Returning to Agnes, Violet, and Sporting Pursuits

Researching George Mills, his family, his acquaintances, his education, professions, his military experience, his neighbourhoods, his communities, and his pastimes can be, to swipe from Lennon & McCartney, a long and winding road. Sometimes it's simply too tempting not to drift away from a line of study—for example, when I received photographs of Joshua Goodland and Warren Hill School a couple of months ago.

Long overdue, it's time to return to some unfinished business!

Earlier this year, we looked at the years the Mills siblings—Agnes, George, and Violet—spent in Budleigh Salterton, Devon, and what immediately stood out was their dedication and apparent skill in the sport of croquet.

We examined their records, tournaments, and comrades from 1947, when the Misses Mills moved to Grey Friars in Budleigh, through to their passing in the early 1970s.

There is no athletic record of George Mills prior to his entrance into the croquet world, but his sisters are a different matter entirely!

To rewind a bit, Agnes Edith Mills was born in Cornwall on 11 June 1895 while her father, the Rev. Barton R. V. Mills, was vicar of Bude Haven. Her mother was Elizabeth Edith Ramsay, whom the widower had married on 11 January the year before. George Ramsay Acland Mills was born a year later on 1 October 1896. Violet Eleanor Mills came along on 17 November 1902, after Barton's father, Arthur Mills, M.P., had passed away and the family relocated to Kensington, London.

There is no record of where or when the girls went to school although they must have. One of the few things we know about them as young ladies is that they would have been well aware of the inception of Robert Baden-Powell's popular scouting movement in 1907, as well as when Agnes Baden-Powell [pictured above, right, with Robert] founded the Girl Guides in 1910. The Mills sisters were about 15 and 8 years of age at the time. They were "keen" on the Guides, presumably with Agnes taking Violet under her wing.

The Girl Guides embraced physical fitness, survival skills, camping, and citizenship—skills and traits that would serve British girls well during what we now know were two major global conflicts on the horizon.

Physical fitness must have been important to the girls. We already know they played competitive croquet into their seventies. Was it a late in life commitment to health, or something in which they had always been involved?

Dr. David Evans of Budleigh Salterton [left], who knew the siblings, recalls that Violet was a good golfer, and that "just after World War Two she was on a ship to South Africa and was invited to represent the national England golf team."

While Dr. Evans's estimate of the time fell on the wrong side of the war, we do know he was correct about the South African voyage. Violet, then 33, steamed into Southampton on 20 April 1936 from Durban, South Africa, via Natal and Madeira, aboard the Edinburgh Castle of the Union Castle Mail Steamship Co, Ltd., along with Gladys Emily Mills, 39, a nurse whose home was in Southern Rhodesia but who was bound for Wallasey, Cheshire, near Liverpool, who intended to make a "foreign country" her future permanent residence, and who was presumably a relative.

This is Violet's only recorded trip abroad and must have been the voyage during which she the golfers made overtures. At 33, she still of an age to play competitive age for golf. She would have been in her mid-40s following World War II, past her prime, and an unlikely candidate for such an invitation.

The search engine at The Times database is notoriously parsimonious about revealing all of its information about any one subject, but we do know that on 19 October 1937, Violet (34 handicap) played in the Ladies' Parliamentary G. A. at the Ranelagh Club in Barnes with a Lady Hampden (almost certainly a relative of her half-brother Arthur, the son of her father's first marriage to Lady Catherine Valentia Mary Hobart-Hampden; Violet was a 30 handicap), and finished third, just 2 feet from the cup on the 19th hole of the competition [right].

On 26 October 1938, Violet played the same tournament and again finished third, with her ball on the 19th fairway, in a competition that took place under adverse conditions in which visibility was only 50 yards.

Finally, at the Ladies' Parliamentary Tournament in Pulborough on 17 May 1939, a 36-year-old Violet was eliminated in the second round "by 6 and 5" at the hands of her opponent, Miss E. Bevin.

Assuming that Violet played in the first round of that tournament, we know there are likely up to 8 times as many results of golfing events that include Violet, but that weren't accessed by the paper's ridiculous search engine. (And, for this marginal access, they charge me a costly premium!)

Besides golf, however, we find that before 1936, Violet was a fairly accomplished lawn tennis player.

On 6 October 1933, she played in the Sidmouth Tournament, but was knocked out in the second round by Mrs. G. Lucas, 6-1, 6-0.

In 1934, she played the Bedford Tournament, beating Miss K. Silas in the first round, 6-3, 6-4, on 31 July, but falling to Miss MacTier in the second round, 6-1, 6-1, on 2 August.

Finally, on 7 October 1938, Violet and her Ladies' Doubles partner, Miss M. C. Hervey, were defeated by the Hon. Mrs. D. Rhys and Miss E. M. Dearman, 6-0, 6-3, in the semi-final round of the Felixstowe Tournament.

Again, unless she and her partner drew a bye directly into the semi-finals, or unless that tournament began in the semi-final round, there must be results which I cannot locate by searching. Given that, there must also be many other tournament results crouching within the Byzantine archives of The Times.

The database reveals only one athletic event for Miss Agnes Mills before 1950: She and her croquet partner, F. E. Green, were defeated by 12 in Handicap Doubles during the second round of the Ealing Tournament on 3 May 1934 [above, left].

While we may never know the extent of the participation of the Misses Mills in organized sports, it is clear that things must not have worked out with the "national" team which extended an invitation to Violet in 1936. Labouring under the assumption that a membership on the team would have included a place in that autumn's Curtis Cup match against the United States, Violet must not have earned that spot. A British Pathé newsreel, released on 5 November 1936, names each member of England's team, which does not include Violet Mills (Click HERE to view the newsreel; additional footage is HERE).

Still, even to be considered for that prestigious team is truly noteworthy in a nation as keen on golf as the founder of the sport, the U.K.

However, we do, in fact, know the extent to which Agnes and Violet were involved in croquet before the Second World War, thanks to the database at the Croquet Association.

We'll look at the involvement of the Misses Mills in pre-WWII croquet next time. Stay tuned!

Some Questions for a Sunday Morning in May...

Right now, my side project is working on researching the life and myriad of accomplishments of Col. Dudley Acland Mills [pictured, left, as a youth in the 1860s] and his family. In trying to gain insight into Col. Mills, I hope to find helpful connections to the family of his brother, Rev. Barton R. V. Mills. I can't even begin to tell you how exciting for me it would be to gather more information that would be useful in fleshing out the lives of Mills family members of our interest here!

Right now, I'm still creating a "Dudley Mills Time Line and Genealogy" that will enable me to order his life story and family, and help generate research questions for me to pursue. Meanwhile, here are some questions about the Mills family that remain unanswered. Perhaps we may soon be able to shed some light on them:


Arthur Mills, M.P.:

What happened to any letters, papers, family photgraphs, etc., of Arthur Mills after his death? Were they given to the British Library, a university, or are they somewhere?

What kind of man was he known to be? The only reference I can find to him personally is extremely scathing, but his friends included J. S. Mill and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.


Barton Reginald Vaughan Mills:

Under what circumstances did Barton's first wife, Lady Catherine Hobart-Hampden, pass away? Why did Barton leave his vicarage upon her death and live with his father for three years?

Why did he and his young family (children aged 14, 5, and 2) leave Cornwall and a secure rectory on Bude for London to become assistant chaplain of the Chapel Royal (Queen's Chapel) of the Savoy? And why did he leave there in 1908?

Is there any reason that Barton Mills would have been quickly and almost forgotten by the Ramsay side of the family, the kin of his wife, Elizabeth Edith Ramsay? Why was she forgotten as well?

When did Edith pass away, under what circumstances, and how did it impact the children?

How long did the family live at 7 Manson Place, London, after the 1920 death of Sir George Dalhousie Ramsay, with whom they resided? When did they move there?

What kind of man was Barton Mills? What was Edith like? What were they like as a couple and as parents?

How was Barton making a living after he left the Savoy in 1908?

Did he leave any letters, papers, research, or memorabilia behind? Are there any photographs of him or his family?



Arthur Frederick Hobart Mills [Barton's elder son];

Concerning Lady Catherine's death, how did his mother's passing affect young Arthur, as a youngster and as a man?

Was Arthur close to his family, as a youth, as a young man, and later in life?

What sort of fellow was Arthur? What was his relationship with his father? His stepmother?

What was Arthur's wedding to Lady Dorthy Walpole like? Was the wedding ring really made from the bullet that was removed from his ankle in the First World War?

What were the circumstances of Lady Dorothy's car accident returning from Ascot, and what was the reaction of the Mills family? Did they help care for her?

Did Arthur end up living in Hampshire because he had relatives there?

How did Arthur's marriage to Lady Dorothy affect him and the family? Was she close to the Mills family?

Did Arthur's profession—crime, adventure, and romance writer—bother his family at all?

At age 52, Arthur joined the war effort for 8 days in 1939, then relinquished his commission. Under what circumstances did he leave the military (health, age, etc.)?

Why did Arthur fail to write a book from 1940 to 1947 anfter writing at least one book per year from 1920 to 1940 (health, the war, etc.)?

I hate to ask, but what were the circumstances of his divorce in 1932-33?

To whom did the copyrights to his books go?



George Ramsay Acland Mills:

What sort of fellow was George? What was his relationship with Barton?

What was his relationship with his sisters?

Was there any special interest put into George's schooling?

Under what circumstances did George become a schoolmaster?

Is there any reason George moved from school to school—even to Switzerland to teach—during the late 1920s and early 1930s? Did Vera go with him to every locale?

Under what circumstances did he meet his wife, Vera Louise Beauclerk, who had been born in China?

How posh was his wedding and reception?

What were George and Vera like as a couple?

Was George involved in the General Strike in 1926?

What was George's reaction to his father's passing in 1932?

What was the family's reaction to the publication of his first book, Meredith and Co., in 1933?

What was George doing between 1933 and 1938, the years between his first and second books?

Why, suddenly, did George publish three books in two years (King Willow, Minor and Major, St. Thomas of Canterbury)? Why did he then never again publish a book?

What were the circumstances of him returning to the armed forces in 1940 as a paymaster?

What were the circumstances of Vera's death in 1942? What was George's reaction to it?

Under what circumstances did George leave the armed forces due to "ill health" in 1942? Did this have anything to do with the passing of Vera?

Where was George during the war, and where did he live and what did he do from 1943 through his arrival at "Grey Friars, Budleigh Salterton, Devon," where he presumably passed away?

How did he come to work at Ladycross Catholic Boys' Preparatory School in Seaford, Sussex, for a term in 1956? Did he live nearby?

Did he live with or near Agnes and Violet Mills in Devon?

What were the circumstances of his death in 1972?

To whom did the copyrights to his books go?



Agnes and Violet Mills:

What sort of girls were they? Were they devoted to their mother? Their father? Both?

Had they opportunities to marry? What was it like for young women, daughters of a clergyman, in London during the years between the World Wars?

Where were they schooled?

How were they involved in the Girl Guides?

In 1938, they were living in "Cadogen Gardens, S.W." London with "Barbara Mills". When did they relocate there? Who is Barbara Mills?

In 1947, they donate the papers of the late Sir George Dalhousie Ramsay, their grandfather, to the British Library. Under what circumstances was this made, and where were the girls living when they made the donation?

When did the girls move to Devon? Did they live with George or nearby? What was their relationship with him as youths and as they aged?

What were the circumstances of their passing in Devon in 1977?

What happened to any papers, letters, memorabilia, ephemera, and/or family photographs they may have been holding?

If they held any family copyrights (Barton, Arthur F. H., George) to whom did those rights go after the death of Agnes and Violet?


General Question:

How is Brig. Gen. Giles Hallam Mills related to this family?

THE REV. BARTON MILLS

From page 15 of the London Times, dated 23 January 1932:

THE REV. BARTON MILLS

The Rev. Barton Reginald Vaughan Mills, who died suddenly at the age of 74, was the eldest son of the late Arthur Mills, of Budehaven, Cornwall, formerly Conservative member for Taunton and for Exeter. This is the family of Mills of Bisterne, Hants, to which Lord Hillingdon belongs. Mr. Mills's mother was Agnes Lucy, daughter of Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, tenth baronet. He went to Harrow in 1870 and then Christ Church, Oxford, where he took second class honours in modern history in 1880. After serving curacies at Battersea, Broad Clyst, and St. George's Hanover-square, he was vicar of Poughill, Cornwall, from 1887 to 1889, vicar of Bude from 1891 to 1901, and assistant chaplain of the Chapel Royal, Savoy, from 1901 to 1908. In the War he served as an Army chaplain, and had held a general license in the diocese of London since 1926.

Mr. Mills was joint editor of "Select treatises of St. Bernard of Clairvaux" and author of "Marks of the Church" and "Fundamental Christianity." He founded the Association for Improving the Status of the Unbeneficed Clergy, and was hon. secretary of the Society for the Protection of Women and Children. He married, first, Lady Catherine Mary Valentia, sister of the seventh Earl of Buckinghamshire; she died in 1889, leaving a son, Captain A. F. H. Mills, D.C.L.I., who married Lady Dorothy Rachel, daughter of the fifth Earl of Orford. Mr. Mills married, secondly, in 1894, Elizabeth Edith, only daughter of the late Sir George Dalhousie Ramsay, and had a son and two daughters. He had been a member of the Athenaeum for nearly 40 years.

The funeral service will be at St. Saviour's, Walton-street, Chelsea, on Monday, at 2.30.

George Mills's father had passed away on 21 January

This obituary certainly confirms some speculation and fills in one of the gaps in my time line of the Rev. Barton R. V. Mills's life.

In 1880, Mills was awarded the Oxon Bachelor's Degree mentioned above. We knew that Mills had been ordained a deacon in 1882 and a priest in 1883 in the Diocese of Rochester. If I'm not mistaken, Mills final ordination was documented in the 14 June 1883 issue of the London Times. It was also in 1883 that Mills's M.A. degree was conferred by Oxford.

In December 1884, he's documented as sitting as a priest as a member of the Battersea Committee, chaired by the vicar of Battersea [pictured, right, before 1885, in a painting by J. A. M. Whistler]. In April of 1885, his recent pamphlet and presentation on the sieges of Exeter is reviewed in The Western Antiquary, indicating that Mills hasn't completely let go of his interest in secular history.

In 1886, Barton marries his first wife and becomes "chaplain at San Remo" for a brief time, not documented in the obituary above [but pictured at the very top of this post because I really like that poster]. Mills and his pregnant wife were likely driven from the Italian Riviera by a destructive 1887 earthquake, and he is immediately installed as vicar of Poughill.

Now, everything above is seemingly in strict chronological order. It mentions that after being ordained, Mills served the "curacies at Battersea, Broad Clyst, and St. George's Hanover-square."

Broad Clyst looks to be about 5 km from Exeter, where it appears Barton read his "sieges" paper during the winter of 1884-1885. Broad Clyst was also the home of Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 10t bt., a man with whom Mills had spent a good portion of his childhood at Killerton [pictured, left, circa 1890] while his father, Arthur, was away, often traveling to the colonies in North America, India, and the South Seas. Sir Thomas himself had died in 1871, but there was still family at the estate.

Let's assume it was likely that Barton was in Broad Clyst for a least the winter of 1884-1885, where he would have used local resources, including the archives of the new Royal Albert Memorial Museum, to research his paper.

On 10 July 1886, Barton Marries Lady Catherine at—You may have guessed it! —St. George's Hanover Square.

Did Barton meet Lady Catherine while he was there, near Hanover Square? It's probably more likely you'd meet a girl from Buckinghamshire in London than in Exeter, don't you think? That would imply that he was at St. George's long enough to have pursued a courtship and married by July.

It would be interesting—at least for me—to know why Mills bounced around a bit in the mid 1880s. He had a rich and powerful father, rich and powerful relatives, and a university degree of some prominence. I mean, Oxford's a pretty good school, right?

However, it seems to take an Act of God—the Ligurian Earthquake of 1887—to get Barton a vicarage. However, I'm not well aware of what works may have been required of a young cleric in advance of becoming a vicar in the late 19th century.
On the other hand, Barton's life seems to have been one in which he never stayed put in a position for much longer than a decade, no matter what.

This propensity to move about professionally seems to have been passed along to his son, George Mills, at the time an undistinguished schoolmaster, referred to only in passing in the obituary above.

[Many thanks as always, Barry Mc, for all of your research! Also, you can get more on the life of the Rev. B. R. V. Mills here (Part 1), here (Part 2), and here (Part 3), and information on his memorial window in Bude here.]

Spending a Day with Sir Arthur Mordaunt Mills

Sometimes in doing all of this research, I have to make decisions regarding the direction of my research at any given time. Often, those decisions work out well, and at other times, not so well. Many times, if not most, I'll admit, they are based almost entirely on a hunch that might either pay off handsomely—or have me wasting hours, or even days.

Here's a case in point. This is a long-awaited e-mail from Wellington College [pictured, above left] that I received last Friday:


Sent: Friday, April 30, 2010 3:23 AM

Dear Mr. Williams,

Thank you very much for your email enquiry of last month. I apologise for the delay in responding, but the query arrived during the holidays and I have been clearing the backlog for the last couple of weeks. I have managed to find some information about the Mills family members at Wellington, as per your request.

Arthur Fredric Hobart Mills
1900 – 1903 Hardinge dormitory
Son of Rev. B.R.V. Mills
Royal Military College 1906
3rd Bn Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry 1908
Great War 1914 – 1918, Capt.

Arthur Mordaunt Mills
1892-1896 Hardinge dormitory
Son of Col. A McL. Mills IA
Dormitory Prefect
Shooting VIII 94-96
(very long war record, please let me know if you want the details)
Married Winifred Alice Carew (1908), who died (1931); married Hilda Young (1940).
Address in 1948: Maj. Gen. Sir Arthur Mills CB, DSO, The Little House, Enton Green, Godalming, Surrey.

I hope that this information is of interest and use. Do let me know if I can be of further assistance.

With kind regards,

Guy Williams (Wellington College archivist)

First wrong guess of mine: I'd privately speculated that Arthur F. H. Mills had been gazetted into either the 4th or 5th battalion of the DCLI. No big deal there.

I'd also, almost at the outset of my quest for information on Mills, had to decide how far into his family tree I wanted to climb. Regarding relatives, the farther I strayed from George Mills himself, the farther I was from my original intent, or so it seemed.

Based on that, I'd originally decided that Sir Arthur Mordaunt Mills and his family were probably too distant to work on much, even though the internet seemed to be rife with references to him. It was a hunch. But as soon as I saw his name in the above e-mail, I decided to check him out, figuring knowing something about him just might come in handy. Another hunch.

Well, Sir Arthur has a distinguished and well-documented military record as long as my arm. I can't, however, seem to find anything that indicates in the least that Sir Arthur Mordaunt Mills [right] is related in any way to the Mills family of my interest—at least not for several previous generations, back through into the 17th century.

George's great grandfather married a Lady Catherine Mordaunt, daughter of Sir John Mordaunt, 7th baronet, but I can't find any ancestors of George that would have shared his surname, Mills, with anyone in Sir Arthur's family. If somewhere back in history the two "Arthur Mills" in the above e-mail are related, it's likely to be more immediately through the name Mordaunt than through the name Mills. So let's review:

My first hunch: Don't waste any time [as I've done all day today] investigating Sir Arthur.

My second hunch: Reverse course after months, go ahead, and spend an entire day trying to link Sir Arthur to George Mills.

That second hunch wasn't the most brilliantly intuitive move during all of this Mills-mania of mine. But I'll admit that my motivation for finding a male Mills relative of George Mills who was born in the mid- to late-19th century was fueled by another puzzle I've run into: I need a father.

Whose father? Barbara Mills, that's who.

And who is Barbara Mills? That's exactly what I'd like to know, and it's what we'll take a look at next time!

Replies and Records Concerning the Revd Barton R. V. Mills

I just received a couple of e-mails I'd been awaiting, so here are some thoughts on the Revd Barton R. V. Mills, father of George Mills…

Revd Prof Peter Galloway, Chaplain of the Queen's Chapel of the Savoy, had recently suggested checking with the City of Westminster Archives regarding Rev. Mills and the possibility that he had not, indeed, ever been an assistant chaplain at the Savoy.

This is from Hilary Davies of those Westminster Archives:

Thank you for your e-mail of 5 April concerning the employment of Rev Barton RV Mills at the Savoy Chapel Royal, 1901-1908.
I checked the volumes for which you supplied the references (thank you), and found him preaching in the chapel regularly, though not frequently, from 1901 (Ash Wednesday & Good Friday) onwards. He is listed as celebrating Holy Communion on the 24th Sunday after Trinity and Christmas Day in 1907. He is clearly noted down as being an Assistant Chaplain.
I hope this is helpful to your research.

Yours sincerely
Hilary Davies (Ms)
Senior Archives & Local Studies Assistant

Good to know! Thank you, Hilary. But that left Revd Galloway—and me—with the problem of why a man who'd renounced the Anglican Church [according to the 1885 book, Converts to Rome, by W. Gordon Gorman] was preaching in the Chapel Royal. From Revd Galloway:

I am pleased you managed to discover a little more about Barton Mills, though the facts are certainly confusing. I think it highly unlikely that Mills would have been allowed to preach at the Chapel Royal, if his conversion had been known. My first instinct is to question the accuracy of Gorman's assertion that Mills was a convert to the Roman Catholic Church. My second instinct is that you try the records of the diocese of Truro - the diocese which covers Cornwall - held at the Cornwall County Records Office to see what papers they have regarding Mills. You can contact them at:

cro@cornwall.gov.uk

I hope this helps and I look forward to hearing more.

Having e-mailed them promptly, I very soon received this well-researched reply:

Thank you for your email.

I began by checking the entry relating to Barton Mills in the 1896 Crockford’s Clerical directory which we hold. This states that he was ordained deacon in 1882 and priest in 1883 in the diocese of Rochester. Therefore any records relating to his ordination would be held in Kent. He took his degrees at Christ Church College, Oxford who may hold records relating to this period of his life. This also says he was vicar of Poughill 1887-1889 and of Bude from 1891.

We hold registers of institutions and licences to benefices for the Truro diocese. These are indexed by the name of the parish. I have looked in the register covering his period at Poughill (D/R/275). I have found the entry for institution of Barton Mills to the vicarage of Poughill which was dated 9 May 1887. The institution of the next incumbent was dated 11 October 1889 and was due to the resignation of Barton Mills. Budehaven was a perpetual curacy so I looked in the register of licences to perpetual curacies (D/R/286). He was admitted to Budehaven 3 March 1891 and the next incumbent was admitted 7 June 1901.

I have also searched our parish collections for Poughill and Bude. We hold a register of services for Poughill 1887-1890 (P192/2/22) which I have looked at. This begins on 15 May 1887 when Barton Mills is the preacher. The last service he takes is 7 October 1888.

I hope this information is useful to you. If you have any further questions please do not hesitate to contact us.

Yours sincerely

Jennie Hancock
Archivist
Cornwall Record Office

Thanks, Jennie! This message presents us some interesting information. None of it, however, addresses a possible conversion to Roman Catholicism by B. R. V. Mills.

First, though, we now know the years in which Mills was ordained a deacon and a priest: 1882 and 1883. Even more interestingly, despite Mills being from a family that is heavy on its relationship with southern England, from Cornwall to Sussex, and London, he does this work in the Diocese of Rochester. That's a brand new pin on my big, figurative George Mills Map, and may mean something.

We also are able to work out the "turn around time" it takes from the time someone is named a vicar through to the time one actually takes the pulpit. Mills was named the vicar of Poughill the day after Ash Wednesday, 24 February 1887. His actual institution in the Diocesan records is 9 May, with his first sermon being delivered on 15 May—about seven weeks later. His first child would be born on 12 July 1887.

The last service he takes at Poughill is on 7 October 1888, just 17 months later. He is the vicar of record, however, until 1889. The new vicar is instituted at Poughill on 11 October 1889—just over a year after Mills delivers his last sermon from the pulpit at Poughill.

Let's say that over four weeks is fairly normal for a vicar's resignation to be accepted, a new vicar named, for him to be instituted in the records, and for the new incumbent to arrive with his belongings and cassock. That would still have left Sundays in Poughill, if I understand it all correctly, having been handled by the deacon for well over ten months during 1888-1889.

And we know that Lady Catherine Mills, Barton's wife and the mother of infant son Arthur, passed away on 25 September, just 16 days before the institution of the new vicar.

Would I be wrong in assuming that Lady Catherine likely suffered a protracted illness or recovery from an injury? Would I also be wrong in assuming that Mills must have been very much the worse for wear after a long year that must have ended in tragedy, fully knowing he would no longer be able to handle his duties in the small Poughill parish. In fact, is it likely that he already resigned and had a replacement on his way to Poughill by the time of his wife's actual demise?

We don't truly know exactly what kept Mills out of the pulpit for a full year, or what led to the death of Lady Catherine, but hopefully we'll hear soon about Mills and his affiliation with Roman Catholicism. I'm waiting to hear back from the Catholic Church in England and Wales.

Perhaps we'll know something soon!

The Life of B. R. V. Mills, Part 1

Details, details, details…

Sometimes one tiny item sets off a string of revelations. In doing a search on Sir George Dalhousie Ramsay, I stumbled on yet another detail that was quite interesting regarding Rev. Barton Reginald Vaughan Mills, father of George Mills. I thought about writing about it immediately, but took a quick look at what a long and winding road the path of the Rev. Barton's life had become, and I was shocked. Those details all begin to add up!

To put the life of George Mills into perspective, I think we first need to examine the foundation upon which George's life was constructed: We need to look at his family of origin, and especially—given the glaring lack of information about George's mother and sisters—at the life of George's father.

He's the man who truly sets the metaphorical stage for George's adult life. And Barton Mills' life is one that had indeed taken some unexpected twists and turns that I've put off writing about for too long. In fact, it's probably far too much for a single post here, so let's just get it started right now…

Barton R. V. Mills was born on 29 October 1857. His father, Arthur Mills of Bude Haven, Cornwall, was the new Tory M.P. from Taunton at the time. He was named after a member of the Acland family and relative of Barton's mother Lady Agnes Acland. He was also named in honour of Rev. Charles John Vaughan, apparently a friend of Arthur Mills and later the scandalous Head Master of Harrow School.

Barton attended Harrow School in 1870 and 1871, years after his namesake's departure. In 1873, his father became the M.P. from Exeter, but the Mills family was also maintaining a London residence at 34 Hyde Park Gardens, W., at the time as well as their home in Cornwall. Barton later attended Christ Church, Oxford, beginning in 1876.

In 1880, Barton earned a B.A. degree in History from Oxford, and receives his M.A in 1883. Arthur Mills had spent much of Barton's lifetime traveling the world and becoming an expert on colonial economies, and may have been en route from New Zealand when the advanced degree was conferred.

In 1884, we find "Rev. B. R. V. Mills," now a clergyman, sitting on the Battersea Committee as an active member, according to a 15 December report by The Council of the Society for Organising Charitable Relief and Repressing Mendicity. The committee, chaired by the Vicar of Battersea for relief of the poor, may be where Mills met his longtime friend, Rev. Watkin W. Williams, who also served as an active member.

In that same year, Barton Mills published a pamphlet entitled The Early Sieges of Exeter and their connexion with the General History of England that was based on a lecture he had given earlier. In 1895, the journal The Western Antiquary, concluded: "We must commend this paper as one of value and interest."

Even more interestingly in 1885, Barton R. V. Mills is surprisingly mentioned in the book, Converts to Rome: A list of about four thousand protestants who have recently become Roman Catholics by W. Gordon Gorman [W. Swan Sonnenschein: London, 1885]. The listing within a section headed "CHRIST CHURCH" reads: "B. R. V. Mills, son of Arthur C. Mills, M.P. for Exeter." No date is given for Barton's conversion, nor why Arthur had gained an unexpected middle initial.

Although Barton Mills had already become a clergyman by the year 1885, in this text he isn't titled as a 'Reverend,' or even a listed as a B.A.—at least not at that point in his conversion to Roman Catholicism. He is simply recorded among the recent converts from Christ Church.

As we know, according to Oxford University, Mills "matriculated from Christ Church on 13 October 1876, aged 18" and "the degree of BA was conferred in 1880 [by Oxford]." So, the conversion of Mills likely occurred while he was still a student at Christ Church, sometime between 1877 and 1879.

Now things started happening relatively quickly: In the Summer of 1886, Barton R. V. Mills married Lady Catherine Mary Valentia Hobart-Hampden at St. George, Hanover Square, London, on 10 July. She is granted the rank of an Earl's daughter at the wedding.

That same year, Barton and Lady Catherine left England and family behind as Mills became "Chaplain at San Remo" in 1886. Where, exactly, in San Remo he was appointed chaplain is still under investigation. There is as of yet no record found showing him to have been chaplain at either All Saints or St. John's Churches at that time. No real matter: He wouldn't be there very long.

On Ash Wednesday morning, 23 February 1886, with many churchgoers already attending services, a deadly 6.5-level earthquake devastated San Remo, Italy, as well as many nearby towns and villages. Lady Catherine Mills was probably just over 4 months pregnant with their first child and, unless the newlyweds were quickly parted, probably in San Remo at the time of that disaster.

The very next day, a Cornish newspaper announced: "Bude - The Living of Poughill - The Rev. Barton V. Mills, eldest son of Mr. Arthur Mills, Bude, has accepted the living of Poughill, near Bude. Poughill contains 1,700 acres, with a population of 399. Probable gross value of the living about £125 per annum. The Rev. T.S. Carnsew, who is promoted to the living of Constantine, near Falmouth, has been vicar of Poughill for 30 years."

Word travels quickly, apparently just as quickly as thirty-year vicars could when it was deemed necessary.

Just months later, Arthur Frederick Hobart Mills, the brother of George Mills, was born on 12 July 1887 in Cornwall. It's unknown at this point if Arthur was full term, or if Lady Catherine had suffered any injury in San Remo, any discomfort on her return from Italy, or any difficulties during the birth itself.

Sadly, Lady Catherine passed away just two years later, on 25 September 1889, the same year Barton Mills left the vicarage at Poughill. Did he leave because of her death? Was it sudden? Had he taken leave of his duties earlier to care for her? It's unclear if he left before or after that exact date, 25 September, and I am waiting for word from Poughill that may provide a clue.

It's now well into Autumn, 1889, in our story and winter's fast approaching. We've left the widowed vicar, Barton Reginald Vaughan Mills, and his young son, Arthur, in the care of 73-year-old Arthur Mills, Esq., M.P., in a house cared for by 10 servants at 128 Efford Down in Bude, Cornwall [left].

Barton will still be living there as a resident during the census in the Spring of 1891, along with young Arthur, then three years old. But Barton, 33 himself, in that document will state his occupation as that of being the new "Vicar Of Budehaven."

And that won't be the only change made as Barton returns to the Anglican Church and starts a new family—one that will include a young chap by the name of George Mills—as we'll see in Part 2!

[Read Part 2 or Part 3.]

A Glimpse into a 19th Century Acland Family Photo Album

On this warm and wonderful afternoon here in Florida, due to the modern miracle of the internet, we're about to travel back in time to "see" the world through the eyes of young George Mills, his half-brother Arthur Frederick Hobart, and his older sister, Agnes Edith.

Thanks to a portfolio donated to the University Of Canterbury [Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha, in Maori] in Christchurch, New Zealand, by the Acland family [descendants of Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 10th Baronet, of Killerton, Broadclyst, Devon, the maternal great-grandfather of George Mills] after they emigrated, we can see Cornwall, Devon, and much of southern England exactly as it looked to the very young Mills siblings, circa the late 1880s or the 1890s. [Click an image to see it full-sized.]



This amazingly unexpected photograph is labeled "Mills driving horses," so I suppose we're to assume that's George's grandfather, Arthur Mills, Esq., M.P., there at the reins. The passengers may be visitors to his home, but if so, would I be wrong in assuming he'd be sitting with his guests? My hunch is that he's taking out the family, but what do I know?

Would it also be wrong of me to assume that smartly dressed fellow in the carriage could be Revd Barton R. V. Mills, Vicar of either Poughill or Bude, and he could be sitting with his mother, Lady Agnes, and possibly his first wife, Lady Catherine [who passed away in 1889] or Elizabeth Edith Ramsay Mills, whom Barton married on 10 January 1894?
Lady Agnes died on 23 May 1895, so if that is both Elizabeth and Lady Agnes, that certainly narrows the list of possible dates on which this image could have been taken. Should it perhaps be Lady Catherine, this image would then be of an 1887 to 1889 vintage.

Barton's brother, Col. Dudley Acland Mills, was an officer in the Royal Engineers who is not found anywhere in either the 1891 or 1901 census. It seems unlikley that the he's the gentleman in the carriage. Barton, however, was listed in the 1891 census as living at 128 Efford Down, Cornwall, with his mother Agnes Lucy, father Arthur, and his son, young Arthur F. H. Mills, who was then 3 years old. Put this address, Efford Down Park, Bude, Cornwall EX23 8SE, UK, into Google Maps and see if you don't think this is the same place!

This is the lovely church at Poughill. Reverend Barton R. V. Mills was rector there from 1887, to 1889. Arthur Frederick was born in 1887, and Lady Catherine, young Arthur's mother, died in 1898. Is it likley this was taken during that time by the Aclands to show visitors the church where their grandson Barton was vicar?


This beautiful picture was taken on one of the Acland estates. Young George Mills was born in 1896, and his half-brother Arthur was 9 years older than George. Is it possible that this healthy looking lad could be young Arthur visiting Killerton?


This gorgeous image shows the Cornish coast that the Mills family must have known and loved so well. While I know that could be anyone who just happened to wander into the photograph, it still makes me wonder...


Why are this boy and, I suppose, his mother, so disinterested in someone taking outdoor photographs in Bude Haven in the 1890s? Could that have been such an everyday occurrence, compared to seeing a sailboat? It occurs to me they must have had the same interest as the photographer, having accompanied him to this spot: That wonderful vessel! Could that lad be young Arthur—or even George Mills himself? After all, how many tots in Bude would have likely been that disinterestedly close to a party of traveling, photographing, parasol-wielding Aclands?

If that is, George, date this image 1898 or 1899. And, if it's Arthur, make it 1891 or 1892. And perhaps it was different in the late 19th century, but I can't imagine why the Aclands would've taken the camera to Bude if not on an visit to see Arthur, Barton, and the children...

And in this photograph of the coast, we see a panorama of Bude Haven. It features the stately home of Arthur Mills, Esq., M.P. resting comfortably atop the hill.

Here's yet a closer shot of the Mills family's residence in Bude. Nice place, eh? I wonder what it costs to heat, though...


This image depicts Killerton in Devon. Barton and Dudley Mills were raised there as young boys until it was off to boarding school. The only residents of this manor listed in the 1861 census were Sir Thomas, himself, and "Barton Reginald Vaughan Mills (age 3) and Dudley Acland Mills (age 1) (Children of Arthur Mills, Esq., M.P.), + 18 servants." The boys' father would have been either in London, serving at the time as the Tory M.P. from Taunton, or may have been on one of his many excursions abroad. Mills had recently published his definitive book on the costs of the Sepoy Mutiny and the state of the colony, India in 1858.

This time, we've actually entered Killerton of the 1890s. The painting is entitled "Great Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 10th Baronet," and was painted by William Owing. Sir Thomas had died in 1871, having been succeeded by Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 11th Baronet, but obviously is still watching son-in-law Arthur Mills like a hawk.


Before returning to the 21st century, let's just take a look at a few images of the southern England of the late 18th century that the family of George Mills must have loved so dearly...