now leftwith only the Sherlock Holmes films, andsimilar Victorian dramas, to remind us of howit was.

Roy Hayes

BOOKSHELF

The Little Book of the East End, DeeGordon, The History Press, 2010, ISBN978-0-7524-5715-8, 186 pages £9.99

This small format (135 x 205mm). hardboundbook will fit into a man's jacket pocket or alady's hag which is very convenient as youwon't want to leave it behind. Absolutely fullof fascinatin g facts about the East End(correctly defined in my opinion as ending atthe River Lea); classified under 12 headingssuch "Leisure Time". "Earning Dosh" andCockney Culture". I could disagree with a fewof the facts. but this is not meant to be ascholarly exposition. Highly recommendedand would make a great present.

St. Nicholas' Industrial School & Chapel,with a short history of Manor Park &Manor House by Shea Lolin.

The Manor House and St. Nicholas' churchare two stunning Victorian buildings that standproud alongside other properties built in the1990s on Gladding Road, Manor Park.Until now. little was known about thesebuildings and the history of the seven acre sitearound Gladding. Mina and Capel Roads. Ahook has been written by a local, Shea Lolinwho retraces the history of the Manor Houseand St. Nicholas' Industrial School andChapel. placing the buildings in theirnineteenth-century context and their relationto other key buildings. It surveys the use of theManor House in its bicentenary year.

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1810-2010 Bicentenary of Manor House

This free event is open to all and will be achance to view an exhibition of photographs ofthe area spanning 150 years and a presentationfrom the author of this new publication.Books will be on sale at this event. priced at£10.

The exhibition will then continue throughoutDecember (each Saturday from 19:00). Foralternative opening hours and details to orderthe book via post. please contact Shea Lol in on020 8553 4973 or [email protected]

Stratford Another East End, John Gorman.Five Leaves Publications. ISBN 978-1-907869-06-8. 24 pages. A5. card covers,£2.25. Availahle from the publisher: [email protected]

Originally published as an essay in Outsiders& Outcasts, a series of articles in honour ofBill Fishman. John Gorman (1930-1996) wasborn and brought up in Stratford. His fatherwas a carpenter from Devon and his mother adomestic servant horn in South Shields. Hebecame a silk screen printer and joined theCommunist Party in 1949 while in the RAF.He left the CP following the Hungarianuprising but remained politically on the left.1-le published an autobiography Knockingdown Ginger (1995) but his most influentialwork was Banner Bright (1973). This essaydescribes in vivid detail pre-war life inStratford. The poor quality housing. struggleto make a living but staunch determination tomaintain working class solidarity willprobably bring back many memories for manyof our members.

Jack London Photographer, JeanneCampbell Reesman, Saraa S. Hodson &Philip Adam. University of Georgia Press,2010. ISBN 978-0-8203-2967-3, 272 pages,hard bound, £49.99

This magnificent book came as a revelation tome. 1 knew (and have) Jack London's Peopleof the Abyss (1903). Jack London (1876-1916)'s first hand account of poverty and lowlife in the East End of London with its manyphotographic illustrations. I have also readseveral of his books of life on the Alaskanfrontier, as experienced through the eyes ofdogs, such as The Call of the Wild (1903) andWhite Fang (1906). I knew he was a life longSocialist, but I didn't know he was a very keenphotographer. The Huntingdon Library, SanMarino California has his photograph albumswith 12,000 prints and the California StateParks system has his negatives. These wereused by Philip Adam to produce new printssuitable for publication. The book comprisessix chapters covering his various expeditions.The People of the Abyss, The Russo-JapaneseWar. The San Francisco Earthquake. TheCruise of the Snark. The Voyage of the Dirigo,and The Mexican Revolution.

There were more than 70 photographicillustrations in People of the Abyss but those inJack London Photographer (a different set. 1think) are not restricted by the small size of theoriginal book. Here full advantage can betaken of the large (by modern standards) sizenegatives taken by London's (mostly Kodak?)cameras.

London was at his California ranch when the18`h April 1906 earthquake devastated SanFrancisco. He and his wife rode horses andthen took a ferry to get to the shattered city inthe afternoon. They watched as it burned. Thephotographs he took could be mistaken forbeing post a nuclear attack.

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Documents

Q 0 6n1:n.,,..4 NEWSLETTER - Mernick 3/2010 3-08.pdfVolume 3 Issue 08 Winter 2010,Vile End Road E. Q 0 6n1:n.,,..4 NEWSLETTER Wickhams before and after 1927 CONTENTS: Editorial Note