James Conway Walter

“ In some cases a country parish had its own workhouse. For instance, old parish books of Thimbleby, [3] show that in 1819 £20 was spent upon the village workhouse, which was insured for £200.
Among some old churchwardens' records, in the possession of Mr. John Overton, of Horncastle (members of whose family have frequently held that office) , it is mentioned that early in the 18th century a "public oven" was erected in the town to enable the poor to cook their meals, or to bake the "black bread," then in common use, [4] more conveniently than they could at home. ”

“ Soon after the erection of the Corn Exchange, in 1856, the Mechanics' Institute was transferred to that building; two upper rooms being occupied, as library and reading room; the former premises in Queen Street being sold to the late Mr. Joseph Parish, who used them for sales, public meetings, dances, and so forth, until in 1866 he erected on the site a private residence for himself. ”

“ In the early years of the 19th century, when there was a general feeling abroad that one great project, nurtured in the ambitious mind of the first Napoleon, was an invasion of England, volunteers were organized throughout the country, with a view to self-defence. As an instance of this, in the town of Pontefract a corps was formed, of which the Earl of Mexborough was Colonel Commandant, and George Pyemont, Esq., of Tanshelf House, Pontefract (grandfather of the present writer) , was Major; [16] the records of which are preserved, among other public documents, in Pontefract Castle. ”

“ At a later date (1780) a spinning school was established by public rate, to help the poor to earn a livelihood by a home industry. [6]
An important advance was made in poor relief, in 1735, when, as the same records state, "on April 17 a committee was appointed, [7] in Horncastle, to build a workhouse," and on May 7th in the following year a brief note gives the cost of the building as being £175 13s. 4d. This was situated on the east side of St. Mary's Square, separated by a few yards from the Grammar School, the site being now (1908) occupied by a common lodging house. ”

“ It was provided by the agreement that the inmates of the houses should be selected from persons who were fit and deserving subjects of the charity, indigent, but of good character, not recipients of parish relief, and not under 45 years of age; and that any, becoming guilty of immorality, should forfeit their privileges. The power of selection of inmates was vested in the trustees, assisted by the vicar and churchwardens of the parish ”

“ The Corn Exchange is a spacious and lofty building of brick, with stone facings, capable of holding 500 persons, situated on the south side of the High Street, and standing on what was formerly the eastern wall of the old Roman castle ”

“ All these premises proving inadequate for their purpose, the present Court House was built in 1865, on the site of the former parish stocks, the site, a slight rising ground, being called "Stocks' Hill," at a cost of £3,000. The architect was Mr. C. Reeves, of London, the builder Mr. Huddleston, of Lincoln. The furniture was supplied by Messrs. Pike & Wright, of Horncastle; gas fittings by Mr. Murrell, of Chelsea.
In this handsome building, of white brick, there is accommodation for many branches of public, local and county business. ”

“ The Muster Roll, which is still preserved, of the corps then formed, and designated the "G Company of the 1st Battalion of the Lincolnshire Regiment of Volunteers," has at its head the name of Henry Francis Conington, as Captain, March 9th, 1860, with Richard W. Clitherow and Robert Jalland, as officers under him, at the same date; then follows a long list of non-comissioned officers and privates, numbering, in the course of a few years, more than
The Stanch. ”

“ The books were transferred to various quarters; at first to the house of the late Mr. John Osborne, parish clerk, himself no mean scholar and student, afterwards to the residence of the head master of the Grammar School, where they remained for some years, under successive masters, still available for members of the club.
On June 8th, 1892, Canon Quarrington, Vicar of Horncastle, Revs. J. C. Hudson, Vicar of Thornton, and J. Conway Walter, Rector of Langton, were appointed a sub-committee, with instructions to find a permanent club room, or to give the books to the Lincoln Diocesan Library. ”

“ As a possession the Court House is the property of the Board of Works, in London, the county authorities paying to them a rent of £10, for the use of it by the magistrates.
THE STANHOPE MEMORIAL.
This handsome structure was erected under the following circumstances. The Right Honble. Edward Stanhope, who had represented the Horncastle Division in Parliament, with much distinction, from the year 1874, died rather suddenly, as the result of hard work, in his official capacity, on Dec. 22, 1893, to the great grief of the entire constituency ”

“ This was followed by a public luncheon in the Corn Exchange.
The site chosen was the centre of the Market Place, as that, along with the market dues, had been made over to the town as a free gift, by the Right Honble. gentleman, as Lord of the Manor. The following is the official description of the monument, as published at the time of its erection. The structure is 31-ft. 6-in. in height. It stands on a massive foundation of concrete; with three tiers of Yorkshire stone steps, each 15-in. wide, running round the base leading up to the monument proper, their shape being octagonal. ”

“ An old MS., kept by Sarah Cleveland, shows how not only the poor but ladies of all ranks, like the Homeric Penelope and her maidens, practised spinning; the younger with a view to providing a marriage portion for themselves ”

“ Thomas Armstrong, Timothy Collinson, and Robert Edwin Kemp to be the first trustees of the company.
The books may be inspected by any shareholder, between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., in the presence of the secretary, or other person nominated in accordance with Act 7 and 8 Victoria, c. 110. By clause 89 it was provided that, in case of the company being wound up, the chairman should declare the company to be dissolved with all convenient speed; all property to be sold, and converted into ready money, to meet all claims; a final distribution of assets to be made ”

“ Published by desire of the corps. Printed by James Weir, Horncastle, 1804." In this address he expresses his great regret that so many volunteers are resigning "after putting the country to the expense of supplying them with clothing and arms, having also pledged themselves to the country's defence, and received in return exemption from militia service," this too at a time when (as he says) "we are in danger of being reduced to a French province." "No resignations (he continues) have taken place in London, in Boston, or in Spilsby." ”

“ Any director to forfeit office on ceasing to hold five shares; anyone intending to apply for directorate, to give at least 10 days' notice. Directors to meet at least once every three months; any two directors may require the secretary to convene a meeting, at any time, for any desirable special object. ”

“ Shares to be sold (by clause 68) for the benefit of the company, by a vote of a majority at a general meeting. No sum beyond £400, at any one time, to be negotiated by promissory note or bill of exchange.
That a report be presented, and dividend declared, at an annual meeting, on March 25th, with seven days notice to each shareholder. A common seal
Watermill Road during the Flood, Dec., 31, 1900. ”

“ Mr. W. K. Morton opened a subscription library, and Messrs. W. H. Smith opened a book stall at the station. These three still continue; the original Clerical Club books being still available, with others, at the library in the Chapter House of Lincoln Cathedral.
There was at one time a Literary Society in Horncastle, which used to meet at the Bull Hotel, in a small room, now the bar, beneath the large ball room, on a level with the street. Among the most active members of this was John Brown, the late, so-called, Horncastle "Poet Laureate," whose poems were published in 1890, by the Rev. ”

“ Henry Selwood, who lived in the house on the west side of the Market Place, now occupied by Mr. R. W. Clitherow, which would be opposite Whelpton's shop. Sir John was Governor of Tasmania 1866-1842. ↑ William Thomas Whelpton took as a residence 69, Gloucester Crescent, Regent's Park. London; and Henry Robert Whelpton resided in Upton Park, Slough. ↑ While at Derby he revisited Horncnstle, driving over in a hired carriage, with pair of horses, and it is said that a local wag, seeing his carriage in the Bull Hotel yard, wrote upon it with chalk ”

“ Oldfield, had herself a hand loom; and in the parish of Minting weaving is known to have been carried on extensively, an informant telling the present writer that his grandmother had a hand loom, see Records of Woodhall Spa, &c., under Minting, by the author. In Horncastle a weaver, named Keeling, formerly occupied the premises now the book-seller's shop of Mr. Hugh Wilson; another lived in the house, 3, North Street, now occupied by Mr. G. Walkley. ↑ The members of this committee are given as Rev. Jas. ”

“ The weekly allowance to the inmates was to be 3s. 6d.
The agreement to this effect was signed, sealed, and delivered, by the said George Whelpton, in the presence of Richard Clitherow, Solicitor, and Charles Dee, Solicitor, both of Horncastle. It was further signed by George Whelpton and William Thompson Whelpton, in the presence of Robert Cunliffe, Solicitor, of 43, Chancery Lane, London; and by Henry Robert Whelpton, in the presence of John Adams Cree, Clerk in Holy Orders, of Upton Park, Slough, Bucks. ”

“ Consols, for the following purposes": (1) for the repair of the almshouses; (2) to pay each occupant 3s. 6d. per week; (3) in case of there being any surplus, to pay them so much more as the trustees should think fit. A clause was added, empowering the Charity Commissioners, from time to time, to order any part of the income to be applied to special purposes, as they might think desirable.
We may add that while residing at Hastings, Mr. George Whelpton secured two acres of land, at Eastbourne, from the Duke of Devonshire, the owner of the whole town, as he is also of Buxton ”