September 2009 Marion Miller-Palmer CHARLIE THE LAMPLIGHTER Charlie Mills was a gentle man, honest as the day he was born, my mother used to say of her grandfather. He was gentle in nature, short and rounded in stature, with a noticeable warmth about him that people were instantly drawn to. Everyone knew Charlie the Lamplighter. For many years, twice a day, Charlie performed the job of lighting and dousing the gas-fueled street lamps of Prestbury village. He more than likely was the first person up and out of his busy household at 32 Queen Street, when Charlie, complete with gloves, muffler and bowler hat, would mount his bicycle to journey the three miles through Cheltenham to the picturesque village of Prestbury, a village nestling at the foot of Cleeve Hill. Early birds, like Charlie himself, would shout out mornin Charlie, to which he acknowledged them with gesture of courtesy, doffing his hat graciously to one and all. Charlie was well respected. Born in England in the year 1850 , Charlie would have experienced a very different scene on the roads than that of todays Cheltenham. He would have cycled alongside horse and carts, or maybe people in their carriage, from the other side of the tracks, so to speak. The Horse-drawn Omnibus was there for the masses, and later the tram, but no cars to be seen on the roads in Charlies younger days. Most likely the coal mans horse and cart on their deliveries hauling sacks of coal, would be part of this early morning scene. As too the milkman and baker, doing their first rounds of the day, services of course essential to local inhabitants. The mellow sound of horses hooves on cobblestone must have been a pleasant start to Charlies day. As well, the street cleaners would already be at work, helping to keep the always present litter off the streets, and with so many horses in use, local people made it a practice to regularly shovel up the horse-dung to fertilize their gardens or allotments, ridding the roads of yet more accumulated waste – how green was that then !!!! For sure Charlie, like most families, had an allotment, which was a plot of land, usually measuring half a chain by 6 yards, a chain being 22 yards. This was an area set out for families with no garden, in which to grow vegetables. I remember my own father having an allotment. Charlies was a world fueled by gas. Reading, if they were able, was done by candlelight or gaslight. No television, telephone, or electricity were available in Charlies world of yesterday. As a young man Charlie Mills was employed by the Cheltenham Gasworks Company, which continued for all his working days, until he retired at the age of 70. I have the precious newspaper clipping of his retirement,that my mother, his Granddaughter, passed on to me. In the days of much poverty and hardship, the small pension Charlie received at the end of his working life must have kept the wolves from the door as the saying goes, a huge blessing. The rented home was one of many terraced row-houses that filled the area known as Dockum, or The Lower End as it was named by Cheltonians. This Regency town of Cheltenham, situated in the county of Gloucestershire. Cheltenham was then, and is today, known widely for its local beneficial Spa waters, that were supposedly an aid to good health, due to its high mineral content. In particular relief for the painful and common condition of Gout. People came from near and far to drink the waters, attracting people of wealth,including Royalty, who would have also enjoyed the beautiful architecture of the Regency period that is to this day, prominent in Cheltenham. This fine lifestyle wasnt for the likes of Charlie though, whos neighbours lived cheek by jowl. The homes were in such close proximity that there was absolutely no privacy to be had, nothing escaping the eyes and ears of the Queen Street residents. Their eating, drinking and social habits were acted out right there on everybodys doorstep. Strong smells of rabbit stew, tripe and onions, jellied eels or pigs trotters wafted from their kitchens. Thick smoke from the numerous coal fires, intermingled with heady fumes from the nearby gasworks. No, there was nothing very Royal about Queen Street, of the Lower End of Cheltenham. However, despite obvious hardships, their lives were not all doom and gloom, though a sense of humour was essential to survive the sparse conditions they lived in. If they could afford it, entertainment was found at the local public houses, the drink of the day being beer or porter. They might gather there for a sing-song, music halls were very popular at these times. To this day Cheltenham has a boating park named Pittville, close to Queen Street. Sometimes this location was known to have been used to house a fairground, which Im sure would have attracted the likes of Charlie and his large family. Every town in England in the early 1900s had a district like the Lower End, where, even if the residents were lucky enough to find work, would live from payday to payday, living simple lifestyles. The people went about their daily chores, mostly knowing their place in this society of class distinction. Many experiencing lifes inevitable hardships couldnt support themselves. When that was the case it was to the poor house, otherwise known as the Workhouse, for those sorry souls. The Workhouse was an institution created in most towns in England. The homeless , the sick and the dying, would be given minimal food and lodging in return for work. Often whole families sheltered in such places, with always the dread of being labeled down and outs.It was the end of the line for many in these dire conditions, and was definitely a stigma on the family if you did enter the workhouse. Sadly, couples were often separated from his or her spouse in these surroundings. As a young girl I belonged to a dance troupe, and had the experience of entertaining the poor souls in the workhouse of Cheltenham. I still remember the feeling of sadness, as we performed our light-hearted dance routines for the residents. I was already aware that my maternal grandmother, Emily Louisa, had lived within these very walls when she was close to the end of her life, dying of tuberculosis. I know little of the circumstances that led her to what must have been the lowest point in her short life, that ended when she was just 53 years old. Recently Ive been reading about the life story of the English novelist Barbara Taylor-Bradford, who goes into great depth about the workhouse system, doing much research, and incorporated the findings into one of her novels. She was shocked when she discovered that her mother was incarcerated into this dreaded Dickensian-Oliver Twist- type institution of the early 1900s, which is thankfully now a thing of the past. As well as a lamplighter, Charlie, my Great Grandfather, was also known as a Cordwainer - a mender of shoes. Every home in those days, and in fact in my parents day, had what they called a Last – an iron stand in the shape of a shoe, with which the shoe mender placed the worn shoe upon, to hold it steady whilst hammering the nails of a new sole. Charlie would need to have a spare time job, for at the age of 27 he married Mary Ann Durham, a lady who after the death of her husband, came to Charlie with five children. In time Charlie and Mary Ann had three more children, one being my Grandmother Emily Louisa. Yes, it was a full household, this three-bedroomed, red brick shoebox of a home. In the year of 1898 Emily my Grandmother gave birth to a son named William, and then my mother Lugenia, Lily for short. Two more mouths to feed in the tiny home of 32 Queen Street. My mother and her brother William were raised by Charlie and Mary Ann, their Grandparents. The home that Charlie provided for William and my mother was, according to my mother, of a loving atmosphere, filled to the brim with people, including the Durham family. I feel this had a great influence upon my mother, who was blessed with the gregarious and loving nature that was hers. Gran and Gramp, as she called them, doted on William and Lily, their grandchildren. Emily their mother, married a man named Charles Churchely, producing another Emily, Charles and Violet into their world. The Churchely family were partially raised in Albert St. as well as the village of Winchcombe. Charlie the Lamplighter was born in England during the reign of Queen Victoria, living through the reign of King Edward VII and died in 1934, when George V reigned over England. His lifetime encompassed the Boer War and the First World War, the war in which the old couple bade farewell to their grandson William forever, he was killed on his 21st birthday in France – it broke their hearts. My mother, who in time married Albert Sidney Roberts, had four of her six children born in that tiny Queen Street house, at the same time caring for her grandparents who lived into their eighties. In this land of plenty of today, my mind tries to grasp the circumstances and everyday lifestyle of this overcrowded home. Home to so many. Questions with no answers prompt me to ask, where did they all sleep ?, and how many mouths at one time would need to be fed ? No doubt the art of sharing was premium in such households. Whilst holidaying in Gibraltar, I noticed that along the cobbled streets there were many shops selling the beautifully made Lladro china. I already knew from a catalogue that they had created a 14 inch high model of a lamplighter, so I made it my mission to seek him out. With great joy I found Charlie Mills, the Lamplighter figurine, which I carefully guarded and carried safely back to Canada – The lamplighter now stands proudly in my home. So these are some of the stories related to me by my late mother, of the Grandfather she knew and loved many years ago. Stories that encouraged me to produce these writings of Charlie James Mills today, over 150 years from his birth, bringing this kindly gentleman ever close to my heart. In this year of 2009 I myself will become a Great Grandmother, you could say, coming full circle. I am happy to know that a few fond memories of the life and times of my Great Grandfather, Charles James Mills, will now live on for generations to come.
Posted on: Wed, 10 Sep 2014 21:10:16 +0000
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