OR2342/3

Typed transcript of Mrs Becher's Dinner Book at Howbery 1707-1718 (in envelope addressed to Richard Orlebar JP dated 29 January 1891)

1707-1891

From: 1707 To: 1891

The typescript begins with copies of letters from various Bedfordshire people thanking Sir Woodbine Parish for allowing them to see it and giving him an idea of who the people mentioned in it were likely to be. These letters date from 1858-1860. There then follows a note by ‘WP, 1820’ explaining how he came to inherit the book. It states that Mrs Beecher was Jane Clerke one of the coheiresses of George Clerke who married a son of Sir William Beecher of Howbery. The Bechers owned the Howbury estate from 1603-1781 (when it was sold due to lack of heirs male). ‘The daughr of this Mrs Beecher, Jane Rachael – was married to Thomas Lewis of St Pierre Monmouth, one of whose daughrs, Jenny, marrd Mr Morse, and whose grand-daughr marrd Woodbine Parish’ The whole thing is 75 pages long (i-ix are the letters etc, 1-66 the transcript of the book itself) and is a carbon copy on filmsy paper (stamped as being produced by Mrs Williams Typewriting and Shorthand5 Whittington Avenue EC) so presumably there was at least one other copy made at the same time.

item

Orlebar, Richard,
Becher, Jane

transcript, Renhold Howberry Manor, dinners