19th July 2001 - Roy Underdown Pavilion

At our meeting on 19th July Anne Seaton told us more about her family, the Taylors, who became established in Hamble in 1800. They continued in a variety of trades including building, plumbing, coffin making and selling coal until 1964. They even worked on boats before Lukes Yard started business. Inspired by our forthcoming visit to Sydney Lodge, Anne told us about work that the Taylors had done there, and at other large houses, in the 1890's. The copper-plate entries in a business ledger mentioned, "To sundry supplies ... 2 men ... 3 hours work ... 6/6d," and other examples of another Hamble in a different world.

There were glimpses of some of the family members too, like a Taylor sitting with an earlier ledger, dipping a goose-quill pen and laboriously making entries. Or Anne's Grandfather, who hated the introduction of the telephone in the 1920's and thought it 'an infernal nuisance.' we heard of some of the prominent residents who were customers, and the different ways of life in those days. You needed tolerance to live in that Hamble. Some of those who could afford to, occasionally 'hit the bottle!'

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