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CHAPTER VI.
CHARITIES AND BENEFACTIONS.
AT the end of the reign of George III, Commissioners were appointed to inquire into all the endowed charities of the kingdom, and in 1827 they investigated those in Nottinghamshire. It was found that some of those belonging to East Retford were quite lost, and others had been grossly mismanaged by the corrupt Corporation. In every case possible the charities have been recovered, and they are now under excellent management. About the beginning of each year, the Mayor, the Ex-Mayor, the Vicar, and the Churchwardens meet to apportion the gifts to such persons, without respect to creed, as they believe to be necessitous in the parish of East Retford.
A few are distributed by the Retford Charity Trustees.
The principal of some of the charities is in the hands of the Corporation, who pay five per cent, yearly. The others are now paid by the Charity Commissioners of England and Wales. By arrangement with these Commissioners they are now all distributed at the same time, notwithstanding that in some cases a special day for the distribution may have been appointed by the donors.
Particulars of the Charities are given below:—
Sir Gervas Clifton, of Clifton in the County of Nottingham, Knight and Baronet, gave to this Corporation one large Silver Bowl (gilt), one lesser Bowl, two Wine Bowls, two Silver Salts, twelve Silver Spoons and one Silver Mace.
Sir Gervas represented East Retford in the Long Parliament, and was High Steward of the Borough from 1616 till his death in 1666. Thoroton speaks very highly of him, saying:—"He was an extraordinary kind landlord and good master. Husband to seven wives."
The "lesser bowl" and six of the spoons mentioned above are no longer in existence, but the rest of the plate is still in the possession of the Corporation, and is used on state occasions. The largest cup is 12¼ inches high, and bears the date 1620, but it may have been made earlier than this. The the two smaller cups are of silver and are 5½ inches high. The salts are very flat and are triangular in shape. The mace is silver gilt and is 2 feet 43/8 inches long. It is an interesting example of a Commonwealth mace altered during the reign of Charles II.
Lady Frances Pierpoint, relict of Sir Henry Pierpoint, of Holme Pierpoint in the County of Nottingham, Knight, gave an annuity of Ten Pounds to be yearly given to ten of the most poor and aged people of this town, and appointed the then Chapter of Southwell and their successors Trustees for the same.
Lady Frances Pierpoint was the daughter of Sir William Cavendish and Bess of Hardwick, and was living during the reign of Charles I. Her Brother, the Earl of Devon-shire, was patron of the Church of East Retford at that time. The money is now paid by the Charity Commissioners.
Sir George Savile, of Rufford in the County of Nottingham, Baronet, Marquess of Halifax, gave to the re-building of this Church the sum of Twenty Pounds.
This Lord Halifax was the famous statesman who died in 1695, and of whom Macaulay has given such a brilliant account. He lived at the time when Whig and Tory were becoming the names of opposing parties, but refusing to bind himself to either, he gloried in the title of Trimmer. Though England must be grateful to him as a high-minded statesman, the people of Nottinghamshire must regret that he pulled down most of the ancient Abbey of Rufford, and built in its place the present house which goes by that name.
The Right Hon. John Earl of Clare, of Haughton in the County of Nottingham, gave also Twenty Pounds.
This was the Earl of Clare to whom the Grammar School lands were sold by the Corporation to get money to re-build the Church. He was one of the family of the Holles, of Haughton, many of whom are said to be buried in the ruined chapel near Bothamsall. He represented the Borough of East Retford in several parliaments, and was the brother of Denzil Holles, one of the five members whom King Charles I. attempted to arrest in 1642.
The Right Hon. George Viscount Castleton, of Satidbeck in the County of York, gave a good quantity of stone, by which the inhabitants were able to finish so good a work.
It is to be regretted that Viscount Castleton was quite so generous with his stone, as he pulled down much of Roche Abbey in order to obtain it. There is preserved in the parish books at Bawtry, a petition from the inhabitants of that town sent to Lord Castleton in 1712, asking for stone to build their own tower. The following is an extract from this petition:—"And your Lordship being the owner of the late ruinous Abby called Roach Abby, and we being well in-formed that your Lordship hath formerly very nobly and generously given part of the stone of the said abby to the townes of East Retford and Babworth and others in this neighbourhood towards the repair of their churches and steeples wee therefore etc."
Sir Edward Neville, of Grove in the County of Nottingham, Baronet, gave to this Corporation a very stately Silver Mace to be borne before Mr. Senior Bailiff.
Sir Edward represented East Retford in several parliaments between 1678 and 1687, and did much for the town.
He gave the larger of the two maces which belong to the town. It is silver gilt, 3 feet 113/8 inches long, surmounted by an arched crown with the orb and cross. It is decorated with roses, thistles, lilies, acanthus leaves, etc., and bears the date 1679. There is a copy of this mace in the South Kensington Museum.
Sir William Hickman, of Gainsborough in the County of Lincoln, gave to this Church two large Silver Flagons, one large Chalice with cover, one large Salver for the Communion Plate.
Sir William represented East Retford in all the parliaments of Charles II. The above mentioned gifts are described under the altar vessels, but only one of the flagons is now in existence.
William Clarke, of Walkeringham in the County of Nottingham, gave by his last will Three Pounds to be distributed by equal portions at Lady Day and Michaelmas yearly, to three aged poor people of honest behaviour of this town, which stun is to be paid by his heirs forever out of his lands at Gainsborough, Morton, and Walkrith, in the County of Lincoln, and the Ministers and Churchwardens are authorized by the said will to enter and distrain upon the said lands in case the said sum be not paid accordingly.
This money was originally given in 1621, and is still paid every year to the vicar and churchwardens by the tenant of the farm at Little Morton Carr, near Gainsborough.
Richard Sleswick, of this town, Gentleman, gave all his Lands and Tenements what-soever lying here or in West Retford, to the building and maintaining an Hospital for three poor men of this town, to be chosen by the Bailiffs and Aldermen for the time being, who are by decree of Chancery appointed Trustees for the same.
Richard Sleswick (or Sloswick) died in 1657, and part of the property which he left was his house in Churchgate, which he directed to be turned into a Hospital called Mese de Dieu (House of God). The present building was erected in 1806. It accommodates six old men who may be married, and may have their wives live with them, but these have to turn out when their husbands die. Each man receives twenty-six shillings a month, and four tons of coal during the year.
John Smith, of Worksop in the County of Nottingham, gave to this town Four Pounds, in consideration that the Bailiffs for the time being pay yearly unto the Churchwardens eight shillings to be distributed upon the Feast of St. Thomas, Apostle, and upon Good Friday to the most poor and impotent people of this town, at the discretion of the Minister and Churchwardens for the time being. This Charity is lost.
JOSEPH Coulby, of this town, Tanner, gave Five Shillings to be paid yearly to the Churchwardens for the use of this Church, and Five Shillings more to be paid yearly to the Overseers of the Poor for the use of the poor, and charged a Dwelling House of his on the south side of the Church for the payment of the same.
This Charity is lost.
William Haughton, late Minister of Ordsall in the County of Nottingham, gave several tenements and lands situated and lying in the town and parish of Ordsall, to the Free School of this town, and appointed the then Bailiffs and Burgesses and their successors Trustees for the same, that they should out of the rents and profits thereof annually pay unto the Head Schoolmaster the sum of four pounds upon the First of January, and the remainder of the rents and profits to the Usher.
William Haughton was Rector of Ordsall, and died in 1673. The Corporation on several occasions seem to have exchanged some of the land which he left for other land more conveniently situated, and in 1827 they possessed, under the above trust, over ten acres of land in Ordsall, consisting of three fields. This was sold about 1855, and the money was used for the building of the present school.
William Wharton, of this town, Gentleman, gave to the honest poor people thereof, the sum of Forty Pounds, and appointed the then Bailiffs and Aldermen, Minister, and their successors Trustees, enabling them to dispose of it to the best advantage, and the rent or interest to be by them annually distributed.
William Wharton was uncle to the George Wharton who gave the next Charity, so would be living about the beginning of the 18th century. The Charity brings in about £2,which is paid by the Corporation.
George Wharton, of this town, Gentleman, gave One Close in Dominie Cross to the Head Master of the Free School to read the Common Prayer on every Sunday in the afternoon in the Church of East Retford, and also Five Pounds per annum out of his estate in Little Gringley, for the teaching and clothing five poor boys of this parish, not being the sons of freemen, for ever. And also gave Fifteen Penny Loaves to be given every monthly Communion for ever, and appointed John Simpson, fames Wharton, Gentlemen, and Thomas Gylby, Vicar, Trustees for the same.
George Wharton's will was proved in 1729, but there is no mention in it of any of the above gifts. The close in Dominie Cross was divided into plots, and the last plot was sold in 1903. It is now covered with houses, and is known as Wharton Street, Newtown. The purchase money is in the hands of the Charity Commissioners, and the sum of £24 13s. 8d. is still paid by them every year to the Head Master of the Grammar School for his services at East Retford Parish Church.
The other Wharton Charities are lost.
Stephen Rose, of this town, Gentleman, painted and gave the History of the Last Supper for the adorning and beautifying of the chancel.
This picture, as has been said above, is now hanging in the chantry.
Mrs. Hannah Saltmarsh, daughter of Mr. John Smeaton, Alderman of this town, gave towards the repairs and amendments of this Church, the sum of One Hundred Pounds, Thirty Pounds towards the teaching of the poor children, and Twenty Pounds for the use of the poor, to be distributed at the discretion of the Vicar.
Mrs. Saltmarsh was the daughter of John Smeaton, who was Junior Bailiff when the roof was put on the Church in 1656, and whose name is on one of the beams of the south transept. The thirty pounds given for the teaching the poor children seems to be lost, but the other sum brings in one pound a year, which is paid by the Corporation.
Mrs. Sharpe, of this town, gave the interest of Twenty Pounds, now in the hands of the Corporation, to be distributed to the poor by the Senior Bailiff.
This brings in about nineteen shillings yearly, and is in the hands of the Retford Charity Trustees.
Mrs. Barbara Moody, of this town, gave in the year 1726, the sum of Twenty-four Pounds, the use of which is to be distributed upon the Feast of St. Mark for ever, amongst six of the poorest widows of this town, at the discretion of the Vicar and the Senior Bailiff for the time being.
This brings in £14s. 0d. a year, which is paid by the Corporation.
Robert Sutton gave in the year 1776 an Organ and a Bell to the Church, Two Hundred Pounds towards procuring the Queen's bounty, and the dividend of a Share in the Canal to the poor of East Retford for ever.
An account of Robert Sutton is given under the Monuments. The canal now belongs to the Great Central Railway Co., and the money for which the share was sold is in the hands of the Charity Commissioners, who pay the Vicar about £2 17s. 4d. a year for distribution to the poor.
Till the Reformation the First Fruits and the Tenths of Ecclesiastical Benefices were paid to the Pope, but from the reign of Henry VIII they formed part of the revenues of the Crown, till Queen Anne applied them to the augmentation of the livings of the poorer clergy, under the title of Queen Anne's Bounty. In certain cases the bounty could be obtained to the value of £200, only if as much again were procured from other sources, so that Robert Sutton gave his £200 in order that there might be a grant of an equal sum from the Queen's bounty.
The living still draws £21 a year from this source.
Mr. Alderman George Poplewell, by will in 1784., gave into the hands of the Corporation of Retford, Fifty Pounds, the interest to be distributed by the Bailiffs annually to the poor of this parish.
This brings in about £2 7s.6d. a year, and is in the hands of the Retford Charity Trustees.
Mrs. Sarah Brown, of Sheffield, by will in 1795, gave into the hands of the Corporation of Retford, Twenty Guineas, the interest to be applied for the teaching of two poor girls in readitig and needlework.
In future the interest of this money will provide every year two prizes for needlework, of the value of ten shillings each, one to go to the girls of the National, and the other to go to the girls of the Wesleyan School.
Mrs. Ann Woolby, in 1812, gave by will to the Bailiffs of this town an annuity of Six Pounds Thirteen Shillings and Four Pence, charged upon two closes in Clarborough Parish, called Longholme, to be distributed by the Vicar to twenty of the oldest and poorest widows or single women of East Retford every Christmas.
As Mrs. Woolby died within a year of making her will, the gift was void under the Statute of Mortmain (9 Geo. II, c. 36).
Thomas Welch, by will bearing date the 25th April, 1818, gave to the Minister and Bailiffs of East Retford the interest to arise from the sum of One Hundred Pounds, to be by them distributed to ten poor widows of the Parish of East Retford for ever at Christmas.
The Corporation pay £5 a year as interest on the above sum.
Jonathan Minnitt, by will bearing date 28th December, 1815, directed his executor to pay into the hands of the Vicar and Churchwardens the sum of One Hundred and Fifty Pounds, the interest of which to be paid towards the preaching of a sermon immediately after evening service in the Church of East Retford, and in the case of neglect or refusal to perform the same, he directed that the Vicar and Churchwardens should distribute the money amongst such of the poor Inhabitants of this Parish as they should deem proper objects.
This produces about four guineas per annum, which is paid to the Vicar. No evening service was begun till 1824, nine years after Minnitt's death.
Beaumont Marshall, by will bearing date the 23rd September, 1825, gave the interest of One Hundred Pounds, to be paid by the Vicar and Bailiffs of East Retford in equal shares to ten poor families at Christmas for ever.
This is the Beaumont Marshall to whom there is a mural monument in the south transept. The Charity brings in £5 yearly, which is paid by the Corporation.
Joseph Ginever, by will bearing date 23rd fune, 1826, bequeathed to the Vicar and Bailiffs of East Retford, the interest to arise from the sum of Three Hundred Pounds to be by them applied to the use of the poor women of East Retford for ever.
This brings in about £8 12s. od., which is paid by the Charity Commissioners.
MR. John COTTAM bequeathed Two Hundred Pounds to the Vicar and Churchwardens of East Retford for the benefit of the poor of the parish.
This Charity brings in about £5 16s. 0d. a year, which is paid by the Charity Commissioners.
Miss Ann Flint Otter (died 1868) bequeathed Fifty Pounds to the Vicar and Churchwardens of East Retford for the benefit of the deserving poor of the parish.
This Charity brings in £1 9s. 4d. a year, which is paid by the Charity Commissioners.
Mr. William Mee (died 1874.) bequeathed Two Hundred Pounds to the Vicar and Churchwardens of East Retford for the benefit of the poor of the parish.
Mr. Mee was a doctor in Retford, and was the brother of Mr. John Mee, the founder of the firm of lawyers, Mee & Co. The Charity brings in £5 18s. 8d. yearly, and is paid by the Charity Commissioners.
Mr. William Newton (died 1885) bequeathed Three Hundred Pounds, the income thereof shall on the 29th day of May and the 21st day of December be distributed amongst ten poor widows in the parish of East Retford, as the Mayor, the Town Clerk, and the Vicar of East Retford for the time being shall from time to time determine.
Mr. William Newton was town clerk of Retford for nearly 45 years, and resigned office in 1876. The Charity, which is known as the Town Clerk's Charity, brings in about £710s. 0d. yearly, and is under the control of the Charity Commissioners.
MRS. Overend left Five Hundred Pounds to the Vicar and Churchwardens of East Retford, the income of which is to be distributed among the poor of the parish.
Mrs. Overend died in 1897. She was the wife of Mr. W. Overend, Q.C., and lived for many years at West Retford House. It was she who gave the workshop and chemical laboratory to the Grammar School. The Charity, which is under the control of the Charity Commissioners, brings in £112s. 0d. a year.