History of Kilburn and West Hampstead

This is a long forgotten Edwardian crime, but the astonishing story is worth recalling. We found it while researching Harlesden but the scam concerns banks around south London.   The Scam On the morning of 23 September 1908, a smartly dressed young man with a top hat and gold rimmed glasses hired a motorised taxi at Victoria Station and asked the driver, Albert Pendrith, to take him to a branch of the London and South-Western Bank and wait outside. In all they visited eight branches around South London: Vauxhall, Clapham, Balham, Streatham, Tulse Hill, Dulwich, Forest Hill and Catford. The fare was 22 shillings, and he gave the driver a sixpence tip. Each bank manager had received an advice note from Edwin Leopold Cox who had been manager of the Harlesden branch for about six years. The note said Mr Davitt S. Windell of 93 Craven Park Harlesden was transferring his account from the Harlesden branch to the other bank. The notes were on headed paper, stamped with the Harlesden branch...

Stammering or stuttering (as it is called in America), is a condition that disrupts the normal flow of speech and when acute can profoundly affect a person’s life. During the late Victorian and Edwardian period, a house in Willesden played an important role in helping people who stammered. Tarrangower Tarrangower was named after a gold field in Australia. A large, detached house in Willesden Lane, it was built by John Marrian probably using money inherited from his wealthy father John senior, who died on 13 September 1881 leaving £69,089 (worth about £9.6M today). But John Marrian junior did not live very long to enjoy his new house as he died there on 28 March 1886. When it was offered for sale in June, it was described as ‘a very perfect modern residence’ having 10 bedrooms and a billiard room and library. The gardens and grounds with a tennis court were about an acre. Later the house was numbered 178 Willesden Lane.    Tarrangower By 1891 Sir Bradford Leslie was in residenc...