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The Methuen Family Corsham
Court has been owned by the Methuen family since 1747. The original
Sir Paul Methuen was a keen collector and the family has continued
the tradition of collecting fine art right up to the present day.
The House was expanded under the direction of “Capability”
Brown to provide a picture gallery to display the collection. Bellamy,
Nash and Repton all had a part in remodelling the house and grounds.
Today the court is open to the public. Details can be found at www.corsham-court.co.uk
Sarah Jarvis One of
the most curious gravestones in the graveyard behind St Bartholomew’s
Church is that of Sarah Jarvis. The large stone lies flat and reads:
“In memory of Sarah Jarvis who departed this life on the 11th
day of December 1753 in the hundred and seventh year of her age.
Sometime before her death she had fresh teeth.” Nobody knows
to what this might be attributable.
 Charles
Mayo Charles Mayo lived in Corsham from 1868 to
1895, in Ivy House in Priory Street, and is buried in St Bartholomew’s
Churchyard. He was an active participant in many aspects of Corsham
life, from being Vice Chairman of the town’s first parish
council to being a member of the Temperance Movement. His biggest
achievement, though, was as Chairman of Corsham Waterworks Company.
Mayo oversaw the construction of the pipeline that first brought
fresh water to Corsham from springs six miles away above the village
of Lacock.
After his death a memorial was erected - across the road from the
Town Hall, at the end of the High Street - in recognition of his
varied contributions to Corsham. In 2006 Corsham Civic Society undertook
to restore the memorial, going on to win a prestigious award for
the Mayo Memorial Restoration Project.
Michael Tippett Corsham
has for long been the haunt of artists and musicians. Michael Tippett,
one of the leading British composers of the 20th century, lived
in the house called Parkside on Corsham High Street between 1960
and 1970 (from the age of 55 to 65). He was attracted by the peace
of the town and the accessibility of the countryside. His day normally
consisted of composition from 9.30am to 12.30pm followed by lunch
and walks in the countryside in the afternoon. In the music composed
at Corsham, and subsequently, he attempted to absorb elements of
modern popular culture within the English Classical tradition. He
died in 1988.
Moses Pickwick It
is likely that the place name ‘Pickwick’, once a separate
hamlet and now part of Corsham, gave rise in a roundabout way to
Charles Dickens’ character of the same name and his novel
The Pickwick Papers, but whether the great author met the real Mr
Moses Pickwick, as has been claimed, is unclear. A foundling, he
was discovered, like the original Moses, in a basket outside a house
in Pickwick, hence his name. He grew up to run a coaching business
from his base at The Hare and Hounds public house (which still stands
on the A4), and his coaches were to be seen in many of the major
towns around the south west. Dickens may have seen his name on one
of these coaches when he visited the Bush Tavern in Bristol, the
city’s chief coaching inn, in 1835, shortly before the publication
of The Pickwick Papers. Nevertheless, stories persist that the author
stayed overnight, or just for a meal, at The Hare and Hounds on
his way from London to Exeter to stay with relatives.
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