You are here:
Gilston
Gilston maps
Historic maps of Gilston and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Gilston maps
Gilston photos
We have no photos of Gilston, although we do have photos of these nearby places:
Old Harlow| Hunsdon| Harlow| Sawbridgeworth| Great Parndon| Potter Street| Roydon| Much Hadham| Wareside| Stanstead Abbotts| Sheering| Stanstead St Margarets| Matching Tye| Rye House| Thorley| Little Hallingbury| Great Amwell| Amwell Hill| Hoddesdon| Hatfield Heath| Nazeing| Ware| Bishops Stortford| Matching Green| North Weald| Broxbourne| Standon| Wormley| Turnford| Birchanger
Gilston area books
Displaying 1 of 18 books about Gilston and the local area. View all books for this area
You can read extracts and browse photos from these books.
Memories of Gilston
No memories of Gilston have been shared yet - be the first!
Add your memory of Gilston
or of a photo of Gilston.
Essex memories
Messing About on The River
With my sisters, catching tiddlers on warm summer days. We would have picnics beside the river. We loved helping to change the lock for the boats that came through. Later, when a little older we would swim and for a while joined the canoe club. After my marriage and when I had children myself, my husband and I would take them for picnics. He would fish while they played and caught their own tiddlers. As they got older they too would fish or swim. On a trip back to England in 2005, my husband and I walked again along the riverbank and it was just as magical to us then as it was before. I have so many happy memories of growing up in Harlow.
Where I Grew up With my Sister Christine & Dog Judy
This picture is the view from the main road of Harlow lock, Old Mill Resturant and weir and the towpath where the rowing boats and canoes were moored when I lived there. They were moored both sides of the bridge at various times, next to the swimming pool and then by the boat house that was built late 50s. I spent many a long hour fishing on that towpath, rowing the boats and paddling the canoes. They were all wood in those days, beautiful boats then kayaks came in. They built a rowing club shed where they kept the boats. Big long rowing boats.
THIS IS WHAT OLD HARLOW MILL LOCK LOOKED 47 YEARS BEFORE MY FAMILY LIVED IN THE LOCK COTTAGE
MY FAMILY MOVED HERE IN 1950 TILL 1961 MY DAD WAS THE LOCK KEEPER 1950 - 1961
SEE OTHER PHOTOS OF HOW IT LOOKED IN 1955
THE BOATS WE LOOKED AFTER
While my family lived in the lock house 1950 - 1961, my father rented the rowing boats out and also the fishing permits. This is only one place where they were moored. At various times they were both sides of the bridge and on both banks. On the left bank of this picture there was the swimming pool and on the right they built a boating club in the late 50s with kayaks & racing rowing boats from 1 to eight people. Most of my childhood was spent either in the canoes, rowing boats or I was fishing, with my sister or mates .Finish this story later
THIS IS HOW THE LOCK LOOKED LIKE WHEN MY FAMILY LIVED IN LOCK COTTAGE 1950 - 1961
This is where I spent my life from 2 years old till I was 13 years old. Fishing, rowing boats, paddling canoes and riding Kitty the horse in the field behind our cottage that my dad looked after and stabled at night for the owner who lived in the big house in Old Road. See the picture at top of Old Road - that's where we took Kitty and the grey horse we later looked after to be shod.
THE TOWPATH WHERE THE BOATS WERE MOORED LATER ON
There used to be a very large weeping willow there that used hang over the river. We used to cast underneath it as fish used to congregate under it. This is the bank where I did most of my fishing from. On the left of picture was our flower garden, a pear and apple tree, a water well then a lawn then a vegetable garden right to the top, where the horse grips are. In those days the barges were pulled by shire horses, not until the late 1950s did monkey boats come in (Narrow Boats) and over the bridge are the telephone wires where my dad saved a swan which got caught up in them. It broke both wings but survived and when it got better it could not fly any more, but it came down to the lock gates every single day as if to say thanks to him. I've got photos of him feeding it with bread. When I was 3 I lost my toy speed boat... Read more
ONE OF MY BEST SCHOOL FRIENDS HOUSES
This is where one of my best friends still lives. His name is Michael, he's a Spurs supporter. Still get a Xmas card and from 5 years old until I left in 1961 we stayed friends with our little gang of mates Colin, David, Gary, Christopher, Wiggy and a few others . We all went to Forbert & Barnards and Mark Hall schools . We had many a good day together outside of school hours.
