Looking Back
Concerning my great Grandfather Caesar Gurr
D.O.B. 19th August 1821
And the Ashdown Forest Dispute 1876-1882

Background

About Caesar

Caesar Gurr, was my great grandfather and gave a witness statement in the case of The Ashdown Forest Dispute, it is recorded below. Caesar could not read or write, his verbal statement gives an interesting insight into the lifestyle of a smallholder in Victorian England. It was written and recorded by William Augustus Raper.

William Augustus Raper’s Notebook 1 has been extracted from The Ashdown Forest Dispute 1876-1882 by Professor Brian Short which presents a revealing case study in the environmental politics of Victorian England.
On 13 October 1877 John Miles was cutting litter (bracken, heather, gorse etc.) on Ashdown Forest on behalf of his landlord Bernard Hale, barrister, J.P, Deputy Lieutenant of Sussex, and Ashdown commoner. William Pilbeam, one of Earl de la Warr’s keepers, approached him and told him to stop cutting. Miles later recounted ‘I went on cutting’, thus initiating the Ashdown Forest case, brought by Reginald Windsor, seventh Earl de la Warr as Lord of the Manor of Duddlewell against Hale and Miles, to test the extent of Hale’s common rights. Expensive legal opinion was hired by both sides since many commoners were titled and wealthy landowners; and William Augustus Raper, a Battle solicitor, was engaged to assemble evidence on behalf of the defendants. Some of this evidence is transcribed as the main body of text in this volume – over 100 depositions collected by Raper in 1878 and 1879 from elderly Forest residents.
Raper’s visits to his informants’ cottages were recorded in five small notebooks whose contents are not easily deciphered. This volume presents their full transcription, together with a contextualising introduction to the Forest and its customs and to the complex legal actions of 1876-1882.
These narratives are invaluable sources for the history of Sussex, for genealogy, and for environmental, legal, economic, social and cultural history. Herein are recounted the main environmental and local political themes of this surviving area of Victorian open Forest, seen quite unusually from the perspective of rural working people.
Brian Short is Professor of Historical Geography at the University of Sussex. He is the author of many works dealing with the historical environment and rural society of Sussex and with the evaluation of historical sources relating to rural life in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Statement of Caesar Gurr
Concerning the Ashdown Forest Dispute

Gurr, Caesar. Rents a cottage and about an acre of land of Mr. Melville at New Bridge. Aged 60. Born in Maresfield in a house built by my grandfather Bennett on the edge of the Forest. Lived there till I married when I was over 30. I used to do job work till I was 20 and then went to work daily at Pippingford out in the Forest where I still work. For the first 30 years I was always about in the Forest on the Maresfield side. I used to cut a little litter for my father’s pigs but I cut for no one else. I saw most of what went on in the Forest
There is a farm at Maresfield called Hill End. When I was a boy William Osborn occupied it and his son occupied it till lately. (I am not sure he has not sold it to Sir Spencer Maryon Wilson.) I repeatedly saw his team in the Forest carrying litter turf and mould home. I used to see Sir Thomas Wilson’s team come every winter for litter. The carter Wood was very proud of his team and had hoops of bells on their collars. The horses were kept at Woodcock Farm which was kept in hand. I cannot say whether the litter went there or into any other yard. When I went to Pippingford I worked 3’h years for Mrs Gorden, then 20 years for Mr. Mortimer. He died 20th September 1871 and I have worked for Mr. Gray ever since.

Mr. Mortimer used to take mould, marl and sand from the Forest for his own use and occasionally he turned his sheep out. Mr. Gray has not done this. I have held the cottage and land I now occupy on the Hartfield estate for 24 years, 29 September 1855. I have kept a cow there for 23 years. I have each year turned out the cow and cut litter and fern for bedding it and the pigs. I have occasionally had mould for mixens. For the first 10 or 12 years I had turf for fuel. Since then I have always had it from Pippingford Park. I have occasionally cut birch, willow and alder for firing. I cut alder last (1878) out on New Bridge bog. The litter has always been stacked in front of the premises by the high road where anyone can see it and I know the present Lord
De La Warr has frequently seen it. No one has ever interfered with me or objected to my exercising these rights nor have I ever paid anything for it. My predecessor was named Edwards. He sold off and went to America where he died.

I recollect Mr. Langton, Colonel Morris and Mr. Melville regularly having litter off the Forest for the Grove, also George Fillery and afterwards John Baker for Peculiars, also George Heasman and afterwards George Edwards for the Furnace Farm. They all turned their stock on the Forest I used to see them. Mr. Hale has always cut litter. I have seen them on the Forest within the last 4 years. My Father was a very strong man. He used to cut turf and peat all the summer for anyone who wanted it, including many of the cottagers in Hartfield Street and in the winter he cut litter for anyone who liked to employ him.

Thomas Gurr
Member of a Smugglers Gang
Groombridge

The Groombridge gang rose to prominence in the 1730s, landing contraband at
Lydd, Fairlight, Bulverhythe and Pevensey. Like other gangs, this team revelled in nicknames; Flushing Jack, Bulverhythe Tom, Towzer, Old Joll, Toll, The Miller, Yorkshire George, and Nasty Face all humped kegs and bales off the beaches or stood guard. These names weren’t just familiarities — they hid the identities of the people involved. Other members of the gang were Moreton’s servant Cat, Thomas Gurr Stick in the mud), (Collison , Pizon , Isaac Pope (Towser) , John Kitchen (Flushing Jack) , Thomas Ward (Bulverhythe Tom) and William Weston

Official records first feature the Groombridge men in 1733. 30 of them were ferrying tea inland from Romney Marsh via Iden in a convoy of 50 horses when three preventive men, two dragoons and a foot soldier made the mistake of challenging the convoy at Stonecrouch. For their interest the customs men were disarmed, and their guns made useless; they were then marched at gun-point for four hours to Groombridge, and on to Lamberhurst, where their weapons were returned to them after they had promised not to renew the pursuit.
By 1737 the gang were said to be terrorizing the area, and the military were sent to Groombridge to restore order.

In the same year an informer who signed himself simply ‘Goring’ provided a detailed insight into the gang’s activities, referring directly to an armed clash at Bulverhythe
This is the seventh time Morten’s people have workt this winter, and have not lost anything but one half-hundred [weight] of tea they gave to a Dragoon and one officer they met with the first [run] of this winter.

When once the Smuglers are drove from home they will soonall be taken. Note, that some say it was Thomas Gurr that fired first.
You must well secure Cat or else your Honours will lose the man; the best way will be to send for him up to London [for trial] for he knows the whole Company, and hath been Moreton’s servant two years. There were several young Chaps with the smugglers who, when taken, will soon discover [identify] the whole Company. The number was twenty-six men. Mack’s horses, Moreton’s and Hoak’s were killed, and they lost not half their goods. They have sent for more goods, and twenty-nine horses set out from Groombridge this day…all the men well-armed with long guns. ..

I will send your Honours the Places where [you] will intercept the Smugglers as they go to Market with their goods, but it must be done by soldiers, for they go stronger now than ever. The first [run] of this winter, the Groombridge Smugglers were forced to carry their goods almost all up to Rushmore Hill and Cester [Keston] Mark…but tea sells quick in London now, and Chaps from London come down to Groombridge almost everyday, as they used to last winter. When once [the smugglers] come to be driven from home, they will be put to great inconveniences, when they are from their friends and will lose more Goods than they do now…Do but take up some of the servants, and they will rout the masters, for the servants are all poor…

Young [John] Bowra’s house cost £500 building, and he will pay for looking up. Moreton and Bowra sold, last winter, some-ways; about 3,000 lb weight a week.

In 1740 the Groombridge gang were implicated in the attack at Robertsbridge on the customs men carrying seized tea to Hastings, and they continued to operate up to the end of the decade, when an informer provided information that led to the round up and subsequent trial of the majority of the gang’s leading lights.

Hooe and area
Hooe is at TQ6809 4m NE of Hailsham. Boreham Street (TQ6611) is on the A271 Bexhill Road. The Smuggler’s Wheel restaurant is in the middle of the village on the main road. Herstmonceux church is close to the castle and observatory, at the end of a turning off the main A271 (map 199)

The informer who painted such a detailed picture of the Groombridge company’s efforts also pointed the finger at a smuggling company from Hooe, nearer the coast, and though we know little about this group, it’s clear that the two gangs cooperated in landing goods on the Sussex coast. In Hooe village the Red Lion Inn was the gang’s headquarters. The lime trees that still stand outside signify — like the ship fresco in Snargate church — that this was a safe haven for smugglers.

Numerous places close to Hooe are known to have been used for concealing contraband, so perhaps the gang was among those who used the ghostly reputation of Herstmonceux churchyard to deter visitors while they stored goods in the table-tombs there. At Boreham Street, closer still to Hooe village, you can still see a shaft and winch that smugglers used to lower goods down into a cellar. The house is now a restaurant that takes its name from the winch wheel, and in the restaurant garden there are the remains of a tunnel leading away from cellar.

Above: With grateful thanks to Mr. Richard Platt who granted me permission to use excerpts from his website. Smugglers Britain. www.smuggling.co.uk/ 

The Smugglers Song

Rudyard Kipling

If You wake at midnight, and hear a horse’s feet,
Don’t go drawing back the blind, or looking in the street,
Them that asks no questions isn’t told a lie.
Watch the wall, my darling, while the Gentlemen go by!

Five-and-twenty ponies — Trotting through the dark –Brandy for the Parson,’Baccy for the Clerk;
Laces for a lady; letters for a spy,
And watch the wall, my darling, while the Gentlemen go by!

Running round the woodlump if you chance to find
Little barrels, roped and tarred, all full of brandy-wine;
Don’t you shout to come and look, nor take ’em for your play;
Put the brushwood back again, – and they’ll be gone next day!

If you see the stable-door setting open wide;
If you see a tired horse lying down inside;
If your mother mends a coat cut about and tore;
If the lining’s wet and warm – don’t you ask no more!

If you meet King George’s men, dressed in blue and red
You be careful what you say, and mindful what is said.
If they call you ‘pretty maid,’ and chuck you ‘neath the chin
Don’t you tell where no one is, nor yet where no one’s been!

Knocks and footsteps round the house – whistles after dark –
You’ve no call for running out till the house-dogs bark.
Trusty’s here, and Pincher’s here, and see how dumb they lie –
They don’t fret to follow when the Gentlemen go by!

If you do as you’ve been told, likely there’s a chance
You’ll be give a dainty doll, all the way from France,
With a cap of Valenciennes, and a velvet hood –
A present from the Gentlemen, along o’ being good!

Five-and-twenty ponies — Trotting through the dark –
Brandy for the – Parson, ‘ Baccy for the Clerk;
Laces for a lady; letters for a spy,
And watch the wall, my darling, while the Gentlemen go by! 

The above is a Photograph of a painting depicting the Gurr family lineage from
1672 to the birth of Lydia Gurr in 1975*
Compiled by Michael Gurr drawn by John Bonney

*Not shown; two new additions now appear on the above record.

The German Gurr Family

The *Caesar Godeffroy* sailed from Hamburg in Northern Germany on the 15th April 1858 for East London in South Africa. On board were immigrants and their families on the passenger list was Fridrich Gurr age 32, his wife Christine Gurr age 26 with one child. The Caesar Godeffroy arrived in East London South Africa on the 7th July 1858 a journey of seven weeks and four days. Eight children died aboard the ship whilst en Route.

*Both names appear in our family tree, although Godeffroy is spelt Godfery

The diverse Gurrs
Charlotte Gurr the Football Player

Charlotte Gurr (born 16/081989) is an English football player. She currently plays for the FA Women’s Premier League team Chelsea Ladies, and also for the England U19 women’s team. She plays as a left winger or left back. Gurr joined the Arsenal Academy at 14 from Millwall Lionesses and is playing mainly for the reserves, though she made both her League and UEFA Women’s Cup debuts in 2006. She moved to Chelsea Academy this summer. Charlotte attended King’s Manor Community College in Shoreham, West Sussex, England.
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Tom Gurr’s Gold
The San Jose has become one of the most controversial galleons of the 1733 fleet. It was during the Tom Gurr days of salvage that the state of Florida stepped in and confiscated the entire treasure Gurr and his crew had recovered during two years of hard effort, claiming that the site lay within a few yards of the state’s three-mile boundary. During this initial recovery in 1968-69, Tom’s group brought up two gold 1-escudo cob-type coins, both fully documented by the state of Florida. Gurr returned several years later–under a different salvage company, Underseas Mining–and made some significant recoveries near the broken stern section of the Jose, where the 22-foot lead sheathed rudder and five cannon still lay. As related by a partner of Gurr’s, the crew recovered a “considerable” number of gold cob-type coins. These were brokered by a close associate Bob Cruz. Guess who purchased the coins…Mel Fishser

Firefighter
Above Michael Gurr

I was so pleased and delighted to receive an email recently from Michael Gurr of Fort Lauderdale Florida U.S.A. We not only share the same name but also our chosen profession as fire-fighters. Below Michaels message about him and his family.

My sons name is David and my wife’s name is Carol Ann. I work for Pompano Beach Fire Rescue. We are located just north of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. I have been on the job for 18 years and I still love it! I am also a Paramedic. We staff our Engines & Ladders with 3 men and our Rescue’s (ambulances) with 3 men also. My department is 200 total manpower. The county we live in is quite large with a population of 1.8 million people. County wide there is approx. 3000 firemen. Due to our construction codes for hurricanes we must used a lot of CBS (block & stucco) type construction instead of wood, so we don’t burn as good as the bigger cities up north do ( NY, Boston, NJ). I also work at the local fire academy part time teaching new recruits. My wife stays home and we home school our son. I keep busy with church activities when I am not working. Glad we have been able to become friends and learn more about each other. Talk to you soon… Mike

Migrant Gurrs
Sultana

Several Gurrs migrated to the British Colonies in the 19th century, set out below are the records of one family that that sailed from the port of London U.K. on Saturday 23rd March 1850 then calling at Plymouth U.K on Saturday 6th April 1850. Then onward and arriving at Port Adelaide South Australia on Thursday 25th July 1850. The vessel was the barque Sultana, the master was a captain D. Mainland. This was a voyage of seventeen + weeks. Those listed below were a Sussex family,
Amongst the Passengers Listed

George Gurr—Age 61 – Blacksmith, from Sussex England.

Ann Gurr——- Age 35 —- 2nd wife

Benjamin Gurr Age 24 –Blacksmith, son of first wife.

Valentine Gurr, Age 9

Thomas Gurr, Age 6

Keturah Gurr, Age 5

Albert Gurr, Age 4

Ann Gurr, Age 2

George Gurr, infant, Born At Sea

A total of three children were born at sea named: Whitlock, Gurr, and Smith. There were two mothers who died and were buried at sea due to premature confinement; they were Mary Aspland, age 30, and Maria Sadler age 34.

SULTANA
Shipwrecked (1849 – 1857)
Guichen Bay South Australia

Three-masted barque; wooden hull; 588 gross tons Length 37.2 metres; Breadth 8.1 metres; Depth 6.2 metres
Built: Sunderland, England Lost: 27 April 1857, Guichen Bay S.A. Robe. Protected under the Commonwealth Historic Shipwrecks Act 1976

HISTORICAL ACCOUNT OF THE LOSS.

When the barque Sultana left Hong Kong, in either January or February 1857, it carried a general cargo and 400 Chinese passengers en route to Robe South Australia. During the voyage, the captain died, and the vessel was left in charge of the mate, Mr Garnett.
On 27 April 1857 the Sultana reached the entrance to Guichen Bay, but as it passed Cape Dombey (one reference says Cape Lannes), it struck a reef. Unfortunately the damage was severe and by the time the vessel reached the anchorage it was taking on more water than the pumps could handle. The master decided that the best action was to beach the barque and safely land the passengers.

Harry Gurr, the Original Man Fish

Surnames:
Battle Creek (Mich.) Enquirer, Sept 1903–

Family is Reunited Mrs. Frank Mauk finds her father in Toledo
The Original Man Fish Had Not Seen Children for Almost Thirty Years–Found Through Carnival Show.

Though there were a very few persons knew it at the time the visit of Enoch, the Man Fish, to this city, during the carnival, was the means of reuniting a father and daughter who had not seen each other for almost thirty years.
The daughter is Mrs. Frank Mauk, who is making her home with Mrs. Frank Terry, at 319 North Avenue, and the father is Harry Gurr, thirty years ago a resident of this city and famous throughout the country as Years ago he travelled over the United States with circuses and museums, doing the Man Fish act and in other specialties as an acrobat. Besides being the original Man Fish, he was at one time one of the best trapeze performers in the country and challenged all comers….

In his youth Gurr was a wonderful swimmer. He won the world’s championship in 1863 in a race on the Thames open to all the world….In 1867 he came to this country with the Hanlon Brothers, famous old time showmen… During his career he has been with Barnum & Bailey, the J. E. Warner circus and other famous old time shows.the original Man Fish. Gurr is now making his home at Toledo, where he is in the stock business.
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