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Shere, Gomshall and Peaslake Local History Society

Meeting Reports for 2006-2007

D-Day reminiscences by Ted Emmings
Ted explained that he volunteered for the RN when he began to fear that he might be drafted to the coal mines as a Bevin Boy. He signed on and had his medical at Guildford before initial training at Gosport. Ted had been promoted to Coxswain of the Lady of Man, a merchant ship which had been commandeered to carry landing craft to the assault beaches.
On 4 June the Lady of Man took on Canadian troops and anchored at their holding position off the Isle of Wight. At 7.00 pm they were told the operation had been postponed for 24 hours. Some ships were actually at sea and had to be recalled. The seas were rough and most of the troops were suffering from sea sickness.
Late in the evening of the 5th they were told the operation was on again and the troops were to be landed at 7.30 am on 6 June on Juno beach. They had a rough crossing and arrived off the coast at 6.00 am with landing craft, full of troops, swinging on derricks on either side. The RN bombardment was firing over them, with tremendous noise, at the beach defences.
When the firing stopped the derricks were lowered and the troops finally disembarked in about 3 feet of water under continuous fire from German defensive positions. The RN bombardment had destroyed only 40% of enemy positions. Ted's boat was holed and sank and he found himself on the beach. With obvious emotion he described seeing dead soldiers who had got no further than five or ten yards up the beach.
He was picked up by another LTA and made a further 4 trips ferrying troops. He spent the next four days working the beaches and spent his 20th Birthday there.
Ted's reminiscences were loudly applauded by around 60 appreciative members.

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Our first talk after the summer break was an entertaining rollercoaster of an evening rich in humour and interest as the author Ian Bevan took us through the history of the Crystal Palace - or two palaces as we shall see. Mr Bevan travelled back to the 1840s, a time of growing prosperity after the Napoleonic Wars. Henry Cole, a Shere resident, and other influential figures planned a Great Exhibition where the people could view their growing manufacturing industry and their empire status. Hyde Park in London was chosen as the site and designs were invited; 245 were submitted and all were rejected. This was the summer of 1850 and they planned to open the exhibition in the spring of 1851.
Enter Joseph Paxton, head gardener at Chatsworth, businessman and entrepreneur, whose rough design on a scrap of paper was accepted by the commission. Work began and the building opened on time and within budget. It was an awe-inspiring sight - one third of a mile long, more than 150ft high in the centre and constructed entirely of glass and cast iron. It was opened by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Six million people visited in the six months it was in Hyde Park; one old lady walked from Cornwall. It was hugely profitable and the money was used to build the Natural History and Science Museums and the Albert Hall: this fund is still going and can be called on for use today.
When the exhibition closed, the building was taken down and rebuilt on the top of Sydenham Hill in South London and reopened in 1854. Brunel designed the two huge water towers needed to service the spectacular fountains in its grounds, which rivalled those of Versailles. It was 'rebranded' as a palace of entertainment but also had many exhibits drawn from around the world. However the vast cost of moving and rebuilding and in particular the opening times (it could not open on a Sunday which was most people's only free day) meant that the venture was always in financial difficulties, despite continuous events, fesitvals, firework displays and being the venue for more than 40 different sports. The first Cup Final took place there in 1901. However, on November 30, 1936, two workmen discovered a small fire in a lavatory. Thinking they could deal with it, they did not call out the fire brigade straight away and the flames, fuelled by years of debris which had fallen between the floorboards raced through the building. The Crystal Palace burnt to the ground in two hours: the fire could be seen by ships in the Channel. In 82 years, the Crystal Palace had been visited by 98 million people.
Our next meeting is on Tuesday, October 10th, when Stephen Furniss, well known local antiques expert, will be holding an antiques roadshow. Do come along and bring some items for him to value.

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For their meeting on July 11th, we were enthralled by the story of ‘Gomshall Mill and the Harris Millers’. Nigel Harris told how he started delving into family history on retirement. He was born in Sutton, had no certain knowledge before his grandfather and had no known connection with Shere or Gomshall. Bit by bit his researches led him to David Harris of Gomshall Mill, who died in 1787 and was found to be Nigel’s 4 x great-grandfather.
Nigel has not been able to discover where David was born but it was not in Shere, David was married to Ann and they had eleven children between 1752 and 1775, all of whom survived into adulthood and were baptized at St James’ church, Shere. Such a survival rate is remarkable for that time.
David was a man of some substance, as his inventory mentions a bureau and a walnut table in his chamber as well as items relating to milling in other parts of the property. Nigel has brought his research forward to trace the families of David and Ann’s children and has constructed a family tree which contains 250 Harris descendents. The talk was illustrated with slides of the mill and of individual Harris family members. Nigel’s book was on sale at the meeting and copies are available at Gomshall Post Office Stores.
Ann Noyes

Before introducing the speaker for the evening our Chairman, Barbara Karlsson had the sad duty of announcing the deaths, during the last month, of Roy Cruxton and Ron Puddick.

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The Sanctuary, Burrows Lea
On the longest day of the year, 28 members of the society gathered at The Sanctuary, Burrows Lea for a social evening tour. Welcomed by Siobhan Omahony we were ushered into The Sanctuary itself, by Vincent Hill, whose father had worked for Harry Edwards himself. There Vincent, who is also a healer, explained the early life of Harry Edwards and how he came to set up the Healing Sanctuary in 1946 in the Victorian country house set in 30 acres of grounds. People visit for spiritual healing, prayer, meditation or just to unwind.
We were shown the reception area, healing rooms and then toured the garden. The sweeping views to the south from the cherry walk were particularly lovely. We all enjoyed drinks in the drawing room as we admired paintings, tapestries and furniture collected over the years by Harry Edwards.
Neville Ward thanked our host, who he had known as a child, for a most interesting and enjoyable visit.

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On 20 May 28 members set off smartly at 8.15am to Whitechapel Bell Foundry. We enjoyed the tourist route over Lambeth Bridge, passing the Houses of Parliament, Whitehall, Trafalgar Square with Nelson's Column shrouded in impressive scaffolding, and through the City to Whitechapel. A reminder of what a beautiful city we have. We arrived with 2 minutes to spare for our appointed tour time of 10am.
Alan Hughes, the third-generation owner, gave us a brief history of the foundry whose records date from 1520.This is where two of St. James' bells were cast as was the American "Liberty Bell" in 1752 and the bells for Big Ben, the cope for Big Ben sits astride the ancient front door as you enter.
Past projects include 21 bells in 3 towers for Canterbury Cathedral (1981) and more recently a "sister" peal was cast for a Cathedral in Sydney, Australia. We saw how the core and cope (inner and outer moulds) are made using sand, manure and hair in the mixture! Each mould is carefully smoothed to the precise shape required, polished and then the required inscriptions are impressed, in reverse. They are then carefully dried in an oven. Bell metal is an alloy of 77% copper to 23% tin. After clamping the moulds together, the bell metal is poured from the massive furnace to a 'ladle' where from an overhead crane it is poured into the waiting mould.
We saw bells in all stages of production, but of course not during production. The carpenter's shop, the hand bell workshop, the leather work and of course the incredible, sophisticated art of tuning were all explained.
Tuning is achieved by means of a vertical boring mill, under which the inverted bell is revolved - the various notes being tuned by removing metal from specific parts of the inside of the bell. It is customary to tune 5 tones. The "strike note", the "hum note" (an octave below), and the "nominal" (an octave above); also a minor third, and a fifth, above the strike note.
Huge steel girders, racks of metal, heavy chains, giant hammers, narrow stairways, centuries of soot and dust all around. A wonderful place. I think I can safely say that we were all amazed and dumbfounded by the sheer scale and skill shown in the manufacture of such magnificent objects weighing up to 13 1/2 tons in such a tiny building using methods little changed in 500 years.
We moved on to Greenwich and after lunch, dodging showers, enjoyed a guided tour around this World Heritage Site which included the Old Royal Naval College, the Painted Hall, the Queen's House and the Royal Observatory. A welcome slab of cake and cup of tea at the Tea House nearby rounded off a great day at two contrasting historic venues.

 

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Dr. Peter Brandon's subject and that of his new book was “The North Downs” and his enthusiasm and tremendous knowledge gave us a fascinating talk.
Dr. Brandon was born in the region of the South Downs and discovered the North Downs when he arrived as a teenager on a cycling trip in August 1944. At that time the hills were full of Canadian soldiers, tanks and trucks awaiting their turn to be shipped to Normandy. He vowed to return in peacetime and in 1948 went to Juniper Hall in Mickleham where he studied geography with such brilliant tutors that it promoted a lifelong interest.
Dr. Brandon told us that our particular area of the North Downs is known as the Vale of Holmesdale; approximately one mile wide it roughly follows the route of the A25, going right through to Dover, and is the birthplace of Surrey and Kent, containing the ancient settlements of Guildford, Godalming and Westerham. It is very fertile land with ancient springs, venerated before Christianity, and is the cradle and very origin of the two counties.
Dr. Brandon considers the Vale of Holmesdale to be southern England’s most important and beautiful region. Although the Victorians thought the North Downs “rather leafy” and preferred their chalky southern counterparts, over the last 100 years, the North Downs, with their great diversity and richness of plant and wildlife due to their south facing sunny escarpments, have become much more appreciated. Indeed, they have provided inspiration to countless writers and artists, including John Evelyn and Matthew Arnold, and recreation, sport, rest and beauty to generations of Londoners (and still do).
Alex Dodd

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AGM & TALK – THE RESTORATION OF PAINSHILL PARK We were delighted to welcome 45 members to the AGM on March 14. Subscriptions were paid and bookings for the outing to Whitechapel Foundry & Greenwich sold out on the night.
Elizabeth Rich has decided to stand down from the committee after 20 years & she was warmly thanked and given a patio pot of spring flowers. Volunteers were sought to replace her, and to everyone’s amazement and delight a hand went up! So without wasting a second, Jeff Nellist was welcomed to the clan. Thank you Jeff.
Barry Davis then gave us a fascinating talk on the restoration work undertaken at Painshill Park, Cobham. Painshill is a Grade 1 historic landscape of the 18th century created originally by Hon.Charles Hamilton, a young nobleman who returned from his Grand Tour inspired by art and architecture. Between 1738 and 1773 he set to work creating the garden over 200 acres beside the River Mole.
After 1945 and the misuse by the Canadian Army, Elmbridge Borough Council bought up 160 acres of the original land and an independent Trust was formed in 1981. With the aid of the huge, new, descending screen installed in the village hall, we saw scenes of dereliction and restoration of the Gothic Temple, the Chinese Bridge, a ruined abbey, a magical grotto, a massive water wheel and a spectacular Turkish tent. All these views appear and disappear as the visitor walks around the 14-acre lake. The work continues as funds allow.
There is a new visitor centre and tea rooms, guides and regular events throughout the year. On April 2 – American Roots Spring Glory, then Return of Baryonyx Dinosaur, Meet King George’s Army and Soup Wednesdays! Something for all the family and well worth a visit.
Our next talk on April 14 is from the unique Dr. Peter Brandon talking on his latest book – ‘The North Downs’. New members will be very welcome – just turn up at any meeting or call me for further details. The best £3 you will spend!
Barbara Karlsson

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