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Cricklade
Cricklade maps
Historic maps of Cricklade and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Cricklade maps
Cricklade area books
Displaying 1 of 12 books about Cricklade and the local area. View all books for this area
You can read extracts and browse photos from these books.
Memories of Cricklade
Displaying a selection of personal
memories of Cricklade.
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Staying at ALEX FARM
The Luce family lived at Alex Farm, Audrey and I were best friends at Cirencester Grammar School, I used to love staying at the farm with Aunty Gwen, Uncle Gil, Colin, Tony, Peggy and Audrey and doing farm chores. We were sent to Cricklade on bikes to shop and had to go beside the gravel pits (now the water park I guess) and we were always looking out for the swans there as they would attack if there were cygnets.
Wiltshire memories
Paddling in The Thames
We used to love looking in the stream for cray fish, minnows and small creatures. We were fascinated by the clear water as we had no streams in London,where we lived. I remember telling my mum about the small creatures that looked like sticks and had bits of gravel and sticks on them, like a coat. She didn't believe me, but I later (many years later) found out they were larvae - I think of the Caddis fly. Our friends in London never believed us, that we had paddled in the clear, clean Thames either. The river they knew was a dirty, dangerous thing.
Holidays
my grandparents used to live in church walk in purton , my father and his brothers and sisters grew up there and every summer we used to go to stay there for our holidays.
they had feather beds and gas lighting and we used to go to bed with a candle.
the milkman used to come and fill up the pewter milk jug each morning.
we all got up early in the morning and went looking for mushrooms over the fields then go home and cook up a good breakfast. There was a well in the garden and we used to get water to wash our hair and it came out really shiny and healthy.Our grandfather used to take us on long walks over the fields.
we laughed and loved and were very happy there.
Purton is still a beautiful gentle little village, i visited there last year and saw my grand parents house , i havent got a house now, i am renting , and am thinking of... Read more
The Mansells
1952 is apporoximate. I know I wasn't very old as I went to the village school (now converted to private dwellings) next to the little church. My mother was housekeeper to the ex Bishop of Malmesbury for about nine months and we lived in at the Mansells. The Bishop was confined to a wheelchair after what must have been a severe stroke. He had no speech or movement and was looked after by the gardener, a Mr Pearce I think. It was in their cottage next door that I saw my first television. It had a small screen which made everything look green. It was my job to feed the chickens, corn in the summer and sometimes hot mash in the winter. Being what we now call free range, they would lay their eggs all ever the place. The Bishop had a small alter in a tiny room upstairs and mother had to wash and starch the lace trimmed alter cloth every week. There is a room downstairs with... Read more
Ducks
I remember when I was little going to Coate water, feeding the ducks and having picnics with my family. Those were the days! :)
Farewell Rail Tour
The picture is taken from the footbridge and show the rail tour on about 3/9/61. There were two. This one is the one I travelled on hauled by GWR 2-6-0 5306. I rode on the footplate of the engine from here to Cirencester. The other one was hauled by 7808 Cookham Manor.
Mother.
My mother worked in the cafeteria at lunch time, collecting the money from the students. She seemed to know everybody in the college and when she passed away at the young age of 48, it seemed that the whole of Swindon mourned with us. Swindon is a place that I hold dear to my heart. Every picture that I have looked at today brings back wounderful memories of a town that I still call home even though I live overseas.
