THE ESSEX FAMILY HISTORIAN NUMBER ONE 2017 RAF Ranks the Essex Family Historian Journal of the Essex Society for Family History Edition – March 2017 No
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THE ESSEX FAMILY HISTORIAN NUMBER ONE 2017 RAF Ranks The Essex Family Historian Journal of The Essex Society for Family History Edition – March 2017 No. 161. International Standard Serial Number: 0140 7503 Member of the Federation of Family History Societies • Registered Charity No. 290552 Regular features: FOR YOUR INFORMATION .....................4 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR............................41 EDITORIAL .......................................................5 THE CHAIRMAN ...........................................47 COUNTY CALENDAR A Diary of Events ........6 ERIC’S BOOKCASE..........................................49 NEWS ROUNDUP...........................................39 BRANCH MEETING REVIEWS . ................75 Articles: AT 42 MOULSHAM STREET, CHELMSFORD by Sylvia M. Barnard ...............................................7 THE ESSEX TANKARD by Alan B Dandy ............................................................................................13 DESTINED TO LIVE IN ESSEX by Evelyn Raphael....................................................................... 15 DO YOU RECOGNISE THE LADY IN THIS PHOTOGRAPH? by Andrea Hewitt ................. 19 SERENDIPITY by Peter Guy ............................................................................................................... 20 THE MYSTERY OF MALDON RESIDENTS’ BROWN TEETH by David N. Williams........... 21 WARE TO SEARCH? by Michael Brothers......................................................................................... 25 OH TOMMY YOU’LL KILL ME! by Andrew Helm ......................................................................... 29 THE GHASTLY MILLER OF BILLERICAY by Fred Feather..................................................... 32 FROM SHOEBURYNESS TO SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA by Yvonne Grimes.................................. 33 SOME HEROES SURVIVE by Fred Feather.................................................................................... 36 TALKS AND WALKS AT GALLEYWOOD HERITAGE CENTRE 2017 by Susan Wilson...... 48 A GLANCE AT WINDOWS 10 by Andrew Britter/ Barbara Harpin ................................................ 61 I WAS CHOSEN - YOU JUST CAME! by Janice Sharpe................................................................ 63 ADOPTION IN ESSEX AND WALES by Eric Probert/ Meryl Rawlings......................................... 67 SAMUEL COURTAULD & CO DRESS CODE 1860 by George Courtauld................................. 68 MY LIFE AS A MONUMENTAL INSCRIPTIONS RECORDER by Yvonne Tunstill ................ 69 USEFUL WEBSITES by Eric Probert ................................................................................................. 72 The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the Committee and Officers of the Society. ,,, © March 2017 – The Essex Society for Family History and the authors. Essex Family Historian No.161 3 Issue One 2017 FOR YOUR INFORMATION PUBLICATION DEADLINES Copy should reach the Editor not later than Sunday 30th April 2017 for the next edition of the Journal. MEMBERS’ SURNAME INTERESTS For a list of Surname Interests please refer to the Society Website. For more information on other Society services and details of Branch Officers please refer to the Society Website. SOCIETY WEB SITE www.esfh.org.uk DE CONTRIBUTORS PLEASE NOTE Contributors are requested to limit their articles to 2000 words, other than by prior agreement with the Editor. Contributions should be sent in Microsoft Word format or plain text files (Microsoft Notepad) Graphics/photos preferably as JPEG files. Alternatively written or typed articles with photographs can be sent directly to the Editor at the address below. Photographs will be returned. Contributors should make every effort to trace and acknowledge ownership of all copyright material and secure permissions. The Editor needs to be aware of any problems with contributors acquiring copyright. With regard to the Branch Reports each lecture/event reported should not exceed 500 words and be received by the Editor if practical within 21 days of the Branch Event. Again these should be sent in Microsoft Word format or plain text files. The material will be posted to our WEB site. Contributors should include their ESFH membership number. The use of material is at the discretion of the Editorial team and may be used in any print and electronic media relevant to ESFH. For any queries about the above please do not hesitate to email the Editor or post to “Ladybrook” Main Road, Woodham Ferrers, Essex CM3 8RW. Essex Family Historian No.161 4 Issue One 2017 EDITORIAL Editor: Colleen Devenish Ladybrook, Main Road, Woodham Ferrers, Essex CM3 8RW . Tel. no. 01245 429112 E-mail: [email protected] Production Manager: Ian Fulcher Telephone: 01702 588760. E-mail: [email protected] Hello Readers I would like to thank all those members who have helped me in my new role. It continues to be a learning curve. I would also like to extend a thank you to all the contributors to this edition – and welcome those whose work is in print for the first time. No matter if you have a short or long tale regarding family history it is great to share it with other members as often new light can be shed from outside sources. If you are hesitant as to your story/anecdote being of interest to our members just email me via the Contacts page of our web site (www.esfh.org.uk) and we can discuss. Your Executive Committee continues to give their energy and time in helping members and the public. Paul Stirland, a long standing volunteer of the committee, is changing part of his role and in future will be more involved in the development of our web site. Over the next few months he needs to relinquish his librarian responsibilities so the Society needs another volunteer to take charge of our library at the Research Centre in Chelmsford. It takes a few hours per week to keep the books and magazines in check and just think what fun it could be to sit in our Research Centre surrounded by all that family history material! If you can help us or know of someone who can please email John Young our Chairman via the Contacts page of our web site. As Editor one of my objectives is to attend our branch meetings so I can talk to as many members as possible regarding what they want to see in the Historian. Last September I was able to ask some members their opinions when Eric Jude organised a coach trip to the National Archives at Kew and I joined them. On arrival our day started with a lecture from a member of the Church of Latter Day Saints regarding their family search site (www.familysearch.org) and its future development. The speaker stressed that only a small percentage of their material is on the Internet and so here is the same old adage - you cannot find all your family history information on line and need to seek out other sources. I understand from Meryl Rawlings, our Society secretary, that another trip to the National Archives has been organised for Tuesday 4th April 2017 so for those of you who missed out visiting UK’s foremost archive centre there is another chance to go. You can find further details under ESFH News on our web site. Happy Researching! C D Essex Family Historian No.161 5 Issue One 2017 A quick reference guide to Branch County Meetings during the next quarter Calendar MARCH 4th Formation of Forensic Science at Scotland Yard by Robert Milne SOUTHEND 4th Weavers, Higglers and moze makers – ocupations in the 18th& 19th century by Michael Holland HARLOW 11th Land Tax Assessments by Eric Probert COLCHESTER 18th The Cloud by Charlie Mead CHELMSFORD (AM) 18th History of spoken English by Charles Haylock CHELMSFORD (PM) APRIL 1st Maps for Family Historians by Charlie Mead SOUTHEND 1st Lawrence of Arabia - His Life by Maggie Radcliffe HARLOW 8th They Won’t Hang Me – will they? The trial of an Essex Swing Rioter by Michael Holland COLCHESTER 22nd Refugees and Migration during WW2 by Carol Harris CHELMSFORD (AM) 22nd Entertainment in wartime Britain by Mike Brown CHELMSFORD (PM) MAY 6th The Brushmakers Society by Ken Doughty SOUTHEND 6th tba HARLOW 13th Maps for Family Historians by Charlie Mead COLCHESTER 20th Ian Boreham Investigates by Ian Boreham CHELMSFORD (AM) 20th Early Railway Workers by David Turner CHELMSFORD (PM) JUNE 3rd The City Livery Companies by David Williams SOUTHEND 3rd tba HARLOW 10th The Origin and Development of Surnames by Derek Palgrave COLCHESTER 17th The archive of the Port of London Authority by London Museum archivist CHELMSFORD (AM) 17th tba CHELMSFORD (PM) JULY 1st “Bring and Tell” – a Members Meeting SOUTHEND 1st tba HARLOW 8th Genealogists Question Time COLCHESTER 15th Turnpike Roads and Toll-houses by Patrick Taylor CHELMSFORD (AM) 15th Researching your Ancestors 1939-1945 by Rob Parker CHELMSFORD (PM) Please consult the Society Website for the latest information on Branch programmes Essex Family Historian No.161 6 Issue One 2017 One. The photograph. I was very interested in Murray Brazier’s article ‘Memories are made of this’ in the Essex Family Historian March/April 2016, No. 158, where he describes Chelmsford High Street and Moulsham Street as they were in his prewar childhood. I wrote in the September 2005 issue (No. 117) on the subject of my great- grandfather and my mother’s remark that he was responsible for the plasterwork of the Regent Cinema, Chelmsford, opened on 7 August 1916. Sadly, I have still not managed to prove his involvement, P 42 M S M B but his skilled work can still be seen at his former home and business at 42 Sarah Ann Bedingfield (née Sharman)