The Late Mr. W.J. Pike (died 24th Aug 1884)

(From the Wareham Advertiser)

On Wednesday last William Joseph Pike, intimately connected with various interests of our town for more than half –a-century, was, amid many signs of sorrow and regret, laid with his kindred at Church Knowle. The father, who died at Bucknowle in the year 1830, came up from South Devon to undertake the clay business. To this his two sons, William and John, succeeded; and, at the decease of the latter in the year 1869, William became sole proprietor. The clay-works of Hatherley & Co. had been purchased by the firm a few years before. The district (Bagshot sands) stretching from Stoborough to the Purbeck range, though barren on the surface, is very rich in clay deposits; indeed, the clay raised from the mines at the base of Creech barrow, is said to be equal to anything of its kind in the world. It has a peculiar property of toughness, and forms the staple of the finest Staffordshire earthenware, and is exported in large quantities to various continental countries. The late Mr. Pike was the mainstay of this important business, and by his skill, energy, and integrity, it grew and prospered.

            Much of the machinery used on the works was designed by him; he was his his own engineer in constructing the railway from the pits to the wharf; and his readiness of resource on one occasion at least, saved life. In this neighbourhood may still be seen certain Bibles with the following inscription: - “Presented to -------, as one of those by whose noble and untiring efforts C. Woolfries and G. Bartlett were, on Thursday, March 24^th 1859 rescued from an awful death, after being buried in a clay pit at Furzebrook for a period of four days”  

            Many of our readers will remember the intense excitement caused by the catastrophe, and how that excitement deepened when it was found that foul air baffled the efforts to reach the entombed by sinking a new shaft. Mr Pike, on hearing how matters stood the evening of the third day (the pit at that time belonged to Hatherley & Co.), saw the necessity for prompt measures if they were to be saved alive, so he gathered a quantity of gutta percha tubing from his garden, with this coiled round his neck and his pockets stuffed with rags and twine, he rode off at midnight for the scene; by means of the tubing, with the aid of the large bellows from his works, a supply of pure air was sent down, the sinking progressed, and the man and boy were taken out uninjured.

            He took a deep interest in education; for many years he was treasurer of the British School; when this passed under a school board he became chairman, and filled this office to the last; he further gratuitously discharged the duties of clerk. He was a firm Liberal, and at various elections worked actively and fearlessly for the cause. Mrs Craik, the author of “John Halifax, Gentleman” and often a visitor at Westport , has drawn a faithful and amusing picture of him as Marmaduke Dugdale in “Agatha’s Husband” and whilst nor sparing his peculiarities, has done full justice to his many noble qualities.

            His excellence as an Employer is shown by the fact that so many have grown grey in his service: the eight bearers had been with him from 20 to 45 years. It has been again and again said “ A better master there could not be.”  A gentleman, very closely connected with him in business for over half-a-century, speaks in the highest terms of his justice and fairness: he would stick to a bargain, though it might be a bad one; and if his word had been given, it was as good as a bond; and he was ever ready to do an act of kindness. He had, probably, no fixed views on religion – certainly he cared not for its forms; it was his conviction that our chief concern should be to fulfil the manifest duties that lie before us, to be truthful, upright, kind, and helpful to one another. Simple and unassuming, he was every inch a man. The loss of such in a country district is not soon repaired. All honour to his memory

He was a man, take him for all in all -
I shall not look upon his like again.  

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If having read the above, like me, you are wondering what a "British School" was, then below is an explanation that I have found. Wareham school had two teachers that had been trained at the Borough Road School

How the British and Foreign Schools Society was formed
Joseph Lancaster was a Quaker who became concerned that the poorer classes were denied the opportunity of education in the late 18th century. Recognising that the cost of education lay mainly in the salaries of teachers, he devised a method of teaching by which one schoolmaster was responsible for 300 or more boys, all accommodated in one large schoolroom.
The basic teaching of the younger children was undertaken by older ones, called monitors, who taught in small groups on either side of the schoolroom.
There is one remaining Lancasterian schoolroom in England at Hitchin, Hertfordshire, which is maintained as a museum.

Borough Road
In 1798, Lancaster opened his first school in the Borough Road in London, followed by a teacher-training establishment. Lancaster had a flair for recruiting support, often from wealthy non-conformist families although several members of the royal family also contributed.
In 1808, the Society for promoting the Royal British or Lancasterian System for the Education of the Poor was formed to help Lancaster organise and control his financial affairs, which were by then in disarray. In 1814 the Society changed its name to the British and Foreign School Society, as it’s known today.