Chesham, a market town in County Bucks

Please add profiles of people associated with Chesham, a market town in the Chiltern Hills, Buckinghamshire, England. It is located 11 miles south-east of the county town of Aylesbury.

The town is known for its four Bs, usually quoted as:- boots, beer, brushes and Baptists.

History

The first recorded reference to Chesham is under the Old English name Cæstæleshamm meaning "the river-meadow at the pile of stones" around 970 in the will of Lady Ælfgifu, who has been identified with the former wife of King Eadwig. She held an estate here which she bequeathed to Abingdon Abbey.

Prior to 1066 there were three adjacent estates which comprised Caestreham which are briefly recorded in the Domesday Book as being of 1½, 4 and 8½ hides, having four mills. The most important of these manors was held by Queen Edith, the widow of Edward the Confessor. Other land having been returned to the Crown it was in the hands of Harold Godwinson and his brother Leofwine Godwinson. Part of these later became Chesham Bois parish. After 1066 Edith kept her lands and William the Conqueror divided royal lands between his half brother Odo, Bishop of Bayeux and Hugh de Bolbec.

The Domesday Book records that there were three manors in Cestreham and one at nearby Latimer. William the Conqueror shared out the estates between four of his dependants. The vast majority of land was granted to Hugh de Bolebec and smaller parcels to Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, Toustain Mantel and Alsi.

Religious dissent and nonconformity

Chesham is noted for the religious dissent which dominated the town from the 15th century. In 1532 Thomas Harding was burnt at the stake in the town for being a Lollard and heretic. From the 17th century Chesham was a focus for those dissenting from mainstream religion. Quakers met in the late 17th century in Chesham and in 1798 they built the current meeting house. The first Baptists' meeting dates back to about 1640 and a place was registered for services in 1706. The first chapel was opened in 1712, one of many to be built for the various Baptist groups during the 18th and 19th centuries. John Wesley preached in Chesham in the 1760s and a Wesleyan Methodist society existed in the town. In more recent time a Wesleyan Methodist chapel was opened in 1897. The Christian Brethren which date back in Chesham to 1876, opened their Gospel Hall in 1895, which closed in December 2008. Broadway Baptist church had branches at the Vale, Hawridge, Ashley Green and Chartridge; only the one at Chartridge survives. Trinity Baptist church had branches at Hyde Heath, Ley Hill and Whelpley Hill; only the one at Hyde Heath survives. The Congregational Church had branches at Asheridge and Pond Park.

Emigration to the American colonies

In 1630 Aquila Chase left Chesham to join the colony, settling first at Hampton (now New Hampshire), then Newbury, Massachusetts. Descendants of Aquila became influential in shaping political, legislative and commercial matters from the colonial period until after the Declaration of Independence. For example, Salmon P. Chase was the United States Treasury Secretary and Chief Justice in the 1870s and after whom the Chase Manhattan Bank is named (although Chase did not have any connection with the bank).

Notables

• Aneurin "Nye" Bevan, Labour politician and father of the National Health Service, moved to Asheridge Farm near Chesham, where he died 6 July 1960.
• Val Biro children's author of the Gumdrop books lived in Chesham from 1955 to 1969. He died in 2014 aged 92.
• Alfred Alexander Burt served in the Great War and 'for most conspicuous bravery at Cuinchy, France on 27 September 1915 was a recipient of the Victoria Cross. He lived in the town until his death, in 1962, aged 67.
• Thomas Pownall Boultbee d.1884 was a clergyman who on his death was buried in the town where he and his son both preached.
• Alice Connor, actress, attended Chartridge Combined School in Chesham.
• Roger Crab, who lived in what is now The Drawingroom Art Gallery and Restaurant, in Francis Yard was an eccentric who Lewis Carroll is supposed to have based his "Mad Hatter" character from Alice in Wonderland on.
• Andrew Davis b.1944 is British Conductor who was born in nearby Asheridge and grew up in the town.
• William John 'Bill' Edrich. Cricketer Middlesex, MCC, Norfolk, England. Died Chesham 1986.
• Edward Field b.1828 in Chesham was a Rear Admiral in the Royal Navy and later a member of parliament.
• Stephen Fry spent part of his childhood in Chesham, attending Chesham Prep School as detailed in his autobiography Moab is my Washpot. He lived in Stanley Avenue.
• Joan Gardner b.1911 in Chesham became an actress of stage and screen.
• Thomas Harding, 16th-century English religious dissident. He was from Chesham and was executed as a Lollard in 1532. He fought for the right to read the scriptures in English. He was accused of heresy and interrogated in Chesham parish church. He was found guilty and was burnt at the stake in 1532, at Chesham in the Pell, near Botley.
• Charles Townsend Harrison art historian and critic was born in Chesham in 1942.
• Rob Hoey, comedian, actor and musician, lives in Chesham.
• Eddie Howe, the manager of AFC Bournemouth was born in neighbouring Amersham but grew up in Chesham.[83]
• Alex Horne, standup comedian currently lives in Chesham.
• Mary Ingham, author was born in the town in 1947.
• D. H. Lawrence, (1885–1930) the novelist and poet, rented a cottage at Bellingdon near Chesham, while he was working on The Rainbow from 1914 to 1915.
• Arthur Lasenby Liberty, founder of the famous Liberty store in London, lived in a house next to the George & Dragon in the High Street.
• William Lowndes (1652–1724) British Politician and Secretary to the Treasury who built and lived at Bury House as did many of his relatives and descendants
• Harold Mattingly d.1964 was a historian and numismatist who lived and is buried in the town.
• Margaret Mee, (1909–1988) born in the town and attended Dr Challoner's Grammar School, Amersham. Studied art, and with her husband, Greville Mee moved to Brazil where she taught art and became a renowned botanical artist, particularly the flora of the Amazon rainforest.
• Earl Mountbatten of Burma used to stay, as a child, with his family for summer holidays in Germains House in Fullers Hill.
• Arthur T. F. Reynolds (1909–2001) was born in the town and later became a Protestant missionary in China and Japan. He was the author or translator of a number of books.
• Milton Rosmer, film actor, director and screenwriter was living in the town at the time of his death in 1971.
• Irene Rooke, theatre and film actress, married to Milton Rosmer and lived the latter period of her life until her death in 1958 in the town.
• Ghayasuddin Siddiqui, leading Islamic intellectual and community leader. Founder and director of the Muslim Institute and of the Muslim Parliament of Great Britain. Lives in Chesham.
• Guy Siner, who starred in 'Allo 'Allo! currently resides in Chesham.
• Francis Wilson, TV weatherman. Used to live in Chesham.

Links

• Wikipedia: Chesham
• Encyclopedia Britannica
• Chesham Museum
• Genuki: Chesham (including Ashley Green, Asheridge, Bellingdon, Botley, Chartridge, Grove, Hundridge, Hyde Heath, Latimer, Ley Hill, and Waterside)
• Guide to Chesham, Buckinghamshire family history and genealogy
• Records Of Buckinghamshire Vol 3 1870 Retrieved 14 June 2013
• British History online Chesham, Retrieved 14 June 2013
• Genealogy of Chase family, Retrieved 12 May 2009