Birds of different social feathers
Introduction
Victorian Bournemouth (227) follows how the local Cage Birds’ Association organised annual exhibitions during the 1890s. Entry lists illustrate the type and range of birds bred and exhibited by enthusiasts at this time. Genealogical examination of the association’s committee and prize-winners provides a social cross-section of those involved. This suggests that the association had its main roots amongst labouring people, although it also attracted interest from those occupying a higher level within local society.
Victorian Bournemouth (227): survey
Shows
Press reports about bird shows had appeared in the 1870s, but this initiative seemed to fail. The 1877 show attracted few entrants, while the organisers could not pay the prizes. More than a decade later, enthusiasm for this hobby motivated another attempt. Frank Evenson, a hairdresser, held a meeting at ‘The Toilet Club’, his premises on Old Christchurch Road. Supporters included physicians, a councillor, and a corn merchant. Within a year, the Cage Bird Association formed, complete with a president, vice-presidents, and a committee. Shows ran through the decade. At first, the group catered to local interests but soon became open to breeders from afar. Reports suggested increasing popularity for the show, with its categories and entries growing each year. At the 1899 show, the birds’ singing drowned the Mayor’s speech. By the end of the century, however, the organisation struggled: an initiative amongst working people, it always needed funds.
Scope
The show attracted breeders of two main bird types: canaries, finches and ‘exotic’ birds. The 1895 show had prizes for ten classes of Norwich canary. These included: plain head, green, crestbred, Scotch Fancy or Belgian, and Yorkshire. The second category included mules, goldfinches, and bullfinches. In addition, competitors brought robins, blackbirds, thrushes, and also foreign birds, including the Java Sparrow. In all, thirty-two classes attracted entries. In 1898, a ‘splendid toucan’ won a special prize. This illustrates the extent of interest and knowledge in breeding cage birds. To widen its appeal, however, the 1899 show offered prizes for fancy-mice breeders. The Bournemouth Guardian sniffed at this initiative. ‘… ‘the cultivation of the mouse has taken a strong hold on many ladies, and it was surprising to see so many beauties in a branch of the animal world that the ordinary people view as vermin.’
Victorian Bournemouth (227): people
Committee
As a mark of its formality and, in common with other Bournemouth societies, the Caged Bird Association equipped itself with a committee. The local press published some names. By comparing these to the census, directories, and other sources, some plausible identifications become possible. Frederick Stokes (1851-1929), a solicitor, held the presidency for a year, but John Roberts Thomson (1845-1917), a physician, held the post for several years. Thomson, also a supporter of the Chrysanthemum Show, became a Justice of the Peace. The press remembered him as a ‘gentleman who did giant work for the town of his adoption’. Vice-presidents included a naval surgeon, a corn merchant, a vet, and an engineer. In addition to this layer of respectable brass, the committee included several working men: a painter, a grocer, more than one gardener, a carpenter, a coachman, and, perhaps, a butler. Thus, the association had a wide social footprint.
Competitors
Analysis of a similar fashion identifies some who exhibited or entered the categories. Although a few women both entered and won, men comprised most of those involved. Plausible identifications have emerged for most of the two dozen who exhibited at the 1893 show. One of three female entrants, Miss Marion Longmore, daughter of a solicitor, then deceased, showed canaries, two winning prizes. Marion lost to George Gerrey, a committee member. George often featured in both capacities during the 1890s. A carpenter, he lived on Gladstone Road, Boscombe, for about sixty years, leaving almost £2,000 to his son, a schoolmaster. The remainder of the exhibitors matched Gerrey’s pattern in some respects. They served on the committee, their occupations locating them amongst working people: a coachman, a gardener, but also a corn merchant. Thus, many worked as servants, yet they featured on the committee with respectable vice-presidents and presidents.
Victorian Bournemouth (227): commonalities
Business
Exploration of Bournemouth’s societies, large in number, suggests that their participants may have become involved not just for fellowship and community spirit. For example, some of the loudest critics attending the Steam Packet AGMs had coal businesses, although they did not supply. Several professional gardeners helped to run the Chrysanthemum Society and Show. Physicians often attended the many public dinners, an able way to maintain their local awareness. A similar process appears to have applied to the Caged Bird enthusiasts. The presidency went from a solicitor to a physician, followed by another. At least two corn merchants participated in the association, bird seed perhaps one of their product lines. A vet featured also: Arthur Blake, son of a Wimborne vet, set up in Bournemouth by 1881. Arthur served as vice-president throughout the 1890s. Furthermore, the hon. sec., Albert Green, had a local business offering taxidermy and live birds.
Neighbourhood
Nevertheless, evidence suggests that neighbourliness may have played a role in the club’s existence. Albert Green ran his business from Old Christchurch Road, not far from Frank Evenson, who had sponsored the early meeting. Exhibitor Newman Chaplin had a masseur and chiropody shop very nearby on the same road. Several participants resided along Manor Road. This included two coachmen and two gardeners, one of each residing at the same property in 1891. In 1901, Harry Neale, a regular participant, moved into the same property as the butler. Ten years earlier, he had lived on Gladstone Road, Boscombe, not far from serial winner and committee member George Gerrey, a carpenter. Another active member, John Meadowcroft, worked as a coachman for John Roberts Thomson, the club’s president. Frederick Stokes, solicitor, an early president, also lived on Manor Road. Thus, neighbourliness, which also crossed social lines, fostered the club’s impetus and direction.
Takeaway
Victorian Bournemouth (227) has delved into the contributions of its members to the Cage Bird Association, shedding light on their social standing. The study reveals that a group of working individuals formed the club’s backbone, some of whom may have cultivated friendships and connections beyond its confines. In particular, the involvement of both a coachman and his employer (a wealthy physician) suggests that a shared love for birds transcended social boundaries.
References
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