A winter mishap

On the evening of Thursday, 16 January 1896, William Vaux, landlord of the Griffin’s Head Inn, Nether Compton, was travelling home from Hardington with his son when his trap collided with a waggon, throwing him to the ground and breaking his collar bone. He received medical attention and made a full recovery. The absence of lamps from both vehicles contributed to the accident.[1]

William’s purpose in going to Hardington was probably to visit relatives. His wife’s sister was married to Herbert Joseph Voizey, who traded as a shopkeeper and butcher at Broadstone. His wife’s brother, Thomas Matravers, ran the blacksmith’s forge in the High Street.

Herbert Voizey

Herbert Voizey and his wife, Mary, had moved to Hardington from East Chinnock in about 1870. In total, they were to have nine children, including Thomas (the future owner of Marsh Farm), Lilly Louisa (the mother of Miss Jearum) and Mary Annie (who took over the shop from her mother).

Mary Annie (or “Nance”) lived to be 92. She was an active member of the chapel and a warm-hearted and kind person. When I was very young, my Mum and I used to visit her shop, and she would invariably demand a kiss from me, which I was reluctant to give because of her hairy chin.

Thomas Matravers

Thomas Matravers was the village blacksmith from 1870 until about 1900, when he sold his business to his employee, William Watts, and moved to Moulton’s Farm, Haselbury. He had a daughter, Florence, who, when she was older, friends and neighbours called “Aunt Flossie.” North Perrott people remember her with as much affection as Hardington people remember her cousin, Mary Annie Voizey.

A summer mishap

William Vaux survived his first accident, but his luck ran out four years later. On a summer evening, just after sunset, William, his son Joseph and another man were in a two-wheeled trap on the road near Mudford when their vehicle turned a sharp corner. They had one lamp on their trap, and as they turned, this lamp shone a light on the hedge, startling their young horse and making it shy. At the same time, their trap hit a boundary stone, turning it over and throwing William into the road. His son pulled him onto the bank and went to the Mudford Inn for help, but by the time he returned, his father had died. He was forty-nine years of age.[2]

The picture shows the Voizey’s shop, with a man in the doorway.

References

[1] Western Gazette, 24 January 1896, p.6; Western Chronicle, 24 January 1896, p.6.

[2] Western Gazette, 3 August 1900, p.6.