J.R. Whitbread Uncovered – Part 3

by Malcolm Clegg

John Robert Whitbread: Author of the ‘Railway Policeman’
and Presenter of the ‘Whitbread Shield’

John Robert Whitbread was born on the 17th July 1916 at number 3, Queens Gardens, Osborne Road, New Windsor, Berkshire. John was the eldest of two children, his younger sister Sylvia Anne being born in 1918 when John was two years old.

John and Sylvia were born into a wealthy family, and spent their early years moving between various family owned properties in England, Scotland and the South of France. John was placed into Eton College at the age of thirteen. After leaving Eton he went on to Cambridge University where he attended Gonville & Caius College to continue his education. At the age of twenty one whilst still a student, he decided to travel to America alone to visit New York and then onto Chicago to visit his mother’s properties and family relatives. On the 10th October 1937 he set sail as a first class passenger on board the Ocean Liner ‘SS. Statendam’ (Holland – America Shipping Line) from Southampton to New York.

2nd Lt John Robert Whitbread Coldstream Guards

After leaving University, John decided to follow in his father’s footsteps and he joined the Coldstream Guards as a Second Lieutenant. Within a relatively short time he realised that he was not cut out for life in the military and he subsequently resigned his commission and left the service.

He then met his future wife Rosemary Joan Monro the daughter of Herbert Trefusis Monro, a man of private means from Byfield near Rugby in Warwickshire.

John and Rosemary married at Paddington Registry Office, London on the 25th August 1939 just a week before the outbreak of WW2. At the time marriage, John was residing at No.6, St. Agnes Court, Porchester Terrace, Bayswater, London W2, and Rosemary was living with her parents. John and Rosemary later had a daughter Susan who was born on 2nd April 1942. Sadly, the marriage was not one ‘made in heaven’ and the couple split up when Susan was just three years old and John left the family. John and Rosemary were later divorced.

Their daughter Susan eventually married one Henry Dickens Bourchier Hawksley (born London 1932). Henry was the 2 x great grandson of the author Charles Dickens and great grandson of Sir Henry Fielding. He went on to become President of the Dickens Fellowship and trustee of the Charles Dickens Museum in London. He also served as a career officer in the Royal Horse Artillery. He joined the regiment in 1950 and achieved the rank of Captain before retiring in 1964. He later joined the steel industry and became a Director in British Steel. The couple married in 1963 and went on to have three daughters, one of whom is Lucinda Dickens Hawksley, the renowned author, biographer and lecturer. She is regarded by many as an authority on the life and works of her 3 x great grandfather Charles Dickens. In addition she is an award winning travel writer. After John left his family in 1945, Susan was raised by her mother but still had some contact with her father.

John in the meantime went on to pay another visit to the Peck Properties in Chicago in 1952 when he sailed on the Cunard White Star Liner the ‘Mauretania’ from Southampton on the 3rd October that year, bound for New York.

After his return from America, he met Isabel (known as Nancy) who was to become his second wife. Like John, Nancy had been previously married and after her marriage was dissolved she retained her married surname of Charles. Nancy was born in Islington, London in 1909 as Isabel Agnes Nancy Strugnell. Her mother was Isabel Bruce Strugnell (born Edinburgh 1873), and her father Edmund Charles Strugnell (born Islington, London 1873) a leather goods manufacturer. She had two older brothers Edmund and Ralph.

John and Nancy married at Kensington registry office, London on the 10th October 1956. Prior to their marriage, John was living at 86, Petty France, London SW1 and Nancy resided at 26, Gledhow Gardens London, SW5. Nancy was working as a private secretary at the time, and interestingly John classified himself as an ‘author’. The following year, John took Nancy on a trip to America to visit the family properties in Chicago. They sailed from Southampton on the 24th October 1957 on the RMS ‘Queen Mary’ bound for New York.

Unlike many of his ancestors who relished being in the limelight as political figures or prominent members of society, John Robert Whitbread was a very private person and he did not like publicity of any kind. He was keen on all aspects of history and had an amazing memory for dates. He also enjoyed browsing around museums and visiting places of historical interest. He had a fascination for books and spent a considerable amount of time reading. He was particularly fond of Agatha Christie Crime novels. John did state that he would enjoy working with books or being the curator of a museum. He would also pay frequent visits to the theatre.

John did however have two main passions in life. One was the Railways and the other was Crime and he spent a great deal of his time in pursuit of these passions. After returning from America in 1957, in his capacity as an author, John decided to write his book about crime on the railways. He carried out research which resulted in the publication of a book which gave a fascinating insight into the history and workings of the British Transport Commission Police which was at that time the third largest Police Force in the country (the force was renamed the British Transport Police from 1st January 1963 due to the British Transport Commission being abolished in 1962).

The book The Railway Policeman was completed in March 1961 and published later that year. There is little doubt that it was his passion about railways and crime that inspired John to write his book, and also to purchase the Whitbread Shield which he would later present to the British Transport Police.

John Whitbread’s second wife Nancy died in 1992 and John went to live with his daughter Susan and her family at 5, Hill Rise Crescent, Chalfont St. Peter, Buckinghamshire. He later began to suffer ill health and was admitted into Denham Manor Nursing Home, Halings Lane, Denham, Bucks, where he died on the 30th March 2000. He was cremated, and his ashes were scattered by Susan at a location in Buckinghamshire. Susan and her husband moved to Dorset shortly afterwards.

When I started my quest to identify J.R. Whitbread, I spent considerable time studying his book The Railway Policeman in an attempt to build up a profile of the author and look for anything else which may help to identify him. During this process, I came across something which I had not previously noticed, but found to be quite interesting. On the inside of the dust cover, the British Transport Commission Police as it was known is referred to as the British Transport Police. Within the book itself, the same reference is made on a number of occasions. In the preface of the book the author states that the force is known as the British Transport Police even though at that time it was known as the British Transport Commission Police. I well remember the year 1962 when people (including officers from other forces) referred to our force as the BTC Police. This continued to be the case for quite some time after 1963. I do not recall the force ever being referred to as the British Transport Police prior to 1963, and I would be interested to hear from anyone who did. Being the meticulous person that he was, I feel sure that these mentions were not errors on the part of John Whitbread, but deliberate inclusions in his book.

John Whitbread completed his book in March 1961. Was he aware that the British Transport Commission was being abolished the following year? I think it is quite likely that he was aware. Were the references in his book subliminal insertions, setting the seeds for the name The British Transport Police to be adopted, or was he in any way involved in negotiations regarding the re-naming of the force the following year? To those questions I think the answer is possibly not, but it does give us food for thought. After all, the force was renamed The British Transport Police, the name used by John Whitbread.

 

In Conclusion
When I embarked upon this project, it was my objective to uncover the identity of Mr J.R. Whitbread. Now that his identity has been established, I hope that John Robert Whitbread can be remembered in future years, not for the same reasons as his ancestors, but for the outstanding contribution which he as an individual has made to the history of the British Transport Police, and for which I feel we all owe him our gratitude.

I have enjoyed my research into the fascinating family history and background of John Robert Whitbread, and it gives me pleasure to present my findings to the History Group so that the information can be recorded and preserved for future generations.

I would like to thank Mrs Susan Hawksley (daughter of J.R.Whitbread) for her kind co-operation and Mr Christopher McKay (nephew of J.R.Whitbread) for supplying information and photographs which enabled me to write this article.

Postscript
I have already been asked the question “how exactly did you track down and establish the identity of J.R.Whitbread”. That is a fair question so I have decided to answer it but before doing so I would like to go back in time to the 1960’s when I joined the force. As a raw recruit I would often ask my Sergeant or Inspector “what shall I do about this” or “how do I do that”. I looked to them for advice and guidance and I was always given an answer. I often got the impression that they themselves were unsure about the course of action to be taken but nevertheless, I always received advice. Strange as it may seem, it was that same advice that enabled me to uncover the identity of J.R.Whitbread, ‘I used my initiative’. I hope that answers the question.

Malcolm Clegg (Swansea)

 

Extract from the May 2014 edition of History Lines (No. 57)

Link to Part 1
and Part 2