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Bulford memories

Here are memories of Bulford and the local area. You can start now: Add your own Memory of Bulford or a Bulford photo.

Visiting History

My husband was stationed here in WWII, and married a girl from Bulford. They divorced but the family ties are strong.
We met the first wife's family and had a wonderful time. Also the 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion Vets had a great time revisiting and reminiscing.

Memories of Wiltshire

Ratfyn Power Station

In the 1950s I was in the Royal Engineers and came over from Germany to our school of military engineering at Chatham where we did a course in electrical power stations. We were then posted to Bulford barracks, and did our practical training at an MOD power station at Ratfyn on the side of the River Avon. We generated power for Larkhill, Bulford, Tidworth and the chemical weapons establishment at Porton Down. I have been back a number times over the years to try to locate it, but never managed to. I would be very interested if anyone knows what happened to it.

The Mill Pool

I lived at Netheravon from 1968 - 1972 (my father was in the RAF based at Old Sarum) and went to school at St Michaels Figheldean.
I remember we used to go swimming in the mill pool by the weir. I remember nearly drowning there, showing off in deep water under the big tree (still there) near the weir. I was saved by a girl called Sharon Parsons and probably never thanked her and certainly never told my mum when I got home. Other than that experience it was a great place to hang out in the summer and learn how to fish too - starting off on minnows by the footbridge and moving on to greyling and trout (probably illegally). A lovely village and well overdue for a visit. I live in North Oxfordshire so not too far away.

Born And Bred

Ablington Road c1955
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Born in Ablington just after the war we moved to Avon Banks, where I lived until married in 1970. My mother's father, mother and brothers (Fenners) all lived in Figheldean. Having read other peoples memories it brought back probably the most enjoyable part of my youth.

Post Office

The Post Office c1950
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The post Office was run by a Mrs Titt in the 1950s and the post lady was to be, in later life, my aunty.

Addition to Con's Entry

Ablington Road c1955
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Being Con's older brother, my memories go back a bit further, having started school about the day war was declared, going to the village school, with Miss Burling(?) - rumour had it that she changed the spelling of her name from Berlin (for obvious reasons). There are a lot of hazy wartime memories as well which would occupy a lot more space. I have memories of winding the church clock, back in the early 1950s, climbing that long ladder into the bell tower, knee deep in twigs left by the nesting rooks. There must also have been quite a stir in the village back in about 1937, though I obviously don't remember it, when Dad won a small fortune (in those days) on the 'Pools'. From the old photo I have we must have been living at Avondale at that time, though we later moved to 279 Ablington, just down the garden from 292 where Gran and Grandad lived, with about 60 chickens and, in the early days of... Read more

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