John Widdowson Tompkin is my 3 times great-grandfather. He is my great-grandmother Elsie Bailey's mother's (Mary Helen Tompkin) father. I haven't done a lot of research on him, but I felt inspired to look closer a couple of days ago. Since then I have found out that he had quite an interesting story.
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| John Widdowson Tompkin |
According to the 1871 Census his occupation was listed as plumber. In 1881 he was still listed as a plumber but employing 1 boy. Regrettably as he died young he does not appear in any more censuses as an adult. For several years this was the extent of my knowledge on him. I decided to expand my knowledge and try tracking him down through city directories which I found online through the University of Leicester Special Collections Online.
In the 1870 Street and Trade Directory for Leicester he is listed as a gas fitter and plumber living at 146 High Cross St. We next see him in the 1875 Barker Directory still at the same address but listed as a gas fitter, plumber and glazier.
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| 1870 Street and Trade Directory Leicester pg. 128 |
Its important to know that the historical definition of a plumber is quite different from our modern connotation. Historically plumbers did not deal with indoor plumbing because there was very little of that, they were actually more like roofers. Plumbers used to apply sheet lead for roofing and set lead for windows. This occupation ties in with John's other job as a, glazier, someone who cut and fitted glass. A gas fitter would install the piping that would supply gas for heating, lighting, cooking, etc...
The next year in the 1876 Post Office Directory for Leicester he is still at the same address and still a plumber. However he is also now the owner of the Shakespeare's Head Inn on Southgate St. I believe that his father may have owned this inn and its possible that he inherited it, but further research will be needed to confirm this.
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| 1876 Post Office Directory Leicester pg. 432 |
In the 1877 Gazetteer not much has changed but the name of the inn is now the Shakespeare Hotel and he is listed as a victualler. The 1878 Wright Directory has the exact same description for him. A victualler is someone who is licensed to sell alcoholic liquor. It can also be used to denote someone who owns a public house (pub).
In the 1880 Wright Directory he is still a plumber and victualler but this time he owns the Cricket Players. It appears to have been a large pub/ hotel establishment occupying 1-5 Church Gate Rd. He is also a committee member of the Licensed Victuallers' Association. This association was established in 1849, had 230 members in 1880 and a subscription cost 5 shillings per quarter. There were many public houses and inns in Leicester at this time as evidenced by the city directory. The fact that he was a committee member of the Licensed Victuallers' Association indicates that he had some high-level involvement in the community and was perhaps well-respected.
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| 1880 Wright Directory Leicester pg. 173. |
I did some searching online to see if either the Shakespeare's Head Inn or the Cricket Players pubs still exist. I found some pictures of old pubs in Leicester taken in the 1980s. There was one of the Cricket Players, then and still called the Long Stop. It has roughly the same address on Church Gate so I'm sure they are one and the same.
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| Long Stop/ Cricket Players Pub, Leicester, taken in the 1980s |
There is still a Shakespeare's Head Inn on Southgate St in operation, but not the same one John would have owned. This building was built in the 1964 according to a news article on their website. I suspect that the name of the pub was recycled, especially if it was a popular one in the area.
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| Shakespeare's Head Inn, Leicester |
It has been great learning more about John W Tompkin because its really changed my perspective of him. From a (toilet) plumber to a roofer and pub owner! I have also ordered a copy of his will which should be arriving in the next couple of weeks, so I will probably be writing more about him once that arrives. Stay tuned!
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