Newsletter
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The buildings of Barnet
Next year will be European Architectural Heritage year. Perhaps you
haven't met that title before -- but it is likely to become familiar
between now and the end of 1975: all sorts of conservation and
preservation schemes are being undertaken in connection with it.
A new HADAS project which starts this month -- a survey of the
buildings of the Borough of Barnet -- was not, oddly enough, originally
intended as our contribution to our Architectural Heritage Year, but it
may well serve as such. What sparked off the HADAS survey was the
information that the Borough's statutory list of buildings of
architectural and historic interest was about to have its periodic
overhaul. We felt that was a proper moment to put forward
recommendations for new inclusions in the List.
What precisely is the statutory List?
There are two kinds of protection for architectural and historic
past, Scheduling and Listing. In this month's issue of "Current
Archaeology" one of our own Vice-Presidents, Andrew Saunders, (Chief
Inspector of Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings at the Department
of the Environment), explains the difference between them:
"Monuments of all periods and types, provided they are not
churches in ecclesiastical use or buildings which are inhabited, and
whose preservation is of national importance, are SCHEDULED under the
Ancient Monuments Acts. Buildings of architectural and historic
interest, whether inhabited or not, are LISTED and graded according to
their importance. The distinction between scheduling and listing lies
in the fact that decisions in respect of scheduled monuments are the
direct responsibility of the Secretary of State; in the case of listed
buildings where responsibility lies with the local authority."
In fact, as with most things, it seems to boil down to a matter
of money. The Secretary of State for the Environment pays compensation
to the owner of a scheduled monument; the local authority pays
compensation for a listed building.
Scheduled monuments in the borough of Barnet are rare: HADAS
knows of only one, a field at Brockley Hill known to be the site of a
number of Roman Pottery kilns.
At the end of 1973 the List of buildings for L.B.B. (originally
drawn up in 1948, but often added to and subtract from since) contained
twelve churches (no grading); one building in Grade I, and 171
buildings or groups in Grade II, of which 84 are in Hampstead Garden
Suburb, as is the Grade I building, Sir Edwin Lutyen's Institute.
There used to be, until a few years ago, a Supplement to the
List, containing buildings of Grade III. Then Grade III was abolished.
Some of its buildings have since been up-graded to II -- like the late
eighteenth century house called Whalebones in Wood Street, Barnet and
Rosebank, once a Quaker Meeting House, on the Ridgeway at Mill Hill.
The remaining former Grade III billings -- 62 of them -- now have no
protection, and should clearly form one starting point for the HADAS
survey.
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It may well be that other buildings which have never been on any
list should now be considered. Members have already suggested, for
instance, the Stonegrove Almshouses, the North Middlesex Golf clubhouse
in Friern Barnet Lane, College Farm Finchley and Vine Cottage,
Cricklewood Lane. If you have any pet building which you would like to
see listed, please let us know. Mr Saunders points out that where
nineteenth century buildings are concerned there must be some
selection, and even more so with 20th century buildings; but he adds
"virtually every building of the eighteenth century or earlier will be
listed in one grade or another".
It is hoped a team of about 30 members will undertake the
survey, each of whom will look at the buildings in a specific bit of
the Borough, preferably near his (or her) own home.
To start things off, a meeting will be held on 9 July (by kind
invitation of Mrs. Freda Wilkinson). At this the project will be
generally discussed; street maps of the various areas will be
available, together with details of Listed buildings and of buildings
which used to be on the Supplementary List. If you would like to
attend, please let us Secretary know -- you will be very welcome.
Volunteers are needed for all parts of the borough; and particularly
for Friern Barnet, East and New Barnet, Wood Street, Rowley and Arkley
and Brockley Hill.
July, outing -- a trip into Prehistory
For next outing on Saturday July 13th Colin and Ann Evans have
arranged a trip to one of the most significant digs of recent years --
Danebury Iron Age hill-fort, where excavation is under the direction of
Professor Barry Cunliffe. Also on the programme is a visit to
Rockbourne Roman Villa near Fordingbridge.
An application form is enclosed -- please return it as soon as
possible to Dorothy Newbury. Prompt confirmation of verbal bookings,
with remittance, will be appreciated.
Industrial Archaeology
Two dates for the diaries of those members who are interested in this subject.
On Friday 19 July, there will be a meeting of the HADAS
Industrial Archaeology Group at 8.00 p.m. at 166 Station Road, NW4.
Members already working with the group or those who have not yet taken
the plunge but would like to do so will be equally welcome. It will be
much appreciated if those members who are going to attend would let
Alec Jeakins know beforehand.
Until 22 September next there is an exhibition of Early Railway
Prints from the collection of M. G. Powell at the Victoria and Albert
Museum. Weekdays 10.00-6.00p.m., Sundays 2.30-6 p.m.
And so to Bath
A report of the HADAS June outing by Nell Penny.
I should have read more about Roman Britain and the decline of
the empire before writing this report of the Society's trip to Bath on
June 15. It seems incredible that knowledge of a large Roman settlement
should have disappeared almost until 1871. In the fifth century the
Avon flooded in spectacular fashion, depositing fifteen feet of
alluvium on the abandoned Roman bath houses. Saxon and Medieval
inhabitants built unwittingly above an elaboration of conduits, baths
and hypocausts, which had been constructed to use the hot water of a
spring gushing at 120 degrees Fahrenheit.
In the middle ages, Bath had some reputation as a mineral spa,
but its real flowering was in the 18th century. Beau Nash organised a
social framework for the visitors; Ralph Allen ran a postal service and
developed the quarrying of Bath stone; and the great architects Woods,
father and son, designed streets like the Royal Crescent which made
Bath a social centre second only to London.
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Ted Sammes conducted a "walkabout" for us from the coach park.
Our pleasure in this civilised way of seeing the city was increased by
his tactful use of his wide knowledge. We were left to see what we
wished of the "all of a piece" Perpendicular architecture of the Abbey.
I enjoyed the propriety of the 18th century wall inscriptions, such as
the tribute to Alicia, Countess of Errol "in whom was combined every
virtue that could adorn human nature" and a rare tribute to a
"matchless mother-in-law".
Then the official guide led us round the excavated parts of
the Roman baths and we saw the Museum of Roman finds. There was time to
admire the Pump Room and – if we were brave enough – to taste the
waters, before we walked on to the Assembly Rooms.
These Rooms raise the question of what part restoration should
play in exploring the past. The rooms were left a shell by bomb damage
in 1942. Today they are as brand new and as they were in 1771, but only
the delicate crystal chandeliers are original. The clothes in the
Museum of Costume are, however, original -- and excellent examples of
aristocratic dress since 1674. Each generation preserves only what it
considers to be the best, but it would be interesting to see what the
ordinary people wore -- complete with smell and dirt.
After tea in immaculate eighteenth century surroundings we
returned to the coach through Bath's incomparable squares and streets.
The lovely light of a summer afternoon helped us to appreciate the
perfection of this piece of eighteenth century town planning. Classical
archaeologists may feel frustrated about the Roman treasures buried
under the later work, but the final impression must be that Bath
belongs to the Woods and to Jane Austen's heroines.
As the coach ate the homeward miles Dorothy Newbury organised a
raffle. Even the 48 losers felt that our pleasure in the outing had
been made possible by her tireless organisation and by Ted Sammes'
faultless and unobtrusive advance planning.
Forthcoming Exhibitions – Volunteers needed
At Finchley Carnival and Friern Barnet Summer Show this year HADAS
will mount small exhibits to encourage interest in the Society. The
theme will be the use of artefacts in archaeological dating.
Volunteers – who need not be archaeological experts -- are
needed to man the stalls. If you can spare an afternoon or an evening,
please ring Paddy Musgrove. The days are July 11-12-13 for Finchley,
August 16-17 for Friern Barnet.
Wanted – an old photograph
Has any HADAS member a photograph -- or better still, a post card --
showing Colindale Avenue in the days when it led up to the entrance
gates of Hendon Airfield?
Clive Smith, who produced the photographic booklets on Golders
Green, Mill Hill and Hendon which were mentioned in last Newsletter, is
now working on a similar booklet about the aerodrome, but is having
difficulty in finding a good early view of Colindale Avenue. Any reader
who can help is asked to ring Mr Smith.
Bring round the milk
By Percy Reboul.
Daphne Lorimer's article on dairy farming in Barnet was a timely
reminder to me that archaeology is essentially about people. It also
reminded me of what my father had told me of the time when, as a nine
year old, he was a milk round boy with the A1 Dairies in Whetstone.
I thought his impressions of those times might interest other
members; add a little to our knowledge of working people in Whetstone;
and be a useful exercise in the dying art of precis!
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"We lived at 5 Clark's Cottages, High Road, Whetstone, near the
Black Bull pub. I started as a milk-delivery boy with the A1 Dairies in
1919. The job had to be done before school on weekdays and all day on
Saturdays, Sundays and school holidays.
The dairy was owned by Mr de Rivas, and Teddy Parr ran the milk
delivery side. John Green, who lived at Birley Road, was Rounds
Manager; he was famous for the wonderful sheen on his brown boots --
polished every day by his wife with Ronuk floor polish! The Dairy
employed 4 hand and 3 horse-drawn floats, one of which was handled by
my roundsman, Maurice Salter. The floats were made and liveried by
Chandler's of Lynton Road, East Barnet. Their colour scheme was red
picked out in black and gold with gold lettering. An office and shop on
the site was run by the Manageress, Miss Dench.
The farm stock comprised 8 horses, bought from a well-known
local breeder, Tom Walls, and 30 cows, all of which were hand-milked
twice a day. The cows were all grade A, that is, tuberculin tested -- a
rare thing then, as people were only just beginning to realise the
importance of "clean" milk.
A TYPICAL DAY. I got up at 5.30 every day and was in the dairy
5.45 a.m. Maurice Salter arrived at 5.15 a.m. to bridle the horse and
bring it to the loading bay. Our first job was to fill the quart, pint
and half pint bottles from the churns, using a special ladle. Wax-card
stoppers, with a punched disc in the middle, sealed each bottle.
Bottles were then in their infancy and most milk was supplied to the
customer in cans, which ranged from half pint to 2 quarts. The cans
were stacked in a large box under the driver's seat. We also filled 2d,
4d and 6d cartons of cream, allocated each day by Miss Dench. These
went on the float with eggs, butter (by Salter and Stokes), cheap
cooking margarine and Neville's bread. At Christmas we also sold
turkeys and chickens.
There were two deliveries every day, the first staring at 6.00
a.m. We served about 100 households around County Boundary, Station
Road and New Barnet Station. Most customers had a "door book" which was
filled in daily. Milk was then 3d a pint.
The first round finished at 8.15 a.m.; while the horse was
being fed, we had our breakfast. By 9.30, the float was reloaded for
the second delivery. This time, however, only churns were taken round
and the milk measured into the customer's own jugs. The bottles and
cans from the first round were collected; second delivery finished
about 2.30-3.00 p.m.
The worst part of the day now began – washing up. Boiling water
was run from the boiler into large galvanised baths, ordinary washing
soda added, and every bottle and can thoroughly hand-washed using a
special bottle brush. A rinse in cold water and upside-down-to-dry
completed the operation. Churns were washed with a special long handled
brush, inverted and steam-sterilised from spouts leading off the
boiler. Once a week all the brass on the churns was polished.
My pay was 4/6d a week, plus one pint of milk a day; the family
couldn't have made ends meet without it. During the holidays when I
worked both rounds, the money increased to 6/- a week. Mr Salter and I
had one week's holiday a year; he must have worked a 72 hour week.
SOME RANDOM THOUGHTS. In Winter, the floats were equipped with
oil-filled lamps or candle lamps. Anticipating icy roads, the horses
were fitted with special shoes by the Whetstone blacksmith, Mr.
Baldwin. These shoes had two threaded holes into which "roughs" could
go to stop slipping. When a new horse was employed, George Hart, the
horse-keeper, accompanied us on the round till the horse was properly
trained.
I well remember the disaster in 1922/3. In summer children from
better-off homes used to visit the farm to watch the milking;
afterwards they escorted the cows to their pasture at Brook Farm. This
meant crossing the steam railway which ran through Totteridge to High
Barnet. Two gates gave access to the line and a special signal showed
when it was clear. Unfortunately a child opened the gates without
checking the signal and 6 cows were killed by the train"
Notes
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