Donkey Lane Community Orchard - The Guntrips

Sarah Gomme and John Guntrip married in St Andrews Church in Chinnor on 7th of December 1818. They were both in later life for a first marriage by the trends of the time. According to records, John was about 40 and Sarah 36. Sarah’s maiden name was spelled in several ways in the numerous records that we have found. It can be Gumm, Gomme, Gomm or Gom. To save confusion we will use Gomme in this piece. Guntrip also has alternative spelling with a double ‘p’ at the end and on Sarah’s death recording she is listed as ‘Lantrip’. The marriage was witnessed by Lucy Gomme and William Neal who were both able to sign their names. John and Sarah only “made their mark” which was not unusual for the time and seems the case for many marriage records. We have not yet found any children from this marriage.

Sarah was the daughter of Thomas Gomme and Mary Eustace, both of Chinnor. Their marriage was recorded in the Chinnor church records in 1773. The Gomme’s had many children, several of whom had died in infancy.

There were as many as 15 recorded births although at least two died in infancy and it seems from the parish records that they used the name again for the next child, which seemed quite common at the time. The two examples of this were Lucy born 1798 and died 1799, followed by another Lucy born in 1800. There was also a James born in 1791 and died in 1792 followed by another James born in 1793 who made it into adulthood as he was still present on the later census returns.

For example, the first Lucy’s birth 24th January 1788, death, June 15th, 1789, making her 17 months old.

This is the second Lucy’s birth record for 11th March 1800. This Lucy, who was a witness at Sarah and John’s wedding in 1818, went on to have a longish life marrying James Biggs 4 years later in 1822. They had 3 surviving daughters and a son. Read more...

Residents of the Orchard 1871

In our investigations we have reached the decade commencing with the 1871 Census where we see many longstanding but ageing residents passing away. In this Census “Hollins Lane” includes families who lived in houses situated between Hill Farm and the Orchard Cottages.

Numbers on map refer to the 1877 Ordnance Survey map

Below is a list of the occupiers detailed in the Census headed with the relevant Census numbering.

The trackway leading to the Cottages from the village altered in and around the time of the 1871 census. It was at this time that the cottage dwellers would have witnessed the Princes Risborough to Watlington Railway Line being laid which, in effect, was to separate the Orchard Cottages from the main Chinnor settlement - and meant that access from the village main street to the Orchard Cottages necessitated having to cross the railway line and vice versa. Read more ....

Donkey Lane Community Orchard - INHABITANTS CENSUS 1861 – read all about it!!!

In 1861 it appears that only 4 of the Cottages in the Donkey Lane “Orchard” were occupied and the name of the Lane, in the Census, had reverted from “Guntrip Lane” back to “Hollans Lane”. One of the families missing was the Guntrips themselves which may be the reason why the lane changed its name back to “Hollans or Hollands”. John Guntrip had died in 1854 leaving wife Elizabeth. She was residing there in 1859 Tithe Amendment records but died that year and was buried on the 22nd February 1859. The Stratford family had vacated and also the Wades but the Howlett family had returned to the Lane.

The Howletts had rejoined the families who were there a decade earlier: the Marriotts, the Bishops and the Folleys.

In 1859 a Lucy Biggs had been residing but she had moved out before 1861 and had moved to live with a Jonah Britnell as a housekeeper in his house at Crowell Hill.

The returning Howletts were now represented by Maria Howlett, 3 children and a lodger Ann Styles. Two decades earlier she had lived in the Lane with her husband Edward, moving thence to a lower part of Chinnor and then to Wainhill. Edward died in 1858 and the widowed Maria moved back into Hollands Lane with her two daughters, Maria junior and Ruth along with grandchild Jane Maria. The girls are recorded as lacemakers but Maria, without a husband’s income, is designated a pauper claiming on the parish for support. A small amount of income would have been received as rental from lodger Ann Styles, also a lacemaker. The household was reduced in 1861 when daughter Ruth moved out upon marriage to James Smith a labourer from Longwick. Three years later they had a baby who they named Maria. The household was further reduced, in the same year, when granddaughter Jane Maria married James Munday. Some mystery surrounds who was Jane Maria’s mother. Born in 1842 she was not baptised until 1855 by her grandparents, Edward and Maria. Interestingly when Jane Maria married the Church Register revealed that her father was stated to be a Richard Jones, labourer.

Tragedy struck a year later in 1862 when Maria junior died aged a mere 45 and poor widowed Maria herself passed away in 1865, aged 73, leaving an empty cottage inviting new residents. READ MORE...

The Effect of WW1 on the families who lived at the orchard

Anyone who has attended the Chinnor Remembrance Day ceremony will be familiar with the Roll of Honour. The horrific thought of the repeated surnames that are called is disturbing, as is the massive loss of young men especially those from the same family. If like me you can almost recite the WW1 Roll of Honour, you will be aware that there were 4 young men from the Marriott family, 4 from the Witney family but the ones that stood out from the Orchard Cottages Census were 2 of the 4 young men called Howlett, Alfred and Aubrey. In addition, Frank Eggleton, the son of the owner of the land on which the cottages stood. 

The effect of the first world war was felt strongly amongst those who had lived in the immediate area. The Howlett family, Alfred and Mary, lost both of their sons, Alfred and Aubrey. In addition, Frank, the younger son of Henry and Annie Eggleton the landowners at Hill Farm also died. 3 young men from this very small area of Chinnor.

We will begin with Frank Eggleton as he is the eldest of the three and the first one to volunteer. At the time of the 1911 census the orchard land was part of Hill Farm which at that time was owned by Henry Eggleton and his wife Annie (nee Keene) and their two sons William and Frank. William, the elder son was involved in the family business of farming, but the younger son Frank was described as a Mercantile Clerk for Wheeler’s Brewery in High Wycombe. 

Frank was born 5th January 1886 and at 28 years old in 1914 was already quite mature with an already established a career in the brewing trade. He gained further qualifications from evening classes at The John Hampden Grammar School achieving the membership of ‘The Chartered Institute of Secretaries’ and became Company Secretary for Wheelers Brewery in High Wycombe in 1914. The company reported after his death that he had the potential for a very successful career in the company. They had lost quite a few of their key employees as a result of the war.  Read more ...

Donkey Lane Community Orchard - The Chinnor Plum

 Have you heard of the mythical Chinnor plum? Does it really exist? Read on to find out.

2013 Sketch Map of the fruit trees at orchard

In 2013 a formal survey of Donkey Lane Community Orchard by Derek Tolman of Bernwode Fruit Trees, identified 20 apple trees and a single plum tree. These were marked on a sketch map of the site and scion wood was collected to propagate new trees. This was done in an attempt to protect the genetic lineage of the traditional varieties growing on site. 

Experts later confirmed that the plum was unique and named it the Chinnor plum. 

Move on to early 2019 when we started work clearing the orchard. It was apparent that the overall site was much more overgrown than it was in 2013 and it was difficult to confirm whether all of the trees on the sketch map still existed.

As our clearing of the decades of rubbish, brambles and ivy progressed we discovered not one but two plum trees. They were in a pretty sorry state and the trunks needed support. Once the trees were exposed to the light, we were delighted to see extensive white blossom and much to our surprise similar blossom on a tree a short distance away. Following the line of the trees already found and knowing that plums tend to spread by sending out suckers we were able to find another two juvenile examples. So, in one season our stock of the Chinnor plum had multiplied from one to five. Read more...

Donkey Lane Community Orchard - Who lived there 180 years ago?

The first full population census, taken in 1841, tells us who lived in the three cottages on the land now known as Donkey Lane Community Orchard. It shows us 31 names from the six families living there, which is hard to imagine when you look at the site now. All six were renting from the owner, Joseph Allnut.

The census taker worked from the High Street towards Chinnor Hill and our knowledge of who lived in which cottage is based on a presumption that he continued uphill to follow the dwellings in order. The lane was then called Holland Lane. (Donkey Lane is a later and never an official name.)

In the top cottage, nearest Chinnor Hill, lived the Bishops and the Ways. The Bishop family were Jacob (45) and his wife Ann with daughters Sushannah/Susan (19) and Martha (16). Jacob was an agricultural labourer, probably on one of the local farms. He was born in Oakley in 1796: Oakley then was a separate settlement from Chinnor, connected by a road between heath and fields. He married Ann Keen from Bledlow when he was 25.  Read more... 

Activities at the Orchard w/c 12th July

Wow, looks like it's going to be a busy week at the Orchard...

Tuesday 13th July 2021 | Orchard Survey Group |11:00 am at the orchard - to review survey quadrats and other areas of the orchard.

Wednesday 14th July 2021 | The Orchard Story Group meeting | 3:00 pm - to discuss the social history and other 'stories' of the orchard via Zoom. 

Thursday 15th July 2021 | Donkey Lane Community Orchard Meeting - to discuss ongoing activity at the orchard | 7:30 pm via Zoom. 

Saturday 17th July  | Working Party |  Donkey Lane Community Orchard 13:00 - 16:00. All welcome, Please wear suitable clothing and footwear.

If you'd like attend any of these events please email Linda at greeningchinnor@gmail.com and the details will be sent to you.

Donkey Lane Community Orchard Meetings

For those of you who are interested in the Donkey Lane Community Orchard, we have two meetings this week which you are welcome to attend. Both meetings are via Zoom, details below.

Wednesday 16th June 3:00 pm The Orchard Story Group - to discuss social history and other 'stories' of the orchard. 

Thursday 17th June 7:30 pm Donkey Lane Community Orchard meeting - to discuss ongoing activity at the orchard.  

Email greeningchinnor@gmail.com for the link if you are interested in attending.

Donkey Lane Community Orchard - Setting the Scene

 

Donkey Lane Community Orchard - How it began

Those of you in the village who walk up Keens Lane and into Donkey Lane towards the Ridgeway pass the Donkey Lane Community Orchard on the right just past the railway crossing.

Historically this was not an orchard. On the site there were six families living in three cottages built probably during the late 18th century and finally pulled down about 100 years ago. All of the heritage fruit trees found within the orchard were most likely planted by the cottagers.

About 25 years ago, efforts were made by the Chinnor Countryside group to clear the site but since then it had become completely overgrown and a focus for antisocial behaviour.

Greening Chinnor were approached by the Chiltern Conservation Board back in November 2017 to discuss involvement in ‘Rough around the Edges’; one of the interweaving projects part of the ‘Chalk, Cherries & Chairs’ Lottery-funded project. In discussion, the ‘orchard site’ came up which, at that time, was an impenetrable mess.

After much thinking, surveying and writing, rewriting and even more rewriting of proposals and costings, we were ready to reach out to the community at the end of 2018 and publish the ‘Five-Year Orchard Plan’. Local organisations could not have been more supportive: Chinnor Parish Council, Mid Shires Orchard Group (MSOG), Wild Oxfordshire, BBOWT, Chiltern Rangers, SODC and most of all our amazing team of volunteers. Special thanks must go to Mr Derek Nixey the landowner who has given the village a free fifteen-year tenancy. Read more ...

Minutes from Donkey Lane Community Orchard Meeting

The minutes from the meeting held on the 17th April 2021 are now available to view via the 'Governance & Minutes' tab or by following this link.

Back at the Orchard

 Great news, we're back at the Orchard. 

Working parties at the Orchard restarted on Saturday 17 April albeit with restricted numbers and with Covid-19 safety measures in place.

We will be running regular working parties as follows:

The first Tuesday of the month: 10:00 am - 1:00 pm

The third Saturday of the month: 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm

If you would like to attend one of the working parties, please email Linda at greeningchinnor@gmail.com to book a place.

Blossom

 

Photo courtesy of Keith Webley

Photo courtesy of Keith Webley

It's the middle of March and already some garden trees in Chinnor are in blossom, either pink or white ornamental cherries with their delicate blooms which are even more noticeable because the trees are not yet in leaf. And already the Magnolias are showing their large buds ready to burst into spectacular flower to transform some lucky peoples' front gardens.I was surprised to discover that Magnolias are such an old family that they have been around for at least 20 million years. And that was before there were many flying insects such as bees to pollinate them, so they relied on the heavier beetles which had already evolved.

Of course all our native British broadleaved trees are flowering plants, and some have small greenish flowers that can easily be overlooked amongst the leaves. But there is one family which generally produces showy flowers and that is the Rose family. Perhaps the tree which is most associated with spring and the old festivals which marked the turning of the year, is the hawthorn with its abundant May blossom. Of the plants cultivated by man, as well as garden roses, this large family includes both apples and pears, as well as plums, cherries and almonds.

In England there used to be many customs associated with hawthorn blossom, and the cover of the book 'Chinnor in Camera' first published in 1988, shows a photograph of children holding their garlands on May Day around a century ago. Inside is the 'garlanding song' they sang as they went around the village. More recently towards the end of the last century, a May Fayre was revived at nearby Kingston Blount. A May King and Queen were chosen and school children displayed the different dances around the be-ribboned Maypole. Read more ... 

Season Greetings

Wishing all a safe and Happy Christmas & 2021

Since the spring, like so many organisations, we have had our activities seriously curtailed by the Coronavirus pandemic. However we have been able to carry out several “socially distanced” working parties in the Donkey Lane Community Orchard.

We are delighted to report that this year there was an outstanding crop of apples and we hope that our fellow villagers have made full use of them. Thank you to all who have given us feedback on how delicious the apples were in apple crumbles and pies!

Our work in the orchard since the various lock downs and restrictions has mainly involved keeping the nettles and brambles under control whilst having regular litter picking forays. We would like to thank everybody who has joined us and also any public spirited walkers who have also picked up any rubbish.

We are planning to start a regular schedule of working parties (Covid secure of course) once the Christmas festivities are out of the way. These will be published and we look forward to seeing some new faces as well as greeting old friends. We will also be planning our 2021 orchard activities (government guidelines permitting) and plan to carry out a range of wild life surveys in the orchard. Watch this space!

Why not have a look at the latest photos of the orchard in the The Donkey Lane Photo Albums. This is a collection of photographs taken by one of our intrepid volunteers, Keith Webley, who has been documenting the evolution of the orchard since we started. 

Photo credit:  Keith Webley

During the year there has been some extensive financial support given to the parish by Trust for Oxfordshire’s Environment (TOE), Oxfordshire County Council and Chinnor Parish Council to fund some much needed improvements for our rapidly deteriorating local footpath stiles. We have the funds, we have the gates and once restrictions are eased the South Chiltern's Path Maintenance Volunteers (an offshoot of the Chiltern Society) will get to work. The intention is to replace rotting stiles with nice metal gates which will be particularly advantageous for those walking with our canine friends.

The Station Road Community Garden planters are being settled in for winter before being seasonally replanted in the spring. We hope that we can resume our village litter picking in the spring.

Unfortunately we are still in the hands of the authorities regarding the viability of Repair Cafes and hope to recommence in late Spring.

Our last thoughts are to wish you all the very best for the festive season and our hope that we are all coming to the end of one of the momentous periods in our history.

Not a Donkey Lane Community Orchard Blossom Day!

This weekend would have seen our second Blossom Open Day at the orchard. Unfortunately due to the current restrictions, we are unable to go ahead with the event.

To help brighten up the day and to show the amazing transformation of the orchard since the renovation started in January 2019, we are publishing The Donkey Lane Photo Albums. This is a collection of photographs taken by one of our intrepid volunteers, Keith Webley, who has been documenting the evolution of the orchard since we started. The albums can be viewed in any order but I would suggest that you start in chronological order and just see the amazing work of our volunteers and the transformation of the orchard into a lovely, tranquil space.

To find our gallery click here

Next Orchard Working Party

The next Donkey Lane Community Orchard working party will be on Saturday 8th February 2020 1:00 pm - 16:00 pm. It is quite wet and muddy in the lane so please make sure you wear suitable footwear. Bring some tools if you have them and a cup for refreshments.

This month we will be putting together plans for each of the apple trees and carrying on with clearing the ivy.

New volunteers and visitors are always welcome, please pop in and find out what we're doing.

Programme Planning Meeting

28th January 2020 7:30 pm

Council Chambers, Community Pavilion, 

Station Road, Chinnor, OX39 4PU

Why not come along and find out what we've been up to and our plans for the next few months.

Some of the things we will be discussing are:

• Chinnor Repair Café
• Donkey Lane Community Orchard
• Community Litter Pick – once again we’ll be joining the Great
• British Spring Clean Up
• Seed & Plant Swap
• Station Road Community Garden & Pavilion Planter
• Tree Planting

Hope to see you there.

Email Linda at greeningchinnor@gmail.com or call 01844 352753 for more details.

Wassail 2020

We loved being a part of the Wassail at Donkey Lane Community Orchard on Saturday 11th January 2020 as our first event of the year... tad bit cold and blustery but that didn’t dampen anyone spirits!

‘King and Queen’ tree decorated and blessed on behalf of the orchard, noisy procession around the orchard, drinking mulled cider and apple juice, eating cake … what isn’t there to like!

Thanks to everyone who braved the elements to share this traditional ceremony, we hope you enjoyed it as much as we did.

Huge thanks to Claire from Midshires Orchard Group for leading the Wassail, we are always thankful for her help and to Village Voices Community Choir Towersey for helping put some ‘tune’ into our Wassail song and for the additional Wassail songs enjoyed by all.

Our First Wassail at the Orchard

Happy New Year

We are planning, in conjunction with the Mid-Shires Orchard Group, to hold our first Wassail on Saturday 11th January 2020 at 2:00 pm at the orchard. Come and join us. Bring your wellies (the track is very muddy), your family and something to make a noise with such as musical instruments, pots and spoons etc.

The 'wassail' is a very old tradition practiced in the apple orchards of southern England during the winter to bless the fruit trees to 'encourage' them produce a good harvest for the year. The tradition is to make a 'lot' of noise to ward off bad luck and mischievous spirits, so they stay away and don't steal the fruit!

Different villages hold slightly different ceremonies which usually involve bonfires, singing, dancing and drinking mulled cider. Our wassail will have all the elements apart from the bonfire.

So come along and have a bit of fun and enjoy this lovely new space.

Our next Orchard meeting is on the 8th January 2020, 7:30 pm at White's Field Community Hall.

Apple Day at the Orchard

What a day we had at our first autumn apple event on Saturday 19th October and even the weather was kind to us.

We'd hoped for a good supply of apples and we weren't disappointed. Apples came from all over the village plus what we picked at the orchard, a very interesting blend. All in all we managed to produce about 50 bottles of freshly pressed artisan apple juice. Not bad for our first attempt.

We had some great refreshments made by our volunteers which went down very well with the visitors and our helpers! 'Find the tree' quiz, the longest peel competition and guess the weight of the pumpkin kept our smaller visitors entertained.

It was good to see so many people interested in the social history of the site and there was much perusal of our old photographs. We have now identified approximately 1/3 of the heritage apples growing in the orchard and hope to identify the rest next year.

Our thanks to everyone who helped make this a great afternoon.