The Vicarage, as a Bungalow, Photographed in 1981 and Later Remodeled and Renamed Furze View: Vicarage No. 2
Title
The Vicarage, as a Bungalow, Photographed in 1981 and Later Remodeled and Renamed Furze View: Vicarage No. 2
Subject
Description
Three photographs (and a fourth magical variation) of a bungalow built in 1963 (1) on former Rectorial Glebe land, named and built to serve as The Vicarage for St. Petrock's Church of Timberscombe. The top black and white photograph is The Vicarage in 1981, as it was pictured on the Sales Particulars for an upcoming sale by auction. The two following colour photographs were taken in the 21st century, long after the bungalow become known as Furze View, with no church connection.
The house is just southwest of St. Petrock's, indeed with a side gate within its garden, opening into the church's western graveyard (2). This marked a pathway for the incumbent Vicar to access the church easily. St. Petrock's is known to have been standing since the early 1100's (3) and perhaps may have had a vicarage for a great deal of that time. An original vicarage was recorded, just northwest of St. Petrock's in 1536, when it was evaluated to be worth £6 10s. After years of accumulated neglect, the Old Vicarage-- as it became called--was enlarged and renovated between 1855 and 1864, coming to look much as it appears at SP-142. In 1962 The Old Vicarage was sold and converted into flats. Mr. G. C. Beech was commissioned to build this new vicarage (4), in quite a different but modern style.
Whereas the Old Vicarage was in the village centre, The Vicarage was freestanding in a pasture, described on the Timberscombe Tithe Map in 1843 as Parsonage Close (and identified as Lot 19). At that time, the land was part of the church's Rectory farm, with the "Landowner/Lessee" listed as "John Locke". This has caused confusion with other nearby properties listed as belonging to "The Hon. Peter King". The Honourable PeterJohn Locke King was one person and the owner of these and other properties in and around Timberscombe. King was born in 1811 at Ockham, Surrey, the second son of Peter King, the 7th Lord King, Baron of Ockham and Lady Hester Fortescue. The younger Mr. King was educated at Harrow and Trinity College, Cambridge (5). King's actual connection to Timberscombe is not known but as a young man he acquired properties in and around the village, such as East Harwood Farm which he purchased seemingly before 1832 and Bickham Manor, bought in 1834 (6). Peter John Locke King married Louisa Elizabeth Hoare in 1836 and then turning his attention to politics, he first ran for parliament the next year. It took awhile but on the 29th of July 1847 he was elected the MP for East Surrey, a position he held until 31 January 1874 (7). However King's first interest may have been a factor in winning his fame as the advocate for the Real Estate Changes Act of 1854, ensuring that after the death of a property's owner, debtors could only collect on the value of the deceased's land and not that of his relatives (8). Peter John Locke King died at his family estate, Brooklands at Weybridge, Surrey in 1885 (9).
On the Tithe Map, "John Locke" --which is how Mr. King sometimes identified himself, for example using it as the author's name of various books he wrote (10)-- was not only listed as the landowner but also as the "occupier" of the Parsonage Close Pasture and the adjoining lot. Perhaps he did have plans but no house stood in either field during his lifetime. Indeed The Vicarage appears to be the first and only house ever built at this location (11).
In 1963, the vicar at St. Petrock's was James Henry Bury, beginning his service in 1960. At the time of his death in 1968, Rev. Bury resided at 3 Woodside Close in Minehead (12). His successor was Edward Jeffrey Miller who moved into The Vicarage with his wife, Francis Marion (nee Sambell) Miller (13) and their children. The Miller family lived on the left wing of the house (as seen in the upper photograph) with the right wing being used for church meetings (14). In 2020, Gabrielle Horrobin said that is why she had two Sitting Rooms. Rev. Miller was the vicar at Timberscombe until 1994 (15) and at his death in 2001, was buried at the Selworthy Church Cemetery (16). He apparently was the only vicar that lived at this second vicarage.
The black and white Sales Particulars photograph was produced by Cluttons, Real Estate Agents at 10 New Street, Wells, Somerset. The house was described as "A spacious single storey dwelling constructed in 1963 of partly rendered stone under a tiled roof and designed to take full advantage of the fine views over Exmoor farmland and hills". It describes an Entrance Hall with (as written) a fitted cloaks cupboard and linen cupboard, a Drawing Room with an open fireplace and a door to the verandah and patio, a Study with a tiled fireplace and fitted shelves, a Dining Room with fitted cupboards and a serving hatch from the Kitchen, with it's electric cooker point, an enamel double drainer sink, a shelved walk-in larder and a "Trianco Redfyre" oil fired boiler. There were four bedrooms, all with fitted wardrobes and a bathroom which included an infra red wall heater and a heated towel rack. The gardens were comprised of approximately half an acre. The Vicarage was to be offered for Sale by Auction at 6:30 PM, Wednesday, the 6th of May, 1981 at Timberscombe's Village Hall.
It was purchased by Peter and Elizabeth Conrad who made further alterations, including a patio door, a bay window, an enclosed patio, a new ceiling for the drawing room and also purchased the adjacent paddock, enlarging the original property. A milkman, Mr. Conrad constructed a shed on the west side of the property, to use as a base for his milk runs (17). The Conrads also renamed the property as Furze View. Interestingly that was not because they particularly wanted to change the name. The 1981 deed expressly dictated that all church connections were to be severed (18).
On the 2nd of May 1995, new owners, Gabrielle (formerly Ridler) and James (Jim) Horrobin moved into Furze View. In 2020, Gabrielle Horrobin modestly commented that they made few changes, "just the addition of the patio and a shed or two". The Horrobin's also brought art to the house, as evident by the two centre photographs taken by Gabrielle. She was a prolific artist and author and Jim was a Master Blacksmith and sculptor, with his studio being one of the "shed or two", as he made an addition onto Mr. Conrad's milk run shed. On the second photograph, a sculpture by Jim is visible in the foreground snow and a wall sculpture by Rachel Reckitt (1908-1995), a renowned artist with strong Somerset connections and a mentor of Jim's, hangs to the right of the front door. The beautiful blue gate on the third photograph is also by Jim, suggestive of his Churchill Memorial Screen at St.Paul's Cathedral, London, dedicated on the 30th of November 2004, the 130th anniversary of the birth of Winston Churchill, and for which Jim Horrobin was awarded the Tonypandy Cup by the British Artist's Blacksmith's Association (19).
The bottom version of Furze View was also created and designed by Gabrielle as the Christmas card for her and Jim in 2023, enhanced with snow seemingly created by her brush and with a single gold star carefully placed in the snowy sky. In the foreground is an actual fallen tree with select branches removed but otherwise nicely kept in place. To its left is the more recent addition to the Horrobin household, Sassy, keeping warm and seasonable in her Christmas best.
The Cluttons Sales Particulars was part of a collection of local property deeds and listings, begun by Sam Grabham (1887-1971), a Timberscombe village blacksmith, as was his cousin, William Grabham (c.1855-1911) and Sam's son, Kenneth Grabham (1920-2007), certainly known to James and Gabrielle Horrobin. This collection was passed on to Derek Poole (1942-2011) of Timberscombe and Cowbridge, which was shared by his daughter, Angie Gummer in 2019 with the St. Petrock's History Group.
The house is just southwest of St. Petrock's, indeed with a side gate within its garden, opening into the church's western graveyard (2). This marked a pathway for the incumbent Vicar to access the church easily. St. Petrock's is known to have been standing since the early 1100's (3) and perhaps may have had a vicarage for a great deal of that time. An original vicarage was recorded, just northwest of St. Petrock's in 1536, when it was evaluated to be worth £6 10s. After years of accumulated neglect, the Old Vicarage-- as it became called--was enlarged and renovated between 1855 and 1864, coming to look much as it appears at SP-142. In 1962 The Old Vicarage was sold and converted into flats. Mr. G. C. Beech was commissioned to build this new vicarage (4), in quite a different but modern style.
Whereas the Old Vicarage was in the village centre, The Vicarage was freestanding in a pasture, described on the Timberscombe Tithe Map in 1843 as Parsonage Close (and identified as Lot 19). At that time, the land was part of the church's Rectory farm, with the "Landowner/Lessee" listed as "John Locke". This has caused confusion with other nearby properties listed as belonging to "The Hon. Peter King". The Honourable PeterJohn Locke King was one person and the owner of these and other properties in and around Timberscombe. King was born in 1811 at Ockham, Surrey, the second son of Peter King, the 7th Lord King, Baron of Ockham and Lady Hester Fortescue. The younger Mr. King was educated at Harrow and Trinity College, Cambridge (5). King's actual connection to Timberscombe is not known but as a young man he acquired properties in and around the village, such as East Harwood Farm which he purchased seemingly before 1832 and Bickham Manor, bought in 1834 (6). Peter John Locke King married Louisa Elizabeth Hoare in 1836 and then turning his attention to politics, he first ran for parliament the next year. It took awhile but on the 29th of July 1847 he was elected the MP for East Surrey, a position he held until 31 January 1874 (7). However King's first interest may have been a factor in winning his fame as the advocate for the Real Estate Changes Act of 1854, ensuring that after the death of a property's owner, debtors could only collect on the value of the deceased's land and not that of his relatives (8). Peter John Locke King died at his family estate, Brooklands at Weybridge, Surrey in 1885 (9).
On the Tithe Map, "John Locke" --which is how Mr. King sometimes identified himself, for example using it as the author's name of various books he wrote (10)-- was not only listed as the landowner but also as the "occupier" of the Parsonage Close Pasture and the adjoining lot. Perhaps he did have plans but no house stood in either field during his lifetime. Indeed The Vicarage appears to be the first and only house ever built at this location (11).
In 1963, the vicar at St. Petrock's was James Henry Bury, beginning his service in 1960. At the time of his death in 1968, Rev. Bury resided at 3 Woodside Close in Minehead (12). His successor was Edward Jeffrey Miller who moved into The Vicarage with his wife, Francis Marion (nee Sambell) Miller (13) and their children. The Miller family lived on the left wing of the house (as seen in the upper photograph) with the right wing being used for church meetings (14). In 2020, Gabrielle Horrobin said that is why she had two Sitting Rooms. Rev. Miller was the vicar at Timberscombe until 1994 (15) and at his death in 2001, was buried at the Selworthy Church Cemetery (16). He apparently was the only vicar that lived at this second vicarage.
The black and white Sales Particulars photograph was produced by Cluttons, Real Estate Agents at 10 New Street, Wells, Somerset. The house was described as "A spacious single storey dwelling constructed in 1963 of partly rendered stone under a tiled roof and designed to take full advantage of the fine views over Exmoor farmland and hills". It describes an Entrance Hall with (as written) a fitted cloaks cupboard and linen cupboard, a Drawing Room with an open fireplace and a door to the verandah and patio, a Study with a tiled fireplace and fitted shelves, a Dining Room with fitted cupboards and a serving hatch from the Kitchen, with it's electric cooker point, an enamel double drainer sink, a shelved walk-in larder and a "Trianco Redfyre" oil fired boiler. There were four bedrooms, all with fitted wardrobes and a bathroom which included an infra red wall heater and a heated towel rack. The gardens were comprised of approximately half an acre. The Vicarage was to be offered for Sale by Auction at 6:30 PM, Wednesday, the 6th of May, 1981 at Timberscombe's Village Hall.
It was purchased by Peter and Elizabeth Conrad who made further alterations, including a patio door, a bay window, an enclosed patio, a new ceiling for the drawing room and also purchased the adjacent paddock, enlarging the original property. A milkman, Mr. Conrad constructed a shed on the west side of the property, to use as a base for his milk runs (17). The Conrads also renamed the property as Furze View. Interestingly that was not because they particularly wanted to change the name. The 1981 deed expressly dictated that all church connections were to be severed (18).
On the 2nd of May 1995, new owners, Gabrielle (formerly Ridler) and James (Jim) Horrobin moved into Furze View. In 2020, Gabrielle Horrobin modestly commented that they made few changes, "just the addition of the patio and a shed or two". The Horrobin's also brought art to the house, as evident by the two centre photographs taken by Gabrielle. She was a prolific artist and author and Jim was a Master Blacksmith and sculptor, with his studio being one of the "shed or two", as he made an addition onto Mr. Conrad's milk run shed. On the second photograph, a sculpture by Jim is visible in the foreground snow and a wall sculpture by Rachel Reckitt (1908-1995), a renowned artist with strong Somerset connections and a mentor of Jim's, hangs to the right of the front door. The beautiful blue gate on the third photograph is also by Jim, suggestive of his Churchill Memorial Screen at St.Paul's Cathedral, London, dedicated on the 30th of November 2004, the 130th anniversary of the birth of Winston Churchill, and for which Jim Horrobin was awarded the Tonypandy Cup by the British Artist's Blacksmith's Association (19).
The bottom version of Furze View was also created and designed by Gabrielle as the Christmas card for her and Jim in 2023, enhanced with snow seemingly created by her brush and with a single gold star carefully placed in the snowy sky. In the foreground is an actual fallen tree with select branches removed but otherwise nicely kept in place. To its left is the more recent addition to the Horrobin household, Sassy, keeping warm and seasonable in her Christmas best.
The Cluttons Sales Particulars was part of a collection of local property deeds and listings, begun by Sam Grabham (1887-1971), a Timberscombe village blacksmith, as was his cousin, William Grabham (c.1855-1911) and Sam's son, Kenneth Grabham (1920-2007), certainly known to James and Gabrielle Horrobin. This collection was passed on to Derek Poole (1942-2011) of Timberscombe and Cowbridge, which was shared by his daughter, Angie Gummer in 2019 with the St. Petrock's History Group.
Creator
Cluttons, 10 New Street, Wells, Somerset /
Gabrielle Ridler Horrobin /
Gabrielle Ridler Horrobin /
Gabrielle Ridler Horrobin
Gabrielle Ridler Horrobin /
Gabrielle Ridler Horrobin /
Gabrielle Ridler Horrobin
Publisher
Cluttons, 10 New Street, Wells, Somerset
Date
1981
early 21st century
early 21st century
2023
2020
early 21st century
early 21st century
2023
2020
Contributor
Identifier
The Vicarage in 1981, and becoming Furze View, as photographed in the early 21st Century / Furze View as designed on a Christmas card by Gabrielle Ridler Horrobin in 2023 / Timberscombe / southwest of village
Acquisition Date
2019
2020
2020
2023
2020
2020
2023
Acquisition Method
Gift
Category
PLACES: Vicarages / Timberscombe
PLACES: Houses / Timberscombe
PLACES: Houses / Timberscombe
Condition
Good
Condition Notes
entered by Tom Sperling
Condition Date
2020 and 2024
Dimension Type
W X L
Dimension Units
cm
Dimension Value
12 X 17
8.5 X 11
8 X 11
to be entered
8.5 X 11
8 X 11
to be entered
Institution Name
St. Petrock's History Group
Notes
(1) Sales Particulars printed by Cluttons, 10 New Street, Wells, Somerset, for a Sale by Auction of "THE VICARAGE", Timberscombe, Minehead, Somerset, on Wednesday, 6th May, 1981 (2) the garden gate was created by Master Blacksmith James Horrobin after he moved into Furze View in 1995 (3)"St. Petrock's Church Timberscombe", church pamphlet, written by Marion Jeffrey, 2017 (4) VictoriaCountyHistory.ac.uk (5) Dictionary of National Biography, Volume 1-22 (6) the 1932 and the 1934 UK Poll Books and Electoral Registers, 1538-1893 (7) wikitree.com
(8) apl. parliament .uk >lords (9) Dictionary of National Biography, Volume 1-22 (10) an example is an 1830 book of correspondence and journal entries by Peter John Locke King, not only authored by "John Locke" but entitled "The Life of John Locke", books.google.uk (11) as viewed on the 1843 Tithe Map of Timberscombe through the 1921-1943 Ordnance Survey Map (12) England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995 (13) as recalled in 2020 by Gabrielle Horrobin and the Banbury-Holder Family Tree, Tree Search of Edward Jeffrey Miller, Rev., 1924-2001, Ancestry.com (14) as recalled in 2020 by Gabrielle Horrobin (15) hand-drawn List of Vicars at St. Petrock's Church (16) Banbury-Holder Family Tree (17) as recalled in 2020 by Gabrielle Horrobin (18) as viewed on deeds shared by Gabrielle and Jim Horrobin in July 2020 (19) "The Making of the Churchill Memorial Screen at St. Paul's Cathedral, A Major Piece of Blacksmithing by James Horrobin FWCB", by Gabrielle Ridler Horrobin, Maytime Publishing, 2009
(8) apl. parliament .uk >lords (9) Dictionary of National Biography, Volume 1-22 (10) an example is an 1830 book of correspondence and journal entries by Peter John Locke King, not only authored by "John Locke" but entitled "The Life of John Locke", books.google.uk (11) as viewed on the 1843 Tithe Map of Timberscombe through the 1921-1943 Ordnance Survey Map (12) England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995 (13) as recalled in 2020 by Gabrielle Horrobin and the Banbury-Holder Family Tree, Tree Search of Edward Jeffrey Miller, Rev., 1924-2001, Ancestry.com (14) as recalled in 2020 by Gabrielle Horrobin (15) hand-drawn List of Vicars at St. Petrock's Church (16) Banbury-Holder Family Tree (17) as recalled in 2020 by Gabrielle Horrobin (18) as viewed on deeds shared by Gabrielle and Jim Horrobin in July 2020 (19) "The Making of the Churchill Memorial Screen at St. Paul's Cathedral, A Major Piece of Blacksmithing by James Horrobin FWCB", by Gabrielle Ridler Horrobin, Maytime Publishing, 2009
Storage Location
St. Petrock's History Group Archive
Storage Date
2020 and 2024
Storage Notes
St. Petrock's History Group PHOTOGRAPHS
St. Petrock's History Group PROPERTIES
St. Petrock's History Group PROPERTIES
Item Reference
SP-143
Technique
Copies
Citation
Cluttons, 10 New Street, Wells, Somerset /
Gabrielle Ridler Horrobin /
Gabrielle Ridler Horrobin /
Gabrielle Ridler Horrobin, “The Vicarage, as a Bungalow, Photographed in 1981 and Later Remodeled and Renamed Furze View: Vicarage No. 2,” St. Petrock's History Group, accessed May 3, 2024, https://stpetrockshistorygroup.omeka.net/items/show/3433.
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