Tomb of the Hall family in the churchyard of St Nicholas, Sutton, London

Summary

Tomb of the Hall family, dated 1812, in the churchyard of St Nicholas, Sutton.

Description

Tomb of the Hall family, 1812.

MATERIALS: Portland stone.

DESCRIPTION: a chest tomb of simple form, with a moulded base and reeded top. The inscriptions are engraved, and original paint, used to highlight these, survives, particularly to the north and east faces. The inscriptions are set within engraved panels, and remain consistent in style, with Roman lettering, over the 85 years during which they were made. The tomb is set on a raised base, and was originally surrounded by railings; the holes for the railings remain in the base.

The inscription on the north face reads: ‘FAMILY VAULT / In affectionate Remembrance of / MRS ANN HALL / Wife of AMBROSE HALL ESQ / of Walton on the Hill in this County / and of Albion Street Surrey Road / Blest with a fine Understanding / and a Heart replete with / every Christian Virtue / She ended a truly valuable / and / exemplary Life / in this Parish / on the 27th of January 1812 / Aged 77 Years’. The inscription on the south face reads: ‘This Tomb was erected by / AMBROSE HALL ESQ / of Walton on the Hill and / Albion Street, Surrey Road / both in this County / He departed this life in the 31st Day of December 1815 / Aged 77 Years / His Remains are here deposited / and his Memory will be long held in dutiful / and affectionate Remembrance.’ The inscription on the east face reads: ‘SACRED / to the Memory of / HUMPHREY HALL ESQre / of the Hermitage / Walton on the Hill, Surrey / who departed this life / on the 24 of August 1848 / in the […] of his Age. / […] MARIA JANE […]’. The inscription on the west face reads: ‘ANNE HALL HALL / wife of the REV.D AMBROSE / WILLIAM HALL M.A. / Rector of Debden in / The County of Essex / Died April 17TH 1867 / Aged 51 Years / Also the Rev.D AMBROSE / WILLIAM HALL M.A. / sometime Vicar of Longcross / in this County / and Rector of Debden / in the County of Essex / Died April 2ND 1897 / Aged 83 Years’.

History

The manor of Sutton belonged to Chertsey Abbey from before the Norman conquest to the Dissolution when it passed to a succession of mostly non-resident owners. In the C18 the village became a coaching stop on the route to the races in Epsom and then Brighton and by 1800 it was a small village sprawling up the hill from the common (now the Green) to the Cock Cross Roads. The arrival of the Sutton to Epsom railway in 1847, the Epsom Downs line (1865) and the more direct line to London via Mitcham Junction (1868) led to rapid change. Middle class development took place at Benhill and in the area around the railway station, while Newtown, east of the High Street, was more working class. The High Street shops developed quite rapidly, probably largely in the 1870s and 1880s and by 1900 Sutton was a small commuter town in the countryside beyond London. In the 1920s and 1930s the whole area was engulfed by suburban development.

The present Church of St Nicholas is a rebuilding of earlier churches on the site; the earliest was a Saxon church built by the Abbot and monks of Chertsey Abbey who had been granted the manor of Sutton in AD 675. This church was partly re-constructed at the end of the C13 by the Abbot of Chertsey, John de Rutherwyck, and the list of Rectors dates from 1291.

Following an increase in the population of Sutton it was decided in 1862 that additional church accommodation was necessary, and the architect Edwin Nash was employed to rebuild the earlier church; the earlier monuments were re-sited in the new church.

The churchyard has retained its form since that time.

The tomb of the Hall family is situated immediately to the south of the church’s west door. The date of the tomb is 1812, when Ann Hall (née Powell), wife of Ambrose Hall, died and was buried. The Halls appear in Burke’s Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Landed Gentry (1875), where it is noted that the family had a long history connected with the trade and commerce of London, being first recorded in the mid-C16; the family were members of the Drapers’ Company. The family were for many years based in Hertfordshire. Ambrose Hall (1739-1815), described as being a merchant of London and of Sutton, was the son of Thomas Hall and his wife Mary, was the daughter of Sir Ambrose Crowley, who traced his lineage back to King Edward I. Ambrose and Ann Hall were married in 1762, and lived at The Hermitage, Walton-on-the-Hill, as well as in London. They are buried with their son, Humphrey (1763-1848) and his wife Maria Jane (née Nordaby, d 1865), and his son, Ambrose William Hall (d 1897), who was vicar of Longcross in Surrey, before moving to Debden in Essex, and his wife Anne (d 1867).

Reasons for Listing

The Hall family tomb in the churchyard of St Nicholas, Sutton, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Architectural interest:
* As a good chest tomb of 1812, with a neoclassical reeded lid, and well-executed inscriptions set within panels;
* For the original paint, highlighting the panels and inscriptions, which is a rare survival;

Historic interest:
* The tomb commemorates the Halls, a prominent local merchant family; the position of the tomb by the west door emphasises their status;

Group value:
* The Church of St Nicholas is listed at Grade II*, and a number of other tombs within the churchyard, as well as the Gibson Mausoleum, are listed at Grade II.

External Links

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