DUSTON LOCAL HISTORY SOCIETY NEWSLETTER issue number 13, APRIL 2021 (DLHS newsletters are now one year old !) WE WISH YOU ALL A HAPPY EASTER 2021

THERE WAS A WINDMILL IN DUSTON – PROBABLY (suggests David Carter) In the Northampton Mercury newspaper of 11 July 1789 an advert appeared…

To be SOLD by AUCTION by ARTHUR BROWNSGRAVE*

On Thursday next the 16th instant, at the “Robin Hood - and - Little John” in St James’s End, near Northampton,

A Good Compact WIND-MILL, standing on DUSTON HEATH, in a good Place for the Business.

The Sale to begin at Ten o’clock.

Duston's post windmill may have looked like this mill at Stokenchurch, Buckinghamshire. The picture was taken just before its demolition.

*Was Arthur Brownsgrave the auctioneer, or the owner of the windmill?

On maps of Duston Parish in the 1720s, “Duston Heath” was the land next to Sandy Lane, and across to the stone quarries near Harlestone Road and towards Harlestone Village and the (more recent) Harlestone Firs. The land we now call “Lodge Farm” was part of the Heath and was on the opposite side of the A428 – Moor Lane/Coventry Road.

(The blue dot on my map (right) of the Duston Parish fields in the 1720s marks the site of “Round Hill”). Three months after the advert appeared, a similar, but more detailed advert was published.

24 October 1789. A WIND-MILL

To be SOLD, a WINDMILL well situated for Business, in DUSTON-FIELD, near Northampton, between Dallington and Harlestone, and adjoining the Dunchurch Turnpike Road. The Mill hath been fitted up only a few Months, by the late Proprietor, Mr John Willson, deceased, and is in complete Repair.

For further Particulars, enquire of Mr Markham, Attorney, in Northampton.

(OS map: 1830s)

DLHS Newsletter April 2021 P a g e | 1 Duston Field was the area of Duston Parish on the “wrong” side of Harlestone Road. The land we know today as Lodge Farm. (Not to be confused with the Duston Lodge Farm on Bants Lane).

So, the windmill may have been somewhere on the land from the (later) Hare and Hounds Inn to the stream and higher ground where today’s Ryehill estate stands. But, windmills work best on higher ground, so perhaps our windmill wasn’t on Duston Field.

The windmill was probably of the POST type, without wooden or stone tower.

I haven’t found the windmill to be shown on any maps from that period, but – on the 1720s Duston Estate Map - one small piece of land (on the site of the Airflow Streamlines car showrooms) was known as “Round Hill.” It was NOT on the other side of Harlestone Road, on Duston Field, but would have been a good place for a windmill. On higher ground, in a position to catch the breezes.

Probably – not “possibly” – there was a windmill somewhere in the “Heath” area of the parish. But exactly where?

Since David posted this article on his "Memories of Duston Past" Facebook page, he has received information about many windmills in the County. It appears that there was a "Dallington Mill" at SP 718638, which is in the Dallington Parish part of Harlestone Firs - near (today's) Lodge Farm and Harlestone Manor.

We need to avoid confusion with Dallington's watermill, which was on Spencer Bridge Road, near Victoria Park.

AS IT WAS - THE SILK FACTORY - MARGARET EDWARDS I was fascinated to read Kathy’s account of child labour during the Industrial Revolution in our recent News Letters (Issues 11 & 12 February & March 2021). This brought to mind a book, The Silk Factory, I read a while ago. It is written by Judith Allnatt, set in her home village of Weedon, and is based around a silk factory in the village which operated there at the beginning of the 19th Century. This massive three storey building was converted to houses and eventually pulled down in the 1960s. Modern houses have now been built on the site

Another building, central to the story, is The Depot, built between 1804 and 1816. This was a Military Garrison, essentially for the storage of arms and ammunition; established when there was a real fear of an invasion by Napoleon, being far from the coast and close to canals and good roads. The Depot survives and is open to visitors.

The Novel itself is set in two different time zones with two cleverly interwoven stories of two families:

DLHS Newsletter April 2021 P a g e | 2 1. Set in 1812 to 1822 around a family of two young siblings a brother and sister, with an elder sister who acts as their Carer after the death of their Mother and Father. In order to survive the two young children work at the Silk Factory 2. Set in Modern Times a young family of a Mother and two young children move to Weedon from London after the breakup of her marriage. They live in one of the houses built on the site of the original Silk Factory, inherited on the recent death of her Mother. She has financial problems as well as difficulties with her ex- husband and his new partner

At the root of both timelines is the reality of ordinary life; enduring harsh treatment; a struggle for survival; the reality of the haves and have-nots. Although the families never meet they are linked by the events and mysteries of the Silk Factory. And there is a final twist at the end bringing the whole tale to a traumatic and perfect conclusion.

To give you an idea of Judith Allnatt’s approach to this novel I can do no better than quote her account in her blog online:

THE SILK FACTORY – GHOSTS AND HISTORY Feeding the Silkworms

“In the Northamptonshire village where I live, a friend reported odd sounds in her house and a wholly unexplained smell of soot. I wondered what the site had been used for in the past and found out that it was a silk factory during the industrial revolution. The eerie oddity started me thinking about the ghostly and about buildings as the holders of many generations’ secrets

I began to read about the process of making silk: ideas as weird as wafting coal embers above the beds of silk worms during a thunderstorm in order to keep them alive, the practice of ‘kissing the ’ –threading it with your mouth – that spread disease like wildfire through the work force, and nineteenth century children forced to work such long hours that, too exhausted to walk home, they hid themselves in storerooms to sleep. I discovered that the local silk master had been hated for his cruelty and was described, intriguingly, as having ‘a seafaring and weather-beaten appearance with many wounds upon his head’. With this my character, Septimus Fowler was born …

Another section from her Blog concerns the local Garrison, mentioned above, and its possible purpose:

… HANG UP MEN LIKE SCARECROWS?”

Still dominating the skyline above the village is a huge Georgian garrison. Locally, It’s reputed to have been built as a colossal retreat for George III, should Napoleon invade , but my research suggested otherwise. In the centre of the midlands, an area where workers were starving and turning to violence and rebellion, blast houses full of gunpowder and barracks full of soldiers had quite a different purpose – to quell insurrection. Writing ‘on location’ in the shadow of the huge buildings of the garrison, helped me to capture the sense of the might and authority of the establishment over the populace

The Frame Breaking Act 1812 made it a capital offence to damage an employer’s , yet poverty was so extreme that the crime was almost commonplace. Byron, prompted by pity for the weavers, spoke in parliament against the

DLHS Newsletter April 2021 P a g e | 3 bill saying ’Can you commit a whole country to their own prisons? Will you erect a gibbet in every field and hang up men like scarecrows?’ For me his anger over the exploitation of the many by the few has a resonance today.

Finally the story begins to take shape: What events might have taken place at the silk factory and what spirits might haunt it? Two stories – of a modern heroine, Rosie, who witnesses the appearance of a strange lost child, and of a silk- family living in desperate times – began to thread together in my mind, like bright tight-woven ribbons

So we have a book written by a local author about, a local area (not quite Duston but pretty close to us), based on historical facts and surviving buildings, beautifully written with an engaging plot.

There is more. Weedon Parish Council has produced a leaflet outlining a walk around the village entitled ‘The Silk Factory’ which …takes you around the village to areas and buildings mentioned in the novel, some of which still exist…’

DLHS news lwtter A link is attached - or if you go onto Weedon Parish Council site www.weedonbec–village.co.uk silk-factory walk-.pdf and click maps you can download a copy to use on the walk.

I have a copy of the book if anyone would like to borrow it. (Margaret) Judithallnatt.com - Official Author Website

FEATURE ARTICLES

CHILD LABOUR Part III - BARBARA LUKE

Young children boys and girls from the age of 5 continued to be employed underground in mines after the 1833 Factories Act.

This was to change as a result of an accident in the summer of 4th July 1838. In South Yorkshire at the Huskar Pit, Silkstone Common, near Barnsley, it was a hot summer’s day, and 33 men and 50 children were working 300 ft below ground. The pit had a single shaft with a steam driven winder to access the pit, and there was also a steeply sloped access in nearby woodland.

The weather changed suddenly and there was a violent thunderstorm with torrential rain. The rain extinguished the furnace which powered the winch, so the entire workforce was trapped underground. After 9 hours in darkness, the children still hearing thunder, became convinced the noise was caused by explosions in the pit. Fearing for their lives they decided to try the steeply sloped access. As they opened the final gate a torrent of water swept in forcing the children back against a ventilation door, there was no escape and 26 of the 40 children drowned. All the children, boys and girls, were aged between 7 and 13 years. Victorian society having so often turned a blind eye to child labour were shocked by this accident and calls were made for a Royal Commission to be set up to look more closely at the workings of mines.

The Commission was headed by Anthony Ashley Cooper later 7th Earl of Shaftesbury a prominent social reformer. He even went down a coal mine to view the working conditions. (image above right) Huskar Memorial, All Saints Church, Silkstone © NCMME

DLHS Newsletter April 2021 P a g e | 4 This is the steeply sloped access point from which the surviving children escaped - now The Huskar Pit Memorial

Young children were employed in mines to open ventilation doors and after a couple of years moved on to pulling carts full of coal in the narrow seams.. The ‘puller’ would have a sort of harness around his waist and sometimes a smaller boy would push from the back (below).

The Royal Commission of 1842 appointed Commissioners in each area to visit all mines, to inspect underground workings and to interview men women and children to collate information on:

a) Ages of children working underground b) Number of children employed c) Working conditions d) Hours of workings e) Schooling

DLHS Newsletter April 2021 P a g e | 5 All these interviews are available to read (see footnote1) Children, ages 5 and 6, described how they were woken at 3 am to be in the pit by 4 am, before the miners began. They were spending 12 hours a day, many in the dark, opening ventilation doors, returning home to eat and sleep. Some children went to Sunday School where they learnt their letters and some to read. By the age of 7 and 8 they spent the day dragging coal carts bent over in very narrow seams. The children were aware the few pence they earned helped to feed the family. There was no childhood for these children; no schooling, no playing and very little fun.

The report of the Commission was a truly comprehensive review of the life of mine workers and their families, fully exposing the poverty, hunger, disease, danger, lack of education and health care of their lives.

The interviews the Commissioners recorded showed how openly the children spoke to them, at a time when any attempt by adult miners to form an association or union was met with prompt action. Jobs were lost and homes too, as miners’ cottages were the property of the mine owners.

The report of the Commission led to the drafting of the 1842 Mines Act. This act prohibited the employment of women and children under 10 years from working underground. In many areas loss of child income caused great hardship to families, and the mine owners’ constant drive to produce coal to fuel the industrial revolution meant children still continued to work.

More legislation followed regarding safety and regulating the length of the working day. Naked candles responsible for so many explosions by igniting the gases methane and carbon monoxide were replaced by the invention of the Davey Lamp (left); such a simple idea but one that saved so many lives.

MORE THOUGHTS ON FOOD - BARBARA LUKE 

When has food played such an important part of daily life? Perhaps a few of us can remember WW II rationing but our parents and grandparents spoke often of queuing for hours to buy meagre amounts of food and often finding supplies had run out when the front of the queue was reached.

Queueing at the Supermarket 2020 Pandemic. (above) Queueing on Northampton Market Square during WW II (left))

The difference between these two pictures is the types of food available now; what we cook and what we eat today; and ashamedly, what we throw away.

No food would be wasted during WWII rationing. Today we are bombarded with exotic recipes in magazines newspapers and on television in the Fine Dining experience which got me thinking about the food working class families ate at the start of the 20th century.

11 National Coal Mining Museum for England (ncm.org.uk)

DLHS Newsletter April 2021 P a g e | 6 A cookery book would have been few and far between in most households; women cooked the food the way their mothers had with the vegetables they grew and only small amounts of meat or fish. The first popular cookery book was probably the Be-Ro book first published in 1923.

Mr Thomas Bell born in Newcastle on Tyne in 1848 worked in the family grocery and bakery business. He began experimenting with raising agents because up to this time grain was only milled to make a simple plain flour. He made a baking powder and Self Raising flour, not the first in the country, that was claimed by a baker in Bristol.

Mr Bell moved to large premises near the river in Newcastle and began making his Bell Royal Self Raising Flour. He changed the name to Be-Ro because another American company had patented the name Bell Royal. Not because Edward VII came to the throne (1901-1910) but the use of the word Royal was prohibited unless given a Royal Warrant.

The Be-Ro cookery book was the housewives baking bible containing recipes for bread, pastry and cakes. First published in 1923 and now in its 41st edition, it is said to have produced and sold 38 million copies.

The simple recipes were, and still are, much loved by school cookery classes, and village fetes for the Victoria Sponge, jam tarts and rock buns.

The Duston Guides Cookery badge used the pastry recipe for jam tarts back in the 1950s

OLD NORTHAMPTON 1909 Mr. Sidney Oram’s farm, Duston At Harvest time children would leave school to help the family in the fields. Mr Oram was also the landlord of the Melbourne Arms between 1898 and 1909

Old Northampton; Marion Arnold, Hannah Josh, Colin Eaton and Terry Bracher, 2006

DLHS Newsletter April 2021 P a g e | 7 We are planning our first Zoom meeting with MIKE INGRAM to continue his series of talks HISTORY OF NORTHAMPTON Monday 10th May at 7.30 pm All you need to watch this meeting is access to a computer or laptop. You will be sent an access code which you should then copy and paste into your web browser AT THE TIME OF THE MEETING which will then automatically link you to the Zoom presentation.

Further details will be sent later but for now we would appreciate if you would let Kathy know if this is something you would like to be involved in, so we have some idea of numbers. Please use the email address: [email protected]

MAY I HAVE YOUR AUTOGRAPH ….. PLEASE? DAVID CARTER

HOW TO COLLECT SIGNATURES

At British Timken Cricket field on another occasion, standing inside the pavilion fence, next to the horse chestnut tree, I watched as the County Cricket team were fielding. Jock Livingstone, George Tribe and several other famous players were on show. George Tribe took a high catch, then retired to stand near me, under the tree, with a badly bruised hand.

His colleagues suggested that his thumb may be broken, so he was taken inside the factory to the medical centre.

DLHS Newsletter April 2021 P a g e | 8 More from the NGH History Archives by Julia Corps Ward Names

We are always pleased to receive and answer queries and the other week were asked about the origin of the Talbot-Butler ward name, did it have a connection to Eleanor Talbot- Butler(1436-68) and why? The lady was disappointed to learn the ward was named after Harold Talbot-Butler, a manager at the National Provincial Bank who worked as treasurer on several hospital committees. So, following on from that I thought you might like to know more about the origin of NGH ward names. In the early years the Infirmary wards were just known as Men’s, Women’s (and children) and Accident, but as demand grew the two Nightingale blocks were built in 1903.

As money raised to build a memorial for Queen Victoria was used to fund the build, it was stipulated that Queen Victoria’s name should always be linked to it. Names of the many titled gentlemen of the county involved in the development of the Infirmary, serving as governors and sitting on several committees, were used in naming the other wards. The west wing used for women and children were called Spencer, Knightly and Victoria wards.

East wing ward names were Compton, Grafton and Accident. This ground floor ward was renamed Gribble in 1935 after James Gribble (right), a one-time union activist who became a town councillor.

After WW1 there was a spate of building funded mainly by Boot and Shoe magnates. William Barratt was mentioned last month. His adopted daughters named Alice and Frances referred to the theatre and wards in the Gynae block (which is now closed and re-named Singleton). Robert Watson Ward and Eleanor Hague Ward were named after the gynaecologist/obstetrician and the sister-in-charge who were the first to work in the nursing home. Gossett Ward was named after the paediatrician who helped set up the premature baby unit, also mentioned in the March newsletter. The new Labour Ward and GP Unit opened in 1970 was named after the obstetrician and gynaecologist Gordon Sturtridge - a name known to ‘Saints’ supporters, perhaps (left).

Thomas Singlehurst, of the ‘Speedwell Works’ Kingsley. His eyesight was very poor, and he eventually went blind, but he and his wife funded the Eye Outpatient department and later the eye ward. His portrait hangs in the corridor of the eye ward, now relocated in the old gynae block (see above).

DLHS Newsletter April 2021 P a g e | 9 The old Casualty and Out-Patient block at bottom of Cheyne Walk was opened in 1956 by Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother and the two casualty wards built on the first floor were named George and Elizabeth for obvious reasons.

Moving now to the new part of the hospital opened for use in 1979. Originally the first four wards opened were named A,B,C,D, but were given names to match the initial.

A: Allebone. Mr Alan Allebone was the managing Director of Allebone and Sons and served on the NGH Management Committee.

B: Benham. Mr Cedric Benham was a major benefactor who donated money for the first Coronary Care Unit to be opened.

C: Creaton. This former Northampton T.B. and infectious disease hospital closed in 1979 and the name came to NGH.

D: Dryden. The family seat of the Dryden family was Canons Ashby and various members through the years were connected with the hospital.

As the new hospital block was extended, four more wards were added at the far end of the hospital street, all named after trees, Cedar, Hawthorn, Rowan and Willow. There then came a spate of naming wards after villages, such as Collingtree, Holcot, Brampton and Abington.

The latest wards to open in the new Nye Bevan building are named after people again. I am sure folks are aware of the English professional football player Walter Tull who played for the Cobblers and was a British Army officer of Afro-Caribbean descent. The lesser-known Esther White was the first matron of the George Row Infirmary serving from 1743 to 1757 when the Northampton Infirmary opened in 1794. In readiness for the opening of this ward we were asked if we had a portrait of Esther, but as a matron of that time was basically a live-in housekeeper she would by no means have been important enough to have her portrait painted. Again we disappointed an enquirer.

STONE AGE DWELLERS OF DUSTON

Duston. It lies a mile to the west of Northampton and within its boundary has been discovered one of the most interesting settlements of the people of the New Stone Age in England. Over 12,000 pieces of worked flints including arrow-heads, scrapers, saws, bores, and hammers were dug up, and we can see a representative selection in Northampton Museum. Objects of the Iron Age and the Roman Period have also been found in Duston.

The mediaeval church, seeming so young in the presence of so much that is older than Christianity, is one of the few churches in the county with the tower between the nave and chancel. We come in by a medieval door set in a Norman doorway and the eye is drawn at once to the modern timbered roof decorated with 15th century figures of musicians, carved in wood and painted; they are playing the kettle drum, the viol, the bagpipe, and the harp. A series of stone heads in the nave has grotesque and hideous examples of carving; little did the craftsmen who set them here imagine the queer collection buried under their feet.

DLHS Newsletter April 2021 P a g e | 10 Most of the windows in the aisles are 13th century lancets, and the chancel has 14th century windows with cusped tracery. There is a 14th century piscina, a 17th century table in the vestry, one medieval bench-end with a poppyhead, and a massive Norman font with fluting carved round the base of the bowl. There is more Norman work in the capital of a half-column from which the south arcade springs in the thick west wall of the nave; the arcade itself is 13th century. There are three quatrefoil clerestory windows above these arches, but none over the north arcade.

The King’s England; Northamptonshire; A New Domesday Book of 10,000 Towns and Villages, Edited by Arthur Mee. Hodder and Stoughton Ltd. 1945 Does anyone have photographs of the items identified in the above article? Or an update on the church from 1945? St Francis Church Duston The Church Building Duston has been a separate parish since the beginning of the 12th Century when the Monks at St James Abbey built a Church in the village. By 1914 the population had risen to 641. Today it is about 14,000 and is likely to go up to about 17,000. As the village grew into a town suburb the need for another building to supplement the small mediaeval church on the edge of the parish became more pressing, especially as the parish had no church rooms of any sort. (images by Mark Vincent)

:

Text below is taken from the booklet produced for the Dedication of the Church of St. Francis, 1968.

“Planning for a new church has been in earnest since September 1964 when the incumbency changed hands. The parish had a site in Castle Avenue generously donated by British Timken some years ago. This site was sold, and the present more central site bought with a consequent saving of £2,000. Around the present site is to be built shops, a pub, garages, civic centre, etc.

A study of the needs and priorities of the church today led the parish to certain conclusions:-

1. Any building erected must include a permanent church. A dual-purpose building was totally undesirable. 2. The building need only have a life comparable in length to the houses it would serve and not more than 250 years. 3. It must be a dignified building worthy of its purpose yet as cheap in construction as modern methods of building will allow. This is necessary not only because of limited funds but because of priorities in the expenditure of the money at the church’s disposal. 4. A church building must reflect the poverty of spirit of the Gospel and not the triumphalism of the church’s later establishment.

DLHS Newsletter April 2021 P a g e | 11 Having investigated the types of cheaper building available, it became clear that a system built church was preferable in every way to a timber frame or moveable one. At this point the Diocesan Authorities invited the parish to cooperate on their behalf with two architects interested in pioneering a church built from an existing industrial system. If churches can be built from such available materials in sufficient numbers the saving would be enormous. This church is but one of many of completely different design which could be built from the same basic units. Only the lantern is of individual design.

The TOTAL cost excluding the site, will be about £24,000, which is made of:

1. A Diocesan grant of £14,500 ; 2. £2,000 from the exchange of sites; 3. £5,000 borrowed by the parish at 6% over ten years from the Central Board of Finance of the Church of England. 4. The remainder is being raised by the parish. At the present we are about £1,000 short of the target.

The organ has been taken from Gayhurst Church in the Diocese of and was a gift from the P.C.C of Stoke Goldington. It has been rebuilt and electrified with a separate console by Messrs. Castle and Lawrence New Duston Northampton.

The Mural depicting Christ and St Francis is the work and gift of a local artist Mr Peter Young. It is made of Cornish slate.

The stained glass panel is the work of Mr G.A.K. Robinson of Bristol.

The furnishings of the church were made to the design of Mr McLachlan by Vanpoulles Ltd of London.

The chairs were made by Messrs Shepherd and Stafford Ltd of Thetford Norfolk.

The foundation stone laid by the Mayor of Northampton; Alderman T H Dockrell JP on Sunday 16th October 1967 is carved on a stone taken from St Luke’s Church.

The Bishop chose to dedicate the new church to St Francis of Assisi because its whole conception reflects the simple dignity and spirit of holy poverty which characterised his life and teaching.

The Dedication of the Church of St Francis in the Parish of Duston by the Right Reverend Cyril Eastaugh M.C., M.A. Lord Bishop of Peterborough, On Sunday 19th May 1968 at 11 am.”

Who was the person who inspired you (at school, in a career, or ? ) Kathy Perkins - GEOFF IPGRAVE 1921 - 2003 The person who inspired me was a teacher at Headlands Junior School, Northampton, in the 1950’s. ‘Mr Ipgrave’ we children of course called him. He taught geography (his favourite subject) and history, and his inspired method of teaching gave me a lifelong interest and passion in both.

For example, his preface, which I have always remembered, in a geography lesson was “After a long journey in a ship to Africa, next to the sea imagine a mountain with a flat head with a tablecloth lying on its top and the folds falling down the sides ….” Thus was my introduction to Cape Town, South Africa.

Now, with access to the internet, I was able to find out more about him. Following a happy childhood he suffered four gruelling and terrible years as a Japanese Prisoner of War. He was sustained by one book above all, A.E. Houseman’s Collection of Poetry, A Shropshire Lad. His experiences as a POW clarified in him what was important.

DLHS Newsletter April 2021 P a g e | 12 He decided to train as a teacher. Following several years teaching at Headlands School, his ambition was to obtain a village headship and with his wife and three daughters to lead a happy and positive life. After cycling twenty miles to Helmdon for an interview, he was successful; and this is where he lived with his family all his life. With nicknames like ‘Stripgrave’ or ‘Hector’, he taught his own and the village children.

Following the death of his wife Ruth, Geoff Ipgrave went on a visit to Japan where his son was then living. This visit helped him to come to terms with what had happened during his POW At the time of his retirement 1978 years and he found some reconciliation towards As I remember him in 1954 - with his wife Ruth and three daughters the Japanese people as a result. In his later years, a naturally shy man, he became deaf and learnt lipreading; became a volunteer driver for Cynthia Spencer House and later married Pat. His love of poetry never left him, he was a man of words; he loved superbly performed music and a finely played game of cricket and the gentle charm of the English countryside. How I would have enjoyed to have met Mr Ipgrave again. I am grateful to Geoff and Ruth Ipgrave’s three daughters and son for their permission to produce this article.

One of Duston’s oldest ladies died last month at the age of 101 years. She wasn’t born in Duston but a newcomer having lived here for 76 years. Joyce Rudkin was born in Newcastle on Tyne near to the River Tyne amongst the noise, hustle and bustle of this busy industrial port. Her parents were from large families all living nearby. She had five girl cousins all similar to her in age, so life was all warm lively family gatherings all fun and chatter.

In the 1930s Blackpool was the place to visit for a holiday. She loved dancing so off she went with her cousins to the famous Tower Ballroom, young women of course went nowhere without Mothers and Aunts acting as chaperones! But nevertheless that was where she met a young Duston boy, Ted. Their courtship was very long distance with him making many motorbike trips to visit her. When WWII broke out Ted enlisted in the RAMC and when he was about to be posted overseas they married by special licence in 1941. They corresponded by letter while he spent the next 4 years in North Africa. At last he was demobbed and together they returned to live in Duston. She loved Duston from the beginning and the village was so welcoming to her She still retained her Geordie accent although it softened over time. She was for many years a volunteer at the Infant Welfare Clinic so she has probably weighed many of the village’s young Mums and Dads and the not so young Mums and Dads. Barbara Luke COMMUNITY CONNECT Welcome to Duston Since the County Asylum was built on the edge of Duston in the 1870s the village has warmly welcomed newcomers. The Asylum advertised widely throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland - and so people came to work in Duston; many married and stayed and raised their families here. In the 1930s we saw new waves of Geordies, Jocks, Taff’s and Maccas( Co Durham) - their lovely accents added to the Northampton “me ducks”.

In the 1940s the building of Duston’s first factory, British Timken, brought workers from the bombed out factory in Birmingham. Accommodation was in short supply, which may have caused some resentments, but the building of new Council houses and the wonderful Timken’s Show helped the newcomers settle in. British Timken brought new employment opportunities and excellent social and sporting activities. Moving on to the 1950s when nurses were recruited from farther afield and from the Commonwealth, most from the Caribbean, it must have been tough for them leaving their families far behind, many stayed and gave valuable help to the NHS. This is a special place to live. Duston continues to welcome newcomers from all around the world and we must continue to encourage it. Revd. Mandy and DLHS newsletter editor will cross-feed items of interest from our respective publications.

DLHS Newsletter April 2021 P a g e | 13 BOOK REVIEW This is a story of the Roman Army in 33 AD. It is a mystery thriller which engages with religion and the founding of Christianity.

Based around a tight-knit Roman Garrison, its soldiers and their families within it, we read how its protagonists react to events which posterity calls ‘life-changing’. The story demonstrates the structure and minutiae of army life; with an exercise of absolute power to acute conflicts of conscience and shows how soldiers are ranked and judged by their keenness and behaviour in battle with a wide range of more usual human behaviour in between.

And how one small mistake can have such a devastating effect. In the Roman army, an insatiable machine, training had to be tough which left its mark on all. And there is a mystery which leads the reader to an alternative account of the events in Judea. How they were involved in an extraordinary event which impacts even today on our own thinking. The question for us is, as it was for them. Were they right, and are we?

If you want something different and thought-provoking I can thoroughly recommend this book. The author is local.

Image of Marcus Favonius Facilis, discovered damaged, probably from the Boudican Revolt of AD 60 or 61 now in Castle Museum Colchester, Essex. This book is available from Amazon and other reputable book sellers BRITISH ASSOCIATION FOR LOCAL HISTORY (BALH)

Dr Charlotte Young will be giving an introduction to local historians of underused Civil War-era sources for research, followed by Tim Hasker sharing a local study on responses in Northampton to the regicide of King Charles I.

Dr Charlotte Young: The conflicts of the mid- seventeenth century prompted the creation of an entirely new system of bureaucracy across England, which in turn produced a wide range of new documentary records. This paper will explore how these records, ranging from land surveys to inventories and petitions, can be utilised in the study of local history and reveal how the events of the 1640s and 1650s impacted everyday life. Many of these record sets are underexplored and underutilised, and this session will aim to introduce you to some new sources for your research.

Tim Hasker: In January 1649, the English took the unprecedented decision to put the King on trial for treason, an act that would see the end of the Monarchy. However, this decision was reached by only 59 commissioners and by no means reflected a national consensus. This talk examines reactions to the trial and execution in Northampton. During the civil war Northampton was steadfast in its support for the Parliamentary cause, but the responses to the king’s execution highlight a divided community representative of Parliamentarians across the country. This study shows that the town’s rationale for supporting Parliament was complex. Members of the parliamentarian community reacted in different ways to the trial and execution, and by looking at local and individual reactions we can better understand the Northamptonshire and the national response.

There will be an opportunity to ask questions at the end of the talks.

DLHS Newsletter April 2021 P a g e | 14 Special offer: Is your local history society a BALH member? Enter your society's discount code for the reduced rate of £3. DUSTON LOCAL HISTORY SOCIETY DISCOUNT CODE IS F-30778D

BALH Local History Hour: The English Civil Wars in the Localities | Forthcoming BALH Events | British Association For Local History

PICTURES Mark Vincent We are always interested to see pictures of Duston life or Duston memories to include in our newsletter

Port Road

Telfers lorry hanging over the side of Spencer Bridge in 1978 during the winter. The lorry skidded on black ice and went through the fence and then hung there. The driver was unhurt. Credit Jon Gardiner

Flooding at Workbridge, with Giraffe & Alligator

Did you know that Duston Local History Society Newsletter is available on the Parish Council website www.duston-pc.gov.uk

EDITORIAL - ARTICLES AND IMAGES FOR THE NEXT EDITION OF THE DLHS NEWSLETTER should be sent to me by 16th April. Please send me items of interest for publication. Kathy [email protected] The Editor reserves the right to decline to accept an article. Articles may be edited due to space constraints

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