Tew the butcher

In the book of “Tom Brown’s Schooldays”, set at Rugby School, a fight occurs between the hero Tom Brown and “Slogger” Williams. After the fight someone is sent to “Tew, the butcher” for some raw beef for Tom’s eye.

What is the historical evidence for the TEW family?

The first place to look is the 1841 census (the index and transcription has been produced by RFHG on CD). Listed in the household of Thomas ARNOLD, Doctor of Divinity, in School Street, Rugby is a fifteen year old Thomas HUGHES. This was the author of Tom Brown’s Schooldays, based on his experiences at the school while Dr Arnold was headmaster. Looking in the same census, there are over sixty people named TEW, and five of them were butchers.

The butchers were Arthur, aged 50, in Swan Street, Edward (43) in Drury Lane, another Arthur (65) in Sheep Street and William (23) in Union Street. There was also Edward (30) who was a butcher in Clifton; the head of this household was Jane TEW, a farmer. From this we might guess that the family came from Clifton, but since the 1841 census does not give the place of birth, or even the relationships between people, we need to look further.

In the 1851 census Arthur is now a 59 year old widower at 41 Chapel Street (Remember that the ages in the 1841 census were rounded down to the nearest five years, so this agrees). Edward (54) seems to have left the butchery trade as his occupation is given as Bailiff in County Court. The older Arthur can’t be found, perhaps he has died, although the strangely named Tew ARTHUR, an 80 year old butcher, is lodging in Riley’s Court, Rugby. A mistake by the enumerator?

William is aged 32 in 1851 and now living at 1 Chapel Street, Rugby. This is the “oldest building in Rugby” which bears a blue plaque telling us that it is the butchers shop mentioned in the book. So was William the butcher who provided the beef for Tom’s eye? We also need to find out how all these people were related and if there is any connection with Clifton. The 1851 census says that all these Tews in Rugby were born in Rugby.

The Parish Register of St Andrews, Rugby should be able to help. Looking for a William Tew born around 1819 (estimated from his age in the 1851 census) we find a baptism on 13th Jan 1819 of William son of Arthur and Frances Tew, occupation butcher. Referring back to the household of Arthur Tew of Swan Street in the 1841 census, one of the other occupants is Frances Tew (50). This is probably Arthur’s wife and therefore the names agree and William is the son of Arthur. Looking back in the parish registers we find that Arthur Tew married Fanny CAVE in 1815. We have Arthur’s age from the 1851 census so we can find his baptism, in 1791, at St Andrews and also show that Edward (54 in 1851) is his brother.

Working backwards like this (with a little help from the IGI to locate marriages away from Rugby) we find that the Rugby family of Tews did originally come from Clifton, and the Edward Tew we found as a butcher there in 1841 is a second cousin of Arthur and Edward in Rugby.

Thanks to a transcript of Clifton upon Dunsmore Parish Registers, We can trace the family back to at least 1633 in Clifton where they were probably small farmers or labourers. An early member of the family, Thomas may have been a carpenter. One branch, who became Framework Knitters, can be traced to neighbouring Newton.

Working forwards, using the censuses which are available online, we find that by 1881 the Tew family had produced butchers in Lutterworth, Bedford and Wellingborough as well as Rugby. In 1901 (according to that census) there were only three still working as butchers: Harry (34), near Banbury, Henry (32) in Bedford and William (30) in Walsall.

So we can’t find out exactly which Tew was the one mentioned in the book (it was probably Arthur or his son William), and since it was fiction it doesn’t really matter. However Thomas Hughes has immortalised a local Rugby family who, over several generations, provided meat for the tables of the town and for the eyes of the boys of Rugby School.