A history of Martin Tolhurst - The first 100 years 1886-1986

Martin Tolhurst is an amalgamation of several firms, which, in 1986, nearly 40 years ago, celebrated its centenary.

The Founder

Frederick William Martin was admitted as a solicitor in 1881.  He was the son of Thomas Martin, a local pilot and a member of an old Gravesend family of mainly pilots and riverside people. 

He served his articles in Gravesend, but upon qualification began practising in London in partnership with a Mr Carr, the firm being known as Carr & Martin. 

Probably his articles prevented him from practising in Gravesend for a limited period after he became a solicitor.  However, he still continued to act for local people at his London office.  Old directories for the town Gravesend indicate that he opened an office there in 1886. 

His early City life was later reflected in his knowledge of the sort of High Court work which, up until the early 1880s, was generally left in the hands of London agents by provincial solicitors who had no London office.  Apparently, if the firm’s clerks went to London on office business he would ask them to go to some remote shop in a backstreet or alley of the city to bring back some speciality of that shop which it still stocked, as it had in his City days.

The firm’s head office at 7 Wrotham Road, Gravesend was acquired by the firm as offices in 1954. The firm remained in those premises until 2023.  We had recognised for some time that the premises were not suited to the modern office environment, and our new premises in Gillingham are far more suited to the modern way of conducting business.  That being said, when the door closed for the last time on 7 Wrotham Road, it was, at least for the older members of the firm, with a slightly heavy heart.

Early work conducted by the firm

During the last years of the 19th century, the Gravesend practice developed connections which formed the basis of the practice for many years. 

F. W. Martin was a prominent member of the Congregational Church in Princes Street, Gravesend, and had much support from his fellow church members and also from members of other nonconformist churches in the district. 

It must be remembered that many of Gravesend’s most prominent tradesmen were then members of one or more of the dissenting churches in the district. 

As the son of one of the most prominent pilots in the town, and a nephew of another, he had connections with the local pilotage, which in those days was a prominent and wealthy part of town life.  Normally, thrifty tradesmen invested their savings in the purchase of houses to let and the pilots were regular lenders of money on mortgage.  The combination brought in good solid conveyancing work, and the Wills of these townsfolk with their often elaborate trusts, (which the menfolk of those days used to make sure that their womenfolk could not get their hands on their savings when they died) constituted yet another important part of the business.  A solicitor handling this sort of work was treated with some awe and respect.

A. F. Allen recounted that he remembered the grandson of one of the clients of those days telling him of the impression which F. W. Martin made on him when he came to his grandfather’s funeral and read his Will.  He apparently arrived in the village in a pony and trap, but attired in top hat and frock coat.  Thus attired, he strode through the village to the chapel where the funeral service was being held, and afterwards to the nearby churchyard for the burial, and then back to the house to read the Will.  He was a man of dignified appearance, well suited to the occasion.  

A. F. Allen recalled that the great-grandson of one of F. W. Martin’s clients came to the office around 1986 with his first home purchase to consult A. L. Martin, the grandson of F. W. Martin.

The office staff in those days was by no means large, seeming to have usually consisted of a senior clerk and an office boy.  The clerks left many traces of their handiwork in the engrossments they laboriously wrote on parchment, and it seems that all the copying and preparation of legal work was handwritten.

The Son joins the Firm

In 1906, L. C. Martin was articled to his father and admitted as a solicitor in 1911.  At the outbreak of the War, he served in the Royal Navy Air Service and when the War ended, father and son became partners, the firm being named Martin & Son.  

During part of his war service, L. C. Martin was employed as a cook on a naval launch. 

The changes of the post-war world had an effect on several aspects of the business.  The most startling was the employment of a female shorthand typist, Ms Hurst.  When she came to the office, she was reputed to be the first female employee in any of the solicitors’ offices in the town.

Expansion

In 1923, A. F. Allen was recruited as a junior clerk.  His principal qualification was said to have been his handwriting.  In spite of the typewriter in the office, manipulated by Ms Hurst, most of the work in the office was handwritten. 

An indication of the speed of life in those days can be gauged by the impact of county cricket week at The Bat & Ball Public House.  It was not unusual for F. W. Martin to dispatch A. F. Allen to The Bat & Ball after lunch to ascertain the state of play.  If, on the report, it looked as if there would be an interesting afternoon’s cricket, A. F. Allen would be sent to F. W. Boorman, solicitor of Harmer Street, to present Mr Martin’s compliments and to say that Mr Martin would meet him at The Bat & Ball ground in half an hour, whereupon the two would enjoy an afternoon watching cricket.

The 1925 Property Legislation

This made its mark on the practice and the view was taken that L. C. Martin would have to deal with all that and it was decided to get a senior clerk. 

The business of the firm changed in the post-war years. A thrifty tradesman no longer put his savings into rented properties, because of the Rent Acts, but a new class of conveyancing began when builders began speculating development, putting up a few houses to sell off individually to people who wanted to own their own homes.  This branch of the business depended on having a builder client whose work generated this regular business, and during the next 20 years most legal firms in the town had its own builder or builders as clients of some importance to the practice.  

Work in the County Court grew because there were numerous Rent Act matters.

F. W. Martin had, for some years before his death, been a Magistrate and so work in the Magistrates Court formed no part of the practice.  After A. W. Martin’s death, A. F. Allen found himself handling the defence of no less than two separate charges of murder at the Old Bailey, a record in the town at that time.  The cases were held up because of the damage to the Old Bailey by bombing. One accused received 12 months for manslaughter, whilst the other was found unfit to plead. 

Shortly after this, L. C. Martin was appointed a Magistrate, later becoming Chairman of the Bench, and so the firm no longer undertook Magistrates’ Court work.

The Grandson takes Articles

At the end of the War, A. L. Martin became articled to his father in 1947 and was admitted as a solicitor in 1950.  A. L. Martin became a partner in 1956 and the firm’s name changed to Martin Son & Allen.  

In the early 1960s, the firm expanded further.  

In 1970, the practice joined that of the old Gravesend firm of Tolhurst & Hiscock, and the name of the firm was changed to Martin Tolhurst Allen & Hiscock.  During the 1970s, the first female partner in the firm’s history, Linda Prime, was appointed.

The Tolhurst connection

Alfred Tolhurst was the founder of the Tolhurst firm.  Three of Alfred Tolhurst’s sons became solicitors.

A long working day

During Alfred Tolhurst’s time, the Tolhurst Gravesend office was open from 9:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m., Saturdays included.  Alfred Tolhurst was in the habit of arriving at the office at 9:00 a.m. and working until 5:00 p.m., when he went home for dinner.  He then returned to the office by 7:00 p.m., by which time the day’s post from London was in, and this had to be replied to and the outgoing letters written in time to catch the 10:00 p.m. post at the general post office so that the replies were back in London by the first post in the morning, and the staff had to stay until this was done. 

He also expected the staff to come in after church on Sunday if required.  

Apparently, Alfred Tolhurst gave all his staff two weeks’ annual holiday with full pay, which was most unusual in the 19th century, but for the other fifty weeks of the year they were expected to work all the hours required.  Apparently, he himself never had a holiday for 30 years.  

All the partners had to learn shorthand, and wrote their letters in shorthand in a book which was collected by one of the clerks who wrote the letters out in longhand. 

In the 1930s, The firm used handmade paper for all their correspondence, which the Solicitors Law, stationery had specially made, and the Tolhurst crest was embossed on the envelopes.  No address appeared on the notepaper, only the word ‘Gravesend’ and new clients had to be told where to find the office, as it only had a small brass plate with the firm’s name on it beside the front door, which was obscured by evergreen shrubs in the front garden and a high wall which was later lowered. 

By special arrangement with the Post Office, for which the firm paid £2 2s 0d per annum, the first post to the office in the morning was delivered to one of the partners at his house, and rumour has it he would open it in bed while having breakfast and write his comments on anything which interested him.  This would then be brought down to the office and distributed.

All conveyances of £1,000.00 and over (then a good price for a house), were hand engrossed on skin and quill pens were purchased for engrossing titles on deeds and Wills from the Solicitors Law Stationery.

Robert Hiscock was made a partner in 1948 and became the first Notary Public in Gravesend since the death of Frederik Mitchell in 1920.  This was at the instigation of Lloyds Bank, who had a client who frequently needed a Notary.

Branch offices

In the early 1980s, the Gravesend County Court having been moved to Chatham and much High Court work being conducted from Chatham, the Partnership opened an office in Chatham at 52 High Street in December 1982 to enable it to deal more easily with the considerable amount of County Court work which had developed over the years. 

In 1984, a Strood office of the firm was opened and the firm’s name was changed again to Martin Tolhurst Partnership. 

A. L. Martin became a member of the Council of the Kent Law Society, and in 1985 was President of the Society.  The highlight of his year as President was an invitation to attend the opening of the new Court building at Maidstone by Her Majesty the Queen, when A L Martin had the honour of being presented.

Looking Forward in 1986

At the time of the firm’s centenary in 1986, the concerns were the possible adverse effect of clients doing their own conveyancing work and banks fighting to obtain much of the old probate and family work of trusts, The Partnership faced its second century in a changing legal world.

The extent of change was not foreseen with the advent of the internet and emails which have had far reaching consequences on the way we all work and where we do business.