Etched Names

ETCHED NAMES IN THE CHURCH PORCH WINDOWS.

Unlocking the church one morning I saw the two etched names in the little window panes in the porch again, and wondered who they were.

They are “R Pepperell Sarum” and “Edwin Foyle” and are just below eye level in the second window from the church. The handwriting is old fashioned and firstly I thought it might be graffiti from Victorian visitors.

Researching the records has found that Robert Pepperell from Salisbury was a plumber (worker in lead) and glazier, with a business R Pepperell and sons of 90 Brown St Salisbury. He was born in Salisbury in 1837, and died in 1904 and was buried at St Thomas’ in Salisbury.  His father, William, was a whipmaker and Robert was also a gas fitter. Plumbing, glazing and gas fitting all used lead.

In 1891 whilst Robert had his business plumbing and glazing, one of his children (Albert) was a school teacher, and another (Frederick) was a student in training college.

Edwin Foyle was born in Wilton in 1839, his father Henry was a carpenter and they lived in South Street. Aged 22 he was boarding at Horningsham (Longleat) near Warminster as a plumber and glazier. He moved to Paddington in London by 1871, plumber and glazier, and was married with a young son. By 1881 he had died and his widow Mary was a nurse domestic servant back in her home town of Winchester. So how did both their names get on our windows? It would seem that Edwin Foyle came to work for Robert Pepperell sometime in the 1860s and they both came to fit the windows in our porch.

More research needed!  I need to take a trip to the Wiltshire Record Office to look at our church records (the glazing must have been paid for). I will update in due course.

Written and researched by Nicky Street.