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Boardman Stories
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The Boardman Family built the house at How Hill starting in 1904. Firstly, it was their holiday home and then later in 1915 they extended it and moved there permanently. Edward Boardman was an architect. His wife Florence was from the Colman family. They had 5 children Joan, Chris, Humphrey, Stuart and Michael.
You can find more information and lots of photographs on our photographs page
Here are some interesting stories about the family that you may not know:
How the Wherry Hathor got its name
 Jeremiah Colman in Egypt |
Jeremiah James Colman was a
wealthy man. He owned the Colman's Mustard business in Norwich. He
always said that he made his fortune from the mustard people left on
the
sides of their plates. One of his daughters, Florence, married Edward
Boardman. Together they built How Hill House. Jeremiah also had a son called Alan. Alan was seriously ill with a lung disease (probably TB) and he was prescribed a holiday in a hot dry climate to help with his illness. So in 1897, the family set out for Egypt. They travelled out by boat through the Mediterranean. When they got to Egypt, they embarked on a Nile cruise. Florence took her camera along to record the event. Despite their age, over 300 of her photographs have survived very well. The Ludham Archive has scanned all the photographs and we are grateful to Pauline Boardman for permission to reproduce some here. The Colman family collected lots of Egyptian artefacts along the way and these can now be seen in the Castle Museum in Norwich. |
The boat that the family travelled on up the Nile was called the Hathor (pronounced Har-Tor)
The family went to see
lots
of antiquities as the Hathor carried them up the Nile:
When the party got to
Luxor, Alan died and that was really the end of the trip. They returned
via Venice and Florence.
When they got back, the Colman family commissioned a new pleasure wherry to be built. The boat was decorated in an Egyptian style and called Hathor after the Nile boat they had travelled on and in memory of Alan.
Joan Boardman releases doves at the launch of Hathor
Hupmhrey in Amsterdam
Two years later, Humphrey represented England in the British Empire
Games. He won gold medals in the Coxless Fours and the Eights.
In 1934, Britain entered the J class yacht Endeavour in the America's Cup which took place in Rhode Island. The skipper was Tommy Sopwith, the famous aviation pioneer. Following a disagreement with the crew, it was decided to take an amateur crew to sail Endeavour. Chris Boardman was one of the crew.
Endeavour was towed across the Atlantic by the MT Vita which was owned by Tommy Sopwith. Chris travelled on board.
The Vita
Once in America, Endeavour was fitted out for the races:
There were 5 races in all. Endeavour won the first two, but the defender, Rainbow, won the next 3 and so retained the cup. It was the nearest Britain came to winning the America's Cup in that era.
On board Endeavour
Chris Boardman went on the represent Britain at the 1936 Olympic Games. He was the helmsman of Lalage (pronounced La-La Gee) which competed in the 6 meter class at Kiel. Chris won a gold medal in this event.
Here we see Clearwing near How Hill
Cayenne racing at Fishley
When they got back, the Colman family commissioned a new pleasure wherry to be built. The boat was decorated in an Egyptian style and called Hathor after the Nile boat they had travelled on and in memory of Alan.
Joan Boardman releases doves at the launch of Hathor
Rowing and Sailing for Britain
Humphry Boardman was an expert rower. He competed in the 1928 Olympic Games in Amsterdam representing Britain in the Double Sculls with has partner Denis Guye. They did not win a medal.Hupmhrey in Amsterdam
In 1934, Britain entered the J class yacht Endeavour in the America's Cup which took place in Rhode Island. The skipper was Tommy Sopwith, the famous aviation pioneer. Following a disagreement with the crew, it was decided to take an amateur crew to sail Endeavour. Chris Boardman was one of the crew.
Endeavour was towed across the Atlantic by the MT Vita which was owned by Tommy Sopwith. Chris travelled on board.
The Vita
Once in America, Endeavour was fitted out for the races:
There were 5 races in all. Endeavour won the first two, but the defender, Rainbow, won the next 3 and so retained the cup. It was the nearest Britain came to winning the America's Cup in that era.
On board Endeavour
Chris Boardman went on the represent Britain at the 1936 Olympic Games. He was the helmsman of Lalage (pronounced La-La Gee) which competed in the 6 meter class at Kiel. Chris won a gold medal in this event.
Chris Boardman Boats
Chris sailed lots of different boats. The ones that seem to crop up most often in photographs are Cayenne, a National 14 class, (this boat often has sail number 9) and Clearwing a YBOD (usually sail number 14). Here are a couple of pictures:Here we see Clearwing near How Hill
Cayenne racing at Fishley
Clearwing is still sailing and is
in great condition as you can see below:
.