English village pubs are part of our Blencowe heritage.

The Off-Licence at Hethe in Oxfordshire displaying the W. Blencowe Co. Ltd. sign

Recently, while in the Brackley area searching out Bayliss and Blencowe ancestors and locations, we visited the village of Hethe in Oxfordshire, birthplace of my 2G Grandmother, Mary Anne Blencowe.

The former Hethe Off-licence as it is today

In the village pub, the Whitmore Arms, is a list of previous landlords which includes my 3G Grandfather, William Blencowe; landlord from 1823-1826.

At the other end of the village is another house displaying the Blencowe brewery sign. We were told by the barmaid that this was an off-licence. It just so happened that we had parked our car outside this house (see photo as it is today). Unfortunately, we forgot to take a photo of the Whitmore Arms so we've got an excuse to go back.

Any Blencowe descendent who wants to get closer to the family's past should visit the village, sample the beer (unfortunately not now Blencowe) and grab some grub. Out of the way pubs like this need all the support they can get, particularly when they're displaying our history. P.S. It's a pretty village

Richard May (- Howitt - Bayliss - Blencowe)?

On 13 October 1925, 38 Fully-licensed Inns, 9 On-beer houses, 3 Off-licenses, the Brackley brewery and other properties were put up for auction on behalf of Messer William Blencowe and Co. Ltd. Brewers and Spirit Merchants. Each property is well described in the 69 page catalogue as is the Hethe Off-license above. This is not the William Blencowe (1783-1866) who is Richard's GGG grandfather but most probably his son, William (1827-1896) and grandson, William (1857-1888). The company was known to employ the relatives and many of us have some connection to the Blencowe brewing industry.

I would like to thank Ruth Jenkins for sharing her sale catalogue.

Anne