FOREST HOUSE

Forest House was built sometime around 1838-41 and the first known map record Is in 1872. 'The Warren' in the Charles Dickens' story Barnaby Rudge is said to be based on this building. An 1838 tithe map shows a former dwelling believed to be 'Forest House Academy', a private boarding school for boys that operated from 1810 until 1817. The school closed when John Ray the schoolmaster died. He was buried in St. Mary's Church on 14th May 1817. 

Front doors of large Victorian houses were generally the reserve of family and guests. Normal practice was for goods and services to be delivered at the Tradesman's entrance located at the side. Staff could usually be found in this part of the house. They would be summoned by a bell box (top left) that showed where they were needed.

The thirteen indicators on this particular bell box are labelled; "FRONT DOOR, SMOKING ROOM, DRAWING ROOM, DINING ROOM, SCHOOL ROOM, HALL, BATH ROOM, MISS CUBIT'S ROOM, MR. HARE'S DRESSING ROOM, MRS. HARE'S ROOM, SPARE ROOM, SPARE DRESSING ROOM, DAY NURSERY".

During early Victorian times big houses employed lots of domestic staff to keep the household running smoothly. This was essential because there was no modern cleaning equipment. Servants could be as young as twelve, many taken into service came from large families and lived in squalid conditions. Getting employed at a large house would usually mean better living conditions, a fuller belly, training -- and sometimes a pay packet. Work generally started early in the morning and ended late at night. If lucky, servants got one day off a week, or half-day to attend Church on Sunday. It was mandatory to wear a uniform and often it was forbidden to leave the premises without permission. Jobs available, depended on age, experience and gender. They included: butlers, footmen, gardeners, gamekeepers, valets, cooks, maids, nannies, and housekeepers.

Close-up of the ornamental fireplace. Winged infants known as Cherubs were once popular in classical sculpture dating right back to the Greeks and Romans. They were associated with Eros, Cupid and other similar characters and featured on mantels and friezes, often relatively low so that the artwork could be appreciated. Making a revival during the 19th Century their popularity waned after the Great War.

The game of Billiards was well-established in the 1800s and a dedicated Billiard Room became a common feature of many upper-class homes.

Before the Second World War many villagers in Chigwell Row were still drawing water from wells and using galvanised zinc bath tubs. Tubs normally hung on outside house walls and were brought inside on bathnight to be filled by hand. Cast iron baths coated with enamel like these in Forest House were extremely durable.

Like other properties in the area Forest House had outdoor toilets. Areas with no sewers or septic tanks employed Night Soilmen to take waste away, an activity that normally occurred after dark. It would sometimes be sold on as fertilizer and spread over farmland which carried a health risk. Contents in chamber pots and other containers were often covered with earth to prevent smells escaping and flies gathering. This may have been how the term "night soil" developed. In isolated rural locations households would dispose of the night soil themselves. In Tudor times night soilmen were known as 'Gong farmers'.

This once impressive wine cellar is protected by a heavy steel vault door. Wine is perishable so storing it in a dark cellar less prone to temperature swings kept it in better condition.

This basement room once stored game. Pheasant, hare, rabbit and venison would all have been hung in the room before being prepared and cooked.

Horses were once a valuable asset and used as a way of illustrating their owner's status. Livery men were among the highest paid domestic staff. A half-stable door in the basement corridor opens into this stable. Keeping horses in the house had the benefit of making it slightly warmer. Servants usually lived above the stables. A boy named Turner lived above these stables during World War II. He found an army Mills bomb (hand grenade) and tried to open it in his father's vice. It exploded and he ended up in hospital for several months. He had very little sight left and lost several fingers, the rest of him was deeply scarred including his legs.

This outhouse originally had a thatched roof and operated as a dairy. In Victorian times fresh milk was left to stand overnight allowing it to separate into milk and cream. Cream was churned to make butter and the milk was curdled with rennet to make cheese.

Known owners and residents of Forest House:

Edmund Buxton, Esq. (1839)

Alfred William Grantham, son of W. Grantham.

Benjamin Cotton, Esq., brother of William Cotton Esq,, F.R.S., D.C.I., late Governer of the Bank of England.

Alfred Francis Puckridge, international cattle breeder and trader. On December 28th, 1883, Benjamin Wakeling Puckridge, Esq., aged 37, died at Forest House from bronchitis, only two days after falling ill.

Harold Lea-Smith, coal merchant.

Marcus Leonard Theodore Hare, Esq. (d.1939), Chartered Accountant.

The Savills Family - well known in the Chigwell area as estate agents.

Charles & Elizabeth Morley (1966)

Article by Raymond Small, with photographs taken on 2nd June 2022, shortly before refurbishment work was due to begin. Thank you to Ross MacKenzie for the invitation to view and providing historical notes; also to Elaine WIltshire and Sandra Patchett for additional research. Forest House became a Grade II listed building on 28th June,1954.