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An article from The Surrey Advertiser, 4th August 2006, about this unique building that is in Thursley Churchyard. Thursley Dame School was replaced by the Thursley School in 1852. From a postcard published in the 1920's The Dame School was an implement shed in the 1980s Large scale plans are in the archive From The Surrey Advertiser: A LANDMARK building in Thursley has been restored as part of a major project to improve the facilities at the parish church.  The village has one of the few surviving dame schools in the area. Dating from the turn of the 19th-century, it was built in the churchyard of St Michael & All Angels.   The small oak-framed building with a fireplace and leaded windows was in very dilapidated but has taken on a new lease of life, thanks to a £120,000 church improvement scheme.   “It was a ruin,” said villager John Walshe, who led the project. “The dame school was put up for the children of the Thursley. They paid a penny a week and an extra penny to be taught manners. “We had advice from Jo Thompson, an expert carpenter from the Weald and Downland Museum, and an expert surveyor, Bill Percy. The builders, Crozon, have also done us proud.” Original features, such as the windows, hearth and part of the lath and plaster have been preserved. Mr Walshe hopes to include an information board tracing the building’s history. “We’ve been able to put it to good use, and we will use it as a vital storeroom for the church,” he said. The Dame School today, 30th April 2024 FromWikepedia.org : A  Dame school  was a private  elementary school  in English-speaking countries. The children were usually taught by women. The schools were most common from the 17th century to the 19th century. Most of these schools were in  Britain , the  United States , and  Australia .  The  Statistical Society of London  found almost half of all children in Dame schools surveyed were only taught spelling. Few were taught mathematics and grammar. Dame schools became less common in Britain after the introduction of  compulsory education  in 1870.  The Dame School prior to restoration These photographs show the beautiful leaded light windows, some with stained glass. It was too expensive to restore them but they still remain behind the new oak cladding The Restoration Project: A Report on the Structural Timbers and Joinery of the Dame School at St Michael and All Angels Church, Thursley, Godalming, Surrey for Thursley Parochial Church Council by Joseph Thompson, Dip Surv , Sussex Oak and Iron, The Downland Gridshell, Weald and Downland Open Air museum, Singleton, West Sussex, PO18 0EU, February 2005

This article written by Jackie Rickenberg was published in the Parish Magazine in August 2021 After reading about Shepherd’s Cottage in last month’s article, Anne Treadwell, a Bowlhead Green resident, wondered whether we could shed some light on the origins and past residents of Emley Farm, in Bowlhead Green. Some of you may be familiar with this, now National Trust owned, property as it is one of the oldest and most prominent houses within the Parish of Thursley. The oldest portion of the Grade 2 listed Emley Farm is the rear section. It was a four-bay timber-framed smoke bay house with many characteristics of immediately post medieval period, circa 1550-1590. The remainder of the house is early seventeenth century, with the front porch being added in the later nineteenth century and then the timber framed bathroom wing added in the 1920’s. The bay window in the study is believed to have come from nearby Cosford House. The house also boasts one of the best-preserved bread ovens and a brick lined well 140 feet deep, the deepest in Thursley. Access to the well would originally have been at floor level and is now built around. It is said that donkeys were used to raise the water and they were reportedly kept in the cellar. The house has five bedrooms and bedroom 4 is known as the Witches Room as it was the dressing room used by the children for dressing up at Halloween. Outside there are wonderful barns, a granary and extensive farm buildings, used for the traditional mix of arable and pasture farming (although at the turn of the 1800’s, it was predominately a turnip growing farm). Emley was once part of Witley Park Estate and from the early 1800’s was lived in by the Loring family. A Loring daughter married Colonel Vesey and they lived at Emley until 1929. Emley was the Vesey’s country house as the following advertisement in the West Sussex Gazette of 31st July 1924 would indicate; “Cook and betweenmaid wanted end Aug. Cook about 30, betweenmaid about 15. Two in family; two in nursery. House-parlourmaid, nurse and nursery nurse kept. Town and country. Apply Mrs Vesey. (Two things. How employment law has changed and secondly, remarkable really that I have lived until this age without the services of a betweenmaid being essential!). Shortly after the Vesey’s left, the farm was then occupied by Mr Bertram Austin, a retired Royal Artillery Colonel who, tragically, had two prosthetic legs after being blown up in the Great War. In those days prosthetic li mb technology had, sadly, not quite reached the awe-inspiring levels it deserves today. It was reported that “Mr Austin never oiled his legs and every Sunday would squeak as he walked up the aisle for the service”. Despite his disability Bertram Austin went on to successfully race cars at Brookwood circuit. Col. Austin had bought a new Bugatti, directly from a Paris showroom and drove it back to his Surrey farmhouse. He was undoubtedly a man of some spirit as he had his new Bugatti modified to accommodate his disability, creating a hole in the scuttle and fitting larger pads on the control pedals. He left Emley in 1948 to live in Cornwall. Circa 1920's, Captain Bertram Austin racing his Bugatti at Brooklands. The author and lecturer, who lost both of his legs on the Somme, took part in the Spring meeting of the Junior Car Club at Brooklands (Photo by Popperfoto via Getty Images/Getty Images) Another resident was Dr Dennison, who bought the farm in 1953 for £11,000, later buying another two boggy fields, which until then had been part of Begley Farm. It was after his death in 1991 that Emley Farm was bequeathed to the National Trust and more restoration work was carried out. It is now available for rent and among the various domestic details about the farmhouse on their website, comes the warning “Long eared bats roost in the loft at this cottage. If a bat gets into the living room during your stay, please open a window to allow it to escape”! Incidentally, Emley was originally called Imbeleg in its early days. The first element is the Old English “imbe”, meaning a swarm of bees i.e., the place where the bees swarm. An aside. Whilst researching this article, I came across this hysterical article from the Nottingham Evening Post of 2 Nov 1919. COAT, NOT GOAT. COMEDY OF A TELEPHONE CALL AND ITS SEQUEL. Hello! Is that you? Please meet me the station -with the car, and bring a coat." Dench was chauffeur at Lower House, Bowlhead Green. Godalming, and, during a telephone call, was puzzled to hear his mistress (as he thought) request him to bring a goat to the station in the motorcar. As his mistress kept goats, he obeyed. But the strange cargo attracted the attention of the police, with the result that a summons was taken out against the faithful chauffeur for " moving a goat contrary to the Surrey Foot and Mouth Disease Order." The explanation was made to the court yesterday and amid general hilarity, the case was dismissed.

Silk Mill Cottage is a Grade II listed building (6th June 1978). It is only accessible from the A3 and shares a driveway with Warren Mere. Silk Mill Cottage at the time of its sale in 1978 Silk Mill Cottage was once part of the Warren Mere Estate. The pdf below contains details of the sales of Warren Mere and Silk Mill Cottage over the past 100 years or so: An unusual view of Silk Mill Cottage, probably in the late 1980s

This Grade II listed building (9th March, 1960) is situated on The Street. The Doctor on his rounds wearing his top hat The Robertson family in front of the Lodge with a tricycle Michael and Marion O'Brien, 1997 Surnames of previous owners include: Terry; Watson; Sadler Photograph by Sean Edwards

The Dye House is a Grade II listed building (9th March 1960) constructed of timber framing with brick infill and has a steeply pitched roof with gables and dormer windows. From Elstead Then & Now : The seventeenth century could well have marked a high point in the village’s (Elstead) prosperity as a small agricultural unit, as a fair was held on the Green on St. James’ Day. In 1666 there was a place called the “Dyehouse” out on the Thursley Road, the tenant being one Henry Peto. In fact it was on the right hand side, descending the hill into Thursley from Elstead. It may be evidence of the cultivation of woad in the area. Guildford, Godalming and Farnham were all centres of the production of kersey woollen cloth, and the importance of the wool trade in medieval England has already been mentioned. The “Woolpack” and the “Golden Fleece” (pubs in Elstead) suggest the importance of the wool trade in the area, and as late as the nineteenth century, Elstead still had a worsted mill. The wool trade was dwindling in importance by the seventeenth century in the area, however, It was concern for the plight of elderly weavers which led Archbishop George Abbot to found the almshouses, or hospital, in his native Guildford. Mrs Gooch of Dye House The Dye House,1900, was owned by Mr R Payne of Pierrepont Farm, Frensham, and later passed to Mrs Gooch, his daughter. The Rock Garden, 1938, - Smallbook stream was dug by monks living there around 1600. Alf Pullen, coachman to the Gooch family, lived at Brook Cottage which was changed from Ivy Cottage in 1939. Charles Weeden, chauffeur to Sir Bruce Thomas QC, 1929 Rolls Royce which had silver interior fittings. From Country Life issue dated June 11, 1953: Front and rear of Knight, Frank & Rutley particulars (undated): Interior of brochure:

Photos only. For further information: https://www.facebook.com/ThursleyCricketClub/ A Thursley Cricket Match in 1992, Thursley Gentlemen v Gentlemen of Thursley Back row from right to left : Robert Ranson; Richard Leet-Cook; Alan Traill; Malcolm Coles; Mike Spencer; unknown; Paul Gubby; Barry Rapley; unknown; Alan Staves; John Puttock; Julian Watt; Tony Tilson; Aubrey Karn; Alan Wells, Tony Cheeseman and Brian Karn Front row from left to right : two unknowns; Peter Goble; Peter Andersen; Anthony Langdale; Ant Hodges; unknown; Simon Treadwell; unknown; Tim Wakeley A colour photograph of the same event.

This Grade II listed building (28th October, 1986) is situated at the end of The Lane and is undergoing extensive renovation. It was formerly known as Cherry Tree Cottage. We are grateful to the current owner for supplying the report below that was prepared by the HCUK Group. 1912 2025 1912 1969 Surnames of former owners include: Winter; Twyman; Holman

Photographs taken by Sean Edwards Church Hill Cylindrical Tombs Garden of Remembrance Denyer Family Gravestones The Coffin Path Blacksmith's Tombstone Sailor's Tombstone The Chestnut Tree The Fallen Chestnut Tree with Audrey Ayres and Otto Jaenicke, November 1977 (photographer unknown) Weather Vane George Lambden's Tomb Other tombstones Tozer; Nevinson; Harbutt; Wilson The Bossom Memorial Churchyard Working Party in 2021 Saxon Window Glass Vestry Screen, 2009 Polish Lutheran Brass Plaque The Church in Winter

Out of the Past - Into the Future. This booklet was planned as a Jubilee Anthology, to contain an assortment of items from numerous inhabitants of Thursley past and present. It was introduced and signed off by Rosemary Stephens, Thursley Vicarage, Michaelmas 1980.

Derek Lutyens died in the service of his country in 1918. Some years ago, the bronze eagle on his memorial in Thursley churchyard was stolen. His nephew and namesake, Derek Lutyens, paid for its replacement. From the Lutyens Trust: A Lutyens Monument Derek Lutyens In the churchyard of Thursley in Surrey there is a monument marking the grave of my uncle and namesake, Lieutenant Derek Lutyens of the Royal Air Force, killed at the age of 23 on 8th May 1918. About 15 years ago the bronze RAF eagle that was its principal adornment, and not apparently firmly enough fixed to the stone, was stolen. This year it has been replaced and, it is to be hoped, the memorial restored to something like its former glory. As I only recently learnt, the design of the gravestone was almost certainly the work of my uncle’s uncle Edwin Lutyens. Derek Lutyens had transferred from the Royal Fusiliers to the Royal Flying Corps in mid-1916. He was not killed in combat but when serving at Farnborough with the Experimental Squadron of the RAF, as the RFC had become a few weeks before. This posting suggests that he was a talented pilot. The aircraft in which he died was apparently being flown for the purpose of pressure tests on its tail plane, and it was the failure of the tail plane that caused the crash. The civilian observer flying with my uncle was also killed. His body, at the time at least, was reported as not having been found. In the circumstances Derek was to have a memorial that is rather more elaborate than those of almost all the thousands upon thousands of his contemporaries who died in 1914-1918. Edwin Lutyens certainly rose to the opportunity, almost as if he realised it was a first rehearsal for the many memorial monuments he was subsequently to design. Restoration of the vandalised monument seemed a daunting task. I knew of no photograph of the stone in its original state, and had only my imperfect memory to rely on, while it seemed obvious that any authentic replica of the eagle would soon be stolen as well. Ultimately, however, through the Lutyens Trust, I learned that James Brazier, a member of the Trust, and Russell Morris, the Historic Buildings Officer for the Thursley area, not only had a photograph of the grave in its former state, but had been considering ways in which it might be restored. Respect for the monument’s setting as much as the attribution to Edwin Lutyens strongly argued for having a replica that was as close to the original as possible. In particular it should be of bronze. The problem of further theft came to seem more apparent than real when it became clear that all the bronze fittings on the stone, and not only the eagle emblem, had been poorly secured. Both the new eagle and its attendant inscription plates are now securely bolted to the stonework they once again satisfactorily adorn. https://www.lutyenstrust.org.uk/portfolio-item/a-lutyens-monument/ From St Michael and All Angels Church, Chiswick, WW1 Project: r y LIEUT L F D LUTYENS Lieutenant Lionel Francis Derek Lutyens RFC Died on Active Service 8 May 1918   Lionel F D (“Derek”) Lutyens was born at Maidnewton, Dorset on 19 November 1894, the eldest son of Lionel C Lutyens, b.1865, a Director and Land Agent, who was himself the third son of Charles Augustus Henry Lutyens, a celebrated Portrait Painter. Lionel (senior’s) elder brothers were Charles Benjamin (1853), Frederick Mansfield (1860) and Francis Augustus (1864) and younger brothers were Arthur Anstruther (1867) Edwin Landseer Lutyens, the celebrated architect (1867).  In 1871, the family lived in 16 Onslow Square.   Another brother, William Enderby was born in 1872.  Derek’s father had grown up (as had Edwin) in Thursley, Surrey.  At the 1901 Census, Derek was aged 6 and living with his parents, Lionel and Lucy at 4A Queen Anne’s Gardens, Bedford Park.  Later they moved to 26 Queen Anne’s Grove. Derek was educated at Elstree and Aldenham School.  It is not clear to what extent he undertook employment prior to the Declaration of War.  His attestation suggests he was undertaking clerical work, though later records state that between May and August 1914 he was employed with Mr J Henderson in an engineer’s office at 7 Mincing Lane, London. Derek volunteered on 29 August 1914 as Private, 10th Battalion, Royal Fusiliers, was rapidly promoted to Corporal before being sent for Officer Training.  He was gazetted T/2/Lieutenant on 15 December 1914 (LG page 10693), in the same regiment, and was promoted T/Lieutenant 18 March 1916 (LG page 3031).  He went to France with his regiment in 1915, and remained there as bombing officer until after the battles of Pozieres and La Boiselle.  He transferred to the General List about November 1916, and to the Royal Flying Corps in 29 March 1917.   He trained at the Royal Naval Air Service Training Station at Vendome in France, transferring to 64 Squadron as an Assistant Instructor in June 1917, and was eventually chosen as a pilot for the Experimental Squadron at the Royal Air Factory (now Establishment), Farnborough in August 1917.  His RFC record states that he had completed 3 years of training in Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, and that since joining the RFC he had undertaken 2 months work in Aerial Gunnery in Oxford and 8 months experimental flying on all types of aeroplane. Lieut. L F D Lutyens RAF was killed while on active service, on a test flight in Surrey on 8 May 1918.  He was accompanied by a civilian, D H Pinsent as engineer and observer on Airco D.H.4 A7671 at or near Maplesham Heath.  The machine was undergoing pressure tests on the tailplane which failed and the plane crashed and broke up at Trimley.  Mr Pinsent’s body was not found for several days until discovered floating in the Basingstoke canal between Mytchett and Frimley bridges. Derek was buried in the churchyard at St Michael and All Angels, Thursley, where three generations of the Lutyens family had lived.  The funeral was undertaken by Derek’s uncle, Canon William Enderby Lutyens.  According to the late Derek Lutyens, namesake and nephew, the memorial “...gravestone’s design is almost certainly the work of my great uncle Edwin”…“ In the circumstances Derek was to have a memorial that is rather more elaborate than those of almost all the thousands upon thousands of his contemporaries who died in 1914-1918. Edwin Lutyens certainly rose to the opportunity, almost as if he realised it was a first rehearsal for the many memorial monuments he was subsequently to design”. Derek’s executor was William Frederick Lutyens, Company Director, Derek’s cousin, the son of Frederick Mansfield Lutyens, also an artist, who had lived for a time at “Longcot”, Newton Grove, Bedford Park, and died at St Mary’s Convent and Nursing Home, Chiswick in 1924.  Frederick’s other son, Lieut. Charles John Lionel Lutyens died at Zillebeke on 3 October 1917 at age 21.  He had served with the 156 Bde., Royal Field Artillery.  Another of Derek’s cousins, Lieut. Cyril Arthur George Lutyens, Coldstream Guards, died at Passchendaele on 8 October in the same year and is commemorated at Tyne Cot memorial.  Lionel’s eldest uncle, Charles Benjamin also lost two sons:  they are commemorated at Bard College, Annandale, New York, being grandsons of its founder.  They are Capt. Charles Graeme Lutyens, 6/East Lancashires, killed in Gallipoli on 9 August 1915 and Major Lionel Gallwey Lutyens MC, 28 Bde. RFA was killed in action at Langemarck on 6 January 1918.   Thus, Sir Edwin Lutyens had lost no less than five nephews in the Great War. http://www.smaaawwi.org.uk/wwi/people/database-page/lieut-l-f-d-lutyens/ The funeral of Lieutenant Derek Lutyens from The Surrey Advertiser : From the Thursley Parish Magazine , June 1918:

Thursley School occupied the building that is now Thursley Village Hall. Here are plans of the Master's Resident dated February 1911 The file below contains correspondence and documents dating back to 1853 as well as a newspaper cutting dated 16th April 1960 about the village fighting for the recently closed school building to become the village hall in the face of Surrey Education's desire to turn it into a 'youth camp house. Thursley School, approximately 1880 Thursley School, approximately 1895. Edith Keen, sister of Jack, from Pit Farm (now Punch Bowl Farm), third row, third on the left. Edith married George Warner and lived at Sunset Cottage until their children grew up, when they moved to one of the Church Cottages. George Warner had a Kitchener moustache and had looked after the horses during the Great War in France. He took life easily although he had a good deal of work at Rock Cottage for the Fisher family. He ran the engine; groomed, harnessed and drove the ponies, cleaned the shoes and knives (not being of stainless steel, they were put into a sort of round box with a handle that turned); brought in the anthracite for the black stoves which heated the house and the coal for the kitchen range; milked and tethered the goats and looked after the field and garden. He was a very kind man and Mrs Warner, Mary Bennett remembers as a woman of uncommon goodness and sweetness. After her husband's death, Edith Warner lived with her daughter Dorothy (Issy) Messenger at Streetfield. Thursley School, approximately 1900 Thursley School, approximately 1904. Aileen Rapley, second row fourth on the left, in a 'chorus boy collar. Aileen was the daughter of Maurice Rapley who farmed at Hill Farm. Aileen became a school teacher. Thursley School, about 1914. Bottom row, third from the left, is Jim Gale, brother of Eddie. Miss Price is also in the picture. Miss Price married Jack Baker, brother of Annie, from Upper Highfield Farm and they lived initially at Hedge (now Rawdon) until they took over Wheelers Farm. Miss Price became a farmer's wife and had three children. Thursley School, about 1920. Betty Weeden née Baker, can be seen second row, third on the right. The headmaster was Leonard Moulding, Sidney's brother. Thursley School, about 1918-19, Aileen Rapley was the school teacher. Thursley School, about 1920. Third row, first on the right is Margaret (Mag) Cooper née Gale. Miss Price is also in the picture. Thursley School 1926. First row, first on the left, Marg Hall née Warner from Sunset Cottage. Marg was Edith Keen and George Warner's daughter and Issy (Dorothy Messenger), Marg's sister, is also there in the second row, fifth from left.