Recollections by Margaret Sumnall
Margaret and her husband Rodney Farmer. Acknowledgement: Chris Hardwick
Frances Marie Sumner
In an article which I contributed to the Shropshire Family History Society in 2005 (Vol 26, Part 1, p 24), I wrote briefly of my mother’s time in service at Buildwas Park and the family she worked for. I also mentioned that I was hoping to record my mother’s memories of her years in service — this I have now done.
In 1935 my mother, Frances Marie Sumner, went into service at Buildwas Park. She was employed by Colonel and Mrs Harold Crishton-Browne. The Crichton-Browne family had been at Buildwas Park since the first decades of the c19th, first as tenants and later as owners.
Colonel Crichton-Browne was the son of Sir James Crichton-Browne and was married to Margaret Verdin. They had one son, who had died during the First World War and a daughter, Gladys, who was already married when my mother went to work at Buildwas Park. Her husband was an usher to the king and they lived in London. They had a daughter Chelsey and a nursery was kept for her use at Buildwas Park as she visited frequently. Children’s parties would be held for Chelsey when she stayed at the Park.
Frances' first day
On her first day my mother was met at Coalbrookdale station by the chauffeur with an old car that had belonged to the Crichton-Browne’s son. She remembers the car as having acetylene lamps and a canvas hood which was torn.
My mother describes the Colonel as being tall and well-built and ‘like a bear going around, puffing, blowing, spitting, cursing and swearing’. He spent his days reading and smoking cigars and had a nasty habit of spitting in his ash tray. His wife, who mum liked very much, was little, fat and quiet and loved her food - especially sauces. She was in the habit of saying to her husband ‘aren’t you going to have a bit of this, Harold?’
Remembering the Crichton-Browne’s
The Crichton-Browne’s only son, Cecil, was killed during the First World War - he was awarded the Military Cross. Both he and his father had served with the King’s Own Scottish Borderers. My mother says that the son’s room was never used after he died and everything was kept in his room just as he had left it. Even his military uniform which he was wearing when he was shot was displayed there.
Mum remembers the Colonel’s father, Sir James, whom she met twice, as also being tall and well-built like his son. He outlived the Colonel, dying in 1938 in his 90’s.
Buildwas Park
The house at Buildwas Park was built of stone and had a long drive up to it, leading from a farm lane. The estate contained lakes and trees and in the spring there were bulbs around the lakes. There was a stable block but there weren’t any horses during mum’s time there, and neither were there any dogs, which I thought unusual.
The house had a large entrance hall with a staircase leading out of it. There were two studies off the hall, a lounge to the right and another beyond, a dining room and a passage leading to two rooms, a servants’ hall, butler’s pantry, larders, kitchen and scullery. Up the back stairs, there were three bedrooms in the tower. During her employ at the Park, mum had a bedroom in the tower and outside her window she recalls was a Tulip tree.
Up the main stairs, to the left were a schoolroom, bathroom and four bedrooms, to the right there were five bedrooms, a bathroom and another bedroom. There was a cellar where the heating system was and also a wine cellar.
Life 'below stairs'
When my mother first went to work at Buildwas Park she was employed as under housemaid and later as parlour maid. As parlour maid, she worked with Mr.Tough, the butler. Her duties included waiting on at the dining table and cleaning the silver. My mother tells the tale of the butler who having the keys to the wine cellar often used to sample the wine. She said he was in the habit of popping behind the green baize screens, which were inside the outer ways of the dining room, and taking a drink of the wine, (obviously one of the perks of the job!). Mr Tough’s daughter, Margaret, was head housemaid at one time. The Tough family lived in the lodge house at the bottom of the drive.
When my mother wished to give in her notice to leave, to enable her to earn more money the Colonel, not wanting to lose her, offered her the job as head housemaid, which she accepted. As part of her duties the housemaids cleaned the bedrooms and took hot water to the rooms for the jugs and basins on the wash stands. There were coal fires in the bedrooms which had to be lit, tended and cleaned out. There were also coal fires downstairs and some grates which needed black leading. The fireplace in the hall was very large, large enough to get inside; it was also used to roast pigs. Apparently there was some central heating with radiators in the living rooms which were heated by a coke boiler down in the cellars. My mother said that fumes from the heating tarnished the brass and turned the silver purple. There was a lot of silver and brass to clean including brass fenders and firedogs.
The servants made their own polish from beeswax and mum says the stone staircase steps had to be whitened – it was a lot of hard work. The house was large and not easy to clean. The carpets had to be cleaned with a dustpan and brush as there was no carpet sweeper.
The housemaids were also sometimes called upon to wait on in the dining room.
On the menu
My mum also cooked and baked cakes. Some of the cakes she made were fancy cakes, special cakes for birthdays, including some shaped as a crinoline lady with iced skirts and a porcelain figure on the top. I have seen these recreated over the years.
Mum remembers the kitchen maid she worked with, Emily Stewart from Ironbridge, who went to live in Madeley and with whom mum exchanged Christmas cards with until quite recently. Emily’s sister-in-law, Ada, took over the cook’s job at Buildwas Park. It had always been the previous cook’s job to alter the clock in the spring and autumn. Mum remembers one October when the servants were looking forward to an extra hour in bed, but when the cook got up to alter the clock, she fell and broke her leg, so I suppose there was extra work then for the rest of the staff to do!
Other staff
The full complement of indoor staff consisted of the cook, two housemaids, kitchen maid, butler and housekeeper. The outside staff comprised of three gardeners and a chauffeur. Besides the parkland, the gardeners looked after a walled garden which had fruit trees trained up the walls and there was also a greenhouse. Mrs Crichton-Browne loved the garden and instructed the gardeners in their duties. When I asked my mum if Mrs Crichton-Browne ever did any gardening herself, my mum replied that “she was no figure to do gardening”! Mum remembers one of the ex-gardeners was killed nearby in a sand quarry.
The Governess
There was also a French governess who had educated the Crichton-Browne’s children but had been kept on as housekeeper. Mademoiselle also acted as Mrs Crichton-Browne’s companion. She was in the habit of checking up on the servants and would place things under the mats to make sure that they had been cleaned underneath. She apparently would eavesdrop outside the servants’ hall door. The Colonel used to curse her and would give mum a knowing look when things went missing, as she would move items and hide them; the Colonel was well aware as to what she was up to. Mademoiselle was also very religious and would dress all in black. Mum said you could go to her room and knock the door; there would be a lot of rustling before you were told to enter, and she would be sitting reading her bible.
Church and social activities
The family attended Buildwas church but the staff preferred to go to Sheinton church. Mum says the staff also used to go to Buildwas village hall to whist drives when they had some time off from work. There was not a lot of free time, usually one day a fortnight, but the staff managed to have fun. Mum tells me about a box of old clothes in the attic which the servants used to dress up in.
The family liked to entertain. There would be dinner parties especially before the Hunt Ball. The hunt would meet at Buildwas Park for drinks before setting off. The Crichton-Browne’s were very interested in the arts and would often entertain writers, actors and actresses. Mum particularly remembers Dame Sybil Thorndike staying at Buildwas Park and P. G. Wodehouse, who it is said used Buildwas Park as his inspiration for Blandings Castle.
Last days of the Hall
Mum left Buildwas Park in 1939 when she got married. The Crichton-Browne family presented mum with a Mappin and Webb silver tea and coffee set as a wedding gift. My mum also has the Coalport coffee cup and saucer in the Indian Tree design which had belonged to the Colonel and she did also have his pen which unfortunately I lost as a child.
When the family left the hall, it was taken over by the Americans during the Second World War and unfortunately was trashed. Consequently after the war, like so many other such properties, proving too expensive to repair, it was demolished; a sad end to a fine old hall and all the lives it had contained. All that remains now are the stables, the gamekeeper’s cottage, Mr Tough’s cottage and the cottage by the kitchen garden at the end of the drive.
If anyone has family who were also at Buildwas Park during the 1930s and can add to mum’s memories, I would be delighted to hear from them.
Acknowledgement: Margaret Sumnall
The photograph above shows my mother (left). The other maids with her include the cook (front right). Stan Tough the head gardener is also shown.
