Wednesday 16 November 2016

Last Post From Pinner

My friend Rick went back to Pinner the other week, for the first time in over half a century. He said he recognised much of the old place- although his kindergarten was now an Abbeyfield OAP home. He visited the Heath Robinson Museum [and proclaimed it to be very interesting] and saw the coffin in the air.
He kindly lent me his History of Pinner [plus the leaflet from the H-R Museum] to read, so I have brought them away to the WWDP confer ence with me. After a day studying Suriname, an evening perusing Pinner seems a good change of scenery. Mind you,  Rick did  imply that the book wasn't exactly a riveting read. 
So, what do I make of Patricia Clarke's book? Bizarrely the Amazon listing says the author is Bob Clarke, who did write other history books, but is definitely not the lady pictured inside the back cover. Amazon does credit her with other Pinner books though.
Well...it is meticulously documented facts about personages and properties in Pinner - from Saxon times up to the end of the twentieth century. Clearly a lot of work went into the book,  but I  was a little disappointed. I wanted some more interesting facts about Isabella Beeton,  or Horatia Nelson,  daughter of the admiral. The lists of names of householders may be of interest to genealogists,  but didn't really excite me. And sadly the book stops too soon,  so misses all the later famous people of the parish. I didn't dislike the book,  but wished it could have been jollied up a little.  Only ** I am afraid. However I did like the picture of two  WW1  Soldiers. One was named as Private Godfrey  [don't tell him,  Pike] 
For no particular reason,  two photos taken in the chapel at Hothorpe  before last night's evening prayers 
I have yet to find out what  Gripe Griffin Hold 
Fast means. All a bit  Hogwart 's if you ask me





2 comments:

  1. Gripe Griffin (Hold Fast) is the motto of the de Trafford family (of Old Trafford). Quite what it is doing at Hothorpe Hall, I don't know. Gripe Griffin simply means hold fast. Nothing to do with Gryffindor!

    ReplyDelete
  2. That makes sense. The Trafford family bought Hothorpe in 1880.

    ReplyDelete

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