William and Isabel Hogarth and the old days

The re-imagined story …

My grandson is moving to Bristol next week. I shall miss him. He’s very good to me. But he says he’s bored with Swindon, says he needs a challenge.

I miss the old days though, and I miss men like William Hogarth. We worked together  in the boilermakers’ shop. He came to New Swindon in the very early years, I came from the same neck of the woods in 1856, a young married man with two small bairns. We had a lot in common.

Everything about the new town was challenging then; hard, but exciting at the same time. Everyone had arrived from somewhere else, had different accents, different ways of doing things, yet we all came together to create a community.

And after we built the Mechanics’ Institute, well there was always something going on there. Some weeks I was out every night at events and meetings and talks.

But now the youngsters say Swindon is boring. I suppose that’s the way of the young; looking for new challenges, new adventures.

I miss the old days though, and I still miss William Hogarth.

The facts …

William Hogarth was born on May 13, 1811 at Bywell, Northumberland the son of Robert and his wife Anne White Hogarth.

He married Isabel[la] Johnson at St John’s Church, Newcastle upon Tyne on June 6, 1835. The couple’s eldest two daughters were born in Northumberland and a son, William, in Durham before the family moved south to Swindon and a home in Taunton Street. They had a further seven children, including a set of twins Thomas Oswald and George White Hogarth.

William became the first foreman in the smith’s shop at the Swindon Works and by 1861 the family were living at 7 Faringdon Street in one of the larger properties reserved for foremen.

Isabel(la) died on March 25, 1882 aged 65 and William died on August 17, 1885. They are buried together in plot A1082.

We are sorry to notice the death of another old and highly-esteemed New Swindon man in the person of Mr William Hogarth. We believe we are correct in saying Mr Hogarth came to Swindon some forty years ago, shortly after the starting of the railway works, and that for very many years past he had filled with perfect satisfaction to the railway officials the important position of foreman or superintendent of the smiths’ and boiler makers’ department. Up to the recent Trip holidays Mr Hogarth was in the enjoyment of his usual good health, but he was then seized with illness, which proved fatal on Monday last. The funeral of deceased took place on Thursday last, and was very largely attended, the department over which he had so long presided being closed in the afternoon to enable the workmen to attend and pay their respects to the memory of one with whom they had been for so many years on such close terms of intimacy.

The Swindon Advertiser, Saturday August 22, 1885.

Hogarth William 24 October 1885 Personal Estate £3,230 10s

The Will of William Hogarth late of 7 Faringdon Street New Swindon in the County of Wilts Mechanic who died 17 August 1885 at New Swindon was proved at the Principal Registry by William Hogarth of 27 Buckingham Street Brighton in the County of Sussex Proprietor of an Opera Company and Robert Hogarth of 5 Merton Street, New Swindon Mechanic the sons and Joseph Robinson of 9 Faringdon Street Mechanic the Executors.

Faringdon Street was later renamed Faringdon Road and the numbering was re-ordered.

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