The War Years And A Life Of Bliss

A Memory of Shelsley Walsh.

During the Second World War my parents, my sister and I moved from Birmingham to stay with my paternal grandparents at New Mill Bridge wher my grandmother Harriet Cook owned and ran the local store "Cooks Stores". This was written on the end wall of the house facing the road. The "T" junction there was also a "Midland Red" bus stop for the twice a day buses to Worcester. Just after war broke out the service was stopped and we had to walk a mile to Homme Bridge to catch the bus from Clifton on Teme to Worcester. To me, a young lad of 6 or so, Shelsley was, and still is, my idea of heaven. We were far away from the bombing in Birmingham and living in paradise. The woods behind the house were a playground for my sister and I. the stream that ran from the "Witchery Hole" into the river Teme figured often in our play. Dams across the stream made a reservoir where I could sail boats made out of bits if wood with paper sails. At the end of play we could "Bomb" the dam and watch the water rush down through the pipe that took it under the road. Once, I made my sister lose her temper and . as usual, I started to laugh at her. This made her more enraged and she picked up a stone and threw it at me. She was on one side of the stream and I was on the other. Fortunately for me she forgot to release the stone and fell face first into the muddy water. I had a lot of explaining to do that day. There were Italian prisoners of war working on the land and three of the Alec, Franco and Gustave seemed to take a shine to my sister Maureen and I. They used to visit us with their battledress blouses crammed with fruit, cherries, etc. They once brought a rabbit and threatened to kill and eat it but I prevailed upon my parents to buy the rabbit, a "Blue Bevren", from them and I kept it as a pet for a long time. The garden of the house/shop had fruit trees in abundance. There were at least three apple trees each with a differenrt species of apple. Numerous plum trees, including one that provided us with the most succulent "Victoria" plums. Gooseberry bushes, Raspberry canes and a great big patch of Rhubarb gave us "Afters" all year round. Our neighbours were Mr and Mrs Stinton and many years later I wondered if they were any relation to the Stintons who were artists at the Worcester ceramic factory. They had a daughter Dawn who I believe moved here to Australia after the war. At Forge Cottage was Mrs Howell and her daughter Doris and her husband, their name was Atherage I think. Further on toward Homme Bridge there was one of the Kirby Bothers at Homme Castle. I think he later emigrated too. At Homme Bridge there was a small group of cottages. After the war the Italian Prisoners Alec, Gustav, and Franko, returned to Italy for a very short time before returning to Shelsley. They married three local girls and moved into three of those cottages. Many years later, while visiting my grandmother, I met Franco once more and we had a natter about the old days. If you walked from the shop toward Shelsley Walsh and "The Track" the first dwelling you came across was the gate house to Court House Farm, this again was owned by one of the Kirby brothers. Part of the way up the drive to the farm hose you would find the old Norman church on your left. My grandmother had a sister named Emma Jelf and she is buried there. Emma died just after our Christmas dinner one year and we children, as well as our cousins who were visiting for the festivities, were sent out to play while the doctor and undertaker came. I don't remember much of this day. Just past the entrance to Court House Farm (once the residence of the Sherrif of Worcestershire) stood a couple of other cottages on the right hand side of the road. When I lived in the area one of the cottages was occupied by Roland Gwinnet and his family. Some of the Gwinnets attended the school at Shelsley Beauchamp as I did. I can't recall all the names other than Reggie and Margaret. Just past these cottages the road did a 90 degree turn to the right and led on toward Stanford. About half a mile along were two groups of bungalows similar to those at Burch Bank, Shelsley Beauchamp. The Jones family lived in one of the and Wally was at school with me. Tony Freeman lived there too, as did Mrs Tyler the school teacher at Shelsley Beauchamp and her daughter Daphne.
Just at the bottom of the dip in the road stood the general store run by my grandmother's rival, Mrs Grosvenor. Though they were competitors, whenever they met they appeared to be the very best of friends. Among the customers that frequented my grandmother's shop I can remember Mt Kite, the local policeman, Mr Perry, the postman who also delivered the newspapers in his bottle green Austin 7 'Ruby'. Ray Jenkins, the conductor of the BBC Midland Light Orchestra used to come down for the fishing. Members of the Moore family from Church House Farm included Lionel and my favourite, "Pim", he was a lovely man. Despite being deaf and dumb he could always make himself understood. We had an Airdale dog "Rex" who hated people on bicycles and would chase them snapping at their heels. Pim got wise to this and would dismount as he approached the shop and would no re-mount until he was on the Bridge hearing for Shelsley Beauchamp. Stan Abberly is another name from the past. I will write more another time.

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