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Kempston, Bedfordshire
Kempston maps
Historic maps of Kempston and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Kempston maps
Historic map of Kempston
Illustrated Victorian map of Bedfordshire
Historic Map of any Kempston postcode
Kempston books
Displaying 3 of 5 books about Kempston and the local area. View all Kempston books
Bedfordshire Living Memories
Paperback
rrp £14
£11.20
Bedfordshire Photographic Memories
Paperback
rrp £14
£11.20
Bedford Photographic Memories
Paperback
rrp £13
£10.40
You can read extracts and browse photos from these books.
Memories of Kempston
Displaying a selection of personal
memories of Kempston
.
Add your memory of Kempston
or of a photo of Kempston.
Swimming in the river at Kempston
Great times were had at the river at the bend as we children called it, we would make mud slides down the banks. What fun we had. There was always a good crowd there on a Sunday afternoon, but now its all quiet, no swimmers, the bend has long since gone.
Shared on 23 July 2007
Bedfordshire memories
I was a summer season driver of these boats during my college holidays in the early 1960s. We operated four boats, Silver Foam, Silver Stream, Silver Crest and my own boat, Silver Dawn, which I believe came from the Norfolk Broads.
The mornings were spent at Fenlake cleaning and polishing to the high standards demanded by Mr Smith (`The Guvnor`). We... [more]
Shared on 20 May 2009
I was a projectionist at the Picturedrome
I worked there for a few years with Stan Hunt at the Picturedrome, and the Plaza which was nearly opposite across the river was owned by a man called Mr Cheetam. I also worked at the Plaza as a relief projectionist and also another cinema in Ampthill owned by Mr Cheetam.
They were great days and I now live in Leicester... [more]
Shared on 13 July 2008
I was the main weekday driver of the launch photographed during the student holiday periods of 1955-1958. When I drove it, the name was 'Silver Stream'. It was the largest of a set of three electric launches which carried paying passengers for trips of about 40 minutes duration from the steps on the downstream, north side of the town bridge. Typically... [more]
Shared on 06 April 2006
As RAF children, all three of us were christened in the picturesque church in Cardington, which is the unofficial 'favourite' church for RAF personnel! I obviously don't remember my own christening and wasn't about when my older brother was held over the font, but I do remember my sister's christening because she's nine years younger than I, so the memory is... [more]
Shared on 16 July 2009
The first time I went to Marston my boyfriend was taking me to visit his parents. I was 15 and he was 17. We caught a train from Bedford St John's and got off at Milbrook Halt. His family lived in a Brickyard home in "Jubilee Cottages". It wasn't as modern as my parents' council house as it had no hot... [more]
Shared on 16 June 2008
The war years and just afterwards
Turvey Abbey was owned in those days by Rupert Allen who owned an engineering factory in Bedford. My father was employed on the estate as gardener/general factotum (and was paid a pittance for the privilege). The Abbey had a few cows, pigs, geese and chickens. It was often my job to go out at dusk to shut up the chickens to... [more]
Shared on 31 March 2009
I remember fishing for endless hours just about the spot shown in the photograph. There were many perch there and on one occasion I caught a fair sized pike. Just upstream from this location was a sort of peninsular accessed by climbing down steps set in the wall of Turvey Bridge. This was called Sam's Island for some reason. ... [more]
Shared on 28 January 2009
Extracts From Kempston & Bedfordshire books
Displaying a selection of extracts from Frith books about Kempston, inspired by Frith photos.
Sandy was originally a modest Roman settlement on the Roman road between St Albans and Godmanchester; in the 18th century the town became important for its coaching inns servicing the Great North Road. However, it is a somewhat bitty town, and the market square is a distinct disappointment. Here, a little further north up High Street, we look west along Bedford Road. The late 19th-century town hall is on the left. By 1925 it... [more]
This is an extract from Bedford Photographic Memories.
Read more and see photos from this book.
Read more and see photos from this book.
Going east from Market Place along Church Street, we reach the small square with the brown stone church on its north side, a curiously villagey one for a town. On the left is the cliff-like Dynevor House, with 1725 on the rainwater hopper-heads, three storeys of box sashes and a corniced parapet. No 36a on the right is late Georgian, while the Feoffee almshouses are late 16th- century timber-framed under the render.
This is an extract from Bedford Photographic Memories.
Read more and see photos from this book.
Read more and see photos from this book.
The riverside willows on the north bank have only recently been pollarded in this view, in which an eight rows past. The opposite bank is Long Island. The small landing stage on the right was built here to close off the boat slide, which is just behind it.
This is an extract from Bedford Photographic Memories.
Read more and see photos from this book.
Read more and see photos from this book.
