Gertrude Elizabeth Jay was the daughter of Mr. T. Simpson Jay (1842 – 1921) of Holmwood, Putney Hill. Her father had made his money through business, including Jay's Mourning Warehouse, Regent St, London, the International Fur Store, Regent St (in the seal-skin trade) and Hawkes military outfitters on Piccadilly. These prosperous businesses allowed the family to move to Holmwood sometime after 1881. Her mother was Elizabeth Ann Pawson (1844 – 1924). The couple had 5 children: Tom Ovingdon Jay (1868 – 1932), Gertrude Elizabeth (1870 - ), Constance Wylie (1872 - 1961), Florence Gwendoline (1873 -?) and William Hedley Jay (1875 -?). Older brother Tom became a stockman in Islay, Wyoming.

The Illustrated London News, 7th September 1895 carried a feature on her father and an illustration of the Holmwood Estate. This gives us an insight into Miss Jay’s interests. Her father, Tom Simpson Jay, was a keen huntsman and his horse-breeding was directed at pace and stamina in hunters. Before he married and had daughters, he owned racehorses and used to enjoy steeplechasing and though he gave this up, he continued to participate in point-to-point races on heavy hunters. In Sussex, he and his daughters could often be seen, always well mounted, in hot pursuit of a fox. He was also a good shot. Gertrude was, therefore, born into a sporting family.

Miss Jay was an excellent horsewoman. the Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News, 12th November 1892, “Paper Chase on Horseback,” describes a paperchase (where the 2 “hares” - riders - laid a trail of shredded paper and were pursued by the hunters). Gertrude’s father, Captain T.S. Jay was the master of “hounds” on the 18 mile cross-country trail. “The final spurt to the windmill was exceedingly fast, and one of the best spins was that between Miss Gertrude Jay, mounted on an enviable hunter, and the hares, one of whom she caught, reaching the other within 20 yards.”

Miss Jay took after her father as an animal fancier. She exhibited Jacobin pigeons (known for their feathered hoods over the head), fantail pigeons, Andalusian chickens, ducks, fox terriers old English sheepdogs, Irish terriers, Japanese spaniels, Susses spaniels, and Angora rabbits. Her father, described in 1895 as a mourning-ware vendor, furrier and racehorse owner, was a successful exhibitor of horses at agricultural shows as well as poultry and dogs, and had a large poultry farm at Coombe Wood, about a mile from Rayne’s Park Station, and held open days for poultry enthusiasts.

MISS GERTRUDE JAY The Gentlewoman, 7th September 1895
It has been observed that girls most often resemble their father in mental characteristics, tastes, &c., while boys usually inherit their mother's mental qualities. And this rule is certainly borne out in the case of Mrs Gertrude Jay, whose portrait we give, for she has inherited all her father's love of animals and of sport. Mr. Tom Simpson Jay is a thorough-going sportsman, well known for his love of horses and his keen eye for their good points. He is the proud possessor of numerous prizes - won at the various shows and competitions for which he has entered his horses. But good as this record is, his daughter has scored even more successes with her special pets – cats and dogs.

At Holmewood, their delightful residence at Putney Hill, Miss Jay has specially-built houses for her many pets, where everything needful for their hairiness, health, and comfort has been thoughtfully supplied; and I cannot imagine a more interesting method of whiling away an hour or so than to accompany Miss Jay on her daily tour of inspection amongst her pets. By the way, as might well be imagined from their similarity of tastes, Miss Jay and her father are great comrades, and it was largely owing to her reluctance to lose so much of his companionship as it would have entailed, that Mr. Jay declined the invitation to contest a certain constituency recently in the Conservative interest. In 1893 Miss Jay won no less than fifty-one prizes and specials; in 1894, sixty-one, and this year, so far as it has gone, sixty-four.

Mr and Mrs. T. Simpson Jay were well-connected and Holmwood received some distinguished visitors. According to the Wallington & Carshalton Herald, 20th June 1896: “Bazaar at Putney. The Duke and Duchess of Fife paid a visit to Putney Hill, near Wimbledon, on Saturday afternoon, in order to open a bazaar in aid of the National Schools and All Saints' Church, Putney. The bazaar was held in the grounds of "Holmwood," the residence of Mr. T. Simpson Jay. and there was a large attendance of visitors, amongst those present being the Counters of Leven and Melville, Lady Caroline Lister Kaye, Lady Albert Seymour, and Lady Brabourne.” The family also gave garden parties in Holmwood’s extensive grounds.

The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News, 28th October 1893 described "Trixie, The Property Of Miss Jay, Of Holmwood, Putney Hill. Trixie is undoubtedly a grand specimen of a Persian cat, which breed we may mention has taken quite a foremost place amongst the most valuable specimens of the feline race. She is now only thirteen months old, and having been pronounced by the most competent judges as almost perfect, we may safely predict for her a long series of successes. Of a deep and rich blue colour, with long silky flowing hair, short nose, round deep yellow eyes, excellent frill, and a brush which is phenomenal. A charming and amiable disposition, gentle and kind, but having a strong development of the first instincts of her tribe, she is an excellent mouser, in proof of which we may mention that whilst being inspected at Salisbury Show, where she won the proud distinction of first and specials, she espied a mouse in a corner, and accounted for it as quickly as a well-bred terrier would settle a rat.” (Sadly, Trixie never produced viable kittens.)

THE HOLMWOOD CATS AND OTHER PETS The Queen, 17th March 1906 (by Frances Simpson)
Miss Gertrude Jay is well known in the cat fancy as a keen enthusiast and breeder of Blue Persians. It was in 1891 that the Holmwood Cattery was started, and Trixie, a blue female, was the first inmate, which wonderful old cat is still in Miss Jay’s possession, looking exceedingly fit and well. She has never had a day’s illness in her life, but she has never reared a kitten, and, although fosters have been in readiness to take over her kittens, the latter have all died, but Trixie lives on, and is adored by her mistress. It is however, chiefly in connection with a marvellous specimen of a blue female called The Mighty Atom [Champion Holmwood Mighty Atom] that Miss Jay has made her name, for nothing has ever been exhibited to compare with this superb female as regards beauty and shape of head. She twice carried off the highest honours for the best cat in the show at the Crystal Palace, though it is true that The Might Atom lacked the orange eyes which of late years has become so essential in blues on the show bench; but no judge, however up to date, could even now pass over such a perfect type of cat, despite her one fault. This grand female, however, is no more, for three years ago she died, to the great grief of her owner.

Miss Jay is fortunate, however, in having some descendants of The Mighty Atom, as one daughter and four granddaughters of this noted queen are to be seen at the Holmwood Cattery. They are quite a show in themselves, with splendid long coats, and heads buried in fluff and ruff, and lovely spreading tails. There were seven females in one of the spacious divisions of the Cattery when this establishment was visited, and each and all were in grand coat, possessing that sell-groomed appearance which bespeaks the great care and attention that must be bestowed upon them. In another compartment were two big burly blue males, with even longer and thicker coats than the females, and these cats, by name Holmwood K. and Wyland, appear to live together in perfect peace. Holmwood K. owns San Toy, Mrs Norris’s well-known cat as his sire. Miss Jay does not believe in any heat in the Cattery, and gives only one meal a day to cats, with as much milk from the Holmwood estate cows as they like to drink. The meal consists of raw meat one day and fish the next, and certainly these cats are well up to weight, showing splendid limbs and abundance of flesh.

The Holmwood Cattery is beautifully situated on the top terrace of the lovely old garden which surrounds one of the oldest houses on Putney Hill, and has been made in one of the conservatories, the outer walls of which are covered with creeping ivy and roses, while inside they are papered with prize cards of cats and poultry, for Miss Jay is also an ardent fancier of blue Andalusians. There are sixty head of poultry at Holmwood, and in 1905 Miss Jay took twenty-three prizes with her birds. For ten years this painstaking lady has been endeavouring to produce a special strain, succeeding in a wonderful degree by careful inbreeding, and she is at present the only owner of blue Andalusian bantams in England. She has sold some birds at £5. 5s. each to America and Belgium.

But to return to the cats. Few people in the fancy are aware that, Miss Jay goes in rather extensively for short-haired tortoiseshells, and these are chiefly Manx. There were quite a number of these quaint creatures in what might be called the stable cattery. It is some years ago since Miss Jay exhibited any of her beautiful blues, and though she has ceased showing, is still a president of the Blue Persian Cat Society, and has often kindly acted a judge for this flourishing specialist body. Beside being a competent judge, Miss Joy is most painstaking and thorough in her work.

It would be a west pleasure to everyone in the cat fancy if this lady would once again enter the ranks and become an exhibitor. I have every reason to believe that had she been at at home at the time of the recent Reading show some of her beautiful blues would have adorned the show bench on that occasion. To write about Miss Jay and her pets and not to mention Fritz would indeed be a grave mistake, for this much-beloved fox terrier is Miss Jay's most constant and faithful companion, going everywhere with his devoted mistress, even to cat shows! In the Holmwood drawing-room attention is attracted by yet another pet, in the shape of a grey African parrot, and on the occasion of my visit he was particularly talkative. He has been taught to call out "Puss, puss!" "Gertrude!" "Mee-ow, mee-ow!" "Cats, cats!' in the most natural manner.

To a lover of animals a visit to Holmwood is as delightful it is interesting, and Miss Gertrude Jay is in her element amongst her numerous pets in her beautiful home on Putney Hill. –