17 Broadway, Merton House, Grantchester

History of Merton House

Listed Building:

Late C18 and mid C19 enlargement at the rear. Grey brick and tiled, mansard roof with dentil eaves cornice and flush end stacks.

For frequent mentions of the Lumby family see Mary Greene’s autobiography, The Joy of Remembering.

The house itself probably dates from 1790 though an earlier house appears on a map of 1666. The Howards occupied the farm until 1895. It was then sold to Rev A C Jennings but occupied by Prof. Lumby who had two large families from two marriages. From 1899 – 1911 it was occupied by the geneticist, William Bateson. Then Joseph Jackson Lister, the butterfly expert, lived at the house until it was acquired in 1928 by Miles Burkitt, the archaeologist.

William Bateson

Miles Crawford Burkitt

(See Old Grantchester by E N Willmer)

1843 Death of Thomas Howard, gentleman farmer. This was the house of the Howard family, a prominent family in Grantchester for generations. His widow, Ellen, was to become a particular friend of Lizzie Widnall. Page Widnall would be an uncle figure to Ellen’s three boys.

See Widnall by Christine Jennings, 2003.

1851

Ellen Howard was running her boarding school for young ladies. There were 13 resident at the time of the census.

1891

Joseph Rawson Lumby, 56, clerk in Holy Orders, b Yorks

Luise Lumby, 34, wife, b Germany

Helen M Lumby, daughter, 29, hospital nurse, b Cambridge

Mary Lumby, daughter, 9, b Grantchester

Dora Lumby, 8, b Grantchester

Walter, 6, b Grantchester

Christopher, 2, b Grantchester

Frederick, 8 mos, b Grantchester

Ellen Atlesea, 34, cook, b Kirtland nr Newmarket

Rebecca Stulham, 27, house and parlourmaid, b Norfolk

Agnes Mary Clerk, 18, under housemaid, b Norfolk

Elizabeth Langford, 32, nursemaid, b Chesterton

Esther Bowman, 14, maid of all work,  b London

1901

(Merton House)

William Bateson, 39, naturalist, b Yorks

Caroline B, 32, b London

John, 2, b Cambridge

Martin, 1, b Cambridge

Anna, mother, widow, 71, b Liverpool

Alvena Smith, servant, 23, cook, b Suffolk

Alice R Jackson, 20, housemaid, b Harston

Delphy A Taylor, 26, nurse, b Notts

Blanche Frost, 14, nursemaid, b Cambridge

(Merton House Cottage)

Joseph Blogg, 55, gardener, b Norfolk

Sophia, 54, b Herts

Joseph, 19, groom, b Bucks

William, 19, gardener, b Bucks

In 1901 the Blogg family is living at Elfleda Lodge, Newmarket Road.

In 1911 Joseph Blogg is living at 10 John Street.

Jo Blogg’s (b 1881, d. 1918) family moved to Grantchester an his father gardened at Merton House  for William Bateson, then Mr Lister.

Jo Blogg got a job as a shoe-polisher at Downing College, and there met and married Rose Squires, a bedder.

Jo was called up into the Cambridgeshire Regiment at the outbreak of WWI. In April 1918 he was awarded the Miltary Medal.

On 28th August 1918 Jo and his his twin brother were wounded within half and hour of each other. William’s leg was amputated and he survived; Jo died of his wounds.