Redgate Cottage (the old workhouse)
Redgate Cottage (former workhouse)106 West Common Road18th centuryLocally listed Redgate Cottage (also known as Redgates Cottage, 18th Century Cottage) dates from before 1754 when Joel Kempsell sold his cottage for £18 to the Churchwardens and Overseers of the Poor for ‘the sole use and benefit of the parishioners’. WorkhouseIt was used as the Parish Workhouse until 1836. Revd John Till, rector from 1777 – 1827 described it as a ‘small timber and brick dwelling, standing on the right hand side of the road leading from the upper village towards Baston House and Keston.’ It was probably originally a two storey oak framed building with a single storey rear wing, later faced in brick at the front in the Georgian style. It still retains timber box sash windows. In 1782 the house contained seven elderly or infirm parish poor, Thomas Kelly, a labourer, his wife (who took care of the house) and their four children. Thomas Kelly later took employment as a shepherd and the house was then in the charge of John and Sarah Ward, who had five children by 1798 when his mother and Widow Lucas were living there. Numbers in the house varied but never seemed to be more than 20. After the passing of the Poor Law Amendment Act in 1834 neighbouring parishes were grouped together and a central Bromley Workhouse set up at Farnborough. The use of this building as a workhouse ceased when its few inhabitants were transferred. What happened to the workhouse?At first there was some dispute about who would benefit from the sale of the workhouse – would it be for the poor parishioners of Hayes or for the wider area? Initially the Vestry decided to let the Poorhouse at an economical rent of not less than £8 per annum and Lady Gibbs of Hayes Court used it for her workers. It was lived in by Joseph and Sarah Nisbet and their family until Joseph’s death in 1842. In 1844 it was decided to sell the house and garden lately used as a Poor House. Four tenders were received. The highest of £220 was from Wilhelmina Traill of Hayes Place but in practice the money was paid by Lady Pilkington who had inherited Hayes Court and who was already renting the property.The sale was confirmed 7 April 1845. It continued to be used to house Hayes Court employees. A trust was set up to ensure the sale money was administered for the benefit of the Hayes poor. In 1879 Frederick Norman took over Hayes Court and Henry Harwood, a labourer, moved in to the cottage with his wife Eliza and 9 children and they lived there for the rest of their lives. In 1881 there were also 2 lodgers. Henry died in 1898 and his widow in 1902. John Dingwall, a gardener, was the next tenant and then Edward Pattenden. The cottage was described in 1910 as a 3 bedroom property with a gross value of £235. In the 1911 Census it was said to have 4 rooms. In 1918 the property was sold by Lady Pilkington’s descendant, Mrs Diane Rose, to Sir Thomas Duncombe Mann of Hayes Grove Cottage for £200. He then sold both his house and the adjacent land and cottages to Miss Katherine Cox who established a boarding school at Hayes Court. Percy Jones, tenant 1919 – 1950s Percy Jones Percy Jones became head gardener at Hayes Court and lived in Redgate Cottage until the mid 1950s. Pupils at the school later testified to his amazing gardening skill and one pupil Valerie Finnis attributed her love of plants to him. She later became a Fellow of the Royal Horticultural Society and received the Victorian Medal of Honour of the Society. He was also very active in the community. A Parish Councillor from 1925 – 1931, he was elected to the Bromley Town Council in 1937 where he served for 10 years. During this period he also became a committee member of the Hayes Village Association, secretary of the Hayes Village Hall Management Committee and President of the Hayes Horticultural Society, Allotment Association and after the Second World War the Victory Social Club. He was also a Hayes Common Conservator and a Trustee of the Poor’s Land Charity. Stanley LilleymanStanley Lilleyman and his family lived at Redgate Cottage by 1957 and the swimming pool at the bottom of the garden was used by the pupils of Baston School in the 1950s and became known as Lilleyman’s Pool. The house Deep End was later built on the site of the swimming pool ExtensionsLater owners made changes both to the building internally and added extensions. A flat roof single storey extension was added to the rear and a lean-too pitched roof built to the side which extended to the rear as a mono pitch. Rear of Redgate Cottage 1980 (A Stanley) Front of Redgate Cottage Today the house retains a simple appearance at the front but there is now a wooden front door. The rear is highly varied but retains some of the original oak framed building at first floor level. All the external walls of the building have been painted white, except for the black oak timbers.
FINDLAY, Alexander
FINDLAY, Alexander7 December 1788 – 7 January 1870Geographer and Engraver of maps and chartsFounder Member Royal Geographical SocietyBuilt The White House, Hayes about 1830 Alexander was born in Bermondsey, the eldest child of Archibald and Mary Findlay. From an early age he was involved in the production of maps and charts and did much of his work for the map publisher Richard Holmes Laurie, whose business he helped to expand He married Sarah in 1810 and had four children, Alexander, Archibald, Sarah and William. His office was in London but he moved with his family to the countryside, initially to Keston. His son Archibald died in 1828 and was buried in Keston Parish Churchyard. Shortly afterwards the family moved from Keston to a house, later known as the White House, on Hayes Common. He also leased some land at the back of the house from George Norman. Map workIn 1829 he engraved R H Laurie’s survey of the Environs of London and a year later he became one of the founding members of the Royal Geographical Society. He remained a fellow of the society until his death in 1870.His works included a Chart of the Estuary of the Thames, maps of North America and Europe and a chart of the Mediterranean Sea. He continued to be involved in producing maps until 1865. His map of Hayes and its environs was included in Charles Kadwell’s History of Hayes, 1833. Churchwarden and Overseer of the PoorHe played an active role in the Hayes Vestry between 1835 and 1855. In 1840, as one of the two Overseers of the Poor with Joseph Langridge, he presented the accounts which the Vestry approved. In 1841 the other overseer was John Rose Brandon and from 1842 to 1844 Timothy Tilden. This included the challenging period when the local workhouse was replaced by the Union Workhouse set up in Farnborough after the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834 and there were difficult decisions to be made about the sale of the Parish Workhouse. He attended the Vestry as a Churchwarden from 1845 to 1855 and chaired some of the meetings in 1848,49 and 52. He was also present in 1859 and 1860 when the Vestry considered encroachments on the Common, the possible disposal of Parish properties which included his home and the rights of Commoners. DeathHis wife Sarah died in 1865 from congestion of the lungs at the age of 76. She was buried in Hayes Churchyard. Alexander seems to have been deeply affected by his loss. In 1870 he died from ‘Decay of Nature’ in the presence of his clergyman son William who assisted at his burial in the Churchyard on 13 January 1870. References:P Griffiths The Findlays of Leith & London and their Kettle descendants www.genealogycrank.co.uk with special thanks for the photograph of Alexander FindlayC Kadwell The History of Hayes in the County of Kent Bromley Historic Collections P180/28/12
Glebe View
Glebe View Glebe View8/8a Baston RoadEarly 19th century with extension 1894Post Office 1894 – 1940Locally listed No 8 Baston Road was originally a two storey detached house which was owned by Thomas Staple, a tailor and shopkeeper, and seems to exist by 1814. The house was let until 1830 when Ann Staples was recorded living there. On her death in 1840 ownership passed to her son Thomas who leased the property to William Alp, a retired victualler, until the 1860s. Arrival of Robert Pearce (tenant 1880 – 1940)By 1880 Robert Pearce had moved into the house with his wife Phoebe and two young children. Robert was born in one of the three cottages facing the Cricket Ground (later Ivy Cottage), where he helped his father Thomas who was a florist Death of Thomas StapleThe owner, Thomas Staple, died in 1885 and his properties were bought by Sir Everard Hambro of Hayes Place. A major rebuilding and refurbishment took place which is shown by comparing the detached house shown on the Tithe Map, No. 204, and the position in 1898 where it is called the Post Office. The house had now become semi-detached with the addition of Elleray, 6 Baston Road to the north. Robert Pearce continued to live at No 8, known as Glebe View, and had five children by 1891. 204 is Glebe View Overseers Map 1898 (Bromley Historic Collections) South ExtensionThree years later a single storey extension in brick with a slate roof was added to the south of the property. It became used as the Hayes Post Office and was completed by 11 March 1894 when Robert Pearce took over the postal services. The sorting office was in the rear of the extension. In 1910 it was recorded that he was paying 4/3d (21p) a week in rent and that his house was worth £300. It was described as brick built and slated, bricks built on edge, in good decorative and structural condition. It had a sitting room, kitchen scullery, larder, 2 bedrooms, a box room and an earth closet. Glebe View and the Post Office extension Post OfficeIn the 1911 Census Robert Pearce was described as a sub postmaster and he was helped by his two daughters Amy & Bessie. They sorted the incoming mail into the various rounds and post marked the outgoing mail. There was an old fashioned telephone on the wall, the mouthpiece being fixed, and the ear trumpet detachable which clipped to the wall when not in use. This was not only used for sending and receiving telegrams but gentlemen who were being kept late at business would ring to ask them to send a message home to their wives, to let them know. All part of the service in those days. Christiana Timms recalled that the telegraph boy was the only one who had a bicycle in those days and she remembered her father Charles Harrod, a postman, saying that he had to walk as far as Leaves Green, sometimes delivering letters to a farmer which could mean a trip across ploughed fields. The mail which arrived at Hayes Station from Beckenham was picked up by her grandfather in the early morning in the handcart which he used as a gardener on Hayes Place Estate. In the evening he took back the outward mail. Robert Pearce would deliver two or three rounds a day around the village, on foot. When he retired after 40 years service at the age of 81 in 1934 it was estimated that he had walked over 115,000 miles in the course of his duties. At that time he was said to be the oldest postman in England and it was remarked that he always had a smile on his face and a chuckle in his eyes. He had a rosy complexion, rounded face with a full white beard and moustache, and the local children thought he looked liked their image of Father Christmas. Robert Pearce Sale of 8 Baston RoadSir Everard Hambro’s properties were put up for sale after his death and in 1931 Glebe View was purchased by Mr Agg-Large. Amy Pearce had taken over the management of the Post Office from her father and her rent was 5/5d (22p) a week. A bay window was added to the main house and became a shop selling cakes, bread, sweets, chocolates, cigarettes and later ice cream. Robert Pearce died in April 1940 and in November the sub Post Office was transferred to 20 Hayes Street. Miss Pearce continued with the confectionery and general business until her death in 1944. Hayes Post Office and Cake Shop By the mid 1950s the Post Office extension had become a separate dwelling, No.8a, occupied by John Gregor and No.8 was lived in by Mrs Carter. The properties have remained separate dwellings since that time. No.8 remains basically unchanged, the brick walls are painted white with two dark stained solid windows at the front at first floor level. The windows have substantial timbered sections. No.8a had side extensions approved in 1983 and in 2003 but an attempt to replace it with a two storey new building in 2017 was refused planning permission. Together with the building at No. 6 these houses reflect their interesting Victorian heritage.
Ivy Cottage
Ivy Cottage Ivy CottageWarren Road, HayesLocally listedBuilt about 1891 Ivy Cottage is an attractive building situated on the north side of Warren Road. It is within the Hayes and Keston Commons Conservation Area and faces an open area of Hayes Common, used in the 19th century for cricket. Early CottagesIt stands on the site of three cottages built about 1851 for Miss Wilhelmina Traill of Hayes Place and known as Cricket Ground Cottages. The cottages were occupied by the families of Thomas Pearce, a florist, Alfred Smith, a policeman and William Carton an agricultural labourer. A total of 27 people lived there in 1871 including 14 children under ten years old. Miss Traill had leased the land from the Howard family and when the banker Everard Hambro moved to Hayes Place in the 1880s he bought the cottages, the surrounding land and the Star Brewery site for £8,500 with the existing tenancies. By 1890 all the existing families had left. Thomas Pearce in front of 1 Cricket Ground Cottage Conversion to one house Everard Hambro decided to redesign the cottages into one superior house as a home for his sisters-in-law Clara and Octavia Stuart. The changes included raising and remodelling the roof, adding a central staircase and the construction of a lobby that became the main entrance. The architect is unclear. It may be Ernest Newton whom he used to make alterations to the George Inn in 1904 but there is no evidence in his records. It was probably the firm of Williams, West and Slade whom he often used after his architect George Devey’s death in 1886. In 1910 the house consisted of a sitting room, dining room, kitchen, scullery and lobby and was described as: detached, substantially built of red brick stock and tile. Of good design. First floor; four bedrooms, one dressing room, bath and WC. Fitted with gas, hot water. Two greenhouses are in the garden with a smaller boiler. A very saleable property. Ivy Cottage 1955 (H King) Ivy Cottage was one of the properties that Everard Hambro later gave to his son Harold. The Stuart SistersClara Stuart was remembered by Elinor Harrold as ‘a tall angular lady with a very loud voice, she rode a large bicycle with an outsize basket on the handlebars, the basket was always overflowing with various articles. She was a pillar of the church and ran the Sunday School and most of the other organisations of the church.‘She died in 1918 but her younger sister Octavia continued to live at Ivy Cottage with a resident cook and parlourmaid. Her sight failed and she became deaf but the obituary on her death, at the age of 80, in March 1940 referred to her courage and cheerfulness. She maintained a close interest in the affairs of the village, especially the Parish Church. Towards the end of her life she was helped by her niece Marjory Gray Buchanan. World War IIThe empty house was made available for use as a canteen for servicemen and women stationed in the area during the Second World War. Plans for the United Services canteen, as it became known, and for which Hayes Kent Village Association was largely responsible, were well under way by November 1940. Requests had been made for volunteers and essential equipment. It opened in December 1940 with dining, reading and writing rooms available for soldiers. Money for ‘little extras’ was raised through dances at the Village Hall. Fortunately, although it was affected by incendiary bombs in the raids on 25 March 1943 it incurred no major damage during the war. It closed in January 1945 and the Mayor and Mayoress of Bromley, Councillor and Mrs Arthur Collins, attended the farewell party held for the Ivy Cottage Canteen at the Village Hall. During the four years it had reportedly served 91,467 hot meals, 173,407 hot drinks, 75,400 cake and 81,925 cigarettes. After the warIvy Cottage reverted to a private house after the war. In 1953 planning permission was eventually given for the building of four architect designed bungalows and two houses on some of its land. The house was put on the market in 1955: For sale with vacant possession, 5 principal bedrooms, 3 reception rooms, room for double garage, entrance hall & cloakroom, bathroom & separate WC to be auctioned at the Royal Bell Hotel Bromley. Ivy Cottage in the snow in 1954 There have been a number of alterations to the property in the last fifty years including a side and rear extension. In 2010 planning was approved for a replacement double garage. It remains an interesting historic property. Ivy Cottage
Dreadnought Cottage (Stacey’s Cottage)
Dreadnought Cottage (Stacey’s Cottage) Dreadnought Cottage, (Stacey’s Cottage)Baston RoadEarly 19th centuryLocally listed Stacey’sDreadnought Cottage was originally part of Winch’s Cottage which in the mid 19th century became known as Stacey’s after George and Ann Stacey and their eight children, aged from 5 months to 13 years in the 1841 Census, moved into the southern end of the property to look after Anne’s mother, Elizabeth Winch. A lightweight partition was fixed between the two halves of the cottage. When Elizabeth died in 1850 she left George and Anne all the property in her will. Anne’s brother James disagreed, claimed he had a right to it and he occupied part of the cottage. The matter went to court and eventually through the arbitration of the rector, Revd Thomas Hussey, the boundaries were fixed between the two cottages in 1853. George, a vermin destroyer, and his wife Anne were allowed to remain in that part of the property in which they had lived with their family. James was allowed the part that had been occupied by his mother. When Elizabeth died Sir Charles Farnaby agreed that George and Anne Stacey could purchase their cottage for £11. Two of their sons, Richard & William, also became rat catchers.In 1867, after their mother Anne’s death, the other siblings who had an interest in the property agreed to convey the premises to the eldest son Richard, providing that their father George was allowed to live in the cottage and be fully supported by Richard until his father’s death, which occurred in 1870. The property was lived in by successive generations of the Stacey family until the Second World War. Stacey’s Cottage In 1910 it was described as a very old timber and tile bungalow, containing two bedrooms, kitchen, washroom and WC. Outside was a range of very old brick and tile buildings, sheds and WC washroom. On the opposite side of the road was a cowshed and two dilapidated sheds. Its value was put at £200. A Smuggler’s Hiding PlaceGeorge Smith, a builder, remembered Richard Stacey junior, with his ferret bags and pack of terriers at his heel – a fine specimen of a Kentish-man. He also recalled in 1924 that some years ago when they were making additions to the cottage they came upon a smuggler’s hiding place under the floor with iron hooks upon which to hang the booty of spirit or silk. Richard Stacey said that it was in the neighbouring cottage.Tea GardenAt the end of the First World War Richard Stacey decided to run a tea garden known as the Dreadnought Tea Gardens. It was very popular with local cycling and hiking groups. He continued to run this until his death in 1938. His widow Mercy died in 1942. Dreadnought Tea Gardens Second World WarWorld War II saw considerable activity over the Common and frequent incendiaries and bombs which left their mark on nearby areas. In a heavy bombardment on 16 April 1941 a number of high explosive bombs fell near Dreadnought Cottage. Eric Strouts, a stretcher bearer and fire watcher, who lived in Redgate Drive, was killed fighting the fires. After the WarAfter the war the family decided to rent out the cottage as a furnished property and they secured planning agreement for a garage, providing a large shed was taken down and all the ‘temporary’ buildings opposite were demolished.For many years it was rented by Leslie McCrow Redevelopment In 1985 it was bought by a builder Mr Brace and considerable ingenuity was used to make it a modern dwelling for his son, incorporating the footprint of the numerous outbuildings. Dreadnought Cottage before it was developed in the 1990s The original wooden cottage was maintained but reroofed When completed the property consisted of a lounge, dining room, kitchen/breakfast room, a conservatory, 3 bedrooms and an outside garage. The development was praised and reported fully in the magazine Finesse in 1999. There have been two more owners since that time. The redeveloped Dreadnought Cottage
Pleasant View (Winch’s Cottage)
Pleasant View (Winch’s Cottage) Pleasant View (Winch’s Cottage)Baston RoadBuilt 18th centuryLocally listed This brick built cottage is locally listed and is within the Hayes and Keston Commons Conservation Area. The original cottage was a squatters’ cottage built on Hayes Common by the middle of the 18th century. It was allowed to remain by the lords of Baston Manor, the Lennard family. By 1782 William Green, a labourer, lived there with his family and in 1800 he was joined by his daughter Elizabeth and son-in-law Richard Winch, a rat catcher. Originally the cottage was thatched and in 1802 William Green was granted 9 shillings (45p), out of the funds for the poor distributed by the rector Revd John Till, to pay for a quarter of a load of straw to help him thatch it. The help given by the Revd Till at various times may have encouraged Richard Winch to be confirmed at the age of 40, at the same time as his son William in 1806. The cottage was referred to as Winch’s Cottage. Richard died in 1827 and was survived by his widow Elizabeth who took over her husband’s rat catching activities. As she grew older her daughter Anne, who had married George Stacey, moved in to look after her and a thin partition was made separating their part of the cottage from Elizabeth’s. In 1841 there were 12 people living in the cottage including eight of George and Ann’s children aged from 5 months to 13. Elizabeth made her will in the same year and left the house and land to her daughter Anne for her life and then to Anne’s children once they had reached the age of twenty-one. She died in 1850 and her will was proved 26 September 1850. Controversy over ownership, Stacey v WinchHowever, Elizabeth’s eldest son James, an agricultural labourer, claimed that as the copyholder he had the right to the cottage and in the subsequent legal dispute he was awarded the part of the cottage in which his mother had lived. It was the rector, Revd Thomas John Hussey, who fixed the agreement about the division of the house which had been extended with numerous out buildings. Agreed division of the property in 1853 (Bromley Historic Collections P180/28/8) James Winch lived to the age of 75 but died in 1880 owing money to Sir John Farnaby Lennard who had helped him in his last few years. His daughter Emma said that she and her son would settle the debts and it was agreed that his niece Wilhelmina Langridge, a needlewoman, who had been living there as his housekeeper could remain. By 1891 she was joined by her older sister Elizabeth Ellis. After Wilhelmina’s death her sister Elizabeth remained, relying on charity until she died at the age of 86 in 1904. Ownership by the Knights family to 1989C. Puckey bought the cottage and in 1907 Charlotte Knights, whose husband had recently died, moved from Charlton into the property with her son and two daughters. At the time the cottage consisted of a bedroom, living room and a scullery and was described in 1910 as a very old bungalow built of brick and slate. Charlotte later bought the property. Harold,Ella and Grace Knights with their mother Charlotte and their father in 1901 (Photo W. Weaver) Pleasant View Tea GardensWith the help of her daughters she started to run a Tea Garden to cater for the increasing number of visitors to the Common. It was in competition with the one managed by Richard Stacey from the adjoining property. In 1935 her daughter Ella married Alfred Arnold, a school caretaker and moved to George Lane. Charlotte died two years later and her daughter Grace inherited the cottage and lived there until shortly before her death in 1988. Alfred Arnold at entrance to the Tea Garden Charlotte Knights with her daughters Grace & Ella. Tea Garden tables in the background (W Weaver) Sale of PropertyGrace’s niece inherited the cottage which was bought by a builder Kenneth Brace. He was granted planning permission in June 1988 for single storey extensions with accommodation in the roof. The property was therefore much enlarged and he lived there with his wife Peggy for over 30 years.
Ash Lodge
Ash Lodge (Bath House)54 Baston RoadGeorgian, locally listed Today Ash Lodge is within the Hayes and Keston Commons Conservation area and is locally listed. OwnersA property stood on this site on the northern edge of Hayes Common from at least the middle of the 17th century, but it later burnt down. It was rebuilt in brick and by 1731 the land was owned by William and John Oliver, members of a wealthy family. Later owners have suggested that this Georgian building may contain some timbers from a much earlier date.The Olivers sold the house and land in 1773 to Andrew Bath who had lived and farmed in the Pickhurst area since the 1750s. He was one of the largest ratepayers in Hayes and a Churchwarden from 1756 -1774, a role he gave up when he was 70. However, he could not yet move into the property as it was being leased by Edward Hall. Therefore, with the help of his son he continued to farm his Pickhurst lands until 1785 when, at the age of 81, he finally moved into the house which now became known as Bath’s House. His land included the area on which 87 to 133 Baston Road were later built. Land owned by the Bath family from 1841 Hayes Tithe Map (T Woodman) His daughter Mary lived with him and they had one resident servant. On her father’s death in 1794 Mary inherited the property. She continued to live in Hayes, did not marry and on her death in 1813 the property passed to her cousin James – the last of the Bath family to live in the house. His son John inherited in 1828 and the house continued to be owned by the Bath family until 1948. Its name had changed to Ash Lodge by 1901. Its rateable value in 1910 was assessed at £1387 and it was described as ‘a very old brick built and slate house detached. In very fair structural and decorative repair considering its age. First floor 5 bedrooms, bath, WC.’The ground floor plans shows two drawing rooms, a dining room, kitchen and scullery The Overseers Map 1898 shows the Victorian additions to the property (Bromley Historic Collection) Post Second World War ownershipWilliam St John Leonard bought the house and the land opposite in 1948. The following year the house, coach house and surrounding garden were bought by Hamilton Speller, the land on the east side of the road was sold separately. He lived there with his wife Eileen and daughter for 37 years. The exterior of the house was rendered and painted white as the brickwork, through age and war damage, was in need of considerable repair. In 1985 it was sold to Brian and Penny Walker and has since changed hands twice. OccupiersEdward & Esther Hall 1741-1775The first definite occupant was Edward Hall. He leased the house and paid the rates from 1741 until his death in 1774. His initials EH and the year 1754 are carved in the brick garden wall. He left instructions that after his wife Easter’s death the lease of his house was to be sold for at least £300 and their goods and furnishings shared between his cousins and their children. Apart from the linen, glass, china, books, pictures and carpets there were many silver items that bore her Seymour family crest, such as a large silver salver, pair of silver snuffers and tea canister. Easter died in 1778, two years after she had moved to the parish of St Dunstan in East London. Bath family owner/occupiers 1785 – 1828 Young family 1828 – 1848Samuel Young and his wife Mary took over the lease in 1828, He was at one time landlord of ‘The Mark’ at Keston and was previously a leather merchant in Leadenhall Street, London. When his beautiful daughter Mary died in 1831 at the age of 18 he arranged for her to be interred in the parish church because of great anxiety about ‘ ‘the resurrectionists’ of the time and the fear that should she be buried in the graveyard she might be dug up. Samuel died a year later but his widow continued to live there. Back family – 1867John Back, a merchant in cotton goods, Manchester had moved into Bath House by 1851 with his wife Anne, two young daughters and two servants. By 1861 his wife had died leaving him with 6 daughters and a son who were taught by a governess. He had one resident servant. Short tenanciesCharles Heginbotham, a wine merchant, took over the lease of Bath House and his son Charles was born in January 1869. He was delighted as he already had four daughters, aged from seven to two. After five years the next tenancy was that of Henry Wadham Dalwood and his wife Lucy Anne, whose son Stanley was baptized in August 1875.Captain Arthur Hill took the lease in 1879, the year he married Katherine, daughter of Dr Thomas Morris, who lived across the road at Baston Farm. Her brother Huson lived in the neighbouring house They had three sons before they moved in 1887.Harold Paine was briefly there to 1889 before wine merchant John Selby who left in 1898. It is probably at this time that the building was extended. The house was extended in Victorian times Hilton Skinner 1898 – 1924Hilton Skinner, his wife Emily and son Douglas moved to Ash Lodge in 1898 where their son Charles was born. Hilton, at the age of 39, was described as a ‘retired’ civil engineer in the 1901 Census and employed a nurse, cook and parlourmaid. He was very involved with the local Parish Church, became a churchwarden and compiled the Hayes Roll of Honour after the ending of the First World War in which his eldest son, Douglas Hilton, was killed. The family left Ash Lodge in 1924 but remained in Hayes and moved to Fernlea in Baston Road. Cyril Penman 1925- 1940Cyril Penman, a bank manager and his family lived in Ash Lodge
The White House
The White House (Simpson’s House, Hayes Cottage)Five Elms RoadLocally ListedAbout 1830 The White House is situated within the Hayes and Keston Commons Conservation Area. It was built on land given to the Parish of Hayes by Vicary Gibbs of Hayes Court in 1797 in exchange for enclosing two acres of common near his house. The rent was used to help poor parishioners. About 1810 there was a building which became known as Simpson’s House in 1821 when it was leased by Adam Simpson. Alexander Findlay & family 1830 – 1897In 1830 Alexander Findlay, a geographer and engraver, took over the lease and built a red brick house in which he lived until his death in 1870. It was the typical Georgian style with two rooms at the front and two at the back on both floors, on either side of a central doorway, and with a central staircase, downstairs corridor and landing. Various small extensions were added to the rear during his life time. It was known as Hayes Cottage. His daughter, Sarah Kettle, was widowed in 1862 and returned to her family home in Hayes. After her parents’ deaths the lease was taken over by her elder brother Alexander George. She continued to live there and agreed a new 21 years lease after her brother’s death in 1875. The rent was £40 a year providing not less than £300 was spent in enlarging, repairing and improving the house. Sarah Kettle with her daughter Mary in the back garden of The White House (P.Griffiths) Sarah died in April 1881. Her son Daniel, a geographical draughtsman and a nautical publisher, became the leaseholder and lived there with his brother William, a hydrographer. On William’s marriage in December 1897 and a proposed rent increase to £60 a year Daniel decided not to renew the lease. Hayes Cottage (The White House) 1889 (G W Smith) Extension It was around this time that the house was extended although it is unclear whether this was the cause of the rent rise or occurred after the arrival of the new tenants. The extension on the north of property was built in grey London brick with a slate roof over French windows. The front and portions of the side were stucco-rendered and it was probably then that the whole house was painted white to match the front of the house which had been painted white by 1864. It became called The White House William Birbeck Harris & family 1897 – 1938. William Birbeck Harris, an insurance broker, lived at the White House after his marriage to Kathleen Carey. They had four children, Edward, Norman, Audrey and Sophia. Their eldest son Edward died of diphtheria in 1899 and Norman had just celebrated his 16th birthday when he became the youngest person from Hayes to be killed in the First World War.In 1901 the Trustees of the Poor’s Land Trust, which oversaw the provision of help to the poor from the rent of the White House, approved an extension which was paid for by William Harris. In 1910 the house was described as a detached stucco and slate house in a poor structural and decorative repair. ‘Cesspool. No gas. First floor 4 bedrooms and a maid’s room, bathroom & dressing room combined. Stall and chaise house not used. Value £825’.In 1923 agreement was given for a temporary ‘motor house’.After their father’s death in 1924 Audrey and Sophie took over the lease until 1938.They formed the well know Motley Company which had a major influence on costume and stage design. The White House Second World WarCaptain Ronald Harmer RN took the lease but shortly after the outbreak of the Second World War he returned to active service. In December 1940 he was awarded a DSO for courage and resource in successfully attacking enemy submarines.The previous month The White House was damaged during aerial attacks on the Common.The builders, William Smith & Sons of Gravel Road, were asked to do ‘first-aid repairs’ to the roof & windows and provide an estimate for the proper repair of all the damage to the White House. By 1943 the occupants of the White House were Mr & Mrs Harry Chandler. Further repairs were needed at the end of the war but it was not until July 1951 that a payment for War Damage of £170.10.0 (£170.50) was received. The Chandler family continued to live at The White House until 1960. Tenants after 19601960- 1968 Mr & Mrs Patrick Barry1969 – 1975 Robert & Audrey Tims1976 – 1977 Michael & Margaret Griffiths1977 – 1987 Mr & Mrs James Harris James Harris, whose greengrocer’s shop was in Hayes Street, took over the lease of the White House in 1977 for £1250 a year. By the time the lease expired in 1987 the rent had increased to £1650. Sale of the White HouseThe Trustees of the Poor’s Land Charity decided to sell the property because a large sum of money was required to upgrade the nearby Simpson’s Cottages which were rented to poorer families in the community. In 1989 the property was bought by Richard and Pamela Taylor and their family still live there. A number of changes have been made to the building with permission granted for a replacement conservatory in 2006 and more recently an addition to the back of the house which has mirrored the existing windows and patio doors. East elevation of The White House 1989 Further information:Richard H Taylor, The History of the White House 1999
Brackendene
Brackendene (earlier names Simpson’s Cottage, Goodrest)Five Elms RoadEarly 19th centuryLocally listed Situated on Hayes Common, Brackendene was known as Simpson’s Cottage in the early 19th century. It was built on land given to the Parish by Vicary Gibbs of Hayes Court in exchange for enclosing two acres of common near his house in 1797. The land was leased and when Adam Simpson took over the land this building became known as Simpson’s Cottage in contrast with the neighbouring Simpson’s House (later The White House). Poor’s Land CharityIn 1861 the Poor’s Land Charity was approved by the Charity Commission.The income from the rents from Brackendene and the White House contributed to the cost of running the Charity School and also to provide fuel, clothing, food or financial assistance to any poor resident in the parish. It was also to support the provision and maintenance of four cottages for families in need. Simpson’s Cottage is the smaller red building on the 1841 Tithe Map Jacob and Jonathan Angas 1836 – 1879Adam Simpson continued to pay the rent until 1831. The property may then have been developed but was occupied by a Quaker family by 1836. Dorothy Angas paid the rates and Jonathan Wilkinson Angas, a miller, lived with her. In 1851 his older brother Jacob, also a miller, resided there with a house servant and he employed one man. Jacob’s will was proved in 1857 and Jonathan, with his unmarried sister Alice, remained at Simpson’s Cottage until his death in 1879. at the age of 90. A year later a 21 year lease was granted to Josiah Wilkinson at a rent of £30 and he agreed to spend £400 enlarging and repairing the house. After the improvements had been made he sub let the property in 1886 to Edward Friend, whose first daughter Mercy was born in 1889 and a second baby in 1891. At the time of the census there was a resident housemaid, parlourmaid, and two nurses. The extension to Simpson’s Cottage, the property on the left, is shown in the Overseers’ Map 1898. (Bromley Historic Collections 701/8) Goodrest and the Thompson sistersIn 1898 the property was let to Miss Anne Thompson of Point House, Bromley. The house name was changed to Goodrest and she lived there with her sister Mary until 1916. In 1900 she was very upset when the Poor’s Land Trustees proposed to increase the rent to £60 a year. She wrote ‘this house though very small – having only four bedrooms and a dressing room – is very expensive to keep in order as the old part of it needs constant repairs. It also has great drawbacks of having no bathroom, no pantry, no upstairs W.C. and a very small kitchen so uncomfortable that I am obliged to give my servants one of the sitting rooms to sit in. Also the passage upstairs is so narrow that no large boxes can be carried along it and they have to be unpacked downstairs which is most inconvenient.This house though too small for a family suits us being only two ladies and I should regret to leave it but if a high rent is demanded I could not afford to stay.’ Eventually a new lease was agreed in 1901 at £50 a year. They employed a cook and a house/parlour maid. By 1910 the property was valued at £700 and described as: Goodrest – Detached old red brick and slate house, was formerly a cottage and has been added to. Part is very old. No bathroom or WC upstairs. Cesspool drainage. In want of repair generally. Very pleasing situation. No gas. First floor 5 small bedrooms, 1 box room. Side of house has a timber structure, once a chaise house now used as a store. Anne Thompson died at the age of 79 in 1916. Her sister Mary decided that she would not want to stay there, ‘the situation is too cold for me now in winter’ and she asked permission to let the last six years of the lease stating the house is lacking in modern conveniences, having no bathroom, pantry or gas laid on. Change of name to BrackendeneDavid Chattel & Son negotiated a new lessee, William Pughe, describing the property as in a beautiful situation with extensive views, 3 sitting rooms, 5 bedrooms, a large entrance hall and a garden with a large lawn and fruit and vegetable garden. Rent £50 p.a. William Pughe assigned his lease to Captain J Mcleod Burghes in 1917. The property became known as Brackendene. After the war Captain Burghes had difficulty in paying his rent, an eviction order was obtained against him and he absconded the following day on 16 December 1921. A complicated legal case followed in which 77 year old Mary Thompson had to settle with the Poor’s Land Trustees all the outstanding arrears and costs. She was also held liable for the breach of the covenant on repairing Brackendene. Eric and Peggy Davies 1922 – 1974Eric Davies moved to Brackendene after his marriage to Peggy Frost of Glebe House in 1922. At the time a report on its kitchen indicated there was no hot water or gas, kitchen accommodation was poor, only a small combined kitchen and scullery, no larder or cupboards, none of the rooms were large. He agreed a lease for 21 years at £75 rent less an allowance of £10 for 17 years because of the improvements he made by enlarging the kitchen, making a new pantry and larder and creating a new bathroom with hot & cold services. A request to go on mains drainage was turned down by the Trustees as it would have to wait until they had sufficient funds. Eric Davies served as a captain in the First World War and was in the RAF in the Second World War. He was mentioned in despatches. Some bomb damage to the house was caused in November 1940 when windows were blown out, ceilings fell and slates came off the roof. The Bromley Town Clerk wrote to the Trustees asking them to repair the damage caused by enemy action. At
MORLEY Thomas William
MORLEY. Thomas William10 October 1883 – 3 March 1931Artist Thomas Morley, born at 34 Pope Road, Bromley, lived in Hayes at 9 St Mary Cottages (14 Baston Road) after his marriage in 1909 to Alice Arnold. He met her whilst studying at the School of Science and Art in Bromley. She was the daughter of a police constable who moved with his family into the cottage in 1886 and who died there in 1916. FamilyThomas and Alice had three daughters and a son. Joan was the eldest, Margaret was born in 1912, Thomas Jeffery in 1914 (he died in the Second World War) and Kathleen was born in 1916. Alice Morley née Arnold (photo W. Weaver) AchievementsThomas became well known as a landscape painter, working in both watercolours and oil. His most successful period was before the First World War. Three of his paintings were shown at the Royal Academy before he was 27 years old and subsequently another three were accepted. He also had exhibitions at the Institutes of Watercolours and Oil Painters. He found a great deal to inspire him in his immediate surroundings as is revealed by some of the titles of his paintings: – Sunset over Hayes Common, Hayes Common, Over the Common Hayes, Snowy Road Hayes Common. He also travelled widely through Kent and also to northern France and Belgium. On Hayes Common by Thomas W Morley First World WarAfter the declaration of war in 1914 he joined the army and served in Italy and France. While he was serving n Italy he was given special dispensation to travel & paint. He produced some fine paintings but faced struggles after the war. Exhibition 1922His works were still exhibited but he made fewer sales. At an exhibition in Beckenham in 1922 the reporter remarked that the bold moving sky in his ‘Coming of Spring, Hayes Common’ conveyed ‘ a wonderful sense of life and motion. One can almost breathe the fresh air in this picture.’DeathHe was only 47 years old when he died from a chill caught when sketching at Eynsford . He was buried in Hayes Churchyard. Reference: Guide to an Exhibition of Works by Thomas William Morley held at Bromley Central Library 5 – 30th June 1979 (Bromley Historic Collections L52)