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Ridgeway

Ridgeway maps

Historic maps of Ridgeway and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis.   View all Ridgeway maps

Ridgeway area books

Displaying 1 of 18 books about Ridgeway and the local area.   View all books for this area

Memories of Ridgeway

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Dorset memories

Milk Bar South St

Max Gate, Thomas Hardy's Home 1930
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I used the milk bar regularly in 1964.
I think who owned it then was named Evans.
They had a daughter named Carol ,any idea what happened to her ?

Fond Memories

My family moved to Eastbrook House in 1970 and lived there for about 11 years, I was ages 1-11 at that time so my first memories and experiences were of Eastbrook, Upwey, Dorchester and Weymouth in that order.  I drive through Upwey whenever I can on nostalgia trips and always stop outside Eastbrook to reminisce and to see what changes are going on.  My wife thinks I'm obsessed with Upwey and especially Eastbrook!  Maybe she's right.

Windsbatch Cottage, Church Street

We moved to Upwey when I was about 3. My father came to Portland in the Royal Navy and I went to Upwey Primary, sang in the choir, went on to appear in local pantos and generally have a wonderful childhood, playing in the Mill with Lorraine Milligan, the miller's daugher, and buying bits for Mummy from Eckersalls, Loverings and Upwey Post Office - all sadly now gone. We had to move in 1980 when my father left home but my heart is in the village and always will be. I am only over the hill in Dorchester. I think we had some of the best neighbours ever, and were so very lucky and safe, with amazing walks, ponies and a really special time. I feel very lucky indeed to have met some of the nicest and kindest people of my entire life in that village.

A Family Business

To anyone local to Dorchester this was a familiar scene day in and day out for almost 50 years. My grandfather Ben Courtney started selling 'fruit and veg' in 1947 from hand-carts on the roadside. His son Doug started in 1950 and various members of the family helped out through the week.

This picture shows my Aunt Isabel serving a regular customer with his two sons. Her father Ben is behind in his hat, serving, and her brother Doug is extreme left, carrying a box. My father (Doug Courtney) tells me his wife Joan was not at work at this time because she was expecting me to be born, in the June of that year!

Doug took over in 1960 and Trevetts worked alongside from the mid 1960s. Doug, Joan, Win, Isabel and Glad were the familiar faces that served. I did my fair share, working on busy Saturdays to ease the load. Everything was seasonal, and spring into summer brought a surge of fruit and... Read more

Parallel Parking in South Street in The 1960s

South Street c1965
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I had recently passed my driving test and drove a Morris Minor Saloon, to practice my parallel parking I used to drive down South Street after work or on a Sunday and park outside of Woolworths or Marks and Spencers and try various manoeuvres with the aid of the reflection of the car in the plate glass windows.

My Gt Grandparents Lived at Hangmans Cottage

Hangman's Cottage 1898
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My great-grandparents lived at Hangmans Cottage sometime during the late 1800s or early 1900s. My dad Robert Mitchell was born at Friary Cottage in 1904 which is a short walk from Hangmans Cottage. He used to tell me about his time spent with his grandparents at Hangmans Cottage when he was a boy. Sadly I am not sure as to whether it was his paternal grandparents which would have been called Mitchell or his maternal grandparents which would have been White-Matthews that lived there. I would really like to know, but sadly there is no-one left to tell me. I have visited both cottages on several occasions with my late father and have since taken my children & grandchildren to see both places. We now have several pictures of different generations standing outside Hangmans Cottage.

'When we Were Young'

‘I remember when’ - yes, I remember market day in Dorchester very well – when your picture was taken I was 10 years old, and could well have been one of the children in your picture. On Wednesdays, during school holidays Mum took my brother and I to Dorchester on the bus and we would go'‘into town’ first to do the weekly shop.

This photograph shows South Street (facing south) where they also (and still do) had stalls selling vegetables everyday - Dorchester Market itself is still held in Weymouth Avenue, which is approximately half a mile from South Street.

I think the stall holder was called Neville (Trevitt?), the lady could well be his wife. I also recognise the gentleman on the right with the cap, I think he was someone 'important in Dorchester' in those days, but his name escapes me, he must be now long gone, 54 years later!

On leaving school at 15, I work in 'Boots the Chemist' which is the... Read more

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