Papers of Rev William Laporte Payne Reference: MS125 4/1/2013
MS125 Papers of Rev William Laporte Payne Personal papers of Rev William Laporte Payne comprising letters from members of his family, including one from his own mother, but mostly from his children, some of which are written to their mother; personal and official letters from clerical colleagues and others including one letter of 1878 offering him a place at the London College of Divinity and a letter from the Bishop of Worcester dated 1898; licences, institutions, certificates and associated papers relating to his varied clerical career which included serving in parishes in Birmingham, Gloucestershire, Kent, London and Somerset; official family papers including certificates, and orders of service, in memoriam cards and other miscellaneous family and personal material; and postcards, photographs and illustrations of some of the churches where he served and photographs of group events and individuals. The collection also includes a few letters of Rev Campbell Theophilus Payne, William's brother, which relate to his incumbency of St Andrew, Newington, London, 1899-1911 Administrative history: William Laporte Payne (d c 1924) was the son of William Michael Payne, a civil servant. He was admitted to the London College of Divinity in 1879 and was ordained as deacon in 1881 and as priest in 1882. The details of his incumbency in the various parishes in which he served are as follows: curate of St Peter's, Highgate Hill, London, 1881-1885; curate of Strood, 1885-1889; rector of All Saints, Birmingham, 1890-1898; vicar of St Luke, South Lyncombe, Bath, 1898-1907; vicar of Herne Bay, 1907-1911; vicar of Christ Church, North Finchley, London, 1911-1921; and rector of Woodchester, Gloucestershire, from 1921 until his death in around 1924. He married Rachel Aldridge, daughter of 1878-1921 1
Charles Miller Aldridge, a surgeon, in 1885. They had two sons, Archibald Alldridge (b 1887) and Reginald Merac (b 1891) and two daughters, Evelyn and Maudie. He had a brother, Campbell Theophilus Payne, who was also an Anglican clergyman and who also attended the London College of Divinity. References: Crockford's Clerical Directory 1923; items in the collection Arrangement: This collection is arranged into two series: professional papers and family papers 1 box Access conditions: Access to all registered researchers Copyright: Permission to make any published use of any material from the collection must be sought in advance in writing from the Director of Special Collections (email: specialcollections@bham.ac.uk). Identification of copyright holders of unpublished material is often difficult. Special Collections will assist where possible with identifying copyright owners, but responsibility for ensuring copyright clearance rests with the user of the material. Language: English Custodial history: These papers were rescued from a tip on the death of Archibald Laporte Payne, son of Rev William Laporte Payne, who served in the Royal Artillery in France during the First World War and subsequently became a London solicitor. Archibald's letters written from the trenches were sent by the rescuer to the Imperial War Museum. The papers of Rev William Laporte Payne were offered variously to archive services in Somerset and London including the Church of England Record Centre. The 2
MS125/1 MS125/1/1 MS125/1/2 papers were finally deposited in the University of Birmingham Information Services, Special Collections Department because of Payne's association with the London College of Divinity whose records are held here. Acquisition: Received from the Church of England Record Centre, November 2002 Related material: University of Birmingham Information Services, Special Collections Department holds the records of St John's College, Nottingham which include records of its predecessor, the London College of Divinity (GB 0150 SJC). The Special Collections Department holds personal papers of another contemporary Anglican clergyman, Rev Reginald Bartram (GB 0150 MS103) Professional papers 3 files Professional correspondence Letters to Rev William Laporte Payne from clerical colleagues including the Bishop of Worcester, relating to his various incumbencies at Highgate Hill, All Saints, Birmingham and South Lyncombe, Bath. Includes a letter from the London College of Divinity, dated 1878, admitting him as a student. Official professional papers Licences, institutions, declarations, certificates and receipts relating to Rev William Laporte Payne's clerical career. Includes examination certificate from the London College of Divinity and 1878-1921 1878-1898 1881-1921 3
MS125/1/3 MS125/2 MS125/2/1 declarations of his ordination as Deacon in 1881 and Priest in 1882, with various official documentation of his curacies at St Peter, Highgate Hill dated 1881 and Strood dated 1886, and of his incumbencies in Birmingham, Bath, North Finchley, Herne Bay and Woodchester. These include details of repairs to be made to All Saints, Birmingham in 1899 and Christ Church, North Finchley in 1912 under the Ecclesiastical Dilapidations Act, for which Payne was liable. Ephemera Postcards and photographs, many depicting some of the churches Payne served in, as well as other scenes of local interest, often sent by former parishioners. Includes postcard photographs of groups, possibly of Sunday school pupils, and two postcards of unidentified individuals as well as an illustrated booklet on Herne Bay. Family papers 3 files Family correspondence Letters to Rev William Laporte Payne from his family, mostly from his children, although one is from his mother. Some of the children's letters are written to their mother. Several of these letters are from Payne's elder son Archibald, while at a boarding school in Cheltenham. There are also letters from Payne's other son Reginald, and from his daughters Evelyn and Maudie. There is also an incomplete late 19thearly 20th cent 1885-1922 c1890-1914 4
MS125/2/2 MS125/2/3 letter to Payne regarding a forthcoming ear operation to be performed on his daughter Maudie, and a letter written by Payne to an unknown recipient which includes details of his family history. Official family papers and other family material Official papers include the marriage certificate of William Laporte Payne and Rachel Aldridge, the baptism certificate of their son Reginald Merac, and a service card for the baptism of their other son Archibald Aldridge. There is also an identity card for William Laporte Payne under the National Registration Act of 1915, and a service card for the marriage of Reginald Merac to Olive Maude in July 1917. Other papers include the death certificate and will of Rachel Aldridge's father Charles Miller Aldridge, together with in memoriam cards and burial receipts for him and other members of the Payne and Aldridge families and orders of service for the funerals of clerical colleagues of William Laporte Payne. Papers recording details of Payne's career include a printed letter to his new congregation at South Lyncombe, dated 1898, and an order of service for his Institution as vicar of North Finchley in 1911 together with a newspaper cutting reporting his appointment. Another newspaper cutting reports on a trial at which Payne's son Archibald appeared for the prosecution as representative for the Ministry of Labour in 1922. Papers relating to Rev Campbell Theophilus Payne 1885-1922 1899-1911 Correspondence from E. R. Williams and 5
Son, Solicitors and W. O. Bailey, Auctioneer, Valuer and Estate Agent, both based in Birmingham, to Rev Campbell Theophilus Payne and W. Parry Jennings regarding property in Smethwick, Birmingham, with a letter to Payne from Parry Jennings, and valuation forms issued by the Inland Revenue to Payne on the same property. 6