The Brook, Wokingham

[Galium]

If you are using Ancestry, on the census image page look above the image where there is a line like this:
You are here: Search > Census > UK Census Collection > 1901 England Census > Middlesex > Harefield > District 5

Make a note of the district number then click on the place name immediately before that.  It will list the district numbers with links to 'view description of enumeration district', which is what you want.

[behindthefrogs]

If you follow my earlier posting where I showed how to get from The Brook to All Saints Church then when you reach the centre of the town and bear right towards the church that is Peach Street.  Not long before 1851 it would have been Peak Street  originally in the 14th century called Le Peche Street probably after the Peche family.

The census location which you have described is The Brook.  I don't entirely understand the numbering because the low numbers you describe are further out from the centre of town beyond Lucas Hospital.  Woodcray Farm is today a pick your own farm.  All that I recognise of what you have described is on or just off the Finchampstead Road and all appear to be on the left hand side going out of town.

David

[JC1]

Thanks very much indeed for your help. It has been fascinating to hear all the details you have given about James and the town. I shall certainly try and visit Wokingham and the house in the near future and in the meantime I will try and orientate myself via the information which you have very kindly given in your previous postings. You mentioned in one of them that James was mayor in 1858. Do you have any more details about this?

[behindthefrogs]

I know no more about his time as mayor than I typed on the first page of this thread.  Next time I go to the library I will look to see if there is any history of Wokingham mayors.  Otherwise I would suggest a letter to the Town Hall which is in the Market Place.  This is the town council which should not be confused with Wokingham District Council.

David

[behindthefrogs]

It has been pointed out to me that prior to 1885 the Mayor of Wokingham was called the Alderman.  He was elected in the same sort of way as the current Mayor to serve for one year in the  year following his election. 

I say in the same way but there is a story that around the end of the 17th century the worthies who qualified for election sat around a table.  A louse was procured from one of their wigs and placed in the middle of a ring of beer in which each participant made a gap with his finger and the one whose gap it crawled through was elected.  This caused Wokingham, to be called Louse Town for many years.

Perhaps we should elect our modern politicians in a similar civilised way.

David

[behindthefrogs]

Pigot 1830 shows Jas. Wycross as a woolstapler and fell monger at Brook.  I am left wondering whether at this time he just dealt in hides and skins or whether he carried out the whole process.  The Brook as it then seems to have been called was sufficiently close to the running water that he would have required.

David

[Emmarine]

Hi David,

Another  poster fletcherhist (Jim) is doing a booklet on the Twycrosses for All Saints Church .

I am summarising a lot of the very good information on these posts, and need to ask each person if they object to me quoting or using the information with acknowledgement.
I was particularly grateful for the way you located Brook House,

will await your reply,

Chris
 

[behindthefrogs]

No problem.  Most of what I have posted is public information.  If he wants to contact me directly I am happy as I live just up the road from All Saints.  He will work out where.

David

[JC1]

Pigot 1830 shows Jas. Wycross as a woolstapler and fell monger at Brook.  I am left wondering whether at this time he just dealt in hides and skins or whether he carried out the whole process.  The Brook as it then seems to have been called was sufficiently close to the running water that he would have required.

David

I just wanted to give you a belated thankyou for finding this interesting information. Unfortunately I don't have enough knowledge on the subject to give a helpful reply, but hopefully the lady at the library may come up with something on Tuesday!

JC1