Introduction
Bertram Leonard Watts was part of Hardington’s musical tradition that included Francis Leonard Purchase and Lillie Louise Jearum. Born the son of a blacksmith, he adopted music as a career, working in a musical instrument shop and becoming a piano tuner. Alongside his musical career, he appears to have been regarded as dependable in practical and financial matters.
Early years
Bert was born on 17 July 1904 at Hardington Mandeville as the son of William Henry Watts and his wife Grace (née Marsh).[1] He had an older sister, Violet, who was born on 27 October 1899.[2] Another sister, Evelyn, died in March 1903 at the age of three months from bronchitis.[3] William had come to Hardington as a young man to work for the village blacksmith and purchased the business soon afterwards.[4] In marrying Grace Marsh, he married into a well-established Hardington family. Before her marriage, Grace had worked in domestic service at Long Load and Taunton.[5]
On 9 September 1907, Bert joined Violet at Hardington School, where he attended until 25 January 1918, leaving on a labour certificate.[6]
Adult life
By June 1921, Bert was serving an apprenticeship as a piano repairer with Price & Sons of Handel House, Yeovil. Whether he remained with Price & Sons is unknown, but by 1939 he was still working in the trade, as the manager of a piano and radio shop and as a piano tuner.
Throughout this period, Bert continued living at home. William purchased the cottage, smithy, garden, orchard and two fields in the Portman estate sale of October 1920, later naming the property Smithfield.[7] In January 1923, Violet married Laurence Gordon Chich at Pendomer church and settled at Manor Farm, West Coker. This left Bert living with his parents.
During the 1940s, Bert formed a dance band that played at village halls and other local venues. Three concerts are known from local newspapers: at Halstock schoolroom in November 1945, at Hazelbury Bryan village hall in February 1946, and at Hamdon Hall, Stoke-sub-Hamdon in January 1947.[8]
On 9 January 1948, Bert made his will. He appointed Violet and her husband, Laurence, as his executors. He directed them to sell his assets, invest the proceeds, and pay the income to Violet for life, then divide the capital equally among her children.[9] Bert was also evidently trusted in financial and practical matters. Several local people appointed him as an executor of their wills, including Grace Hunt of Hardington Moor, his mother and Lucy Mabel Ann Green, a boarder at the New Inn, Hardington.[10] He inherited £20 from Grace Hunt and a clock and pictures from Lucy Green.
In April 1949, William and Grace celebrated their golden wedding anniversary. Bert and Violet arranged a party for them in the Women’s Institute Hall, and Grace baked her own two-tier anniversary cake.[11] The following year, Grace died at the age of eighty-one, leaving an estate valued at £299 8s 5d, which she divided between Violet and Bert. When Bert obtained probate for her will, he described himself as a smallholder, suggesting that by then he was involved in working the land at Smithfield.
An important relationship in Bert’s life was with Ernie Sandiford, whom he knew from their school days. Ernie, who was two years older than Bert, worked for many years as an office clerk at Paull & Co of Martock, the tent manufacturers. He lived with his widowed mother at Hardington Marsh until her death in 1956, when he purchased a cottage near Hardington church. They are widely remembered in the village as a couple, although the nature of their relationship would not have been openly acknowledged at the time. In May 1950, Bert and Ernie attended together the funeral of Amy Vassall, daughter of Hardington’s former Rector, William Vassall, at Martock.[12]
Move to West Coker
At some point during the 1950s or early 1960s, Smithfield was sold and Bert moved to 8 High Street, West Coker. His father also left Smithfield, although he may instead have gone to live with Violet at Manor Farm. His father died in 1969 at the age of ninety-seven. Bert died on 19 July 1973 at the age of sixty-nine, leaving an estate valued at £13,266.39.
Conclusion
Bert’s life took a different course from that of his blacksmith father. Music became both his occupation and an important part of his social life, while his repeated appointment as an executor suggests that he was also trusted in practical affairs. He remained closely tied to his family while also having a close friendship with Ernie Sandiford.
References
[1] Civil registration birth certificate; Hardington School admissions register; 1939 Register; civil registration death certificate.
[2] Civil registration birth certificate; Hardington School admissions register; 1939 Register; civil registration death certificate.
[3] Death certificate of Evelyn Watts.
[4] Western Gazette 15 April 1949 p. 3.
[5] Western Gazette 5 April 1889 p. 7; RG12, ED11, piece 1878, folio 83, p.14.
[6] Hardington School admissions register.
[7] Eddy Colin Turner’s copy of the Portman estate sale catalogue.
[8] Western Gazette, 9 November 1945, p. 2; Western Gazette, 25 January 1946, p.3; Western Gazette, 26 December 1947, p.4.
[9] Will of Bertram Leonard Watts, dated 9 January 1948, proved at Winchester on 2 November 1973.
[10] Will of Grace Hunt, dated 27 May 1948, proved at Bristol on 27 August 1948; will of Grace Watts, dated 21 March 1938, proved at Bristol on 19 May 1950; will of Lucy Mabel Ann Green, dated 5 July 1947, proved at Bristol on 28 December 1947.
[11] Western Gazette 15 April 1949 p. 3.
[12] Western Gazette 5 May 1950 p. 4.
