Headquarters - The
Endeavour
1st Godstone Scout Group
All Cub, Beaver and scout meetings take place in the endeavour
Scouts - Monday 7.30 p.m. to 9.00
p.m.
Cubs - Tuesday 6.30 to 7.45 p.m.
Beavers- Tuesday 5.15 - 6.15 p.m.
www.1stgodstone.org.uk
The Endeavour is available for parties, weddings etc. for further information please contact info@godstone.net
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Latest from Godstone Scouts
Godstone Scouts
Summer Camp goes with a splash
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Short History of the Endeavour
The Headquarters Building of the 1st Godstone Scout Group was constructed by the
Rover Scouts between 1936 and 1938 using materials from much older buildings and
the result was that the building even though new at the time looked like one of
Godstone's oldest structures. The building was built in the Tudor style,
it's framework came from 15th Century Barn in Sussex and the bricks, ships
timbers, tiles and other materials were collected from other old Barns and
Cottages from the Tudor period which had then been recently demolished.
Some of the timbering has been traced back to the old haunted house where Dick
Turpin's mother used to live in Essex. In the Group's extensive archives
we have kept all the work sheets which were maintained by the Rover Scouts as
the time of construction, they show that the Rover Scouts recorded over 3500 man
hours of work.
A local architect produced plans and he who was billed for the part of foreman
builder although not a builder by trade, then proceeded to study nearly a
thousand examples of Tudor craftsmanship before the work commenced.
When one considers that this remarkable building was the work of amateurs it was
an incredible achievement and the result was as, if not better than if it had
been constructed by the professional craftsmen.
The cost of the building was about £450.00 which was raised by the Group and
the Rover Scouts contributed £25.00 and the Patrol Leaders and the boys raised
another £50.00. The remainder came from a public approach to the Village
which responded in a heart felt manner.
As you can imagine the work aroused the keenest interest in the District and
nearly every resident felt that the Scouts had given them a building of which
the whole Village could be proud.
To stimulate enthusiasm the Group prepared a fascinating log as the work
progressed, photographs were taken each week showing the Scouts at work and the
general growth of the building. These photographs are still held in the
archives and it is still interesting to see how much work and skill was involved
in the construction of the building.
After 'the Endeavour' was completed the Second World War intervened but in 1947
a new Headquarter's building for the Cub Pack was erected further along the
Green in the shape of a Tudor Dovecote and both buildings stand today as an
example of 1st Godstone Scouts fine heritage.
As a matter of interest the Cub headquarters is known as 'the Bounty' after the
vessel captained by Bligh of mutiny fame.
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School Visits to Godstone using the Book
'Discover Godstone'
Visiting schools are very welcome to use the Scout Headquarters as a base
which is particularly useful if the weather is inclement.
It is essential that bookings are
made beforehand especially in the summer months
Please contact info@godstone.net
for full details of booking
arrangements
Pirate who died so far from the Sea [written
by a Scout]
A most unusual headstone is to be found a few yards from the church doors of
St Nicholas, the Parish Church of Godstone. For carved on it are the
notorious skull and crossbones which mark the final resting place of a pirate
and smuggler who died of wounds received in an ambush carried out by customs
officers in 1687.
John Edward Trenchman ran away to sea at the age of 12. He had grown up in
London's dockland among the tall sailing ships and sailors from a hundred
foreign lands.
Trenchman was one of the British pirates who looted the Spanish colony of Porto Belo
in Panama in 1668 where all the men, women and children were tortured and
butchered.
At the age of 55 Trenchman decided for health reasons, to retire from the
sea. Henry Morgan was now governor of the Caribbean and had pledged to
wipe out all pirates from the South Seas. Trenchman returned to England
and set up as a smuggler on the south-east coast. Business proved good and
within a years he was bringing teams of pack-horses loaded with contraband up to
Croydon every month.
Richard Collins, a member of Trenchman's gang, was arrested after a fight in an
ale house. He was recognised and sent for trial. However, being a
cunning, sly villain, he turned King's evidence to save his neck from the
noose. He gave detailed information of the secrete routes used by the smugglers,
plus the date of their next journey to Croydon.
An ambush was laid at Tilburstow hill, just south of Godstone. Trenchman
and his gang rode into a small clearing in a wood and immediately the soldiers
opened fire. The following fight was short and fierce, with only a fatally
wounded Trenchman managing to make his escape through the surrounding dense
undergrowth. Bleeding badly he staggered into the 'Fox and Hounds' Inn
where he died from loss of blood some hours later. The villagers of
Godstone took pity on the pirate who had died so far from the sea. They
buried him in an unmarked grave at the south end of the churchyard.
On the night of Trenchman's burial, two grave diggers were hotly pursued through
the churchyard by a man in seaman's clothing who had suddenly leapt up from
behind a headstone.
Then uncanny, weird, frightening things began to happen in Godstone
churchyard. Following the attack on the gravediggers the terrified
villagers had erected a simple marker stone over the pirate's grave in the hope
of keeping his evil spirit quiet. Seven days after it had been erected it
was found shattered in tiny pieces. Three times the new stones were
erected - and each time, the following morning they were found shattered as if
my mighty hammer blows. Pools of fresh human blood were found in front of
the altar and people began to report seeing a shadowy figure dressed in seaman's
clothing lurking among the headstones at dusk.
Finally the priest and churchwardens removed the pirate's body and reburied him
with full Christian service opposite the church doors. The skull and
crossbones were carved on the Headstone. From then on nothing more was
seen or heard of Godstone's pirate ghost. At last he was at peace.
