Thursday, May 31, 2012

Sounds in the Park


Twinkle Park Trust are holding their annual Summer Festival Sounds in the Park on Sunday 17 June 2012 from 2-7pm. Twinkle Park, Borthwick Street, Deptford

Attractions this year include: Pond dipping, Portrait Stall, Arty Party - face marks, DJ Storm - Reggae and from 4pm to 7pm the Paul Zec Quintet all to be enjoyed with a cup of tea , coffee or a glass of Pimms.

And the unveiling of the latest and final improvements to Charlotte Turner Gardens for comment.


View Larger Map

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

1672 - State Funeral of the Earl of Sandwich


The picture above is instantly recognisable as a detail from Canaletto's The Thames on Lord Mayor's Day. In today's 'Independent' Adrian Hamilton about the forthcoming Diamond Jubilee river pageant  and refers to both the painting and the two well known state funerals (Nelson's and Churchill's) that took place on the river.

Not mentioned by Mr Hamilton, and almost entirely forgotten by historians, the state funeral of Edward Montagu, the 1st Earl of Sandwich went from Deptford to Westminster on 3 July 1672. Sandwich was Vice-Admiral of the Blue and at the Battle of Solebay his ship was attacked by a group of fire ships and was destroyed with the loss of many lives, including Sandwich himself, whose charred body was found washed ashore and only recognizable from the remains of his clothing.



The following report is from the London Gazette:

Whitehal, July3. This day was performed the Enterment of the Right Honourable Edward Earl of Sandwich, whose Body was taken up at Sea, after the late Engagement of His Majesties Fleet with the Dutch, in which this Noble Earl so extraordinarily signalized his Courage and Conduct that hIs Majesty out of a high sense of his Honour and Merit was pleased to order his Enterment to be at His Majesties expence; whereupon all things being prepared for the proceeding from Deptford, where the body was taken out of one of His Majesties Yachts, it was in the order following.

First, a Mourning Barge covered with Cloth, in which were the Standard and Guidon, born by two Gentleman of Quality, two Officers of Arms; Trumpets and Drums all in Mourning.

A second Barge also covered with Cloth, in which were six Officers of Arms in their Coats, bearing the Coats of Arms, Helm and Crest, and Sword, Targets Gauntlet and Spurs of the Defunct, the Great Banner being placed at the head of the Barge.

A third Barge covered with Velvet, in which was the Body covered with a large Sheet, and Pall of Velvet, adorned with Escutcheons, and an Earls Coronet Upon a Velvet Cushion at the head, six Bannerols being fastned On the outside of the Barge; at the head was the Flag of Union, and at the Stern six Trumpets with Banners, the top of the Barge was adorned with six Plumes of black feathers, and in the midst upon four Shields of his Arms, joyning in point, an Earl's Coronet.

The fourth Mourning Barge for the Chief Mourner, covered with Cloth without any Ornaments: after which their Majesties and Royal Highnesses Barges with divers others of the Nobility as well as the Lord Mayor, and the several Companies of the City; as the proceeding passed the Tower the Great Guns were discharged there.

In this order they pasted from Deptford, and about 5 a clock in the evening came to Westminster Bridge - where the Body was taken out of the Barge, and proceeded thence to the Abby in manner following.

The Marshals Men.
Four Conductors with black Staffs.
Fifty poor Men in Gowns.
Forty Watermen in Mourning Coats,
Drums and Trumpets.
Officers of Arms.
The Standard born by a person of Quality related to the defunct.
Servants to Gentlemen, Esquires and Knights.
Servants to the Defunct.
Trumpets.
Officers of Arms.
The Guidon, born by a person of Quality of Relation to the defunct
   
      Gentlemen, Esquires, and Knights.

Chirurgeon, Physitian, Secretary, and Chaplains to the Defunct, in Mourning Gowns and Hoods.
The Steward , Treasurer, and Comptroler to the Defunct, with white Staffs, in Gowns and Hoods.

The Bishop of Oxon.
Trumpets.
Sergeant Trumpeter.
Two Officers of Arms.

The Flag of the Union, and the great Banner born by two persons of Quality of Relation to the Defunct.

Six Officers of Arms bearing the Spurs, Gantlet, Helm, and Crest, Shield, Sword , and Coat of Arms.
A Coronet upon a Velvet Cushion , born by a King of Arms.
Then the Body, the Pall supported by four persons of Honor.
On each side of which, were the six Bannerols, carried by six persons of Quality, and of Relation to the Defunct.

After the Body, Garter Principal Kings of Arms, between two Gentlemen Ushers , preceding the chief Mourner, whose Train was born by a Gentleman, then followed 8 Earls Assistants, all in Mourning Gowns and Hoods; then divers of the Nobility, Privy Councel, and persons of Quality, according to their respective Dignities, preceded by a Gentleman Usher in short Mourning,

In this Order they proceeded to the West end of the Abbey, (through a double Lane of His Majesties Guard, who were drawn up On both sides the Streets,) where the Dean, Prebends, and Quire received them, and so up into Henry the Sevenths Chappel, where the Body was Enterred in a Vault, on the North Side of the Quire, which done, the Officers broke their White Staffs, and Garter proclaimed the Titles of this most Noble Earl Deceased.

Saturday, May 26, 2012

Chilling Meat at Deptford: 1891

This article appeared in the Queenslander newspaper on Saturday 8 August 1891
 
Chilling Meat at Deptford
About two years ago the first refrigerating chambers were installed at Deptford, the great English meat emporium. It is well known that immense numbers of imported cattle are weekly slaughtered at Deptford, but it may not be so generally known that the whole of the meat so killed is chilled before being put into consumption. Cattle and sheep imported from America and the continent of Europe are not allowed to leave the port, but mast be slaughtered there within ten days of their arrival. Immediately after slaughter the fresh sides of beef are attached to overhead lines and pushed along to the chill rooms, in which they remain for sixteen hours. The freezing atmosphere "sets" the beef and improves its keeping as well as its table qualities. So successful has this process been from a financial standpoint that the accommodation had to be enlarged twofold, and recently a huge and elaborate machine, the invention of Sir Alfred Haslam, the Mayor of Derby, has been fitted up. By means of this machine a continuous stream of cold air, from 70deg. to l00deg. below zero, is poured into the hermetically sealed rooms in which the freshly killed beef is hung. These rooms are lined with match-boarding, behind which is brown paper and a 6in. thickness of charcoal. The chill-rooms hold 800 sides of beef, and when thus cooled much waste is prevented, and it reaches the consumers in the primest condition. Some idea of the waste constantly going on in these colonies may be formed from the fact that at Deptford one bullock alone supplies edible offal sufficient for forty four people's dinners and a sheep for eight, the whole of the meat proper going to the central market. In the Australian colonies it may safely be said that scarcely a particle of this edible offal is used for human food, and that in a Brisbane slaughteryard, through which 100 beasts pass weekly, the matter going to waste would provide dinners for 4400 people in London; and the waste from sheep may safely be estimated at considerably over that, or in other words 10,000 of the poor of London could be supplied with a comfortable meal from the weekly waste of one Brisbane slaughteryard doing only a second or third rate business.

Source: http://trove.nla.gov.au/

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Pete Pope - Funeral Details

Pete in 2006 (Thanks to Dalva)

Pete Pope's funeral is to take place at 10.45am at Hither Green Crematorium on  Friday 15th June 2012 followed by refeshments at the Dog and Bell from about 11.30am.

Hither Green Crematorium
Verdant Lane
LONDON
SE6 1TP


The Dog and Bell PH, 
116 Prince Street
Deptford
LONDON
SE8 3JD


Flowers to ride with the herse need to be available at the Funeral Directors by 10am on the day or the day before anytime between 8:30am
and 4pm.

Constable & Toop 
Funeral Directors
589 Downham Way
Bromley, Kent
BR1 5HX
020 8695 1940

There will be a mass cycle ride from Deptford to the crematorium so get in training. (Participation in this bit is not actually compulsory, but if you do cycle on the day make certain you have decent means of securing your bycycle.)


Billy Jenkins (Guitarist, Composer, Bandleader, Performer & Humanist Funeral Officiant.... ) will be officating at the funeral. (Hopefully his teeth fit better than the last 'Humanist Officiant' Popey and I endured.)

I will tweet, fb and blog any updates, but you can join the Pete Pope mailing list by following this LINK and filling the form.


OBITUARY
Both in Deptford and further afield a number of us are embarking on the task of compiling some sort of record of Pete's nearly 63 years on the planet. The number and diversity of Pete's involvements in Deptford would fill a book, but little is known of his early years. This is not helped by the fact that the only things well known before Pete's arrival at Rose Bruford College some decades ago are his date of birth, that his father was a local journalist and that said father taught him the golden rule of spelling people's names correctly. But, having said that, Rose Bruford was Pete's entrance to Deptford and going by the photograph below it was quite an entrance.



Pete's class at Rose Bruford

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Gosterwood Street


This pleasing little grove of London Planes at the north-east end of Gosterwood Street, Deptford was planted in the mid 1970s after a short strech of the road from the junction with Evelyn Street was pedestrianised (see Order below). The closely planted London Planes create visual interest without a single leaf on the tree (the photographs were taken at the end of March).

Evelyn Street

The odd collection of Bollards is a LB Lewisham speciality, with different types put in at different times.

South-west

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Town and Country Planning Act 1971

THE CONVERSION OF HIGHWAYS INTO FOOTPATHS OR BRIDLEWAYS
(LONDON BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM)(NO.4) ORDER 1975.

Made 6 October 1975

The Secretary of State for the Environment makes this Order in exercise of his powers under section 212 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1971, and of all other enabling powers:-

1. Any right which persons may have to use vehicles on the highway described in Schedule 1 to this Order and shown edged black on the deposited plan is hereby extinguished.

2. Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 1 of this Order, the said highway may be used ‘by vehicles in the cases specified in Schedule 2 to this Order.

3. In this Order "the deposited plan" means the plan munbered "LH38/5024/9/07-1", marked "Highway in the London Borough of Lewisham", signed by authority of the Secretary of State and deposited at the Department of the Environment, St. Christopher House, Southwark Street, London, S.E.1.

4. This Order shall come into operation on the date on which notice that it has been made is first published in accordance with section 215(7) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1971, and may be cited as the Conversion of Highways into Footpaths or Bridleways (London Borough of Lewisham) (No. 4) Order 1975.


Signed by authority of the Secretary of State 6 October 1975.
G.E. ROWLAND
An Assistant Chief Engineer in the Department of the Environment


SCHEDULE 1
Description of highway to which this order relates
(The distance is approxiamate)


The highway to which this Order relates is in the London Borough of Lewiaham. It is shown edged black on the deposited plan and is a length of Gosterwood Street starting at its junction with Evelyn Street and extending south westwards for a distance of 27 yards.


SCHEDULE 2
Cases where vehicles are permitted to use the
highway described in Schedule 1 to this Order



Where the vehicle is a vehicle of any description and is using the highway:-

(a) for police, ambulance or fire brigade purposes;

(b) on behalf of a statutory undertaker or the Post Office and engged upon the laying, erection, inspection, maintenance, alteration, repair, renewal or removal of any main, pipe, conduit, wire, cable or other apparatus for the supply of gas, water, electricity or of any te1egraphic line as defined in the Telegraph Act 1878 under, in, on, over, along or across the highway or any land adjacent to the highway;

(c) with the permission or at the direction of a police constable in unifom; or

(d) in the service of the Lewisham LBC in pursuance of statutory powers or duties.