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Azzabuv	grave site at chapel street replied on: 11/12/2005 2:55:22 PM There does appear to be a Posting 'comment' on the above, missing from here, though? Azzabuv.
Bagpuss!! This message was updated on 10/24/2005 11:15:17 PM by Bagpuss!!	grave site at chapel street replied on: 10/24/2005 11:14:47 PM Hello All, While not wishing to stray "off topic" I came across this interesting piece relating to the earlier part of the Henry Brentnall biographical piece I posted earlier. It documents the fate of the Pentrich Revolutionaries that Henry witnessed on their march to Nottingham. Be warned it's a bit gruesome!! 1817 November 7 Brandreth, Ludlam, and Turner, the "Pentrich Plotters", executed at Derby. The last instance of the old penalty of high treason, hanging, drawing and quartering. (Cavalry stood on guard during the execution. The prisoners were first dragged round the prison yard on hurdles, were then hanged for half an hour, and their bodies afterwards cut down. The executioner then struck the heads off the bodies and seizing the head of Brandreth by the hair, showed the ghastly countenance to the multitude, exclaiming: "Behold the head of the traitor, Jeremiah Brandreth. The crowd, "as if under the impulse of a sudden frenzy," separated in all directions, but equanimity was restored, "and the separation and exhibition of the remaining heads was witnessed with the greatest order and decorum". The executioners were masked and their names were kept a profound secret. The poet Shelley witnessed the scene. The block is still to be seen in Derby Prison, where its wood hangs damp always damp - so it has been averred - it has given rise to the tradition that the block of the unhappy men has not dried and never will).
suzard Researcher	grave site at chapel street replied on: 10/18/2005 11:57:55 PM Marvellous info, Bagpuss-my ancestors were members of this church, so they probably attended the school as well-also insight into Shipley
Iceboy53	grave site at chapel street replied on: 10/18/2005 2:18:55 PM keep trying to log in bagpuss and thank you for all this information..hope it works this time.
Bagpuss!!	grave site at chapel street replied on: 10/17/2005 12:22:18 AM Hello everyone, I have come across this piece of writing about Henry Brentnall and thought you may find it of interest. The original author is unknown, as is when it was first written. As Henry Brentnall has been mentioned on this post, I thought it would be the correct place for it to be displayed. Apologies for the length, but bear with it, it does give some very interesting facts about the Chapel at Marlpool. HENRY BRENTNALL Born 1798 - Married 1829 - Died 1866 Aged 68 “Abundant in Good Works” Eastwood was deserted; the doors of the houses were fastened, windows were barred and most of the villagers were hiding in the High Park Woods. For the last few days there had been ugly rumours and word had now spread that rebels were marching on Nottingham from Pentrich in Derbyshire; they must pass through Eastwood and as they were reported to be demanding weapons and forcing able bodied men to fall in with them, the people of Eastwood had prudently made themselves scarce. Just one man waited at the roadside to see the rebels pass and as he stood with ears alert for every sound he would turn his eyes now and again in the direction of Langley Bridge, the village where they would cross from Derbyshire to Nottinghamshire. Why was this young man of nineteen standing there? Why hadn’t he fled to safety with the others? He hardly knew himself, he only knew that something inside him revolted at the idea of running for safety. He came of a family that had farmed on the Shipley Estate generation after generation; men of independent views and independent ways. His father and his grandfather before him had done the unheard of thing, once the harvest was in, of taking a holiday each year, walking to London and back just for the fun of it. The old squire so trusted his father that year after year he asked him to carry M’lady’s jewels to London in his pockets because they would be safer with him than the squire’s own coach. If his father had no fear of the footpads that infested the roads why should he fear working men, whatever their grievances, as they marched in broad daylight? Still, rebellion was an ugly word. His grandfather had had vivid memories of the ’45 when Prince Charles rebels had come as far as Derby and even his father, when a boy had seen some of their heads rotting on spikes on London Bridge, what would be the fate of the men who were coming now? He listened more intently, yes, there was a murmur of voice and the sound of feet on the road. He watched as they breasted the hill, some carried muskets, some pikes, others only had sticks; there was no order, no discipline as they marched, they were little more than a rabble. On they came, the man striding ahead of the others would be the one they called the Nottingham Captain, surely he recognised the face of the man just behind him, wasn’t it Ludlam, the local preacher? - Times were hard he knew but there was no remedy for Christians this way - They were near him now. The leaders didn’t give him so much as a glance, a few, who were shouting threats and oaths called to him to join them, they looked as though they had been drinking to keep their courage up, but the majority just plodded on. So they straggled by. There had been less than he expected, then looking back the way they had come he knew the reason, there were little groups here and there who had dropped out on some pretext or other and were now making their way homewards, they knew already that their hopes of support from other parts was disappointed. Soon they were gone too, the village street was quiet again. Watching these men, Henry Brentnall had been profoundly moved, he might be a youth in years but he had a man’s heart. What of those that hadn’t turned back? What chance would they have against the Military who were waiting for them? They would be scattered and then rounded up for trial. The Leaders would be hanged and many another could expect to be transported. True enough there were agitators like the Nottingham Captain, but for the most part they were honest working men, driven to desperate ways by poverty and hunger. Many, he knew, were framework knitters, working all the hours of daylight and lucky if they earned six shillings in a week and even they often given shoddy goods instead of money, and the price of a four pound loaf was 9d and a pound of sugar cost 1/1d. There was anger in his heart at a government that would do nothing to help the poor, whose policy was to crush them down and down until they turned to violence in sheer desperation. It was unbelievable that only two years ago these same men had gone wild with joy at the news that Boney had been finally defeated on the field of Waterloo. He remembered vividly the stage coach, bedecked with ribbons, drawing up at the King of Prussia Inn at Heanor with the glorious news. What a night that had been; what hopes there had been…. Victory, peace, happier times ahead. The months had passed and all that had happened was that distress had grown - unemployment, falling wages, rising prices - small wonder that men who saw their children ill clothed and hungry should turn to desperate means. It was as he thought of the poverty and distress that had led to this rebellion that an idea that had been in his mind for some time hardened into a resolve. They must have a school in Heanor for the poor, better still a Chapel and a School. He himself walked each Sunday to the Independent Chapel at Ilkeston, Joshua Shaw the Minister there would gladly help to establish a new cause. He knew of a room that was available at Milnhay, perhaps they might begin regular preaching there and open a Sunday School, yes, and he could take extra classes on weeknights too. It would be a school where the poor might learn to read and write, something that was urgently needed, for their ignorance made them easy prey for the bad employer and the plausible agitator alike. If they could read too they would be able to read the Bible for themselves and to know that God really did care for them, every one. Young as he was it was Henry Brentnall the Colliery Book-keeper who did as much as anyone to begin the school and establish the little band of worshippers that began to gather in that year (1817) in the room at Milnhay. Later they moved to what they afterwards described as an “Upper room” in Heanor itself, belonging to another man whose interest had been aroused. Benjamin Hardy, a draper. Soon they began to look around for a site for a permanent building but at first they had no success, for though the Vicar was sadly neglecting his duties at the parish church, none of the landowners were willing to sell land for the building of a dissenting chapel. At last they were offered part of a field in the little hamlet of Marlpool, about a mile away, and grateful for anything they accepted this and began to build what should be both chapel and school. The building began in the spring of 1821 and was completed in time for the official opening on January 1st 1822. It wasn’t thought wise to transfer the school to the new premises until the better weather in April, but when they did transfer it they were soon crowded out and had to extend the premises in the same year. This saddled the little congregation with a debt for many years to come, a debt that Henry Brentnall covered in part from his own pocket, though he was never a wealthy man. For well over forty years he gave himself to the work of this chapel and school and the ability which might have gone into establishing a great business was used instead in the service of the people of a obscure mining village. Responsibility for church and school alike fell on his broad shoulders, registers and minute books were scrupulously kept and all church business was properly regulated. He implanted his personality upon the cause to a remarkable extent and lived out his Christian faith as guide and friend of one of the most despised sections of the community. Year in Year out he was present at the services of worship and the business meetings and taught faithfully in his school. For most of his life his home was two or three miles away, which entailed a good deal of walking and meant that on Sundays he would come with his lunch packed in his pocket to stay the day, only returning home after the close of the evening service. For years he never had a hot Sunday dinner. Then on weekdays, two or three evenings each week he would be there with a team of helpers, teaching reading, writing and arithmetic to over a hundred lads mainly drawn from the pits. In everything he undertook he was thorough. When the system of National Registration of Births and deaths was started in 1837, all existing dissenting registers were required to be deposited at Somerset House. The Marlpool Baptismal Register was to be sent along with others, but before the time came to send it in, Henry Brentnall discovered that a number of parents were worried because their children, not having been baptised, would not be recorded. He knew that to some of these families it was a matter of great concern, they would be enormously helped if they could feel that their children’s names were also going to be sent to the Government in London, they would feel that they mattered. He thought about it for a while and then decided to compile an appendix to the baptismal register of the names of any other children whose parents wanted them included; it was quite a considerable undertaking. Eventually, eighty five names were entered in this appendix with full particulars or at least as full as he could obtain, for some families dated the birth of their children in unusual ways as may be seen from this entry:- “Ann, daughter of Samuel Clay and Catherine…… was born in the Spring of 1821 the day before the first stone of this chapel was laid….. the mother gave this date. (Signed) Henry Brentnall”. Queen Victoria’s coronation on June 26th 1838 was a great day for the school, with a tea party and a visit to the grounds of the local Squire. They were still talking about it the following week when the news came of the sudden death of Thomas Roscoe, who for nine years has been Minister of their church and another little cause at Moor green. The little churches were faced with the problem of the Minister’s Widow and children, some of whom were still young. It was Henry Brentnall who took the lead, helping in many a quiet way and raising a fund of over £200 to provide for the years ahead. When this money had been gathered, a large sum for those days, he arranged an investment which he personally guaranteed, to assure Mrs. Roscoe of an income for the rest of her life. In trouble of any kind people naturally turned to Henry Brentnall and his wife, a girl he had fallen in love with at first sight and later married, for they never turned any away. Accidents in the pit were all too common, but there came the day…… when there was a serious explosion involving many miners. Then their home was ransacked for blankets to wrap the burnt men in, nothing was spared. Many died that day and of those who recovered many were scarred for life, but nothing the Brentnalls could do had been left undone. Henry Brentnall had a heart soon touched by suffering and he was not ashamed to weep at the misfortunes of others, yet he was no weakling or sentimentalist. He kept a careful eye on local affairs and if the local vestry was better managed than some, it was because of men like Henry Brentnall and his friends John Holmes, the Methodist and Francis Howitt, the Quaker. A little company, with these at the head watched that the local people were not imposed upon and initiated much needed reforms. An ardent liberal, Henry Brentnall had no faith in violent measures and at the time of the Chartists riots was sworn in as a Special Constable to help keep the peace. He was greatly loved and respected by all the people of the area, so much so that on one occasion as he was walking home after his evening school he was set upon by a footpad who, when he recognised who it was, apologised and let him go on his way without harming him further. Shortly after his sixtieth birthday his many friends combined to present Henry Brentnall with a silver inkstand as a token of their gratitude and esteem. It was a great occasion. First the scholars marched into his house to escort him to the Chapel; then there was a tea, and after the tea a packed meeting, with friends from far and near, hundreds of them packed like sardines. Many tributes were spoken but the greatest tribute was the crowd of men who owed their start in life to the school to which he had given so much, what a cheer they gave him when he rose to speak. Looking at that sea of faces he spoke of the years that were gone, of old friends who had laboured with him and of bad times that were now passing into history. He spoke of the joy he had found in living out his Christian faith in this way and then as he said that “the ink from that stand should never be used by him for the purpose of slandering his neighbours, or sowing discord and mischief among his fellow men, but for the glory of his Divine Master”. But Henry Brentnall hadn’t retired! In the school were four hundred scholars and he continued to teach. He served God and his fellow men to the end and when he died some seen years later there was grief through all the area. One who knew him well wrote, “I have not seen his equal among all the people I have known; he was always the same, pursuing his own work, and showing himself the kind, wise and faithful friend, who through life was distinguished for great moral worth, piety and benevolence.” Hundreds mourned the loss of a dearly loved personal friend. A public subscription was started to raise a memorial to him and within a few weeks over £100 had been subscribed. On the monument appear these words - “In memory of Henry Brentnall, Who, after he had served his own generation, by the will of God fell asleep in Jesus. He being dead, yet speaketh.” He stands out amongst his fellows because, at a time when so many despised the frame knitter or the collier, Henry Brentnall cared for them; cared so much that he centred his life on helping them and educating them, that they might stand on their feet as men. He restored their self respect and he did all this and so very much more gladly, because above all else he loved God.
Iceboy53	grave site at chapel street replied on: 10/8/2005 2:38:11 PM chapel street. the chapel from which the street takes its name was built in 1848 as the mount zion chapel. later it became the congregational church and is now marlpool united reformed church. the present building is on the site of an earlier chapel.which chapel would this be then ?.
RMMee Moderator	grave site at chapel street replied on: 10/5/2005 2:18:51 AM The Enclosure Map of 1796 shows that Chapel Street, as we know it, was there, but there were no buildings on it. Sanderson's map of 1835 does not show it as a built up area either. So, I would make a strong guess that it was a greenfield site, probably farmland prior to the chapel being built.
Iceboy53 This message was updated on 10/4/2005 11:35:36 PM by Iceboy53	grave site at chapel street replied on: 10/4/2005 11:33:56 PM does anyone know what was on the land before the marlpool chapel was built and was the street there before the chapel and re-named or was it laid the same time as the the chapel.and house built around it.
Azzabuv	grave site at chapel street replied on: 8/29/2005 2:04:36 PM No, it appears to have taken place before the Cemetery change-overs. If it hadn't, there would surely have been a written account of the true burial date? Azzabuv.
RMMee Moderator	grave site at chapel street replied on: 8/21/2005 4:41:22 AM I don't believe that there were any more burials at the Chapel after the Marlpool Cemetery was opened
Jennypeg Researcher	grave site at chapel street replied on: 8/16/2005 3:04:46 PM Hi, Do you have these (births/baptisms) Thornhill Fanny 55a James 58a Marth 56a Mary 53a Richard 57, 118 Thomas 5, 54a Jenny
suzard Researcher	grave site at chapel street replied on: 8/16/2005 2:44:41 PM John Thornhill is one of my ancestors-i had his burial.Guess now I'll have to pay my respects on the car park. Another ancestor was baptised there in 1822 and the birth date is given as "Spring 1821 the day before the first stone of the chapel was laid."
Jennypeg Researcher	grave site at chapel street replied on: 8/16/2005 2:15:09 PM Plan of the burial ground, Heanor Independent Chapel (now the car park) One big square 17 squares across by 17 down, but only 22 squares have crosses in them. Plan N/E S/W 5/14 Benjamin Hardy 25 Heanor 15th Nov 1822 (five squares across 14 down) Also John Thornhill Marlpool March 19th 1831 (not on plan) Jenny
Jennypeg Researcher	grave site at chapel street replied on: 8/3/2005 8:43:56 PM Hi, Independent Chapel Marlpool Burials 1822 -1837 First was: Ann Soar aged 1 yrs died 7th Feb 1822 buried 12th Feb 1822 "The plotting of the graves ceased to be carried out after May 1826" Jenny
Iceboy53 This message was updated on 8/3/2005 4:28:58 PM by Iceboy53	grave site at chapel street replied on: 8/3/2005 12:05:48 PM i would have thought by law they would have to keep records of burials on church/chapel land.there was once a guy who lived across from the chapel in the 60s who looked after the chapel. maybe all information died along with him,i am more than sure he dealt with all the day to day things and paper work. ice

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