Show Posts

This section allows you to view all posts made by this member. Note that you can only see posts made in areas you currently have access to.


Messages - Carolynxyz

Pages: [1] 2 3 4 ... 29
1
Warwickshire / Re: Charles Lines Book of Warwick and the Brown Bear Inn
« on: Saturday 30 August 25 06:33 BST (UK)  »
How fascinating!  I'd never heard of John Byng before.  Cobbett, Young, Fiennes, yes, but not Byng.  I'd love to see his whole entry for Warwick, as this is the exact time John Plant arrived in the town.  I suspect he was also a publican between 1786 and 1795 before he took on the Brown Bear, likely in the St Nicholas area, as this is  the church where he and Rhoda baptized their children.  I know he had a garden on Southam St (1806 Survey of Warwick) but I'm not sure where this is/was.  I need to ascertain what inns/public houses were in the St Nicholas area, I think.

I found Byng's description of Stratford on Avon on the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust website.  This shows pages from his diary.  Beautiful.  The website also has this to say about Byng:
The Honourable John Byng, later fifth Viscount Torrington, was an aristocrat who had strong opinions on a wide array of subjects.  He hated injustice, cruelty, had no time for new-fangled fashions and loathed social pretenses.  His diaries offer his thoughts on everything from absentee parsons and landlords, landscape gardening, food, inns, and enclosures - all of which he seems to detest!  His candour and attention to detail give us a fascinating insight into life, travel and tourism of the times.  He may not have been able to take to Trip Advisor to voice his opinions, but he knew what made a good inn and a good breakfast.

He sounds quite a character, but being an aristocrat, perhaps his opinions about the Swan Inn at Warwick were somewhat biased to start with.  Thank you for bringing him to my attention.
Carolyn


2
Warwickshire / Charles Lines Book of Warwick and the Brown Bear Inn
« on: Friday 29 August 25 22:51 BST (UK)  »
Hello
Does anyone have access to Charles Line's Book of Warwick?  I have been researching the Brown Bear Inn in the Market Square, Warwick, because my ancestor John Plant was a publican there around the turn of the 19th century.  He was the occupier in 1795 following the death of the landlady, Elizabeth Ayres, and he bought the inn in 1797.  He put it up for sale in 1806, because he wanted to give up business due to ill health.  He appears in the Survey of Warwick 1806 as the owner/occupier of the Brown Bear Inn.  I have found a description of the inn in a 1797 newspaper advert, and it seems to have been a substantial building, with ten sleeping rooms, two kitchens, dining room and parlour, cellars, stables etc.  I have no idea what it looked like, though.

There is apparently a photograph at the Warwickshire Record Office (PH406/113) but I live in Canada so cannot go to the record office to view it.  I could order it but unfortunately I can't justify 30 pounds sterling for one photograph!  I have been told there is a photograph in Charles Line's Book of Warwick.  Can anyone confirm this, please?  If there is more information about it in the book, I might see if I can find a cheap second hand copy.
Thanks for any information,
Carolyn

3
The Common Room / Re: Find a Will Gov UK website problem
« on: Friday 15 August 25 18:06 BST (UK)  »
So, I have had two replies from the help desk, and it's a cautionary tale.  The first one said I had made a mistake with the registry.  It should be Principal Registry, not Worcester, they said.  They sent me a screen shot of my order, which showed that I had stated the Principal Registry!  The second response was a form letter:

Dear Customer.  We are currently experiencing some technical issues with our online ordering service, which are causing some customers to receive an error message when attempting to change their passwords.  Our IT team is currently investigating this problem, and it appears to be a temporary glitch that has affected a limited number of customers.  In the meantime, we recommend ordering a hard copy whilst we are trying to solve the issue.

Of course, as I pointed out to them, I have had this problem since 2022, so it is not a temporary glitch in my case.  Nor am I trying to change my password!   I will not be ordering a hard copy, because I live in Canada and cannot write them the cheque they say is how I must pay.  A banker's draft would make this expensive too.  I am not at all impressed with this service, I'm afraid!

4
The Common Room / Re: Find a Will Gov UK website problem
« on: Thursday 14 August 25 03:04 BST (UK)  »
So I just tried placing an order for a different will.  It's taken my payment, so now I'll have to wait and see if I get the will or a standard form saying the document is not found! Fingers crossed.  Thank you to everyone who has tried to help me with this problem.  It's now a waiting game.
Carolyn

5
The Common Room / Re: Find a Will Gov UK website problem
« on: Thursday 14 August 25 02:49 BST (UK)  »
How helpful people are.  I appreciate everyone's response.  I thought I finally had it cracked.  I used the government site, filled out the order form, including the folio number, and put the order in my basket.  I clicked on my basket and got the following message: "There is a problem.  HTTP/1.1500 returned - please contact your administrator."  Sigh! So where do I go from here, I wonder?!  I'll try it with a different order to see if that yields the same message, I think.
Carolyn

6
The Common Room / Re: Find a Will Gov UK website problem
« on: Wednesday 13 August 25 21:33 BST (UK)  »
Thanks, Garden Genie.  I am intrigued!  I just checked the Probate Calendar at Ancestry, and there is definitely no folio number.  Are you looking at a different Probate Calendar elsewhere?  Is there also a place for a folio number on the Find a Will application form that I am missing?  I am feeling a little more encouraged now.
Carolyn

7
The Common Room / Re: Find a Will Gov UK website problem
« on: Wednesday 13 August 25 19:03 BST (UK)  »
I have just sent an email to HMCTSWills@ironmountain.co.uk (hopefully this is the Help Desk) to see if they can shed light on the matter.  Fingers crossed I get a response and a way to get my will, though I'm not holding my breath!

8
The Common Room / Re: Find a Will Gov UK website problem
« on: Wednesday 13 August 25 18:09 BST (UK)  »
Thank you both for replying to my question.
Do either of you know about folio numbers?  The standard (rejection) form I received states "Folio numbers are only required where the date range is 1858-1930 and the registry is London or Principal Registry.  This implies that I should have provided a folio number, but the Probate Calendar entry for my Richard Franklin of Balsall Heath, died 14th Jan 1884, probate granted February 7th 1884 at the Principal Registry", does not have one.  Could this be the problem, do you think?  I accessed the Probate Calendar at Ancestry.  I am still unable to make the link at the end of the download notification to ask for help.
Thanks, Carolyn

9
The Common Room / Find a Will Gov UK website problem
« on: Tuesday 12 August 25 23:05 BST (UK)  »
Hello,
Sorry if this is the wrong forum for this question.  Over the last three years I have tried to order five wills from the UK Government website.  Only once have I been successful.  On the other four occasions, when I have been told to download the document, I get a form statement saying that the document could not be found and to check the details I provided for accuracy.  The details I gave came from the Probate Calendar and I know the information is accurate.  Has anyone else had this problem?  When I click on the Contact Us link for help with the order, no link can be made.  Any advice would be appreciated.
Thank you, Carolyn

Pages: [1] 2 3 4 ... 29