Do you have a link with Braydon Oak - Savernake Forest, Wiltshire?

[kojak]

Some time during the Christmas of 2007 twinkly and I went to Savernake Forest, located just outside Marlborough in the district of Kennet in Wiltshire.

Whilst walking our dog (Meg babalicious) through the forest we came across a house auction in progress for a house we later found to be known as BRAYDON OAK.  The house dates from around 1850s and is listed on the 1861, 71, 81, 91 and 1901 censuses (mainly inhabited by gamekeepers for the forest/estate of the Earl of Cardigan - who lived at Tottenham House - which is also found within the forest).

The following link gives info on Braydon Oak and Tottenham House:-

http://www.francisfrith.com/search/england/wiltshire/savernake/photos/savernake_57189.htm

A few weeks after the house auction (which led to no successful bids being accepted) we returned to walk past Braydon Oak with Meg babalicious only to find that some scallywag had broken in and had left the house in disarray.  However, near the fire surround at the door entrance there were dozens of old photographs left scattered all around on the damp flag stone floor.

The photographs were in a rather delicate state with some dating from early 1900s up to the 1970s and were all of the same extended family.

Concerned about their fate, we rescued them from the weather and spent many hours carefully cleaning them with the hope that a member of the family who lived at the abandoned house may one day be found.

Since then, the only info we have managed to confirm is that the photos were of a family by the name of TWISK, originally thought to be dutch, but with London links.

There is also thought to have been some sort of link with florists in London.

Along with about 40 plus photographs, there are some personal letters and some photos of a London property (thought to be owned by the father of the Twisk who lived at Braydon Oak).

It was clear that the family were very wealthy, however, by the late 1990s, things had changed significantly at Braydon Oak, as the paperwork explains.

Does anybody have any link with the Twisk family? or Braydon Oak?  Are you a relative? Have you or someone you know lived at Braydon Oak or Savernake Forest?

Does anyone have any other knowledge about Twisk family research?

Any info on the above would be of great interest in our endeavours to find a family member and hand over some invaluable family history.

Thanks

Kojak and Redspookhunter (and Meg Babalicious)

[craizi daizi]

Kojak,  Spook,   Meg,  and twinkly

WOW  what a find,  i really hope you find the family,  and i am sure they will be very grateful for it,

You have done a great job

Good luck

Craizi

[Arranroots]

Tricky one this - technically you might have stolen the photos! 

I should think the police would have informed any known owner of the damage, so that would normally be a starting point.

Have you tried the Land Registry to see whose name is on the property?

You might try looking for recent wills for the name you think applies?

Good luck.

A 

[craizi daizi]

Hi again

I think you will find that kojak has done a lot of research in to the house and the property in the time he has known about it.   Apparently the home has been deserted for over ten years,  and according to some of the letters,   the people left never to return,  they do know the owner of the home,  but these things dont below to him,   so i think he is just trying to pass them on to a family member  that may be interested,   rather than let them be ruined any more than what they are already,

Craizi     
 

[kojak]

Hi Arranroots,

We thought long and hard about whether to just leave the photos to rot in the rain or get them safe to hand to the owner, who as craizi daizi says, has not lived in the house for many years.

The house was in a terrible state of dereliction and only through the fact it was so remote, kept it from praying vultures.

The owner of the property is not the owner of the photographs and I will not pass them to a third party, as some of the information is not to be handed over lightly.

As Craizi daizi says, we have done a lot of research in attempting to trace a member of the Twisk family.  I would hope when/if we find them they won't mind the fact we saved the photos from ruin.

Thanks for your input though...

Best regards

Kojak and redspookhunter

[Arranroots]

Sorry if it sounded a bit harsh - I was concerned that the rozzers would come in the night for you!! 

Hope you find a home for them!

 

[LizzieW]

I knew the name rang a bell - we used to live in Swindon and remembered this from The Sunday Times:

From The Sunday Times
November 11, 2007
Is it worth it?
Braydon Oak, Savernake Forest, Wiltshire, £700,000
Braydon Oak, Savernake Forest
Helen Davies

What it is: Braydon Oak, in the middle of the Savernake Forest – 4,500 acres of ancient woodland – is on the market for the first time in more than 150 years. Reached via a bumpy track that runs off the Capability Brown-designed Grand Avenue – which, at four miles, is the longest avenue in Britain – the four-bedroom property is set in 1.64 acres.

Formerly a gamekeeper’s cottage, then a riding school, and more recently tenanted, it has two reception rooms and cellars. It is a little less than three miles from Marlborough, and 10 from Hungerford, 80 minutes by train from London Paddington.

The problems: Bar a few holes in the roof and boarded-up windows, Braydon Oak is “in pretty good nick”, according to the agent. While structurally sound, it needs complete modernisation. It may be possible to remodel, extend or even knock it down and build a 4,000 sq ft house in its place – subject to gaining all the necessary planning consents – but a covenant prevents more than one property being built on the site. The new owner will need to spend about £175,000 to connect to mains services, and another £50,000-£100,000 on building works and decoration.

The advantages:The desire to flee the suburbs and move westwards is as relentless as ever, and this pretty part of Wiltshire has become, says the agent, “terribly fashionable” – and therefore more expensive. “A house in such a stunning and picturesque spot as this is rare,” he says. “There are no near neighbours and the property offers almost complete privacy, which is increasingly commanding premium prices.” A420 Once restored, the property – depending on what work the new owner M4M4 has carried out – could sell for between £1m and £1.5m.

Carter Jonas; 01672 514545, www.carterjonas.co.uk

and here's a photograph of it.

Lizzie

[LizzieW]

Kojak - Presumably the photos belong to the gamekeeper's family.  Perhaps an ad or article in the local paper might find the family.

Lizzie

Modified - ps.  Hope no-one wanted to buy it, it's under offer.

[kojak]

Thanks Arranroots and Lizzie,

The photos are definitely not of the gamekeepers family, as the Twisks were somehow linked with an agricultural mechanical business when they tenanted the property.

An ad in a local paper may be the way forward...

The info on the house is known to us, but as far as we can tell, the property is no longer listed by carter jonas and it remains unsold.

The property was in an even worse condition last time we walked past it (a few months back).  So, it would be good if someone has table an offer that was accepted, but I fear the building will be left to ruin.

Thanks for your input.

Here is a latest picture we took:-

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