Kellys_Berks_Bucks&Oxon_1911_0120.jpg

118

MAIDENHEAD.

B E R K S H IR E .

St. Andrew and St. Mary Magdelene is an ecclesias­
tical parish, form ed July 30th, 1870, out of the parishes
of Bray and Cookham . The church was originally a
ch an try, founded in 1270 by M argaret of France, second
consort of Edw ard I. when the first building, of which
a fu ll account is given in Nichols’ “ Collectanea Topographica,” vol. b, was erected in the centre of High
street; it was rebuilt on the same site in 1724, and in
1825-6 was taken down and the present building erected
a t the east end of High s tre e t: it is an edifice of brick,
in m ixed styles, consisting of Decorated chancel, nave,
organ cham ber, and an em battled western tower, 60
feet in heigh t, containing a clock and 2 b ells: the
church was enlarged and improved in 1877-8, at a cost
of .¿2,670, when the chancel w-as built, an organ chamber
provided, the organ re-constructed, and in 1882 a pulpit
of Caen stone and oak and a wrought iron lectern were
erected and the clock renovated; in 1893-4 the church
was repaired and redecorated throughout, at a cost of
about £ 220: there are 630 sittings, half being free.
The register dates from the year 1862. The living, for­
m erly in the patronage of the Corporation of Maiden­
head, who sold it under the Municipal Reform A ct, is
a vicarage, net annual value ¿400, w ith residence, in
the g ift of the vicar of Islington and other trustees,
and held since 1893 by the Rev. Charles Hewitson Nash
M.A. of Durham University.
St. Luke’s is an ecclesiastical parish formed March 1,
1867, entirely out of Cookham p arish ; the church is a
building of freestone, in the Gothic style, consisting of
chancel, nave of six bays, aisles, south porch and a
tower at the south-east angle, 80 ffeet in height, with
spire, and containing a clock and 2 b e lls : the spire was
added in 1894 at a cost of about ,¿1,500, and the total
height is now about 150 fe e t ; the reredos was the gift
of the Rev. G. H. Hodson M .A. vicar of Enfield; the
carved choir stalls were presented in 1902 by the
parishioners and other friends as a m em orial to the
late Miss M ea ra; in 1910 a wrought iron chancel screen
was presented by the present v ic a r ; there are a
num ber of m emorial windows, including the west
window, a memorial to the late Dr. Goolden : the church
was enlarged in 1869 and is capable of seating 850
persons, two-thirds of the sittings being free.
The
register dates from the year 1866. The livin g is a
vicarage, gross yearly value ¿230, w ith residence, in
the gift of the Bishop of Oxford, and held since 1890
by the Rev. Henry George Jephson M eara M.A. of
Trinity College, Cambridge.
St. Peter’s, in the Furze P latt, a chapel of ease to
St. Luke's, is a building of stone, consisting of a chancel
and a nave, consecrated in 1898, and enlarged and com­
pleted in 1908 : there are 300 sittings.
S t. Paul’s church, in the H igh Town road, a chapel
of ease to
the church of A ll Saints,Boyne Hill, was
erected in 1887-9, from the designs
of Mr. E. J.
Shrew sbury A .R .I.B .A . : and is an edifice of red brick,
in the E arly English style, consisting of chancel and
lofty nave under one continuous roof, vestries, con­
structed below the chancel, and a tu rret containing one
b e ll; the
chancel is separated from the nave by a
screen, above which is a massive rood beam bearing a
large and richly-decorated cro ss: at the east end is a
rose window filled with stained g la s s : the services here
are conducted by the clergy of All Saints, Boyne H ill:
there are 350 sittings.
The church of St. Mark, erected in 1873, for the in ­
m ates of the Cookham (now Maidenhead) Union, at a
cost of ¿2,000, by John Hibbert esq. of Braywick Lodge,
is a cruciform building of stone, consisting of chancel,
nave, transepts and a western turret containing one
be ll: the stained east window, placed in 1878, and the
east window, in 1886, are m em orials: there are sittings
for 230 person^.
The Catholic church, in the Cookham road, dedicated
to St. Joseph, is a building of flint, w ith red brick and
stone dressings, in the Early English style; it has 200
sittings.
The Baptist chapel, Marlow road, erected in 1873, will
seat 315 persons. The Strict Baptist chapel, Y ork road,
erected in 1864, has 100 sittings.
The Congregational chapel, W est street, was first
founded in 1662; the present building, erected in 1787,
will seat 500 persons.
The P rim itive M ethodist chapel, Queen street, erected
in 1882, has 300 sittings.
The Wesleyan chapel, Castle Hill, erected in 1859,
has 500 sittings.
A Cem etery, at Boyne Hill, 9 acres in extent, was
established in 1888 by a company
The Town Hall, High s t r e e t , is a structure of Ted
brick, with stone dressings, in the Renaissance style,
and was alm ost entirely rebuilt in 1879 at a cost of

[

k e l l y ’s

nearly ¿6,000; it now contains a large m arket hall,
public offices on the ground floor and above a large hall
76 feet by 30 feet, which will hold 500 persons : a corn
market is held every Wednesday.
The municipal insignia includes two maces, a m ayor’»
chain and badge and a borough s e a l: the older m ace,
which dates from 1683, but had long been dismembered,
was restored in 1885, and is of silver, w ith some traces of
gilding, and 3ft. ioin. lo n g : it has a plain shaft, divided
by knops, and open-work brackets, supporting the heady
which bears in two com partm ents the letter M, between
two of the national em b lem s: above is the usual
circlet and an open crown with orb and cro ss: on the
flit tup are the royal aim s. The other mace, dating
from 1776, is of the same length, and silver-gilt, but
somewhat massive ; on the head, in four divisions, are
the national emblems and devices representing the town
and the bridge m asters: the head is surm ounted by a
circlet and crown as before, bu t is removable so as to
serve for a loving cup, and the flat top, engraved with
the royal arms, then becomes a cover. The chain and
badge were purchased in 1881, and the latter bears a
representation of the borough seal, which is reputed to
be the private seal of John Godayn, canon of Thiers, an
ecclesiastic of the 14th century, whose name appears
round the m argin, while in the centre is the nimbed
head of a saint.
The Maidenhead Public Library, St. Ives road, a
structure of red brick with stone dressings, was given
to the borough in March, 1904, by Andrew Carnegie
esq. at a cost of ¿5,000, the site, valued at ¿1,000,
being the g ift of Mr. W. Nicholson, of M aidenhead;
the building was opened in October, 1904. There are
4.875 volumes in the lending department, and 1,268
volumes in the reference room.
The borough open air swimming bath, in East street,
was erected in 1909 at a cost of ¿1,000.
The county police station is in Broadway.
The Oddfellows’ Hall, in Brock lane, is a plain struc­
ture of brick, and will seat 200 persons.
The Maidenhead Technical Institute was erected and
opened in 1896 in the Marlow road, at a cost, including
site, of ¿6,500.
Boulter's or Rav Mill Lock is a stone lock, about half
a m ile above the bridge.
Several regattas are held here annually in the month»
of July and August, promoted by the watermen, the
engineers and fishermen, the Maidenhead Rowing Club
and the Brigade of Guards. There are two extensivebreweries.
Two newspapers are published here, “ The Maiden­
head A dvertiser,’' on Wednesday and “ The Maidenhead
Chronicle,’’ also on W ednesday: several Reading paperscirculate in the town.
The Volunteer Fire Brigade, established in 1866 and
supported entirely by voluntary contributions, has one
powerful steam fire engine, two manual engines, with
the usual appliances and two fire escapes and a hose
ieel. The station was erected in 1893 by the Corpora­
tion, in Park street, and has a club room attached..
The brigade consists of a captain, 3 lieutenants, 1 escape
foreman, 1 engineer, 15 firemen and an hon. sec.
The G Company of the 4th Battalion Princess Char­
lotte of Wales’s (Royal Berkshire Regim ent) (T.F.) hasits head quarters in Marlow road.
The Household Brigade Boat Club is a social and
non-political club for officers in the Household Brigade t
it is pleasantly situated in its own grounds on the riv e r
bank near the b rid g e ; the club house has every con­
venience, and in addition to boarding facilities the
members can be supplied with boats of every descrip­
tion and an electric launch; there is also stabling for
horses.
The Maidenhead Constitutional Club, 50 Queen street,
was opened in 1893 for Conservatives and Unionists; th e
building contains reading and smoking rooms, two b il­
liard rooms, card, luncheon and secretary’s rooms and
apartm ents for the stew ard: there were in 1911 about
150 members.
The Conservative W orking Men’s Club, in Y ork road,
established in 1894, contains reading, billiard and card
rooms and refreshment bar, and has about 460 m embers.
The W orking Men’ s Club and Institute, in Norfolk
road, is well supplied with periodicals and has a cir­
culating library of over 1,000 volumes.
The links of the Maidenhead Golf Club, situated on
high ground about three minutes from the railway sta­
tion, has a full 18 hole course of over three miles in
length. The G. W. R. stops an express on Sundays totake up golfers.
The Maidenhead D istrict Rifle Club, founded in 1906,
is situated in M arket street, on the site of the old