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Alfred George Goddard - his Life and Times

The Victorian definition of the middle class was "'those who do not have to earn their living by manual labour" and their definition of the gentry and aristocracy was "those who do not have to work".[1] In Victorian times, the "middle classes" expanded hugely. This increase was partly for demographic reasons, but upwards mobility and better education were also factors.

Alfred George Goddard went to London as one of the rural poor, worked his way up in a small business, had a combination of luck and merit which meant that the business was assigned to him, and made sufficient money to purchase property, land, and motorised vehicles. His story has been reconstructed largely from public, family, and company records, and the background built up from published works.

Alfred's parents

Alfred George Goddard was born on 20th August 1865, the eleventh child of a master carpenter/builder. His parents lived all their lives in Finchampstead, a village in the Blackwater Valley in Berkshire. Alfred's father, George (1826 - 1902), began working life as an agricultural labourer. Although there was no regular school-house in Finchampstead then, George was literate. Alfred's mother, Ann (1826 - 1903), wasn't able to write. However, she was very good at raising children. Starting when she was nineteen, she had a child every couple of years, and all eleven of them reached adulthood.

In 1861, George was recorded on the census as "builder employing 8 men". This made him - at that moment - the biggest employer in the district after the 3 landowners, but he was still very definitely one of the villagers, not one of the gentry [13]. The "gentry" comprised only the families of the three landowners of East Court, West Court, and Banisters, and the "middle classes" really comprised only the families of the Rector and the Curate. There is a schoolteacher listed, but her prime function seems to have been housekeeper for the butcher, in whose home she lived.

By 1891, George worked as carpenter/postmaster. His death certificate shows him as a master carpenter.

Finchampstead

The total number of people living in Finchampstead didn't change much in the later half of the nineteenth century. It rose from 616 in 1851 to 666 in 1901. In some ways, Finchampstead was not typical of these times. It is clear from the census returns that many people had long lives, their families were often large, and infant mortality was relatively low. Undoubtedly this was in part due to physical conditions in the village, but the general attitude of social responsibility and practical help will have contributed. Finchampstead seemed to attract philanthropists.

In 1663 Henry Lucas left an annual sum for needy old people in the district [2]. John Walter of '"The Times" (1776-1847), campaigner against the Poor Law Commission, owned property in the area. His son, John Walter (1818 - 1894), owned East Court in Finchampstead, and, entirely at his own expense, provided the School-house from 1858-1871 [3]. In Eversley, the adjacent parish, Charles Kingsley was preaching social reform. Laissez-faire was not the local policy. Finchampstead was a caring community, looking after its own. There were almshouses in the village, and other charities also [4].

Finchampstead was a healthy place to live. In some parts of England in this period, outbreaks of disease such as cholera and typhoid occurred. These outbreaks were encouraged by poor sanitation, crowded conditions, and filthy drinking-water [5]. In Finchampstead, the underlying soil varies, much of it being naturally well-drained. Conditions were swampy by the river, which moved sluggishly, but water could be obtained from wells such as Dorsells Well on Longwater Lane [6]. The 1851 census recorded two well-sinkers and an excavator as visitors, and the 1871 census recorded a resident plumber.

Alfred's childhood

Alfred grew up with many of his extended family living nearby. His father had two older brothers and two older sisters, all married with children and living not far away. In some parts of England, men particularly could count themselves lucky if they reached 50 years [7]. As described above, those living in Finchampstead tended towards longevity, and this seems to have been notably so with the Goddards. From 1800 onwards, men and women alike often lived into their 70s. Amongst his more aged relatives, Alfred would have known his grandfather Jeremiah, who died in 1874 at the age of 85 years, and his great-uncle Owen, who was still alive in 1871, then aged 89. Jeremiah had formerly been a carpenter, and Owen had formerly been a farmer and timber dealer.

Several of the Goddards had numerous children, so Alfred had myriad cousins, mostly living in Finchampstead and the surrounding villages. In early Victorian times, only a very few moved much further away, but as time progressed, mobility became more marked. Seven of George's eleven offspring eventually left the area altogether.

Alfred had the advantage over his father of starting his education with a certificated schoolteacher [12]. In 1871, Miss Perry from the School-house married Alfred's brother Owen, so if her young brother-in-law- to-be had shown willingness to learn, he'd have had plenty of opportunity.

In the 1881 census, Alfred appears at his parents' address, with his occupation listed as "builder's son". His father is shown as "blacksmith and builder, employing 3 men and a boy", so it's likely that Alfred was the boy.

Alfred's early adulthood

It's unclear exactly when Alfred moved to London. In the 1891 census, Alfred is in Finchampstead - but he is staying at the Royal Oak, not with his parents, and his occupation is given as mantle-cutter. As that's what he did when he started work in London, it seems likely that he was just visiting Finchampstead, having already moved. One theory as to why he might have visited at this particular time could be that, because his father George was census enumerator for half of Finchampstead on top of his normal occupation of postmaster-cum-carpenter, Alfred was helping out!

Alfred married Annie Jenkins Darton on 16th April 1892 at Christ Church, Clapham. His marriage certificate shows him as mantle-cutter, and the witnesses were his father and his sister Alice. Alfred's address then was 106 Union Road, Clapham.

Alfred and Annie continued living in Clapham. They had three children altogether, all born in Clapham in the first few years after they married: Cyril Ernest (30th April 1895 - 9 July 1988), Ivy Ruth (16th January 1898 - 22nd September 1899), and Doris Winifred (13th September 1900 - 12th June 1990). Alfred's family was thus much smaller than his parents' family. However, there were only two adults raised out of three children born to Alfred and Annie, compared with the previous generation's eleven adults raised out of eleven born. With no infant mortality amongst eleven children, though, George's family was not typical of his time.

Alfred's middle years

Alfred worked for W.G.Monnery & Son, originally based just south of London Bridge. They manufactured printers' blankets [8]. Alfred was a commercial traveller for them, travelling as far as Truro in Cornwall [16]. In 1910, being unmarried and wishing to retire, the proprietor Mr Monnery (junior) assigned the business to Alfred.

In 1908 Alfred moved his family to Croydon, living first in Elgin Road, near what is now East Croydon railway station. Monnerys by this time was operating from premises in Shoe Lane, off Fleet Street, so Alfred must have been commuting.

In 1914, Alfred had his own house built in Fryston Avenue, Addiscombe. A foreign name was chosen for the house - Morro Velho [9]. Addiscombe had been a rural area, but the big estates were being broken up for upmarket new housing development. It was within easy reach of the London trains. [15] By this time, Alfred's leisure activities were all middle-class [11]. They included going to concerts, singing in concerts (he sang tenor with the Royal Choral Society at the Albert Hall), attending Masonic lodge, and motoring around visiting relatives.

Alfred's children received a secondary education. They learnt music and French, and both learnt to drive. Cyril became keen on scouting and on motorcycling. Doris was an excellent pianist, as is clear from her certificates from the Royal College of Music.

In the early years of the First World War, Alfred and Cyril, separately, took holidays with relatives in Norfolk. Alfred went in his car (7 hours, 4 gallons of fuel) but Cyril went on his motorcycle (7 hours, 1.5 gallons of fuel). Cyril also had a holiday camping at Freshwater on the Isle of Wight, but he travelled there by train with his friends.

Alfred evinced a desire to return to Finchampstead. My copy of "Chronicles of Finchampstead" originally belonged to Alfred [10]. In 1916, Cyril, then serving his country in France as a motorcycle dispatch rider for the Royal Flying Corps, had a letter from Alfred saying that he had purchased 3 acres in Finchampstead.

Alfred's death.

In 1919, Alfred's health deteriorated. Cyril's diary entries went from "Dad very queer" in January to "Dad under X-ray, evidently something radically wrong for they will give no opinion" in May. Alfred complained of great pain. He had an operation and was given 3-6 months to live. A few weeks later, Cyril stopped writing his diaries altogether, but on June 23rd, his girlfriend records that he "is very cut up about things ... said by his Father". Then, on July 8th, again from Cyril's girlfriend's diary: "Mr Goddard's mind quite gone. Hardly knows anyone".

Alfred died on July 19th from stomach cancer. His early death must have been shocking, given the typical longevity of the family. After Alfred's death, Cyril ran Monnerys, with the help of an older cousin, Owen from Finchampstead. Owen was an architect by profession, and his business experience was useful.

Annie and Doris went out to Ceylon for some years, to get over Alfred's death, staying with one of Annie's sisters who lived out there. On their return, they moved to Finchampstead. After Annie died, in 1956, Cyril and Doris erected an impressive memorial to their parents in the lower churchyard [14].

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Bibliography and References

Published books

William Lyon, 1895 "Chronicles of Finchampstead", pub. Longmans, Green and Co.

Gunn & Bell, 2002 "Middle Classes - their Rise and Sprawl" pub. Phoenix (particularly chapter 1)

A.N.Wilson, 2002 "The Victorians" pub. Hutchinson

Harvie & Matthew, 1984 "Nineteenth-century Britain" pub. Oxford University Press

Baines et al, 2000 "AS & A2 Study Guide to Modern History" pub Pearson Education

Private records

Company records for W.G.Monnery & Co Ltd

Memorial card for George

School reports and certificates from Royal College of Music for Doris

Concert programmes

Cyril's diaries

Private chequebook belonging to Alfred

Scouting attendance award for Cyril

Driving licences for Cyril and a speeding fine record for Doris (doing over 20 mph!)

Mary Osgood's diaries

Family photographs

Public records

Census returns for both enumeration districts of Finchampstead for 1841 - 1891 inclusive (microfilm; Wokingham library)

Online census for 1901 - http://www.census.pro.gov.uk

Birth and/or marriage certificates for all George and Ann's children and for all Alfred's and Annie's children

Death certificates for Jeremiah, George, Alfred, and Ivy Ruth.

Online freeBMD project - http:/freebmd.org.uk

Specific references and explanatory footnotes

[1] http://www.standards.dfee.gov.uk/schemes2/secondary_history/his12 (accessed on 29th December 2003)

[2] Lyon pp 198-199. Jeremiah Goddard was the elected recipient of £27 of Lucas' charity, in 1861

[3] Lyon p206

[4] Lyon pp200-205

[5] Baines et al p34

[6] Lyon p218

[7] 1841 census for New Mills, Derbyshire as found at http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~dusk/ (accessed on 29th December 2003)

[8] Printers' blankets are specialist blankets used on printing presses. They can be used for long print runs, they may be used under heavy pressure, and they have to be manufactured very precisely, to small tolerances, which must not vary unacceptably during a print run.

[9] "Old Mount", in Spanish

[10] The inscription at the front of "Chronicles of Finchampstead" reads "Alfred G. Goddard, With best wishes from Owen A.J.Goddard. Christmas 1907"

[11] Cyril's diaries 1912 to 1919, and Mary Osgood's diaries 1919 to 1925. They married in 1920, after his death.

[12] Newspaper cutting of obituary of Susan Goddard, formerly Susan Perry. Unknown newspaper.

[13] 1861 census

[14] Visual inspection of Alfred and Annie's memorial in churchyard of St James, Finchampstead

[15] http://stmildredschurch.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/church_building.htm (accessed on 29th December 2003)

[16] Mr Denzil Goddard was for years a commercial traveller for Monnerys. After the Second World War, visiting a customer's establishment in Truro, he was met by a Mr Crumm with "Ah, Mr Goddard! I knew your grandfather!". To which Mr Goddard replied, "Well, that's more than I did!" - Alfred having died two years before he was born.

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