No description
of bellringing in East Garston would be complete without
mentioning the late Rev. C.W.O. ]enkyn. Cyril Walford
Osborn Jenkyn was born In East Garston in 1874, the
son of W.O. Jenkyn, who was the vicar of East Garston
from 1870 to 1901. He attended Marlborough College,
then moved on to Trinity College, Cambridge, where he
obtained a BA in 1895 and was a member of the First
Rowing Eight. He then attended Wells Theological College,
becoming a Deacon in 1897 and a Priest the following
year. He married Olive Mary Beale at East Garston in
September 1898 - the reception was held at Manor Farm.
Rev. Jenkyn learned to ring at East Garston and Lambourn
as a boy - William Woodley used to proudly relate how
he had taught Jenkyn the basics of handling a bell.
He rang his first peal ( memorized sequence of
5040 changes usually lasting over three hours) at Cambridge
in 1894 - exactly 39 years before his death.
He became Curate at Waltham St. Lawrence, and then moved
to Witney from 1899 to 1910, where he became fully involved
with the local community, and organized activities for
the local youth - also finding time to undertake a camping
tour of Palestine. He then became Chaplain of Queen
Anne Girl's School in Caversham - and while serving
here, also found time to be Chaplain to the Caversham
Freemasons Lodge, President of the Caversham Nursing
Association and a member of the Reading Leander Club.
He also
served on the committees of Reading University, Royal
Berkshire Hospital and the Reading Tuberculosis Dispensary
Care Association, as well as serving as a locum minister
in the Reading area. Between 1915 and 1919,
Rev.
]enkyn served as an Army Chaplain in Flanders, and was
awarded the Military Cross in 1916 for fine and gallant
work helping to rescue wounded soldiers under fire.
It was during this time that he suffered a gas attack
from which he never fully recovered.
m
M
He became Branch Chairman and also Librarian of the
Oxford Diocesan Guild of Church Bellringers, and was
elected Master of the Guild in 1910. He liked to ring
heavy bells, including the tenors at Southwark and St.
Mary le Bow, and the tenth at St. Paul's Cathedral -
all these bells weigh over two tons (2000kg).
His frequent visits to the many towers in the area were
eagerly awaited by the local ringers.
On Easter Monday, 1933, Rev. Jenkyn spent the morning
with his wife in East Garston, walking in the woods
which he loved. In the afternoon, he went to St. Nicolas
Church in Newbury to listen to the bells, which had
recently been augmented with a 9th and 10th. He descended
the steep staircase from the ringing chamber and walked
towards the canal at West Mills to listen to the bells.
It
was there he was found collapsed, and doctors
were unable to save him - he had finally succumbed
to the effects of the gassing he had endured in
the first World War.The funeral took place on
27 April 1933 at East Garston. Ringers from as
far away as the Midlands, London and South Wales
attended, filling the church and spilling out
into the churchyard. Over one hundred floral tributes
were received, and memorial services conducted
all over Berkshire. Simultaneous peals were rung
at East Garston and Newbury, and a peal on handbells
was rung over his grave. His photograph hangs
in All Saints and many other belfries in the area
to this day, and there is a memorial in his memory
at Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford. This remarkable
man is still remembered today, not only for his
many achievements but also for his friendliness
and infectious enthusiasm.
