More on Frederick Walker (2)

"The Bathers" by Frederick Walker.

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The oil painting of Frederick Walker named “The Bathers” is one of an interesting make up. First the artist did a Thames side landscape, which was made up of several different locations between Cookham and Marlow. The general consensus being that he did not want anyone to say that is where set his easel. This was done at different times in the autumn and then again in the spring and summer. Then to throw more mystery into the painting he took his work into his studio, where he had models pose for him, again his was carried out so that no one person could be recognized.

It now hangs in the Lady Lever Art Gallery, part of the British Museum collection in Liverpool.

Frederick Walker

Frederick Walker (Artist).

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It is very surprising sometimes when a small piece of information leads to a very good historical account of Cookham and its past. Such an account is that in Frederick Walker.

Fred Walker was the son of a Jewelry Designer. Born in Marylebone, London on the 24th of May 1840. As a young boy, he use to pay frequent visits to the British Museum, to draw the various objects on view. Like most boys he had a short formal education and by the age of sixteen he was placed in the office of one Mr. Baker an architect. After eighteen months, he left that position and returned back to the British Museum to continue drawing the Elgin Marbles. At the same time he attended Leigh’s life school in Newman Street. In March 1858 he was admitted as a student of The Royal Academy, but he left the Academy schools before he reached life classes as he was anxious to start earning money. To this end he started drawing on wood for wood carvers two or three days a week in the studio of a Mr. J. W. Whymper, under whose guidance he soon mastered the art of drawing on wood.

When he actually moved into Cookham and the house “East Flint” is not known at the moment. More on this artist will be entered here as soon the research is complete.

A warm Christmas party.

An evacuee Christmas Party 1939.

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A great many evacuee children came out of London in 1939 at the outbreak of war.

Some stayed throughout the whole war, while other drifted back to the city, as their parents felt that it was safe enough to return. The group in this picture was those who stayed behind and were given a special Christmas Party of their own.

Just think that most of these children shown here are now Grand Parents in 2009.

Peter Stubberfield with friends.

Peter Stubberfield with friends.

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The picture above was kindly supplied Paul Gibbons and from the Bugatti Owners Trust collection. With a picture of the late Peter Stubberfield, here seen chatting with friends at one of the many hill climb racing events.

The Royal Manor of Cookham

The Royal Manor and Tarrystone.

EARLY VILLAGE HISTORY

The Thames Valley landscape has long attracted visitors to Cookham and the surrounding area of Berkshire. Evidence of early man on Winter Hill and the Bronze Age tumuli on Cockmarsh reveal our early history. There are Roman earthworks in Maidenhead Thicket. Also there are signs that the Saxons battled the marauding Vikings as they tried to sail up the Thames by White Place Farm, Widbrook Common and Battlemead, which have been mentioned earlier in this blog.

In AD 997 King Ethelred, also known as “The Unready”, held a council of state in what was known then as the Royal Manor of Cookham, The Manor extended to include what we now know as Maidenhead, with all the commons stretching as far as Sunninghill and Binfield.

In 1818 the Crown was short of funds so the Manor and Commons were sold to a Mr. George Bangley, who became the first private owner of the Manor and associated lands. The Crown received £5,760.0.0. This did not turn out to be such a good deal for Mr. Bangley, as the record shows that he sold the estate to the Skrine family who lived at Stubbings for £4,000.0.0. in 1849.

In later years The Odney Estates Ltd bought the estates and in 1934 the common land was bought by public subscription and handed over to the National Trust in 1937.

HOW DID COMMON LAND ORIGINATE

Common land through out England was as a rule, land that was poor waste land, that the Lord of the Manor would allow his serfs graze their animals on and allow them to collect wood for heating and cooking in their homes. This of course changed from Manor to Manor, and could change depending on the nature of the Lord of the Manor. Cookham almost lost its common land on several occasions. This was due to the fact that it was a Royal Manor in the most part. There was a time that the Manor came under the jurisdiction of Abbey of Cirencester, which attributes a lot to the large Sarson stone, know as “The Tarrystone”, which has had several homes within the village and now resides where it was originally so situated.

In 1597 the Manor had once more reverted back to a Royal Manor under Queen Elizabeth the First. Her Majesty came to an agreement to the lease Widbrook Common to the villagers for the term of three lives. Among the three persons chosen was a bargeman named Thomas Dodson who lived to the ripe old age of 86, by which time Charles the Second was Kind. The villagers refused to give up their common right and went to court and they won. In 1799 there was a threat to all common land to the larger farms in the country. But in Cookham a committee was formed with Abraham Derby, who owned the brewery at Moor Hall, together with a gentleman John Westbrook who lived at Cannon Court were appointed by the villagers and a fighting fund was set up to defend their rights. Again the village won their court case and the commons were saved yet again.

You will note earlier that the Skrine family who lived at Subbings had taken over the Cookham Manor in 1849. Well there was an occasion when Henry Skrine ran a road through the Maidenhead Thicket to his house at Stubbings without consulting the commoners. The resulting outcome was that he was forced to make a groveling apology to them.

There was one small instance in 1869, when a village spinster, a Miss Fleming tried to prevent the people of the village from swimming in the pool at Odney. This again was overruled by a very strong public opinion.
In or around the early 1920’s The Maidenhead and Cookham Commons Committee was formed to safeguard long term the preservation of all the common land. It was headed by Viscount Waldorf William Astor, of Cliveden and White Place Farm, and John Spedan Lewis of the Odney Estates. A fund raising appeal was started to raise £2,738.0.0 towards the £2,800.0.0 that was required. Most of the money raised came from public subscription, by people living in Cookham, Cookham Dean, Maidenhead and Pinkneys Green, though both Lewis and Astor did contribute, with the Odney Estates retaining the rights to Odney Common, and Viscount Astor the shooting rights over Widbrook Common. The final transfer of the rest of the Commons to the National Trust was completed by 1937.

THE MANORIAL COURT

The Manorial Court was set up to govern originally the Royal Manor of Cookham. In 1607, the court would meet at a purpose built building, in what as now known as Courthouse Road, in Maidenhead. In 1814 this building fell into such bad state of repair that it was demolished and the court started to meet in public houses, the Kings Arms, in Cookham was one such place. The final Court was held at the Kings Hall in the village, (now known as the Spencer Gallery) in 1920. This co-incided with the formation of The Cookham and Maidenhead Commons Committee.

One of the duties of the Manorial Court was to appoint Hayward’s, whose job it was to look after the commons. Regulate the number of cattle and to collect grazing fees from the local farmers, also to settle local disputes. The fees were to cover local running costs of the commons. The fees from Widbrook Common went into a local apprenticeship fund for local boys to buy their first tools of their chosen trade. The Hayward for many years going back into the 1920’s was a Mr. George Allen of Pinkneys Green, who would travel the commons on a regular basis in his little pony and trap. When he Retired, the job was taken over by, Mr. Arthur Jakes J.P. who lived in Australia Avenue, Maidenhead, who covered the area of his jurisdiction on a bicycle, plus having to sit on the bench in Maidenhead.

Another thread of evidence has come to light, that the Manorial Court was also held at The Lee near Winter Hill, and even in Darby's book, he was unsure of its location. So the mystery is not solved, maybe someday I will get the hard facts.

Peter Stubberfield extra photos at Prescott.

Peter steaming up hill at Prescott.

Peter beating the clock once again.

The Bugatti 35B parked in the paddock.

Once again these photographs are from the archives of The Bugatti Owners Club, with many thanks.

Peter Stubberfield

Peter Stubberfield.

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Peter Stubberfield was to Motor Hill Climb Racing as Sir Stirling Moss was to the Formula V500 Cooper and Formula 1 Grande Prix racing world. In a note that I received from Sir Stirling, he said that at that time of hill racing at Prescott quoting “That we were at that time in different classes, and Peter was winning all the trophies.”

It was in 1948 that I first knew that we had a racing car in Cookham. For across the field and Widbrook Common came the sound of an engine being finely tuned outside Cliveden View Cottage. So as a young man interested in things mechanical I walked over and met Peter and his wife for the first time.

He was very happy to show me the workings of the Bugatti 35B-racing car and the conversions that he had made from a twin seat to a single seat car with offset steering. Offset steering may have looked awkward to the average driver, though as Peter proved he over came that handicap to win a whole string of events in the world of hill climb racing.

Sadly I was informed that Peter passed away in 2008 at the grand old age of 98.

Here below, are some of this mans achievements of his racing career. Though he lived in Cookham for a short time, he added some colour to the history of the village.

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PETER STUBBERFIELD

TROPHIES.

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The trophies in the cabinet are representative of the successful hill-climbing career of Peter Stubberfield, who has kindly donated some eighty-four trophies and awards to the Bugatti Owners’ Club.

In the main they date from 1946 to 1957 when Peter retired from competitive hill-climbing. Peter Stubberfield was a newcomer to the sport when he made fastest time in a Bugatti Type 35B at the VSCC Prescott meeting on 31st August 1946. This set a pattern for the next eleven years. In 1951 alone he received 14 trophies with numerous 1st places and some five fastest times of the day.

The trophies include the one received for the Members’ Meeting on June 24th 1951 when he made FTD in 46.54 seconds. This was the last time that a Bugatti has made FTD at a BOC Prescott meeting and the first time since Arthur Baron’s wins in 1938 and 1939.

At the National Meeting on 5th May 1957 Peter Stubberfield won the Bugatti handicap with a brilliant climb of 44.87 seconds. This is believed to be his best ever climb and remained unbeaten by a Bugatti for nearly 25 years.

Sadly I was informed that Peter passed away in 2008 at the grand old age of 98.

Here below are some of the mans achievements of his racing career. Though he lived in Cookham for a short time, he added some colour to the history of the village.

THE VICTOR LUDORUM TROPHY 1951. Awarded for scoring the highest number of marks during the season; such marks to be scored at any event held by the Club at which all members are eligible to compete.

JEAN BUGATTI CUP 1950; ‘51; ’56; ‘57. Awarded, at the discretion of the Council, to the member who puts up the most meritorious performance in a Bugatti car in any event in Great Britain whether run by the Club or not.

THE KENNETH BEAR (MEMORIAL) TROPHY 1950; ‘51; ‘52; ‘53; ’54; ’55; 57. Awarded annually to the member who puts up the fastest time during the season in a Bugatti, at a Prescott meeting organised by the Club (now excluding any short course meeting).

THE PERCY FAWCETT CHALLENGE CUP 1948; ‘49; ‘50; ‘51; ‘52. Awarded for FTD at a Members’ Meeting in June (or July).

THE JOHN BOWEN CHALLENGE CUP 1956. Awarded to the winner of the Bugatti Handicap at the Members’ Meeting in June (or July).

With all the above a replica is awarded to the winner.

THE BARACCA TROPHY. Awarded for the fastest time by a Gran Turismo car in the Ferrari Handicap. Any hill climb meeting at Prescott organised by the Club to count excluding short course meetings.

This article would not have been possible without the help of Mr. Paul Gibbons of the Bugatti Owners Club Archives, and of course Sir Stirling Moss.