The History of Putney Putney is a village and a parish forming part of the Manor of Wimbledon. It lies between the parishes of Wandsworth and Barnes and is bounded on the North by the Thames. It is within the hundred of Brixton, which is part of the county of Surrey. The earliest mention of Putney, can be found in the Doomsday Book, where it is styled "Putenlie". "In Lundonia (London) there were seventeen dwelling places rendering fifty-two pence. In Sudwerca (Southwark) four messuages of twentyseven pence; and twenty shillings from the toll of the vill of Putelei and one fishery without revenue. Earl Harold had this fishery in Mortelage (Mortlake) in the time of King Edward, and Archbishop Stigland had it a long while in the time of King William; and yet they say that Harold set it up by force in the time of King Edward in the land of Chingestune (Kingston), and in the land of Saint Paul's"1 The Fishery Being on the Thames Putney has always had a strong association with trades associated with the river. According to an ancient custom of the Manor of Wimbledon, "out of every fishing-room belonging to Mortlake and Putney, several salmons were due to be delivered there for the licence or liberty of fishing and hauling and pitching their nets on the soil and shore of the lord of the manor." In 1663 the fishery was held for the three best salmon caught in March, April, and May; but this rent was afterwards converted into a money payment.2 By all accounts the quality of the fish caught in "old man" Thames was of a high quality as is evidenced by the following extract from Walfords History of Putney; "The salmon caught here are described as being very few in number, but of remarkably fine quality; whilst smelt were in great abundance in the months of March and April and were highly esteemed. One or two sturgeons were generally taken in the course of a year, and occasionally a porpoise, which together with the sturgeons, were claimed by the Lord Mayor. The fishermen were bound to deliver them as soon as caught to the water-baliff."3 According to Guthrie4 the fishery continued until 1786, when it was said to have been abandoned. Lyson 5 tells us that although no "fishery" remained in Putney after 1786, fishing continued to be carried on until the early part of the ninteenth century. Today fishing in Putney is restricted to the adventurous amateur. The Civil War Putney is reknown for it's part in the civil war. "In 1647, Cromwell, equally jealous of the Parliament and of the king, who was then at Hampton Court, fixed the head quarters of his army at Putney in order to watch their respective movements. The houses of the principal inhabitants were occupied by the general officers, who, during their residence here, held their councils in the parish church... On the escape of the king from Hampton, on the 13th of November, the army quitted Putney, after a residence of three months."6 The Putney Ferry and The Bridge Putney Ferry has a history going back to the 11th century and possibly further. In the household accounts of Edward I (1272-1307) the ferry was twice mentioned; In the first, Robert the Ferryman of Putney and other sailors were paid 3/6d for carrying a great part of the royal family across the Thames and also taking the king and his family to Westminster. There were two types of ferry that could be obtained from Putney, the "long ferry" from Putney to London or Westminster and the "short ferry" from Putney to Fulham. The former was particularly used by foot passengers to avoid the poor roads. Horses could no doubt be obtained at the numerous inns in Putney in the vicinity of the ferry. Putney, which is South of the Thames has always had close associations with the parish of Fulham, which is immediately North of the Thames. Today there is a bridge linking the two parishes together, at either end of the bridge is the respective parish church, and close to the Fulham side of the bridge is Fulham Palace which has been used for centuries as the home for the Bishop of London. The first bridge of any kind between the two parishes was built during the Civil War after the battle of Brentford in 1642, the Parliamentary forces built a bridge of boats between Fulham and Putney. According to a newspaper article of the day; "The Lord General hath caused a bridge to be built upon barges and lighters over the Thames between Fulham and Putney, to convey his army and artillery over into Surrey, to follow the king's forces; and he hath ordered that forts shall be erected at each end thereof to guard it; but for the present the seamen, with long boats and shallops full of ordnance and musketeers, lie there upon the river to secure it." No doubt this bridge played some part in forcing Charles I to withdraw his base to Oxford. According to Wadford7 this bridge remained in use up until 1647 and maybe later. The benefits of such a bridge obviously impacted someone of importance as in 1671 a bill was introduced into Parliament proposing the building of a bridge between Putney and Fulham. Opposition to the proposal was strong, particularly from those who saw the bridge as being a commercial threat to the power of the City of London. It was also felt that this bridge would (quite correctly) impact the watermens trade. The bill was lost by 67 votes to 54. The bill was rejected again in 1688. The Act for building a bridge was finally passed by the Commons on 10 May 1726 and given the royal assent on 24 May 1726. There is some anecdotal evidence as to why the seal of approval to build the bridge was finally given. One story runs that "in 1720 Sir Robert Walpole was returning from seeing George I at Kingston and being in a hurry to get to the House of Commons rode together with his servant to Putney to take the ferry across to Fulham. The ferry boat was on the opposite side, however and the waterman, who was drinking in the Swan, ignored the calls of Sir Robert and his servant and they were obliged to take another route. Walpole vowed that a bridge would replace the ferry."8 The Prince of Wales apparently "was often inconvenienced by the ferry when returning from hunting in Richmond park and asked Walpole to use his influence by supporting the Fulham bridge bill."9 And so the bridge between Fulham and Putney, which was completed in 1729, became the second bridge across the Thames in London (behind of course London Bridge). This was a milestone in the history of Greater London, for it marked the overcoming of continuous opposition to such ventures and provided a precedent for the building of many other bridges. The following bridges and the dates of completion are listed as follows; Westminster 1750 Kew 1759 Blackfriars 1769 Battersea 1773 Vauxhall 1816 Hammersmith 1827 Lambeth 1862 The bridge was a wooden structure, which originally was seen as a temporary measure. With the benefit of constant repair however it last some 150 years, when in 1886 it was replaced by the stone bridge we have today. Putney in 1787 was a town of about 2000 people, and justified the description of town by virtue of its size and the variety of its tradesmen. It was heavily influenced by the proximity of London just six miles away and easily accessible by coach. Examples of London's influence included the many merchants' and gentlemens' houses, the inns serving travellers and others, and the gardens shown on the map, [of 1787] many of which were in fact market gardens producing vegetables and fruit for the city. (10) There were 347 dwellings recorded in the Putney rate list of 1787. (10) Roehampton Chapel The first Roehampton Chapel was built by Sir Richard Weston, Charles I's Lord treasurer. It formed part of a huge house constructed for Weston on the site of the present Froebel institute, surrounded by a large new park in which most of Roehampton's farmland had been enclosed. (10) The chapel was consecrated on 26th May 1632 by Bishop Laud of London and dedicated to the Holy Trinity. (10) It was licensed for use only by the inhabitants of Weston's house. It was not intended for inhabitants of Roehampton in general. These were exected to continue to attend Putney Church, which they reached by means of the Church path. (10) The chaplains who were appointed were chaplains of specific people or families rather than specifically of Roehampton. (10) Some Chaplains mentioned are as follows: Thomas Otway - Chaplain to Sir Thomas Dawes in 1641 Robert Gale - Chaplain to the Countess of Devonshire till 1659 Mr Hayter - Chaplain to the Countess of Devonshire in 1672 No doubt, at first the restriction of the chapel's use to inhabitants of the Great House was observed, but this was no longer the case by 1758. (10) Why had the chapel come to be used by the public in 1758? One possible reason for this is the change in the character of the Great Houses occupants. In the 17th century these were the sort of people who wanted a private chapel; Sir Thomas Dawes (1640-8); the Countess of Devonshire and subsequently her son and daughter in law (1648-90); the Countess of Northumberland (from 1690), and Alderman Sir Jeffrey Jeffries (to 1709). Later owners starting in about 1715 with Joseph Bagnall, a sugar refiner of London, tended to be of a less exalted social class (though still very rich) and as such may have valued the chapel more as a source of income and prestige among their neighbours than a place of private worship. By 1758 there were four or five families of fortune in Roehampton, the attraction of the chapel to such families was it's convenience and exclusiveness, together with the shortage of pews in Putney. The shortage of pews in Putney also helped explained why the chapel was tolerated for so long, when strictly speaking it had no license from the bishop. In 1777 the chapel and the Great House were demolished. The Great House was replaced by Grove House and a new chapel was erected on a new site in Roehampton Lane, a little way north of Clarence Lane. It was capable of seating 150 people and must therefore from the start have been intended as more than a private chapel, as the move to a site separate from the house also indicates. (11) The chapel remained private property though being bequether by Sibella Davison to Colston Carr in 1807 and returning to the same ownership as Grove House in 1814, when William Gosling brought it. A new chapel was consecrated by the Archbishop of Canterbury on 17th February 1843. Baptisms and churchings were permitted, though the fees were to be paid to the Curate of Putney. In 1853 the chapel was licensed for marriages. Finally in 1856, Roehampton was designated a separate parish. The chapel built in 1843 remained standing until 1928. A new church on a completely new site was consecrated in 1898 and remains in use today, completing the progression of Roehampton from private chapel to subscription chapel to chapel serving all of Roehampton and finally parish church. Public Houses in Putney A map acquired from the Spencer family is labelled "Plot of the town of Putney in the County of Surrey". It has no date, but has been assigned with reasonable confidence to the year 1787. Eight public Houses can be noted on the map of 1787, but only two of them (The Green Man and probably the Spotted Horse) are now in the buildings they had then. The Castle Noted on the map of the town in 1787 The Queens Head Noted on the map of the town in 1787 The Rose and Crown Noted on the map of the town in 1787 The White Lion Noted on the map of the town in 1787 The Red Lion Noted on the map of the town in 1787 The Eight Bells Noted on the map of the town in 1787 The Star and Garter Noted on the map of the town in 1787 The Dukes Head Noted on the map of the town in 1787 Hare and Hounds Now known as the Fox and Hounds The Spotted Horse The Half Moon The Green man Just outside the coverage of the 1787 map - but most definitely there in 1787. Famous Houses of the wealthy in Putney Winchester House Built in 1730. Putney Palace Bult in 1596 by John lacy, a London merchant, and demolished in 1826. (10) Church House Edward Gibbon, author of "the decline and fall of the Roman Empire" spent his some of his childhood here. Cromwell House Fairfax House Built in the 1630's, for most of it's existance this house was occupied by the Pettiward family. it was demolised in 1887 and Monserrat Road now crosses the site. John Rose's House Dated from the late 17th century, this house was demolished in the 1870's in order to build Werter road. Essex House Demolished in the 1870's. Grove House Demolished in the late 1870's to make way for Disraeli Road. Ashbourne House Demolished in 1887. The Lawn Occupied by Tilleaux Girardot Esq of Huguenot Extraction, replaced by Chelverton Road in 1887. Chatfield House The Platt House A handsome red brick house. (10) The Parish Workhouse The Parish Workhouse existed from 1726 to 1826, and usually contained 30 to 50 of Putney's poorest inhabitants. (10) It stood to the west of the lower end of the High Street, linked by passage to both the High Street and the lower Richmond Road. (10) Burial Grounds The Old Putney burial ground is located in Upper Richmond Road. The land was given to the parish by Roger Pettiward in 1763 when the burial grunds around the church had become inadequate. (10) Putney Lower Common Cemetary was opened in 1855, It is towards the Barnes side of the Parish. Putney Vale Cemetery was opened in 1891 and is just off the A3 at Roehampton Vale, surrounded by Wimbledon Common and Richmond Park, it stands on a site covering forty seven acres. REFERENCES 1 A Literal Translation of the Latin Text and an English Translation of Doomesday Book in Relation to the County of Surrey (London 1862) p11 2 Walford's History of Putney - as part of London Old and New (1897) 3 Walford's History of Putney - as part of London Old and New (1897) 4 Old Houses of Putney (1870) page 5 by Guthrie 5 The Environs of London (1792) by Daniel Lysons 6 Walford's History of Putney - as part of London Old and New (1897) 7 Old Fulham Bridge otherwise Putney Bridge (188_) J.F.Wadmore 8 The Predecessor of Putney Bridge - Fulham Bridge 1729-1886 by George & Michael Dewe (1986) 9 The Predecessor of Putney Bridge - Fulham Bridge 1729-1886 by George & Michael Dewe (1986) 10 Wandsworth Historian 61 – A Map of Putney in 1787 by Dorian Gerhold 11 Wandsworth Historian Vol 56 - Roehampton Chapel by Dorian Gerhold Bibliography Wandsworth Historian Vol 56 - Roehampton Chapel by Dorian Gerhold