The History Section

Minutes of the meeting held Tuesday 15th February 2000 at 5.15pm

Members' Room

1. Members present :

Jean Arthur, Yvonne Aston, Marie-Louise Backhurst, Mary Billot (Secretary), Gavin Booth, Gaye Britton, Roger de Carteret (Correspondence Secretary), Nelson Fauvel, Sue Hardy, Tertius Hutt, Geraint Jennings, Nicolas Jouault, Mary Jupp, David Le Maistre (Chairman), Georgia Le Maistre, John & Rosemary Speller.

Apologies : Francis & Anne Corbet, Alex Glendinning, Reg Jeune, Sally Knight, Martine Schenk, Pauline Taylor.

2. Minutes of the meeting of January 18th 2000, and amendments

These were signed as a correct record. There were no amendments.

3. Matters arising from the minutes, not covered by the agenda

3.5.8 Sue Hardy has received anonymous information about the murder of Laura Elize (not Delilah) Hamon (The Elms, St Mary) by Louis-Marie Thurban (not Turban) in St Malo which happened ca 1924 (not in the 1930s). Laura Elize Hamon is in the 1871 census for St Mary, aged 2 years old. [Information in SJ Library]

4.4.2 Godfray map index : Jean Arthur reported that Perry's Guide is unreliable as a source for modern road names.

5.4 Defaced Red Ensign : information is in the current newsletter of the Friends of the Maritime Museum.

6.5 John Este Vibert of La Grange, St Mary and St Petersburg : Roger de Carteret has a copy of his will, proved April 10th 1886. The executrix was his wife Fanny (née Dix) and it was signed in St Petersburg, March 28th 1871 (old style date).

4. Chairman's announcements

4.1 Chairmen & Secretaries of Sections meeting, February 16th 2000. Agenda items :

History Section series of four Autumn lectures

Special Société week October 8th-15th 2000 to coincide with opening of new 4th floor

Arts Centre plans series of walks and talks : volunteers to contact Sara Clews (700400)

Highlands College Jersey certificate : planning for start in Autumn 2000

SJ Millennium dinner April 1st 2000, L'Horizon Hotel. Speaker : Mike Stentiford MBE

Library : Section book selection for storage on 4th floor

Office support for Sections : clarification of what facilities Office can provide.

4.2 Other dates :

SJ Members' meeting, February 23rd 2000 : Wayne Audrain on the Millennium mosaic

Friends of the Maritime Museum meeting, February 25th 2000 : Alec Podger on privateers.

CIFHS Millennium Family History Fair, April 30 - May 1, 2000 at Highlands College

5. Members' presentations

5.1 Jean Arthur gave a short paper on reasons for marriage outside one's own parish or which did not take place in church. [Copy in SJ Library]

5.2 Nicolas Jouault is in touch with Diana Statt whose ancestor William Arthur Statt (born St Helier 1878) kept a journal and was valet to Philip Daniel Ouless, RN, son of P.J. Ouless, the artist.

5.3 Roger de Carteret has tracked down 30 letters written to Rev. Francis Perrot (brother of Rev. Clement Perrot) dated ca 1795-1840 which belong to an elderly Perrot descendant in New Zealand. He is negotiating via email to get them photocopied for the Library.

5.4 Mary Jupp is interested in any redundant natural history material.

5.5 Geraint Jennings reported that photos of the statue of George II are on display in the Section case in the Museum. The poem on the Prison is on the SJ website pages for the Art & Photographic History Section. General Don told Jersey ships to fly the Union flag rather than the (unidentified) flag which they were flying.

5.6 Georgia Le Maistre wants details of 'Nonpareil', St Peter, demolished in 1983. Dr Cuquemelle lived there; he delivered the Grandin quins and was a member of the Loge La Césarée of Freemasons. An upstairs room was used as a Masonic instruction room. He was buried at Almorah Cemetery in 1859.

5.7 Tertius Hutt has researched two independent chapels in St Helier. Zion was in Union St, St Helier, later St Jude's and then Pirouets (Builders); this chapel had the Clameur de Haro raised against it in 1839 (Rev. Clément Perrot). Albion was allied to Zion and later became the Playhouse Theatre in New Street.

5.8 Marie-Louise Backhurst is working on 17th century Quakers. She gave a talk on New Jersey links on BBC Radio Jersey. She drew attention to a news report in the Sunday Telegraph February 13th 2000, on the Spanish production of a film The Others starring Nicole Kidman. It purports to be a Gothic thriller about a mother and two children in an isolated mansion in German-occupied Jersey in WWII. It is being filmed in Spain. The Revue de La Manche, tome 42, fasc.165, janvier 2000, has an article Carteret dans le monde. [Details in Library]

6. Date of next meeting

Tuesday March 21st 2000 at 5.15 pm, Members' Room, Société Jersiaise.

Advance notice

Prof. Gwyn Meirion-Jones (University of Reading) will be in Jersey for the History Section meeting on June 20th 2000; he will give an illustrated talk on aspects of Jersey and Breton domestic and vernacular architecture