Visitors to Aldringham cum Thorpe will probably be unaware of two very special buildings tucked away at the far end of Church Lane. One is St Andrew's Church, with no tower to proclaim its presence but resembling a small Anglo-Saxon Church within an extensive churchyard surrounded by small fields and belts of trees. The other building, which is the subject of this article and stands immediately south east of the church, is The Ogilvie Almshouses. Both buildings are Grade II listed and are mentioned in The Buildings of England Suffolk: East by Bettley and Pevsner.
The Ogilvie Almshouses were founded by Margaret Ogilvie in 1887 and erected in 1888-90. Margaret Ogilvie was the wife of Alexander Ogilvie, a Scottish engineer who acquired Sizewell Hall in 1859 and gradually added to the estate until it extended to over 2,000 acres. It was one of their sons, Glencairn Stuart Ogilvie, who created the holiday village of Thorpeness from the small seaside hamlet of Thorpe.
Margaret Marten, who married Alexander Ogilvie, was a person of great character and determination, working with her husband to manage the Sizewell estates with great skill. The 19th century was a period when philanthropy was much in evidence, wealth resulting from the Industrial Revolution being re-distributed via various charities set up to aid those in need. Margaret took a keen interest in the welfare of all her tenants, her benevolence providing what could be described as a localised Welfare State. The Ogilvie Almshouses are one of several buildings within the extent of the former estate which continue to define the character of the parish whilst remaining committed to Margaret's aims within the context of the 21st century.
The Ogilvie Almshouses were founded by Margaret Ogilvie in 1887 and erected in 1888-90. Margaret Ogilvie was the wife of Alexander Ogilvie, a Scottish engineer who acquired Sizewell Hall in 1859 and gradually added to the estate until it extended to over 2,000 acres. It was one of their sons, Glencairn Stuart Ogilvie, who created the holiday village of Thorpeness from the small seaside hamlet of Thorpe.
Margaret Marten, who married Alexander Ogilvie, was a person of great character and determination, working with her husband to manage the Sizewell estates with great skill. The 19th century was a period when philanthropy was much in evidence, wealth resulting from the Industrial Revolution being re-distributed via various charities set up to aid those in need. Margaret took a keen interest in the welfare of all her tenants, her benevolence providing what could be described as a localised Welfare State. The Ogilvie Almshouses are one of several buildings within the extent of the former estate which continue to define the character of the parish whilst remaining committed to Margaret's aims within the context of the 21st century.
Margaret Ogilvie outside Sizewell Hall
© Hamish Ogilvie
Margaret Ogilvie
© Hamish Ogilvie
Alan Jobson, in his book This Suffolk provides a somewhat fanciful but revealing vignette of Margaret's character as seen through the words of Reuben Hoy of Westleton:-
'When Mrs Ogilvie took the Hall she had the roads made up; they wur only sandy roads afore, but she had 'em made with clay and stoons. She were a little owd girl like Queen Victoria, an' drove herself about in a little pony and cart. When she got older she had someone drive her. She wouldn't let her people dew fur a drawin match outside, or patronise a hoss show or a flower show, but she had one on the estate for her folks. When she fell out with owd Balls the blacksmith over suffen, she had a forge of her own made, up there by the Walk Barn. That made a tidy difference tew Balls.'
The Ogilvie Charities, which administer The Almshouses and The Homes (both in Aldringham), were set up under two Foundation Deeds which provided annual sums to the Almshouses and to numerous other beneficiaries including in Leiston, Sizewell Blythburgh, Ipswich and as far afield as Bedford and London. Although not a member of the Society of Friends, Margaret appointed members of The Society as Trustees, including Alderman James Allen Ransome of Ipswich. She thought that the Friends would carry out her wishes fairly without requiring the recipients of her benevolence to conform to any religious principles. The first meeting of the Trustees was held at the White Lion Hotel, Aldeburgh on 16th December 1908.
In accordance with the objectives of the Foundation Deeds regarding the relief of poverty and the bringing of help to those who were, in Margaret's words: 'afflicted, sick and weary' work at the Ogilvie Almshouses Almshouses began in 1900. The name of architect is not known despite a search of the Charities' records held at the Suffolk Record Office. When William Clarkson Allen, one of four Trustees appointed under Foundation Deed No.1 (1887), visited Adringham in 1900, all twenty Almshouses were built and seven were occupied. The remainder were roofed but the flooring and internal woodwork was unfinished. Every Monday, each occupant was paid the weekly allowance of five shillings and ninepence with a deduction of threepence for the 'doctor fund'.
Margaret Ogilvie died on 2nd April 1908 after three years of serious illness during which she was unable to conduct the business of the Charities over which she had full control. Following her death, the Trustees took over the management of the Trusts and their number was increased to eleven, the Trustees of the two Foundation Deeds being the same.
'When Mrs Ogilvie took the Hall she had the roads made up; they wur only sandy roads afore, but she had 'em made with clay and stoons. She were a little owd girl like Queen Victoria, an' drove herself about in a little pony and cart. When she got older she had someone drive her. She wouldn't let her people dew fur a drawin match outside, or patronise a hoss show or a flower show, but she had one on the estate for her folks. When she fell out with owd Balls the blacksmith over suffen, she had a forge of her own made, up there by the Walk Barn. That made a tidy difference tew Balls.'
The Ogilvie Charities, which administer The Almshouses and The Homes (both in Aldringham), were set up under two Foundation Deeds which provided annual sums to the Almshouses and to numerous other beneficiaries including in Leiston, Sizewell Blythburgh, Ipswich and as far afield as Bedford and London. Although not a member of the Society of Friends, Margaret appointed members of The Society as Trustees, including Alderman James Allen Ransome of Ipswich. She thought that the Friends would carry out her wishes fairly without requiring the recipients of her benevolence to conform to any religious principles. The first meeting of the Trustees was held at the White Lion Hotel, Aldeburgh on 16th December 1908.
In accordance with the objectives of the Foundation Deeds regarding the relief of poverty and the bringing of help to those who were, in Margaret's words: 'afflicted, sick and weary' work at the Ogilvie Almshouses Almshouses began in 1900. The name of architect is not known despite a search of the Charities' records held at the Suffolk Record Office. When William Clarkson Allen, one of four Trustees appointed under Foundation Deed No.1 (1887), visited Adringham in 1900, all twenty Almshouses were built and seven were occupied. The remainder were roofed but the flooring and internal woodwork was unfinished. Every Monday, each occupant was paid the weekly allowance of five shillings and ninepence with a deduction of threepence for the 'doctor fund'.
Margaret Ogilvie died on 2nd April 1908 after three years of serious illness during which she was unable to conduct the business of the Charities over which she had full control. Following her death, the Trustees took over the management of the Trusts and their number was increased to eleven, the Trustees of the two Foundation Deeds being the same.
The Trustees, December 1908. Front row, left to right: F E Marriage, J Doyle Penrose, T Edmund Harvey, G Stafford Allen, Walter Robson, George M Gillett, Kenneth C Allen, F W le B Lean; behind and above is J Fred Braithwaite (Fifty Years of Service : The Story of the Ogilvie Charities 1908-1958)
Tablet mural on W elevation of Almshouses commemorating their foundation and endowment by Margaret Ogilvie
The Ogilvie Almshouses, principal south (garden) elevation
The clock, made by R W Wooltorton of Saxmundham
The Almshouses were intended for elderly people who are reasonably active whilst the Homes, which are single storey houses, were for the more infirm. The two storey Almshouses consisted of 20 houses (one occupied by the Matron, now the Manager's house), each with two bedrooms, a sitting room, a second sitting room (now the kitchen) and an attached single storey outhouse which originally contained the scullery (now a bathroom) and a privy (now a shed). The houses were intended for occupation by a married couple or two single persons. Each house was intended as the private residence of its occupants, provided and maintained by the Trustees free of rent and rates with electric light and water provided. The Matron paid daily visits to each house to check the welfare of the occupants who were expected to keep their houses clean and tidy.
The gardens and grounds were maintained by garden staff but residents could maintain a garden for flowers and vegetables if able to do so. A weekly cash allowance was paid to each resident but after 1940, when the Old Age Pension was introduced, the need for allowances declined. The minutes record that the Trustees provided books and newspapers and the Report of the Trustees 1911 stated that part of the grass had been levelled and laid as a bowling green.
The water supply to the Almshouses originally came from a well situated under the centre of the building. Each day it was pumped by hand into tanks situated in the roof, a duty which occupied a man for several hours. This arrangement continued until 1922, when an oil engine was installed to power the pump. When electricity arrived an electric motor was installed to operate the pump and this arrangement continued until 1958 when a modern electric pump was installed in the well. The Almshouses were originally heated by coal fires but there is now oil central heating. At the top of the staircase above the central recreation room is the clock room. The clock mechanism is mounted on a timber frame with steel wires leading to the striker in the bellcote above and a wire leading through the floor with lead weight attached to balance the mechanism. It is an 8-day clock made by Robert Woods Wooltorton, a Saxmundham clock and watch maker.
The Almshouses were built to a high specification, carefully designed to meet the needs of the residents, in a quiet rural setting. Thanks to the vision and generosity Margaret and Alexander Ogilvie and to the continuing work of the Manager, staff and Trustees, the Ogilvie Almshouses continue to serve the community in accordance with the Deeds of the Charities.
The gardens and grounds were maintained by garden staff but residents could maintain a garden for flowers and vegetables if able to do so. A weekly cash allowance was paid to each resident but after 1940, when the Old Age Pension was introduced, the need for allowances declined. The minutes record that the Trustees provided books and newspapers and the Report of the Trustees 1911 stated that part of the grass had been levelled and laid as a bowling green.
The water supply to the Almshouses originally came from a well situated under the centre of the building. Each day it was pumped by hand into tanks situated in the roof, a duty which occupied a man for several hours. This arrangement continued until 1922, when an oil engine was installed to power the pump. When electricity arrived an electric motor was installed to operate the pump and this arrangement continued until 1958 when a modern electric pump was installed in the well. The Almshouses were originally heated by coal fires but there is now oil central heating. At the top of the staircase above the central recreation room is the clock room. The clock mechanism is mounted on a timber frame with steel wires leading to the striker in the bellcote above and a wire leading through the floor with lead weight attached to balance the mechanism. It is an 8-day clock made by Robert Woods Wooltorton, a Saxmundham clock and watch maker.
The Almshouses were built to a high specification, carefully designed to meet the needs of the residents, in a quiet rural setting. Thanks to the vision and generosity Margaret and Alexander Ogilvie and to the continuing work of the Manager, staff and Trustees, the Ogilvie Almshouses continue to serve the community in accordance with the Deeds of the Charities.