The Wimbledon Society Newsletter www.wimbledonsociety.org.uk December 2006 The Old Rectory (Garden Front) Charles Henry Money Mileham (1837-1917) This is one of a pair of pen and ink drawings the acquisition of which happily coincides with the 90th anniversary of the Society’s Museum. The drawings are dated April 1863, at about the time when the restoration of the Old Rectory was beginning. Here the house looks to be in a very derelict state, with vegetation growing up the walls and buttresses holding up the west front. The roof has been almost completely stripped of tiles, which are heaped on the ground and scaffolding has been erected at one end. Two earlier engravings of the house show almost identical views, but with an intact roof and the original, ornate chimney pots in position. Now remounted and framed, the newly acquired drawings are currently available to view. (see page 3) Members should make a point of going to see the drawings along with the exhibition on the history of the Museum, which runs until the end of the month.
Transcript
TheWimbledon SocietyNewsletter
www.wimbledonsociety.org.uk December 2006
The Old Rectory (Garden Front) Charles Henry Money Mileham (1837-1917)
This is one of a pair of pen and ink drawings the acquisition of which happily coincides with the 90thanniversary of the Society’s Museum. The drawings are dated April 1863, at about the time when therestoration of the Old Rectory was beginning.Here the house looks to be in a very derelict state, with vegetation growing up the walls and buttressesholding up the west front. The roof has been almost completely stripped of tiles, which are heaped on theground and scaffolding has been erected at one end. Two earlier engravings of the house show almostidentical views, but with an intact roof and the original, ornate chimney pots in position. Now remounted and framed, the newly acquired drawings are currently available to view. (see page 3)MMeemmbbeerrss sshhoouulldd mmaakkee aa ppooiinntt ooff ggooiinngg ttoo sseeee tthhee ddrraawwiinnggss aalloonngg wwiitthh tthhee eexxhhiibbiittiioonn oonn tthhee hhiissttoorryy oofftthhee MMuusseeuumm,, wwhhiicchh rruunnss uunnttiill tthhee eenndd ooff tthhee mmoonntthh..
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ContentsPage
Chairman’s Report 2Subs and cards
Museum 3Picture Purchase
Museum 490th Anniversary Exhibition
Local History 4Autumn Topics
Times Past 5Hughes the Ironmongers
Planning 6, 7Issues and ApplicationsConversion of the Apostles
Activities and Books 8Programme 2007Stocking Filler
Chairman’s Report
A large part of our Planning Committee’s work is inmonitoring development and traffic proposals and we havebecome increasingly aware of how far the system has fallenshort of the standards that are enjoyed by many residents inother Boroughs across the country.
What all groups in Wimbledon wish to see is betterprofessional planning standards and more genuineconsultation with the community, coupled with more clarityand open-ness about the whole decision-making process. Inthe past we have made many practical suggestions as to howthis could be improved but so far have met with only limitedsuccess.
In addition, there are a number of important issues whichremain outstanding and which we raised with localCouncillors at our last AGM in May. These include the P3( Morrisons car park) and P4 (theatre car park) sites in thetown centre where, after years of detailed discussions, weare still awaiting specific proposals and the submission of aplanning application for the new Public Hall. (see page 6)
This year’s changes at the Council elections gave us somehope that things might improve; let us hope this will be thecase.
Martyn Harman
Subscriptions and membershipcards for 2007
Subscriptions for 2007 will be due on 1st Jan 2007. The ratesare £10 for an individual or £15 for a couple or family. Mostmembers pay by standing order and so your subscriptionwill be collected automatically in January. If you normallypay by cheque, you should have received a reminder withthis newsletter.
As a result of the subscriptions increase in 2006, there arestill some members paying at the old rates of £8 and £12. Ifyou think that this might apply to you, please check withyour bank as soon as possible and instruct them to increasethe order, if necessary, in time for 1st January.
At an Executive meeting two years ago, it was decided thatmembership cards would be sent after the receipt of yoursubscription. So your next card will be sent with the March2007 newsletter and the programme listed thereon will coverthe period March 2007 to March 2008. This is why yourcurrent card shows events up to February 2007. For a briefoutline of next year’s programme see page 8.
Linda Defriez
Newsletter teamMalcolm Moore (Editor)Monica EllisonIain SimpsonDavid Butler
Design and layout: Le Cluse + Cheshire www.lcc-design.co.uk
Early in August the Museumreceived an e-mail from agentleman in Wales saying thata picture gallery in London hadtwo pen and ink drawings of ‘anold house in Wimbledon’ – werewe interested? He also enclosedimages of the two pictures. Aftercomparing them withengravings in RichardMilward’s book on The OldRectory and other pictures heldin the Museum, it was felt thatthere was no doubt that thesewere drawings of the OldRectory when it was in a veryruinous state. Shortly afterwardsthe drawings were acquired fora relatively modest sum andconfirmation of the identity ofthe house was made by Richard. On the reverse of one drawing is a pencil sketch ofthe head and shoulders of a young man dressed inTudor costume, probably copied from a portrait.There is no indication of who the young man is orindeed that the sketch has any link with the OldRectory. So far research on this image has yieldednothing.Sited by the Parish Church of St Mary’s, the OldRectory dates from the mid-sixteenth century and assuch is the oldest house still standing in Wimbledon.One of its former occupants was William Cecil, laterLord Burghley, so it must have been a house of someimportance. However, over the next two hundredyears its importance declined so that by 1720 it wasknown as the Old Laundry House. It was purchasedby Sir Theodore Janssen when it was reported as‘uninhabited’. He pulled down the south wing andrestored the remainder which was leased to a farmer.When the Spencers took over the Manor, the Rectorywas used firstly as a Dairy House and then as adwelling for their agent. He died in 1802 and nofurther occupants are known for the next eightyyears. In 1861 the house was bought as a virtual ruinby John Augustus Beaumont, who, instead of pullingit down, decided to restore and extend the building sothat once again it became a large and importantproperty. This is essentially the house as it is today.However, it does not seem to have had a regulartenant until it was purchased by Samuel Willson in 1882.
The artist, Charles Henry Money Mileham (1837-1917) was a watercolourist of some ability whoexhibited 16 times at the Royal Academy between1882 and 1906. By profession he was an architectworking from offices, firstly at 35 Essex Street,Strand and then 1 Lincoln’s Inn Fields. Most of hiswork was concerned with ecclesiastical buildings,but he also designed a few domestic buildingsincluding 23 The Grange, Wimbledon in 1889. Thisraises a fascinating question: was he the architectinvolved in the restoration of The Old Rectory?Unfortunately there is no evidence either one way orthe other, although he had been workingprofessionally since 1860. He does not identify thehouse and one drawing is even named ‘Wimbleton’,an earlier spelling of the village. He seems to havespent a lot of time travelling round the country and inEurope sketching and painting topographical views.It is possible that he was passing throughWimbledon, saw an interesting old house andsketched it. He died at his home in Hampstead on10th December 1917, and an obituary in The Builderdescribes him as a very kind, modest and retiringgentleman; essentially an artist and with an intenselove of East Anglia where he was born.If anyone has further information aboutMileham’s links with Wimbledon, the Museumwould be pleased to hear from them.
Sally Flew
The Picture Purchase
The Old Rectory West Front
The Museum has been given the title deeds ofHeathfield and the Clock House, 2 and 4 WindmillRoad. The road is a little odd in that there is no no.1or no.3; indeed there are no other houses. Researchhas shown that a house was first built here in 1800,when Arthur Tyton was given permission to takepart of the Common for it. It was pulled down in1833 after his death, and a pair of 'White Houses'were erected. In 1888 no. 4 was rebuilt in apicturesque version of the Tudor style, with astables block carrying a clock; after that the housewas called Clock House. It was badly bomb-damaged in 1944, and repaired and extended whenthe two houses were bought by the VietnameseEmbassy in 1956. Around 1992 Clock House wasdemolished and replaced by flats, but still with aclock. Staying with the Common, we received an enquiryabout the Army camp there in 1916, something thathas come up several times from people researchingtheir family history. We have a number of photos ofthe camp, details of Christmas events at the YMCAhut, and a magazine produced by soldiers stationedthere. The huts were not removed until 1922. In Arthur Road there still exists the buildinghousing the artesian well built for Lord Spencer; itsdate is given as 1798 in Manning & Bray’s Historyof Surrey, and that had long been the accepted date.
However, a member of the Group had discoveredthat The Times of August 1796 reported the diggingof the well as taking from May 1795 until 12thAugust 1796. It had been a difficult and dangerousoperation, but the well was soon abandonedbecause sand silted it up. A Group member thenstarted a further discussion, asking why wells werealways round. Going back from the 18th to the 16th century, we
were told of newinformation aboutJane Baldwyn, theWimbledon ‘witch’o r i g i n a l l ydiscovered byRichard Milwardand used by MartinPrynn for the music
he composed for the Society's centenary. A recipe ofhers for a potion for the plague had been publishedin 1580 in a collection of medicines, showing thatshe was probably the local ‘wise woman’ whohelped people in Wimbledon before there weredoctors or apothecaries. Perhaps one of hermedicines went wrong, which might explain whyshe pleaded guilty to two charges.
Charles Toase
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Local History
Notes on Autumn Topics
The special exhibition arranged by Janet Koss, tomark the 90th Anniversary of the Society’sMuseum, is on display until the end of December.The display charts the history of the Museum itself,with information on how it began as well as variousevents that have occurred over the years. TheMuseum covers 3000 years of Wimbledon’shistory, going back to arrowheads found on theCommon.When interviewed by the Wimbledon Guardian,Cassandra Taylor said: ‘It’s a very effectiveMuseum, small, but perfectly formed and thepictures tell the story of how it all started’.Catch the exhibition, and pick up some of theSociety’s Christmas cards, which are stillavailable.
With the death of Bruce Hughes in August this yearthe final chapter was written in the story of thefamily business that spanned three generations inWimbledon. The ironmonger’s shop, which supplieda service that is still much missed, was started by hisgrandfather Walter Hughes, in 1876, when at the ageof 22, he set up shop in Tooting with a capital of £30.He did so well that his landlord decided to double therent. That made him move to Wimbledon and open alittle shop in Hartfield Road in 1880, described as a‘side-window’ shop, whatever that means. His firstday’s takings were £1 2s 11d. He did not give creditto his customers (40 years later, in 1920, hisadvertisements still said ‘no discount’), but hissuppliers gave him credit, and he said that he soldpractically all his stock before he had to pay for it. During the First World War there was of course ashortage of men to work in shops. The trademagazine for ironmongers, the Hardware TradeJournal, heard that there was a peculiar shop inWimbledon, and sent a reporter to investigate. Hediscovered that there was an ironmonger’s where youwere served by ladies, something unheard of in sucha masculine environment as ‘heavy ironmongery andbuilders’ goods’. Walter Hughes’ three sons, who hadall been in the business, enlisted, one in the Navy andtwo in the Army. That left two daughters, Edith andCora, who were then respectively 30 and 26 yearsold. The reporter asked them how they coped. Theysaid it had been difficult learning the names of thethings sold in the shop, but customers helped them,
and when they had to carry heavy itemsthey called on the four boys in theworkshop. In fact, the ladies had improvedsales in household goods. That was in 1916. In 1932 the HardwareTrade Journal had another feature on theshop, because Walter Hughes had thencelebrated 56 years as an ironmonger andhis golden wedding. The Journal reportedthat Hughes had become a limitedcompany in 1931. By this time Walter’sson Frederick Augustus had joined thebusiness (the others had decided tobecome engineers instead). With thissecond generation the firm became W.Hughes & Son (Wimbledon) Ltd. At thattime Bruce Hughes was only 6 years old,but he in his turn took over the business.He was proud of his family and in 1977 hegot the College of Arms to work on the
family tree. He gave the Museum a copy, and he usedextracts in hisadvertisements. In 1986 the shopin Hartfield Roadclosed as theresult of ac o m p u l s o r ypurchase order bythe Council aspart of thedevelopment ofthe Bridge andHartfield Road. Itwas pulled downand the ‘Fridgeon the Bridge’ was built. Bruce Hughes had been aWimbledon councillor from 1957 to 1965, but he hadno influence with Merton Council and he was unableto stop the development. When the shop closed in1986, Norman Plastow took photographs, which arenow in the Museum, along with early pictures givenby Bruce Hughes himself. There is also a 1936 photo,found among some material from Trim’s the printers.This shows a nice array of watering cans,wheelbarrows, shovels and deck chairs, and evenwhat appear to be lawn-mowers, on the pavement.No fear in those days that anyone might walk offwith them.
Charles Toase
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Times Past
Hughes the Ironmongers
Hughes ironmongers in 1936
Interior of the shop
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Local Development Framework.We have reached a crucial stage in the processleading to production of a new Local DevelopmentFramework (LDF) for Merton. This will in timereplace the current UDP – though that remains validfor the present and will probably do so until the endof 2008.There have been two rounds of public consultation,seeking public input into the identification of keypolicy issues. The Society has contributed to these,both in writing and through a meeting with Councilofficers.The Council is now about to take the first steptowards putting out its own ideas for the shape of theLDF. The key document here is the Core Strategy. Inprevious systems, the Council have produced asingle draft plan as a basis for consultation. However,there is now a new emphasis on public input. So weshall be presented with three options for the CoreStrategy and be invited to comment on these. Whenthis consultation is complete, the Council willproduce its own Core Strategy, which will beaccompanied by a draft document on DevelopmentControl Policies.The present timetable is for the Core Strategy optionsto be published in November with the consultationperiod running to mid-January 2007.This is crunch time for future planning policy inMerton. Look out for the arrival of the CoreStrategy options (at the Library or on thewebsite).The Society will be preparing its ownresponse and will take on board the views ofmembers. Please respond to the Council at Plansand Projects, Merton Civic Centre and also pleasewrite or copy to the Society’s Planning Committeeat 22 Ridgway, SW19 4QN.
John Rowcliffe
Wimbledon Town Centre.The Society is waiting to hear the new Council’sapproach to the P3 (Hartfield Road/car park site) andP4 (the car park beside Wimbledon Theatre). The P3 site was originally allocated as the site of anew Civic Hall; the previous administration laterdecided that the site would be sold and designated fora retail, parking, housing and hotel development,with a smaller public hall on the P4 site, largelyfinanced by the proceeds from the P3 sale andredevelopment.
Wimbledon Park Hall in Arthur Road.The planning application involves the demolition andredevelopment of the present Hall to be replaced bya new Hall and attendant café, etc in a five storeybuilding (14 flats and 11 parking spaces) adjoiningthe conservation area and the defined neighbourhoodshopping centre.The provision of a new Hall for public use iswelcomed, although from past experience of suchprojects, we feel it essential to be clear from the starthow such a Hall is to be run. Questions to beaddressed include who has the legal and financialresponsibility for fitting out, commissioning andfurnishing the building once built; who is to providemaintenance and service provision; how long termstaffing and funding is to be ensured (it is unlikelythat such a Hall would be financially selfsupporting); how would the lettings policy and thehiring costs be decided; and whether the Councilwould retain site ownership and undertake theoverall management. Answers to these points need tobe available before the Council takes its decision onthe future of the site.Members wishing to inspect the plans for the sitecan view them at the Wimbledon ReferenceLibrary, Merton Link in the Civic Centre,Morden or on the Council’s website,www.merton.gov.uk/planning Planning Application Number 06/P1969)
Sub-division of residential properties.Whilst recognising the requirement for councils inLondon to provide more residential units, the Societyhas opposed the sub-division of smaller houses toflats, resulting in the loss of family homes. Recentlythere has been refusal of a number of applications forsub-division of terraced housing, particularly in the"Apostles" in Raynes Park and the South Park area ofWimbledon. The Council has given as the reason forrefusal various UDP policies, together with loss ofsmall family homes, increase in on-street parkingand impact on neighbour residential amenity. TheCouncil is reviewing its policy on these matters.
Planning Applications.
Good Hope, Belvedere Estate: further newapplications for redevelopment and extensions to thislisted property have been refused. An appeal hasbeen lodged against refusal of some aspects of theapplication
Planning
Recent Issues and Applications
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14 Edge Hill : the proposal for the demolition of 14Edge Hill within the Conservation Area on animportant site facing the listed building of the SacredHeart Church and replacement with a building oflarger mass and footprint has been approved. There isconcern that since other houses within theConservation Area may soon become available onthe market, this decision may act as a precedent forfurther demolitions within the Conservation Areawith permanent harm to its character.
14 Thackeray Close:A decision by the Council to refuse permission forthe demolition and redevelopment of 14 ThackerayClose to a higher density, because of its impact on theConservation Area and the Listed Building (SacredHeart Church), has been overturned at Appeal.Government policy on increased densities anddevelopments affecting Conservation Areas andListed Buildings may have influenced thesedecisions.
4 Southside Common: a second planningapplication for the partial demolition and
redevelopment to nine flats with undergroundparking has been submitted. This follows thewithdrawal of an earlier application to which theSociety and others objected. What is proposed now issubstantially a reinstatement of the building tosomething like its form before its top storey wasremoved. The introduction of flats where large singlefamily houses have traditionally been the norm willlead to increased parking, and loss of privategardens. It is important that developments forming abackdrop to the Common have a special design andcharacter. Significant excavations to accommodateunderground parking give rise to concern at theimpact on the water table and the future of the maturetrees within the site. There is no reference to theimportant matter of energy generation on the site.The design detail results in a rear extension at firstfloor level that does not relate well to the overalldesign, over-intensive dormers overlookingSouthside and Murray Road, an unrelated chimneystack and an inappropriate front entrance.
Pat Keith
Planning
Conversion of the Apostles(Dundonald not Damascus) (Update on article in last newsletter) When the Council Planning committee met on the17th August, it was decided, because of the size ofthe agenda, to move part of the agenda back to the31st August. This included the 10 applications forconversions, most of which were in the Apostles areaand one in Wimbledon Park – 34 Durnsford Road.The first conversion item on the 31st August agendawas the subject of an extended debate over theconcerns of local residents (who were present innumbers), the loss of family accommodation, thesmall (inadequate) size of the proposed flats,previous decisions on applications of this kind and,being a new planning committee, some differentviews on the interpretation of the UnitaryDevelopment Plan (UDP) and related planningguidance documents. As with all applications atcommittee they ultimately go to a vote. In this casethe application was refused, carried by theChairman’s casting vote. This seemed to set themood and trend of the evening and in the end,following a consistent trend, all the applications forconversion were turned down. This included the one
for 34 Durnsford Avenue, in Wimbledon Park, whichwas a retrospective application (the work havingalready been completed) where the committeedecided that and enforcement order should be madecompelling the developer to return the house to asingle dwelling. It was an extraordinary evening and signals a majorsea change in the Council’s attitude towardsconversions of this kind. Some of these applicationsmay well be appealed and it will be of great interest,to all parties involved, to see what the planningInspectorate’s view will be.
Iain Simpson
NEW RECRUITS, PLEASE.The volume of activity for the Planning Committeeincreases steadily, there have been some departuresfrom this committee due to people moving out of thearea and changes in personal circumstances. We arenow short of man/woman power and would like toencourage members to consider joining us. If youwould like to make a contribution to this work andhelp to influence the future of your area, we wouldvalue your assistance.
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President Norman PlastowFar House, Hillside, SW19 4NL8947 2825
Newsletter Distribution Tricia Watson49 Trinity Road, SW19 8QS8543 7291
Excursions Pamela Llewellyn8785 7031
Book Events Monica Ellison16 Hillside, SW19 4NH8879 7732
Programme 2007/08Lectures We are pleased to say that Richard Milward hasagreed to give a lecture in Drake House on Tuesday27th March 2007, to coincide with the bi-centenaryof the abolition of the slave trade. His talkWilberforce and the Slave Trade will addressquestions about the evils of the slave trade in the18th century, and how the majority of MPs wereconverted from relative indifference in 1787 tostrong support of abolition by 1807.Other lectures will include Strawberry Hill andWalpole on 4th October and Pubs of Wimbledon on6th November.
Coach excursionsWednesday 13th June to the National Trust property,The Vyne, and Milestones Living History Museum.Thursday 19th July to Eton College and Cliveden.
Short excursionsTuesday 8th May to the Foundling Museum, CoramFields; Thursday 16th August to the Stanley PickerGallery; Wednesday 19th September to thePewterers’ Hall; Wednesday 10th October toStrawberry Hill.If you would like to apply for any of theseoutings, please make a note in your diary andkeep the day free. Full details and booking formswill come with subsequent newsletters.
Linda Defriez
The Wimbledon Society (formerly the John Evelyn Society) was founded in 1903 and is a Registered Charity (No. 269478). Its main objectives are to preserveWimbledon’s amenities and natural beauty, to study its history and to ascertain that urban development is sympathetic and orderly. Annual subscriptions to theSociety are at the following rates: Individuals £10.00; Families £15.00; Organisations: Non-commercial £25 and Commercial £50. Please send membershipapplications to the Membership Secretary.
The Museum and Bookshop (020 8296 9914), 22 Ridgway, near Lingfield Road, are open from 2.30 to 5.00p.m. Saturday and Sunday – admission free.
A Stocking FillerEngland’s Mistress by Kate WilliamsWhile researching seduction in theeighteenth century in the BritishLibrary, Kate Williams tells us that shechanced upon a letter written toNelson by Emma Hamilton. Incontrast with the dull epistolaryofferings of the period, "the torrent ofemotion which streamed off the page"captivated her. Lady Hamilton, bornAmy Lyon alias Emma Hart, had madeyet another conquest, compelling Kate
to abandon her original topic to tell theEmma story once again. Her pursuit ofthe ‘real Emma’ took many monthsand long journeysacross England andmuch of Europe.The result publishedin October byRandom House isEngland’s Mistress:The Infamous Life ofEmma Hamilton.
OFFICERS AND WIMBLEDON SOCIETY
Kate Williams
One of our members, Betty Syrett, has tracked downGeorge Wood, the WWII airman in our lastnewsletter. He is now living in Sussex and we have
received his journal covering a very eventful life. Wewill publish more information in the next newsletter.
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