COUNTY of DURHAM. QUAKER CHARITIES. CHARITIES OF THE SOCIETY OF FRIENDS ADMINISTERED WHOLLY OR IN PART WITHIN THE ADMINISTRATIVE COUNTY OF DURHAM. Quaker Charities. The Charities of the Society of Friends are not, save in exceptional instances, restricted Introduction. in the application of their benefits to ancient parishes or townships but are commonly applicable for the benefit of the various Quarterly, or Monthly, or Preparative Meetings, organisations which in theory are based upon membership and not upon geographical limitations. Such Charities on the other hand as are subject to local limitations belong nevertheless, as regards administration, to the non-local religious organisation of the Society. For these reasons the Charities of the Society of Friends cannot conveniently be reported upon under the head of any ancient parish, and are accordingly made the subject of a separate report. No public inquiry has been held as regards these Charities, but a conference was held in the Meeting House at Darlington on the 6th December 1900, at which the following members of the committee of the Durham Quarterly Meeting were present to meet the Assistant Commissioner, viz. :-Messrs. E. A. Brayshaw, and E. B. Mounsey (clerk of the Durham Quarterly Meeting), both of Darlington; John Bigland, of Bishop Auckland; Alfred Holmes, Percy Corder, and J. W. Steel, of Newcastle; J. W. Mounsey, of Sunderland; and Thos. Bradley, of Aysgarth. Reports upon certain local Charities of the Society of Friends are included in the reports of the former Commissioners for inquiring concerning Charities in England and Wales as herein-after mentioned. In 1854-5 returns of all the Charities of the Society of Friends were made to the Charity Commissioners at their request through the central office of Friends in London. These returns appear to have been compiled partly from an examination of the deeds or other documents relating to the Charities, and of the minutes of the several Monthly Meetings, and partly from traditional and local knowledge. A copy of the returns was made by the Charity Commissioners for their own use in two manuscript volumes corresponding to their Register of Unreported Charities. These volumes are referred to in this report as the "Register." A source of information supplementary to the Register is afforded by a printed book entitled, “An Account of Charitable Trusts and other Properties within the Compass of "Durham Quarterly Meeting and of some Trusts generally applicable to the Society of "Friends, prepared by direction of the Quarterly Meeting," printed at Darlington in 1886. This account was compiled by the late Mr. Samuel Hare; it is referred to in this report as "Mr. Samuel Hare's book." The following is an extract relating to the Charities included in the present Inquiry, General from the General Digest published in 1875 :— Digest, 1875. In the following Report the Charities are arranged under the heads of the several Quaker meetings for which they are respectively applicable. CHARITIES OF DURHAM QUARTERLY MEETING. Charities of Robert Forster. Charities. The Charities of Robert Forster, within the Durham Quarterly Meeting, are as Forster's follows: (1.) For school at Hawthorn ; (2.) For poor of Durham Quarterly Meeting; (3.) For Shotton Meeting. These Charities are founded by the will of Robert Forster dated 11th November 1736, and an instrument in writing under his hand, dated 24th of 9th month, 1736. There appears to be some confusion in the dates of these documents, as the instrument purports to be subsequent to the will. It appears from inquiry at the probate registry at Durham that Robert Forster's will was proved in 1737, but is now missing. No copy of the will was produced at the present Inquiry, but the following extract from it was furnished to the Charity Commissioners by the trustees in 1864 in connection with the Hawthorn School Charity : "I give and devise all that piece of ground walled in from the orchard and heretofore bought of Thomas Herring and now used as a burying place for Friends and People called Quakers, and also all the low rooms built at the north end of my dwelling-house, one part of the premises by me bought of George and Christopher Clayton, which is now used as a school house, both situate in Hawthorne aforesaid, unto Nicholas Dodgson and Warren Maude, their heirs and assigns, to, for and upon the several uses, trusts, intents and purposes hereinafter mentioned and declared of and concerning the same, that is to say, as to the said piece of ground now used as a burying place for Friends and People called Quakers, to the use intent and purpose that the same shall and may for ever after my death be and be continued to be used as a burying place for all or any Friends or People called Quakers with such free and convenient way and passage to and from the same, in, through, over, and along my garth adjoining thereto as is now enjoyed therewith, and that the fruit from time to time to grow in the said piece of ground shall and may be taken and enjoyed by such person or persons as shall inhabit in the house where I now dwell; and as to the said low room, in trust to permit and suffer the same for ever after my death to be used and enjoyed as a school house to teach and instruct children and scholars in, without any rent or consideration to be paid therefor." The Charity Commissioners were likewise informed that the testator also devised other property in Hawthorn to the same trustees, upon trust out of the rents and profits to "keep the burial place and school-house in good condition and repair," and subject thereto, in trust for relations of the testator in tail. The following is a copy of the instrument in writing above referred to : Whereas in and by my last will and testament bearing date the eleventh day of November in the year of Our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and thirty-six I have given and bequeathed to my nephews Nicholas Dodshon of Hawthorn and Warren Maude of Sunderland near the sea both in the county of Durham ffive hundred pounds to be disposed of by them their executors administrators and assignes as I should leave in writing under my hand as therein mentioned, now I do hereby appoint that upon receiving the said ffive hundred pounds by vertue of the bequest in my said will they the said Nicholas Dodshon and Warren Maude their executors administrators or assignes shall immediately pay and dispose thereof as ffolloweth (viz.) to friends comonly called Quakers at their Quarterly Meeting in Durham the sum of one hundred and ffifty pounds to be put out at interest for ever and the interest thereof for the use of poor ffriends belonging to all the Monthly Meetings of the said Quarterly Meeting, as also two hundred pounds to be put out at interest for ever as ffriends of the Quarterly Meeting shall judge secure and the interest thereof shall be paid as received to a schoolmaster or mistress at Hawthorn for teaching of twenty-four schollars such as my nephews Nicholas Dodshon and Warren Maude their executors or assignes shall order and my desire and will is that ffriends at their Quarterly Meeting choose a master or mistris a ffriend called a Quaker if such do offer that may be fiting for such a place, if not then another master or mistris such as may not bring a charge on the township of Hawthorn, and so often as ffriends at any Quarterly Meeting at Durham findes it needful and proper to remove any schoolmaster or mistris that then they do immediately nominate and appointe another master or mistris in his or her place and soe these two sums of three hundred and fifty pounds with the approbation of ffriends at their Quarterly Meeting may be continued at interest on such security as I may leave at my death that my aforesaid nephews or executors may acquaint ffriends with at their Quarterly Meeting, and I do appointe and order ten Charities. Forster's Charitiescontinued. Quaker pounds to be given to the Poor Insolvent Debtors in the gaol at Durham at such time or times as Charities. friends at their Quarterly Meeting shall thinke proper to give it, I also order and appointe one hundred and ten pounds for ffriends at their Quarterly Meeting to remit it to the yearly meeting at London with directions to the yearly meeting that if there be a meeting of ffriends called Quakers either at Rotterdam or Amsterdam in Holland and that ffriends at the yearly meeting thinke it needfull to remit ten pounds thereof to the meeting either at Rotterdam or Amsterdam for their use, but if not then the one hundred and ten pounds for the use of the yearly meeting at London as they may judge it most proper to use it and twenty pounds to be put out at interest for ever as ffriends of Shotton Meeting shall judge secure and the interest thereof for poor ffriends belonging to that meeting and for repares of the meeting house and stable, and the further remaneing sum of ten pounds I give ffive pounds thereof to each of my nephews Nicholas Dodshon and Warren Maude their executors administrators or assignes for their trouble aboute the whole concern. Given under my hand this 24th day of ye 9 mo. 1736. Sale of real estate. ROBERT FFOSTER. The following account of the School Charity at Hawthorne is contained in the report on the Charities of the Parish of Easington, dated 30th January 1830, of the former Commissioners for Inquiring concerning Charities in England and Wales (Vol. 23, page 70): TOWNSHIP OF HAWTHORN. Robert Forster, by an Instrument, bearing date 24th November 1736, reciting that he had by his Will, dated 11th of the same month, given to his nephew Nicholas Dodshon and Warren Maude, 500l. to be disposed of by them, according to the directions he should leave in writing, directed that 2007., part thereof, should be put out at interest in such manner as the Friends of the quarterly meeting of Durham should think proper, and the interest paid to a schoolmaster or mistress of Hawthorn, for teaching 24 poor scholars such as the said Nicholas Dodshon and Warren Maude, their executors and assigns should order; and he desired that the Friends at their quarterly meeting should from time to time choose a master or mistress of their Society, if any fitting person of such description should offer, and if not, such other master or mistress as should not bring a charge on the township of Hawthorn, that they should have the power of removing any schoolmaster or mistress when necessary. In respect of this charity, there is now standing in the names of James Backhouse, John Pease, Thomas Mounsey, and Thomas Richardson, the sum of 2551. in the new four per cents. (part of a sum of 4757. standing in the same names) producing annual dividends to the amount of 10l. 4s. There is also a school and dwelling-house for the residence of the master or mistress, with a small garden, stated to have been given for this purpose by the above-named Robert Forster. In 1864 statements were submitted to the Charity Commissioners by trustees appointed by the Newcastle Monthly Meeting to administer the Hawthorn School Charity, representing (1) that as regards the plot of land belonging to the Charity and devised by the testator for a burial place, there was no evidence, other than the statement in the will, that it had ever been used for that purpose; (2) that there was no evidence that the premises had ever been kept in repair out of any other property devised by the testator; (3) that a school, the master or mistress whereof had from time to time been appointed by the Newcastle Monthly Meeting, had until lately been carried on in the cottage devised by the testator, but that such school had been discontinued, and the property was now unoccupied, the building ruinous, and the land uncultivated. It was further represented that new and ample school accommodation had recently been provided in Hawthorn. In these circumstances the trustees desired to sell the property at Hawthorn and to appropriate the endowment for educational purposes at Sunderland, where a large school for the poorer classes had lately been established by the Society of Friends. The property at Hawthorn was sold under an Order of the Charity Commissioners, and the proceeds applied as follows:- Quaker Charities. In 1868 statements were submitted to the Charity Commissioners on behalf of the trustees showing that in respect of the trusts declared by the above-mentioned instrument dated 24 9m 1736, the sum of 4751. Consols was invested under the control of the Forster's Durham Quarterly Meeting, and duly apportioned to the several purposes as set out in Charities— the tabular statement below. continued. Official Under the authority of an Order of the Charity Commissioners the above sum of Transfer to 4751. Consols was on the 17th June 1869 transferred to the Official Trustees of Trustees. Charitable Funds. 66 missioners, By an Order of the Charity Commissioners dated 9th July 1869, and made in the Order of matter of Robert Forster's Charity for teaching poor children in the township of Charity ComHawthorn, in the parish of Easington and county of Durham, it was ordered, by way of 1869. opinion and advice as follows:-"The trustees of the Charity under the circumstances "stated by them as aforesaid " (referring to the statements submitted in 1864), "and so long as the Charity cannot in their judgment be usefully restored to the purposes of "education in Hawthorn in the manner contemplated by the founder of the Charity, "and until the establishment by competent authority of a Scheme for the future regula"tion of the Charity, may properly apply the income of the Charity" [subject to the repayment of a sum of 537. 14s. 5d. then due to the treasurer] "for the purpose of educating poor children in the town of Sunderland in the county of Durham, under "the direction of the trustees or persons administering the Charity, and of the "Durham Quarterly Meeting of the Society of Friends." In the recitals to the above Order it was mentioned that the endowment of the Charity included the sum of 256l. 15s. 2d. Consols (being the proportionate part of the sum of 4751. Consols above mentioned). The following is a tabular statement of the endowments of the several trusts created by Robert Forster, which are under the control of the Durham Quarterly Meeting, showing the amounts of the original gifts and the sums of stock now representing the same; such sums of stock being the proportionate amount of the sum of 4757. Consols, except as to No. 1 (a), where the stock represents proceeds of sale of real estate. several trusts are all under the care of the Durham Quarterly Meeting: - The The income for the year 1900 was applied as follows under minute of the Quarterly Meeting: d. 8 14 0 6 10 10 1. Payment of fees at Higher Grade Board Schools at Sunderland 3. Repairs and poor at Shotton Edward Walton's Charities. £16 1 8 The following account of these Charities is given in the Report, dated 31st January Walton's 1829, of the former Commissioners for inquiring concerning Charities in England Charities. and Wales, (Vol. 21, p. 40), under the parish of St. Andrew, Auckland : WALTON'S CHARITIES. Edward Walton, a member of the Society of Friends, having made a will whereby he had given to his executors, John Walton, Samuel King, James Backhouse the eider, and Thomas Richardson, all the residue of his real and personal estate not otherwise disposed of, at the quarterly meeting of the |