This second edition of Sutton Bransholme and Wawne is prompted by several factors. The book was written specifically, in 1999, to celebrate the 650th anniversary of the founding of Sutton Church. Firstly, we simply sold out of copies, and have been asked for more. But for the last five years, the Church Team's education programme has extended further. With the continued support of the Ann Watson Trustees, a Lottery Award, and a loyal band of attendants, the Old School in Church Street is open to the public as an Exhibition Room and Resource Centre every Friday from l0am until 2pm. The School itself, built in 1859 and listed Grade II, is the oldest school in Hull to retain its educational status.

Since its inception, the Exhibition Room has built up a fascinating collection of artefacts, particularly reflecting life in Sutton and Wawne from 1859 until 1977, when the schoolchildren moved to modern premises.

We also hold hundreds of photographs of Sutton, Wawne and Stoneferry, including glass plates from 1900; school registers and Log Books from 1882; reference books and subject files. We have an experienced attendant who will help with local family research.

Many of our visitors are former pupils, or descendants, who provide interesting information. We have recently been given copies of John Gill's report of 1890, signed by the Master, Robert Herring; and another of Jack Feeney, who left school in 1919, and whose report is signed by Headmaster John Topham. We have had the pleasure of meeting families of Bateson, Bayston, Coates, Farnaby, Frosts, Greenside the builder, Greenwood the painter/decorator, also Pickering, Holmes, Hurtley, Lazenby, Lickiss, Marsters, Pitcher, Thrower, Towse, Trowell, Walker, Whitteron" and many others, including Bessie Smith, MBE, who, at 97, is as bright as ever!

A Marriage Certificate brought in by a member of the Pooley family, reveals that the School was licensed for marriages during the closure of the church in 1866/7.

The Pooleys lived in the Church Cottages, and opposite, in the mid-19th century lived James and Jane Carrick (Carrack, Ch.6). Family research has shown that three of the couple's children, Thomas, Elizabeth and William, emigrated to the USA in the 1850s. Copies of Jane's letters tell of James' death in 1860. She writes:

I feel sorry to inform you of my sudden loss. Your poor father was well on Tuesday night the 27th of December. Poor man he sat down on the stool, ate a hearty supper, then retired to bed. The next morning 6 o'clock he apparently began in his old complaint the spasms and cramp, he suffer'd much, then left this world in hopes of meeting his dear Redeemer.

Jane gives news of their brother, Robert, who has lost five out of seven children (a reminder of the transience of life). In 1966 comes news of William's death in America. Jane writes to Thomas:

I receiv'd your letter. It was a sorrowful and mournful word to me. I feel sad for his poor widow and family ... We can only say it is the Lord let him do what seemeth Him good. The Lord gave and the Lord taketh ...

Jane continues to write about her life in Sutton, how her six cows are keeping clear of the cattle plague, that Robert, who trades with pigs, is helping her in the shop. It is amazing to think that these letters, sent to America 150 years ago, have now come back from Texas to the tiny village of Sutton.

The Exhibition Room has welcomed people from places as diverse as Belgium and Poland, Africa, Ontario, and several places in Australia.

The name of Munby was mentioned by one of our visitors, who recommended an absorbing book by Derek Hudson, entitled Munby; A Man of Two Worlds. It is a fascinating read of Arthur Joseph Munby (1828-1910) and his servant-girl/wife, Hannah Cullwick (1833-1909). A J. Munby was a London 'gentleman', a distinguished writer, poet and diarist. He was also an inveterate letter-writer (in May alone in 1864 he wrote 76 letters). He was a friend and companion of leading writers and painters of the day, Thackeray, Browning, Rossetti. He dines with the Prince of Wales and meets Royalty on a regular basis. But Mr Munby has a secret. He is in love with a servant-girl, whom he later marries, though he tells no-one of this. The book, containing lengthy extracts from his diaries, is a compelling account of the social mores of the 19th century, and the emphasis on a class system.

What is this to do with Sutton? If you have read the previous Sutton book, you will have guessed that he was probably related to those Munbys who held the Mill of Sutton in 1715 on the corner of Noddle Hill Way (Ch.5) - and you would be right. Members of the Munby family lived in Sutton parish since the early 17th century. A J. Munby's grandfather, Joseph, was articled to the town clerk of Kingston upon Hull, and was admitted a solicitor in 1794.

A William Munby, of Sutton, died in 1725, leaving an interesting Inventory of his Goods and Chattels, of which we have a copy.

The name of Munby persisted in Sutton throughout the 20th century, and Thomas Blashill mentions the family's old farmstead as being opposite the Reading Room. The 19th-century Munbys were those who gave Sutton Church such a hard time when they insisted on sitting in 'their family pew' (Ch.6).

This Case in Chancery was presented when the Revd George Thompson, BA, was parson of Waghen (1789-1808). Gerry Thompson, possibly a descendant, and a resident of South Africa, has visited us in search of his ancestors in Sutton and Wawne. He has traced several, beginning with Anthony Thompson, born in 1680. Other ancestors include Thomas Thompson (Enclosure, allotment 124), and George, born 1762, of High Bransholme Farm. This was probably the George Thompson who was churchwarden of Sutton at that time, and who drew up a list of the Disbursements for the year 1813/14. He notes at the end that he is personally 'out of pocket' to the tune of 14s 3½d. A certain James Blenkin quickly pays up, and the books tally.

Thomas Blashill's family were also tenants of Bransholme farms. His brother, Hudson (photo Ch.7) was related to the Hudsons of Gibraltar Farm (Ch.9). Harry Hudson Rodmell (1896-1984) was the eldest son of Emily, nee Hudson and Henry Rodmell, of Gibraltar. He became an artist of considerable merit and renown, and is particularly remembered for his Transport posters, notably Shipping and Rail. This familiar poster advertises Hornsea as a sunny holiday resort on the LNER railway.

[ editor's note: most of the photos and maps within the chapters
can be 'zoomed' for easier viewing and reading.
When you pass your mouse over an image, and it turns into a pointing hand,
you can 'click' or 'touch' it, to load a larger copy in the same window,
as with this poster image below. Just use Backspace to return to the page.]

1920s Railway Poster by Harry Hudson Rodmell

The Kirks, who built the elegant houses of Church Mount (Ch.10), traded in Grimsby Lane and Hull Market Place as silversmiths and pawnbrokers, clock and watchmakers (at least two clocks were on display at the recent special exhibition in Wilberforce House).

Dr John Lamplugh Kirk (Ch.10), the 'young son', had a prestigious future. After graduating from Cambridge, and training as a medical practitioner, he remained in London for a while before moving to Pickering. Apart from his work, he was a great photographer and collector. He founded the Castle Museum at York, originally under the name of the Kirk Collection of Bygones (Valerie Reeves). He 'inherited' his stepfather's (Benjamin West) passion for motor cars, and at one time owned a de Dion (we have a photo of Mr West's de Dion).

Of the 'large residences' mentioned in this book, it has been sad to see two suffer their demise - East Mount (Ch.10) and Tilworth Grange (CH.6). However, Sutton House (Ch.6) thrives; we have news of the original Liddell family, and copies of legal documents giving us fresh information. We have a list of George William's fellow pupils at Eton.

Sutton Hall (Ch.6) has been renovated and refurbished for the Eastern Hull Primary Care Trust. Mike Rymer, the Pharmaceutical Advisor, with the assistance of a colleague, has written an excellent booklet detailing the history of the house and occupiers. The great-granddaughter of Rachel Johnson, servant and cook to Carl Brochner in 1881, visited the Education Centre. David Haughton, who purchased Sutton Hall in 1858, belonged to the Society of Friends - as did the Hurtleys of Elmtrees, opposite the Education Centre (Ch.10). [editor's note: The Education Centre and The Sutton & Wawne Museum are in effect one and the same.]

Relatives of the Hurtley family have been in touch, adding information of that family; and we have a photograph of the business at Wilmington. The Williams' children (there were at least 14) nearly all dispersed to Canada, the USA and Australia, the last surviving having recently died in his 90th year.

Thanks to a regular visitor, we unearthed a great deal of information about the 40 Basque children who lived at Elmtrees during the Spanish Civil war, from July 1937. Sutton builder, Mr Sewell, offered the home as a haven for the refugees, and Sutton folk stepped in to take care of them. Thanks to one of our attendants, Ken Cooke, the Education Centre has produced a video film of the Basque children at Elmtrees, taken from original ciné clips. Soledad Orton and Elsie Fermin have recently re-visited.

Basque Children at Elmtrees in 1937

Very little was known about the RAF Balloon Centre on Wawne Road (Ch.12) when this book was written. That situation has changed, with the publication in 2002 of an excellent book by Len Bacon on Hull's own Air Force Station. Officially opened in June 1939, the Station involved hundreds of personnel. In 1943 the RAF School of Fire Fighting and Rescue was established, to continue until 1959. Len's book is a detailed account of life at the Station, enhanced by dozens of maps and photographs.

Apart from Thomas Tierney's (Ch.12), there are seventeen War Graves in Sutton churchyard. One in particular attracted special attention on 7 September 2005, for it was the 65th anniversary of the death of a Battle of Britain hero. Flight Lieutenant Patterson Clarence Hughes, originally from Cooma, in Australia, had joined the Royal Air Force and showed exceptional skill and gallantry as a fighter pilot. Whilst in Yorkshire, Pat met a young girl from James Reckitt Avenue in Hull, and married her in 1940. Only five weeks later, on the evening of the 7th September when the Germans switched their attacks from airfields to London, Pat's aircraft was seen to collide with an incoming enemy bomber (some say deliberately) and he fell to earth in the garden of a cottage in Sundridge in Kent.

Pat Hughes in his RAAF uniform before the war

FIt Lt Hughes was the highest-scoring Commonwealth pilot in the Battle of Britain, [at the time of his death; Ed], and was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. To mark the 65th anniversary of his death, a plaque was unveiled at the cottage in Kent; and flowers were laid at his grave in Sutton - by Margery and Norman Shirtliff, who have tended the grave for some years now, by the author, and Rob Haywood, our website manager.

Visit our web site for more information on Pat Hughes and other War Grave sites in the area; on the Exhibition Room and Resources Centre (now styled "The Sutton & Wawne Museum"); and for a whole host of interesting topics.

You may even find a long-lost cousin in the Guest Book!
Sutton & Wawne Website

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About the Author

Merrill Rhodes worked as a teacher in Hull for many years. In 1990 she was appointed as the Schools' Liaison Officer for the Sutton and Wawne Team Ministry, working with more than 20 schools in the parish. This book was written to celebrate the 650th anniversary of the dedication of St James' Church, Sutton, on 12 September, 1349, the year when the area was so devastated by the ravages of the Black Death. It also celebrates the 150th year of the founding of St James' Church of England School in 1849, and marks the 850th anniversary of the much older foundation of Meaux Abbey.

This is a splendid book which will surely give much pleasure even to those who have no intimate knowledge of the Sutton and Wawne area. It not only reflects events of great significance to church and state, but homes in so easily to the lives of local personalities, their everyday experiences and concerns. There is sound factual information with happy anecdotal material. It is easy to read, and each chapter stimulates interest and the desire for more. TD
(surely, TD was the late Terrence Doherty, rector of St James' when Merrill wrote the First Edition.)

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CHAPTERS

Chapter 1 ~ Chapter 2 ~ Chapter 3 ~ Chapter 4

Chapter 5 ~ Chapter 6 ~ Chapter 7 ~ Chapter 8

Chapter 9 ~ Chapter 10 ~ Chapter 11 ~ Chapter 12

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