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From The Muniment Room, a resource for social history, family history, and local history.

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Contents 1 The Read brothers 2 Thomas Sibley of Arreton 3 Country lane at North Stoneham 4 The round hall at Stoneham House 5 Portrait of unidentified man, 1877, by Ernest Gustave Girardot 6 People at North Stoneham Farm, 1931?

The Read brothers

The 1938 list of tenants includes three of my Gt Uncles, the READ brothers, A READ, Arch READ and F READ.

A READ is Augustus [b 1891 in Havenstreet], known as Gus, who lived at Pitts Cottage, Down End;I don't know how long he lived there but it was some considerable time as he was there in 1920 when he took in my Mother whose mother had died and was still a tenant in 1938 [though maybe somewhere else on the Estate by then] Arch READ is Archibald [ b 1894 in Havenstreet] who lived in Church Lane Havenstreet, also from [at least] the early 1920's.

F READ is Frederick [b 1888 in Ryde] who lived ina cottage near the school on the main street, Haven St.

They were all sons of James READ who was the village baker in Havenstreet and kept a small shop there.. If any one has other information about these READs, please post it here. I should be interested to hear it.

Iwlace 11:29, 25 June 2009 (BST), S Stallard

I found an interesting note in an Estate document from 1952 -- see Pitt Cottages, where I've added it as a reference. It shows that Gus was still living at Downend in 1952, and was the estate foreman at that time. Harry. Admin 18:16, 7 July 2009 (BST)

It seems that Gus Read spent most [if not all] of his married life at Down End : he was 29 in 1920 [married 1917] and about 60, nearing the end of his working life, in 1952. Iwlace 21:38, 7 July 2009 (BST)

I know you've already seen it, but Memorial by the agricultural tenants of the Fleming Estate, Isle of Wight, 1943 includes Gus Read and Fred Read. Admin 12:50, 9 July 2009 (BST)

I found this letter: Letter of Pink & Arnold to Gus Read, 1930. Admin 13:01, 30 July 2009 (BST)

Thomas Sibley of Arreton

Thomas Sibley was a farmer who rented some 38 acres at Arreton from the Fleming Estate in the early 19th century. He is listed in the 1841, 51, and 61 censuses, but I don't know the name of the farm. Admin 14:49, 16 July 2009 (BST)

Country lane at North Stoneham

Where exactly in North Stoneham was this picture taken? Admin 29 Feb 2008 (BST)

It looks like the junction of Stoneham Lane and Chestnut Avenue. maggie port 30 Mar 2009 (BST)

The round hall at Stoneham House

I used to live in one of the thatched cottages that belonged to the Fleming Estate in North Stoneham, in the garden there I found a piece of plinth from what must have been quite a large column, it is pink white and brown and quite pourous. The inside of the round hall as depicted by Ursula Moray Williams in her book on the library, she shows columns which are remarkably like the piece I found. SO DID THE ROUND HALL LEADING TO THE LIBRARY EVER EXIST? maggie port 16 Mar 2009 (BST)

Maggie, thanks for posting the enquiry! North Stoneham House did indeed have a large round hall - originally it was called the Saloon or Music Saloon, but over the years it was also referred to as the Round Hall, the Rotunda, and even the Ballroom. It is one of my favourite features of the house. The illustration in the book contains much artistic license! The real room was much taller, reaching up through two floors to the roof, and surmounted by a shallow dome, with a lantern filled with painted glass. The saloon had a balcony or gallery midway up its height, and it is this that was supported by the pink marble columns. The room was 30 foot in diameter.

The columns were not made of real marble, but were scagliola, supposedly in imitation of Rosso Brochette marble. They were a vivid, bloody pink - and looked rather like raw meat! The walls were of the same pink scagliola. When I interviewed Ursula Moray Williams in 2006, she described the eerie pink light that was diffused through the room. The Saloon was part of the original phase of the house, built from 1818, and was one of the few rooms that survived unchanged. If the house was designed as a Greek temple, then the Saloon was the 'cella'. We hold a great deal of information about the Saloon in our archive, which I will show you ... Admin 20 Mar 2009 (BST)

Thank you for the photograph of your wonderful fragment. As I said in my email, I can confirm that it is part of a red scagliola column from the house. Admin 20 Mar 2009 (BST)

Portrait of unidentified man, 1877, by Ernest Gustave Girardot

The image is from a framed photographic reproduction of an 1877 oil portrait by the painter Ernest Gustave Girardot (1840-1904). In the picture can be seen three bound volumes or rolls, labelled ‘Stoneham’, ‘Binstead Isle of Wight’ and ‘Romsey’. We think it might perhaps be a portrait of the Fleming Estate’s then solicitor, Edward Lambert, who died in 1884. The present whereabouts of the original painting is unknown.

Any more information about the sitter, the artist, or the original painting will be much appreciated! Admin 25 Mar 2008 (BST)

I am now certain that the sitter is Francis Smith Arnold (1832-1916) after comparing this portrait with a photograph of him. Francis was the land agent and steward for the Fleming Estate, and partner in the firm Pink & Arnold. Admin 4 Feb 2009 (BST)

People at North Stoneham Farm, 1931?

This photograph is labelled 'North Stoneham Farm, 1931'. Can you help identify the people? Admin 28 Feb 2008 (BST)

Harold Barstow writes: "It is one of the cottages at the rear of the airport, once attached to North Stoneham Farm alongside the Itchen Navigation Canan shown beside them. Two of the persons are Mr and Mrs Molden." Admin 3 May 2008 (BST)

Hello, My Father's John Aldred who used to lived in the cottage at the far right looking at the photo. Mr and Mrs Molden was the farm owners and the two girls are believed to be the daughters of the Molden family as they do have two sons names George and Austin, the daughters names Molly and not sure what the second daughter name was. John Aldred was born and raised on North Stoneham Farm in 1931. My Father also work on that farm and remember the history of his time there. John left the Farm in 1945 to work on another Farm in Petersfield then John's Mother Anne got married and then the change of surname to his Sept Father, now John Spreadbury. He said in 1934 the thatch cottage got burn down, it took two years rebuild the cottage. My Father 's John is looking for any history connect to the farm, like any photos of the North Stoneham Farm and who is alive today to share the memory of his time there. shaun28 31 Dec 2008 (BST)