In previous posts, we have introduced you to the author John Fowles, his interest in Mary Anning, and his life in and around Lyme Regis. In this, the fourth part of a five part series, volunteer Graham has looked further into Fowles’ interest in Lyme and the community…
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Lyme Regis: places and people
In spite of Fowles claiming to find Lyme
“the dullest…community one can imagine… A constant harking back to the past: who lived in which house, how long their family has had associations with Lyme”1
he continually took an interest in matters of local concern. Here are some of the other Lyme properties with files to be found in the Fowles Collection – it is unlikely that this is exhaustive:
| Pitt House (The Retreat) | 19 Sherborne Lane |
| Pound Street (Pound Road) | 34 Sherborne Lane (Methodist Chapel) |
| Sun Inn (Pound Street) | Summerhill |
| White House (47 Silver Street) | 4, 5 and 6 The Walk, Marine Parade |
| 62 Silver Street | Stile House Hotel and Quaker burial ground |
| 13 Sherborne Lane | South Cliff |
Obviously only too aware after the disastrous landslide at Underhill Farm of the problems with the local geology, he supported the Lyme Regis Society when it opposed dangerous developments; there is a file in the Collection of notes and correspondence concerning subsidence in Lyme.3 He again supported the Society in its opposition to a proposed sewage plant, and to a large apartment block.4 There is a file in the Collection on “Traffic and town planning in Lyme”, and another on “Lyme Regis conservation problems.”5 When in 1989 the District Council put forward the Hydraulics Research Station’s plans for the Cobb and the beach, including joining the North Wall to the land, Fowles was photographed by The Times standing on the North Wall with members of the Committee Opposing Beach Breakwaters [COBB].6
And still more families which have files in the Collection:
| Jordan family | Peterson family |
| Kerridge family | Philpot/Landon family |
| Love family | Pile/Crabb family |
| Marder family | Pike family |
| Mansfield family | Pitts family |
| Michell family | Porter family |
| Newell family | Raymond family |
| Owsley family | Restorick family |
| Palmer family | Rhodes family |
Apart from these family genealogy files, the Fowles Collection has files containing transcriptions and notes about other individuals who had been researched by him. Thomas Coram, philanthropist and founder of the London Foundling Hospital, was born in Lyme Regis and Fowles lectured about him.8 The History Centre also holds a letter from Coram to the Town Clerk when he was made a Freeman of Lyme Borough.9 The Collection has transcripts and notes about William Smith; again the DHC also holds a 1722 list of his lands in Lyme.10 Jack Wiscombe’s Memories of Lyme Regis are in the DHC.11 Fowles left an annotated copy of this and another text, plus his correspondence with Sheila Wiscombe.12
The Town Mill, and other interests
In 1991 the local District Council announced plans to demolish the Town Mill of Lyme Regis, which dated back to at least 1340, but which had been allowed to become derelict. A group of local residents quickly came together to oppose the council’s plans and formed the Town Mill Trust. John Fowles and Muriel Arber, a former President of the Geologists Association, became patrons of the Trust, and after ten years of massive community effort the restored Town Mill was formally reopened by Fowles on 26 May 2001. The Fowles Collection contains files of correspondence with Arber during the 1990s.13 A further file contains additional transcriptions, deeds, correspondence and notes relating to the Town Mill.14
Although his interests centred around Lyme, Fowles did not ignore other Dorset villages. The Collection has transcriptions he made of Uplyme churchwardens’ accounts, apprenticeship indentures and some burial registers.15 Also notes and correspondence on Uplyme history, topography, field names and parish records.16 There is correspondence regarding the Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre,17 and R W J Pavey’s Notes on Charmouth …and the People Who Lived There.18 There is a family tree of Allen Pope of Sutton Poyntz. There are photographs of Pymore, and a parish map of Chideock with some field names.19
In writing this blog it has only been possible to look at parts of the Fowles Collection, and then only to draw attention to many items without the time to examine them in depth. Since in many cases Fowles’s interest will have come about initially through his work as the curator of the Philpot Museum, there is likely to be an overlap or duplication between the Collection and the Museum holdings. Many important items in the Lyme Regis Museum concern its geology and palaeontology, so it is not surprising that one file in the Collection is just described as “Geology correspondence”, although many other files will be found to have related material.20 Because of the context we can only assume without a closer look that a file on Stratification: a Pilot Study relates to geological stratification, since this author knows nothing of its apparent author A H Brown!
Similarly without further research it is not yet known who was the “Mr Cocksedge” some of whose drawings held at the Lyme Museum gave rise to some correspondence. Until the boxes can be properly sorted, examined and hopefully one day catalogued it is hard to know what the box containing “Ephemera, mostly relating to local artists” holds.21 It is hoped that this blog is going to encourage others to investigate further.
And a last list of families with files in the Fowles Collection; but there are sure to be others that this blog has overlooked:
| Roze family | Talbot family |
| Seeley family | Taylor family |
| Sellers family | Trevelyan family |
| Shipley family | Tucker family |
| Spencer family | Wallis family |
| Standerwick family | Waring/Purvis/Bennett family |
| Stoodley family | Warren family |
| Stoward family | Wayland family |
| Swain family | Wiscombe family |
| Swan family | Wrey family |
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References:
https://archive-catalogue.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/records/D-FWL [“D-FWL”]
Charles Drazin (ed.) 2006 John Fowles,The Journals Vol 2 [“Journals 2”]
Eileen Warburton 2004 John Fowles, A Life in Two Worlds [“Warburton”]
1 Journals 2, 6 Jun 1970
2 D-FWL, Box 8
3 D-FWL, Box 7
4 Warburton p 347
5 D-FWL, Box 5
6 Journals 2, 16 Jul 1989
7 D-FWL, Box 9
8 D-FWL, Box 2
9 https://archive-catalogue.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/records/D-LRM/T/8
10 https://archive-catalogue.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/records/D1/10546
11 https://archive-catalogue.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/records/RON/2/2/Lyme_Regis/137
12 D-FWL, Box 3
13 D-FWL, Box 2
14 D-FWL, Box 11
15 D-FWL, Box 3
16 D-FWL, Box 4
17 D-FWL, Box10
18 D-FWL, Box 6
19 D-FWL, Box 12
20 D-FWL,Box 7
21 D-FWL, Box 5
22 D-FWL, Box 9
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Missed earlier posts in this series? You can read them here:
I shall be visiting Dorset (from Pembrokeshire) later this week, and I would like to meet a member of your team to gain access to John Fowles’s file on the Pike family. I am a Pike, greatgrandson of Otto Pike of Lyme Regis (but born in Yarcombe). In the 1980s, I swapped information with JF; I gave him data on Coadestone and he kindly gave me fragments on various Pikes. But, on the basis of my current knowledge, the birth of Otto is still mysterious in some respects.
I shall be visiting Dorset (from Pembrokeshire) later this week, and I would like to meet a member of your team to gain access to John Fowles’s file on the Pike family. I am a Pike, greatgrandson of Otto Pike of Lyme Regis (but born in Yarcombe). In the 1980s, I swapped information with JF; I gave him data on Coadestone and he kindly gave me fragments on various Pikes. But, on the basis of my current knowledge, the birth of Otto is still mysterious in some respects.
Thank-you for your message – we shall get in touch with you directly about your proposed visit later this week.