Memorial to Very Rev Samuel Hole, Rochester Cathedral

Tomb of Rev Samuel Hole, Rochester Cathedral

Samuel Reynolds Hole (5 December 1819 – 27 August 1904) was an English

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

priest,

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

and

horticulturalist Horticulture is the branch of agriculture that deals with the art, science, technology, and business of plant cultivation. It includes the cultivation of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs, sprouts, mushrooms, algae, flowers, seaweeds and no ...

in the late 19th century and the early part of the 20th.

Life

Hole was born at Ardwick near

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

the only son of Samuel Hole of Caunton Manor and his wife, Mary Cooke of

Macclesfield Macclesfield is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East in Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Bollin in the east of the county, on the edge of the Cheshire Plain, with Macclesfield Forest to its east ...

. He was raised in

Newark Newark most commonly refers to: * Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States * Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area Newark may also refer to: Places Canada * Niagara-on-the ...

and educated at Mrs Gilbey's Preparatory School and Newark Grammar School there. After a period of foreign travel he studied theology at

Brasenose College, Oxford Brasenose College (BNC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It began as Brasenose Hall in the 13th century, before being founded as a college in 1509. The library and chapel were added in the mi ...

. He was ordained in 1844 and spent 43 years at his father's parish of St. Andrew's Church, Caunton, firstly as

curate A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

and from 1850 as its

vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

. A

prebendary A prebendary is a member of the Roman Catholic or Anglican clergy, a form of canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in particular seats, usually at the back of the ...

Lincoln Cathedral Lincoln Cathedral, Lincoln Minster, or the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln and sometimes St Mary's Cathedral, in Lincoln, England, is a Grade I listed cathedral and is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Lincoln. Constructio ...

and an honorary chaplain to Edward Benson, the then

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...

, he became

Dean of Rochester The Dean of Rochester is the head of the chapter of canons at Rochester Cathedral, the mother church of the Church of England Diocese of Rochester. The current dean is Philip Hesketh, who has served in that role since June 2016. List of deans ...

in 1887. Noted for his expertise with

rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...

s and an inaugural recipient of the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nort ...

Victoria Medal of Honour The Victoria Medal of Honour (VMH) is awarded to British horticulturists resident in the United Kingdom whom the Royal Horticultural Society Council considers deserving of special honour by the Society. The award was established in 1897 "in per ...

. There are two memorials to Hole at

Rochester Cathedral Rochester Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary, is an English church of Norman architecture in Rochester, Kent. The church is the cathedral of the Diocese of Rochester in the Church of England and the s ...

. The most impressive is a recumbent marble life-size figure by

F. W. Pomeroy Frederick William Pomeroy (9 October 1856 – 26 May 1924) was a prolific British sculptor of architectural and monumental works. He became a leading sculptor in the New Sculpture movement, a group distinguished by a stylistic turn towards Natu ...

. Hole is further remembered on the number 3 bell at Rochester: "In remembrance of S. Reynolds Hole, Dean. Died 27th August - 1904".

Family

In 1861 he married Caroline Francklin, daughter of John Francklin of

Gonalston Gonalston is a small village in Nottinghamshire lying just to the north-east of Lowdham and almost upon the A612 trunk road that runs from Nottingham to Southwell. Gonalston comprises of arable and pasture land in about equal portions, inter ...

and Great Barford. They had one son, Samuel Hugh Francklin Hole (b.1862) who became a barrister.

Publications

*''Hints to Freshmen'' (1847) *''A Little Tour in Ireland'' (1859) illus. by John Leech *''A Book about Roses'' (1869) *''Hints to Preachers'' (1880) *''Nice and her Neighbours'' (1881) *''Addresses Spoken to Working Men'' (1894) *''A Book about the Garden and the Gardener'' (1899) *''Our Gardens'' (1899) *''Then and Now'' (1901)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hole, Samuel Reynolds 1819 births People from Newark-on-Trent Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford English horticulturists Deans of Rochester Victoria Medal of Honour (Horticulture) recipients 1904 deaths People from Newark and Sherwood (district) English Freemasons