Benjamin Flounders and the Crathorne Bleach Yard, 1743

This notice – really it's an advertisement – in a Newcastle newspaper of 1743, casts an interesting light on the scope of the operation run by Benjamin Flounders (1708-56), who had a Bleach Yard at Crathorne in the first half of the 18th century.

His surname appears in this advertisement as Flounder, but it is clearly a typo.  The notices continue in the Newcastle Courant until we find, on 3 April 1756, a few weeks after his death, that his widow Barbara is now carrying on the business in his place.  By 1765 the notices appear under the name of their son, John.

The family were Quakers. Benjamin and Barbara were the grandparents of the prominent Yarm businessman and pioneer of the Stockton & Darlington Railway, Benjamin Flounders (1768-1846).

We can see that Benjamin Flounders in 1743 has a network of collection points across County Durham and the North Riding.  I assume the handloom weavers, who worked from weaving sheds at home, would have their cloth bleached so as to be able to profit themselves from the higher price that it would then fetch. 

The square brackets indicate where I have added letters or given the modern spelling of names and places, to assist people searching online.  (You can see that Staithes was spelled phonetically)

Newcastle Courant, 26 March 1743

BENJAMIN FLOUNDER,

of CRATHORNE, near YARM, hereby gives Notice, 

THAT he continues the BLEACHING OF LINEN CLOTH this Year as usual, to great Perfection.  His Prices are, as formerly, Yard-wide high white at Twopence Halfpenny per Yard, and so in proportion for broader or narrower, and Superfine Cloth at Threepence, which will be taken in at the following Places, viz.  

By Geo. Flower, Grocer, in Sunderland; Barnard Sheal, at the Dun Cow, in the Market-place, Durham; Sam. Dalkin, Roper, in Sedgefield; Mary Ward, Weaver, in Whitby; Rich. Taylor, at Steaths [Staithes]; Rich. Outhard, Weaver, in Guisborough; Joseph Flounder, Butcher, in Northallerton; Anthony Lidster, Dyer, near Bedale; Simon Bickerdike, Dyer, at Laburn [Leyburn]; Robt Hodgshon [Hodgson]. in Darlington; William Bird, Taylor, in Bishop Auckland; Jonathan Wheatley, Dyer, at Staindrop; Wm Hall, Tanner, in Barnardcastle; John Gill, Weaver, in Sockfield; Thomas Allison, in Chester-le-street; and at his own Shops at Stockton, Stoxley [Stokesley] and Yarm.  All Persons may depend on having their Cloth kept strong, and with a good Colour.  Mr Gabriel Hughes, Merchant, at Yarm, with himself, will be accountable for all the Cloth that comes to the above Peoples Hands. 

N.B.  He has made a great many Conveniences in his Yard, so that his Friends may expect to have their Cloth as well done as at Durham, or elsewhere.

When Mr Mease of Hutton Rudby lost his arm, November 1860

We had always known that Joseph Mellanby Mease (1827-1928) lost an arm in an accident at the corn mill on Hutton bank, but I have at last found a newspaper article that carried an account of the accident at the time:-

York Herald. 1 December 1860

HUTTON RUDBY

A HERO

Mr Mease, of Hutton Rudby, was accidentally caught, a few days ago, by a part of the machinery of his mill, and his arm fearfully mangled and crushed.  He extricated himself and stopped the machinery.  Allowing no one to go home to tell his wife of the accident, he calmly concealed the arm, and walked home himself, afraid the shock to his partner would be as serious as the accident to himself.  He walked into the house in his usual calm manner, took down a book, and commenced reading it for a minute or two, and then gradually broke the matter to his wife.  By-and-bye surgical assistance was procured, and Mr Mease bore up with the greatest magnanimity, his wife aiding him with that fortitude and resignation he had sought.  The arm, we regret to say, had to be amputated.

Joseph Mellanby Mease was a well-educated and well-read man, born into a Stokesley family in 1827 and baptised there on 24 October 1827.  According to a report on his 100th birthday in the Hartlepool Northern Daily Mail, he went to school in Doncaster and would tell lively recollections of his stage coach rides to school.

He married Harriett Wilkinson on 29 March 1854 in the parish church of Whitfield in Derbyshire, where Harriett was living at Norfolk Street.  She was the daughter of Joseph Wilkinson, a cotton mill manager.

Joseph was then working as chief clerk at the Lake Chemical Works in Jarrow (they were owned by a member of his family), and it was in Jarrow that their only child, Jane Ellen (always known as Jenny) was born.

Joseph, Harriett and Jenny came to Hutton Rudby in 1858, for Joseph to work as manager of the corn mill that stood half way up Hutton Bank.  Then he lost his right arm in the accident at the mill.

Many adjustments must have been made.  Here, for example, is the left-handed moustache cup that he used:-

He seems to have retired temporarily - in the 1861 Census he describes himself as a farmer of 23 acres.  He and his wife and daughter were living at Mill House, later to be named Leven Valley, a house on the Rudby side of the River Leven.  Joseph and Harriett lived there for the rest of their long lives.

By 1871 he was the Registrar of births and deaths for Hutton Rudby and an Inspector of Nuisances, or Sanitary Inspector, for Stokesley Rural Council, retiring at last when in his eighties.

His wife Harriett ran a school, assisted by her daughter Jenny.  (Mrs Mease’s school is mentioned in the Hutton School log book in 1879.)

Joseph Mellanby Mease and his wife Harriett

In this photograph you can see Joseph and Harriett together in old age.

When the Northern Echo celebrated its jubilee in 1920, Joseph was one of the three or four people who could prove that they had taken the paper from its first number, and he was presented with a silver teapot.

Harriett died at the age of 92 in 1924.

In his last years Joseph became famous as the village's centenarian, as these notes from a clipping in Miss Winifred Blair's green album show:-

Newspaper clipping from 15 October 1927:  

Centenarian as Stone Layer – Hutton Rudby G.O.M. likes Bright Villages – New £3,500 Hall – 

Hutton Rudby’s grand old man, Mr J M Mease, who recently celebrated his hundredth birthday, on Saturday laid one of the foundation stones of the new village hall.

In view of his great age, however, it was not felt fit that he should be subjected to the excitement of a public ceremony, and he performed his part in the function with his usual cheerfulness a couple of hours before the larger gathering, with a silver mallet with which he was presented by the architects.

He said that he had always been in favour of brightening village life and was thankful that he had been spared to see the start of a village hall  

Joseph Mellanby Mease

He attributed his great age to an open-air life, plenty of sleep and always having been abstemious.  He never smoked until he was over 80, and after that had a cigarette after supper every night.

He died at the beginning of January 1928.  His daughter Jenny lived afterwards in Rose Cottage, Enterpen.

The Mease family

From the research notes I made a good few years ago (which can be found on this post):-

Joseph Mellanby Mease (1827-1928) was the son of Thomas Mease (1792-1862) and the great-grandson of Solomon Mease (1731-1801).  

Born in Great Ayton, Solomon married Jane Humphrey and had four children.  He was the son of a weaver and trained as a weaver himself.  Solomon inherited money and his wife brought him a good portion, but in the words of his son John, his “love for cards and drink was such that he was sold up in a few years”.  He joined the army and served as a sergeant in the American Wars.  

Solomon’s son John Mease (1767-1849) was a grocer in Stokesley.  He married Isabella Turnbull, and they had 5 children:  Thomas, Isabella, John, Rachel and Mary.  His very interesting diary contains many references to the religious problems of the day and to Methodism.

John Mease junior introduced handloom weaving of Table Cloths and Napkins in Stokesley in about 1820.  He had a small weaving shed behind his house (in recent times this was Barclays Bank)

1823 Baines' Directory:  "a mill, which Messrs Thomas & John Mease are now erecting, to be worked by the power of steam"

1832:  John Mease bought land and old buildings on Levenside, Stokesley, to build his new mill.  The brothers John & Thomas Mease and Mr Blackett, a Leeds engineer whose son married Thomas’s daughter, built the mill by July 1833.  A new steam engine was installed and a large gasometer for lighting:  gas was piped over to Red House, where Thomas lived.  But the partnership failed, by March1838 the affair was in Chancery, and the Stokesley mill closed. 

Thomas joined with John in the Hutton Rudby venture, where John had bought the former paper mill, and was preparing to install machinery to weave sailcloth.  Their business was seriously affected by a severe depression which began in 1837.  Whites' Directory 1840 states that the flax mill employed 250 hands.  Thomas Pilter, the son of Isabella Mease, ran the mill at this point; he later founded a firm himself and his son became Sir John Pilter of Halifax.  By 1851 the mill is said to have reverted to corn milling.  

Thomas Mease (1792-1862) was a gifted artist, inventive with his hands, a speculator and inventor, and often had to take his family abroad to avoid his creditors.  He lived variously in Stokesley and Hutton Rudby.  His wife, the mother of Joseph Mellanby Mease, was Mary Mellanby of Whitby.

Hutton Rudby celebrates the coronations of 1911 and 1937

Hutton Rudby celebrates George V's coronation

This photograph – provided to me by Malcolm McPhie from the Album entitled The Green on the Facebook page of the Hutton Rudby and District Local History Society – gives a brief glimpse of the village's celebrations in 1911 at the coronation of George V.  

A programme survives in Miss Winifred Blair's Scrapbook, from which I made notes in the days before scanning such things was easily done:-

"The Coronation of their Majesties King George V and Queen Mary"  on Thursday 22 June 1911 was to start at 8:30 am with presentation of Bibles and mugs to the children – church service – cricket – Maypole – sports.

These fascinating instructions showing how they managed to give a Public Tea to the entire village:-

Public Tea in the Council School, Wesleyan and Primitive Methodist Chapels.  

Those having RED Tickets take Tea at the Council School.

     "         "   WHITE     "         "       "    "    "   Prim. Methodist Chapel.    

     "         "   BLUE       "         "       "    "     "  Wesleyan Chapel.

Tickets can only be used by the person whose name is on it.  It will be impossible to obtain Tea without a Ticket. 

This was followed by a continuation of the sports – dancing on the Village Green – and finally the Bonfire at 10 pm

But the photograph and my notes from the programme don't convey the sheer scale and colour of the occasion – the "streamers, flags, and banners", the band, the sports, the marching round the village.  So I was very glad to find this, in the Darlington & Stockton Times:-

Darlington & Stockton Times, Ripon & Richmond Chronicle, 1 July 1911

HUTTON RUDBY

Right loyally did the inhabitants of Hutton Rudby celebrate the Coronation, and never was a happier day spent.  As early as 8.30 am the Hutton Brass Band gathered on the village green, conducted by their old bandmaster, Mr Henry Bainbridge, who freely gave his services on this most special occasion, and they played 'God Save the King' in a manner that did credit to the band, and which set the whole village a-going with a delightful determination to make the day one of the best.  

The band then played a march to the Council School, where Bibles were presented by Mr A. Park to all the school children of the parish, to the number of about 250.  They were also presented with a mug each, given by Mr J.T. Barthram.  Before the presentation Mr Park addressed the children in the schoolyard. 

On the conclusion of the presentations the children, under the control of Mr S. Eyre and his staff of teachers, formed a procession, headed by the band, and marched round the village, which was exceedingly pretty.  The streamers, flags, and banners flapped and danced in the morning breeze, which seemed to give life and gladness to everything.  The smiling faces of the happy children, with a Bible in their right hand and a mug in their left, walking in step to the music, was a sight that will not soon be forgotten.  

On they marched to the fine old Parish Church, which stands as a monument of the faith of our forefathers, and which has just been beautified by the fitting in of a reredos at the back of the altar table, with side wings down to the altar rail splendidly carved and panelled in solid wainscot oak, at a cost of something over £50.  This has been given to the church in memory of King George the Fifth's Coronation by Mr Allan Bowes Wilson, J.P., and Miss Annie Hutton Wilson, of Hutton Rudby.  The Coronation service was a most impressive and delightful one, the band taking part in the service by playing hymn 300 and the National Anthem.  The singing was taken up by the congregation with great enthusiasm.  The Vicar-in-Charge, the Rev F.W. Shepherd, gave an address on the great influence derived for good in having a Christian King.  

After the church service the band again headed the procession to the village, where the children dispersed, and the band lunched at the King's Head.  Later on they marched to the cricket field, playing selections while the cricket match was being played between Married and Single, the single winning.  At half-past twelve sports commenced, and lasted all day.  In fact they were not finished until Monday night.  At 2.30 pm the maypole dancers' march from the Council School, headed by the band, was a very pretty sight.  Great praise is due to Mrs Eyre for the trouble taken to get the dancers trained so splendidly, for the singing, dancing, and music was most enjoyable and pretty.  

A free tea was provided for all the parishioners, commencing at 4pm when 915 partook of an excellent repast provided by Misses Sedgwick, Hall, and Mello.  One of the most amusing parts of the programme was the fancy and comic costume parade, which was remarkably good and well got up.  The judges had great difficulty in deciding who was the most fancied and the most funny.  The rest of the night until dark was spent in sports and dancing until 10pm, when the bonfire was lit by Mr S. Snowdon.  

Result of sports:- 

Cricket match for men, Married v Single - 1st, Single
120 yards handicap footrace - J Honeyman; 2, T Bainbridge, 3, S Snowdon
Tug-of-war - G Nelson's team
Potato race - A Bainbridge, 2, D Fortune, 3 P Grearson [Grierson]
Clout the bellman - V Gordon
Sack race for men - J W Sidgwick and A Bainbridge
Point-to-point race - J Honeyman, 2 W Bainbridge, 3 L Hodgson
Pricking the donkey for men - G Featherstone
Do.do. for women - A Irwin
Race, women over 50 - Mitchinson, 2 Walker, 3 Smith
Fancy costume parade - 1 J Garbutt, jun, and M Sherwood, 2 B Foster and Miss Garbutt
Comic costume parade - T Liverseed, 2 D Fortune and R Hodgson, 3 G Husband and Miss Garbutt
Climbing greasy pole for leg of mutton - Gordon, 2 Dobson, 3 Coverdale
Band musical novelty race - T Sidgwick, 2 Lobley
Boys and girls under 14 - Cricket match, Up and Down Towners - Down Towners
Plaiting the maypole - £1 divided
Footrace for boys, under 7 - H Garbutt, G Hodgson
Do.do. for girls under 7 - D Smith
Needle and thread race - M Weighell
Skipping for girls under 14 - M Honeyman, 2 M Weighell
Do.do. for girls 7 to 10 - M Hodgson, 2 H Honeyman
Do.do. under 7 - J Coverdale, J Honeyman
Handicap footrace, 10 to 14 - J Mello, 2 G Stringer
Potato race - M Bainbridge, 2 V Dodsworth
Sack race - B Garbutt, 2 A Kay
Egg and spoon race - M Wood, 3 H Weatherell
Three-legged race for boys - A Wilson and C Chapman
Do.do. for girls - A Metcalfe and J Coverdale
Long jump - J Burton, 2 J Mello
High jump - N Williams, 2 J Dobson 

NOTES

I think the bandmaster must have been the builder Henry Bainbridge, who lived in Enterpen, on the site of the old Sawmill.

The Mr A. Park who presented the children with Bibles was Alexander Park.  

From The People behind the Plaques, an account of the memorials in All Saints', Hutton Rudby:-

The lectern was carved by Alexander Park, a gentleman farmer who retired to live at Leven House (across the river from the church) with his elderly spinster sisters in the late 19th century.  Mr Park was for years the honorary secretary of the Hurworth Hunt, and was said not to have made a single enemy during all his time in office.  On his last day out with the hounds he and his old black horse had a combined age of ninety-nine.  He and his sisters were very generous and active in village and church life: the choir stalls and altar rails were given to the church by the family.

Mr J T Barthram, who presented the mugs, was John Thomas Barthram, grocer & draper, who lived with his wife Mary, and children Martha, Thomas, Richard and James half way along North Side.

Samuel Eyre was the village schoolmaster.  He first appears in the Hutton Rudby census of 1881 as a young married man of 25.  He was born in Hope, Derbyshire and was twice married, firstly to Sarah and then to Hilda Marguerita.  Both women were schoolmistresses; Sarah was born in East Harlsey and Hilda in Hutton Rudby.  Hilda survived him.  In the early 20th century Samuel lived at West House.  This is the house next door to the Village Hall; it has been much extended over the years.  Under Mr Eyre, the garden in front of the house was put out to vegetables and boys were sometimes sent out of their lessons to do some weeding for him. (A History Walk round Hutton Rudby).  He died on 18 November 1914, aged 60.

The first verse of Hymn 300 of Hymns Ancient and Modern:-

All hail the power of JESUS' Name;
Let Angels prostrate fall;
Bring forth the royal diadem
And crown Him LORD of all.

Mr S. Snowdon was the 20 year old son of Dr Anthony Snowdon, who lived at Ravensthorpe on Doctors Lane.  For more on Dr Snowdon, his car and the story of the pet raven, see A History Walk round Hutton Rudby.

The name Mello appeared twice in the newspaper account as Mellor, but I have changed it to Mello on the assumption that it is a typo.  Mr Joshua Arnold Mello and his family lived, according to the 1911 Census, in the Bungalow on North End, next to the original Methodist Chapel, in the island of houses in the middle of North End Green.  Mr Mello is described as a Refreshment Caterer; the Bungalow was used as Refreshment Rooms and a dance hall before the building of the Village Hall.

There are many familiar village names in the list of winners, and I am sure their descendants will get in touch with Malcolm McPhie to explain who they are!

The Coronation in 1937

The Coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth on 12 May 1937 was celebrated in a similar style.

The programme in Miss Blair's Scrapbook shows that it was to start at 8:50 am with the children assembling at the school and marching to the Village Hall – presentation of mugs and souvenirs – cricket – service – sports – children’s tea at Village Hall, followed by tea for over 65's – fancy dress parade – sports – broadcast at the Village Hall – King’s speech broadcast from the Village Hall – dance in the Village Hall at 9:30

Mrs Annabel Dott: additions and corrections

A minor point - just to inform readers that I have amended my text as regards the architect Walter Brierley's involvement in the Goathland scheme.  

It is known that he was involved in the conversion of the cottages for the disabled officers but it isn't clear whether he was involved in the original design stage.

3 March 2019:  Following correspondence with Lynne Dixon, I have made an amendment regarding the Amhurst Road house in which Annabel grew up.  Lynne has come to the conclusion that 13 & 323 Amhurst Road are one and the same.  Lynne informs me that Annabel gave up her membership of Women's Pioneer Housing Ltd after four months, probably because of pressure on her time, given her other projects and her parish work; I've made that alteration too.

11. Annabel & Patrick Dott: Epilogue: sale of the Goathland Homes

A couple of years after Annabel put the Grey Wood estate at East Hoathly on the market, the Trustees of the Goathland Homes for Officers put the The Orchard up for sale.

By the summer of 1931, the Trustees had found that the cottage colony had run its course.  According to Percy Ward, "most people found Goathland too quiet" and it was decided to invest instead in houses in London.

Percy Ward, in his article in the Goathland News, recorded the names of the original tenants – men such as Captain Tollemarche, who was badly shellshocked and who played cricket for Goathland, and who was succeeded at No 1 by Capt Brown; Brigadier Smith at No 4, a fine tenor who sang in the church choir; Capt Harry West at No 5, who was very lame, and became Chief Surveyor to the County Council; and blind Mr Irish at No 6, who sang bass in the church choir.  This was the sort of involvement in village life that Annabel and Patrick must have envisaged for the occupants of the Orchard.  The announcement of the auction in the Yorkshire Post gave the names of the tenants in 1931:

Yorkshire Post & Leeds Intelligencer, 1 August 1931

GOATHLAND, YORKS.,

SALE OF THE ORCHARD ESTATE.

By Order of the Trustees of the Goathland Homes for Officers.

Messrs ROBERT GRAY and SONS will offer for Sale by Auction, on the Premises, Goathland, on THURSDAY, AUGUST 20th, 1931, at 2 p.m. (subject to Conditions),

The VALUABLE FREEHOLD ESTATE

known as

"THE ORCHARD," GOATHLAND, comprising Eight Stone-built DWELLING-HOUSES, including contents, gardens, orchard, gardener's cottage, recreation ground, and 15¾ acres of grass land, which will first be offered in one lot, and, if unsold, will be divided into eleven lots.

Each house is furnished, and the contents are included in the purchase.

Plans may be seen and particulars and conditions of sale obtained from the Auctioneers, Whitby; or of

Messrs GRAY and DODSWORTH, Solicitors,

Duncombe Place, York

Yorkshire Post & Leeds Intelligencer, 8 August 1931

LOT 1 - Semi-detached RESIDENCE, No. 1 The Orchard. Tenant – Captain Stanley Brown.  9 Rooms, old railway carriage, garden and orchard

LOT 2 - Semi-detached RESIDENCE, No. 2 The Orchard.  Tenant – Dr Slater.  Same size as lot 1, garden and orchard

LOT 3 - Stone-built RESIDENCE No 3 The Orchard.  Tenant – Mrs Almgill.  8 Rooms, garden and orchard.

LOT 4 - Stone-built RESIDENCE No 4 The Orchard. Tenant – Dr Smith.  7 Rooms, Garden and orchard

LOT 5 - Stone-built RESIDENCE No 5 The Orchard.  Tenant – Dr Aspinall, 8 Rooms, Garden and orchard

LOT 6 - Semi-detached RESIDENCE, No 6 The Orchard.  Tenant – Mrs Burt.  8 Rooms, Garden and orchard

LOT 7 - Semi-detached RESIDENCE, No 7 The Orchard.  Tenant – Mrs Todd.  9 Rooms, Garden and orchard

LOT 8 - Detached Stone-built RESIDENCE, No 8 The Orchard.  Now vacant.  8 Rooms, garden and orchard

LOT 9 - The Gardener's COTTAGE, adjoining Lot 7.  5 Rooms.

Each home is furnished, and the Contents are included in the purchase.

LOT 10 - FIVE CLOSES OF GRASS LAND and GARDEN adjoining above lots.  Tenant – Mr J Wilson.  Area 15,758 acres.  Annual Rent £21.  Fee Farm Rent 7s 6d per annum.  Tithe £1 3s 10d per annum.  Frontage to river Murk Esk.  Three hen houses and pigsty are included.

The Houses may be inspected on application to Captain Brown, No 1 The Orchard, Goathland, on Friday afternoons

So the Goathland cottages were sold to private owners.  Many alterations have been made to them since 1931, but the generous gift made by Annabel and Patrick is still remembered on the stone tablet recording the donation:

Very many thanks to Elsie Smith, a Trustee of Goathland Village Hall, for providing me with the Percy Ward article from the Goathland News

10. Annabel & Patrick Dott in Wiltshire: 1937 and 1938

I have not been able to find anything about Patrick's move from Barnes, but by mid-March 1937 he was Rector of the village of Winterslow, near Salisbury.  Perhaps it was intended to be a quieter parish and a slower way of life, after many years in busy or challenging ministries.

Mrs Annabel Dott (1868-1937)

It was in the Winterslow Rectory, on 18 March 1937, that Annabel signed her Will.  She left everything to her husband and appointed him sole Executor – a very simple Will but, most unusually, it was handwritten.  It does not appear to have been written by Annabel, but I can't discount the possibility that it is in Patrick's handwriting.  This suggests to me that, when Annabel was persuaded of the need to make a Will, they simply copied the terms of someone else's – perhaps Patrick's own Will.  The appropriate gap was left for the date to be inserted, and this has been done in a darker ink.  It is properly witnessed by retired schoolmaster and local JP, Henry T Witt, and by T Cottrell, the Rectory chauffeur.

Annabel died a few months later, on 5 November 1937, at the West London Hospital.  She was 69 years old, and the cause of death was 1(a) sarcoma of uterus with (b) multiple secondaries.  A funeral service was held at Barnes Parish church which was, the West London Observer reported, "attended by a large number of prominent local people."

Patrick took out Probate of her Will, the net value of her estate being £3,098 17s 8d.  He did not survive her long.  He died a year later, on 8 December 1938, at St Luke's Hostel, Fitzroy Square, a nursing home for clergy.  His sister Bessie was his Executrix.  Interestingly, the gross value of his estate according to the National Probate Calendar index, was £1,028 8s 10d, some £2,000 less than the value of Annabel's estate.  Perhaps this generous man had made more gifts and donations during the last year of his life.

9. Annabel & Patrick Dott in Barnes: 1923 to 1937

Patrick and Annabel stayed in Barnes for 14 years.  They had come to a beautiful place.  The area of Barnes Rectory was described in 1936 as

one of the beauty spots of a really beautiful borough ... of some three to four acres, consisting of the church, the rectory, the homestead and cottage

The Rectory adjoined the church.  It was a Georgian house of 28 rooms, and required work.  Patrick and Annabel are reported to have spent £2,000 on renovations on their arrival.  Patrick's gross stipend, according to Crockford's Directory of 1930, was £578 a year (£520 net plus house); he later said the rectory was so vast a building that it imposed a considerable strain on the incumbent's resources:

A house of this sort cannot be maintained on much under £1000 a year ... Only a man who has an income of at least £500 or £600 a year of his own can possibly accept this living

I have only been able to find a few newspaper articles relating to Patrick at Barnes, but luckily an article in the West London Observer of 31 March 1933, when there was a rumour that Patrick was leaving the parish for a city church, gives a brief account of how active he had been in the parish during his first ten years:

Mr Dott came to Barnes from Croydon in 1923, and during his ten years tenure he has been closely associated with the Barnes Nursing Association, League of Nations Union, Animals' Welfare Centre, Barnes Rotary Club, and many other local institutions.  He played a prominent part in the recent successful Charter celebrations, being Chairman of the sub-committee responsible for arranging the historical tableau in the procession. 

One of his first considerations on coming to Barnes was to raise funds for the building of a church hall which now stands in Kitson Road.  This was opened by Dean Inge in the Spring of 1928. 

During his rectorate Mr Dott has been instrumental in effecting many improvements both within and without the church, and at the moment he is endeavouring to raise sufficient money for a fund the object of which is to repair the older part of the roof of the historic Parish Church which, incidentally, dates back as far as the fifteenth century, and also the belfry steps and the bells.

The building of the Kitson Road church hall had also been Annabel's project:

West London Observer, 8 June 1928

NEW CHURCH HALL

Plans designed by Rector's Wife 

A new recreation hall for Barnes Parish Church, erected on a site in the Rectory grounds adjoining the church, was dedicated by the Dean of St Paul's and formally opened by Lady Lowther in the presence of a large and distinguished assembly last Saturday afternoon.  The fact that the plans of the hall were designed by his wife was revealed by the rector during the ceremony. 

The Rev W P Dott, who presided, read a message from the Duke of York, who has taken a keen interest in the efforts to provide a recreation hall, in which His Royal Highness expressed his pleasure that the hall had been completed.  It was a very great day for those who had had the matter on their hands for more than three years, the Rector said, and it was really a fine achievement that they had provided such a building, for the religious and social welfare of the parish.  They had had to encounter many difficulties in building the hall; at first they tried to find a site in front of the Rectory gardens, facing the main road, but it was found that this meant going beyond the building line.  The site was accordingly backed to the level of the old Rectory.  The first plans which were submitted by the honorary architect, the Rector continued, were found to be too costly, and finally, speaking with all modesty, the Rev Dott said the hall was designed by his wife.  (Applause).  "This is a time when the Church of England is being rent asunder," he said, "and it is pleasing to reflect that the Church of England in Barnes during this time of controversy has got on with the job." (Applause) ... 

A financial statement submitted by Mr Bowes Loddiges showed that £3,838 18s 6d had already been received, of which £2,842 12s 2d had been paid away.  Further demands amounted to £1,116 and as the cash in hand was £1,036, there was a deficit of £80.  In addition to this, he estimated that a further £180 would be required for equipment, etc. ... 

Following the opening ceremony, Mrs W P Dott presented Mr W Taylor, the foreman employed by the builders, with a handsome watch 

[There follows a short list of the more significant attendees:  councillors, and clergy from Holy Trinity Barnes, St Michael's Mortlake, and the West Kensington Jewish Synagogue]

This building is still the St Mary's Church Hall, generally known as Kitson Hall (the entrance is on Kitson Road)

Kitson Hall, Barnes

Annabel was still attracting press attention.  A story that she claimed to be able to build workers' houses at two-thirds of the cost of council houses appeared in several papers – her print persona was to be unorthodox and slightly eccentric, and how much of what is reported of her is true, is impossible to judge.  This is from the Dundee Evening Telegraph, 8 June 1928

If only the builders to-day would forget about the pretty villas with paper-like walls and unnecessary rooms that they are building," she said, "and go back to the simple old Elizabethan cottages, the housing shortage would be solved in half the time. 

The working man and the small clerk need only one large living room, with furniture such as sideboards and cupboards let into the walls.  Two rooms are more expensive, twice the work, and quite unnecessary. 

If only I could have the designing of the L.C.C and other Council estates being built for the workers I would put them up at two-thirds the cost, double the comfort, and make them solid, beautiful and lasting"

By this time, the work that Annabel had begun in Sussex in 1920 was nearly complete.  As the 1921 article in the Worthing Herald had said, she aimed to combine at Grey Wood, East Hoathly, "all the delights of Jacobean residences with all modern conveniences".  Her use of electricity attracted the attention of the trade press:

The Electrical Journal, vol 92 1924

Mrs Annabel Dott, wife of the Rector of Barnes, has designed and had erected 17 cottages [actually 14 dwellings in all] in Grey Wood, near East Hoathley, Sussex.  A special electrical generating plant has been equipped, and the cottages are supplied with current for lighting, irons, kettles, etc., while there are also a communal electric laundry, electric bakehouse and electric washer-up

Annabel had created a little hamlet at Greywood – a quirky collection of cottages, houses and supporting out-offices in a variety of styles.  As with the houses in Goathland, Annabel had used reclaimed materials.  She seems to have envisaged a self-sufficient little community, sharing facilities without living in each other's pockets, and enjoying a woodland and lakeside setting.  There was no architectural unity to the scheme – the cottages were thatched, the supporting out-offices were built in a half-timbered style, the houses were very individual – it was an eclectic collection of styles that must have appealed to Annabel herself.

The scheme cannot have been the success for which she had hoped, because she put the little estate up for auction at the end of May 1929 and the auction announcement in the Sussex Agricultural Express of 31 May shows that only two of the thatched houses in The Quad (see photograph below) were tenanted, and only one of the outlying houses.  The estate was to be sold as a whole or in lots, and prices ranged from £550 to £1,450.  

Quadrangle, Greywood, East Hoathly

The sales brochure which describes Greywood is written in a style so reminiscent of Annabel's own that it must surely have been written by her:-

The Grey Wood Estate consists of nearly Fifty Acres of beautiful woodland in which are built a Quad of Nine Thatched Houses, a Flat in the Little Quad, and four outlying Cottages.  It is about a mile from East Hoathly, a Village on the main London to Eastbourne Road, and is in an unspoiled rural district, its comparative isolation being its chief asset – it is so hard to get real country within fifty miles of London. 

People are tired of crowded towns, with the jostling on the pavement, and the rush of traffic.  It is a boon to get a small house away from the dust and noise of modern life.  Such a house with a really big living room and modern conveniences can be a comfortable home for a quiet-loving man, or a week-end refuge in the peace of the countryside.  The very distance from a station is a gain in these days of the small car and the motor 'Bus. 

The big Power Station makes it possible to supply its own electric light. 

The Quad is not a communal settlement, as at the 'Varsity, a man can "sport his oak" when he chooses; as in a London block of Flats, the Tenants do not necessarily have an intimate acquaintance, so in the country one's friendships depend on one's inclination. 

It is hoped to attract Tenants from the Services, especially Naval, Army, Indian Civil Servants, 'Varsity and Literary Men needing quiet; lovers of the Country and country life.

The Quad consisted of nine thatched houses built on three sides of a square:

Each House has a long low Living Room with panelled walls and oak floor, a small Kitchen, Dining Room, 3-4 Bedrooms, Bath Room.

Wired for Electric Light.  Radiators

Constant Hot Water could be arranged.

Telephone if desired.

The Little Quad, an L-shaped, black-and-white timbered adjunct to the Quad:

consists of boiler house, fuel store, electric laundry, the Estate Office, the Bakehouse, with a three-tier oven, an electric washer up for 200 people, and a store room for luggage may be added.

Above is a long Balcony, from which Three small Guest Bedrooms open in the manner of a little Swiss chalet hotel.

There is also a Flat with Drawing Room, Dining Room, Kitchenette, and Three Bedrooms and Bath Room.

The Quads at Greywood, East Hoathly

There were, according to the brochure, "four outlying cottages".  One was 'Fairview'

a house with wide open views across the Valley.  It is built of English oak weatherboard, lined with a wall of Moler Blocks making it warm and cosy.  The house is wired for electric light.  Living Room (oak floor), 20ft x 12 ft with casement Windows, radiator, Dining Room, 20ft x 12 ft, radiator.  Third small sitting Room.  Kitchen with independent hot water boiler.  Loggia, partly roofed to serve as open air sleeping porch.  The house stands in an acre of ground.

Another was 'The Little House', which

stands in a charming small garden about one acre, part of which is wild woodland, the rest fruit trees, flower beds and grass.  It is built of brick and English oak weather board, with a tiled roof.  The big long Living Room has an oak floor and Casement Windows.  A Dining Room and Small Kitchen are also on the Ground Floor.  Above are 3 Bedrooms and the Bathroom.

The description of the other two "outlying cottages" is fairly baffling, and seems to describe just one house:

Round Houses stands in an acre of ground and is copied from a house in S. Africa, which has four Round Rooms.  It is built of oak weather board and is thatched.  There are two Large Panelled Living Rooms, a charming Round Room for Smoking or a Man's Den, five Bedrooms, Bathroom, Kitchen, etc, and a cloak Room with W C and lavatory basin.  It is wired for electric light, has an independent hot water boiler, radiators in the Living Room, and is most easily worked.  There is room for a Garage and Tennis Lawn.  The Gate is a fine piece of old English ironwork.

It is thought that it may have had rounded corners or round rooms at the corners, rather than being a round house.

Greywood was fully equipped with its own electrical generating plant, a brick-built water tower, pumping sheds (with an Amanco engine and a Pettar engine), a hydro extractor, vats and tanks, a boiler house to provide hot water for 9 houses, circular saw, fire appliances, chicken sheds, bee barn and garage.

There was a small lake and, true to her love of entertainment in the country and of acting, Annabel had planned an open air theatre in the woods.

I do not know what happened at the sale in 1929.  In 1936 she evidently still owned the woodlands:

Sussex Agricultural Express, 1 May 1936

By kind permission of

Mrs Patrick Dott

The Woodlands,

(40 acres)

Greywood,

East Hoathly,

will be opened to the Public on

Wednesday, May 6th

between the hours of 12 noon and 7 pm

The charge for admission will be 1/-, which will be devoted to the Funds of the Gardeners' Royal Benevolent Institution

Although Patrick and Annabel spent more time in Barnes than in any other parish, I have been able to find very few references to Annabel in the local press.  An article in the West London Observer of 26 February 1932 shows that she was the Secretary of the newly-formed Society of Friends of Barnes Church.  Dean Inge was the chief visitor at a public meeting of the Society, which was presided over by Patrick, who pointed out 

that they had recently made a great improvement to their churchyard, but they now had at least £500 to spend on repairing the fabric of the Church ... They had started a fund to meet their expenses.  

Annabel, the Society's secretary

explained how they had formed the Society to help the Church, and added that she thought they were the first parish church in the country to start such an organisation, although they had been run in conjunction with the various cathedrals.  Dean Inge had supported the idea and agreed to become their President.  To her mind, all who were proud of the parish church at Barnes should support the Society.

It's possible to follow parish activities in the pages of the West London Observer.  In the early 1930s Patrick was Mayor's Chaplain to Mr J D Firmston, J.P., the Charter-Mayor of Barnes.  The Rectory Grounds were used for fund-raising – in June 1933, there was Dogs' Jamboree in aid of the RSPCA.  And the new church hall – by mid-1935 it had become known as the Kitson Road Church Hall and often simply as Kitson Hall – was in regular use.  A quick look at the second half of 1935 shows: a display by a dancing school; a "flannel dance" held by the Tennis section of the Church Fellowship (Mr and Mrs Dott "looked in"); a play about Leonardo da Vinci; a Jubilee Bridge Drive held by the Badminton Section of the Church Fellowship; a two-act play translated from Spanish, called 'The Cradle Song', given by the Student Players; whist drives held by the Barnes Habitation of the Barnes Primrose League; the play 'Journey's End', by the Student Players; a sale of work and a concert in aid of Barnados ... 

But Annabel disappears from the press in the 1930s, as far as my searches of digitised newspapers show.  Perhaps she concentrated on parish life, or on her private life, or was very occupied with work for her favourite projects, such as the Women's Pioneer Housing.

Patrick and Annabel's last major activity in Barnes was, it seems, to apply to build a block of flats on the Rectory grounds, together with a new rectory, and for the old Georgian rectory of 28 rooms to be turned into chambers.  This was their solution to the problem of what to do with a rectory that was far too expensive to run – and it was natural, given their view of the need in London for more accommodation suitable for the needs of the post-War population.  

However, their proposal ran into trouble from the well-organised Barnes, Mortlake and East Sheen Ratepayers' Association and was rejected by the Council.  The Dotts took their application to appeal, and it was rejected at an inquiry in early 1937.  It cannot be a coincidence that in March 1937, the Association held a public meeting at which their President gave an address on the subject, "Are flats a menace in Barnes?"  

But Annabel and Patrick would soon be gone.  By mid-March 1937 they were in Wiltshire.

The Rev W Patrick Dott at Barnes

With very many thanks to 

Jane Seabrook, local historian in East Hoathly, who has provided me with so much information on Greywood 

Cheryl Cole at Kitson Hall for use of the photograph

Descendants of the Dott family for the photograph of Patrick at Barnes