Sandford-On-Thames

Wests in Cowley

I was born and brought up in Cowley. We lived at 169 Oxford Road which now belongs to Emmaus I believe. Across the road was a large old cottage which during the war was used to house evacueee and the Post Office was next door. When I was young I belonged to the Better Britain Brigade. I have photos taken in St James Hall if anyone is interested, with Fathers Whye and Beacham. I attended church at both St James and St Luke's (where I was later married). I remember spending happy hours in the snow on the golf course. Behind our garden was the swimming pool and library which we used a great deal. My parent Phil and Gladys West owned the West Stores on the corner of Hollow Way and Crescent Road and I used to deliver groceries to Horspath when I was older. In 1964 my family and I emigrated to Australia. Evelyn Hutt (nee West)

Magdalen College From River 1922
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This photograph is taken from the playing fields of Magdalen College School and shows the Botanical Gardens.

George Webb & Family

St Peter's in The East 1890
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Kate Maria Webb christened St Peters in the East 21 Sep 1860 (12 years of age), Abode - 85 High Street Oxford, Parents - George Webb & Elizabeth,
Trade - Gunmaker. (copy of parish registrar entry held by contributor)
George Webb & Elizabeth Sugar of 85 High Street later 36 Iffley Rd (1881 Census) died 16 Feb 1892 (89 Iffley Rd) - buried St Peters in the East (no headstones standing today) (copy of Death Cert held by contributor)
Family of George & Elizabeth - George Walter (m Amelia Lockwood), Annie Louisa (m Charles Carter), Francis Edward, Ellen Alice, Kate Maria (m John Lowe, emigrated NZ), Laura Nina (m Charles Stuart Cumberland)
Descendant of Annie Louisa is Olenka Thomas of IOW recently deceased in distressing circumstances, (commission for an independant review regarding social services re providing for Miss Thomas 2005)

Edmund Not Alban

St Edmund Hall 1890
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This photograph is of St Edmund Hall, affectionately known as 'Teddy Hall', which by common consent is the oldest seat of learning in the University of Oxford. Founded in the early 13th century by St Edmund of Abingdon, who lectured in the old church of St Peter in the East, which is now the college library. St Edmund later became Archbishop of Canterbury.
Scholars of St Edmund Hall are renowned for their prowess on the sports field, on the river and in the bar. Some of us can also do joined up riting.
Peter Britton (SEH 1973).

Music And Dancing at The 2009 Oxford Folk Festival

Cornmarket Street c1950
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One of the many items on the Oxford "tourist trail" is a weekend long folk festival which is supported by dozens of morris dancing sides from all over England. This year Whitethorn Morris appeared for the first time and brought a huge side of 12 dancers and almost as many musicians!

The dance events take place mainly in the pedestrianised streets of the city centre and the last "spot" on Sunday afternoon was a massed stand by all the performers in the courtyard of the former prison!  This was something of a surreal experience as the backdrop were rows of barred cell windows and the crowd of spectators sat on stone steps snapping away with cameras!

Whitethorn put on displays of dancing in half a dozen venues during the day but the one I remember most is standing in the middle of the Cornmarket playing my piano accordian with the Whitethorn Band surrounded by many Japanese tourists taking pictures!  

It was a really enjoyable... Read more

The 2010 Oxford Folk Festival

Balliol College 1922
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This view shows just one of the many venues for the 2010 Oxford Folk Festival, a weekend long festival of music, song and dancing including a grand parade through the city on Saturday morning. Thousands of residents and tourists looked on as hundreds of performers from all around the country provided the entertainment. I was there with my fellow dancers and musicians from Whitethorn Morris - a lively team of women clog dancers and their mixed band from Harrow.

Although it was early April, the sun shone brightly and crowds thronged the streets to watch as we provided jigs and polkas for the clog dancers. It was a lovely day to remember and I hope very much that the organisers of this annual event will continue.

Evacuee

I was evacuated from London to Oxford with Burlington School on 1st September 1939. At first we had our lessons in the old Milham Ford School premises but after a few weeks transferred to the new school in Marston where we shared the classrooms and facilities but were kept as a separate school from the Milham Ford pupils. Both schools were grammar schools for girls only. My sister and I lived in Woodstock Road in a house backing on to Port Meadow. We lived with Mr Charles Thompson M.A. a retired Don and Fellow of Queens College. He had a cook and housemaid, Lizzie and Edie Govier. We walked to school through University Park but later I had a bicycle and remember falling off it at the bottom of Headington Hill and breaking my arm. On Saturday mornings we sometimes queued for cakes at Oliver & Gurden's factory in Summertown and often on Saturday afternoons Mr. Tompson took us out to... Read more