History of the Hall
A Brief History of Charles Morris and Charles Morris Hall
On 1st March 1855, Charles Morris was born in East Lydeard Farmhouse, Bishops Lydeard, Somerset. As a trained engineer, he rose to become the managing director of the engineering firm Jessop and Co, Calcutta, India.
The success of the company enabled him to fulfil a lifetime ambition of being a landowner in England, and he later purchased his own old farm home at East Lydeard, Highfield Hall in Tyttenhanger Green, and other land in the Parish of St. Peter Rural. In 1914, Charles Morris returned from India to England, settling down at Highfield Hall.
Charles Morris was known as a man of great benevolence and generosity, particularly in support of the young, who regularly enjoyed recreational activities on his land. Over time, he made several gifts of land to the Parish of Saint Peter Rural for public recreation. This included 1.5 acres behind the houses numbering 34 to 52 for the purposes of 19 allotments for the inhabitants of Tyttenhanger, and later a charitable trust was created for the Tyttenhanger residents (The Trustees of Charles Morris for allotments, Tyttenhanger Green, Herts).
On 28th March 1926, Charles Morris sadly passed away. With his late wife, Edith, he lies buried in St. Albans Cemetery, in an enclosure a few steps from the Chapel of Rest.
In May 1930, Charles Morris’s nephew, Captain Roger Ogilvy Sanders, gifted three separate pieces of land out of money bequeathed to him by his uncle, for the ‘benefit of the locality’. The land included 0.35 acres of adjacent land in Tyttenhanger Village as the site for a village hall, together with the 0.79 acre of land previously bought.
A playground was opened in May 1935 for the children of Tyttenhanger Green, where a plaque on the original gate bore the words “In memory of Charles Morris and of his wife Edith H Morris, this playing field was purchased out of a bequest left by him for the benefit of the inhabitants of Tyttenhanger Green. It was opened on May 6th 1935“
By April 1947 the Parish of St. Peter Rural was divided into two Parishes, Colney Heath and London Colney, each having a Parish Council of their own. As such, Colney Heath Parish Council (CHPC) became the custodian trustees on behalf of the inhabitants of Tyttenhanger for the allotments behind Colne View Terrace, and the gifted playing fields
Over the years the allotments fell into disuse and in 1966 the Parish Council decided to sell the land, however, the Charity Commissioners had decided that the conveyance of this land to the Parish Council in 1921 had created a charitable trust for the benefit of the inhabitants of Tyttenhanger Green, and that the administration of the proceeds of the sale must therefore be the subject of a special Charity Commission Scheme.
By May 1967, the Charity Commission made an order permitting the Parish Council, as Trustees, to sell the allotment land with proceeds paid to the Trustees, and in June 1972, planning permission was granted for the building of Charles Morris Village Hall.
Finally, on the 20th January 1975, the “turning of the first sod” was undertaken by the Chairman of the Trustees, Councillor A.G. Cutmore and the Chairman of the provisional management committee, Mr Peter Reeves (image left).
Later that year, on 20th September 1975, the Charles Morris Hall was officially opened and the following statement was made: “We are indeed delighted to do honour today to the name of Charles Morris, whose generosity so long ago has been the means of creating this fine asset for the residents of Tyttenhanger Green”
For more ‘Memory Lane’ accounts please enjoy ‘A Tangle Tale of a Hall’ by Edith Dolley
Parish Councillor A.G. Cutmore and his wife at the cutting of the opening tape by Mr Herbert Mansell, whose family lived in the village (image right).
