Factory. The public were frequently invited to come and see the working
of the machines. At the time appointed an improvised cottage was set on
fire; when fairly alight, the machines were brought to bear upon the
flames and with marked success. A man and his wife had charge of the
factory. One Sunday morning the man went out into the fields with his
gun, leaving his wife to prepare dinner. Soon after the composition
in the factory exploded, and immediately the building was enveloped
in flames--the man hastened back to save his wife, but failed in his
attempt to rescue her--the poor woman perished.
BRAYNE'S POTTERY for Stone-ware manufacture has been pulled down, on
the site adjoining is Laver's Portland Cement Works. The Lime Kilns
which had stood nearly two centuries have long since disappeared. The
Whiting Works which mark the site remain among the oldest structures in
this vicinity were established in the year 1666. At the entrance to the
Works stood the rib bones of a Whale which the proprietor fancifully
had placed there. One of the Whiting sheds formerly stood higher up
the river. Mr. Laver is the owner of these works. Where Lloyd and Co's
Manufacturing Joinery Works are situated were the house, timber yard
and premises, owned by Mr. Robbins, father of Mrs. Cooper, Dairy, New
Road. Near the spot where now stands the Royal Rifleman tavern, was
a timber dock. Moored close to the river's bank was a barge house or
cabin called "Noah's Ark." In the dock adjoining Noah's Ark was an old
steamboat said to have been one of the first that "ran" on the Thames.
The river about this part offered great attraction to swimmers and
became a famous place for bathing. Hayle Foundry Wharf, Nine Elms, is
now occupied by H. Young & Co., Engineers and Contractors, Founders,
Smiths, etc. Their Art Works are at Eccleston, Pimlico, and are noted
for casting the statues of Lord Derby, opposite the House of Lords;
John Bunyan, erected at Bedford; Wellington Memorial in St. Paul's
Cathedral, and (part finished) Sir John Burgoyne.
THE SOUTHWARK AND VAUXHALL WATER WORKS.--THE BOROUGH WORKS at St. Mary
Overies, in 1820, became the property of one J. Edwards, who in 1822,
also purchased from the New River Company the Works on the South side
of London Bridge, and combined both concerns under the designation of
the "Southwark Water Works." The whole being thus possessed by one
opulent individual. In 1805, several persons united to give effect to a
scheme for organising the South London Water Works (subsequently called
the Vauxhall) and by an Act of Parliament passed in July, 1805, they
were incorporated as a Company, with authority to raise capital for
attaining their object amounting to £80,000 in 800 shares of £100 each.
In June, 1813, another Act was obtained for empowering the Company
to raise a further sum of £80,000. The operations of this Company
commenced inauspiciously for their interests by reason of their having
originally adopted wooden pipes, and having then been compelled to
substitute iron in their place. The principal works were on the south
side of Kennington Lane, formerly Kennington Common, near to Vauxhall.
These companies experienced various vicissitudes in their progress,
until in 1845, when an amalgamation took place under an Act of
Parliament, to which we owe the creation of the Southwark and Vauxhall
Water Company as it now exists. The area of the district supplied
extends for about 13 miles E. and W., and 3 miles N. and S., the home
district stretching from Rotherhithe to Clapham and the suburban and
rural districts from Wandsworth to Richmond. Thus an area of 39 miles
south of the Thames receives a supply of water distributed to about
80,000 houses, having a population of 550,000. The Company's property
at Battersea consists of one Pumping Station, standing on freehold
land of some 50 acres, and six Cornish Engines, erected by Messrs.
Harvey and Co., with a total of 1,200 horse power; two Reservoirs of
about 10 acres, containing about 46,000,000 gallons of water, and six
filter beds, having an area 10¾ acres, with a filtering capacity for
1,300,750 gallons of water per hour. The Filters are to a certain depth
filled with sand, through which the water percolates, leaving the
impurities on the surface to be removed at pleasure. There are 18 fires
or furnaces in the boiler house, the daily consumption of coal is about
22 tons. The water at this station is pumped partly over a stand pipe
186 feet high,[1] and the remainder through an air vessel to a height
of about 380 feet. The Company have considerable property at Hampton
and Peckham. The Registrar General's return shews the Company possess
about 685 miles of mains and service pipes, 100 miles of which (mains)
are perpetually charged, and could be made available for constant
supply should circumstances render it desirable. _Office_, Sumner
Street, Southwark; _Chief Engineer_, Thos. W. Humble, Esq.; _Resident
Engineer_, Mr. John Sampson. Adjacent to the Water Works are premises
belonging to Harvey and Co., Machine, Hydraulic, and Mining Engineers
of Hayle, Cornwall.
[Footnote 1: A gentleman told the writer that this was vulgarly called
by the sobriquet of "Punch's Tuning Fork!"]
Fitz Stephen (William) a learned Monk of Canterbury, being attached to
the Service of Archbishop Becket was present at the time of his murder.
In the year 1174 he wrote in Latin the life of St. Thomas, Archbishop
and Martyr, in which as Becket was a native of the Metropolis, he
introduces a description of the City of London with a miscellaneous
detail of the manners and usages of the Citizens; this is deservedly
considered a great curiosity, being the earliest professed account of
London extant. He describes the springs and water courses which abound
in the vicinity of Old London as "sweet, salubrious, and clear," so
that all that the inhabitants and water-carriers had to do was to draw
water from the wells and springs, or dip their vessels in the pellucid
stream of the river which was fit for culinary and all ordinary and
domestic purposes. London then though considered a "Great City" was
as a small town when compared with its teeming population of nearly
5,000,000 which people its City and environs now.[1] Since that time
the Majestic Thames and its tributary streams have been so polluted
with sewerage and other deleterious and poisonous matter as to induce
some of the most scientific men of the age to consider not only the
desirability but the necessity of obtaining for London a pure water
supply. It is asserted as a fact that in England and Wales alone
upwards of eight hundred persons die every month from typhoid fever;
a disease which is now believed to be caused almost entirely through
drinking impure water, and Dr. Frankland, the official to whom is
entrusted the analysing of such matters reports "The Thames Water"
notwithstanding the care that is taken to filter it by certain Water
Companies is so much polluted by organic matters as to be quite unfit
for dietetic purposes.
[Footnote 1: The London Metropolitan District covers an area of 690
square miles--contains 6612 miles of streets. 528,794 inhabited houses;
Population (June 1873) 4,025,559.]
The first conduit erected in the City of London (Westcheap now
Cheapside) was commenced in the year 1235 but was not completed till
50 years afterwards (1285). The Citizens, who had to fetch their water
from the Thames often met with opposition from those who resided in
the lanes leading down to the river who monopolized the right of
procuring a water supply by stopping and imposing a duty upon others
who sought to obtain it. This state of things as might be expected
became unbearable and in 1342 an inquisition was made and persons were
sworn to inquire into the stoppages and annoyances complained of in
the several Wards. In the fifteenth century the authorities of the
City had erected New Conduits and had laid down leaden pipes. "In
1439 the Abbot of Westminster granted to Robert Large, the Lord Mayor,
and the Citizens of London, and their successors, one head of water
containing twenty-six perches in length and one in breadth, together
with all the springs in the Manor of Paddington for an annual payment
of two peppercorns." In the sixteenth century owing to the increased
population and the drying up of the springs other means of supply were
obtained in the neighbourhoods of Hampstead Heath, Hackney, and Muswell
Hill. An Act of Parliament applied for by the Corporation was passed
in 1544 for the purpose of obtaining from these springs an increased
supply for the North Western portions of the City. The scheme however
was not carried out until the year 1590 when another important source
of supply had been procured. In 1568 a conduit was constructed at
Dowgate, for the purpose of obtaining water from the Thames. "In 1580
Peter Morice, an ingenious Dutchman brought his scheme for raising the
Thames Water high enough to supply the upper parts of the City, and in
order to show its feasibility he threw a jet of water over the steeple
of St. Magnus Church, a lease of 500 years of the Thames Water, and the
places where his mills stood, and of one of the arches of London Bridge
was granted to Morice, and the Water Works founded by him remained
until the beginning of the present century." About the same time that
Morice propounded his scheme for utilizing the Water of the Thames,
Stow informs us that a man of the name of Russel proposed to bring
water into London from Isleworth. In 1591 an Italian named Frederick
Genebelli said that he could cleanse the filthy ditches about the city
such as the Fleet River, Hounsditch, etc., and bring a plentiful supply
of pure, wholesome water to the City through them, but his offer does
not appear to have been accepted.
"In 1606 nearly £20,000 was expended in scouring the River Fleet,
which was kept open for the purpose of navigation as high as Holborn
Bridge." An Act was passed in 1609 for bringing water by means of
engines from Hackney Marsh, to supply the City of London; the profits
arising from the enterprise were to go to the College of Polemical
Divines, founded by Dr. Sutcliffe, at Chelsea. At the close of Queen
Elizabeth's Reign an Act was passed empowering the Corporation to
cut a river for the purpose of conveying water from Middlesex and
Hertfordshire to the City, but nothing was done in this direction till
after the accession of James I to the throne. In 1605 and 1606 Acts of
Parliament were passed empowering the Corporation to bring water from
the Springs of Chadwell and Amwell to the northern parts of the City.
The Corporation transferred their power in 1609 to Hugh, afterwards
(Sir Hugh) Middleton, Citizen, and Goldsmith, who with characteristic
energy entered into the vast scheme which was effectually carried out
at an immense expense. On Sept. 29th, 1613 the New River was opened,
and London from this source received an abundant supply of water. The
New River Company was incorporated in 1620. The City was supplied with
its water by the conveyance of wooden pipes in the streets, and small
leaden ones to the houses.
Among the Records known as the _Remembrancia_ preserved among the
Archives of the City of London. London, 1878. Some curious particulars
are mentioned respecting the applications made by various noblemen
to be allowed to have pipes, of the size of a goose-quill, attached
to the city pipes, for the purpose of supplying their houses with
water. "In 1592 Lord Cobham applied to the Lord Mayor for a quill of
water from the conduit at Ludgate to his house in Blackfriars, but the
consideration of the request was postponed, and in 1594 Lord Burghley
wrote to the Lord Mayor and Alderman in support of Lord Cobham's
application. Lady Essex and Walsingham asked for a supply of water
for Essex-house in 1601, and obtained the Lord Chamberlain's (Earl of
Suffolk) influence to further their suit; but on June 8th, 1608, the
Lord Mayor wrote to Lord Suffolk that the water in the conduits had
become so low, and the poor were so clamorous on account of the dearth,
that it became necessary to cut off several of the quills. 'Moreover,'
he added, 'complaints had been made of the extraordinary waste of water
in Essex-house, it being taken not only for dressing meat, but for
the laundry, the stable, and other offices, which might be otherwise
served.' As London extended itself westward, and the City came to join
Westminster, the drain must have been great upon the water supply,
which was originally intended for a considerably smaller area. In 1613
Lord Fenton applied for a quill of water for his house at Charing
Cross, but the Lord Mayor refused to grant the request on the ground
that the conduits did not supply sufficient water for the City. Sir
Francis Bacon (afterwards the great Lord Verulam) asked, in 1617, for a
lead pipe to supply York-house, and Alice, Countess of Derby, requested
to be allowed a quill of water in the following year. This celebrated
lady, afterwards married to Lord Chancellor Ellesmere, lived in St.
Martin's-lane, and we learn from the City letter-book (quoted in the
index to the _Remembrancia_) the amount of water supplied to her was
at the rate of three gallons an hour. In subsequent years, we notice
among the applicants for quills of water the celebrated names of Sir
Harry Vane, Denzell Holles, the Dukes of Albemarle and Buckingham, and
the Earl of Northumberland." Cavendish and Watt demonstrated that water
is composed of 8 parts of Oxygen and 1 part of Hydrogen. In freezing,
water contracts till it is reduced to 42° or 40° Fahr. It then begins
to expand till it becomes ice at 32°. Water was first conveyed to
London by leaden pipes, 21 Henry III. 1237.--_Stow_.
So late as Queen Anne's time there were water-carriers at Aldgate Pump.
The Water Works at Chelsea were completed and the Company incorporated
in 1722. London Bridge ancient water works were destroyed by fire, 29th
Oct., 1779.
Commissioners for Metropolitan Water Supply appointed 27th April, 1867;
Report Signed 9th June, 1869; London supplied by Nine Companies. The
New River (the best) East London, Chelsea, Grand Junction, Southwark,
and Vauxhall, Kent, West Middlesex, Lambeth, and South Essex; who
deliver about 108,000,000 gallons daily, 1867; about 116,250,000
gallons daily, 1877.
In 1880, the Nominal Capital of Eight Water Companies was £12,011,320.
THE VILLAGE OF BATTERSEA lies on the south side of the Thames opposite
Chelsea, to which it has some historical relationship on account of its
having been the seat of our Porcelain manufacture and of Saxon origin.
It is situated about four miles South West of St. Paul's Cathedral.
Battersea is a polling place for the Mid-divisions of the County in
the Wandsworth Division of the West Brixton Hundred. Wandsworth Union
and County Court District, Surrey Arch-Deaconry, and late Winchester,
but now Rochester Diocese;[1] it is also within the jurisdiction of
the Central Criminal Court, Metropolitan Board of Works, Metropolitan
Police, and Wandsworth Police Court. The Parish is divided into four
Wards. Penge[2] lies in Croydon district detached from the main body
seven miles distant. The entire parish comprehends an area of 3183
acres.[3] Acres of the main body, 2177 of land 166 of water.--_Wilson's
Gazetteer of England and Wales_. In 1792, there were two places of
worship, viz., the Parish Church and the Old Baptist Meeting House
in York Road; the number of houses within the parish at that period
was 380. The following tabular statement will give but an inadequate
conception of the growth of the parish since then:--
Date of Year. Population. Number of Houses.
1831 5540 (Of whom 3021 were females)
1839 4,764 801
Main Body 1841 6,616
Entire Parish 1841 6,887
Main Body 1861 19,600 3,125
Of Entire Parish 1861 24,615 3,793
Ditto 1871 67,218
Ditto 1880 15,208
Including 13,202 in Penge Hamlet.
Main Body, not
including Penge 1877 79,000 11,500
In 1840 the rateable value was about £28,000.
In 1856 the rateable value was about £79,100.
In 1876 the rateable value was about £331,846.
In 1880 the rateable value was about £416,000.
Anno Domini 1658, the Hamlet of Penge, seven miles from the Parish
Church, contained twelve families. The Commissioners who were vested
with power to unite or separate parishes did nothing in this case, they
could not find a convenient place in the Hundred or County to unite it
to. The nearest place of public worship was Beckingham in Kent, about a
mile distant.
[Footnote 1: An alteration has been made in the Diocesan arrangement.
Since 1877, Battersea together with other parishes in East and
Mid-Surrey has been added to the See of Rochester, and therefore is
under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of that Diocese. The See of
Rochester was founded A.D. 604. St. Augustin or Austin (the first
Bishop of Canterbury A.D. 598). Consecrated Justus, the first Bishop of
Rochester. The See of West Saxons (afterwards Winchester, A.D. 705) was
founded A.D. 635. The first (arch) Bishop of London was Theanus, A.D.
176 (?). Battersea is now considered to be of sufficient importance to
be made a Rural Deanery, and Canon Clarke, the Rural Dean. Southwark
Archdeaconry. "Diocese (Fr. from Gr. dioikesis, administration and
dioikeo, to govern) the territory over which a bishop exercises
ecclesiastical jurisdiction. At first, a diocese meant the collection
of churches or congregations under the charge of an archbishop. The
name came afterwards to be applied to the charge of a bishop, which
had previously been called a parish. England and Wales are divided
ecclesiastically into two Provinces, viz., Canterbury and York, the
former being presided over by the Primate of all England, and the
latter by the Primate of England, each of which is sub-divided into
dioceses, and these again into Archdeaconries and Rural Deaneries and
Parishes. A Diocese is synonymous with the See of a Suffragan bishop."
(Chamber's Encyclopedia). In England, the Archbishop of Canterbury has
the right of crowning the King, and the Archbishop of York the right of
crowning the Queen.
Twelve years ago, the County of Surrey was divided for Electoral
purposes into three Divisions named respectively East, West, and
Mid-Surrey. At the time the Division was made in 1868 the Constituency
of Mid-Surrey numbered only 10,500. Now (March 1880) we have on the
Register 20,400 electors distributed in the following manner:--
Battersea Polling District 7,092
Coulsdon " " 152
Horley " " 465
Kingston " " 2,649
Reigate & Red Hill " " 1,271
Richmond " " 2,727
Sutton " " 1,975
Wandsworth " " 2,596
Wimbledon " " 1,606]
[Footnote 2: The Village of Penge stands adjacent to the boundary
with Kent, to the London and Brighton Railway, and to the London,
Chatham and Dover Railway near the Crystal Palace, four miles N.N.E.
of Croydon; includes new streets on what was formerly a common with
picturesque oaks; and has a post office of the name of Penge Bridge
and Penge Lane. The Chapelry contains also the Crystal Palace with its
Railway Station; and it ranks politically as a Hamlet of Battersea.
Acres, 840; population in 1851, 1,169; in 1861, 5,015; houses, 668;
population 1868, nearly 10,000. Villas are very numerous, and King
William 4th Naval Asylum, the Watermen's Alms Houses, and the North
Surrey Industrial Schools are here. The Naval Asylum is for decayed
widows of naval officers, and was founded by Queen Adelaide. The
Watermen's Alms Houses were built in 1850, at a cost of £5000, and
comprises 41 residences. The Industrial Schools is for the parishes
northward of the Thames, occupies a plot of seven acres, with farm and
kitchen garden; and at the census of 1801 had 748 inmates. The Chapelry
is threefold, consisting of Penge proper, and one formed in 1868. The
livings are P. Curacies in the diocese of Winchester. Value of Penge,
£750; of Upper Penge, £800. Patrons of both Trustees.--_Wilson's
Gazetteer of England and Wales_.
Penge, for ecclesiastical purposes, is a separate parish, and has its
own Overseers and supports its own poor. The Church of St. John the
Evangelist is a modern gothic stone structure with tower and spire. The
population of St. John's E. Parish in 1871 was 8,345, and the area is
500 acres. The Church of Holy Trinity, South Penge, to which a district
was assigned in 1873, is built of brick with stone dressings consisting
of chancel, nave and side aisles. The foundation stone was laid by the
Right Hon. the Earl of Shaftesbury, R.G., April 17, 1872. The Church
cost £7,500, and is capable of seating 1,000. The Register dates from
1874. The living is a vicarage. There are Chapels for Independents,
Baptists, and Wesleyans, and National Schools.]
[Footnote 3: According to the Post Office Directory of the Six Home
Counties, edited by E. R. Kelly, M.A., F.R.S., 1874, Battersea
comprises 2,203 acres of land and 159 water.]
With respect to the true etymology of the name Battersea,[1] it was
anciently written Battries-ey, and in Doom's-day Book Patries-ey,
probably a mistake for Patrice-ey and signifying St. Peter's Isle,
the termination ey, from the Saxon eze or ize, often occurring in the
name of places adjacent to great rivers; as Putney, Molesey, Chertsey,
etc. Battersea has a history dating from the time of Harold. At the
Norman Conquest it passed into the hands of William the Conqueror, who
exchanged it with the Abbey of St. Peter's, at Westminster, for lands
at Windsor.
[Footnote 1: Some of the old inhabitants of Battersea have a notion
that Battersea took its name originally from a great battle that was
fought in shallow water knee-deep when the river was fordable, hence
Battersea, Battelsea or Battlesea--as the name itself appears to be
somewhat shrouded in obscurity there may be some partial truth in this
oral statement though we are not acquainted with any authentic records
which warrant us to affirm that Battersea derived its name from this
circumstance.]