Issue HANLEY MATTERS No. 39 the newsletter of The Hanleys’ Village Society Spring 2016 OFFICERS SENTENCED TO BEYOND THE SEAS President Nick Lechmere Tel: 07771 644927 As deputy mayor of Worcester in Cooper, Davies, Hufnell and Turner.

Chair 2000, David Clark became involved Young Sarah Bellamy had struck Jenny McGowran in restoring the old police cells up a liason with a sailor shortly after Tel: 311820 beneath the Guildhall. In the process arriving on the Lady Penrhyn and Treasurer he became interested in the people gave birth to a boy towards the end John Boardman Tel: 311748 who had passed through those cells. of the voyage, but he died a month Secretary & Newsletter The story of eight Worcester-area later. She eventually settled down Editor women - Sarah Davies (24), Mary with a fellow convict, James Malcolm Fare Tel: 311197 Abel (30), Mary Turner (20), Olivia Bloodworth, who became master

Programme Secretary Gascoigne (21), Sarah Bellamy bricklayer to the colony, and they David Thomas (17), Mary Cooper (36), Ann Inett went on to have eight children, four Tel: 310437 (28) and Susannah Hufnell (22), dying in infancy. Sarah died at the who had all been sentenced to age of 73. FORTHCOMING ACTIVITIES transportation for petty crimes - was Olivia and Nathaniel had 13

23 September 2016 the subject of a fascinating talk children and in 1804 they moved AGM and talk by Heather David gave at our January meeting. back to Sydney where they Whatley on Laura Knight in the Malverns. Sentenced between 1783 and operated the government mill. But 1786, the prisoners were first taken by 1816 their marriage had broken 25 November 2016 Talk by Hannah Thomas by cart to London, a journey of 8-11 down and Olivia moved to Tasmania on the Worcestershire Wildlife Trust: Its Works, days, and then spent varying where she was granted 100 acres of Reserves and Wildlife. amounts of time aboard rat-infested land. She died in 1830 aged 69, 20 January 2017 hulks before being transferred to the leaving many descendants. Talk by Dr Richard Churchley on Local Lady Penrhyn in 1787. Ann had the most turbulent life. Industries before the They were among more than 700 She had left two illegitimate Railways. convicts to the new children, Thomas and Constance, 31 March 2017 colony of New South Wales as part behind in Worcestershire. In 1789, A visual tour of Worcester Cathedral and talk by of the , which took 9 she gave birth to Gidley King’s son, Howard Robinson on Masonry, Monuments and months to reach . named Norfolk, on Memorials. Shortly after arriving in Botany and was pregnant with his second Bay, Ann Inett and Olivia Gascoigne child when they returned to the were among a group of 15 convicts mainland the following year. Within sent to Norfolk Island, 1000 miles a fortnight King was despatched to away, to help form a settlement to England to plead for more support supply pine and flax for the main for the colony, leaving Ann, who was colony. Soon Ann had become soon to have another son, Sydney, housekeeper and mistress to the under his protection. commandant, Gidley King, while While in England, King was Olivia married fellow convict appointed Lieutentant-Governor of Nathaniel Lucas. They were joined Norfolk Island, and also found time in due course by Sarah Davies, to marry his cousin Anna Coombe, Mary Cooper, Susannah Hufnell and who was pregnant by the time they Mary Turner. returned to Australia in 1791. To his So what became of them all? credit, King acknowledged his two Not much is known about Abel, illegitimate boys and arranged for them to be educated in 200 YEARS OF SHOPPING England, leaving Ann once In March, Bernard Mills, who “Good quality goods at the again without her children. worked for the famous mail- right price” was Kay’s motto Within a year she had order company Kays of and customers flocked to buy in married Richard John Worcester for 30 years, talked increasing numbers. Robinson, a convict who had to the Society about the history In 1920 women became the come out with the . of what became one of the backbone of Kay’s workforce When her 7-year sentence was largest companies in Britain, and by 1927 the company was completed, she received a 30- owning among others Argos, operating three factories acre land grant and opened a Homebase and Burberry. around the country, having hotel in the centre of Sydney. It all started in 1794 when pioneered the ‘three for the Gidley King, meanwhile, had John Skarratt set up a watch price of two’, concept. W K Kay been promoted to governor of and clock making business in died in 1929 and his three sons New South Wales and in 1804 what is now St Swithins St, took over, but the eldest died in he awarded Ann a further 14 Worcester. 20 years later he 1933 and the other two decided acres. moved to larger premises in to sell to Great Universal Stores For 16 years, Ann and Broad St and in 1829 his son, (GUS) in 1937 for £228,000. Richard’s hotel business also called John, took over until Under the leadership of flourished, yet in 1820, for his death in 1859 when John GUS’s dynamic managing reasons unknown, they sold III began running the business, director, Isaac Wolfson, Kays up and returned, separately, to still making clocks. moved to a new building at 9- England. Ann, now 66, had In the 1870s a young man 10 The Tything. Their wartime transformed her life from brought up in the Portsmouth catalogue showed clothes in ignomony to wealth and workhouse started working for dark colours because pastels respectability. Skarratt; his name was William required more electricity and Kilbourne Kay. By 1890 he had chemicals. By 1963 the famous established his own business, catalogue was 750 pages thick. Kays of Worcester, a universal That year Mary Quant began store selling jewellery, watches, designing women’s fashions for clocks and household goods. the company, an association By 1894 he employed 50 that lasted until 1988. people and two years later he In 1985 Kays built a vast bought out Skarratt, becoming warehouse in the St Johns area in the process the main supplier of Worcester capable of of watches, clocks and time- shipping 1 m parcels a week to pieces to the Great Western 4.5 m customers. But when Railway. In 1902 Kays erected GUS sold their mail-order the main clock in Paddington business in 2003, it marked the station, still there on Platform 1 beginning of the end for Kays. and under which countless The Worcester warehouse thousands of people have closed in 2007. arranged to meet. First Fleet memorial, A new warehouse and CASTLE MOUND DIG Although she now fades offices to WK’s own design The Society is pleased to report from history, David Clark were built in 1907 at 23 The that a limited archaeological thought Ann probably returned Tything. It was to be the excavation of the castle mound to Worcester to see her four company’s home for the next will take place this summer children. Constance’s daughter, 94 years. under the supervision of Mark born 3 months after Ann Collard, one of the leading arrived, was named Mary Ann commercial archaeologists in Robinson. Almost 5 years later, the UK. Mark’s company, her youngest son, Lieutenant Rubicon Heritage of Sydney Inett King, was Tewkesbury, is keen to be married in Worcester. Perhaps involved in a local project. she attended the wedding. Further details in due course. 23 The Tything