Beggars Bush: A Perambulation through the Disciplines of History, Geography, Archaeology, Literature, Philology, Natural History, Botany, Biography & Beggary

Sheila Kaye-Smith Susan Spray 1931

The story is set around Copthorne on the Surrey/Sussex border. The main character is the daughter of a farm labourer born in 1834. Her father works at a farm called Pickdick. She is sent as a child to scare birds in an oat-field on nearby Beggars Bush farm where she sees a vision and becomes a preacher for the Colgate Brethren. It appears the Colgate Brethren meet at another farm called Horn Reed. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted: April 25th, 2011 | Filed under: Writers | Tags: , , | No Comments »


Ashurst, West Sussex Beggars Bush 1687

This site is now Beggars Bush Kennels, Spithandle Lane, Wiston, Steyning, BN44 3DY. The owner says the house is part C16, set in 12 acres of good grassland and 1 acre of woodland. The lane is shown at Geograph.

West Sussex Record Office, Wiston Archives contain a number of references. WSRO notes the importance of the Wiston Archives in part because they provide a record for the area between Storrington and Steyning, at both of which there are Beggars Bushes. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted: April 25th, 2011 | Filed under: Places | Tags: , , | No Comments »


Loxwood, West Sussex Beggars Bush 1724

This is a relatively late site in West Sussex where there are many early sites. It is one of several along what would have been the main road north to London, although the exact location is recorded variously. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted: April 24th, 2011 | Filed under: Places | Tags: , , | No Comments »


Kingston near Lewes, East Sussex Beggars Bush 1799

The name of one of the furlongs in the West Laine, consisting of six strips shown on a map and survey by William Figg, 1799, methodising an earlier one by Thomas Marchant. It is shown as being below Scabby Brow, immediately north of the lane leading off the main A27 south to Kingston village, which it crosses to become the ancient Juggs Way, an old route over the South Downs from Brighton to Lewes. The southern half of the field is now houses and gardens.

Richard Coates refers to this in his early article noting the existence of electronic resources for place name studies, ‘A new resource, Literature Online (LION) and some Sussex place-names with literary mentions’, Nomina, Vol 5, number 2, Autun Winter 2001, p.15.

OS Grid

TQ388087

Source

ESRO ADA 51

Thanks

Christopher Whittick, Margaret Thorburn, Janet Pennington

Posted: April 24th, 2011 | Filed under: Places | Tags: , , | No Comments »


Uley, Gloucestershire Beggers Bush 1723

Indenture dated 9 Sept., 1723, between Thomas Bayly, of Uley, gent, (1), and Michael Bayly, of Uley, gent, (father of Thomas Bayly) (2) of land in Uley, including 8 acres of arable land in the West field, in Uley, whereof 4 acres lye together below Seechmead, gives other locations and ends “and the other acre thereof, residue of said 8 acres, lieth in the said field at a place called Beggers Bush, next Mr. Basset’s tyning hedge”. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted: April 23rd, 2011 | Filed under: Places | Tags: , , , , , | No Comments »


Storrington, West Sussex Beggarsbush 1641

The Inquisition Post Mortem for John Duppa of Petworth, dated 20 Aug 16 Charles (meant for 17 Charles), includes lands in Storrington amongst which are Northcomons alias Beggarsbush and also Catts Mead. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted: April 23rd, 2011 | Filed under: Places | Tags: , , , | No Comments »


Wadhurst, East Sussex Beggars Bush 1825

Now Beggars Bush Barn, Buckhurst Lane, Wadhurst, West Sussex, TN6 6JU. The site is north of the road between Mark Cross and Wadhurst.

It is first shown on the Greenwood & Greenwoods’ Map of c.1825 just north of Skinner’s Farm. The name appears to denote two buildings at a fork in the road to Buckhurst. Barrow’s Bush is shown at the same location on the 1″ to 1 mile map by Gardner & Gream, (based in part on a survey by Gardener & Yeakell in 1778). Nothing is shown on the earlier 1741 map of the area. It is therefore possible that Beggars Bush replaced an earlier name, perhaps from a person. If so it may indicate the popularity of the name, but is not probative of anything more. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted: April 23rd, 2011 | Filed under: Places | Tags: , , , | No Comments »


Ditchling, East Sussex Beggars Bush 1748

This may be an example where the origin of the place name is from the charitable purpose of the land.

Ditchling Parish, East Sussex, Vestry Minutes notes of leases includes Beggars Bush to Daniel Hobden at 12s, 4 Nov 1748 (ESRO ref. PAR308/12/1/2  pp.18-20).

Sprotts Charity Conveyance dated 22 Dec 1781 to new trustees appointed by a Chancery Decree of 19 Mar 1781 includes “2: Church Croft, Marle Pit, the Noore otherwise part of Brookers, Milking Close, Alms Land and Beggars Bush, Ditchling, and Alms Land, Westmeston; Eastfield in Ditchling, copyhold of the manor of Ditchling Garden” (ESRO PAR308/24/1/2).
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Posted: April 6th, 2011 | Filed under: Places | Tags: , , | No Comments »


Bolney West Sussex Beggars Bush 1792

On northern edge of Bolney parish, adjacent to Warninglid, and near Cuckfield. Now the site of Beggars Bush Nurseries, Brighton Road, Warninglid, Heywards Heath RS17 5GY  just off the A23.
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Posted: April 6th, 2011 | Filed under: Places | Tags: , | No Comments »


Hartfield, East Sussex Beggars Bush 1565

Beggars Bush appears three times as boundary marker for Costley Warde, South Warde and Comedeane Walk parcel of Costley Ward in a Survey of The Forest of Ashdown taken by Edmund Twynyho, surveyor, in June 1565, for the Duchy of Lancaster (transcript of PRO DL 42/112 by Anne Drewery, also extracted in part as Appendix II to Teesdale).

There is also a mention of Beggars Bush in the survey of 1579, which exists only in the form af an 18th-century copy, which has a Beggars Bush on the boundary of the Maresfield borough of the hundred of Rushmonden – “…along the highway on the left hand unto Sweet Brook and from thence by a ghyll unto a ditch leading up to Huglets Pit within Ashdown and from thence to Woodhorne and from thence to a ghyll between Owls Oak and Old Lodge and along the same ghyll to Beggars Bush and from thence to Crown Brook and down by the same brook to the upper end of Reedom Mead now Henry Hodes and so from thence to the forenamed style” (ESRO ASH 1171A). Read the rest of this entry »

Posted: March 19th, 2011 | Filed under: Places | Tags: , , , | 1 Comment »