Visit to St. Michael and All Angels churchyard, Thursley, 2 July 2026
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The purpose of the visit was to assess whether two early 20th century terracotta memorials in the churchyard may have been made at the Compton Potters’ Arts Guild at the Watts Gallery, Compton. The assessment was made by Penny Hines, Collections Curator, Watts Gallery, Compton, with Sally Scheffers, Chair, Thursley History Society, Amanda Flint, Churchyard Working Party and Penny Streeter in attendance.
1. The Tozer Memorial
Marjorie Anne Tozer (1902-1911) and Francis Spernon Tozer (1903-1920)
51.14682° N, 0.71326° W.
On entering the churchyard along the path in front of Church Cottages, the memorial is approximately 9m to the right, beside the wall.
Height of cross 1.2m. Maximum width and length of plot as marked by kerbs 0.97m x 2.09m.
The Curator confirmed the memorial as Compton style. The colour of the pottery matches the date of the second recorded Tozer burial (1920): a red terracotta local to Compton was used around this time, changing to a greyish material as the seam dried up. The Celtic cross form bears a similarity to the memorial made as a tribute to George Watts (died 1904) which is in the gardens of Limnerlease.
Mary Watts, Celtic cross memorial to George Watts, c.1904
The Thursley memorial is plainer, not especially ornate. The Tozer memorial is thus an example of Arts and Crafts style.
The Compton grave memorials were custom made but as far as the Gallery is aware the order books, which might have confirmed the memorials’ manufacture, did not survive the 1956 closure of the Pottery as a commercial business.
The body of the memorial would have been press moulded. This is a rapid and cost efficient process and thus a cheaper option than an engraved headstone. Fabrication would have been in sections and the sections built up to form the finished piece. The kerbs, each with rivets, are very typical of Compton style graves and they too would have been press moulded. Lichen on the memorials is not an issue.
The Curator reassured us that despite cracks the memorial is in really good condition. She rubbed a finger over the memorial and confirmed it was not ‘sugary’. The biggest threat is water and frost. It was suggested that when frosts are severe (e.g. below -5°) the memorial could be covered over. We could also photograph the cracks four times a year over a two year period to monitor the condition.
The inscription is also typical. The headstones were moulded and the letters were carved afterwards by removing the clay so the letters were prominent.
The inscription ‘Resurgam’, I will rise again, has no known artistic connotations at this point and is likely to be a matter of family choice; however, from at least the 17th century, it was frequently used on graves and war memorials to indicate triumph of death or extreme adversity.
2. The Eva Florence Wonham (d.1929) Memorial
51.14664° N, 0.71444° W
This small red memorial stone lies between the Garden of Remembrance and the Smallbrook path. Until this year it was largely concealed by growth from the so-called Sarcophagus Box.
The Curator confirmed this memorial too is of Compton style, the colour is consistent with the Compton clay. It is a lower cost memorial than the Tozer cross. It might even have been intended as a temporary grave marker. Manufacture would have been the same as for the Tozer memorial.
The damage across the top may have been caused by a fault in the actual terracotta body during manufacture. It is also worth noting that the grave markers have metal rods in the middle around which the “parts” are built. If these start to rust they can start cracking the terracotta. This reinforces the importance of monitoring the effects of moisture on these memorials. Alternatively the damage may have been caused by accident.
The Curator’s visit and expertise were sincerely appreciated. She kindly donated a copy of Mary Seton Watts and the Compton Pottery by Hilary Calvert and Louise Boreham. We gave her a copy of Tales from a Country Churchyard by Guy J. Singer. The Pottery book will eventually be housed in the History Society Archive. She also suggested visiting the parish church of St John the Evangelist in Churt where there is a First World War memorial, also the work of Mary Watts and executed by the Compton Potters’ Arts Guild.
Visit to the parish church of St John the Evangelist, Churt, 13 July 2026 by Amanda Flint and Penny Streeter.
There are two memorial tablets in the church of similar manufacture and lettering to the Thursley churchyard memorials. A large tablet commemorates those who fought in the First World War including, sympathetically, those who survived and came home.
The second tablet, in the same style, is dedicated to Canadian infantry soldiers whose colours were deposited in the church for safe keeping.
Apart from the Watts link, there were two other areas of interest connected to Thursley. In both parishes the Canadians were a significant presence during WWl. Secondly, certain family names recur in both parishes: for example, Boxall, Chandler, Daubeney, Larby, Voller and others.
