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THE LEGACY OF PROSPECT HILL PLANTATION
Of all the historic places that I have visited, there has never been one that has captivated me like Prospect Hill. The story of Prospect Hill is a tale of wealth, prosperity, tragedy, sorrow, grief, greed, revenge and murder spanning more than 200 years and two continents. It is a story forged by war and the brotherhood of men fighting side by side, black and white. It is a story rooted in the ways of the Antebellum South and the conflict between right and wrong. It is a story that is being played out even today in the country of Liberia, so many miles away from rural Mississippi where it all began.
I first visited Prospect Hill on a beautiful, cool, crisp autumn day. Seven miles deep in the woods of rural Mississippi, she sits atop of a hill as a sentinel to what once was, but is nearly lost now. The home stands in ruins now and holds only a glimpse of what she once was. The beautiful fireplaces have grown cold and no longer add warmth to the space that was loved by so many and called home to generations of family members. The brightly colored walls show only remnants of the colors that they once boasted and the wall paper hangs in shreds. An old piano sits weathered and in ruins, no longer filling the home with its beautiful music but rather remains silent knowing its last note has resonated. A beautiful brass mirror still sits above a fireplace, but its reflection is now tarnished by years of abandonment, no longer does it catch the gazes of familiar faces, but rather darkness, emptiness and hopelessness as the house crumbles around it. As I walked around the yard, I couldn’t help but notice the remnants of what I am sure were once lavish gardens, and even today flowers are still blooming against the overgrown entanglement of weeds and vines as if they too have a story to tell and are begging not to be forgotten. A strange peace and tranquility surrounds the place, leaving me feeling far removed from the cares of life and wishing I could just sit under the shade of the ancient cedar trees and imagine what life would have been like. I begin to wonder, where they gathered when the original house burned and can only imagine the screams filling the night air as they realized little Martha didn’t make it out, yes somewhere on this hallowed ground the soil was saturated with tears. I look upon what was once a mighty oak but is now only a decaying mass of wood and chills run down my spine as I imagine the slaves being lynched on the very limbs that they had surely sought refuge under before. Maybe it is a fitting end to the tree, it’s time too has come to an end, just like the home it once shaded.
Captain Isaac Ross was born in South Carolina in 1760. He fought in the Revolutionary War alongside men of color and forged a friendship with many of them. This brotherhood was the basis for his respect for the black man despite being raised in the ideologies of the antebellum south. Captain Ross moved to Mississippi in 1808 with a large contingent of slaves and free men of color and built Prospect Hill Plantation. He was a successful businessman and the fertile Mississippi soil soon made him an extremely wealthy cotton planter. Captain Ross treated his slaves favorably, teaching them to read and write, which was illegal in many areas at this time. He also taught them specific skills and trades that made them valuable assets to his plantation as well as equipping them for a future on their own, the latter of which may or may not have been intentional. Captain Ross encouraged his slaves to marry and even allowed some of the ceremonies to be held at the Prospect Hill mansion. Many of these ceremonies were attended by Captain Ross himself, complete with gifts for the bride and groom. He seemed to have a respect for his slaves that was missing in most areas of the south at this time.
Captain Ross started to realize during the latter years of his life, that he owed a great deal of debt and gratitude to the slaves who had worked so hard for him and alongside him to build the empire of which he proudly called his own. Whether by spiritual awakening, or some type of epiphany, Captain Ross began to set in motion a series of events that would play out on two continents and affect the lives of countless individuals including his family, the slaves with whom called him master, and generations of their descendants. Captain Ross drew up a will in August of 1834, which upon his death, would free his slaves. Working through an organization called The American Colonization Society, the plantation was to be sold and the proceeds were to fund the transport of all of his slaves to a new colony in Africa called Liberia. This colony, which was soon called Mississippi in Africa, would be a fresh start to the slaves that wanted to travel there and Captain Ross even set aside provisions for a school to be established there so that the slaves could further their education and live a prosperous life in the new land. He included many of the slaves closest to him in his will and granted them money to start a new life if they chose to stay in Mississippi.
In 1836 Captain Isaac Ross passed away and the years that followed was a tumultuous time for the slaves and Ross’s family alike. Isaac Ross’s grandson, Isaac Ross Wade contested the will and the years that followed were marked with bitter disputes and litigations as well as unrest and anger on the part of the slaves. In 1845 tragedy struck, the slaves tired of waiting for the freedom that had been promised them by their beloved Captain Ross, had the cook drug the family and the house was set on fire, burning it to the ground. Everyone got out safely but little Martha, Captain Ross’s 6 year old granddaughter. A vigilante group was quickly formed and 11 slaves were hung to their death in an old oak tree out back of the burnt mansion. The present mansion was constructed in 1854.
After several years of litigation and tragedy, a group of nearly 300 Ross family slaves made the arduous journey to Africa but the story doesn’t end here. The slaves built for themselves, elaborate mansions reminiscent of the ones belonging to their masters back in Mississippi and some even enslaved the native peoples of Africa resulting in years of conflict and civil unrest which still goes on to this day. Most of the mansions built during this time were also destroyed during the years of civil unrest that followed. Copies of letters written by the Ross slaves to their families and former masters back in Mississippi still exist and sometimes outline less than desirable conditions in their new land of freedom. In an ironic twist of fate, seems maybe estranged family members or perhaps the slaves themselves had the last laugh. While all of the graves in the Ross family cemetery face presumably east, Isaac Ross Wade’s grave faces in the opposite direction, forever memorializing him as the man who stood in opposition and perhaps casting a light of shame on him for as long as the cemetery remains.
The legacy of Prospect Hill does not end with the massive oak or the crumbling mansion but still lives on in Liberia in the lives of the people whose ancestors came from Mississippi and in the descendants of the freed slaves who chose to stay. Her legacy lives on in the precedent that was set paving the way for people of color to gain their freedom and in the stories passed down from generation to generation. This Legacy still lives on in the cemetery bearing the name of all who called the mansion home and in the hearts and minds of the photographers who have been fortunate enough to capture her beauty even as she lay in ruins.
Special thanks to my awesome tour guide Mrs. Ann Brown. She made this tour possible and was such a wealth of knowledge. I can’t thank her enough for the hospitality and enthusiasm that she shared concerning the history of this area.
For more information there are two books published about Prospect Hill. Mississippi in Africa by Alan Huffman and Burning Prospects by Melissa Miles
Built 1885 for Frederick Dewar Beach & wife Elizabeth & named “Audley House”, converted to flats 1917, purchased & renamed “Verona” by Blackfriars School & used as boarding house 1960-1968, then as priests’ home, sold 1994, now private & renamed Audley House.
“Mr. Bertie Beach, third son of Mr. F. D. Beach, of Audley House, Prospect, took his passage by the ever popular ship Torrens on Tuesday week for a nine months' trip to England and the Continent.” [Quiz, Adelaide 11 Apr 1890]
“Laundress. Apply Thursday or Friday, between 10 and 12, Mrs. Beach, Audley House, Prospect.” [Advertiser 4 May 1894 advert]
“The marriage of the Right Hon. Samuel James Way (Chief Justice of South Australia) to Mrs. W. A. S. Blue (widow of Dr. Blue, of Hahndorf) was very quietly celebrated on the afternoon of Easter Monday, The time and place of the ceremony were kept very secret. . . Audley House, Prospect, the residence of Mrs. F. D. Beach, eldest sister of the Chief Justice, was the scene of the bridal.” [Quiz & Lantern 14 Apr 1898]
“Mrs. Beach, of Audley House, Prospect, has issued cards for an ‘At home’ on Tuesday, August 2. Those who have enjoyed Mrs. Beach's hospitality in the past can look forward to an enjoyable time, as the hostess and her daughters spare no efforts in the entertainment of their numerous guests.” [Quiz & Lantern 28 Jul 1898]
“The engagement is announced of Miss Jessie Napier, only daughter of Dr. Leith Napier, of Angas-street, to Mr. Sydney E. Beach, of ‘Audley House’, Prospect.” [Critic, Adelaide 4 Jul 1906]
“Mrs. Sydney Beach, of Audley House, Prospect, is ‘receiving’ on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday of this week.” [Critic, Adelaide 7 Nov 1906]
“Good Cook immediately also. Laundry Housemaid references Apply mornings Mrs Beach, Audley House, Prospect.” [Advertiser 2 Mar 1907 advert]
“Experienced Nurse for three (3) children; youngest 16 months. Apply Mrs. Beach, ‘Audley House’, Prospect.” [Advertiser 16 Aug 1913 advert]
“For Sale. . . ’Audley House’, Prospect. . . The well-known residence of Colonel S. E. Beach, comprising 14 rooms. . . large laundry, garage, stabling, man's room, underground tank (10,000 gallons), conservatories, lawns, fruit and ornamental trees, etc, etc.” [Advertiser 19 Sep 1917 advert]
“Audley Estate, Prospect. Col S. E. Beach has decided, to have his valuable property on the Prospect road subdivided into building sites. 'Audley House', which comprises about 14 rooms, will be made available for purchase with about one acre of land. The balance of the land — between 2 and 3 acres — will be subdivided.” [The Mail 22 Sep 1917]
“Early in the New Year it is proposed to adapt the well-known 'Audley House' to provide Two Superior Suites of Rooms, unfurnished (6 on ground floor, 7 on first floor). The Rooms are lofty, spacious, and well lighted. Each Suite will have separate conveniences, lovely grounds, shadehouses, garage, stabling, &c. Electric cars pass the frontage.” [The Mail 22 Dec 1917]
“The work of converting Audley House, Prospect, into flats has been satisfactorily completed under the supervision of Mr. J, H. Laity, architect.” [The Mail 2 Mar 1918]
“To Let, Flat, unfurnished, self-contained, Four Rooms, Balconies, in Audley House, Prospect; Garage; fine Grounds.” [Register 5 Mar 1919 advert]
“Äuction. . . 'Audley House'. Prospect Rd., Prospect. A Stately Two-Storey Residence, substantially built of stone, containing 14 rms. . . front and side balconies. 3 bathrms., pantries, presses, domestic conveniences, and extensive stone and brick outbuildings. 'Audley House', at present let as three residential flats, could be advantageously subdivided to provide more flats, or is highly suited for a Hostel, Guest Home, Hospital, or an Institution of some kind. . . spacious, well-kept grounds. . . beautiful- trees and shrubs, occupies a good position near tram stop. . . To be sold subject to existing tenancies.” [The Mail 16 Mar 1946 advert]
FREDERICK DEWE BEACH
“BEACH.— [Died] On the 14th November, at his residence, Audley House, Prospect, Frederick Dewe Beach.”[Register 15 Nov 1895]
“Mr. Frederick Dewe Beach. . . was the son of Mr. Charles Beach, of Audley House, North Audley-street, London, and was born on March 14, 1829. He was educated at Mordant Hall, Kent, and served his apprenticeship with Messrs. Hewett & Co, confectioners and caterers, of Regent-street, London. . . He left England for Adelaide at the age of 21 in the ship Sibella. . . After being in business for a few years in this city Mr Beach left for the Victorian goldfields and worked at Ballarat, Bendigo, Forest Creek, and other rushes. . . on his return he opened a confectioner's establishment in Brown-street, removing afterwards to the precent premises in Hindley-street. . . Mr. Beach married the eldest daughter of the Rev. James Way who survives him. The family consists of Messrs. Fred, Sydney, Herbert and Frank Beach, and Misses Jeanie and Olive Beach.” [Advertiser 15 Nov 1895]
“BEACH.— [Died] On the 7th May, at her residence, Audley House, Prospect, Elizabeth, relict of Frederick Dewe Beach, and eldest daughter of the late Rev. James Way.” [Evening Journal 8 May 1903]
“Mrs. Beach, widow of the late Mr. F. D. Beach. . . was a sister of the Lieut Governor (Rt. Hon. Sir Samuel Way), Mrs. Allan Campbell, and the late Dr. Way. . . well known in philanthropic circles. . . Adelaide Children's Hospital. . . North Adelaide Baptist Church. The family consists of five sons, Mjr. S. E. Beach, Messrs. Fred, F. J., Frank, and Herbert Beach, and two daughters, Mrs. Hugo Leschen, and Mrs. L. W. Yemm. Mjr. Beach is at present in Queensland, and Messrs. F. J„ and Frank Beach are in Sydney.” [Evening Journal 7 May 1903]
SYDNEY EDWIN BEACH
“BEACH—NAPIER.— [Married] On the 3rd October, at Chalmers Church, North-terrace, Adelaide, by the Rev. D. Paton, assisted by the Rev. John Thorne, Sydney Edwin, second son of the late F. D. Beach, of Audley House, Prospect, to Jessie Mellis, daughter of Dr. Leith Napier, of Angas-street, Adelaide.” [Advertiser 8 Dec 1906]
“BEACH.— [Died] On the 15th March. Sydney E. Beach, dearly loved husband of Jessie Beach, 37 Wood street, Millswcod. Aged 74 years.” [Advertiser 17 Mar 1934]
“CoL Sydney Beach. . . As a very young man, he had the good fortune to 'get in early' to Broken Hill shares He joined the Stock Exchange of Adelaide when it began in 1887. . . He was a nephew of a former Chief Justice, Sir Samuel Way, to whom he often acted as A.D.C.” [The Mail 24 Mar 1934]
“BEACH.— [Died] On October 29, at private hospltal, Jessie Mellis, beloved widow of Sydney Edwin Beach.” [Advertiser 31 Oct 1947]
“Mrs. Jessie Mellis Beach. . . was a sister of the Lieutenant Governor (Sir Mellis Napier). She was the widow of Mr. Sydney Edwin Beach, and has left two sons and a daughter.” [Advertiser 31 Oct 1947]
"Vancouver, B. C., Canada
Indian Totem Pole, Prospect Point, Stanley Park.
V.N. 58"
Post Card. Published by The Coast Publishing Co., Vancouver, B.C.
Thunderbird Dynasty Pole carved by Squamish (Salish) Chief Mathias Joe (a.k.a. Mathias Joe Capilano) and raised at Prospect Point in 1936 during Vancouver's Golden Jubilee. Carved in a northern style in Vancouver expressly to stand in Stanley Park; The pole was noted for not having been transported south from a community where it had served social and political functions.
The first victim of the Beeching Cuts and remains in good structural condition despite the many leaks.
Tragic insanity to have little kids in masks much less outside when they should be breathing fresh air not incubating bacteria in sweaty cloth bound to their faces.
Local Accession Number: 2303
Description: Rear view of Prospect House at Princeton showing Ellen Axson Wilson's Italian garden.
Photographer: Will Bond
Source: Frances W. Saunders
Size: 8x10
Medium: Print, Black and White
Date: 06-15-1907
Yesterday, I finally saw my father. He's a bit worse for the wear, I'm afraid - missing teeth that make viewing his smile somewhat unsettling; a paunch the size of a titanic steamer protruding from his belly; and an obstinate, disheveled quality, as though his physical woes will never revert themselves to former health again. His walk, hobbled like that of an octogenarian penguin, has improved with a steady cane, however; and his smile, despite my initial discomfort, proved genuine and comforting; his personality still shines and radiates, lending his warm glow to the people around him. That's why I love him.
Peter, too, liked my dad. He joined me on the Harrison PATH platform and together we ventured uptown from the WTC - the site still suffers from a tedious, democratic malady, unfortunately; perhaps it would be better to surrender power to one property developer so that something, anything, will be in place for the tenth anniversary of the tragedy, which looms in the near distance - to the McDonald's on Bowery Street in Chinatown. From there, after meeting my father who had come from the Confucius Plaza across the street, we ascended the steps into the Golden Bridge, a 1,000-seat restaurant that has withstood the fastidious scrutiny of both Chinese gourmands and health inspectors for the past twenty years. We shared a table with another party of three, and while sipping delicious New York City tap water, discussed some of the small staples of our discourse - Chinese culture; airfare and transportation; the Olympics; and the respective conditions of other family members. Peter, who had eaten at the restaurant previously, munched on vegetarian dim sum and chimed in when applicable. It was a good meal supplemented with familiar conversation by family, and friend.
After finishing lunch, my father turned right; and Peter and I turned left - and walked briskly to the former Tea and Tea on Mott Street; whose current name escapes me and in which we washed down our Chinese breakfast with the tastiest green tea smoothies on the planet (It's the water)! The drink at once quenched my thirst and later provided me with such a chill that I indeed began to shiver slightly; Peter's drink, which took on a life of its own as it insidiously oozed down the side of his glass onto the table below, and consequently created a hazardous lake of green, also went down well, I suspect. The levity from our first meal had vanished somewhat with the dismissal of my father, but I guess that's what happens when the interpersonal guru takes his social mojo back to Brooklyn. The talk and the food nonetheless were satisfying.
Peter then left, I took the bus via the subway, and 45 minutes later, I was back home, going on a fast interval run. In the evening, Mark, Tim, his roommate Peter and I went to Rahway with the original intent to visit a singles ministry being run by a BLD organization, whose Catholic, yet charismatic character intrigued me (the prospect of meeting single Christian girls also aroused my interest). Their service, however, had been canceled at St. Mary's church for this particular, ill-fated Friday so, the flexible blokes that we were, we instead discovered delightful diversions at a nearby Chili's and its neighbor, a monstrously large Barnes and Noble where I bought a present - a collection of Ibsen's plays - for Clare; and within whose bowels we found dozens of nubile, middle school girls sprawled around as though they were held captive in a refugee camp, one housing thousands upon thousands of books - apparently, a book release party was in progress, a disgruntled salesgirl told me.
Mount Prospect School
Susan Philp Bivona
Immediate Past President, Art Educators of NJ
2009 NAEA Elementary Art Educator of the Year
2008 Mount Prospect School ~ Teacher of the Year
PC10BOS Volvo B12M / Plaxton Panther .
Prospect Coaches (West) Ltd, Lye, West Midlands.
Photo taken in Skegness 2013.
I am indebted to John Fielding (www.flickr.com/photos/john_fielding/) for posting an aerial shot of Holy Trinity, and my interest was piqued by the timber-framed building with the triple gable at the east end. Turned out this was the Lady Chapel, and more of that later. So, on my way back home to Kent, I called in to see if it looked as remarkable in the flesh as in photographs.
I arrived at Long Melford, after being taken on a magical mystery tour in light drizzle from Wortham, down narrow and narrower lanes, under and over railway lines, through woods, up and down hills until, at last, I saw the town laid out beyond the church.
I parked at the bottom of Church Walk then walked up past the line of timber framed houses, the tudor hospital and the tudor manor house.
Holy Trinity sits on top of the hill, spread out, filling its large churchyard and the large tower not out of proportion.
Inside it really is a collection of wonders, from brasses, the best collection of Medieval glass in Suffolk, to side chapels, and behind, the very unusual Lady Chapel.
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The Church of the Holy Trinity, Long Melford is a Grade I listed parish church of the Church of England in Long Melford, Suffolk, England. It is one of 310 medieval English churches dedicated to the Holy Trinity.
The church was constructed between 1467 and 1497 in the late Perpendicular Gothic style. It is a noted example of a Suffolk medieval wool church, founded and financed by wealthy wool merchants in the medieval period as impressive visual statements of their prosperity.
The church structure is highly regarded by many observers. Its cathedral-like proportions and distinctive style, along with its many original features that survived the religious upheavals of the 16th and 17th centuries, have attracted critical acclaim. Journalist and author Sir Simon Jenkins, Chairman of the National Trust, included the church in his 1999 book “England’s Thousand Best Churches”. He awarded it a maximum of 5 stars, one of only 18 to be so rated. The Holy Trinity Church features in many episodes of Michael Wood's, BBC television history series Great British Story, filmed during 2011.
A church is recorded as having been on the site since the reign of King Edward the Confessor (1042–1066). It was originally endowed by the Saxon Earl Alric, who bequeathed the patronage of the church, along with his manor at Melford Hall and about 261 acres of land, to the successive Abbots of the Benedictine Abbey of Bury St Edmund’s. There are no surviving descriptions of the original Saxon structure, although the roll of the clergy (see below) and the history of the site extend back to the 12th century.
The church was substantially rebuilt between 1467 and 1497. Of the earlier structures, only the former Lady Chapel (now the Clopton Chantry Chapel) and the nave arcades survive.
The principal benefactor who financed the reconstruction was wealthy local wool merchant John Clopton, who resided at neighbouring Kentwell Hall. John Clopton was a supporter of the Lancastrian cause during the Wars of the Roses and in 1462 was imprisoned in the Tower of London with John de Vere, 12th Earl of Oxford and a number of others, charged with corresponding treasonably with Margaret of Anjou. All of those imprisoned were eventually executed except John Clopton, who somehow made his peace with his accusers and lived to see the Lancastrians eventually triumphant at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485.
The dates of the reconstruction of the church are derived from contemporary wills, which provided endowments to finance the work
In 1710 the main tower was damaged by a lightning strike.[3] It was replaced with a brick-built structure in the 18th century and subsequently remodelled between 1898 and 1903 to its present-day appearance, designed by George Frederick Bodley in the Victorian Gothic Revival style. The new tower was closer to its original form with stone and flint facing and the addition of four new pinnacles.
The nave, at 152.6 feet (46.5 m), is believed to be the longest of any parish church in England. There are nine bays, of which the first five at the western end are believed to date from an earlier structure.
The interior is lit by 74 tracery windows, many of which retain original medieval glass. These include the image of Elizabeth de Mowbray, Duchess of Norfolk, said to have provided the inspiration for John Tenniel's illustration of the Queen of Hearts in Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.
The sanctuary is dominated by the large reredos, of Caen stone and inspired by the works of Albrecht Dürer. It was installed in 1877, having been donated by the mother of the then Rector Charles Martyn.
On the north side is the alabaster and marble tomb of Sir William Cordell who was the first Patron of the Church after the dissolution of the Abbey of Bury St Edmund's in 1539. On either side of the tomb are niches containing figures that represent the four Cardinal virtues of Prudence, Justice, Temperance and Fortitude.
The sanctuary also holds one of the earliest extant alabaster bas relief panels, a nativity from the second half of the 14th century. The panel was hidden under the floor of chancel, probably early in the reign of Elizabeth I, and was rediscovered in the 18th century.[6] The panel, which may be part of an altar piece destroyed during the Reformation, includes a midwife arranging Mary's pillows and two cows looking from under her bed.
The Clopton Chapel is in the north east corner of the church. It commemorates various Clopton family members and was used by the family as a place of private worship.
The tomb of Sir William Clopton is set into an alcove here, in the north wall. An effigy of Sir William, wearing chain mail and plate armour, is set on top of the tomb. Sir William is known to have died in 1446 and it is therefore believed that this corner of the church predates the late 15th-century reconstruction. There are numerous brasses set in the floor commemorating other members of the Clopton family; two date from 1420, another shows two women wearing head attire in the butterfly style from around 1480, and a third depicts Francis Clopton who died in 1558.
There is an altar set against the east wall of the chapel and a double squint designed to provide priests with a view of the high altar when conducting Masses.
The Clopton Chantry Chapel is a small chapel at the far north east corner of the church, accessed from the Clopton Chapel. This was the original Lady Chapel and is the oldest part of the current structure. After John Clopton's death in 1497, his will made provision for the chapel to be extended and refurbished and for him to be buried alongside his wife there.[10] The chapel was then renamed, while the intended Chantry Chapel became the Lady Chapel.
The tomb of John Clopton and his wife is set in the wall leading into the chapel. Inside, the canopy vault displays faded portraits of the couple. Also displayed is a portrait of the risen Christ with a Latin text which, translated, reads Everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. A series of empty niches in the south wall most likely once held statues of saints. Around the cornice, John Lydgate's poem "Testament" is presented in the form of a scroll along the roof, while his "Lamentation of our Lady Maria" is along the west wall.
The Lady Chapel is a separate building attached to the east end of the main church. In an unusual layout, it has a central sanctuary surrounded by a pillared ambulatory, reflecting its original intended use as a chantry chapel with John Clopton's tomb in its centre. Clopton was forced to abandon this plan when his wife died before the new building was completed and consecrated; so she was buried in the former Lady Chapel and John Clopton was subsequently interred next to her.[12]
The stone carving seen in the Lady Chapel bears similarities to work at King's College Chapel, Cambridge and at Burwell Church in Cambridgeshire. It is known that the master mason employed there was Reginald Ely, the King's Mason, and although there is no documentary proof, it is believed that Ely was also responsible for the work at Holy Trinity, Long Melford.[13]
The chapel was used as a school from 1670 until the early 18th century, and a multiplication table on the east wall serves as a reminder of this use. The steep gables of the roof also date from this period.
The Martyn Chapel is situated to the south of the chancel. It contains the tombs of several members of the Martyn family, who were prominent local wool merchants in the 15th and 16th centuries, and who also acted as benefactors of the church. These include the tomb chest of Lawrence Martyn (died 1460) and his two wives. On the floor are the tomb slabs of Roger Martyn (died 1615) and his two wives Ursula and Margaret; and of Richard Martyn (died 1624) and his three wives.
Originally, the Martyn chapel contained an altar flanked by two gilded tabernacles, one displaying an image of Christ and the other an image of Our Lady of Pity. These tabernacles reached to the ceiling of the chapel, but were removed or destroyed during the English Reformation in the reign of King Edward VI.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Trinity_Church,_Long_Melford
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The setting of Holy Trinity is superlative. At the highest point and square onto the vast village green, its southern elevation is punctuated by the 16th Century Trinity Hospital almshouses. Across the green is the prospect of Melford Hall's pepperpot turrets and chimneys behind a long Tudor wall. Another great house, Kentwell Hall, is to the north. Kentwell was home to the Clopton family, whose name you meet again and again inside the church. Norman Scarfe described it as in a way, a vast memorial chapel to the family.
Holy Trinity is the longest church in Suffolk, longer even than Mildenhall, but this is because of a feature unique in the county, a large lady chapel separate from the rest of the church beyond the east end of the chancel. The chapel itself is bigger than many East Anglian churches, although it appears externally rather domestic with its triple gable at the east end. There is a good collection of medieval glass in the otherwise clear windows, as well as a couple of modern pieces, and a very mdern altarpiece at the central altar. Jacqueline's mother remembered attending Sunday School in this chapel in the 1940s.
The intimacy of the Lady Chapel is in great contrast to the vast walls of glass which stretch away westwards, the huge perpendicular windows of the nave aisles and clerestories, which appear to make the castellated nave roof float in air. An inscription in the clerestory records the date at which the building was completed as 1496. Forty years later, it would all have been much more serious. Sixty years later, it would not have been built at all. A brick tower was added in the early 18th Century, and the present tower, by GF Bodley, was encased around it in 1903. As Sam Mortlock observes, this tower might seem out of place in Suffolk, but it nevertheless matches the scale and character of the building. It is hard to imagine the church without it.
I came here back in May with my friend David Striker, who, despite living thousands of miles away in Colorado, has nearly completed his ambition to visit every medieval church in Norfolk and Suffolk. This was his first visit to Long Melford, mine only the latest of many. We stepped down into the vast, serious space.. There was a fairly considerable 19th Century restoration here, as witnessed by the vast sprawl of Minton tiles on the floor, although perhaps the sanctuary furnishings are the building's great weakness. Perhaps it is the knowledge of this that fails to turn my head eastwards, but instead draws me across to the north aisle for the best collection of medieval glass in Suffolk. During the 19th century restoration it was collected into the east window and north and south aisles, but in the 1960s it was all recollected here. Even on a sunny day it is a perfect setting for exploring it.
The most striking figures are probably those of the medieval donors, who originally would have been set prayerfully at the base of windows of devotional subjects. Famously, the portrait of Elizabeth, Duchess of Norfolk is said to have provided the inspiration for John Tenneil's Duchess in his illustrations to Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland, although I'm not sure there is any evidence for this. Indeed, several of the ladies here might have provided similar inspiration.
The best glass is the pieta, Mary holding the body of Christ the Man of Sorrows. Beneath it is perhaps the best-known, the Holy Trinity represented in a roundel as three hares with their ears interlocking. An angel holding a Holy Trinity shield in an upper light recalls the same thing at Salle. Other glass includes a fine resurrection scene and a sequence of 15th Century Saints. There is also a small amount of continental glass collected in later centuries, including a most curious oval lozenge of St Francis receiving the stigmata.
Walking eastwards down the north aisle until the glass runs out, you are rewarded by a remarkable survival, a 14th century alabaster panel of the Adoration of the Magi. It probably formed part of the altar piece here, and was rediscovered hidden under the floorboards in the 18th century. Fragments of similar reliefs survive elsewhere in East Anglia, but none in such perfect condition. Beyond it, you step through into the north chancel chapel where there are a number of Clopton brasses, impressive but not in terribly good condition, and then beyond that into the secretive Clopton chantry. This beautiful little chapel probably dates from the completion of the church in the last decade of the 15th century. Here, chantry priests would have celebrated Masses for the dead of the Clopton family. The chapel is intricately decorated with devotional symbols and vinework, as well as poems attributed to John Lidgate. The beautiful Tudor tracery of the window is filled with elegant clear glass except for another great survival, a lily crucifix. This representation occurs just once more in Suffolk, on the font at Great Glemham. The panel is probably a later addition here from elsewhere in the church, but it is still haunting to think of the Chantry priests kneeling towards the window as they asked for intercessions for the souls of the Clopton dead. It was intended that the prayers of the priests would sustain the Cloptons in perpetuity, but in fact it would last barely half a century before the Reformation outlawed such practices.
You step back into the chancel to be confronted by the imposing stone reredos. Its towering heaviness is out of sympathy with the lightness and simplicity of the Perpendicular windows, and it predates Bodley's restoration. The screen which separates the chancel from the south chapel is medeival, albeit restored, and I was struck by a fierce little dragon, although photographing it into the strong south window sunshine beyond proved impossible. The brasses in the south chapel are good, and in better condition. They are to members of the Martyn family.
The south chapel is also the last resting place of Long Melford's other great family, the Cordells. Sir William Cordell's tomb dominates the space. He died in 1581, and donated the Trinity Hospital outside. His name survives elsewhere in Long Melford: my wife's mother grew up on Cordell Road, part of a council estate cunningly hidden from the High Street by its buildings on the east side.
Simon Knott, January 2013
Built 1885 for Frederick Dewar Beach & wife Elizabeth & named “Audley House”, converted to flats 1917, purchased & renamed “Verona” by Blackfriars School & used as boarding house 1960-1968, then as priests’ home, sold 1994, now private & renamed Audley House.
“Mr. Bertie Beach, third son of Mr. F. D. Beach, of Audley House, Prospect, took his passage by the ever popular ship Torrens on Tuesday week for a nine months' trip to England and the Continent.” [Quiz, Adelaide 11 Apr 1890]
“Laundress. Apply Thursday or Friday, between 10 and 12, Mrs. Beach, Audley House, Prospect.” [Advertiser 4 May 1894 advert]
“The marriage of the Right Hon. Samuel James Way (Chief Justice of South Australia) to Mrs. W. A. S. Blue (widow of Dr. Blue, of Hahndorf) was very quietly celebrated on the afternoon of Easter Monday, The time and place of the ceremony were kept very secret. . . Audley House, Prospect, the residence of Mrs. F. D. Beach, eldest sister of the Chief Justice, was the scene of the bridal.” [Quiz & Lantern 14 Apr 1898]
“Mrs. Beach, of Audley House, Prospect, has issued cards for an ‘At home’ on Tuesday, August 2. Those who have enjoyed Mrs. Beach's hospitality in the past can look forward to an enjoyable time, as the hostess and her daughters spare no efforts in the entertainment of their numerous guests.” [Quiz & Lantern 28 Jul 1898]
“The engagement is announced of Miss Jessie Napier, only daughter of Dr. Leith Napier, of Angas-street, to Mr. Sydney E. Beach, of ‘Audley House’, Prospect.” [Critic, Adelaide 4 Jul 1906]
“Mrs. Sydney Beach, of Audley House, Prospect, is ‘receiving’ on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday of this week.” [Critic, Adelaide 7 Nov 1906]
“Good Cook immediately also. Laundry Housemaid references Apply mornings Mrs Beach, Audley House, Prospect.” [Advertiser 2 Mar 1907 advert]
“Experienced Nurse for three (3) children; youngest 16 months. Apply Mrs. Beach, ‘Audley House’, Prospect.” [Advertiser 16 Aug 1913 advert]
“For Sale. . . ’Audley House’, Prospect. . . The well-known residence of Colonel S. E. Beach, comprising 14 rooms. . . large laundry, garage, stabling, man's room, underground tank (10,000 gallons), conservatories, lawns, fruit and ornamental trees, etc, etc.” [Advertiser 19 Sep 1917 advert]
“Audley Estate, Prospect. Col S. E. Beach has decided, to have his valuable property on the Prospect road subdivided into building sites. 'Audley House', which comprises about 14 rooms, will be made available for purchase with about one acre of land. The balance of the land — between 2 and 3 acres — will be subdivided.” [The Mail 22 Sep 1917]
“Early in the New Year it is proposed to adapt the well-known 'Audley House' to provide Two Superior Suites of Rooms, unfurnished (6 on ground floor, 7 on first floor). The Rooms are lofty, spacious, and well lighted. Each Suite will have separate conveniences, lovely grounds, shadehouses, garage, stabling, &c. Electric cars pass the frontage.” [The Mail 22 Dec 1917]
“The work of converting Audley House, Prospect, into flats has been satisfactorily completed under the supervision of Mr. J, H. Laity, architect.” [The Mail 2 Mar 1918]
“To Let, Flat, unfurnished, self-contained, Four Rooms, Balconies, in Audley House, Prospect; Garage; fine Grounds.” [Register 5 Mar 1919 advert]
“Äuction. . . 'Audley House'. Prospect Rd., Prospect. A Stately Two-Storey Residence, substantially built of stone, containing 14 rms. . . front and side balconies. 3 bathrms., pantries, presses, domestic conveniences, and extensive stone and brick outbuildings. 'Audley House', at present let as three residential flats, could be advantageously subdivided to provide more flats, or is highly suited for a Hostel, Guest Home, Hospital, or an Institution of some kind. . . spacious, well-kept grounds. . . beautiful- trees and shrubs, occupies a good position near tram stop. . . To be sold subject to existing tenancies.” [The Mail 16 Mar 1946 advert]
FREDERICK DEWE BEACH
“BEACH.— [Died] On the 14th November, at his residence, Audley House, Prospect, Frederick Dewe Beach.”[Register 15 Nov 1895]
“Mr. Frederick Dewe Beach. . . was the son of Mr. Charles Beach, of Audley House, North Audley-street, London, and was born on March 14, 1829. He was educated at Mordant Hall, Kent, and served his apprenticeship with Messrs. Hewett & Co, confectioners and caterers, of Regent-street, London. . . He left England for Adelaide at the age of 21 in the ship Sibella. . . After being in business for a few years in this city Mr Beach left for the Victorian goldfields and worked at Ballarat, Bendigo, Forest Creek, and other rushes. . . on his return he opened a confectioner's establishment in Brown-street, removing afterwards to the precent premises in Hindley-street. . . Mr. Beach married the eldest daughter of the Rev. James Way who survives him. The family consists of Messrs. Fred, Sydney, Herbert and Frank Beach, and Misses Jeanie and Olive Beach.” [Advertiser 15 Nov 1895]
“BEACH.— [Died] On the 7th May, at her residence, Audley House, Prospect, Elizabeth, relict of Frederick Dewe Beach, and eldest daughter of the late Rev. James Way.” [Evening Journal 8 May 1903]
“Mrs. Beach, widow of the late Mr. F. D. Beach. . . was a sister of the Lieut Governor (Rt. Hon. Sir Samuel Way), Mrs. Allan Campbell, and the late Dr. Way. . . well known in philanthropic circles. . . Adelaide Children's Hospital. . . North Adelaide Baptist Church. The family consists of five sons, Mjr. S. E. Beach, Messrs. Fred, F. J., Frank, and Herbert Beach, and two daughters, Mrs. Hugo Leschen, and Mrs. L. W. Yemm. Mjr. Beach is at present in Queensland, and Messrs. F. J„ and Frank Beach are in Sydney.” [Evening Journal 7 May 1903]
SYDNEY EDWIN BEACH
“BEACH—NAPIER.— [Married] On the 3rd October, at Chalmers Church, North-terrace, Adelaide, by the Rev. D. Paton, assisted by the Rev. John Thorne, Sydney Edwin, second son of the late F. D. Beach, of Audley House, Prospect, to Jessie Mellis, daughter of Dr. Leith Napier, of Angas-street, Adelaide.” [Advertiser 8 Dec 1906]
“BEACH.— [Died] On the 15th March. Sydney E. Beach, dearly loved husband of Jessie Beach, 37 Wood street, Millswcod. Aged 74 years.” [Advertiser 17 Mar 1934]
“CoL Sydney Beach. . . As a very young man, he had the good fortune to 'get in early' to Broken Hill shares He joined the Stock Exchange of Adelaide when it began in 1887. . . He was a nephew of a former Chief Justice, Sir Samuel Way, to whom he often acted as A.D.C.” [The Mail 24 Mar 1934]
“BEACH.— [Died] On October 29, at private hospltal, Jessie Mellis, beloved widow of Sydney Edwin Beach.” [Advertiser 31 Oct 1947]
“Mrs. Jessie Mellis Beach. . . was a sister of the Lieutenant Governor (Sir Mellis Napier). She was the widow of Mr. Sydney Edwin Beach, and has left two sons and a daughter.” [Advertiser 31 Oct 1947]
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Shot in Dungeness E Sussex, Derek Jarman's Cottage; Prospect
Derek Jarman was an English film director, stage designer, artist, and writer.
Jarman's work broke new ground in creating and expanding the fledgling form of 'the pop video' in England, and as a forthright and prominent gay rights activist. Several volumes of his diaries have been published.
Jarman also directed the 1989 tour by the UK duo Pet Shop Boys. By pop concert standards this was a highly theatrical event with costume and specially shot films accompanying the individual songs. Jarman was the stage director of Sylvano Bussotti's opera L'Ispirazione, first staged in Florence in 1998.
He is also remembered for his famous shingle cottage-garden, created in the latter years of his life, in the shadow of the Dungeness power station. The house was built in tarred timber. Raised wooden text on the side of the cottage is the first stanza and the last five lines of the last stanza of John Donne's poem, The Sun Rising. The cottage's beach garden was made using local materials and has been the subject of several books. At this time, Jarman also began painting again (see the book: Evil Queen: The Last Paintings, 1994).
Jarman was the author of several books including his autobiography Dancing Ledge, a collection of poetry A Finger in the Fishes Mouth, two volumes of diaries Modern Nature and Smiling In Slow Motion and two treatises on his work in film and art The Last of England (also published as Kicking the Pricks) and Chroma. Other notable published works include film scripts (Up in the Air, Blue, War Requiem, Caravaggio, Queer Edward II and Wittgenstein: The Terry Eagleton Script/The Derek Jarman Film), a study of his garden at Dungeness Derek Jarman's Garden, and At Your Own Risk, a defiant celebration of gay sexuality.
Prospect is only about an hour and a half from my home, but today was my first visit. In addition to doing some bracketing to play with Enfuse, I also pulled out my B&W 110 to try long exposures while the tide started to roll in. This one is 30 seconds, but the clouds are still very defined. I think it's because it was a still evening, but this is just a guess.
An old turn of the century lamp stares at me through the Prospect Park Trees on a late spring evening, disturbing my privacy. The lamp suddenly speaks" Wouldn't it be nice if the Mayor started paying attention to some much needed landscaping improvements?" I said "When did you think of that? Does a light go off in your head?