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The Buglass Collection, Part One : One Family’s Story

27/08/2016 by Northumberland Archives

In the Buglass Family blog posts, we will show how one Northumbrian family’s story can be pieced together using various resources. As well as focusing on family history, we will look at military history in the context of two members of a family who were directly involved in the First World War. The Buglass Collection, NRO 05944, was gifted to the Northumberland Collections Service in 2002. The collection spans from 1862 to 1978 and comprises records such as letters, sale catalogues, newspaper cuttings, and financial records regarding the Buglass and Anderson families of Northumberland.

By looking at the 1901 Census, we can see that the family are listed as living at East Deanham – New Deanham had been mistakingly recorded. George was the head of the family, a farmer, born in Scotland. His wife Elizabeth (or Lizzie) Buglass nee Anderson was born in Northumberland. They had five children:

Andrew, 7 years, a Scholar, born in Kirkharle c.1894

George Anderson, 6 years, a Scholar, born in Kirkharle c.1895

Ralph, 4 years, born in Longhorsley c.1897

Thomas, 2 years, born in Longhorsley c.1899

Elizabeth Ellen, no age on the census, so presumably had just been born in Longhorsley.

Also living in the house are George Buglass’ parents, Andrew and Elizabeth, and there are three workers present at the farm – Isabella Monaghan, general servant; Joseph Johnson, cattleman; and John Gilmore, agricultural labourer.

Elizabeth with her children, George, Betty & Andrew, New Deanham, c.1900

This photograph, taken around 1907, shows Lizzie with three of her five children – George, Betty and Andrew – outside their family home at New Deanham. But the Betty in the photograph is not the Elizabeth Ellen that we saw on the census. We know from a memorial card in the collection that Elizabeth Ellen died at New Deanham ten days after the census was taken, on 10th April 1901, aged 13 months.

By the time the Buglass family came to occupy the New Deanham property, it formed part of the Bolam Estate owned by Lord Decies, an Irish baronet who owned property in England. Prior to this it had formed part of the estates of the old Northumberland families of Loraine and Swinburne. An 1893 Inland Revenue Return from the Lord Decies estate papers contains information that was used to calculate death duties payable upon the estate. The document reveals that the New Deanham property was a freehold and was, at the time of the return, in the tenure of Richard Maule. The rental value of the properties referred to suggests that New Deanham was the most extensive of the properties.

Although the Buglass family lived in New Deanham from c.1901, they were freehold tenants until the farm was sold in 1934 by Mr. F.B. Atkinson of Newcastle upon Tyne. The family bought the farm with the help of one of Elizabeth’s brothers.

The five surviving children all attended Cambo School, and we can find details of their achievements in the school Log Book that is held here in the Archives. From 1904 the children were constant winners of various school prizes, mainly for writing, drawing and attendance. The image shows a page from the log book which dates from 1894 to 1921. It shows the two scholarships won by Andrew Buglass in 1908 – the County Council Scholarship and the Trevelyan Scholarship, which he shared with another male pupil.

Both Andrew and Ralph Buglass went on from Cambo School to attend Rutherford College in Newcastle upon Tyne. The College Committee were prepared to admit the sons of farmers and farm-workers at nominal fees, and without fees entirely the orphans of farm labourers. This explains why Andrew and Ralph, who did not come from a family that could obviously afford this sort of education, were able to attend such an institution. The family may also have been helped by financial assistance received from the scholarships they won at Cambo School.

Betty, the youngest child, won awards at school for subjects such as sewing. One of her exercise books is held within the Collection and is full of recipes and traditional cures for illnesses and ailments such as chilblains. She has also helpfully recorded the cure for a nervous breakdown! As Presbyterians, the children were involved in the Cambo and District Band of Hope temperance organisation for working-class children, which was founded in 1847 in Leeds. Members took a pledge of total abstinence and the children were taught the ‘evils of drink’, and would attend weekly lectures and activities.

George seemed to follow in his forefather’s footsteps and was preparing to become a shepherd. In April 1914 he writes to his father from Shepherd Shield in Wark that he has been delivering lambs and feeding cattle. This seemingly tranquil traditional lifestyle was to be shattered by the beginning of the war on 4th August 1914, and the subsequent involvement of the family.

This story will be continued in part two of this blog.

This Week in World War One, 25 August 1916

08/03/201826/08/2016 by Northumberland Archives

BERWICK ADVERTISER, 25 AUGUST 1916

THE FREEMEN’S ACADEMY

It is hoped that the Freemen may give an attentive ear and serious consideration to the timeous and admirable suggestion made by Mr Charles Forsyth as to opening he Corporation Academy to a wider circle of fee paying pupils. It is when one contrasts the finely equipped elementary schools – palatial to a degree, which have been erected in many of the larger towns in Scotland, and the concentration and co-ordination of educational institutions, which a few years ago were run as separate units, that one realises how far Berwick is behind the times. Let some of the Berwick people visit a reasonably sized Scottish town and inspect the facilities and benefits which the children there enjoy, and he will return to the Border town a little crestfallen.

Statue of Andrew Carnegie, Pittencrieff Park, Chambers Street, Dunfermline, Fife. © userkilnburn wikimedia commons.

The days of educational institutions run for one particular class is a thing of the past – the desire is to extend educational facilities in all directions. Mr Andrew Carnegie, in opening the Scottish Universities to poor students, has emphasised this, and has proved a national benefactor. The Freemen need not for a moment think they are running any risks if they act on the commendable suggestion Mr Forsyth makes; but, on the other hand, if the Corporation School is maintained for a small section of pupils, which is getting more attenuated each year, it will tend to bring deserved public criticism on what may be genuinely regarded as a scandal.

LOCAL NEWS

The N.F. and the V.C. – The Northumberland Fusiliers, whose curious notion that they were not eligible for the V.C. has just been removed by the War Office, are one of the British regiments in existence, and have a bewildering wealth of distinctions. Well do they deserve their nickname of the “Fighting Fifth” ( “the ever-fighting, never-failing Fifth”), for since their baptism of fire at Maestricht, two centuries and a quarter ago, they have been in the thick of it in almost all our wars, and boast no fewer than 18 battle honours. For an amazing feat at Wilhelmstahl, when they took double their own number of enemy prisoners, the Fifth were granted the very rare honour of a third colour, and for another exploit they are privileged to wear roses in their caps on St. George’s Day.

Northumberland Fusiliers at Thiepval Sept 1916 © Brooks, Ernest (Lt) - Imperial War Museum - IWM_Q_1349 — Northumberland Fusiliers at Thiepval Sept 1916 © Brooks, Ernest (Lt) – Imperial War Museum – IWM_Q_1349

The erroneous impression that no Victoria Cross can be gained by the Northumberland Fusiliers used to be an actual fact in the case of the Brigade of Guards. When the medal was instituted it was not everywhere received in the spirit intended. The Guards’ officers decided that all men in the brigade were equally brave; this crystallised into a tradition, with the result that no recommendations for the V.C. were ever forwarded to Headquarters from a Guards regiment. But with new men came new manners, and now the Guards as well as the “Fighting Fifth” stand an equal chance with the rest of the Army.

The War Hospital Supply Depot in Bridge Street, Berwick, will open to the public on Saturday first, when everyone should take the opportunity of seeing the great work done here for our wounded soldiers and sailors.

BERWICK BOARD OF GUARDIANS

HOW THE WAR AFFECTS US

A meeting of the Berwick Board of Guardians was held in the Board Room of the Workhouse on Monday. Mr James Mowitt (chairman) presided, and other members present were Miss A. E. Henderson, Mrs J. G. Willits, the Rev. Robert Leggat, the Rev. W. M. Smythe, Dr Wm. Smyth, Mr James Chisholm, Mr Geo. W. Glahome, mr Thomas Aird, Mr George Morrison, Mr F. Richardson, Mr Geo. A. Turnbull, Capt. J. C. Collingwood, Mr John R. Wood, Mr Ed. Waugh, Mr Mathew C. Robertson, Mr Aaron D. Morton, Mr James H. Armstrong, Mr George R. Lumsden, Mr Robert Boston, and Mr John A. Stewart; also attending Mr Robert Smith, acting clerk, and Mr A. H. Banks, Workhouse master.

SOLDIER AND SAILOR LUNATICS

The Plymouh Guardians forwarded the following letter:-

Dear Sir,

Soldier and Sailor Lunatics.

Since the outbreak of war, a number of lunatic soldiers and sailors have been transferred to the Borough asylum and made chargeable to the poor rates of this Incorporation under the provisions of the Army Annual Act, section 91. The Guardians are of opinion that it is highly improbable that more than a small proportion of the men in question, would have become lunatics, had It not been for the stress and strain of the war, and under the circumstances, they consider that their maintenance should be a national and not a local charge. They also consider it is very undesirable that men whose mental facilities have become deranged while serving their country, should be classified as pauper lunatics, and are, therefore, urging the Association of Poor Law Unions of England and Wales to take whatever action they may deem advisable, either by deputation or representations in Parliament, with the object of bring about such alteration in the law, as shall remove from the statute book, the provision which enables soldiers and sailors on their discharge from the army and navy as lunatics, to be made a charge upon the poor rates. The Guardians will be glad to hear that your Board are prepared to support them in this matter and that they will instruct their Association Representatives accordingly.

Yours truly, W.H. DAVY

Clerk to the Guardians.

Captain Collingwood, Mr Richardson, and Mr Armstrong supported the terms of the letter, and I was unanimously agreed to approve of same.

It’s our custom – day to day life in the manorial documents

24/08/2016 by Northumberland Archives

We can learn a lot about everyday life in the manor by looking at how it was organised. Using manorial documents we can identify individuals and look at what ‘customs’ (rules) they were required to live by, and how they bent or broke the rules that their manor imposed. You could be ‘presented’ before the manor to be ‘amerced’ (fined) for anything from large offences like cheating buyers at your market stall, to not having your chimney in correct repair or cutting back a tree hanging into a neighbour’s garden. Between different manors these rules could be strikingly different.

The customs were upheld by a number of different officials. A Bailiff or Reeve (paid and unpaid versions of the same post) took on the day to day running of the manor. He might be assisted by a barleyman (‘byelaw man’ in charge of upholding the bye laws of the manor), Pinder or pounder (in charge of impounding livestock), lookers (into a particular area, such as fencelooker who examined boundaries and fences), among other roles depending on the needs of the manor. We find evidence of these officials in the manorial documents.

NRO 672/A/3/87 first page giving details of Hexham manor, the names of the borough Jury and the Afeerors. — Part of the first page of NRO 672/A/3/87 giving details of Hexham manor, the names of the Borough Jury and the Afeerors.

To show how customs worked we will take Hexham manor as an example. In Hexham we have an excellent series of what is known as the Borough Jury books (often spelt ‘burrow books’) from the seventeeth to nineteenth century which give ‘presentments’ (judgements of cases) jurored by a group of the townsmen known as the four and twenty. These books list other roles like the common keepers, market keepers, waits, affeerors, and scavengers. Affeerors were appointed from among the tenants to ensure amercements (fines) were kept fair. Waits were watchmen, often required to sound the hour. The (often female) scavengers swept the market and maintained street gutters in the town, fighting against the piles of rubbish (also ashes, thatch, weeds, gravel, bark and stones) Hexham’s townspeople were presented for leaving.

Detail from NRO 672/A/3/87 giving the names of the Scavengers.

Other roles can also be found:

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