Norfolk Annals Volume I Part 63

1.-Mr. William Simpson, Chamberlain of the city of Norwich, was presented by the Corporation with a piece of plate, of the value of 100 guineas, in recognition of the able discharge of his official duties.

3*-"Died at Yarmouth, Mary, the wife of Mr. Clifford, of the Norwich Theatre, in her 55th year."

10.-The Swaffham and London new post coach was advertised to run from the Crown Inn, Swaffham, on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings at seven o'clock, and to return from the Three Nuns Inn, Aldgate, on Tuesday, Thursday, and Sat.u.r.day mornings at the same hour. It performed the journey in twelve hours.

14.-A piece of plate, of the value of 120, was presented to Mr. William Palgrave, of Yarmouth, by the manufacturers and merchants of Norwich, "to express their sense of his official conduct in regulating the drawback granted to them by the Government on the repeal of the duties on silk."

23.-The Duke and d.u.c.h.ess of Clarence pa.s.sed through Norwich. Their Royal Highnesses had luncheon at the Rampant Horse Inn, and afterwards proceeded on their way to Newmarket and London.

OCTOBER.

2.-Died, Mrs. Hannah Want, of Ditchingham, aged 106. "She was born August 20th, 1720. Till the day of her death she was not confined to her bed, and on the anniversary of her 105th birthday entertained a party of her relatives, who visited her to celebrate it. She lived to see a numerous progeny of the fifth generation, and at her death there were living children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and great great grandchildren to the number of 121."

4.-Mr. Daniel Woods, surgeon to the Gressenhall House of Industry, and to sixteen of the surrounding parishes, was presented with a piece of plate by the Guardians of the Mitford and Launditch Hundred in recognition of his efficient services during the period of 36 years.

8.-The Defiance Swaffham and London day coach was advertised to run to the Flower Pot Inn, Bishopsgate Street, every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday in twelve hours.

11.-A shooting match for 200 sovereigns commenced at Holkham between Mr.

T. W. c.o.ke, M.P., and Capt. Ross. Conditions: to shoot partridges; to toss for choice of ground on first day and exchange grounds on the second day; to load own guns and bag own game; and to have no other beaters than the dogs. On the first day Mr. c.o.ke killed 54 and Capt. Ross 40 brace.

The second day's shooting took place on the 14th, when Capt. Ross had men to mark, beat, and pick up game. At the first day's shooting, it was alleged, Mr. c.o.ke inadvertently broke the rules of the match.

Explanations followed, and bets were declared off.

17.-The Rev. T. D. Atkinson, St. Mary's, Thetford, was presented with a piece of plate by the parishioners, churchwardens, and others in recognition of his unwearied zeal as "a most exemplary parish priest."

20.-Messrs. Pettet's Session Week Concerts at Norwich Theatre and the Hall Concert Room, St. George's, commenced on this date. The princ.i.p.al vocalists were Mr. Phillips and Madame Caradori; leader of the band, Mr.

Mori.

-Died at his house, St. Clement's, Norwich, aged 83, Dr. James Alderson.

The funeral took place on October 27 in the Gildencroft burial-ground belonging to the Society of Friends.

20.-A county meeting was held at the Shirehall, Norwich, under the presidency of the High Sheriff, at which it was decided to pet.i.tion Parliament "for the immediate mitigation of slavery throughout the British Colonies, and for its extinction at the earliest safe and practicable period in compliance with the resolutions of the House of Commons in May, 1823."-The pet.i.tion, which was presented in the House of Commons by Mr. Edmond Wodehouse on March 1st, 1826, received 17,125 signatures, and was 82 yards in length.

22.-Mr. James Vining, formerly of the Norwich Company, appeared at the Haymarket Theatre in the character of Octavian ("The Mountaineers"), and was favourably received.

23.-The Baron Von Bulan gave an address at the Old Meeting House, Norwich, as agent for a Continental society "for the distribution of Bibles and Christian instruction where Popery and infidelity prevail."

25.-The Magnet coach from London to Norwich was accidentally overturned in pa.s.sing through the Eldon gate at Thetford, and one of the pa.s.sengers, a widow from Hargham, was crushed to death by the vehicle falling upon her.

26.-Died at the Cavalry Barracks, Norwich, aged 59, Lieut.-Col. Sir Thomas Pate Hankin, commanding the Scots Greys. He joined the regiment as cornet, July 21st, 1795; was promoted lieutenant, August 13th, 1796; captain, October 18th, 1798; major, April 4th, 1808; lieutenant-colonel in the Army, June 4th, 1814; and lieutenant-colonel commanding the regiment, October 11th, 1821. He was with that distinguished corps at the battle of Waterloo, when he received a severe wound in the knee.

Previous to entering the Army he was a surgeon at Upwell in this county, and afterwards captain of the grenadier company of the Middles.e.x Militia.

Sir Thomas was buried with military honours in the north transept of Norwich Cathedral on November 2nd.

NOVEMBER.

3.-Thorogood, the driver of "The Times" coach, gave up the reins on this date, having held them since July 14th, 1822, "during which time he drove the coach every day to and from the Norfolk Hotel, Norwich, and the Swan with Two Necks, Lad Lane, London, a distance of 116 miles without any accident of consequence, a task which we believe was never before performed by any man. In the above s.p.a.ce of time he travelled 182,352 miles, independent of the distance he regularly walked, which could not have been less than a mile each day, as he always slept at the Blue Boar, Aldgate, when in London, and at the Bell, Orford Hill, when in Norwich."

Thorogood married on November 8th Miss M. Westall, of London.

4.-H.R.H. the Duke of Suss.e.x, who was staying with Admiral Windham at Felbrigg, visited Cromer, when the inhabitants removed the horses from his carriage and dragged it through the town.

7.-According to annual custom, a grand _battue_ took place at Holkham, when upwards of 700 head of game were shot. "Game has not been found so plentiful as in former seasons. The deficiency was in hares, of which not more than 220 have been shot in one day. In previous years upwards of 500 hares have been killed in the park in one day."

12.-The Norwich Society "for promoting the immediate mitigation and final abolition of slavery" was established at a meeting held at St. Andrew's Hall, under the presidency of the Mayor (Mr. T. S. Day).

14.-Married at Minto, Roxburghshire, Mr. J. P. Boileau, jun., eldest son of Mr. J. P. Boileau, of Mortlake, and of Tacolneston Hall, to Lady Catherine Elliott, daughter of the Earl of Minto.

-Swaffham Coursing Meeting commenced with a very small attendance. "We have to regret the retirement of Lord Rivers, whose advanced age and infirm state of health have obliged him to relinquish his favourite pursuits. The superior greyhounds his lordship used to bring secured him the victory in almost every match he made-indeed, he was allowed to possess the best breed of greyhounds in the kingdom. The n.o.ble lord, during has coursing career, has been the winner of fourteen cups, and is the only member since the establishment of the Swaffham Coursing Meeting in 1779 who has won five cups at Swaffham, and this during the last eleven years, his lordship first entering in 1813. His greyhounds sold at Tattersall's in May last for 1,029 guineas; with seven horses and two dog carts the amount was brought up to 1,339 guineas, which sum his lordship generously presented to his servants. One dog, Rex, who has never been beaten, and also a b.i.t.c.h, as companion to this nonpariel, are retained by Lord Rivers as a memento of his celebrated kennel."

21.-A meeting of the Norwich and Norfolk Law Library was held at the Guildhall, Norwich, at which were adopted the rules and regulations drawn up by a committee appointed on December 3rd, 1824. The books were ordered to be deposited in a room in Inst.i.tution Court, Upper Haymarket.

23.-The Norwich a.s.sociation for a.s.sisting in the Detection and Prosecution of Criminal Offenders was inst.i.tuted at a meeting held at the Guildhall.

26.-A meeting was held at the Angel Inn, Norwich, at which an a.s.sociation was formed for the protection of agriculture. It was known as the East Norfolk Agricultural Society, and Mr. Jehosaphat Postle was elected president.

-A corn market was re-established at Wells-next-the-Sea.

28.-The first annual meeting of subscribers to the Norfolk and Norwich Museum was held at the Guildhall, under the presidency of Sir James E.

Smith. Rules for the management of the inst.i.tution were adopted.

30.-St. Andrew's Day was celebrated by the Scots Greys at the Cavalry Barracks, Norwich. A soldier dressed as St. Andrew was escorted from the city boundary to the barracks by a party of forty troopers in Highland dress, who called at the house of the Mayor, in Pottergate Street, and danced a reel. The festival was afterwards kept in a convivial manner at the barracks.

DECEMBER.

9.-Mr. De Hague's portrait, painted by Sir William Beechey, was hung in St. Andrew's Hall, Norwich.

12.-Died, aged 83, Mr. Burks, one of the proprietors of the "Norwich Mercury."

16.-Messrs. T. H. and W. Day, of the Norwich and Swaffham Bank, announced that they were compelled to suspend their payments. On the 17th it was made known that a docket had been struck preparatory to a commission of bankruptcy being issued against the firm.-Messrs. Fincham's Bank at Diss stopped payment at about the same date owing to the sudden death of Mr.

Benjamin Fincham on November 19th, but was re-opened on January 9th, 1826.

20.-The Rev. Robert Forby, rector of Fincham, was found drowned in his bath. It was supposed that he was seized with sudden faintness while bathing.

27.-Died at t.i.ttleshall parsonage, the Rev. Dixon Hoste, aged 76, for many years an acting magistrate in the Hundred of Launditch.

28.-A public meeting at Lynn approved a plan for constructing a bridge and embankment over the Cross Keys Wash, in order to establish direct communication between the whole of Norfolk and part of Suffolk with Lincolnshire and the north of England.

31.-Wombwell exhibited his menagerie on the Castle Hill, Norwich, and advertised as an attraction "the two unequalled lions, Nero and Wallace, the same who fought and conquered the dogs at Warwick."

1826.

JANUARY.