THIS IS FINDON VILLAGE ― These Findon Chronicles are created by Valerie Martin and are progressively growing to be the only record of life around Findon, West Sussex, England.  Everyday stories about real people..... in fact, a potted history of the village.  The topics today, are the history of tomorrow. 

THOMAS FORD OF FINDON.....Occupation: Smuggler (born 1726)

I can only assume that Rudyard's advice to "watch the wall" was to suggest that inhabitants could quite truthfully say that if they turned and looked at a wall, they had not witnessed smugglers passing in their locality!

I cannot prove that Findon was a hot bed of smuggling but practically every stretch of coastline in Sussex had some association with the huge industry of running illicit alcoholic beverages and luxury goods in the 1700s and 1800s. While many of the classic Sussex smuggling stories are fanciful, there is a large degree of truth in many of them for the simple reason that smuggling was rampant up until the 1820s.    The occupation sounds exciting but in truth most of the smugglers were a mixture of hardened local criminals, enterprising business men and usually including the local preacher.   Even horses were accomplices in the trading of goods.   The nearby farmers would finish with their cart horses and stabled them away for the night.... only for the smugglers to turn up and use them as beasts of burden..... leaving the farmers to wonder why their beasts of burden were not refreshed "after a long night's rest in their stables".

The empty Sussex shoreline was an obvious site for the freetraders to ply their nefarious trade as it was barely inhabited years ago..   These were days before sea defences and when ravaging storms regularly rearranged our shoreline.    Although Findon is four miles inland, the men folk would often take the comparatively short trek down to the deserted coast after dark to assist in unloading of smuggled goods.   These were destined for London and dispersed to rich customers wanting to enjoy the valued goods and luxuries without paying the required tax imposed on them.

You may be thinking that the English Channel crossing to Kent was a shorter sea route...... but if you think about it, our Sussex shore was an attractive proposition because the hard journey inland to the capital was shorter.   The trip was not to be taken lightly in the 1700 as the Sussex roads were boggy and the organising of transporting heavy loads to London was a big undertaking.

The black economy pervaded all social levels as well as lowly Findon villagers and it was claimed that Sir Robert Walpole (1676 - 1745), the Whig Prime Minister, amassed much of his wealth from the trade.   Smugglers soon became involved in other enterprises and even Rear Admiral Sir Horatio Nelson (1758-1805) employed smugglers as pilots due to their expertise.  

Manpower was required by the organisers and in all probability many of the male population of Findon lent a hand in some way or other when smuggling was afoot.  It is said that the violent nature of the leaders of the ruthless smuggling gangs meant that many law-abiding Findonians were afraid of the consequences if not partaking when required.  

There are many stories of murders, ugly conflicts, beatings and fighting associated with Sussex bootleggers.    It must be remembered that no organised police force was in existence and the Coastguard was under-resourced and often corruptible with the eye on being bribed.    The power of the Customs Officers was rather limited and their ability to bring the outlaws to justice was highly questionable and brutal.

So secure was the smugglers throttle hold on the population that they even sometimes transported goods in broad daylight in convoys of hundreds of heavily armed men.  This was organised crime on a massive scale and by 1782, figures estimated that a quarter of all the boats engaged in smuggling nationwide were based along our stretch of coast.   50% of the smuggled gin into England was also landed here.

This brings me to a certain gentleman running brandy by the name of Thomas Ford of Findon.    In January 2012 I received the following most interesting email from Campbell Ford in Australia telling me about this village smuggler I had not hitherto heard about....

Thomas Ford was born in Findon in 1726.   His early life is unsure and I am unable to say where exactly he lived in the village.  As the years passed he and his brother were engaged in the profitable business of smuggling.   By the time he was 42 years of age he had a wife and at least one son, named David.    In order to avoid the heavy import duties imposed by the then government on alcohol they embarked on a large-scale business of landing the barrels on deserted beaches at Lancing.   The contraband was then worked inland and hidden in secret storage places on our Sussex Downs.

One dark night in January 1768 they had the excise-men had the stroke of luck to intercept them and Thomas was killed in action in the affray. 

Doug Attrell from nearby Goring wrote in to say........"Hi V..... Smuggling...I can't find anything on Thomas Ford of Findon but I did find one John Ford who was sentenced to transportation in 1828, presumably to Australia.

Doug said...."Dear V.....All very interesting. Good luck with your investigation. I read a bit more of that online book & far from being romantic rogues most of those smugglers were vicious thugs".

I then discovered some of the Ford family at St. John the Baptist Church......... with variations to the surname being Forde....

The earliest reference is to a certain John Forde and he died in 1713.

Robert Forde deceased 1733.

Thomas Forde departed this world in 1740.   (This is the incorrect date for the Thomas Ford the smuggler....... as our Thomas died in 1768).

Mary Forde died in 1749.

A certain Margaret Ford died a year later in 1750.

Abigail Ford was the last Ford I could find and she died in 1766.

Absolutely any of the above could be (and most likely were) connected to our dubious smuggler, Thomas Ford, and hold a story that could have been told if only I find it.

I thought an excursion over to the woods and St. John the Baptist Church to search among the tombstones was in order that same wintry January afternoon in 2012.....  

Katie immediately located three Ford graves standing in a row on the north side of the churchyard just to the left of the War Memorial.....

On the left in the first photograph....is the grave of Mary Ford wife of Robert Ford.   Died 1749 aged 78 years.
 

Cannot decipher this weather worn one.... tight up close to Mary's...... so Suzie thinks it must be some connection with her.
 

The one to the right of Mary is the grave of John Ford died 1713, son of Robert Ford and..... unable to read the remainder.

Next Suzie and Katie discover (on the opposite side of the path) more Ford graves in a neat row... undecipherable, except one for Abigail in 1766.

Conclusion:    Rather disappointingly, there is no mention of our Thomas the smuggler in the Findon graveyard..... nor did anyone admit in stone to having a smuggler in the family.   Are we any further forward?   Not really... but we had a good wander around on a pleasant wintry afternoon nevertheless.

Anyhow, this is the exact spot where Thomas (or was he known as Tom?) could have stood with head bowed....and mourned some of his family members all those years ago.... before he was caught for smuggling.

Ex-Shoreham guy, Gerald White now living in Lincoln emailed...    "Hello Valerie, reading about smuggling in the area, reminded me that my forebear Thomas White , a Coastguard was posted from the Isle of Wight to Shoreham Coastguard station, to help stiffen the Govt war on smuggling in Sussex..This was in 1832.........I suppose with the rivers , and gently sloping beaches, where goods could be easily landed........smuggling was an industry..........Gerald"
 

David Johnston in Petworth emailed...."Dear Valerie - the smuggler Thomas Ford - could the following person's be related to him?

In 1721, a trio customs officers - John Rogers, Mr Colman and Lieutenant Jekyll, along with a party of grenadiers set off to capture a number of Sussex smugglers.

"------ Another and more successful expedition by Rogers, Lieutenant Jekyll and Mr Colman, riding officer, was made a little later when one Sunday morning they set out with a the datachment of grenadiers for Arundel.

Thence they went to Rustington where they captured Edward Martin and Richard Ford.

The same day they went to Kingston nearby where they took Richard Webb: they then turned about and went to Chichester where they took Scarvell and Deetley, both of Pagham.

On Tuesday morning they left Chichester, and at a little ale-house between there and Arundal took William Reading. ----- "

"---- The last serious bloody affray took place near Bexhill, in 1828.   A large body of armed smugglers unloaded a cargo of goods and made off with them inland as fast as they could on horseback and in carts. They were met by about forty blockade men, and a desperate fight took place in which two men were killed and many wounded.   Eight of the smugglers, Spencer Whiteman, Thomas Miller, Henry Miller, John Spray, Edward Shoresmith, William Bennet, John Ford and Stephen Hubberfield, were captured and sent under a strong military guard to Horsham Goal. They were subsequently tried at the next Assizes at Horsham, transferred to the Old Bailey, London, and all sentenced to death, a sentence which was afterwards commuted to transportation for life. ------ "

All best ------- David".

That last paragraph ties up with Doug's story.

The Ford family appeared to be into smuggling in a big way in Sussex.   

Tony Packe in Beddington near Croydon emailed.... "Dear Valerie.... Mary Ford aged 78....That was an amazing age to live to in 1749. Most of the population were lucky to reach 50. I wonder if they were financially better off than the average?   Tony"

I thought exactly that when I was kneeling in front of her grave so I checked my photographic evidence again...

Yes, sure enough, it was definitely aged 78 years.  

Then John Stepney of Findon literally dug up a list burials for the Ford(e) name in St. John the Baptist churchyard.....
 

Continue to read about More smuggling in the 1800s

 Back to Smugglers Index

 Back to Main Index

THIS IS FINDON VILLAGE —  is a continually growing record created by Valerie Martin exclusively for documenting life in Findon.