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The
Rant
A Passion for Poole
Karl Wells
For as long as I can remember I have been crazy about all things British. It started with British comedy. When I was a kid I discovered Hancock's Half Hour on television. The caustic humour of Tony Hancock had me in stitches every week. Then it was the Carry On movies starring Sid James, Hattie Jacques, Kenneth Williams and the rest of the gang. As I grew older my interest broadened to include British history, literature, theatre and even (don’t laugh) British cookery.
My fascination with Britain seemed natural when I learned as a boy that my ancestors came from England. In fact, both sides of my family trace their roots back to 18th century England. My father’s people came from the Somerset area in what’s called the West Country and my mother’s relations, the Stockleys, from a West Country town called Poole in nearby Dorset.
It was a pleasant coincidence some time ago when I met a couple of fellow vacationers from Poole, England during one of my semi-regular Florida vacations. It was over drinks at one of those 5 o’clock poolside happy hours. After hearing their distinctive accents I approached to ask (Andy and Derek) about Tony Blair’s chances of political survival. Turns out they were more optimistic for Mr. Blair than I, but we got past that and quickly became friends.
After Florida Andy and Derek invited me to visit them in Poole. Given my ancestry and Poole’s special connection to Newfoundland (more on that later) it was an offer I couldn’t refuse. I’m not long back and am still savouring every moment of my visit, from the amazing sandy beaches of Poole, to the quintessential English fish and chips I devoured at Sir Cliff Richard’s favourite chippy.
Poole is located on the southwest coast of England in a county called Dorset, just east of Devon and Somerset counties. It has a population below 200,000 but when you include the borough of Bournemouth, sitting side by side with Poole, the overall population approaches 400,000.
 Poole is built around a large harbour that is in parts quite shallow. In the distance on the far side of the harbour you can see remnants of one of the oldest buildings in the area, Corfe Castle. A few centuries ago dozens of fishing vessels and hundreds of men would leave Poole harbour once a year to travel to Newfoundland to catch cod. In fact, there was a time when approximately eighty percent of Poole’s economy was based on the Newfoundland fishery.
I saw a few small fishing boats when I walked along the quay in Poole but the days of major fishing operations are long gone. Dozens of sleek yachts of every size and description have replaced the fishing fleets of bygone days. Many of them were built at a factory located right on the harbour. The company that builds them is called Sunseeker and I’m told a single motorized Sunseeker pleasure craft sells for three to four million pounds.
Along with Sunseeker yachts, the palm trees and sandy beaches of Poole give the impression of a Mediterranean holiday resort. People are always shocked to learn about palm trees growing in England but the fact is, while palm trees in Poole were planted there many years ago, palms do grow naturally in an area just west of Poole. It’s known as the British Riviera, with Torquay as it’s unofficial capital.
While in Poole I took the opportunity to look up an old acquaintance of mine, a gentleman named Alan Perry. For those of you familiar with the historic Lester-Garland House in Trinity, you may also know that Alan Perry was the Poole businessman who led the effort to rebuild that Trinity landmark. Alan was and still is driven by a deep desire to educate people here and in Poole about the significant links between his part of England and Newfoundland.
Alan and his wife Jill spent thousands of pounds of their own money on the building in Trinity, not only on its reconstruction but also on its furnishings. And he is still acquiring what objects he can and returning them to Newfoundland. As he told me recently, “Nothing was left in Newfoundland. They put everything aboard their ships and brought it back here to England.”
I spent a wonderful evening dining with Alan and Jill Perry at the Mansion House, a beautiful Georgian townhouse just off Poole’s quay now being operated as a hotel. The building has a Newfoundland connection in that Isaac Lester, brother of Benjamin Lester who built the historic Trinity house, built it. The brothers were partners in a fishing operation that ultimately owned thirty vessels and sent hundreds of Poole area men to Newfoundland to catch fish. Benjamin worked out of their headquarters in Trinity, while Isaac handled the Poole end of the business.
As we got out of Alan’s car on the Mansion House parking lot, the evening had closed in and it was getting dark. I hardly noticed a long tube resembling a rolled-up map under Alan’s right arm. He had an especially bright twinkle in his eye though and as we climbed the steps to go inside he said, “I’ve got something here that I want to show you. It’s something special. I think you’ll find it quite interesting.”
 There is a room at the Mansion House called the Benjamin Lester Suite. It’s used for special functions. That evening it was vacant so Alan snuck me in to show me the room’s famous fireplace. Carved into the mantelpiece were two very prominent salt cod fillets, Newfoundland cod being the source of the family’s great wealth. How appropriate it was that Alan revealed to me in that room what had been so carefully tucked under his right arm. On one of the meeting tables in the Benjamin Lester Suite he rolled out an original copy of the John Lester Family Tree, John Lester of Poole, Dorset being Benjamin and Isaac Lester’s grandfather.
 Alan informed me he had gotten word that the owner of the document was about to auction it off through Christie’s. He contacted the individual and convinced her to sell it directly to him and avoid having to pay a fee to Christie’s. She did and now Alan has another piece of Newfoundland history that he intends to donate to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador. Expect its arrival within the next eight or nine months.
 Newfoundland connections seemed to pop up around every corner in Poole’s general harbour area. One bright, sunny afternoon Derek, Andy and I visited St. James’ Poole Parish Church. Believe it or not I saw the Newfoundland and Labrador flag hanging from one of the great wooden columns that hold up the old stone church. Robert Mason, Rector of Poole, told us the flag was hung to recognize the contribution made to the church by Newfoundland. All of its handsome pillars were made from Newfoundland pine, brought to England from Newfoundland at the end of each fishing season.
Two of the main streets near the Poole quay are Newfoundland Drive and Labrador Drive. We checked them out one evening on our way to sup at a pub Alan had told me about. It was called The Antelope and was not hard to identify at its location near the dock. A very large antelope was mounted above the entrance to the aged hotel and lounge.
My reason for wanting to visit the Antelope was John August, a Beothuck. According to Alan Perry, John August (Beothucks were given surnames matching the month they were born, i.e. Mary “March,” John “August”) was taken from Newfoundland and put on display, as a curiosity, at The Antelope a few hundred years ago. He remained there until people were no longer interested in paying to see him. Eventually he was returned to Newfoundland where he died. I was so saddened and moved by my feelings when I got there that I had to leave The Antelope seconds after walking into the place. It was as if I could see John August standing in a corner while drunken revelers poked, prodded and made fun of him. To be honest, some of what I felt was shame.
Poignant moments aside, much of my Poole adventure involved fun things. For example, I discovered the best fish and chips in all Britannia in Poole. It was at a place called Chez Fred. You don’t have to take my word for it either. Chez Fred was full of pictures of its manager posing with the restaurant’s star clientele like Sir Cliff Richard. Then there was my visit to Poole Pottery, a factory that manufactures some of the most collectable pottery in England, colourful stuff with a tie-dyed appearance. I purchased a couple of pieces, one being a plate that featured a “Newfoundland” trader, a brig called General Wolfe.
On my last Sunday in Poole my host Andy treated me to one of his culinary specialties, a full English breakfast. It was definitely better than the chip buttie (sandwich) I’d tasted in a pub earlier and (sorry Andy) almost as good as Chez Fred’s fish and chips. My friend’s full English was a wonderful combination of fried bread (fried in beef dripping) baked beans, bacon, fried mushrooms, sausages and fried egg. Cardiologists disapprove of such fare but I can testify that it was very, very good.
I hope to be able to taste a full English in Poole again some day and I also hope more folk from this province can visit Poole and England’s spectacular West Country to experience the Newfoundland connections firsthand. I know you’ll treasure the memory and perhaps, like me, will want to return.
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