reason Mr. Worsfold then moved to 72 Princes Road, Buckhurst Hill.
This address was actually adjoining the Princes Retreat in that road
but Worsfold was not involved with it in any way and as we shall see
later this retreat had ceased to function at that date. In 1937 Mrs.
Millicent Blackburn was the proprietress at Brook Road and apparently
the retreat had again been rebuilt and was still functioning. It was
possible to obtain cups of tea there until 1969 although the premises
had by then been leased by several persons. The site is now occupied
by caravans in one of which George Print, the son of C. Print, the
present owner resides.
Riggs Retreat at High Beach was on Wellington Hill on the site
now partly occupied by the Youth Hostel. Opened in 1881 in was man-
aged by William Riggs a son of the founder. William married Miss Chilton,
whose parents were the licensees of the Robin Hood Hotel at the
junction of Earls Path and Epping New Road. After the death of his
first wife, William married a Mrs. Howchin, formerly a Miss Salmon of
Chingford, whom he met whilst catering for a local fete in that village.
He was greatly interested in Freemasonry and was Provincial Grand
Master of Essex. He served in the Boer War with the Imperial Yeomanry
and in 1914, although then over 50 years of age, he enlisted to serve in
the First World War. At that time the War Office commandeered the
retreat which was used as a training centre and the Hampshire's and
also the Artists Rifles were at various times stationed there. The War
Office relinquished the retreat in 1916 and some months later a fire in
the adjoining premises occupied by Arthur Sawyer as a tea garden,
spread rapidly through both buildings, and being mainly of wooden
construction they were completely destroyed in about two hours
despite the efforts of two fire brigades.
This High Beach Retreat was very popular with many Sunday
School treat organisers and also with the Shaftesbury Society and
Ragged School Union. It was William Riggs' claim that between 3,000
and 4,000 children had been able to have tea at the same time at his
retreat, which was not rebuilt. At the top of the hill was the Rosherville
Tea Gardens which had been advertised, in the guide before mentioned,
in 1883 by W. Antill. This establishment then named "The Roser-
ville Retreat" was taken over by William Riggs. This he occupied
from 1919 until 1926, when the business was transferred and William
Riggs apparently confined himself to catering for Masonic functions
until his death in April, 1932.
The third Riggs' retreat in the forest area was opened in 1882 in
Coppets or Coppice Row, Theydon Bois. The retreat was on the north
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