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Hemington
Hemington maps
Historic maps of Hemington and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Hemington maps
Hemington area books
Displaying 1 of 11 books about Hemington and the local area. View all books for this area
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Memories of Hemington
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Avon memories
Daneswood
My maternal grandparents owned Daneswood, which you reached by taking the Mells road out of Great Elm, then turning left at a bungalow set right on the edge of the Mells river valley. After passing the bungalow, Daneswood was the first of three fine Victorian houses set in their own beautiful gardens that fell away down the valley to the Mells river. Daneswood has since been renamed Wood Rising.
When our family of mother, father and three boys returned from Egypt in 1952 we lived at Daneswood for a while, and attended Mells school. We played by the river and learned how to fish, using bent pins and bamboo polls to catch first roach and then trout. There was great excitement when my mother brought us a packet of real fishhooks from Frome. The river at that time was full of crayfish, and we used to catch them and have crayfish races in the grass by the river.
I n 1953 my parents opened a school called Roselyon in... Read more
Strange But True
Our first home was a ground floor bedsit at 40 Castle Corner opposite the castle. The old part of the road formed a hammer head and had three parking bays. One dark rainy winters night my husband parked outside and ran in to get his wallet. When he got back outside the car was gone. He ran out into the road and saw that it was in fact parked between two cars in the hammer head. He must have left it with the handbrake off and the camber of the road must have determined the line at which it travelled. Whether the two parked cars were already there or not we shall never know. He couldn't have parked it better if he had been behind the wheel.
I Miss Them Still...............
Marcel & Anne Dutru bought a house in Rode in about 1969. The entire family thought that they were quite mad moving from the centre of London to a wee village that no-one had ever heard of. They lived so happily at 23 High Street for a good many years. My dad loved his wife, his new home and his life there. He was never happier than when family members came to stay and he could show them around the area. He was quite an historian and knew more about the area than most locals ...The entire family loved to visit because they were always made so welcome. Anne was such a good cook and her spreads were famous. All the grandchildren were spoiled rotten when they went there, so naturally kept going back for more. Marcel and Anne are both buried in the village chuchyard there. [At least that's where their ashes are] The day after my dad's ashes were scattered [December '91] Clive, who was Anne's nephew and... Read more
Early 80's
During the early '80's when i was working as a cameraman for the US TV network ABC I used to come and visit my father (Marcel Dutru and his wife Anne) who had retired in Rode after a long career in the catering trade. I had many happy memories of the place and of course the pubs. The X Keys especially where we used to go upstairs and play bowls. We met some delightful people one of which I still email and chat with. Bill Lapham. Browsing the internet and seeing this site brought back the past and when my father was alive. Bob Dutru- Niagara Falls, Canada
A Lost Childhood
My beloved late mum grew up and lived in the stunning village of Rode, way back in the late thirties I think. Sadly she's gone now, and I wish I had written down more of her memories of Rode. Her family name was Humphries, and she told me of how her late father worked as a gardener in a big manor house there, and on a farm. She had memories of only being tall enough to actually walk upright UNDER the belly of a carthorse on the farm! She recalled how kind the people who owned the big house were to my mum and her dad. She told me how her father worked with a sythe to cut down the grass, and the poor squeeling frogs hidden unfortunatly IN the grass at the time, a sound that stayed with her a lifetime, founding her hatred of all things froggie. Sadly her little sister is buried in the parish church, in an unmarked grave, after being knocked down and killed, aged around... Read more
The Oldest House
Frome's 'Oldest House' or 'Pepperpot' has a chequered past even in recent times. I moved to Frome in 1992 when it was being used as a Travel Agents and looked fairly run down. It then remained closed for a number of years except at christmas time when it was used as a charity card shop. The upper floors of the building have faux tudor styling, the ground floor is laid out to plate glass. It fell into disrepair and suffered from Frome's Saturday night broken window epidemic on several occasions - which now seems to have thankfully passed. However, it has recently been restored and redeemed itself since re-opening as 'Le Strada', the best coffee house in town (in my opinion), which also hosts a small gallery.
My Best Memories
I was born in Frome and I left when i was 11 years old,I moved with my dad to Bristol. But I have to be honest, since I have left Frome about ten years ago I miss my life I had there. Even though I have been living in Bristol for the past ten years, it's never felt like home. When I go to visit friends in Frome I get butterflies in my tummy and it feels like I'm going home. I miss going on bike rides to Longleat and geting in for free through the back entrance. I always felt safe in Frome because everyone knows everyone, even if not by name just by face. Me and my sister and brother used to go fishing with friends just off the bridge in town by the library. I also miss playing in the adventure playground, playing on the big red spider climbing frame and the old train. I remember the old fruit market, I think that was on a Wednesday,... Read more
