Monday Club History society news

HAVE YOU ever painted the town red? At our May meeting, Mick Rawle took us back to the source of the expression, with a potted history of Melton Mowbray.

pressive in Leicestershire.

Before Sir Malcolm Sargent went on to national fame as the principal conductor of the Proms, his first job was as organist there from 1914 to 1924. Nearby is Anne of Cleves’ House, which was built as a chantry house for priests but then given to Thomas Cromwell at the Dissolution of the Monasteries. Cromwell promoted the marriage of Henry VIII to his fourth wife, Anne of Cleves, but a divorce soon followed, Cromwell was executed and the house passed to Anne as part of the settlement. In 1550, some townsfolk purchased land to provide income for supporting a schoolmaster, lighting the streets and other good works, and the Town Estate that they created continues to run the Melton’s market and public parks to this day.

be sold at the Globe Inn in Leicester –so called because framework knitters used a glass globe filled with water to direct light to where they were working.

THE MONDAY club’s annual outing was on May 5, 2023.

It was a pleasure to be able to join in an outing for the first time since the restrictions of the Covid pandemic. We were so lucky because the day dawned bright and sunny and remained so for the duration of our trip, which was on a narrowboat manned by volunteers from the Peter Le Marchant Trust (PLMT).

Though the area was inhabited in prehistoric and Roman times, the origin of the town itself was in the Anglo-Saxon period. It was centrally located between the “Five Boroughs” of the Danelaw (Leicester, Derby, Nottingham, Lincoln and Stamford) and is first recorded as Middleton, which later became Melton. The suffix Mowbray comes from Bishop Geoffrey de Montbray, who was granted the manor – among many others – after the Norman conquest. (Geoffrey was also given the manor of Thurcaston but returned it to the king in exchange for Stanton under Bardon and East Norton.)

Melton was the only place in Leicestershire that the Domesday Book recorded as having a market so its history as a centre of agricultural trade is a long one. Cheese fairs were held regularly and of course, the town became famous for pork pies. They probably began as a convenient snack that could be taken out hunting but by 1900 the firm of Tebbutt & Co was shipping Melton Mowbray pork pies all around the British Empire.

Melton stands on the River Eye, which becomes the Wreake further downstream. Though a canal was built along its course during the 1700s and two railways arrived in the 1800s, it was fox hunting that really brought prosperity to the town. Its location at the junction between the territories of the Quorn, Belvoir and Cottesmore Hunts attracted regular visits from aristocracy and royalty. Mick has identified at least 17 “hunting boxes” or lodges that they built for use during the hunting season, though not all of them survive today. In 1890 a famous Midnight Steeplechase was held, with the participants wearing nightclothes, but unfortunately, the moon was hidden by clouds and the borrowed railway lamps were barely adequate to light the fences. Sometimes the revelry got out of hand, as on April 6, 1837, when a group of drunken “gentlemen” amused themselves by painting several doors, the sign of the White Swan pub and the town constables with red paint! The offenders were later fined the considerable sum of £100 each at the Derby assizes but their exploits entered the English language.

St Mary’s church was described by Pevsner as the stateliest and most im-

For our first outing of the year, members of the Society ventured across the city to the Wigston Framework Knitters Museum, where we received a warm welcome from their team of friendly volunteers.

During the 19th century, and despite the protests of the Luddites, wider frames were developed. They could not be accommodated at home so they were housed in frame shops or larger factories. Few of these frame shops have survived, though you can sometimes spot where they were by a row of windows just below the eaves of a building. The Wigston Museum is a rare “time capsule” showing what they would have been like. It comprises a master hosier’s house, with a separate building behind containing eight frames and a long bobbin-winding machine. There is also a stove, which not only provided heat but was also used to melt lead for setting replacement needles in the machines. Although Edgar Carter had closed his knitting business during the Great Depression, the government requested him to resume producing gloves for soldiers during the Second World War. He continued alone until his death in 1951, followed soon afterwards by his wife, and the frame shop has hardly changed since then. Our guide gave a brief demonstration on one of the frames that has been restored to working order.

Members and their guests gathered at the canal side moorings in Loughborough, the base of the PLMT and set off for a gentle and peaceful journey to Mountsorrel. The boat, called Symphony, looked very festive, with red, white and blue decorations in honour of King Charles’ coronation due to take place the following day.

We were served refreshments by the onboard volunteers and we were also entertained by “Rovin’ Ron” who sang, and played the guitar and the mouth organ, with a range of songs to which we could sing along, such as “Please release me!” and “It’s a long way to Tipperary!”. Great fun!

On arrival in Mountsorrel, we disembarked to take a delicious pre-ordered lunch at The Waterside Inn. Feeling suitably replenished, we re-boarded Symphony for the return journey to Loughborough. Both the outward and return journeys were enhanced by the beautiful scenery and wildlife.

Without exception, everyone thoroughly enjoyed the day and were already wanting to book again for next year! Many thanks to Diane Rouse for organising the day.

Our June meeting was a talk from Mrs Alsion Briggs from the Syston based charity Inter Care.

Alison explained that Inter Care is a small charity, founded in 1974, which was set up by Dr Rosenberg and Dr Patricia O’Keefe, when they realised that many unused medicines in the UK are wasted, and that they could benefit people in Africa.

The stocking frame was invented near Nottingham in 1589 and by the 18th century many agricultural workers in the East Midlands had a frame at home to supplement their income. Nottingham came to specialize in knitting cotton, Derby in silk and Leicestershire in wool. To produce each row of knitting on a frame required a sequence of eight operations using both hands and feet. The frames would typically be operated by men, with women making up the knitted panels into garments such as stockings or gloves, while children were put to work winding wool onto bobbins. Their products were taken to www.thurcastoncropstonhistory.org.uk

Mr & Mrs Carter’s two daughters carried on living in the family home and they took the opportunity to make a few “modern” improvements, like replacing the tin bath in the kitchen with a fully plumbed-in bath – still in the kitchen! But for the most part the house is lovingly preserved as it would have been in Victorian times, from the slightly oppressive Parlour – used only on special occasions – to the gadgets in the kitchen and the brass bedsteads upstairs. The Museum is open to visitors on Sunday afternoons. It also includes a small exhibition and delightful secret garden.

On the evening of Tuesday July 18, we will have a guided tour of Abbey Park. Please contact us through the website if you would like to join us.

From Thurcaston & Cropston Local History Society

They would collect them, check them carefully and send them out to groups they knew of there. Nowadays they reach up to 11 million people in Ghana, Malawi, Sierra Leone, Tanzania and Zambia.

They go to various organisations including health centres, dispensaries, schools for the disabled, orphanages and prisons, and are supplied free of charge. These usually come from pharmaceutical companies, not from private individuals. Inter Care always send two consignments to each destination per year. All the medication MUST be within its use-by date. Some African recipients are able to get medication from their Government, but sometimes the Government wants to sell certain medication which is not what the buyers want and need. Inter Care always ask what the recipients need, and aim to visit them in person every three years. Staff may have changed, and some may even have died!

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