William Thomas Swift – Gloucestershire’s Answer to Samuel Pepys

Village schoolmaster, William Thomas Swift, wrote an entry in his diary every single day from 31 December 1859 when he was 18 years old until 5 February 1915, just a few days before his death.  His zest for life and interest in his fellow men shine through every entry and offer us a unique insight into a village community during a time of great social change. 

We’re so lucky that this marvelous collection is being preserved for the future here in the Gloucestershire Archives and is available for anyone to see in our research room (D3981). 

Who was William Swift?  He was born in Cheltenham in July 1841.  His father, also called William, was a painter but unfortunately he died when his only child was a still a baby.  His widow, Ann Maria, remarried to John Mills in 1859 and the diaries show that William generally got on well with his stepfather.  We know that William trained to be a teacher at Carmarthen Training College and then taught in Wales for a few years, but he returned home to Gloucestershire to work in Badgeworth School.  In 1874, he was appointed as the headmaster of the newly-built school in the village of Churchdown where he remained for the rest of his working life.  He married Rosena (always known as Rose) Poole in St Peter’s parish church in Cheltenham in 1864 and the couple had six children, all boys.  Rose Swift worked alongside her husband as an assistant teacher.  William Swift died on 10 February 1915 and the Gloucester Journal reports that many of his former pupils attended the funeral in a demonstration of their affection for him.

What makes the diaries so special?  As the schoolteacher William had a clearly-defined place in society with a wide circle of friends and acquaintances.  And he was at the centre of village affairs so his diaries reflect all the ‘goings-on’ of everyday life.  But what makes his diaries really stand out are the highly descriptive and sometimes rather outspoken comments he makes about people he meets and the things he does.  In the evening of 27 March 1886 he met a man called Steed, a friend of his stepfather, and wrote:

‘His nose was something to remember.  It may be said to have been in 3 divisions and looked like 3 noses. Evidently from intemperance.’

He has an eye for entertaining detail and a clever turn of phrase.  On 16 October 1885, he went with his mother to the theatre in Cheltenham to see a play called ‘Frou-Frou’ and he writes that their seats were by the front rail in the gallery,

‘where we sat like the cat looking through the dairy window.’

He describes how his mother dropped her umbrella down through a hole into a subterranean, so they had to wait until the audience had left to recover it.  This provided the unexpected bonus of an opportunity to go backstage.

The diaries reflect his enquiring mind and wide range of interests including local phrases and sayings.  I’m sure that this one, jotted down on 23 August 1888, was one of his favourites:

‘[He] shines like a button in a sweep’s arse.’

He also wrote about much more serious topics so mentions the outbreak of World War 1 in August 1914.  This affected every area of life in Churchdown and although William’s diaries only cover the first months of the war he mentions the men who joined up, fund-raising and the local Defence Corps.

The diaries end in mid-sentence on 5 February 1915 – a sad loss!

The baptismal record of William Thomas Smith is amongst the recently published records, along with the marriage record of Ellie Goulding’s 2x great grandmother Adeliza Goulding (née Imm) , marriage record of famous British engineer Hubert Cecil Booth (Henry Hoover) and many others.

To explore the Gloucestershire Parish records visit our Parish collection page.