A-Z Challenge 2024: April 5. E:- Education

Cuckfield Free Grammar School was established by Edmund Flower, a merchant tailor and citizen of London, in about 1512. By his will of 1521 he left lands for the support of the school, which were later  augmented by others.   It was initially established for the benefit of needy children of the parishes of Cuckfield and Balcombe.  Fee paying pupils gradually came to predominate as the income became insufficient to maintain the schoolmaster.

In 1844, due to dissatisfaction with the teaching quality and high fees of the school, an Order was issued by the Court of Chancery to reorganize it along the lines of a National School. A separate National School, which had been established in the parish in 1812, was discontinued during this period. Among other specific changes, Latin and Greek were no longer part of the curriculum, the schoolmaster was no longer required to be a cleric, and fees for each child were capped at 1 shilling per week. Additionally, the vicar of Cuckfield gained financial control.

Between 1854 and 1910 the school acquired two cottages at the back of a house in Church Street in 1854, the house itself in 1872, and two more cottages in Church Street in 1885. In 1886 the National Society donated £15 and the school became a National School.

In 1935, plans emerged to construct a Senior Council School in Cuckfield, serving the surrounding district. However, this proposal faced resistance from those concerned that the church’s control over local education would be significantly diminished. A concession was made by the County Council that if a quarter of the construction cost could be raised through public subscriptions before June 1940, the new school would remain affiliated with the church. An appeal was initiated, but the outbreak of war postponed the plans.Any funds raised between 1946 and 1950 were either returned to contributors or utilized to establish the new Cuckfield Voluntary Primary School as an ‘aided’ institution with some level of church oversight.

In 1964 the school was again reorganised, under the control of the Chichester Diocesan Board of Finance.  In 1991, the Primary school was rebuilt on a new site and the Church took over the buildings as a church hall and administrative offices.

The Old School, Cuckfield (recent)

Visit my website, Cuckfield Compendium

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A-Z Challenge 2024: April 4. D:- Dinosaurs

 Dinosaurs ...... in Cuckfield?  Yes, dinosaurs were in Cuckfield!!

Iguanodon (source: Pixabay)

The ancient stone quarries to the north of the village, especially Whitemans Green, are renowned as the locations where some of the most significant early dinosaur fossil discoveries in the world were made. 

Gideon Mantell, who had been born in Lewes in 1790, son of a shoemaker,  He became interested in geology in his youth and was often to be found exploring pits and quarries in the surrounding areas.  He made fascinating discoveries: ammonites, sea urchin shells, fish bones, coral, and the remnants of ancient animals.  He had been inspired by Mary Anning, a pioneering palaeontologist and fossil collector, who had made a remarkable discovery in Lyme Regis, Dorset. She unearthed the fossilized remains of an animal that initially resembled a massive crocodile in the early 1800s.

Recognizing the limited knowledge about prehistory, Mantell, who was in the area in 1822, was determined to learn more. Sandstone was being extracted at the quarry for road construction. Mantell persuaded the quarry worker to provide him with all the fossils they discovered.  He made a groundbreaking discovery: fossil teeth that he later identified as belonging to an iguana-like creature. He named this dinosaur Iguanodon. 

Iguanodon, with its massive herbivorous lifestyle, became one of the iconic dinosaurs of the Early Cretaceous period, thanks to the keen observations and persistence of Gideon and his wife, Mary Ann Mantell.

His work on Iguanodon and the eventual identification of its skeleton marked the beginning of scientific dinosaur research.  Mantell went on to discover three more of the dinosaur genera in Cuckfield during his lifetime: hylaeosaurus, pelorosaurus and regnosaurus.  Many of his finds can be seen in the British Museum.

Mantell’s contributions to paleontology helped expand our understanding of prehistory and left a lasting legacy in the scientific community.

Visit my website, Cuckfield Compendium

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A-Z Challenge 2024: April 3. C:- Cottage Homes

The Cottage Homes in Cuckfield, West Sussex, have an intriguing social history.

Established on May 21, 1881, the Cottage Homes came into being when the Sergison Trust transferred Church Field, located on the west side of Cuckfield Churchyard, to Miss Mary Frances Maberly, daughter of a former Vicar of Cuckfield.  She oversaw the construction of three cottages. By 1882, the Homes were officially opened and dedicated by Holy Trinity Church, and residents began to move in. These homes were designed to provide housing for those in need within the community.

Between the 1880s and 1945, the Homes underwent minimal changes. They retained shared outdoor toilet facilities, lacked running water (except for the WCs), featured brick floors in the kitchens, and had no electricity. Additionally, at least one upstairs flat had access through the downstairs flat’s kitchen. Over the next 30 years, significant improvements were made, including the addition of indoor facilities and another cottage to the south. Electricity was finally installed and operational by 1955. It wasn’t until the late 1960s that plans were approved for internal sanitation and private bathrooms in all flats, along with the replacement of the brick kitchen floors.

The first residents were Widow Burtenshaw and her 2 daughters Sarah Ann and Emily Burtenshaw who occupied the 3rd Cottage.  Emily remained a resident of the cottages until late 1926 until she was admitted to the Infirmary and was not be able to return.  Other residents since have included widows Packham, Richardson and Wynter, Mrs Willetts, Miss Osborne, Miss Walker and Mrs Miles.

Cottage Homes, Cuckfield.

The 1921 census return shows that Miss Packham still lived there as well as Miss Osborne, Miss Pattenden and Miss Burtenshaw.

The1939 register shows that Widows Bromley and Miles and the Misses Jeffrey, Hayward, Fitzgibbons, Waller and Gubbins lived there. 

More information about the Cottage Homes can be found on the website for Holy Trinity.

Visit my website, Cuckfield Compendium

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A-Z Challenge 2024: April 2. B:- Brickwalls

As a genealogist, I believe that everyone encounters a brick wall somewhere in their family history, regardless of how far back they delve. While it is relatively easier to find information post-registration in 1837, many researchers face challenges when relying on parish records. These records encompass vestry minutes, baptisms, marriages, and burials.

Parish records document significant religious ceremonies within an ecclesiastical parish. These records provide essential insights for tracing family roots and understanding ancestral connections. Here are key points about parish records:

Types of Records:

Baptism Registers: Record details of baptisms, including dates and often parents’ names.

Marriage Registers: Contain information about marriages, including the names of both partners.

Burial Registers: Document burials within the parish.

Most parish registers date back to the 1600s, with some even stretching as far as the 1500s.

They offer glimpses into family life, community events, and religious practices over centuries.

Each entry in a parish register represents a moment in time—a baptism, a union, or a farewell. These records connect us to our ancestors and illuminate their stories

Whenever I come across register information, I make an effort to contribute to the relevant pages on the Cuckfield Compendium website:

Baptisms 1700s

Baptism 1800-1880

Baptisms 1880-1889

Baptisms 1890 onwards

Burials pre 1880

Burials 1889 onwards

Marriages pre 1880

Marriages 1880 onwards

While the records are not yet complete, I am regularly adding to them, making them worth exploring.

You can easily search for a surname across all pages on the website, and it will return a list of pages where your search name appears.

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A-Z Challenge 2024 : April 1. A:- All Saints Mission Room

The All Saints Mission Room stands on the outskirts of Cuckfield in Brook Street. Although it lacked a graveyard, it served the needs of the small community. Originally known as the Iron School Church, it was inaugurated on Advent Sunday in 1879 by the vicar of Holy Trinity Church, Rev. Francis Mount.

Nearly a century later, after careful consideration, services in the building were discontinued due to its dangerous condition. The dwindling number of users made the cost of repairs unjustifiable. The final service was held in November 1968. Affectionately referred to as the Tin Chapel, it transformed into a picture framers and art gallery after 1968.

All Saints Mission Room, Brook Street, Cuckfield.

https://cuckfieldcompendium.co.uk/

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