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Hempstead
Hempstead maps
Historic maps of Hempstead and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Hempstead maps
Hempstead photos
We have no photos of Hempstead, although we do have photos of these nearby places:
Great Sampford| Wimbish| Finchingfield| Haverhill| Thaxted| Great Bardfield| Horseheath| Debden| Toppesfield| Saffron Walden| Streetly End| Wethersfield| Linton
Hempstead area books
Displaying 1 of 18 books about Hempstead and the local area. View all books for this area
You can read extracts and browse photos from these books.
Memories of Hempstead
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Essex memories
Week Ends
Fishing in whitleys farm pond with don martin eyes glued on the water for tench bubbles. catching one of two pounds and scared half to death of it getting off the hook [ granny knots] ..riding in trailers full of warm wheat.. birds nesting down the old farm and falling in the moat. getting shouted at for riding my bike on the cricket pitch. having my foot run over by the roller [same day] scrumping apples out of mrs cardys garden and falling in the stinging nettles when she came out. getting wood for bonfire night. fights.pic meadow pond a magical place [sadly filled in long ago] lots more, post later using accent of the place mite be funny reading.
Burnt House Cottage
This was of course taken long before Burnt House Cottage was built. This was where my grandmother Ruth Hare lived. The cottage is now to the right of the road. In the background are accommodation blocks at Carver Barracks (Debden Aerodrome). Burnt House Farm is to the left of the picture where the Boutwood family lived in the 70's.
Growing up in Finchingfield
My family Ken and Joan Blake owned the Church Hill Stores (opposite the Church) from 1945 to the early 50's then we lived in the village until 1957. I have many memories of my time in Finchingfield and many faces and events come flooding back. This picture shows a row of cottages known to me as The Causeway where in my time there was an ice cream shop. The lane opposite - The Pikle -(spelling unknown) had high brick walls on both sides and as a child I used to stamp along in my wellingtons making a lovely echoing plonk. I can still hear the sound.
In My Day
In my days in the village I recall the upstairs room of the Guildhall having a snooker table where the men used to gather, this would be shortly after the war. Of more interest to me was the Library that was situated downstairs. As a very small child I was able to borrow and read books of all kinds which stimulated a life-long interest and love of books. The Guildhall had a gateway from the churchyard to the road right through the middle of the building (not quite apparent in this photo) and one day whilst walking through to my home (Church Hill Stores) I had my picture taken by a photographer who used it to produce a postcard. I wonder if any survive today? However much to my mother's chagrin, I was well wrapped up against the East Anglian wind and my face was totally obscured by a large headscarf, thus lasting fame eluded me.
A Search in Progress
Finchingfield to me, in my younger days, was a place that Dad would take Mum and me to on a Sunday afternoon drive. Never to stop for very long but it is a place that leaves a snapshot in your memory.
Being an adopted child I did not realise at the time that Finchingfield would play a large part in a search that I have been on for nearly 15 years.
Little did I know until I applied for and recived my original birth cert that "Pond View Restaurant" in Finchingfield in 1952 was the last address of my "birth mother".
I have searched records and even visited Finchingfield but to no avail to find any reference to "Pond View" Resturant or its owners at the time who I believe were my Aunts.
So...if anyone who has read this or knows someone who might remember way back then please, I would love to hear from you. The smallest piece of information just might be the key that unlocks a... Read more
Morris Dancing
My memories of Thaxted are very dear to me. My parents, unfortunately now deceased, were Queenie and Denzil Roberts. Denzil was a Pharmacist and purchased the property known as the Chemist Shop and refurbished the property so we could all live above the shop. We lived in Thaxted for a few years and made many friends. I was able to participate in many of the May Day festivities and was an avid fan of the Morris Dancers and their dancing. Dorrie Field still lives in Thaxted, with her son Howard. Dorrie's sister, Pat Bayley, lives in Saffron Walden. When I am able to visit my family, I always make a trip to Thaxted where a visit to the Church is an absolute must. Another favourite is a visit and a meal at the Fox and Hounds, which I believe is now named Thaxted Hall. Dorrie and her husband Philip were married in the Church on July 18, 1956. Thank you for allowing me to contribute my childhood memories. Beryl Roberts... Read more
Where my Mum Was Born
Thaxted is where my mum was born in 1907.
