Thrale history

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A New Thraliana (1973)

Teddar. Richard Thrale aged 19 was admitted, John Thrale being guardian during his minority.¹⁴ John Thrale's will of 1653¹⁵ besides being witnessed by a Lomax repeats much of this detail and tells of the four children of his son Richard, but only one child apparently survived to marriageable age, namely John Thrale whose career is full of interest. It would seem that the elder John lived at Astwick from 1633 until his death, for Dr. Moore's notes in the Gorhambury Deeds give estate transactions of John Thrale of Astwick during this period. Richard had married Martha Aylward in 1646 at St. Peters, St. Albans, and it is during this period that some sections of the family were deeply concerned in the growing Nonconformity in Hertfordshire.

Martha's father William Aylward of St. Albans had left legacies in 1656 to his daughter and to many of his Ivory and Russell grand-children. One Ivory received part of a meadow called Latchmere 'next the backside' of son in law Robert Ivory in St. Albans, subject to a charge of £38 to be paid to the executor within nine months of testator's death at or in the house of Joshua Lomax, gentleman, in St. Albans.¹⁶ During the Commonwealth period incumbents of churches were replaced by Puritan clergy. After the Restoration Nonconformity became illicit and for some years the Non-conformists met secretly at New House, home home of William Aylward. New House is near Sopwell, and a present day Thrale recently owned a Nursery there called Meadowcroft which has since been redeveloped and is now used for housing. Besides New House, the Aylward family farmed much of St. Peters including Cell Barnes. With the coming in 1672 of the Declaration of Indulgence meetings were openly held at the house of Robert Pemberton in St. Peter's Street. In 1698, this part of the community built the Independent Chapel in Lower Dagnall Street and is still standing even though used as a warehouse for waste material¹⁷ The original deed was, about 1900, in the possession of a Mr. Hair of St. Albans and showed the main trustees to be Joshua Lomax, Ralph Thrale, William Grunwyn, Dr. Jonothan Grew who was also the minister, John Toombes, member of another prominent St. Albans family, and many others.¹⁸ It is therefore no surprise to find that in the Sandridge registers there is the entry for 1706 was supposed to be baptised by Mr. John Grew, a Presbyterian minister, Joshua, a child of Mr. Thomas of Fairfolds'. Likewise to Thomas Thomas of Fairfolds was born Joseph in 1709 and earlier another son in 1705; for the burials of the same year, Caleb Thrale, an infant, son of Thomas Thrale, is included. Nor is it any surprise to note that these

Footnotes

14. Herts C.R.O. ref. 41332.↩︎
15. P.C.C. 357 Alekin.↩︎
16. P.C.C. 220 Wooton.↩︎
17. Dr Elsie Toms: History of St Albans.↩︎
18. Urwick - Nonconformity in Herts pg. 188.↩︎