Horton memories
Here are memories of Horton and the local area. You can start now: Add your own Memory of Horton or a Horton photo.
Growing up in Horton
I lived in Horton from my birth to my 22nd year. I went to the Horton Church School first in 1941. There was a separate playground for both boys and girls, and a small door leading into the shelters. When the air raid siren went we all had to go into the dark, windowless shelters until the all-clear. One day a Nazi plane machine-gunned the pavement near the school. Being a church school, we sang "Now The Day Is Over" at the end of every school day. I thought it very mournful! Mr. Brown had the Grocers' shop near the school, and one section was a post office. Opposite, was Mr. Dove the newsagent and his shop was divided into two, the other side being for greengroceries. A tiny Horton Bakery served the schoolchildren with buns for morning break. Not too far away lived the then Queen Elizabeth's aunt (Lady Bowes-Lyon) -down a long winding lane with a river running... Read more
Move to Horton
I think it was about 1986 when I moved to Horton, I was around 7 years old. We only moved from Wraysbury Road near Staines but it may as well have been 500 miles, leaving all my friends that lived all along the road to moving to Horton. There wasn't that many kids in Horton back then. We moved into the house next door to the Five Bells pub, a large detatched 4 bed house, it felt like a mansion house. Darlaron was the name of the house because the owner of the house, Stan Errett's granddaughter, couldnt pronounce the real name...my mum and dad changed it to Forge Cottage. Horton has changed a lot in the years since I left. The pubs have had many different owners! A lot of new houses and apartments have been built. When I moved to Horton the close where my sister lived until 2011, Champney Close, was a paper mill. Me, my brother and our friends would jump the wall on the weekends... Read more
Memories of Berkshire
Honey Pot Cottage at Wraysbury
My aunt, Beryl Reid, moved into Honey Pot Cottage in Wraysbury in the late 1950s and we spent many happy days visiting her. The river was fascinating and there was a houseboat on the other side of the river that seemed to be there for years and years. She had a lovely curved stone seat at the bottom of the garden where I used to sit and let the water lap my feet and the ducks used to come up into the garden every day to be fed. As time went on Honey Pot Cottage because heavily populated with cats and they had the greatest time running up and down trees and hiding in the thatch. Unfortunately those days are long gone.
Wraysbury School.
I went to Wraysbury School and one day came late. Everyone was gathered in the canteen for morning assembly, and when I got there, everyone clapped and I was pushed up to receive a large brown envelope. Going back to my place, I asked the girl next to me what they were clapping about, and she said, "You've passed the scholarship". I was so vague, I don't know how I did it. One day I had walked out of the gate to go home for lunch (about a mile and a half) and a pupil watching me looked very disapproving, but said nothing. When I got home, my grandmother said it was just past 11.00am! I'd gone out in the morning break period. Everyone was looking for me until I brought a note back about 2.00pm, feeling very foolish because everyone was laughing, especially the pupil who had watched me and said nothing! When I was due to leave, Mr Watson, the headmaster (a lovely kindly man with... Read more
Before They Built The Reservoir ...
In the 1950s I used to stay with my grandparents in their bungalow (The Aspens, adjacent to Raynor's Farm) in what is now called Farm Road; it is not even a road now but simply an access gate to the reservoir. Back in the 1950s, before they built the reservoir, it was a track, Coppermill Lane, off Coppermill Road, Wraysbury, but it is now, sadly, under water in Wraysbury Reservoir. They were happy times for me, but as I didn't have a camera at the time I don't have any photos of what the area was like at the time. My grandparents died in 1959 and are buried, so I (much) later discovered in the churchyard of St. Michael's Church, Horton - in unmarked graves which nobody can locate with accuracy, which saddens me considerably, as you can imagine. If anyone remembers them - Henry and Elizabeth BURG - and can provide any information, photos, anything - that would be true magic. ANY help in refreshing my memories would be gratefully and happily received. Ron Burg. ... Read more
Datchet Under Water 1947
1947 was the year that my parents, my sister and I moved to Datchet and the shops in this photo, taken 2 years before, are so familiar, even now. Not long after having moved here, the snow which had lain thickly on the ground for many weeks, began to thaw. The Thames eventually broke its banks, due to the volume of water now finding its way from further up river and the whole of the village green was under water. Our house, very fortunately, was not flooded but I can remember my parents taking up carpets and moving furniture upstairs (just in case) Also coming down to the water's edge by the International Stores and waiting for punts bringing food etc. across the water and the people trading from their boats. As no buses could get through to take us to school we had to be picked up by lorry and taken to the main road in Langley to pick up a bus for the rest... Read more
1947 Floods.
Born in 1944 at no 2, Waterworks Cottages (later 123, Slough Road) on the corner of Castle Avenue. I have vivid memories of the floods, though only three at the time: Mother, Father, Sister and Self were confined to the (very small) upstairs for many weeks, as when the water subsided, downstairs was of course thick with mud and assorted unsavoury objects! (no main drainage in those days). Mother had only a single gas ring upon which to cook, washing facilities were rudimentary, and toilet facilities consisted of one Elsan bucket! Supplies were delivered mainly by ex-army DUKW amphibious vehicles, with Village Bobby P.C. Burr in charge, and well I remember him shouting at me to stand away from the window, and, having failed to do so, being struck between the eyes by a then very substantial Mars bar which he had launched with Constabulary zeal! The R.A.F. came around with huge hangar heaters in an attempt to dry out downstairs, but of course everything had to be thrown out,... Read more
Memorybank total
We're very pleased and excited by your response so far to our "Share your Memories" community.
You've shared 28,875 memories of 5,950 towns & villages across the UK - keep them coming!
Find Memories
Simply search for your favourite places to read others' memories and share your own.
Tips & Ideas
Not sure what to write?
It's easy - just think of an important place in your life and ask yourself:
How does it feature in your personal history?
What are your best memories of this place?
How has it changed over the years?
How does it feel, seeing these old photos of your favourite place?
Do you remember stories about the local community, its history and people?
Start now!
It's easy to add your own memories and reconnect with your shared local history. Search for your favourite places and look for the orange "Add your Memory" icon to begin.
Places this week
Here are some of the places you've shared memories of this week:
- Neath, West Glamorgan
- Braunston, Northamptonshire
- West Kirby, Merseyside
- Almondsbury, Avon
- Great Holland, Essex
- Oadby, Leicestershire
- Maidenhead, Berkshire
- Kings Sutton, Oxfordshire
- Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire
- Sedlescombe, East Sussex
- Easington Colliery, County Durham
- Blaenllechau, Mid Glamorgan
- Nazeing, Essex
- Strood, Kent
- Duloe, Cornwall
- Penruddock, Cumbria
- Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk
- Stokesley, Cleveland
- Rhydyfelin, Mid Glamorgan
- Helsby, Cheshire
- ... and lots more - Browse this week's memories now.
Your memories
To jump straight to the memories you have added already to the Community, click here
I Remember When...
This stunning compilation highlights some of the best stories selected from the thousands contributed here on the
Frith website. The result is an absorbing chronicle of British life from the Second World War to the mid 1960s.
A colourful treasure trove of memories, "I Remember When" is an
irresistible mix of personal stories and recollections that affectionately reveal the detail of everyday life in Britain.
