A History of Preston
in Hertfordshire
Chequers Cottages were built on a two-
Chequers Lane
The first recorded occupant of the field was Mrs Read who, in 1811, was living in the cottage marked * above.
By 1844, the licensee of the nearby Chequers Inn, John Young, was farming not only that field but those numbered 126 and 127 above.
When the Dartons sold their estate to Henry Maclean Pryor (HMP) in 1874, the field
was included in the package -
In turn, twelve years later, on 30 September 1907, RdVP sold the meadow to William Pugh, a confectioner from Shepherds Bush, London for £90. It was still occupied by John Swain. Pugh made a quick, handsome profit as on 6 August 1913, he sold the field to Hitchin Rural District Council (HRDC) for £160. The reason for the sale according to an article in the Luton Times and Advertiser was that HRDC had concluded that as so many of the tumbledown cottages in Preston were insanitary, the land was earmarked as a site for six new homes.
Then, on 3 October 1913, the same newspaper reported that Mr H Fenwick was prepared at his own expense to guarantee the provision of suitable houses at Preston ‘of a better type than the council would have erected’ to be ‘let at not a higher rent than the council would have charged’. His proposal (unsurprisingly) was unanimously accepted and the land was transferred to him on 18 November 1913. Following the Fenwick’s divorce, the property was transferred to Violet Fenwick in June 1916 who sold it to Douglas Vickers in 1918.
*
In the light of the foregoing, it may stated with certainty that Chequers Cottages were built in 1914. They were designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and illustrate how he ‘was able to turn the simplest of buildings into fine architecture’. His design was influenced in its character by his additions at Temple Dinsley. The cottages were intended to be ‘home’ for pensioners and others connected with the Temple Dinsley Estate.
The row is symmetrical with a projecting cross-
The row is two storeys high -
The distinctive appearance of the cottages is enhanced by the dominating chimneys
-
At the centre of the row is a brick central passageway which is barrel-
At the rear of the row are three single-
The photographs below are from 1918/19:
Above are the ground floor plans of the cottages. Note that the two ‘bookends’ are rather larger and include a parlour as well as a living room and scullery. Two others have a bedroom on the ground floor as well as two above stairs. Thus ample variety is provided in the accommodation.
The occupants of Chequers Cottages in 1919 were:
Arthur and Lizzie Palmer 1 (probably with William Andrews)
Thomas, Martha and Lawrence Henry Peters 2
Amos and Henry Jeeves 3
William and Kate Frederick Smart 4
Alfred and Emily Wray 5 (my grandparents together with several children. Alfred worked as a woodman on the estate. After losing a leg following an accident, he was allowed to live
rent-
Henry James and Emma Armstrong 6
Five years later, in 1924, William Andrews had been buried at St Martin on 28 June 1921 (aged 86), the Jeeves household had been swelled by George and Jesse, Lawrence Peters had left the parental home and the Smarts had been replaced by Herbert and Elsie Marion Deer at No 4.
The three photograph above are from the 1930s. The ladies pictured informally by the barn are (l to r),
my grandmother, Emily Wray, her sister , Phyllis Jenkins, of Castle Farm and Annie Peters from No 2
The occupants of Chequers Cottages in 1929 were:
Arthur (died Sept 1945) and Lizzie (died July 1940) Palmer 1
Thomas Peters (died March 1940, aged 86) with Annie, Martha and Caroline Peters 2
Amos Jeeves with Sarah (spinster) and George Jeeves 3
Charlie and Lydia Inez Bird Reed 4
Alfred and Emma Wray 5
Frederick William and Gertrude Kate Armstrong 6
There is evidence that Thomas George Armstrong owned No 1 Chequers Cottages from 1918 and appears to have rented out the property. From around 1940, it was used as a Police Cottage. Frank Theophilus Dale was living there in January of that year. He had been replaced by PC Frank Leslie Dent by February 1945) Then, in February 1946, Thomas Armstrong (who was living at Crossways, Hitchin Hill, Hitchin) sold the property to William Wheeler of The Garage, Kings Walden for £500.
One provision of the sale was that the right of way to No 4 Chequers Cottages via
a drive beside No 1 and across the yards at the rear of Nos 1 -
In around 1939, Preston Post Office was re-
The photograph above was taken in the 1930s and illustrates that access to the rear
of the cottages from No 6 had not changed since 1918/19. In the 1960s, the yards
of Nos 5 and 6 were divided by a high fence -
Occupants of Chequers Cottages from 1952
1952 -
were not present in 1980) 6
Amos, Sarah and George Jeeves (Amos not there in 1954; nor Sarah in 1959; nor George by 1980) 3
Annie Margaret Peters (Not there in 1985) 2
Sidney and Louisa Smith (Louisa not there in 1969; nor Sidney in 1980) 4
Florence Sugden and Annie Wray (Florence not there in 1969; nor Annie in 1980) 5
Frank Leslie and Clarice Dent (Not there in 1959) (aka Police Cottage) 1
1964 -
1969 -
(Not there in 1985) 1
1980 -
Marion G Pateman (Not there in 1985) 4
Andrew JS and Frances E Payne. (There in 1985) 5
1985 -
Roger D and Judith A Broughton 4
Cyril J Hews and Daphne W Holder 3
Hugh B Davies 1
Modern-
Rear of No 5 in 1977