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Lydney
Lydney maps
Historic maps of Lydney and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Lydney maps
Lydney area books
Displaying 1 of 10 books about Lydney and the local area. View all books for this area
You can read extracts and browse photos from these books.
Memories of Lydney
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memories of Lydney.
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Lydney - 1939-1945
My father, the late Cyril Cook, spent some time in Lydney, during the war, as a Nurse at a Naval Training Establishment, I believe.
Unfortunately, I know very little about his time in Lydney.
Ken Cook
Gloucestershire memories
Richard Gilham MM
Our maternal grandfather, Richard Gilham, was born in Aylburton in the 1880's. He won the Military Medal during the First World War. I think he married our grandmother in 1918 and he is buried in the Parish Church of Llansannor in South Glamorgan. Does anyone local to Aylburton have any information on him? Bryn Evans
Training
I must have been one of the first on the training ship because I thought it was 1954 I was there, but if it is recorded as c1955 who am I to argue! I was there training for the merchant navy for about 12 weeks. I was the camp bugler until I was relieved of my post because I was caught sitting down at the back of the church when I should have been standing. My first ship was MV Middlesex with The New Zealand Shipping Company. I joined her in Liverpool and was on her for about two months before we sailed to New Zealand via the Panama canal carrying trains on deck. When we got to NZ, the dockers went on strike and we were allowed to load our own ship with lamb carcases as we had refridgerated holds. My ships wages were 11.50 per month but we got 1 an hour for loading our own ship. We felt like millionaires. Barbies on the beach... Read more
Summer Training
Just to let you know I reported to the school on 31.5.1954 and finnished on the 9.7.1954 so there was some of us that did the training in the summer. I went on to serve on 7 ships in catering till I left to get married in 1957, I have still got my discharge book and union card, good memories, all the best.
L Remember it Being Dam Cold
l came across the vindi site by accident,and was amazed to see the old ship again, l trained on her on the stewards side over the1965 xmas period and went on to travel the world on the m.v. huntsland, carrying cargo all around the world.
seeing the photo brougt back so many memories of many years ago, does anyone else remember the jam butties at the seamans mission or swopping our cap badges with the crews on the russian boats in the docks.
Feeling Homesick
You know I haven't come across anyone who did their 8 weeks' training at Vindi in the summer months, most people you talk to remember most of all the severe winters. I am no exception, I remember going down to the ship from the camp last thing at night for a couple of slces of bread and butter and a mug of what was supposed to aid sleep. If you remember anti, my fondest memory I think was the latest music they used to play prior to the film show. I was at the camp in November and December, in fact I first shipped out on New Year's Eve 1961, me being a young fresh-faced 17-year-olf Scot who had never been away from home before. I don't mind admitting that I cried like a baby ... ah! memories.
Vindicatrix
I was a trainee at the Vindi between 25 October and 31 December of 1954. Met at the Sharpness station by a boy Bos'un who took the opportunity to cadge fags from us, we were marched(?) across the high bridge to the camp. Boys aready on courses hung around and attempted to extract ciggies from us but the bos'un had already removed what we were prepared to give so the lads contented themselves by making remarks like "You ain't never going home new boy" and similar things. After being processed we were led down the towpath to the ship and given a supper which had the name of Sea Pie (corned beef hash) and looked pretty uninviting. Some of us decided we were not that hungry and let the waiting vultures tuck in. It turned out to be the only meal we didn't completely devour during our entire time there and, by week two, we had joined the vultures. There were no vegetarians at... Read more
