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There is no obvious connection between John Freeman, the poet, and Thursley, but he is buried in our churchyard. He must have visited the village, liked it and somehow obtained permission to be buried here. His friends, probably the circle of Georgian poets, including Walter de la Mare and Alice Meynell, bought the field next to the churchyard and gave it to the National Trust in his memory. From Allpoetry.com : John Freeman was a poet whose work reflects the asethetic principles of the Georgian era in British literature. This period, which roughly spanned the first two decades of the 20th century, was marked by a renewed interest in traditional forms and a focus on rural life and themes of nature. From A Dictionary of Methodism: Poet and critic, born into a WM family at Dalston, Middx on 29 January 1880. His health was permanently impaired by scarlet fever in early childhood. At 13 he joined the Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society as a junior clerk and spent the rest of his life in its employ, rising to become Secretary and Director in 1927 and a leading figure in the insurance world. He was a  local preacher . But he was more widely known in the literary world, where he contributed to Edward Marsh's  Georgian Poets  anthologies and enjoyed the friendship of such figures as Alice Meynell, Walter de la Mare and J.C. Squire. His friend Edward Thomas called him 'a sort of angel' and Eleanor Farjeon described him as a 'quiet poet ... gentle, with a fine sensitive mind, and qualities which made his plain features lovable.' After Thomas's death, she collaborated with Freeman in seeing Thomas's first volume of poems through the press. His own first book of poems, published in 1909, was followed by several others, marked by his 'grave and quiet rhythms' and including  Stone Trees  (1916) which gained him recognition.  Poems New and Old  (1920) won him the Hawthornden Prize for imaginative literature. His  Collected Poems  appeared in 1928. He wrote on literary matters for the  New Statesman ,  The Bookman , the  Quarterly Review ,and the  London Mercury  and his prose works included a  Portrait of George Moore  (1922),  English Portraits  (1924),  Herman Melville  (1926) and a play  Prince Absalom  (1925). He died on 23 Sept. 1929 and his funeral service at Anerley WM Church was conducted by his fellow poet, Andrew Young, then a minister of the Free Church of Scotland. He was interred at Thursley, Surrey, where a field adjoining the churchyard was given to the National Trust in his memory. ' Meanwhile de la Mare came to know a poet friend of Roger Ingpen's … John Freeman, who like himself was in business - a great deal more successfully than de la Mare. He had begun life as an office boy at thirteen, and became in time the Secretary of his insurance company, the Liverpool Victoria. Like de la Mare, he would come home at the end of an eight- or nine-hour working day in the City, to write verses late into the night. He was also a copious correspondent and very well read. Tall, gangling, ugly, solemn, punctilious, there was in him an endearing quality about these very attributes; Edward Thomas referred to him as "a kind of Angel", and de la Mare, after his death, described even his physical appearance in phrases that suggest beauty - "beautiful brows", and ruminative eyes "of a peculiarly ardent blue".' Theresa Whistler,  Imagination of the Heart: the life of Walter de la Mare  (1993), pp.127-8 From Wikipedia: John Frederick Freeman (29 January 1880 – 23 September 1929) was an English poet and essayist, who gave up a successful career in insurance to write full-time. He was born in London , and started as an office boy aged 13. He was a close friend of Walter de la Mare from 1907, who lobbied hard with Edward Marsh to get Freeman into the Georgian Poetry series; with eventual success. De la Mare's biographer Theresa Whistler describes him as "tall, gangling, ugly, solemn, punctilious". He won the Hawthornden Prize in 1920 with Poems 1909-1920 . His Last Hours was set to music by Ivor Gurney . John Freeman's headstone in Thursley Churchyard: This stone, set into the wall of the churchyard and juxtaposed to Hohn Freeman's headstone, has this inscription: THE ADJOINING FIELD WAS PRESENTED TO THE NATIONAL TRUST IN 1931 FOR PRESERVATION AS A MEMORIAL TO JOHN FREEMAN BORN 29 JAN 1880 DIED 23 SEPT 1929 The view across the National Trust field with John Freeman's grave, and the inscribed stone in the wall, in the foreground John Freeman's poetry: Here are two examples of his verse: from MEMORIES OF CHILDHOOD AND OTHER POEMS; published 1919 by Selwyn and Blount of London. Snows Now the long-bearded chilly-fingered winter Over the green fields sweeps his cloak and leaves Its whiteness there. It caught on the wild trees, Shook whiteness on the hedges and left bare South-sloping corners and south-fronting smooth Barks of tall beeches swaying 'neath their whiteness So gently that the whiteness does not fall. The ash copse shows all white between gray poles, The oaks spread arms to catch the wandering snow. But the yews--I wondered to see their dark all white, To see the soft flakes fallen on those grave deeps, Lying there, not burnt up by the yews' slow fire. Could Time so whiten all the trembling senses, The youth, the fairness, the all-challenging strength, And load even Love's grave deeps with his barren snows? Even so. And what remains? The hills of thought That shape Time's snows and melt them and lift up Green and unchanging to the wandering stars. The Wren Within the greenhouse dim and damp The heat floats like a cloud. Pale rose-leaves droop from the rust roof With rust-edged roses bowed. As I go in Out flies the startled wren. By the tall dark fir tree he sings Morn after morn still, Shy and bold he flits and sings Tinily sweet and shrill. As I go out His song follows me about ... About the orchard under trees Beaded with cherries bright, Past the rat-haunted Honeybourne And up those hills of light: As up I go His notes more sweetly flow. Or down those dark hills when night's there Full of dark thoughts and deep, A thin clear soundless music comes Like stars in broken sleep. When I come down All those dark thoughts are flown. And now that sweetness is more sweet, Here where the aeroplanes Labouring and groaning in the height Lift their lifeless vans:-- Sweet, sweet to hear The far off wren singing clear.

By Sean Edwards The following notes result from a meeting, on Thursday 13th November with Capt. Streatfield-James to review the Churchyard trees. Subsequently a further visit was made with Mr Ray Herbert to identify some of the conifers and the churchyard has been surveyed to show tree positions. The Churchyard has an open character, with fine views to the north which it may be thought are worth retaining. The existing tree content is seen as complementing this character and some caution is recommended in the siting of any new planting which might change this situation. All of the trees seen are presently in fair to good health and not seen to be dangerous. The following comments on the species present may be helpful in planning future work.

The Society was formed in 1991 (see separate entry) and newsletters were issued at regular intervals until January 2009. They have now been scanned and extracts for each one are below which are great record of our village life spanning roughly a decade either side of the Millenium. The first five newsletters, are from February 1993 to December 1994 (apologies for Issues 4 and 5 not being in the correct sequence in the pdf) and cover the following topics: Issue One , February 1993: Announcement that there were 76 members; resignation of Geraldine O'Sullivan Last as hon secretary and the appointment of Sally Scheffers in her place; slide show planned for the village hall in March 1993; report on the poet John Freeman (1880 - 1929), who is buried in our churchyard, and two of his poems were reproduced Issue Two , July 1993: request for annual subscription (£2 for adults, £1 for those at school); announcement of AGM October 23rd 1993; report on three village tress that marked special occasions; report on success of 'A Walk Through Old Thursley'; report on Thursley's Historic Buildings from Joan Harding of the Domestic Buildings Research Group who is preparing a book for the society. Issue Three , February 1994: announcement of two events - 'Events in Thursley's Past' and 'A Celebration of Thursley's History' both to be held in the village hall; update on the book of old buildings; report of the AGM; request for information headed 'Old Names - Uncertain Places'; Edna Goble's article on 'The Institute - Prospect Cottange'; a Thursley play reviewed in 'The Times'; announcement of the AGM. Issue Four , July 1994: outing to Witley Park announced; confirmation of the AGM; 50th anniversary of D-Day was noted; request for memories of VE-Day and VJ-Day 50 years for the anniversary in 1995; Life in Thursley in World War II was described by E Morgan. Issue Five , December 1994: retirement of the founder members of the committee and announcement of the new committee; Mary Bennett also wrote about the play reviewed in 'The Times'; report of the AGM; request for missing Parish Magazines and photographs and other material for exhibitions and slide shows; a history of Smallbrook Farm 1876 - 1939 by Betty Weeden; Christmas Gift suggestions; announcement of a slide show, 'Snapshots of Thursley's Past'; plans for 1995 Victory Celebrations and request for memories; Mary Bennett's memories of VE and VJ Day; account of the marriage of Captain Alastair Banks and Corporal Ann Crichton; details of the committee. Newsletters 6 to 10 cover the period from April 1995 to September 1996 and cover the following topics: Issue Six , April 1995: Update of the theatrical Squires family; creation of the archive in the village hall under the first archivist, Douglas Watson; report of a slide show given of 15th March 1995; continuation of the serialisation of Betty Weeden's history of Smallbrook Farm 1876 - 1939; announcement of a trip to the Weald and Downland Museum on 21st May 1995; report on plans for Thursley's Victory in 1945 Commemoration; announcement of Thursley at War Exhibition on 24th June 1995; two war time book reviews - Safe As Houses by Margaret Siddall and Sticky Blue by Robin Rowe; memories of war from Josie Scheffers, Joyce Secrett, Kathleen Watson, Arthur Moss and Eddie Gale. Issue Seven , September 1995: report from the Chairman, Tom Ranson, on a visit to the Singleton Open Air Museum and a mention of the success of the V E Day Exhibition in the village hall; announcement of the AGM on 4th October1995; continuation of the serialisation of Betty Weeden's history of Smallbrook Farm 1876 - 1939; report on Thursley's Victory in 1945 Commemoration, 24th and 25th June 1995; report of a visit to the Weald and Downland Museum on 21st May 1995; report on Surrey Archaeological Society's Millennium Project; report on Thursley at War Exhibition. Issue Eight , December 1995: Chairman's report; report of the 5th AGM held in the village hall with sixty members attending; continuation of the serialisation of Betty Weeden's history of Smallbrook Farm 1876 - 1939; description of Stream Cottage; another wartime book review, Land Girls by Angela Huth was highly recommended; news from the archive by Eddie Gale, the Archivist; HOTS Advent Quiz, 24 Brain Teasers, with answers. Issue Nine , May 1996: mention from the Chairman of the "Old Thursley Revisited" slide show, a planned visit to Emley Farm and the publication of Biographies ; report on "Old Thursley Revisited" and mention of over 1,000 slides held by Charles Weeden; details of Biographies ; visit to Emley Farm planned for 18th May 1996; announcement of the Summer Exhibition in the village hall on 13th July, 1996; request for photographs of People of Thursley 1996; write up of Eveline Lance, artist; origins of the garden fish pond Issue Ten , September 1996: Chairman's thanks for those who worked on the Summer Exhibition; announcement of 6th AGM on 30th October, 1996; report on visit to Emley Farm; extract from an early Parish Magazine; report on the Summer Exhibition; another request for photographs of People of Thursley 1996, noting that some had already been received; article on Thursley's Tabletombs. Newsletters 11 to 15 cover the period from February 1997 to January 1999 and cover the following topics:   Issue Eleven , February 1997: introduction to the year ahead from the Secretary, Sally Scheffers, which included a March slide show and quiz, a visit to the Rural Life Centre in Tilford, the annual exhibition, a request for a genealogist and a request to Druscilla Pye to search the Thursley Marriage Register for 1947 to find couples who were married that year so that they can be part of the celebrations for the Queen’s Golden Wedding Anniversary; Pat Coles request for people to be aware of Oakhurst Cottage in Hambledon which is National Trust Property open to visitors; an extensive report on the 1996 Annual General Meeting; limited response to the People of Thursley 1996 initiative, so it was extended by six months; comment on “Lutyens in Waverley” which was published ‘some years ago’ by Waverley Borough Council; donation from Reg Fosberry of an original Lutyens architectural drawing of The Institute; report on the success of the Biographies  project; a brief write up of the Thursley Friendly Society banner.   Issue Twelve , May 1997: announcement of the visit to the Rural Life Centre in Tilford; more details of the Summer Exhibition in July 1997 and another request for photographs of people outside their houses; a review of the slide show and quiz; an article by Judy Hewins on Thursley Ironworks; an article taken from the Surrey Advertiser about a bronze bust of Mr W K Fosberry appearing in the Royal Academy exhibition, together with a brief biography, and advice that Annette Graham-Stewart is lending the bust for the Summer Exhibition.   Issue Thirteen , September 1997; the Chairman, Tom Ranson, commented on the work of HOTS over the last six years and anticipated change at the forthcoming AGM, and the usefulness of the cupboard in the village hall so that its contents can be displayed at the Summer Exhibition; report on the May visit to the Rural Life Centre at Tilford; announcement that the AGM will be held on 8th October, 1997 and that four members are retiring from the committee; subscriptions remain at £5 per family and £3 per person; request for copies of reports from the Domestic Buildings Research Group; report on the success of the Summer Exhibition themed “People of Thursley”; continuation of Judy Hewins’s article on Thursley Ironworks; noted that Mr Reg Fosberry had donated a number of old indentures pertaining mainly to the Court family and on parchment – the Farnham Museum has been approached for advice on their storage; Mr Norman Ratcliffe, once Thursley’s village ‘Bobby’ has agreed to undertake genealogical research; reproduction of a poem by William Karn written in October 1886; two possible meanings for Thursley.   Issue Fourteen , March 1998: letter from the new Chairman, Michael O’Brien; another request for house photos; Mary Rapley is the new archivist; Summer Exhibition announced for July 1998; mention of the Bossom air disaster and a request for information; notice of the AGM to be held on 8th October 1998; joint meeting with Thursley Fellowship in April 1998; visit arranged to Loseley House in May 1998.   Exhibition Special Newsletter , September 1998: the Summer Exhibition was a great success and provoked a number of enquiries with visitors from London, the south coast and the Wirall; people worked on their family histories and some met new relatives; the Thursley Horticultural Society celebrated their 75th year with a display of their Minute Books; claim that the boxer, Joe Louis participated in a boxing match on August Bank Holiday in 1944; report of the dismissal of the publican of The Three Horseshoes, Arthur Ford, for procuring girls for the soldiers; information request about Wheelers Farm and the Bowler family; photograph of Thursley School c1900; Sir Clive Bossom has been in touch with the aunt of the German Prince killed in the crash and has been invited to visit her Schloss.   Issue Fifteen , January 1999: review of the year from the Chairman; transcripts of the replies to the Bishops Visitation of Thursley in 1764 and 1788 were lodged with the archivist; more information on the Sailor’s murder; opening of the Surrey History Centre; portrait of Mrs Margaret Woods, who lived at Vine Cottage, was presented to the Society; brief biography of Margaret Woods described in her Times obituary as “one of the distinguished women writers of her day”. Newsletters 16 to 20 cover the period from March 1999 to Winter 2001 and cover the following topics: Issue Sixteen , March 1999: notice that HOTS was now on the World Wide Web; visit to Uppark in May 1999; brief history of Thursley Ironworks, mention of a small silk industry and the Dye House; note on the Three Horse Shoes being a free house in 1892; Norman Ratcliffe has transcribed ‘House to House Census of Thursley for Catering for the Coronation’; article on Revd A J Wheeler. Issue Seventeen , September 1999: Results from the web page experiment; report contributed by Eddie Gale on the Thursley Young People’s Social Club in 1947; update on the Wig Wam Murder from Ray Deadman who had discovered HOTS on the www.   Issue Eighteen , January 2000: letter from the Chairman, Michael O’Brien welcoming the new Millenium and contrasting it with the beginning of the 20th Century; details about the Exhibition to celebrate the Millenium and asking for photographs of village houses past and present; details of Research Aids for ancestry; suggestion that a sandstone on the common behind Warren Mere has a magical property.   Issue Nineteen , June 2000: update on the Bossom Air Crash by John Gunner; announcement of exhibition to be held in the village hall on 17th June 2000 to celebrate the Millenium; announcement of AGM to be held on 19th October; visit to the Surrey Advertiser.   Issue Twenty , Winter 2001: search for the wallet to that acknowledges the war service of Ellis Raymond Monnery; Millenium photograph, which was underwritten by the society, had nearly 300 participants and forms had been requested to show occupations; brief report of the AGM held in October; report from Mr Wood on the Dunkirk Wall. Newsletters 21 to 25 cover the period from Summer 2001 to Summer 2003 and cover the following topics: Issue Twenty-one , Summer 2001: Extract from the Surrey Advertiser, 8th August 1951, on Thursley’s Festival of Britain celebrations; a reminder of the publication of Thursley Today 1965 ; under the heading of “The Big Bang”, a look back at the Thursley Nuclear Survival Plan with thanks given to Michael Williams;   Issue Twenty-two , Winter 2001/2: report of a TV documentary of the Wigwam Murder made by the Discovery Channel, HOTS assistance in the making of it and a promise of a video of the programme; a further update from Ray Deadman (see issue 17); report of the AGM held in October; review of “The Second Fleet”, about transports to Australia in 1790; 1901 Census now online; report of the death of Eddie Gale.   Issue Twenty-three , Summer 2002: report of the closure of the Thursley Village Institute taken from the Parish Magazine January 1964; request for a new Treasurer and committee member; tribute to Eddie Gale.   Issue Twenty-four , January 2003: report of the AGM in October 2002; report of contact from Weis and Zen Rogalksi, via the web page, who had lived in Tweedsmuir camp and written a book “Living in Tweedsmuir Camp, 1948 – 1957” which has been donated to the archive; exhibition in June to include the 1901 Census; report on how to use the Census online; report on accessing “free BDM” for genealogists.   Issue Twenty-five , Summer 2003: talk on Tweedsmuir camp by Weis and Zen Rogalksi in September 2003; brief report on the Surrey History Centre; description of Godalming from Pigots Directory of 1839; mention of Thursley in Dion Fortune’s “The Secrets of Dr Taverner” and a request for any other references to Thursley’s alleged Pagan past.   Newsletters 26 to 30 cover the period from Winter 2003/2004 to Winter 2005/2006 and cover the following topics: Issue Twenty-six , Winter 2003/2004: write up on the Lorne Scots and Tweedsmuir Camp; mention of “The Present State of England” by Edward Chamberlayne printed in 1694; brief description of the Cokelers or The Dependents, a religious group that was started in 1851 in Shamley Green; report on the AGM, request for a committee member and a talk by the Rural Life Centre, Tilford; report on the talk given by Weis and Zen Rogalksi; report on the deaths of Betty and Charles Weeden and Mrs Kot.   Issue Twenty-27 , May 2004 (first colour issue): report on the return of the Lorne Scots in April 2004 to Thursley and the site of the Tweedsmuir camp; request for a photographer; visit to Shulbrede Priory; request for suggestion that Tweedsmuir camp be somehow memorialised.   Issue Twenty-eight , Winter 2004: request for information on the Free French at Tweedsmuir camp; report on the AGM; details of the will of Anthony Smith Esq of Witley dated 26th April 1668; extract from 2001 Thursley Census where the village had 656 people (498 Christians, 5 Jews, 3 Buddhists, 96 no religion and 52 not stated), 427 cars or vans and 242 households.   Issue Twenty-nine , Spring/Summer 2005: announcement of an exhibition, “Memories of WW2 – 60 years on”, to be held on 9th and 10th July; information on Dion Fortune and the Society of the Inner Light at Truxford; report on HOTS website; announcement on AGM in October 2005 followed by a look at the life of Mary Bennett; description of Thursley from John Goring’s Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales 1870-1872;   Issue Thirty , Winter 2005/2006: report of success on the July Exhibition and an interesting write-up; one of the displays was given by the Hankley Common Atlantic Wall Trust illustrating its importance; more information of Tweedsmuir Camp. Newsletters 31 to 37 cover the period from Spring 2006 to January 2009 (when they ceased to be published) and cover the following topics: Issue Thirty-one , Spring 2006: chilling account of a blind musician being sentenced to death in 1826 for passing two forged bank notes; examples from the picture postcard archive; publishing the WW2 reminiscences to be discussed; need for a comprehensive history of Thursley identified. Issue Thirty-two , Autumn/Winter 2006/2007: comment that the 2006 fire was a repeat of the 1976 fire; request to learn the burial place of Joan Pearl Wolfe; report of the October 2006 AGM; planned visit to the GreatBarn at Wanborough; Norman Ratcliffe advised that he has Thursley Parish Register of Births, Deaths and Marriages on microfiche; planned update to the web page. Issue Thirty-three , Spring 2007: sadness expressed on the sudden death of Mary Rapley; a recording of Wilfred and Mabel Pickles broadcast of "Have a Go" in 1958 was given to HOTS who will have had it enhanced, re-recorded and lodged in the archives; the website has attracted almost 1,000 visits in three years; recollections of life in The Lodge and Thursley 1897 - 1912 as recounted by Mrs Barbara Bell (nee Robertson) to Michael O'Brien in 1978. Issue Thirty-four , Summer 2007: recordings of "Have A Go" on CD have been given to all the contestants families with the compliments of HOTS; recollections of The Lodge, Part 2; sadness expressed at the death of Tom Ranson, former Chairman of HOTS. Issue Thirty-five , Winter 2007/2008: report on the 2007 AGM where the recording of "Have a Go" was played; article on Henry Edward Spernon Tozer, village postmaster, artist and photographer in the 1890s; request for information about the bust of William Karn Fosbery; recollections of The Lodge Part 3; Norman Ratcliffe has Census and Births, Deaths and Marriages online. Issue Thirty-six , Summer 2008: largely devoted to reporting the success of the "Wedding Belles" exhibition in June 2008; conclusion of recollections of The Lodge; announcement of AGM in October 2008 to be followed by a talk on metal detecting from the Discoverers Historical Society. Issue Thirty-seven , January 2009: changes to the committee following the AGM; report on the Ham class of Minesweepers built in the 1950s; paintings of Henry Tozer's sons featured; description of Thursley Memorial which noted that the responsibility for their upkeep had passed from the Government to local and Parish Councils.

The first newsletter driven by articles from the website was delivered to subscribers on 1st September 2024. If you want to receive these updates, please sign up on the home page. We have also added newsletters from the beginning of the society when it was known as the History of Thursley Society. https://shoutout.wix.com/so/14Oz8EPSe?languageTag=en&cid=bceff40b-12d7-4ab7-879e-2fc25b2b4a42

This was published in 1996 by the History of Thursley Society and includes profiles of the young Lutyens, Robert Goble and Monica Edwards. Many of the articles were written by Mary Bennett. CONTENTS   The Young Lutyens and his Thursley Houses  by Wing Commander D.Q.Watson.  The Rt. Hon. H. A. L. Fisher, O.M.  by Mary Bennett.                                    The Levy Family of Smallbrook Farm 1876 – 1939  by Betty Weeden         Russell Partridge Brockbank   Art Editor of “Punch”   by Peter Anderson.    Robert Goble.  by Mary Bennett.                                                                Karn’s - A Short History of  Thursley’s Grocery Store.                                Thursley In The ‘Twenties   by Mary Bennett                                             Life in Thursley by Sir Roger Stevens of  Hill Farm                                    A Memoir of   Rev. A. K. Mathews, OBE., DSC.  Vicar Of Thursley 1968 - 1976.        Arthur Edward (Eddie) Gale, B.E.M.  Written by Jane Haviland in 1994.     William Karn Fosberry  1853 – 1943    by Edna (Eddie) Morgan                 Margaret L.Woods in Thursley   by Martha Vogeler  of  Fullerton, U.S.A.    Monica le Doux Edwards  1912 – 1998   by V K Lindley                            Rock Cottage and some neighbours  by Mary Bennett                                 Thursley In The ‘20s & ‘30s - some incomers  -  by Mary Bennett              A Farmhouse in Surrey  by Irene Gorringe

Having already found an Elizabethan sixpence, Olly Lynes has also discovered a pocket watch belonging to Lt. Leslie Richmond. He must have lost it before he went to the front in WW1. This article was written by John Lynes. Discovering the watch It was with some surprise that local lad Olly Lynes came across a rather interesting artefact whilst searching  Punch Bowl Farm, owned by Sally Scheffers. Olly had been searching the farm for the past few years with many interesting items being discovered. On this occasion, as Olly removed the find from the soil he realised it was a silver military pocket watch. On getting home, and after a little research, it transpired that the watch had in fact belonged to a special Australian soldier, who was identifiable for rather sad reasons. The pocket watch belonged to Leslie Richmond of the 1st Gordon Highlanders. Thanks to an Australian article written about Leslie Richmond, Olly was able to learn a great deal about the history of the person behind the watch. Lt . Leslie Richmond, an officer in the 1st Gordon Highlanders, was the first Australian-born casualty of World War I. Born in Armadale, Victoria, in June 1888, Richmond was killed at the Battle of Mons on August 23, 1914. This battle marked the first major engagement of the British Expeditionary Force in the war. Despite his service in a British regiment, new research has revealed that Richmond's Australian roots merit his inclusion on the Australian War Memorial's (AWM) Commemorative Roll. From Australia to Scotland Richmond's family history is a tale of migration and success. His father, James Richmond, left Scotland for Australia in 1863, becoming a prosperous pastoralist. The Richmond family later returned to Scotland, renting the 17th-century Monzie Castle in Crieff, Perthshire. Census records from the time show the family lived a life of relative affluence, employing several household staff. The Battle of Mons and Richmond's Service The Battle of Mons, where Lt. Richmond lost his life, was a critical early conflict in WWI. On August 23, 1914, British forces faced a superior German army and were forced to withdraw, suffering approximately 1,600 casualties. The battle is also notable for the legend of the Angel of Mons, which purportedly appeared in the sky to protect retreating British troops. Lt. Richmond's military career began with his commission in the Gordon Highlanders in 1906. By 1909, he had risen to the rank of lieutenant. He married Ruth Greenwood in April 1914, and she was pregnant with their only child when he died. Their son, also named Leslie, was born in January 1915. Recognition and Family Legacy For many years, Seaman William "Billy" Williams and Captain Brian Pockley were believed to be the first Australians to fall in World War I, having died on September 11, 1914, in the Battle of Bita Paka in Papua New Guinea. However, recent findings by Toni Munday, curator of the HMAS Cerberus museum, and Diane Morris, the AWM's centenary communications officer, have brought Lt. Richmond's sacrifice to light. Munday discovered a notice about Richmond in The Argus newspaper from October 1914, prompting further investigation. Richmond's descendants, Jeannie Furphy of Shepparton, Victoria, and Alexandra Ramsay of Warren, NSW, were aware of his military history but had not considered him a candidate for recognition in Australia due to his service with a British regiment. The AWM's criteria allow for Australians who served in foreign armies to be included on the Commemorative Roll, provided they meet specific criteria. A Family's War Tragedy The Richmond family's history is marked by the tragic loss of both Lt. Richmond and his son. The younger Leslie was killed at Dunkirk in May 1940, shortly after his marriage, while serving with the 10th Royal Hussars. Ruth Richmond, Leslie's widow, never remarried, enduring the profound loss of both her husband and son. Lt. Richmond is buried at St. Symphorien Military Cemetery in Belgium. From ABC News Australia: WWI Scottish regiment soldier 'may have been first Australian-born casualty' https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-08-23/leslie-richmond-first-aust-born-soldier-killed/5685774 A portrait of Lieutenant Leslie Richmond of the Gordon Highlanders who died at the Battle of Mons. (Supplied: Richmond family) Lt Leslie Richmond From Obituaries Australia: https://oa.anu.edu.au/obituary/richmond-leslie-18261 From Newscorp Austalia: https://www.news.com.au/national/nsw-act/how-leslie-richmond-and-william-chisholm-became-the-first-aussie-casualties-of-world-war-i/news-story/ecbc8f42f454a3de46c96ebb4907f715

With thanks to Sean Edwards. *aka The Sailor's Murder, see links below.

The Guardian article shows how writers have been drawn to The Sailor's Murder, one of two historic murders to have taken place in Thursley (see links at the bottom of this article). Gibbet Hill by Bram Stoker is published by The Rotunda Foundation on 26 October. Paul McKinley’s exhibition Péisteanna is now on at Casino Marino, Dublin. More information on the Dublin City Council Bram Stoker festival can be found at bramstokerfestival.com https://rotundafoundation.ie/gibbet-hill/ Guardian article: Reader stumbles on Dracula’s ancestors in a Dublin library The unknown Bram Stoker story Gibbet Hill, published soon before the author began working on Dracula, has eerie echoes of his vampire classic by Ella Creamer, Sat 19 Oct 2024 In a Dublin library once frequented by James Joyce and WB Yeats, beneath a turquoise and white domed ceiling and surrounded by oak shelving, Brian Cleary stumbled across something by Dracula author Bram Stoker he believed no living person had ever read. Cleary, who had taken time off from his job at a maternity hospital after suffering sudden hearing loss, was looking through the Stoker archives at the National Library of Ireland when he came across something strange. In a Dublin Daily Express advert from New Year’s Day 1891 promoting a supplement, one of the items listed was “Gibbett Hill, By Bram Stoker”. He had never heard of it, and went searching for a trace. “It wasn’t something that was Google-able or was in any of the bibliographies,” he said. Cleary tracked down the supplement and found Gibbet Hill. “This is a lost story,” he realised. “I don’t think anyone knows about this.” The story follows an unnamed narrator who runs into three children standing by the memorial of a murdered sailor on Gibbet Hill, Surrey, which is also referred to in Dickens’ 1839 novel Nicholas Nickleby. Together, the four walk to the top of Gibbet Hill. Distracted by the view, the narrator loses sight of the children. He takes a nap among some trees, and wakes to see the children a short distance away, before a snake passes over his feet towards the children, who appear able to communicate with and control the snake. Later, the children attack the narrator. The story culminates with the snake wriggling out of the narrator’s chest, gliding away down the hillside. Cleary approached Stoker biographer Paul Murray to authenticate the story. Though Murray was excited by the finding, he wasn’t surprised – he had already discovered three similar stories, so he knew there was more Stoker material out there. But “as I learned more about the story I became more and more intrigued, because it was published – and almost certainly written – in 1890,” he said. “That’s the year that Bram Stoker begins working on Dracula”. The quintessential gothic horror novel “didn’t come out of nowhere”, said Murray, who has been researching Stoker’s development from the mid-1870s to Dracula’s publication in 1897. “To me, Gibbet Hill was a very exciting new piece of that jigsaw. It fitted very well into my theory of the long gestation of Dracula. And so this seemed to me to be a kind of waystation on that journey of over 20 years that Stoker spent evolving his fiction.” Gibbet Hill has parallels with Dracula. There is the gothic imagery, a trinity of malevolent characters, and a description of eyes that “gleamed with a dark unholy light” – anticipating the eyes that “blazed with an unholy light” in Dracula. Another thematic parallel is that of “reverse colonisation”, said Murray. In Gibbet Hill, two of the children are Indian. In Dracula, you have “the Count coming from Transylvania, which is on the borders of the known world at that time, coming back to threaten England”. While Dracula might be read as a critique of British imperialism, it is also a “reverse colonisation fantasy inviting the British to see themselves as potential victims”, wrote David Higgins in his book Reverse Colonization. A book featuring the story, commentary and artwork by Paul McKinley is now being published by the Rotunda Foundation, the official fundraising arm of the Rotunda hospital where Cleary works. All proceeds will go to the newly established Charlotte Stoker Fund – named after Bram’s mother, who was a campaigner for deaf people – to fund research on risk factors for acquired deafness in newborn babies. An accompanying exhibition is showing at Casino Marino in Dublin, and the first public reading of the story will take place at the Dublin city council Bram Stoker festival. It is “not very often” that a discovery of such magnitude is made, NLI director Audrey Whitty said. Yet she emphasises that “anybody’s capable” of a find like Cleary’s. “Who knows what lies undiscovered in any national library in the world?” The story has also appeared in The New York Times: A Fan Discovers a New Story by the Author of ‘Dracula’ The work by Bram Stoker, previously unknown to scholars, will be read and included in a book launched during Dublin’s annual Bram Stoker Festival. By Sarah Lyall Published   Oct. 19, 2024 Updated Oct. 20, 2024 The discovery left Brian Cleary “gobsmacked,” he said. “I wanted to turn around and shout, ‘Guess what I found?’” Ellius Grace for The New York Times Brian Cleary, a clinical pharmacist in Dublin, was trawling through the archives at the National Library of Ireland a few years ago when he stumbled across something extraordinary: a virtually unknown short story by Bram Stoker, author of the Gothic masterpiece “Dracula.” The story, a creepy tale of the supernatural called “Gibbet Hill,” had been published in a now-defunct Irish newspaper in 1890, but had not appeared in print or, it seemed, been mentioned anywhere since. “I was just gobsmacked,” said Cleary, who works as the chief pharmacist at the Rotunda maternity hospital and has long been fascinated by Stoker. “I went and checked all the bibliographies, and it was nowhere. I wanted to turn around and shout, ‘Guess what I found?’ but there were proper researchers and academics there, and I was just an amateur.” Indeed, the story wasn’t included in Stoker’s archival papers, and was unknown to scholars, said Audrey Whitty, the director of the national library. While it isn’t unusual for something unexpected to turn up in the library’s archives — a collection of 12 million items — Cleary’s discovery stands out for the way he made it, she said. Cleary first saw a reference to “Gibbet Hill in a copy of the Dublin Daily Express published on New Year’s Day, 1891. Brian Cleary He first spotted a reference to “Gibbet Hill” in a promotional advertisement in the Dublin Daily Express on New Year’s Day, 1891. Then he tracked down the special section in which the story actually had appeared — two weeks earlier, on Dec. 17, 1890 — and where it had been “hidden in plain sight,” he said. The story takes place in Surrey, England, at a spot that became infamous when three men who had killed a sailor were hanged there in the 18th century. (A gibbet is a gallows.) In it, a young man goes for a stroll and comes upon a trio of eerie children — a boy “with hair of spun gold” and a wriggling mass of earthworms concealed in his clothes, and two pretty, dark-haired Indian girls. The trio perform a strange ritual involving music and a snake (for starters), tie the man up and menace him with a sharp dagger. Though he passes out and isn’t sure what happens next — they are gone when he wakes up — the unsettling experience has repercussions that do not bode well for his future. “Gibbet Hill” is a creepy little tale. It is also, according to Paul Murray, author of the biography “From the Shadow of Dracula: A Life of Bram Stoker,” and an expert on Stoker, “very significant” and “an important new addition to the canon.” He then found the special section in which the story had appeared, published on Dec. 17, 1890. Brian Cleary The story, and the book it will be included in, are to be unveiled to the public during Dublin’s annual Bram Stoker Festival , held this year on Oct. 25-28. (Ireland, a supremely literary nation, commemorates many of its writers with special festivals.) Cleary said he hoped the book would draw attention to the breadth of Stoker’s work — in addition to “Dracula,” Stoker wrote more than a dozen other novels and several short story collections, and worked for many years as the manager of the Lyceum Theater in London. “Gibbet Hill” was published at a pivotal moment in Stoker’s career, when the author was beginning work on “Dracula.” Many of the novel’s thematic preoccupations — the thin line between normalcy and horror; the shadowy transactions between the living and the dead; the elements of Gothic weirdness — show up in the story. And in common with “Dracula,” Stoker presents the events of “Gibbet Hill” so naturally that he makes “the incredible seem credible,” Murray said. “It’s a story you can’t explain rationally, and yet it’s so well presented that it carries you along.” Finally, it has a theme of colonial unease also expressed in other books from that era, like Wilkie Collins’s “The Moonstone," published some 20 years earlier: “the English fear of the threat coming from the periphery of the empire to exert revenge and disrupt English life,” Murray said. “It’s the idea that there would be this invasion of foreigners into England.” For Cleary, there’s a more personal dimension to his interest in the story. In 2021, he woke up one morning to find that he had gone deaf in one ear. The discovery of “Gibbet Hill” was made after he got a cochlear implant and undertook a grueling program of auditory therapy, including listening to music in the library as he did his research for what he hopes will eventually be a novel with Stoker as a character. “I was like a baby learning to hear again,” he said. The story will be read in public during Dublin’s annual Bram Stoker Festival, held this year on Oct. 25-28. Along with its back story, it will be included in a book as well. Ellius Grace for The New York Times Cleary lives not far from the street where Stoker was born, Marino Crescent on the north side of Dublin, and passes Stoker’s old house frequently. But there are other connections between him and the author. By an odd confluence of events, “a thread of deafness” runs through the history of the Stoker family as well as his own story, Cleary said. Stoker’s mother, Charlotte, was a social reformer and campaigner for the deaf. In 1863, she became the first woman to present a paper to the Statistical and Social Inquiry Society of Ireland, arguing that the state should pay for housing and education for deaf people. (Using the now-jarring language of the time, her paper was called “On the Necessity of a State Provision for the Education of the Deaf and Dumb of Ireland.”) In the small world of 19th-century Dublin, she had the support of Sir William Wilde, Oscar Wilde’s father, a renowned eye surgeon and polymath who had initiated a special census of the deaf in Ireland in 1851. Deafness touched the lives of the Stokers in other ways. One of Bram’s brothers, George, published a paper on deafness in The Lancet medical journal; the wife of another of his brothers lost her hearing after taking malaria medication. Though he was omitted from the novel itself, a deaf character featured in the original notes Stoker kept for “Dracula.” Proceeds from the sales of the book, Cleary said, will go to the newly founded Charlotte Stoker Fund at the Rotunda Foundation , which is associated with the hospital where he works. The money will finance research into risk factors for acquired deafness in newborn babies. In the preface, Cleary writes about listening to lullabies from the library’s collection — streamed directly to his cochlear implant — while reading Stoker’s descriptions of the “eerie musical ensemble” in “Gibbet Hill” for the first time. “A lot of things wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t suffered from hearing loss,” he said. Sarah Lyall is a writer at large for The Times, writing news, features and analysis across a wide range of sections. The story provoked wide interest and it has been covered by the news media at home and abroad. This from the BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4g9119l64qo

From Wikipedia: In a heatwave in 2006, an out-of-control wildfire burned 60% of the common, but by 2010 the heath was regenerating, with heather and gorse spreading across the charred ground. Forty-five pairs of Dartford warblers were recorded before the event, and six pairs in 2010. See Jill Fry's timeline and annotations to the second batch of photographs. Map overlay by Sean Edwards Reporting by the BBC: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/southern_counties/5180828.stm A vast amount of equipment and manpower was used to bring the fire under control: https://www.fire-appliances.com/Fire/United-Kingdom/County-Services-Current/Surrey-Fire-Rescue-Service/Thursley-Common-Fire-15072006/i-Mc4XP7D/A Jill Fry's account In April 2024, Thursley History Society was given a vast amount of records, photographs and CDs by Julia Connell who had sorted them from her mother and father's archives. Her parents, Ray and Jill Fry were great lovers of Thursley Common where Ray was the warden for X years. This comprehensive record of the devastating 2006 fire, with photographs from Jill, Tim Walsh, Sean Edwards, Steve Webster and Hugh Turrell-Clarke, along with a timeline, was taken from one of Jill's CDs Read Jill Fry's timeline of the fire from inception to regrowth - the numbers match the sequence of the photographs above: This letter of appreciation from Brian Moore, Deputy Chief Constable of Surrey Police speaks to the wonderful communioty spirit that we have in Thursley

This article by Jackie Rickenberg was published in the Parish Magazine, December 2023 You will forgive me if I make this month’s article all about me! Well, not really. In fact, it is all about us i.e., Thursley History Society. We are at a very pivotal time as we work to complete a task that has been years in the making, and has involved many, many volunteers. It is currently being driven by our very own David Young, with his extensive and invaluable experience in the world of publishing. The task I speak of is (drum roll) the launch of our beautiful updated and incredibly fascinating website. Firstly, a little about us. The Society was inaugurated at a public meeting in April 1991, so fairly recently by village standards. In those days it was known as History of Thursley Society but it was changed to Thursley History Society in order to extend its remit. In its constitution it states: “The object of the Society shall be to discover, record, discuss, collect, purchase and display artefacts, written materials and records and other matters relating to the history of the village of Thursley, for the interest of local people and to undertake anything which shall be deemed by the committee to be desirable in order to achieve the objectives of the Society”. With the change in name, it allows us to include the whole parish, including Pitch Place, Warren Park, High Button and Bowlhead Green, and to also include research into other matters relating to but perhaps not restricted within the boundaries of the parish. Our first chairman was the Rev Edmund Haviland and others have included Michael O’Brien and Anthony Langdale. Today it is Leon Flavell. In 2007, when the archives were stored in a cupboard in the village hall, there was a flood from the upstairs flat. The result was, according to the chairman at the time “the grievous and total loss of much irreplaceable material put together by the original founders of the Society”. It was at this time that the decision was made to move the archive to a more secure location within the village. Until now! As so much of this archive is extremely precious and unique, the current committee have been keen to finish the complete digitisation process – begun many years ago – in order to be in a position to hand the entire archive over to the Surrey History Centre, where it will be indexed and most importantly, safe and secure. At the same time, the records are being uploaded onto the new Thursley History Society website, as alluded to by James Mendelssohn in his PC column in last month’s magazine. There have been many villagers through the years who have contributed to this enormous effort, including but not exclusively: Alie Hanbury, Sukey Langdale, Sally Scheffers, Lisa Woods, Simon Treadwell, Peter Rickenberg, Leon Flavell and of course the project leader, David Young. Our thanks go to everyone who has helped through the years and indeed all previous and current members for keeping our history so alive and available. However, a special mention must go to Tim Walsh, who has been our efficient and steadfast archivist over many years. Had it not been for the tireless and thankless task of studiously scanning, recording and filing these priceless archives, the current task of uploading them onto the website would be a far more laborious and time consuming one. The village owes him a huge debt of gratitude. Thank you, Tim, from all of us. We are so excited by the new site, brilliantly built by Helena Traill’s company Nooh Studio, and managed by the committee. It will allow each and every villager, and indeed, any interested party, to have the archives at their fingertips. This will allow everyone access to research their family, their house or many other matters relating to the village, using the new linking systems which allows for much richer and extensive results. The absolute wealth of information will be incredible, but it will always be a work in progress, as material will be added both current and from the archives. As extensive as our records are, we are very happy to take copies of any documents that you may have access to, in order to save them for posterity and future generations to enjoy. Finally, Happy Christmas from the Society and watch this space for details of an exciting launch event. If you can’t wait until next Spring, here is an example of a photograph from the archives, showing two Edwardian ladies standing in a spot that will be familiar to many of us. Can you identify where it is? Answer and article next month. The first meeting of the History of Thursley Society, 14th May 1991 :

As the Book of Common Prayer puts it: “Rogation Days are the three days preceding Ascension Day, especially devoted to asking for God's blessing on agriculture and industry.” Revd Mathews with a parishioner Photographs courtesy Sue Ranson and dated 1973

The Harvest Supper was celebrated in the village hall to great acclaim on Saturday, 21st Septermber 2024. The idea of resurrecting the event came from Susanne Hunter, Sally Scheffers, Tamsin Taylor Matthews, Lisa Woods and Lizzie Young (who also selected the readings). Sarah O'Brien spoke on behalf of her father, Michael, who unfortunately could not attend. His well-chosen words are below.    Welcome.   I am not the only one here who will remember the first Thursley Harvest Supper in 1972   - 52 years ago - but we are becoming fewer.   That first supper was the idea of the then vicar, Kenneth Matthews, who had a distinguished service record serving as the padre onboard HMS Norfolk during her major actions during WWII. During that time, he witnessed the important role ‘community spirit’ played in bonding everyone together.   One of my roles that first year, and many times after, was to organise the seating plan. It was hard to please everyone, and a certain Brian Camp was often very critical!  I am happy to have relinquished that task.  So, if any of you have complaints about who you are seated next to this evening - I am not your man!   This leads me to thank everyone who has worked so hard to revive this wonderful supper.   The committee: Lisa Wood, Lizzie Young, Sally Scheffers, Susanne Hunter and Tamsin Taylor Matthews and the many others of you who have cooked the food and helped set up the hall.  It all looks wonderful and I hope this custom can be continued for many years to come.     Michael O’Brien, The Lodge     A huge effort had been made to make the tables attractive and the night sky joined in to help Photographs by Alex Smart Between the main course and dessert, these readings were given by villagers: Photographs by Alex Smart