Ampthill, Bedfordshire, Record 8: The Rushbrooke Family, Part 1

Record 8: The Rushbrooke Family

Record eight was recorded in the large building known as St George's. It was later sold and became a hospital from 1930-1948, before being converted for use as a school and nursery. This closed in 2007 and the house was demolished in 2015 to be replaced by apartments. This is the first of four parts looking at the house, the second covers the family's three youngest children, part three looks at the visitors to the house and both three and four cover the many servants present at the time.

Head: Joseph Rushbrooke

Joseph Rushbrooke was born in Ampthill in 1854. The third son of draper George Rushbrooke (1813-1899) and Sarah Ann Clark (1815-1857). Joseph's father was originally from Suffolk and his mother was born in St. Neots, Huntingdonshire. Joseph's mother passed away when he was only two. Leaving his father to support him and his older brothers William George (1849-1926), Alfred (1850-1896), and Thomas (1853-1936), until he remarried to Mahalath Clark (1815-1896) in 1864. The family had settled in Ampthill around the end of the 1840's, and Joseph's family became well known through George's work as a draper, furnisher and business owner. The family's impact on the town is best noted in the opening paragraph detailing George's funeral.

Newspaper report on the funeral of George Rushbrooke, 1899

By the time he was 16, Joseph was already helping in his father's business as an assistant, and he continued in this trade until around the time of his father's death, when Joseph was 45. Two years later, in 1901, Joseph worked as a merchant, and had moved his family to Bournemouth. This venture did not seemingly last long, and by 1911 he had returned to Ampthill, still a merchant. Joseph upon his return, moved in to the large St. George's house. This house had been built for his father around the 1880's.

Rushbrooke's Draper shop, c.1900

During his time in the employment of his father, Joseph had met and married Lilla Gosling in 1884. They would go on to have many children, starting with Evelyn Mary (1885-1985), George Eric (1887-1895), Charles Joseph (1888-1945), Dorothy Lilla (1891-1977), Irene Constance (1902-1995), Violet Marjorie (1903-1980), and William Alec James (1908-2001).

St. George's House, c.1950

Around 1913, Joseph left Ampthill, and by the 1920's he owned two properties. One in London and the other in Earsley, Berkshire. During his time in Berkshire he became President of the Wokingham Agricultural Society, a governor of the Royal Berkshire Hospital, and chairman of the Farley Rifle Club among others. He was also a devout parishioner of St. Peter's Church in Earsley, and was generally popular around the town. He eventually passed away in Earsley, aged 69, on the 7th of March 1924.


Wife : Lilla Rushbrooke (nee Gosling)

Lilla Gosling was born on the 1st of October 1861, in the village of Ridgmont, in Bedford. Her father, Charles (1830-1908), was a man of many trades. He worked (sometimes at the same time) as a grocer, baker, draper, clerk to the school board, assistant overseer & tax collecter, (His work as a draper may have inadvertently led to Lilla meeting her future husband). Lilla's mother, Ann Mardling, died in 1863, when Lilla was two, and she was subsequently brought up by her stepmother, Elizabeth Brookes (1842-1910), who her father married in 1864. In total, Lilla had 21 siblings, of whom 13 were her half siblings.

By the time she met Joseph around 1883, Lilla worked as a housekeeper for her father, at one of his many businesses, however upon marrying, she gave up work to raise a family. By the time of her husband's death in 1924, Lilla had moved with him to Earsley, Berkshire, and after his death she continued to live in the area, however, without Joseph, she decided to move out of their house and until her death on the 16th of August 1942, aged 80, she lived with her daughter Irene. In her will, she left £12,615 (around £56,000 today). Interestingly, she left her personal effects to her four daughters (Evelyn, Dorothy, Irene and Violet), while her two sons were only left the residue of this (which was also split between the four daughters).

Daughter: Evelyn Mary Rushbrooke

Evelyn and her husband Edgar, 1947
Image provided by Tom Willis

Joseph and Lilla's eldest child. Evelyn Mary was born on the 28th of August 1885. She attended school (possibly the National School) from around 1890-1895, although she never went on to work. She seemingly spent her teenage years helping her family (presumably also helping raise her younger siblings). She moved with her family to Earley, around 1913, and here in 1917 she married 39 year-old Edgar William Barney, who worked locally as an advertising agent. The couple had three children, William Guy (1920-2005), Stephen (1922-) and Mary (1926-). Edgar later passed away in 1965, aged 87, and Evelyn passed away 20 years later in Woking, on the 1st of August 1985, 21 days short of her 100th birthday.

Son: Charles Joseph Rushbrooke

Joseph and Lilla's eldest son (after the young death of his brother George), Charles Joseph Rushbrooke was born on the 19th of October 1888. Like his siblings, he attended school from around 1893 to 1899. As a teenager, Charles eventually found work assisting his father, and continued with this after the family moved to Earley. It was here that in 1918, Charles married 27 year-old Elizabeth Winifred Holman. Together they had two sons, John and George.

By the time of his fathers death in 1924, Charles had seemingly inherited his fathers company G. Rushbrooke LTD, which he then renamed to G. Rushbrooke (Smithfield) LTD after Joseph died. During this time, the company made mainly butchers equipment, including chopping blocks, tables, paddles, and ham stands. The company still exists to this today, albeit under its original name of G. Rushbrooke, which it reverted to in 1982.

G. Rushbrooke (Smithfield) chopping block made c.1949

Charles remained chairman of the company during his later years, even after moving to Cornwall around 1940. It was here in Cornwall that Charles passed away on the 29th of March 1945, aged 56. His wife, Elizabeth outlived him by 36 years, passing in 1981, aged 90. Interestingly, she was not buried with Charles, but instead buried in a family grave in Camborne.
Daughter: Dorothy Lilla Rushbrooke

Although poor quality, this newspaper image shows
Dorothy and Kenneth leaving St. Peter's church, Earsley
after their marriage (27 April 1920).

The second oldest daughter of Joseph and Lilla, Dorothy Lilla was born on the 8th of August 1891. After attending school from around 1896 to 1903, she, like her elder sister Evelyn, presumably spent her time helping to look after her younger siblings and carry out household duties. The only time she seems to have actually taken up work was during WW1, when she worked with the Red Cross' Voluntary Aid Detachment as a nurse.

Like her two older siblings, she eventually married after moving to Earley, having met 23 year-old Kenneth James Holman, possibly a couple of years earlier, when Kenneth's sister Elizabeth married Dorothy's brother Charles. Kenneth worked as an engineer, and this notably led him to travel abroad frequently, including visits to Canada, America, South Africa, and Ghana. 

Despite these frequent travels, Dorothy and Kenneth were still settled in the UK, having moved to Cornwall around 1922. Together they had three children, Joseph, Richard, and Christopher. Kenneth eventually passed away on the 31st of December 1954, aged 58. 23 years later, Dorothy also passed away, in Teignmouth, Devon, on the 5th of May 1977, aged 85.