Hexham Local History Society - Answers Please

Gavin Weightman is looking for Information about Eliza Armstrong and the Hodges family.  The real Eliza provided the inspiration for George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion; there are several coincidences between her family life and Shaw’s heroine.

The Background

In July 1885 the London evening newspaper the Pall Mall Gazette published a shocking sequence of articles exposing the scale and nature of prostitution in the capital. Written by W.T.Stead, the editor, the pieces were titled The Maiden Tribute to Modern Babylon. In the first of these articles Stead, styling himself Chairman of “The Secret Commission”, claimed to have witnessed the purchase of a 13 year old virgin called Lily from her drunken mother for £5 and described her ordeal up to the point where she was about to be deflowered. He gave a few particulars of the girl’s background to illustrate her innocence. It is a key element in Stead’s exposure because he had been urged to shock Parliament out of its lethargy and to pass the Criminal Law Amendment Bill which would raise the age of sexual consent from 13 to 16.

It worked. The new law was passed in August 1885 and has remained unaltered to this day. However, Stead had not hidden the identity of “Lily” quite well enough. A girl called Eliza Armstrong had been enticed away from her impoverished home in Lisson Grove, London in June on the pretext that she was wanted as a servant by a woman who had visited the street in which Eliza lived with her parents and brothers and sisters. Nothing had been heard from her since, except for a letter suggesting she was living somewhere outside London. The mother went to the magistrate (accustomed to fining her for being drunk and disorderly) and asked for help to find her daughter. A journalist from the rival newspaper took up the story and the search began. Stead refused to be drawn, pretending for a while he knew nothing about what had happened to “Lily”. In fact he had arranged for her to be cared for by the Salvation Army. For reasons that were never explained she was sent to Paris, and when the trail led there, moved to the South of France. Eventually the Salvation Army was forced to return her to her parents.

Stead and others were convicted of abduction and physical assault on the girl: she was twice physically examined to prove her virginity, once by an old French abortionist and once by an eminent London physician hired by Stead. Eliza Armstrong proved to be a resilient girl giving evidence at Bow Street and the Old Bailey. The prosecuting counsel was sent money for a fund for her well-being and she was placed in a home where young girls were trained for domestic service. Newspaper cutting suggest she was there for four years, from late 1885 to 1889. The last cutting I have says that she was found a position on a private home.

Searching the 1891 census I found an Eliza Armstrong, aged 19, in the household of Charles C.Hodges at 2 Sele House, Hexham. She is described as London born and working as a servant and nurse. The search engines for the Census records are very patchy: Charles Hodges does not show up if you search for him in 1891. I can find no record of him in the 1901 Census nor of anyone matching Eliza. A check on 2 Sele House shows that Hodges was no longer living there.

My quest is to discover what happened to Eliza Armstrong after her fame in the notorious 1885 case. It was a story reported extensively not only in the national newspapers in Britain but worldwide. If the Eliza in Charles Hodges’ home was her I would imagine some people must have known. I don’t know of any connection between Stead, who was originally from Darlington, and Hodges. I wonder if Hodges knew people in the Salvation Army?

I know this is a long shot, but any leads of any kind, even if they prove beyond doubt that the Eliza Armstrong in Hexham in 1891 was not the girl I am looking for, would be gratefully received.

Can anyone help Gavin?   Please contact him direct at 15 Kelross Road, London N5 2QS. Telephone: 0207 359 0746 or mobile 07891291448.   And send details to the editor, Helen Rutherford so that we can follow up this fascinating story.

21. From  Ron & Frances Middlestorb  (posted 1 July 2008)

Ron and Frances Middlestorb of Priory Drive, Oakwood, are looking for any information, or pointers to sources of information about their house. They are seeking to write a history of their house. They already know a little about the house, which is just a hundred years old, and would like to know more about the immediate area. Most People seem to know the location best as Cancer Bridge.

A starting point would seem to be Saint Camillus and the religious community there.  The house and that of the immediate neighbours, Friars Court, were attached in some way to the community.  Both these houses have had minor changes to their names at various times since they were built. The two large semi-detached houses at the Hexham end of Priory Drive also seem to have been part of the set-up.  The main part seems to have been Saint Camillus House itself and the buildings now used by Minerva at the far end of the drive.

St Camillus was built by Canon Savage of Hexham Abbey in the late nineteenth century and their current guess, and it is purely a guess, is that the house, originally a single storey building, was the gatehouse or lodge, standing as it does at the bottom of the drive. Perhaps Camillus House was Canon Savage's and what is now Minerva was a private chapel.  The buildings now used by Northumbria Daybreak could have been outhouses or stables.

Ordnance Survey maps for the end of the nineteenth century show very little in the way of buildings here and a current guess is that all of the houses were built between 1870 and 1900.  The OS also shows that when the houses were built they were served directly by a small road from Hexham bridge end.  This road was severed when the dual carriageway of the A69 was constructed.

Any pointers or information that anyone can give will be much appreciated. Please contact the Middlestorbs at Priory Drive Oakwood or by e-mail at Middlestorb@waitrose.com

20.  From Tom Cruikshanks (posted 1 July 2008)

Tom is researching J G Sowerby of the Sowerby Glass Company.   He is particularly keen to establish where the Sowerbys were living in Chollerton in 1895.   He has an address of Chollerton, Wall RSO which Tom has established stands for Railway Sub Office.   If anyone knows anything about the Sowerbys time in the Chollerton/Wall area, Tom would love to hear from you.  toms.cruikshanks@hotmail.co.uk or phone 0191 2525334 

19. From David Ramshaw (posted 11 June 2008)

17. From Lorna Armstrong (posted 31 May 2008)

Lorna Armstrong of Greenbank Cottage, Dipton Mill Road, is interested to find out more about a bank or dyke that runs through her garden near to the road.   It has been suggested that is was a waggonway carrying ochre from higher up to use in the tanning industry.   Please contact Lorna on (01434) 607537 if you know anything about this.

16. From Iain Davison (posted 21 January 2008)

Iain Davison of the Milestone Society wants to know whether anything is known about the milestone known as "Donald's Grave"; situated on the road between Kiln Pit Hill and Blanchland, near Espershields and Hareley Side. The County Council have it listed as a milestone but Mr Davison wonders whether it was originally a gravestone - and who was Donald?   Iain can be contacted at 15 Woodlands, Ponteland, Newcastle upon Tyne NE20 9EU  Tel: 01661 824859

15. From Christine Harding (posted 2 January 2008)

As a child in the early 1960s , I was fortunate to spend 3 glorious years living in the old laundry cottage at Summerrods while my mother worked at the" big house" for the then tenants , the Cochrane family . As an adult I am now hoping that someone can give me an insight into the past history of this wonderful old house , I know it was occupied in 1795 by a Mr Ralph Sparke , and that a dwelling was registered there long before , but I would love more information and if possible some photographs.  Contact crissieharding@hotmail.co.uk or telephone 01733 575522

14. From Chris Robley (posted 2 January 2008)

Can you please direct me to anyone who might have some information about an historical area called 'The Syde' which appears on C14-C16 maps, and which seems to lie on the Nth bank of the South Tyne stretching from Hexham, west to the Fourstones/Haydon Bridge area?  Contact Chris at therooles@yahoo.com  or telephone 07815 160298

13.  From James Hardie (posted 17 December 2007)

Is anything known about William Smith Anderson and his wife, Daisy Agnes; known to be living at 3 South Rigg, Hexham between 1910 and 1925?   They donated two paintings by Alexander McGlashan to Glasgow's Kelvingrove Museum in 1929 and the museum is keen to learn more about them.   Contact James at HARDIGOLF@aol.com

12. From Gavin Weightman (posted 4 December 2007)

Researching the notorious Maiden Tributes case of 1885 in which the campaigning journalist W T Stead, in an attempt to support the raising of the age of sexual consent from 13 to 16, claimed to have purchased a 13 year old virgin from her drunken mother.   Initially known as Lily, the girl was eventually identified as Eliza Armstrong.   It is possible that the girl was the same Eliza Armstrong who, in 1891, was living as a servant in the house of Charles Clement Hodges, noted architect of this parish, at 2 Sele Cottages.   Although Hodges did not die until 1932, Mr Weightman has been unable to find him in the 1901 census.   Can anyone shed any light on either Eliza or Charles Hodges whereabouts.   The case inspired George Bernard Shaw to write Pygmalion and there are several coincidences between the real Eliza and Shaw's heroine.   Gavin can be contacted at gavin.weightman@btinternet.com , phone: 0207 359 0746 or by post at 15 Kelross Road, London N5 2QS

11. From Jim Sinkinson (posted 4 December 2007)

Looking for any information about an outbreak of diphtheria in 1878 in Colwell - with particular reference to a family named Tierney.   Responses please to two.browns@virgin.net

9. From Mary McPherson (posted 4th November 2007)

I am trying to find out about William and Alice Thompson. They were connected with the Station Hotel and he ran a gunsmith and fishing tackle business in the early 1900s.  They are known to also have had some contact with Wasdale Hall. He was also a choir member.   marymac129@btinternet.com or phone 01273 812797

8. From Jo Burrill (posted 1st October 2007)

I would like to know about the history of the Quatre Bras allotments. How long have they been established as allotments?  What was the land previously and who owned it?   (01434) 608456 joburrill@btinterenet.com 

7. From Jane Gunney (posted 2nd September 2007)

Looking for photos of Whitley Chapel school and its pupils from the early 20th century.   Particularly interested in Maud Gertrude White, known to be teaching at the school in 1901  ginneyjane@hotmail.com

6. From Phil Drew (posted 19th July 2007)

I am interested in any family history research that has been done on the Rumney family who lived in and around New Alston/Haydon Bridge from about 1900 or so.  My mother’s father was, as I said Edward Featherstone Rumney.  He worked in the Settlingstone barytes mine and died in 1930.  I am interested in whether any history of the mine has been written and whether there have been any histories of the mine written.  I am also interested in whether there was a union at the mine.

Edward had several brothers who served in WWI.  The other side of the family were Keys.  They may have come from the North Shields area and may have included lay preachers in one of the Methodist sects.   Some of the Keys line are: Richard Keys killed on railway may have married an Ann Adstock? who later ran a boarding house in Haltwhistle and Newcastle.  William Henry Keys b 5 March 1894 m Sarah Jane Craick 4 July 1910 died 14 February 1947.  Seven children.  She born 8 August 1873 died 6 June 1958.

5. From David Marshall (posted 13th July 2007)