George William Saunders was born in 1879 and educated at Selwyn College, Cambridge, where he took hs B.A. in 1902. The following year he went to Wells Theological College, and was ordained Deacon by the Bishop of Bath and Wells in 1904.

He served as Curate in Street and Walton from 1904 to 1910, when he was appointed Vicar of Curry Rivel. Not a man who liked to move often, he stayed there for seven years until he became Vicar of Martock. He remained Vicar of Martock for 34 years until his retirement in 1951.

In 1933 he was granted the honour of beng a Prebendary of Wells Cathedral, and was Cathedral Treasurer from 1940 to 1955.

He was an antiquary and wrote books about Martock, Martock and The Great War, and Notes on the History of the Hundred of Martock. The lattr book was an illustrated 120 page volume in cloth-backed boards. It was a collection of essays originally published in the Western Gazette' newspaper between 1933-34. Its preface is dated 1935. He also wrote a church guide for Martock, which includes this:

The lower stage of the tower with its side buttresses was the Fives place. But the game became a nuisance, balls were often hit on to the roof of the aisle, and windows were sometimes broken. To recover the balls from the roof the buttress was used as a ladder. The notches cut in the angles were used as footholds and handholds. Unfortunately, a piece of the coping was knocked off and fell upon the head of a bystander. The attention of the vestry was called to the nuisance, and the churchwardens wre requested to put a stop to the game. Accordingly in 1758 there is an entry in the churchwarden's accounts:

For digging up ye Fives place 3 6d.
To the Sexton for rooting up docks and nettles 3 0d.

The Somerset Archaeological and Natural History Collection contains various documents presented by George Saunders, for example:

Description of the bounds of the Twelve Hides, with an account of the progress made about the Liberty by Rich.Beere, some time Abbot of Glastonbury on 16 July 1503[or 26th July]. [Thin vol: presented by Mrs.G.W.Saunders and Mrs.T.Holt, 1941] copy made 17 Nov.1773

Reference: DD\SAS\C/795/CH/50
Two illuminated parchments formerly
Creation dates: nd
Scope and Content
Used as covers, and now damaged. [Unidentified]

[The following items were presented by Miss Fry(per the Rev.G.W.Saunders in 1914). Note: There are various errors of dating in the Winstanley list].

See this page for details.