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Purley On Thames
Purley On Thames photos
Displaying the first of 9 old photos of Purley On Thames. View all Purley On Thames photos
Purley On Thames maps
Historic maps of Purley On Thames and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Purley On Thames maps
Purley On Thames area books
Displaying 1 of 11 books about Purley On Thames and the local area. View all books for this area
You can read extracts and browse photos from these books.
Memories of Purley On Thames
Displaying a selection of personal
memories of Purley On Thames.
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River Gardens.
I have so many happy memories of Purley on Thames. My older sister lived at No 1 River Gardens in the latter part of the 1960s until the middle of the 1970s. As kids, my brother and I spent many, many happy days playing in the large garden there and along the river bank from the stile right up to Mapledurham Lock. I also remember swimming in the Thames there, and the night we swam across to the island almost opposite my sister's house and camped there. I often recall how we used to hire a small wooden boat called 'Ada' from a lady who lived a few houses along from my sisters. It cost one old shilling for an hour to hire and we had many happy hours paddling along the river between the lock and the Roebuck Hotel jetty. I don't remember the name of the lady, I think it sounded like a German name. So many, many happy memories I could go on and on.
Halycon Days
As a young child, these were good days, we had very little but so did everybody else, Mum had a few chickens, and we lived in a little house on stilts, brick piers, my Dad was working for the Thames Valley, and when the floods came, he had to row the first few hunred yards to get to the hill, which would carry him over the railway and up to the main road to catch the bus in Reading. Joyous days by the riverbank nearby and fun at the local school where my teaching was a Miss Wallington. We were good friends with Beryl Webb who lived in a converted railway carriage and we all shared what we had together. Great days with happy memouries.
Good Times
I went to live in Winteringham Way in Purley when I was 4 years old until I was 8 years old, and twice a twice every year we were flooded out. I remember having to stay elsewhere like the Memorial Hall, and it was very exciting staying at The Priors big house, eating my breakfast at a big long table, with my mum and older brother, we also had to move sometimes, into another house, in Brading Way. The area still looks very much the same. I still think about the times, that we went pea picking, my older sisters would come down from London to earn extra money, I loved it, they were good times, the farmer was MrBucknell.
Royal Family Travelling Through Reedham Train Station
I remember standing on the station platform to see the Royal Family pass through on the Royal Train. I have no recollection of where they were travelling to and I'm a bit hazy on the year.
We all wore our best clothes and stood waving. The train slowed down as it passed through the station. Then about 3 or 4 days later we did the same on the other side.
Myself and my two sisters, Janet and Eileen Hall were all at Reedham Orphanage. We were at Reedham from 1935 to about 1947/48.
Berkshire memories
Birds Nest
I was about 5 or 6 and my dad was a school groundsman visiting schools in the Reading area cutting the grass and generaly keeping the grounds tidy. He would sometimes take me with him on a Saturday or during the holidays, always by bus no car in those days. I remember going with him to the school at the end of this road towards the trees on the left of the photo. The school caretaker took delight in lifting me up to look into a birds nest with baby birds in it. Nearly 60 years on this is still a memory that I have kept.
Tilehurst 1960s
I was born at 4 Juniper Way, Tilehurst 1962. I lived there until I was 9. I have such warm memories of that time although my memories appear more like snapshots as I was so young
I remember some sounds of that time that have stayed with me. The electric motor and clinking of milk bottles from Job's Dairy, the wushing sound of the coal man filling our coal bunker with coal from the sack across his shoulder and the, what appeared, constant sound of light aircraft from a nearby airfield. These planes were always red as I remember.
Reading Speedway was at least 3 miles away but once a week there would be that distintive strained engine sound from motorbikes sliding around the speedway circuit. My last sound memory which may have been in the early 70s was was a thumping bass sound from the annual Reading Festival in August.
I lived at the top of the road which dropped away into quite a steep hill, I remember... Read more
My Memories Of Tilehurst
I was born in Theale but my parents moved to Tilehurst when I was 3 years of age where we lived at 16a Norcot Road with my grandparents Edith and Harold Goddard and other siblings to my mother Audrey Parsons, my father was Bill.
I attended Park Lane School from age 5 to 11 years when the Headmistress was Miss Clamp, two other teachers were Miss Norris and Miss Williams . At 11 I attended Norcot School, Tilehurst and the teachers I remember are Mr Saul who was the Headmaster, Miss London, Mr Turner, Mr Drake and Mr Ayres. The team houses in the school were Waltham, Niblett, Deverall and Hellyer,each with their colours of red, blue green and yellow. I was in Niblett which was green.
During my schooldays we played and watched football matches in the Rec' on the corner of Armour Road and Kentwood Hill, there was a pub on the opposite corner named The White House and on the corner of School Road and Armour Road... Read more
