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Published: December 24th 2013
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Dinner with Friends
It was great to reconnect again with Alistair, George & Heather after so many years. Just after getting back from visiting friends in Germany we had visits from two sets of friends here in London. George, Heather and their son Alistair were able to make it to Tsamaya for a dinner. We first met them when we were in Botswana and haven’t seen them since 1986 when we visited their home outside of London. Alistair we last saw in 2002 in Trumansburg when he spent a gap year in the US. Two days later we connected with John and Jan, friends that we had made the first year we were cruising. We met them in Stuart, FL and enjoyed both Christmas and New Year’s with them. Fortunately for us they were visiting family in the London area and made arrangements to stop by for a visit. It is always nice to re-unite with friends, especially during the holiday season.
The following Monday Bob was scheduled for dental surgery. He had an abscess on his front tooth that he found needed to have a dental implant. The dentist had explained the procedure and we read all of the paperwork they had provided on the first visit – not surprisingly Bob wasn’t really looking forward to the
Almost 3 Years Exactly
since we had celebrated the holidays in Stuart FL with John & Jan - thanks for visiting! process, but it went very well. In less than an hour Bob had the implant and a temporary cap that will be replaced by a permanent one in April. It was good having the work done in the UK because it takes several months to heal and we were able to talk to the dentist in English!
While Bob was recovering the first week he spent time sleeping so Janice took the time to go to the Geffrye’s Museum. The museum specializes in the history of the home showing how homes and gardens reflect the changes in society, style and behavior of the owners. It is housed in what had been an almshouse that was run by the Ironmonger’s Guild (blacksmiths) since 1714.
The almshouse was set up to house 50 pensioners with funds provided by Sir Robert Geffrye, a master in the Ironmonger Guild. In order to stay here you priority was given to those with a connection to the ironmongers (family ties) and be at least 56 years old. People who were lucky enough to get a placement received free rent, coal and £6 per year, a generous amount in the 18
th century. They had two
The Dickens Inn
seemed to have quite a few "santas" this afternoon. paid positions at the almshouse, matron and the chaplain. They did have rules that the residents needed to live by and there are records of those that were fined or punished if they stayed out overnight, swore or did not attend church on Sunday. As you might guess there was a waiting list for the almshouse with it being located in a good area of London where the air was cleaner and they had open green spaces which was rare in London. It was located on the main route into the city of London so the merchants passed by regularly where they could buy produce they would need. The person or family would be provided with a room which had a closet for storage and a fireplace for cooking. The room was unfurnished so the family would have to provide furniture. These homes were not intended for the destitute, that was the function of the work houses.
Later in the 1800’s with the growth of the middle class the almshouse was filled more with upper class Victorian women. The museum has renovated a couple of the rooms to show how they would look both in 1780 and in 1880
The Ice Sculpture
was one of the activities set up at St. Katharine Dock for the festivities. which differed greatly with the furnishings reflecting the inhabitants and the introduction of gas lights making it a more pleasant place to live.
By the early 20
th century the area had become an unsavory part of London and the Ironmongers decided to move the almshouse to a healthier area of the city. The London Council purchased the site in order to turn the green space into a park and the almshouse was converted into a museum as early as 1914. The Ironmongers almshouse is still functioning to this day – it is a place for pensioners to live in a pleasant area with the housing taken care of by the Guild.
The connected Geffrye museum shows the development of the home and its furnishings over the centuries. It was interesting to see how the changes in lifestyles had a lasting impact on the development of various rooms in the home. The layout of rooms as well as the color of the walls, the window treatments and the design of the furniture reflected the changes in the family and society of the times. The parlor developed with the introduction of “tea” and having others over to share in this
The Ironmonger Almshouse
surrounded a large green space on 3 sides & now houses the museum. luxurious drink of the times. This also allowed for a more private area that was separated from the household servants where all previously ate and lived in the hallway. With the increase of the middle class, furniture was simplified making it easier to clean because it was not common to have housemaids.
With it being December the displays also showed how the homes would have been decorated for the holidays and told how some of the traditions started. Hanging the Christmas stocking is a tradition that came to the UK via America in the middle of the nineteenth century. Dutch settlers in America had brought the tradition of setting their shoes out for Saint Nicholas and was adapted to the use of stockings. When this tradition came to Britain they were undecided as to if it should be shoes or stockings, but stockings won out. Decorating a tree within your house became popular during the reign of Queen Victoria. Queen Charlotte, the German wife of George III may have been the first to bring the custom from Germany to Britain around 1780-1790. It was Prince Albert’s excitement about the tree that made it popular for those other than royalty.
This is the Size of the Room
provided to a family in the almshouses in Victorian times. Since Victoria & Albert’s marriage in 1840, Windsor had a Christmas tree every year. In 1848 with a photo of the tree surrounded by the five royal children, their parents and their grandmother, the Christmas tree became popular for all. It was a pleasant way to spend the day for Janice and it gave Bob another day of quiet to recover from the surgery.
Later in the week, we visited St. Martin in the Field for an excellent concert of Christmas music by the Manor House String Quartet. They played several unusual arrangements of traditional carols as well as some we had never heard before. We enjoyed the fact that they explained the history of the carol before it was played. It was an excellent concert and as a result the Waller CD collection has increased by two!
With us being away from London for Christmas we took a walk around a couple areas of London in the evening to see the Christmas lights and store decorations. Some of them were quite traditional with the village winter settings while others were quite innovative in the way they used merchandise from their store to create interesting animals and figures.
Furnishings in the 1700's
were simple & supplied by the families themselves in the almshouses. It was great fun checking out the various areas with their Christmas decorations and it helped get us in the holiday spirit.
Even though it is December it has been mild so far. We have had a few cold nights and cool mornings, but overall it hasn’t been bad. We are definitely happy to have a couple of heaters and a dehumidifier running to keep the dampness down and the temperature up. We keep hearing from others that we will have to be watchful of the ice on the docks later this winter – not looking forward to that, but at least for now we are only using an umbrella and not shoveling snow!
Best wishes to you all for the holiday season! We are spending our Christmas in Bath, UK housesitting for two cats and exploring a new area of the UK. We will return to London on the 27
th so we can be there for the New Year’s celebrations.
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