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The archivist at Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies Centre has kindly assisted in locating the whereabouts of the memorial cottage homes in Appleby Street, Cheshunt. Whilst I was scouring online records and Google street view looking for a pair of semi-detached cottages, these memorial cottage homes were in fact a terrace of three. No.1 for the 13th/18th Hussars (Hussars Cottage), No.2 for the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment (Bedford Regt Cottage) and No.3, let by Miss Amy Debenham of Cheshunt Park (Soldier's Cottage). It would also appear that this part of Appleby Street is now Park Lane.

Redvers,

In one of your comments you wrote that you were unaware of the 18th Hussars Cottage at Cheshunt – I think you were aware of it but under another named location as you listed in your original post one at Enfield. Cheshunt and Enfield are only a few miles apart and these days houses in Appleby Street have the “EN” postcode.

I would be interested in the Archivist’s evidence for a terrace of three – I have virtually travelled along the whole of Appleby Street/Park Lane and not spied an Edwardian terrace. I think the third may be a naming duplication – for example John George William Hanks gave his address as “18th Hussars Cottage” in 1911, but as “Soldier’s Cottage” in 1921.

Anyway, moving up north to Burnley I have been much more successful with Google Street:

No’s 4 & 6 Salus Street, Burnley are shown below as they are today:



The plaque, unveiled on 30 September 1905 by Queen Victoria’s daughter Princess Louise, reads as follows:

“COTTAGE HOMES
ERECTED BY PUBLIC SUBSCRIPTION AND THE
EAST LANCASHIRE REGIMENT
TO THE MEMORY OF THE MEN OF THIS REGIMENT WHO LOST THEIR LIVES
IN THE SOUTH AFRICAN WAR 1899-1902”

The 1911 Census return for No.4 Salus Street shows it was occupied by Thomas Molloy, his wife Mary and their three children. Thomas described himself as “Caretaker, Army Pensioner” and the enumerator added after the Caretaker “Pensioner Homes”. Thomas served in the 3rd Battalion, East Lancashire Regiment during the ABW and the battalion QSA medal rolls list him as 5049 Private T Molloy and show his medal was adorned with 3 clasps – Cape Colony, Orange Free State and South Africa 1901. The comment column adds he was discharged “Time Expired 30/08/1901”.

Thomas Molloy also filled out the 1911 Census Return for No.6 Salus Street and signed it off “Thomas Molloy – In Charge”. He listed, using his own word, three “inmates” – 67 year old Anthony Duckett, Widower & Army Pensioner, born in Horton in Ribblesdale, Yorkshire; 71 year old Edward Beech, Widower, Army Pensioner & Old age Pensioner, born in Stockport, Cheshire; 30 year old William Forres (or possibly Torres), Single & Army Pensioner, born in the Lanes, Blackburn, Lancashire. Column 16 where “Infirmities” were listed is blank for Anthony but tells us Edward had been “Totally Blind, 7 years” and William was “Feeble Minded”. Needless to say Anthony and Edward were too old to have fought in the ABW. I can tell you nothing further about William except he was the right age to have fought in the ABW. Both Anthony and Edward died 5 years later in 1916 in local hospitals. Edward’s death resulted in an inquest which was reported in the Burnley News of 20 December 1916:



Military paperwork has survived for Edward and I do need to challenge the above newspaper article. Edward was born in late 1839 and attested for service in the Royal Artillery in 1858 (the year after the Indian Mutiny). After 21 years home service with the RA as a musician he was discharged on 1st July 1879 with 4 good conduct badges to his credit and a Long Service & Good Conduct Medal pinned to his uniform. The next day he joined the Royal West Kent Light Infantry and after another 5 years of home service he was discharged with the rank of Bugle Major. The 1901 Census shows him living in Burnley with his at least third wife and occupation “theatre musician” and he did have a daughter who became Mrs Gooder and, according to the 1911 Census, lived at 30 Travis Street. So make what you will of that.

Of those living in the East Lancashire Regiment Home Cottages in 1911 another death occurred during the Great War as shown by this article in the Burnley Express of 25 September 1915:



Further down the line on the Gallipoli peninsula on 4 June 1915 were two brothers John “Jack” Fletcher Redhead & Thomas James Redhead (my Great Uncles serving in the 6th Manchesters). Before going over the top for the first time they shook hands and wished each other “Good Luck”. When the retreat was sounded Tom made it back, albeit wounded and requiring hospitalisation, but Jack’s body was never found. Tom was later commissioned, rose to the rank of Captain and twice won the MC.

There are two things incorrect in the above article as there is no evidence that Thomas Molly was ever a Colour Sergeant. Like Jack Redhead, Bernard Francis Molloy is commemorated on the Helles Memorial meaning his body was never found – both officially died on 5 June 1915 but almost certainly they died on 4 June 1915 and that is what my Great-Grandmother believed when she commemorated her son Jack on my Great-Grandfather’s grave.

I understand that the archivist obtained the information from the Inland Revenue Survey 1910-11 and the book 'Cheshunt in Hertfordshire' by Jack Edwards (1974). What was a terrace of three cottage homes now appears to be a pair of semis. (See attached plan and photo.)

Yes, the East Lancashire Regiment memorial cottage homes in Salus Street are quite impressive, especially the carved inscription.

Elsewhere in Lancashire there are a pair of semi-detached memorial cottage homes to the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment at Watling Street, Preston.

Apparently, there are also some Lancashire Regiment memorial cottage homes elsewhere. All I have at this stage, is that both were described are being "within 30 miles of Manchester". One being "part of a gentleman's residence" at Westwood, and the other "a new house...in a pretty Ribble Valley village" maintained by Mr R G Radcliffe. Any information as to the exact location of these would be appreciated.

Earlier on today, I think I managed to locate the former Royal Warwickshire memorial cottage homes at Budbrooke. When I have put things together I will post what I have found.

I have also recently discovered that the Oxfordshire Light Infantry and H H Prince Christian Victor memorial cottage homes at Cowley, Oxford were demolished a few years ago to make way for student housing. Whilst the building had been much altered, neither the developer nor the local planning authority knew what the building was! I have contacted the landowner to ask if they would be willing to at least put up a plaque.

Oh dear - I helped to pay for the alterations when I lived in nearby Sandford-on-Thames between 1978 & 2012 and took a variety of cats & dogs there for attention.

Six Soldier’s Homes, Manor Road, Wantage (in Berkshire when they were built but now in Oxfordshire).

From the Oxford & Reading Chronicle, 3 June 1904:



They are still standing with their history very much being respected.

Their occupants in 1911 & 1939 can be identified from 1911 Census returns and the September 1939 Register. In 1939 the occupation of one of the occupants was given as “Army Pensioner”.

According to a local newspaper on 29 October 1933 two of the occupants had a disagreement because a chicken kept by one was eating the cabbages grown by the other. The chicken owner tried to settle the matter by punching the cabbage grower in the face and knocking out one of his teeth. When the chicken owner appeared before the magistrates on a charge of assault the cabbage grower was asked if it was a good tooth he had lost, he responded “Not too good a one but I didn’t like to lose it”. In giving evidence Frederick Dowse, the chicken owner, said he was 68 years old and was a pensioner from the South African Campaign and had lived at the Soldiers’ Homes for roughly six years”. He was fined 10 shillings. He was still living in No.2 at the time of the September 1939 Register.

The 1911 Census returns show: each occupant claimed 5 rooms except one who, to the annoyance of the enumerator, claimed “1 Parlour, kitchen and 3 bedrooms”. The enumerator crossed this all out and wrote 5; all of the occupants were Army Pensioners except one who was a Naval Pensioner; all were 70 or more, so would have been too old to fight in the ABW, except one Army Pensioner who was only 41 and had been blind since he was 33; one of the others claimed a wounded left leg but it received the red ink treatment from the checker of the returns.

If it makes you feel better, the carbuncle on the front of the cottages was already in place in the 1950s, albeit in a slightly different form.