The view of Ockford Road, looking towards the junction with
Shackstead Lane. The closed gates on the far right belong
to Ashbrooke House, home of the land agent and surveyor
Walter Mellersh (1859-23 March 1947) and his family
for over 80 years[1].
The two rows of cottages, divided by what used to be the
Anchor public house (out of view behind the low
fence), are Grade II listed today. There is more about
the cottages on the previous
page.
At the far end of the road, behind the white sign, is another
Grade II listed building that is now known as the Inn on
the Lake. The property has not always been an Inn and was
formerly the home of a number of interesting and distinguished
people.
The Sisleys, Richard and later his second wife Sarah Anne,
lived there from the 1860s until the 1880s[2].
Richard was a miller and took over the leasehold in 1843
and eventually purchased the freehold of the Ockford Corn
Mill with his brother William who later became Mayor of Godalming;
it was the most profitable of their undertakings[3].
The house was known variously as Ockford House, Ockford Water
and Ockford Cottage in the Sisleys time there[2].
The Davey family moved to Ockford House in 1907. The Hon.
Arthur Jex Davey (Oct 1869-17 Oct 1918), a Company Director,
was the younger son of the late Lord Davey of Fernhurst.
In 1912 he was voted on to Godalming Town Council and became
the Town's Mayor two years later[4].
Whilst he was in office his wife Iona, as Mayoress, proposed
a house to house collection for the Red Cross and St. John's
Ambulance as part of the war effort[5].
The Daveys' involvement with the Council ceased when they
moved to Abbot's Wood near Compton. Unfortunately, the former
Mayor was to die in tragic circumstances just a couple of
years later as he was amongst the 500 on board the Irish
mail boat "Leinster" when
it was torpedoed in the Irish Sea on 17th Oct 1918[4].
The next person to live at Ockford House was Lieutenant-General
Sir William Babtie, V.C., who was Hon. Surgeon to the King
and had been awarded the V.C. for his attempt to save the life
of Lord Roberts's son at Colenso in the Boer War. He passed away
on 11 Sept. 1920 at Knocke sur Mer in Belgium[6].
Sir Cecil Beck (1878-22 March 1932) and his wife followed.
Sir Cecil was the M.P. for Saffron Walden until 1922 when
was appointed as chairman of the Independent Liberal Party[7].
The "Lake Hotel" opened in 1934[8] and
during Ascot Week in 1936 a review was published:
"Never tired of recommending as
won't be let down ... is the Lake Hotel at Godalming. Nothing
very much to look at from the road as one goes from Godalming
to Milford, it yet has an inviting look when, after parking
your car at the foot, you approach the front door. Mr. Alan
Rudd, who owns it and personally has now got one of the best
small hotels within easy reach of London. He wants to attract
those who are appreciative of good, well cooked, food and
wine"[9].
In late 1941 Godalming Justices granted an application
for the transfer of the licence of the Lake Hotel from Mr.
Alan Rudd to Miss Collard. It was stated that Mr. Rudd
was entering the Royal Air Force[10].
The postcard above was published in 1951 when the hotel was still the Lake Hotel.
There have been several owners in the interim but diners who
visited the Inn on the Lake in the 1980s fondly remember the
excellent cuisine, the pretty pink tablecloths in the dining
room and the shallow indoor water feature which made dining
there such a pleasurable experience. It is still a thriving
business (2024).
The Inn on the Lake, the home of two of the town's Mayors,
has played a significant role in the town's history.
Enlargement of the section showing the Lake Hotel |
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