The Gurney Family

The Colman family were quakers and so were the Gurney family.  Gurney Bank was founded in 1770 and then merged into Barclays Bank in 1896.  I didn’t realise that their ancestry can be traced back to Hugh de Gournay who accompanied William the Conqueror to England.  The original bank was located in Pitt Street and then moved to Bank Plain by late 18th century.  Elizabeth Fry (the prison reformer) was the daughter of John Gurney.  Their houses included Earlham Hall (rented from the Bacon family), Keswick Hall near Norwich, as well as Heggatt Hall and North Runcton.  To find out more information please select the following link:

https://keswickhallcollege.co.uk/gallery/guerny%20family,%20former%20owners%20of%20kh.pdf

Hales Hall

You are probably aware that I do a lot of walking with the Ramblers and our walk last week took us past Hales Hall, which is out on the Lowestoft Road, near Loddon.  I have been to a wedding there but I didn’t realise it’s heritage.  Anyway take some time to read about this wonderful building that was built for the Hobart family who also built Blickling Hall and take some time to view the wonderful Tudor barn.  Please select the following link:

https://haleshall.com/hales-hall-great-barn-history/

The narrative refers to a Queens Post Truss and if you are like me, you didn’t know what this was, then please select the following link:  

https://gharpedia.com/blog/queen-post-truss-all-you-need-to-know/

Also, take some time to look at the wonderful pictures of the hall by selecting the following link and selecting the arrow:

https://haleshall.com/main-home/hales-hall-gallery/

A History Of Royal Jubilees

It seems appropriate to have an article on our Queen this week.  Whether you are a royalist or not, I am sure you appreciate that the Queen is respected throughout the world and provides inspiration to a lot of people.  This article provides a background to jubilee celebrations and accounts of previous jubilees.  To find out more information please select the following link:  

https://www.hrp.org.uk/tower-of-london/history-and-stories/a-history-of-royal-jubilees/#gs.29hfmi

The Fakenham Work In of 1972

I read about this story in a recent Breaking The News session run by the Heritage Centre.  Here is another article on it.  The story is a wonderful tale of a group of women fighting to retain their jobs when the economic tide was turning against them.  What action did they take and were they successful?  To find out the answers to this question and more information please select the following link:  

http://35.153.92.140/2022/04/fakenham-women-norfolk-sexton-and-everard-shoes-occupation-work-in-1972 

Thomas Bilney

I do like the films from the Little Bit of History series and here is another one about Thomas Bilney.  Thomas was a Norfolk man born in 1495 and became outspoken about the current religious practices of the day which was a very brave and dangerous thing to do.  Why did he feel the need to take such measures?  What practices was he adverse to?  What do you think happened to him?  This story is an excellent insight into the passion these clergymen had, irrespective of the dangers.  To find out the answers to these questions and more information please select the following link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9z_5Jjn_Ng&t=6s

For those that prefer a written article on Thomas or would like to supplement the above film, please select the following link to find out more:

https://www.christian.org.uk/features/thomas-bilney-the-forgotten-hero-of-the-english-reformation/

Norwich Mercury

Here is another related article that provides more background to the manufacture of white paper in Norfolk and in particular, Taverham.  What was the Licensing Act?  Where and how was white paper produced in Taverham?  When was the Norwich Mercury founded?  What was Richard MacKenzie Bacon famous for?   Please select the following link to find out more:

https://joemasonspage.wordpress.com/2012/01/07/the-norwich-mercury/ 

Norwich Post

To supplement the Breaking the News sessions, I thought it would be worthwhile to have a couple of articles on newspapers, starting with the Norwich Post.  When was it founded, by whom and why did this newspaper achieve national fame?  To find out the answers to these questions and more information please select the following link:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norwich_Post

Lives And Attitudes Towards Tudor Women

For those that prefer a written article, here is an article I sent out nearly two years ago.  It is an article written by Colin’s friend Dave Tonge about attitudes towards women in Tudor times.  Did women have a voice in Tudor times?  Or were they regularly silenced by the men folk?  The relationship between men and women was far more complex than ducking stools or scold’s bridals would have you believe.  Please select the following link to find out more:

https://www.thehistorypress.co.uk/articles/attitudes-towards-women-in-the-tudor-period/

The 1920s In Norfolk

Here is a film about the 1920s in Norfolk as depicted by the 1921 census.  The country was recovering from the First World War and the Spanish Flu pandemic and the census was compiled during a period of social unrest leading up to the General Strike of 1926.  It’s an excellent insight into the period and in particular, women’s emancipation.  Why were there so many British Army deployments overseas?  And what neighbouring country were a number of these based?  What type of jobs were women doing for the first time?  What did Dorothy Jewson become for the first time?  And what did Ethel Colman become?  There were many significant medical advancements during this period but what were they?  To find out the answers to these questions and more information please select the following link and press play, you may also wish to give the film a thumbs up:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdwEMb6yHlo&t=394s

Humphrey Repton

I didn’t realise that Humphrey was born in Bury St Edmunds and is buried in Aylsham Parish Church.  Of course he is famous for his landscape gardening but this wasn’t his first profession, he was educated at Norwich Grammar School but what was his first job?  Who was the Felbrigg owner who lent him his botany books?  Why did he move his young family to Romford?  Which famous author described him as a “Money Minded Cunning Rogue”?  What was his red book?  And what estates did he design in Norfolk?  Please select the following link to find out more:

https://norfolktalesmyths.com/2019/02/28/repton-the-landscape-designer/

Here is a short film about Repton’s red books and his use of overlays to sell his ideas to clients.  This film brings his designs to life.  Please select the following link and press play.  You may need to move the red bar back to the start and you can always give the film a thumbs up if you enjoyed it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJ5KnfIagK0

For those that are interested, here is some supplemental reading on Humphrey Repton, this article provides more information on the gardens he designed outside of Norfolk and the competition he had with a fellow colleague to design the Brighton Pavilion.  Please select the following link to find out more:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humphry_Repton

Billy Bluelight

Here is a short film about Billy Bluelight from the Little Bit of History series.  So who was he and why was he so well known to those that travelled up the River Yare from Yarmouth to Norwich in the early 20th century?  What rhyme did he sing?  What was his upbringing and why did he race the pleasure boats on the River Yare?  Why was he called Billy Bluelight?  How old was he - when he was 45 years old in 1907 and still 45 years old in the 1930s!  This story is an interesting insight into earlier 20th century Britain when there was no welfare state.  Please select the following link  and press play, you may need to move the red bar back to the start, and you can always give it a thumbs up:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nUdDXLeteM&t=3s

For those that prefer a written article, here is an article from the highly recommended Norfolk Tales, Myths and More! website.  Please select the following link:

https://norfolktalesmyths.com/2018/03/06/norwichs-billy-bluelight/

Gressenhall Farm and Workhouse

Colin took myself and the Pitt Stop Heritage Group to the Gressenhall Museum on Monday and a very interesting trip it was!  Obviously workhouses were not pleasant places to be and the last resort for many people, we’ve all seen the scenes in Oliver Twist, but what surprised me was that they did provide a number of benefits to the inhabitants which I wasn’t aware of.  To access a very short whistle-stop overview of a workhouse, please select the following link and then press play on the film titled Voices From the Workhouse, you may need to move the red bar back to the start:

https://www.museums.norfolk.gov.uk/gressenhall-farm-and-workhouse/voices-from-the-workhouse

Here is a link that informs you of the history of the Gressenhall Workhouse which originally started as a House of Industry in 1777 which was another name for a workhouse.  You will note that such benefits as education for the children and the infirmary weren’t introduced until the late 19th century.  Why did it become known as Beech House or Beech Hill?  And what role did it play in the First World War?  To find out the answers to these questions and more information please select the following link:  

https://www.museums.norfolk.gov.uk/gressenhall-farm-and-workhouse/voices-from-the-workhouse/family-and-workhouse-history/the-history-of-gressenhall/workhouse-timeline

Here is an article for those that would like more information on the Victorian Workhouse:  

https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/Victorian-Workhouse/

James Minns - Behind Every Good Architect is a Good Carver!

I have mentioned James Minns on both of my heritage walks so far, and here is an article on the famous Gunton's carver.  From their association beginning at the design of Cromer Town Hall in 1890, George Skipper and James Minns became famously linked.  Minns’s carvings adorned a number of buildings designed by Skipper including; the former Daily Standard Office in St Giles Street; Surrey House - The Norwich Union Building on Surrey Street; and Commercial Chambers in Red Lion Street.  As an employee of Gunton’s brickyard in Old Costessey James produced numerous exhibition pieces of which a number are displayed in the Castle Museum and the Colman family private collection.   He also worked with Thomas Jeckyll on a royal project at Sandringham and produced an iconic design for a famous local mustard company.  To find out more please select the following link:  

https://colonelunthanksnorwich.com/2020/03/15/james-minns-carver/