Black Butts Cottages.

Black Butts Cottages.

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Black Butts Cottages were the first privately built housing estate in Cookham for the working class at what was at the time a reasonable weekly rent.

The complex was designed and built by a local resident architect Mr. Vernon Kislingbury in a property at that time was adjacent to Black Butts and very close to Moor Hall. He was also the architect that designed the Pinder Hall on Lower Road for Mr. H. Pinder-Brown.

On completion of the estate. Mr. T.John Fowler moved into house #1. He had helped in the construction of the estate and was a small builder decorator as well. He also became the estate manager and rent collector of the weekly rent every Friday night.

I think I am safe in saying that the estate was begun in 1934 and was finished in 1935. I have no idea who the main building contractor was.

Sometime after the completion of the Pinder Hall and the war in 1939 Mr. Kislingbury died and left Black Butts to his widow. John Fowler was very much relied on to keep the houses in good shape, and he continued to deliver the rent to her every Friday night.

This idea of affordable rented housing by private owners was not new at that time as I had a friend up in Ruislip who's Grandfather had done something like this though on a much larger scale.