Joseph Paget
1826 -1896
Joseph was the son of Charles Paget, born at Loughborough in 1826. He was 2nd eldest of 6 children, Mary the eldest, Lucy and Ann. A younger
brother & sister, Charles and Caroline, died in infancy. His mother, Eliza, died
in 1834 when Charles was just 7 years old. He lived at Ruddington Grange until
Stuffynwood Hall was built for him in 1857, Joseph was reported to have held
a ’raising the roof’ party there on April 25th of that year. The following year,
on the 2nd June 1858, at Saint Alkmund church in Derby, the Dean of Derby
conducted the marriage service of his daughter, Helen Elizabeth Abney, aged
20 of Measham Hall, to Joseph Paget, aged 32.
After the death of his father in 1873, Joseph inherited the share in the William
Hollins Company, however, the very low incidence of recorded company events
that name him, suggests that his involvement was minimal. Joseph was otherwise
engaged with the 200 acre Stuffynwood Estate and like his father, was involved
in public office as JP and in 1892, High Sheriff of Derbyshire. Joseph also inherited his father’s estate at Ruddington
Grange, which he sold later to Sir Thomas Birkin, a Nottingham lace
manufacturer. Records show that Joseph and his wife were benefactors to charitable
organisations, particularly involving the education of child labour, which his father had campaigned for in parliament. In 1862 they had a child,
born at Stuffynwood, christened Elsie Maud Abney-Paget. Foreign travel also
featured regularly in their lives, usually as ambassadors for their faith.
Religion was very important in their lives, infact, recorded events suggest
that they lived a very pious existence.
Bibles at 10 paces!
In 1880, plans were being made for the wedding
of Elsie, now aged 18, to Hubert Hodson, Registrar of the Diocese of Litchfield, aged 32. The Pagets were planning to hold the service at St Chads to be conducted by the Rev. Abney, Joseph's father in Law.
To their dismay, however, open dissatisfaction to this event was aired by the Rev.Dr. Quilter. In response to this, Joseph instructed
that after the wedding, the church was to be taken down and rebuilt the other side of the river, out
of Derbyshire and the Diocese of Lichfield and into the Diocese of the Bishop
of Lincoln, Nottinghamshire, where the Rev Webb of St Edmunds, Mansfield Woodhouse
had expressed more liberal views. During this transition period, chapel services
were conducted in Joseph's large photographic room at the Hall. The church
was rebuilt just over the river boundary, across the bridge, alongside the
Northfield road from Mansfield Woodhouse, however, Joseph decided to make
it more 'churchly' than before by building around the timbers with brick &
stone, adding a bell tower and replacing the harmonium with a pipe organ built
by Lloyd & Co of Nottingham. The interior woodwork remained the same as
before, a highly polished contrast of pitchpine and mahogany. The first service
at the relocated St Chads was held on the 14th October 1881. It was a low
key event attended by a few local clergy including the new Vicar of the church, Rev.Kirby, who, according to records I have found, was salaried by Joseph Paget. He also built and provided living accomodation for him behind the church.
1881 - The Census In the spring of 1881 a grand-daughter was born
to the Pagets, christened Elsie Vernon Hodson. The 1881 census of Stuffynwood
was conducted when Elsie was just 2 days old, however, the census shows that
Joseph was a few hundred miles away at his elder sister, Mary Swaine's home
in Guildford, Surrey. Back at Stuffywood Hall, the census reveals a busy household
of servants on duty, including 4 house maids, 2 ladies maids, butler, 2 footmen,
housekeeper, cook, kitchen & scullery maids. Also on the estate, at Littlewood
dairy farm, lived William Sandy, farm bailiff and his family, from Ruddington,
where the Paget family home was based before it was sold after Charles' death
in 1873. It is likely that his skills were retained at Stuffynwood. At the
Lodge, lived the Tongue family, the head of the family, Samuel, was the coachman
and his eldest son George, the groom. In 1 Nutshell cottage lived 3 more Stuffynwood
Estate staff including the Clerk of the Works and Henry Hurt, who was actor John Hurt's grandfather. In 2 Nutshell cottage lived
the farmer and his family. The Stuffynwood cottages at the north entrance
where occupied by the Gamekeeper, William Topley, another Ruddington retainee. Nextdoor, lived
the gardener and his wife, the laundress. Talking of which, ghostly figures and terrifying screams have been eminating from the derelict laundry recently, which may be the laundry maid's disgruntled spirit on busy washdays or is it the barn owl?
1888 - Holy Land Extracts from the memoirs of Edward Randolph
Welles, Bishop of Milwaukee. Landing at Liverpool on the morning of the 21st
of June, the Bishop of Milwaukee, with his sons and great friend, the Bishop
of Indiana, went directly to Stuffynwood, Derbyshire, Mid-England. This was
the home of Mr. and Mrs. Paget, who had cordially invited "the Bishop
to make their home his headquarters, during his sojourn in England."
It had been the Bishop's intention to travel considerably in England, should
his health permit.
1896 - The End of the Paget Era Joseph Paget died at the age of 70. He was buried at Shirebrook's Holy Trinity on 24th October 1896, the same year that Shirebrook Colliery was sunk at the northern perimeter of the estate. Records show that Joseph's executors sold the share in the Pleasley Mills business back to the William Hollins Company and the local news paper in 1898 reports that the Hall was now leased to Charles Paxton Markham the brother of Arthur Markham who lived there until 1907. The new colliery brought rapid change to Shirebrook village and to the Stuffynwood Estate. The 1901 census shows that William Hollins' employees were occupying the house at the time (probably a security measure in MP, Arthur Markhams's absence) and that more properties had sprung up at the Shirebrook end of the Stuffynwood Estate. However, these properties were huts, hastily errected to house the huge influx of colliery workers. Shirebrook's New Model village was not providing houses fast enough for the rising population, eventually the river became contaminated by sewerage, leading to a typhoid epidemic and hundreds of deaths, mainly children. , After leasing the Hall to colliery owner, Arthur Basil Markham, who was elected liberal MP for Mansield on October 12th 1900, Joseph Paget's widow, Helen Paget, moved to Brighton with her lady companion. Helen lived there until her death in 1913.
At the opening sessions of the Lambeth Conference, the Bishop was present
for four days, but found his attendance greatly fatiguing.
On invitation, he attended a banquet given by the Lord Mayor to the Bishops.
During the remainder of his stay, at that time, in London, he was the guest
of the Archbishop of Canterbury, at Lambeth Palace. The final service of the
Conference, was in S. Paul's Cathedral, London. At the conclusion of the function,
the Bishop was greatly exhausted, and returned immediately to Stuffynwood,
where, during the residue of his stay in England, all that loving hands and
hearts could do, was done to give him pleasure, joy and peace.
From Stuffynwood, he went, for brief visits, at Baslow with Dr. and Mrs. Branson,
uncle and aunt of the late Rev. E. R. Ward, visiting Chatsworth and Haddon
Hall; and at the house of Dr. Kirby Kittoe and family (formerly of this Diocese),
he spent a week, in Oxford. He enjoyed meeting the Rev. Dr. Bright, the Rev.
Dr. Paget, Father Benson, and others. He saw considerable of the University
life, entering his younger son as an undergraduate at this time.
From Stuffynwood, he also went up frequently to London, to consult physicians
of eminence in regard to his health. With the exception of these visits, and
a short attendance at the final sessions of the Conference, he passed the
time of his sojourn in England at Stuffynwood. Many incidents, during his
stay, brought vividly back to himself, and the friends around, the thought
of the Patriarchal days. For many yearn, a Bishop had not been seen at Stuffynwood
and the surrounding country, but the traditions of the olden time lingered
among the people, and many, both at Stuffynwood, and in his journeyings, came
to him for the Apostolic blessing, and departed, rejoicing that they had been
thus privileged.
On Sunday, September 16th, at the request of the Bishop of Southwell, Confirmation
was administered by Bishop Welles in the Church of the Holy Trinity, Shirebrook,
to 36 Candidates. The Bishop was habited in the ancient vestments of cope
and mitre, and the service was deeply impressive in its character.
It was his last ministration in this office of the Church, and one which will
long be remembered by those present, because of the venerable and apostolic
appearance of the Bishop, as well as the earnestness of his address to the
Candidates before and after the Sacrament of Confirmation.
The last official act of the Bishop's life, was a Celebration of the Holy
Eucharist at S. Chad's Chapel, on the estate at Stuffynwood, on the eve of
S. Michael and All Angels, September 28th.
To those receiving, the thought that he was ready "to depart on the morrow,
and that they should see his face no more," gave to this service an unusual
solemnity. The household had learned to love him during his sojourn among
them; and his final words of Benediction, came as an unction from on high
to their waiting hearts. One of them writes: "Since news has come that
the pure, gentle, kind Bishop has entered into rest, Stuffynwood has been
a house of mourning."
