Cogan House St Peter's Canterbury

COGAN HOUSE, ST. PETER'S, CANTERBURY By E. W. PARKIN THE STONE HOUSE How deceptive can be the fa9ade of an old build.ing1 One would probably pass Cogan House in St. Peter's Street without a second glance at it, and this must happen daily in all our ancient towns and cities. Only a small plaque with the name 'Cogan House' over a hairdressing salon gives any indication that here is a house of extraordinary interest. The entrance to it is through a side door and passage, -and this leads into a small hall, around which is some of the :finest Tudor panelling in Kent. However, a stone Gothic doorway, and some very thick walls give a clue that the house must be very much older than this. It is only by exploring every corner, by measuring, and preparing a scale plan that the nature of the original house will slowly emerge, and here the visual evidence shows that a substantial part of a very ancient stone house still survives on the street front, with part of a,n aisled hall behind it of a date sometime before 1250. Documentary sources indicate that the building was originally the short-lived Cokyn's Hospital, that it became a, private house, and, then a.gain, a hospital in the seventeenth century, known this time as Coga.n's Hospital. The :first mention o(a dwelling here is c. 1200 A.D. in 'Renta.l D' of the Christ Church rentals published by Dr. U rry.1 The frontage of the plot (D 365) is given B.£ 36 ft. (10·92 m.), which corresponds with the present frontage of no. 53 St. Peter's Street, and is probably the plot where Luke the Moneyer had a stone house. The adjacent plot, the western half ofD 366, now occupied by no. 54, was held, ofSt. Gregory's Priory, by William Cokyn. William was apparently the son of Augustine of London,2 and married Margaret Cauvel, eventually acquiring her family residence at 'the west end of St. Margaret's church'; this was presuma.bly on the site of a building which stands back behind St. Margaret's Church, and is now no. 31 St. Margaret's Street. Tn FOUNDATION OF CoKn.'s HosPITAL Shortly before the year 1203, William Cokyn purchased the property ne:x:t to his own jn St. Peter's Street, a.nd founded there a hospital. 1 W. G. Urry, Oanterbury under the Angwin Kings, London, 1967, 312 and Ma.p 2, Sheet 5. 2 Ibid., 64, 176. 123 COGAN HOUSE, ST. PETER'S, CANTERBURY Exactly which year is not known; Somners puts it ' ... in the time of Archbishop Hubert (1193-1205), but it must have been after the compilation of Rental D (c. 1200, or a trifle earlier;4 over-confidently . assigned by Mrs. Gardiner to 1195), and before 1203, when Cokyn's hospital was united with Eastbridge. Somner continues: 'In this archbishop's time (Hubert), there was another hospital neighbouring unto this of Eastbridge called Cokyn's Hospital, built and founded by one William Cokyn, a citizen of Canterbury and of a worthy family whose name in his posterity did long survive rum in this city, some of whom were bayliffs in their time. The hospital was dedicated to St. Nicholas and (the virgin and martyr) St. Catherine, and stood sometime in the parish of St. Peter in Canterbury, almost directly opposite the now Black Friers gate,5 having had a lane by it aforetime called Cokyn's Lane, now shut up and built upon, often mentioned in Eastbridge books, and not forgotten of some now living.' The Black Friars gate stood on the north side of St. Peter's Street, at the entrance of what is now a street called the Friars,o and Cokyn's Lane was on the south side of St. Peter's Street, on the left, or east side of Cogan House. This lane, though difficult to locate, is, strangely enough, still a right of way, and though, as Somner says, is built over, it can still be entered by passing through the shop entrance on the left and opening a door at the rear into the passage which still leads to the River Stour, and to the site of the former Franciscan priory of the 'Grey Friars'. It can be assumed that the lane was much used before the Dissolution, and much less so afterwards . .As Somner first published his book in 1640, his reference to the lane as being within living memory means that it was built over sometime about 1600, and that tallies with the high-gabled, timber-framed building, no. 54, which is there now. Behind that building is the extensive garden of the Master's House of Eastbridge Hospital, and this abuts the passage with an ancient wall, and once had its ma.in entrance gateway in it. Somner then records the purchase of the property where the hospital was founded;7 ' • • • I collect by charters which I have seen that the founder lived by that lane, and find that for 18 marks de gerswmtl or for the consideration of 18 marks, he purchased of Stephan the Priest, and Godesman the sons of Richard the Mercer of Canterbury, with the 3 William Somner, The Antiquities of Oanterbury, 2nd edition revised by Nicholas Battely, 1703, from original edn. of 1640, i, 60. ' W. G. Urry, op. cit., 13. 6 Erected 1340, demolished 1787. 0 A plaque on the corner-shop commemorates the gate. 1 William Somner, op. cit., 2nd edn., 61. 124 COGAN HOUSE, ST. PETER'S, CANTERBURY consent of their widow mother Cicely,s a, messuage next adjacent to his own .. .' Somner prints the deed in full, but without source. It describes the plot a.'l lying :between those of William Cokyn, which was of stone, and Walter the Merchant, and extending from the King's highway to the River Stour, the street frontage being given as 42 ft.; ' ... in latiiludine versus cheminium domini regis 42 pedes ... ' This is interesting as the frontage of the old stone house is 36 ft., and the measurement must therefore include the width of the passage. Further, the lease of 1473, whereby John Bygg agreed to pay the city 2d. per annum ground rent, describes the 'lane' as 40 ft. wide, and to have Eastbridge garden on its eastern boundary. Somner continues: 'Having purchased this messuage, he either builds there a new hospital, or else converts his purchase into one. Afterwards by his charter (wherein he saith the hospitals of St.N icholas and St. Catherine, and St. Thomas of Eastbridge in Canterbury were united ha.ply and probably by .Archbishop Hubert, and that union by Pope Innocent confirmed9) entitles these hospitals to all his lands, possessions and chattels, and makes them his heirs. This done, and one Godelman, son of Richard the merchant challenging an interest in the soil where the hospital stood; for 7s consideration he is bought out and makes a charter to .Archbishop Hubert, acknowledging in a full Burgmote of the city, of release of all his rights thereunto . ..' Cokyn's Hospital was thus united with Eastbridge soon after its foundation, and its life as a hospital was something less than 30 years. Somner continues: ' ...i t ceased soon afterwards to be used as a hospital, and was hired and rented out.' The Priory of St. Gregory, just outside the Northgate, Canterbury, also appears to have ha.d some interest in the land here. Cokyn's own house on the east side of his hospital was held by him 'of St. Gregory's Priory' before the year 1200,10 and later, in 1238, a charter was signed by Robert the Prior and his convent, confirming the gift of the same house to the joint hospitals on consideration of a yearly payment of 18 pence to the said priory of St. Gregory.11 All evidence therefore indicates that Cogan House was at one time Cokyn's Hospital, and here it must be pointed out that William Cokyn did not live there, but as alrea.dy stated, in the house next to it on the east side, with the passage between. Some confusion has arisen over these two buildings, and no writer attempts satisfactorily to distinguish 8 In Rental D Cicely, there called wife of Roger Marshal, held the E half of D 366 (now represented by 56 St. Pater's St.), of Fa.versham Abbey. 0 By bull of Pope Innocent m, dated Jan. 1203 (Roman reckoning}. 10 W. G. Urry, op. eit., 312; Rental D 366. 11 J. Dwioombe and N. Battely, History of Three Archiepiscopal Hospitals, 1786, 304, 125 COGAN HOUSE, ST. PETER'S, CANTERBURY SH 0 G N CN TK TO L STR . 10 20 30ft --- 3 G 9m Fro. I. Plan of present House. 126 PLATE I A. Cogan House, and Entrance to Passage, as soon from the Stroot. B. Carved Panelling of circa 1529. [face p. 120 PLATE II A. Plaster Coiling of front Parlour. now Pot't of Shop. H. Tudor Reams 011cl Joists, with pnrnll<'l Floorboa,􀀪IH. PLATE ill A. The Hall Roof. B. The Aisle-post. COGAN HOUSE, ST. PETER'S, CANTERBURY between them. Both appear to have been stone houses,12 that is, with walls of flint and chalk lump, with stone dressings, and both may have been built before 1200. In Cogan House these walls survive right up to wall-plate, or rooflevel, only the front wall being missing. They are of considerable thickness, measuring 2 ft. 4 in., or 80 cm. through. On the first :floor rear may be observed two recesses, some 3 ft. wide, which may have been external windows before the great hall was added by William Cokyn at the rear. This hall, which was 36 ft. wide (10·92 m.), was obviously intended to be something larger than an ordinary town house of the time. The original stone house was probably of the first-floor hall-type with an undercroft at street level. This last could be then easily converted for use as buttery, pantry, etc., by inserting four of the new type pointed doorways leading into the rear hall. The one through which one still enters the house must have been originally the entrance doorway, and a corresponding opening at the far end was presumably the stairs door. In the centre are twin doorways, now blocked, doubtless for buttery and pantry. THE .AlsLED HALL (Figs. I, 3, 4, 5) The hall was aisled, that is, it had free-standing posts as in a barn, and four of these posts still survive, though three of them a.re now encased. The fourth is inside a cupboard on the left of the great Tudor fireplace in the kitchen, and bears simple mouldings (Fig. 5, P, Q). The surviving section of the hall is one bay of 18 ft. (5·48 m.), and the Tudor wing, which is in width another 18 ft., presumably occupies the missing second bay. The roof is in part intact and undisturbed. It is heavily soot-coated, and with long cross-bracing and archaic 'notched lap joints', both 'secret' and plain (Fig. 5, B, D), and may be ascribed with confidence to the period of Cokyn's Hospital. SOME OooUPANTS OF THE HousE AFTER 1230 Cokyn's Hospital ceased to be used as such about the year 1230, when it passed again into private hands. The records of Christchurch and of the cityis provide many intriguing glimpses into the lives of people who dwelt in this ancient place, and Dorothy Gardiner, the historian, who actually lived there for some years after the Second 19 William Cokyn's own house, on the east side of the hospital, is described at the time of its sale to William Samuel as, ' ... the whole tenement with all the edifices of wood and stone ..• '. Somner, op. cit., 61-62. 13 A former solicitor of Canterbury, Alderme.n 0. R. Bunce, spent many years copying the city records, which work is now a treasured poeseBSion of the city library. Extracts of this appeared in the Kentish Gazette (16 September, 1800, ff.) and subsequently in Ancient Oanterbury, Records of Alderman Bunce. 127 STR 10 20ft 6m Flo. 2. Section of present House. 0 S 10 20ft AP1 m -=-=-=--=-::::t:=====I 3 6m FIG. 3. Sectional Reconstruction of House in Thirteenth Century. 8 􀀄 ::i:t g l:/.l !?'J ro !-3 I'd 􀀅 􀀆 ,0 . II § t;;1 !;tf 􀀇 COGAN HOUSE, ST. PETER'S, CANTERBURY World War, has left an interesting booklet on the house.14 It is rare that the story of a small house is backed by such a wealth of material. William Cokyn and his son, also William, both lived in the house next to the hospital before it was 'demised' to one, William Samuel, in 1238. Edmunde Cokyn, the grandson, is recorded as living in St. Margaret's Street. Two later members of the founder's family lived in Cogan House in the 􀃵d-fourteenth century, they were William Kokyn, and his son Alexander Kokyn. Thomas Ickham, who lived there from 1404 to 1415 and who was bailiff at least five times, was probably responsible for the first major alteration to the frontage. Evidence of the building itself indicates that the stone front was removed about then, and replaced by a timber-framed one, probably with a jetty, or overhang. A new crown-post roof was btμlt over this; the early-fifteenth-century crownpost may still be seen, embedded in a partition on the second floor. Another important occupant was John Bygg, who purchased the house in 1473 and who paid ground rent at 2d. per annum. He was a mercer by trade, and was mayorl6 of the city tl;iree times. His father appears in Christchurch records as the baker of noted white bread, living at the King's Mill at Eastbridge.16 The most extensive alterations to the house were made, however, by one, John Thomas about 1529. He pulled down the rear part of the aisled hall and built the Tudor wing. The remaining part of the hall was divided into two floors, and the beautiful panelling added. Thomas was a hosier and 'poyntmaker', his hobbies appear to have been hunting and bear-baiting. Point making was a lucrative trade at this period, as metal tags or points were extensively used on laces by gentlemen of fashion. The 'parchemin' panelling, which is still in such wonderful condition, is carved with a design of foliage and grapes on every panel, and is more Continental than English in style. The frieze shows some of the implements of the owner's trade. There is a tool for piercing holes for eyelets, a wool-comber's comb, and some small wool-sacks, on one of which are the initials 'J.T.'. The frieze must have continued once along the whole of the north side of the hall; this would explain why the royal coat of arms is split in two. Ralph Baldwin, another point-maker (1568-1611), survived several bad outbreaks of plague to become mayor of the city at least twice. Burial registers show that during his second mayoralty in 1583, no 14 D. Gardiner, The Home of Seven OenJwries, 1956. The following account is based on this booklet, which is full of extracts but deficient in references. 16 Henry VI, by his charter of 1448, granted to the citizens of Cantel'bury the privilege of electing a mayor, instead of two bailiffs as hitherto. . 14 This was a stone mill, demolished in 1700. It stood by the bridge facing the Old Weavers, and part of its stone base may still be seen. 180 COGAN HOUSE, ST. PETER'S, CANTERBURY 11 I; I/ I/ ,1 ;I ,1 I ( 1/il 1.B " I 1-1 I I I I I I I I I 0 0 AP1 10 20ft 3 6m FIG. 4. Cross-section of original aisled Hall. 131 AP2 .... 􀀆 to ( 􀀇 0 d } Q 0 S ins. FIG. 5. .ro inting of Hall Roof and Moulding of A:isle Post. D 0 0 !Ill - [I.) ,, ,. ,, 􀀈 ·: I'd l;:j pi 􀀉 0 COGAN HOUSE, ST. PETER'S, CANTERBURY - I I ;O -, I , \ -· ' - J I . - :i r _, ' :!,. 1_,_, _/. -'