Tentercroft in Broad Street is a large Victorian building situated to the north of Broad Street, opposite the car park in the centre of Cuckfield. It has an attractive street frontage, complete with a steep grassed garden and several mature trees. The 1875 map of Cuckfield labels this location with the words British School for Boys and Girls underneath the name Tentercroft.
The British School for Boys and Girls were non-denominational institutions established in the 19th century to provide education to children from working-class families.
It is the birthplace of Charles Silvester Horne, a Liberal MP for Ipswich, a renowned orator and prominent Congregational minister. He was born in the eastern portion of Tentercroft on April 15, 1865. At that time, the building was divided into two distinct houses. Silvester Horne's father, Rev. Charles Horne, was the minister of the Ebenezer Chapel where Silvester was baptized. The Chapel was later replaced by the Congregational Church, a building which is still there and now a dental surgery.
Charles Silvester Horne was the father of Kenneth Horne, the radio comedian. Kenneth was only 7 years old when his father died abroad, in 1914. Silvester Horne's legacy includes his contributions to the Free Church movement and his work as an author and preacher. He later became the Superintendent of Whitefield's Central Mission in London, where he was known for his dynamic sermons and social activism.
In 1911 and 1921 the national census records that Tentercroft was inhabited by Mary Agneta Cooper with her daughter Mary Helen Cooper.
In 1909 the property was inhabited by Lieutenant Colonel Woods and his wife. A newspaper report in the Brighton Gazette tells of a theft case that was taken in the Haywards Heath Petty Sessions, involving Mary Louisa Bowdage, also known by the aliases Naylor and Vivian. Bowdage, described as a fashionably dressed young woman, stood accused of stealing four £5 banknotes from Tentercroft, the residence of Lieutenant-Colonel Woods and his wife, Mrs. Woods, in Cuckfield. The stolen notes, originally drawn from the Post Office Savings Bank, were meant to be sent to Clonsilla, Dublin, in a registered envelope but went missing.
Mrs. Woods later discovered the absence of the notes from her writing desk in December. Investigations revealed that the banknotes had been circulated through various establishments. Witness accounts played a key role in piecing together the narrative. Frederick Hoadley, a grocer in Cuckfield, testified to exchanging a £5 note for Bowdage, known locally as Mrs. Naylor, and depositing it into his firm's bank account. Henry Holden, a booking clerk previously stationed in Haywards Heath, recalled cashing a £5 note for a passenger. Additionally, Ethel Holland, a shop assistant in London, stated that Bowdage had used another of the notes for purchases under the name Mrs. Naylor of Tentercroft, Cuckfield.
The investigation extended beyond Cuckfield, with Police Sergeant Suter tracing Bowdage to London. She was apprehended at a boarding house in Bedford Place, Whitehall, where various incriminating items, including an envelope and cheques, were discovered. The arresting officer noted that Bowdage had written her name on a bank passbook to appear as though she had money. During her transfer to prison, she admitted to taking the notes, citing a compulsive inclination to steal. She expressed regret and revealed a troubling history of theft, including an earlier incident involving a prayer book. Bowdage expressed concern about her inability to break the habit, mentioning a desire to live under stricter conditions, such as in a convent or home, to avoid further criminality.
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