Elsing, Norfolk

The Bawdeswell Plane Crash, The Willows and The Rectory.

Although I was just a little lad I can remember seeing the smoking debris of All Saints Church after the Mosquito crashed on it.

I was staying in "The Willows" which is opposite the church with my mum, my sisters, my cousins and my aunts, who were all evacuees from London.  It was a miracle that the plane never hit... [more]

Occupations in Great Witchingham

I have found out that my great, great, great grandfather, William Brigham was a baker at Great Witchingham (1841 census). My other GGG grandfather, James Smith, was a miller.
James Smith's son, Frederick, was the grocer/draper/flower seller (1871 census).
William's grandson, Frederick, became the rate collector, coal and oil merchant by 1896.
Would love to find any pictures of the area.... [more]

school days

First school London Road Infants, a short time in Scotland and then the Church Infants, each school day walking from Theatre Street (two doors up from 'The Cherry Tree') through the market place and down Church Street. I moved on to the primary at the top of Theatre Street and eventually Crown Road. While at Theatre Street... [more]

My hometown

I was born in 1928 at Woodhill, Gressenhall and moved to Dereham at the age of 6yrs and left when I married some 20 years later. It was a happy childhood in spite of the war years, in fact it added to the excitement of those years, dashing out to crashed planes, collecting shrapnel, army badges etc and of course the... [more]

Bird Family

Hello My name is Chris Dann I am a direct decendant of Frank Gilbert Bird of Honingham, England and I am looking for decendants of his brothers and sisters. Frank had an older brother named Charles Edward Bird born in 1893, a younger brother named Cyril Victor Bird born in 1900  and a younger sister named Olive born in 1892. Olive... [more]

SCARNING SCHOOL

At the age of 5yrs I started my education at Scarning School, I lived at Woodhill [see memory of Dereham] which meant about a 2 mile walk to school with my 10 yr old sister usually stopping to play in the stream at Podmore on the way.
School dinners! there was no such thing,it was sandwiches which,regardless of weather had to... [more]

My Mother

My mother was in the early 1940s called Nancy Southgate, her father ran a paper round from his house. If you leave the village with the church on the left, over the bridge, the row of houses on the left, the last house was where mum was born. Mum was there when an American war plane came down, I have seen... [more]

St. Agnes

I remember walking down to my first Christingle. My wife, two-year-old daughter and I experienced a wonderful service which really made all of our Christmas's. With the lovely support of the local villagers, we really felt that we settled in. Since then every year we have made it a tradition to venture down to the church and participate in the Christingle.... [more]