The Troy Family: Lifestyle Part I

-

Jacob Cazeneuve Troy, died 1798. was survived by his second wife, Smart Bradley, formerly Graham, by three sons and three daughters of his first marriage to Mary Cooke and his daughter by his second marriage to Smart Bradley Graham. 

Smart Bradley Troy, formerly Graham, was buried at St Mary's, Chatham on 31 December 1804. On 29 January 1805 the Kentish Weekly Post or Canterbury Journal was advertising an auction sale of her  possessions. The sale was to take place over three days 'on the premises of the late Mrs S.B. Troy, Union Street, Troy Town, Rochester'.


Union Street, Rochester

There is not a great deal left of the original Union Street. It is not known which was Mrs Troy's house. Study of parish rate books might give more information.

It is worth quoting the sale particulars at length because of the light shed on the standard of living, lifestyle and interests of the Troy family and by extension on the lifestyle of  other well to do business families of the time.

All the Valuable and Modern HOUSEHOLD FURNITURE, upwards of six hundred and sixty ounces of plate; a large stock of fine table and bed linen; china and glass; a fine toned piano forte, by Troup; a chamber organ; a choice library of four hundred volumes; maps and prints; an officer's marquee; two cows; two sows; six pigs; a stack of hay; a broad wheeled cart; a wood roller; three hundred and forty green-house plants &c.

Fraser and James Troup were musical instrument makers at 165 High Street Rochester. The numbering of the High Street has changed since the early nineteenth century, so it is not possible to say exactly where their premises were located. A Troup piano is said to be on display at Holdenby House in Northamptonshire.


An officer's marquee, as the name suggests, was a tent used by an army officer on campaign. They are made now for use by re-enactment groups. Maybe Jacob Cazeneuve Troy acquired one from a military acquaintance in Rochester or Chatham and used it for leisure purposes. 



The livestock and hay were presumably from one of the other properties, not kept in the back garden at Union Street.

The Household Furniture consists of
Four-post, tent, and other bedsteads, with handsome chintz furnitures, lined and fringed; French window-curtains, complete, to correspond; fine, seasoned, suitable bedding; mahogany and japanned chairs; sofas; dining, Pembroke and card tables; chests of drawers; wardrobes; secretary and book-case; pier and chimney glasses; mirrors; Brussels carpets; a complete lady's dressing table; a trou-madame table; glass lustres and chimney ornaments; table and tea china; glass, and a variety of useful culinary utensils, in Queen's ware, copper, brass, pewter, tin &c. 


A Pembroke table

A secretary was what would now be more commonly called a secretaire, bureau or writing desk. Trou-madame was a table-top game in which players had to propel balls or game pieces through arches or hoops to score points - rather a mix of croquet and snooker. 

Trou-madame

Cream ware was a type of tableware produced by Josiah Wedgwood. As a marketing ploy he gave a teaset to Queen Charlotte, wife of King George III, after which it became known as Queen's ware and Josiah was awarded the title of 'Potter to Her Majesty', which he henceforward used in his publicity. Despite its grand name, Queen's ware was widely sold and used and was not limited to the upper classes. 

Queen's ware, c.1790


Next: The Troy Family continued: Lifestyle Part II


_________________________________________________________

See my historical mystery fiction on Amazon Kindle here






The author has lived all her life in Kent, apart from a few years elsewhere as a student. She has a lifelong interest in local history, especially the history of Kent, and has been researching family history for decades. This blog brings together those interests in an ongoing study of the history of a small area of a smallish English city. The author also writes historical mystery fiction, which can be found on Amazon Kindle: see links at the foot of each blog post.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Jacob Cazeneuve Troy Part III His Will

-
Image
Jacob Cazeneuve Troy inherited substantial amounts in money and property from his grandfather Jacob Cazeneuve and his uncle John Cazeneuve. His first wife, Mary, was also a considerable heiress; she inherited one thousand pounds from her father Richard Cooke.  It's not known how successful any of Jacob's own business ventures were, but at the time of his death in 1798 he seems to have been a well-to-do man. J acob's will was made on 14 April 1798 and proved on 18 April 1799. In his will, Jacob described himself as 'distiller and wine merchant'.  The will is long, verbose and repetitive, to take account of all the eventualites that could arise.  The principal provisions were: His freehold estates were to be sold and the proceeds invested in government stock or other secure stock by the trustees, William Lovell Ruffin, surgeon of Chatham, and Stephen Simson, gentleman of Deptford.  One half of the proceeds or income were to be paid to 'his dear wife' Smart Bra...
Read more

King Street

-
Image
King Street, sometimes King's Street, is named after the King's Field, one of the names of the piece of land on which it was built.  Nothing of the original King Street remains; the only buildings that pre-date the First World War are those at the junction with Delce Road. 47 King Street, at junction with Delce Road, original (c.1900?) shop front still visible Thanks to sale notices in the local newspapers, we do have some idea what the original, late eighteenth century, buildings were like. The Kentish Gazette 16 August 1793: To be SOLD by AUCTION Under a Commission of Bankruptcy A very substantial new-built Brick DWELLING-HOUSE, 20 feet in front, 100 feet deep, situated next the PORTLAND ARMS, in King Street, Troy Town, and contains an excellent butcher's shop and slaughter-house, a parlour, four chambers, kitchen &c, &c. The east end of King Street in 1909. Portland Arms indicated in blue, 47 King Street in red. Reproduced with permission of the National Librar...
Read more

'It was the best of times, it was the worst of times'

-
Image
When the development of Troy Town was underway, Britain, and Europe, were undergoing rapid change. In 1786, when the building of Troy Town began, King George III was not yet half way through his long reign. He had begun to suffer from the periods of 'madness' that would eventually incapacitate him permanently and lead to the establishment of the Regency.  Men still wore knee-breeches and stockings. Powdered hair and wigs became less popular after a hair powder tax was introduced in 1795. Women's fashions were becoming simpler, as they moved towards the high-waisted styles associated with the Regency period.  The French Revolution broke out in 1789. It was initially welcomed by many in Britain, who recognised the need to limit the power of the French monarchy, to introduce a genuinely representative assembly or parliament, and to end the condition of serfdom under which many French peasants still lived.  However, the mood in Britain changed in 1792 with the execution of...
Read more