Wilts Obituary-. 503- 



regularly attended. In person as well as in life he was a fine example 

 of the very best type of country gentleman, and the County of Wilts is 

 the poorer in many ways by his death. 



Long obit, notices Wiltshire Gazette (with interesting records of the 

 Phipps family in Wilts), Dec. 11th ; Wiltshire Times, with portrait,. 

 Dec. 13th, 1913. 



John MattOCk, died Dec. 22nd, 1913, aged 76. Buried at Headington 

 Cemetery, Oxford. Born at Steeple Ashton, began his gardening career 

 at Bood Ashton, removed to Bath and became a successful exhibitor. 

 About forty years ago he removed to Headington, Oxford, where, as the 

 owner of the rose nurseries, he became widely known as a rose grower 

 and exhibitor all over the country. He was an earnest supporter of 

 Wesleyan Methodism. He leaves a widow, three sons, and i two 

 daughters. 



Obit, notice, Wiltshire Times, Jan. 3rd, 1914. 



Thomas Henry Baker, died January 16th, 1914, aged 80. Buried 

 at London Boad Cemetery, Salisbury. Born Sept. 4th, 1833, son of 

 Henry Baker, of Charlton Horethorn, Som., and afterwards of Stourton. 

 Educated at the Philological School, New Boad, Marylebone, which he 

 left in 1849. He married, 1857, Catherine Frances Dozell, d. of Thomas 

 Elliott, of Martock, Som., who predeceased him. His son and two 

 daughters survive him. For forty-two years he rented Mere Down 

 Farm under the Duchy of Cornwall, up to 1899, when he gave up 

 farming and removed to Salisbury, where he lived until his death. He 

 became a member of Mere Board of Guardians 1863, Chairman 1883, 

 and Chairman of the District Council 1894. A proof of the general 

 esteem in which he was held in the Mere district is to be found in the 

 fact that when he left the neighbourhood in 1899 his friends presented 

 him with an address and a purse of ^100, whilst the officers of the 

 various bodies with which he was connected presented him with a 

 silver inkstand. He was no politician. In religion he was a devoted 

 Churchman and did loyal service in many ways, as a churchwarden at 

 Mere and St. Martin's, Salisbury, as a member of Salisbury Synod 

 from its beginning, as well as in other directions. In connection with 

 agriculture The Times spoke of him at his death as having been for 

 many years a valued correspondent. But it was as an antiquary that 

 he was most remarkable. It is seldom that a practical agriculturist 

 has also the antiquarian bent of mind, and the number of men who 

 have combined the two pursuits in Wiltshire is very small indeed. 

 With T. H. Baker, however, that side of antiquarianism Avhich has to 

 do with ancient registers, with monumental inscriptions, with church- 

 wardens' accounts and other documents of medieval and later times, 

 became in his later years almost a passion. He was, indeed, one of that 

 small band of real workers, to whom no drudgery is too great, so that 

 the job which has been undertaken may be finished. The amount of 

 time and labour that he spent in the transcription of parish registers 

 and ancient documents, and the copying of monumental inscriptions, 



