Cherhill
Cherhill maps (2 available)
Map of Wiltshire
Beautifully hand-drawn and coloured, dating from around 1840
Personalised maps
Create an historic map centred directly on any postcode!
Cherhill books (14 available)
- 1 photos on Cherhill appear in 1 Frith books - View photos of Cherhill
- Read extracts and see photos from these books on Cherhill and Wiltshire
Cherhill memories
Read and share memories of Cherhill and Wiltshire inspired by Frith photos
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You can also read memories of nearby places in Wiltshire below.
Wiltshire memories
R.A.F.Compton Bassett
I was stationed at Compton Bassett from 6/10/48 until 25/1/49.
I was training as a T.P.O. / Tape Relay Operator.
My memories of the camp are not all that good, the most vivid memory was being paraded with the rest of the camp early one morning in November and being told by the C.O. that Princess Elizabeth had given birth to a son and we were ordered to raise our hats and give three cheers for the baby prince.
Other memories are of walks up to the white horse at Cherhill, visits to Calne, Marlborough, Chippenham, and the only town around that area that had much in the form of entertainment Swindon.
I also spent a weekend in Bristol staying at ...read more here
A memory of Compton Bassett contributed by Dennis Fickling
No. 3 Radio School, R.A.F. Compton Bassett. Wilts.,
At the age of 80, I still have nostalgic memories of Compton Bassett, of Calne, of the White Horse - both the historic site and the pub - and of the beautiful surrounding countryside that I often roamed, as a young man of 18, during my 9-month stay at No. 3 Radio School, R.A.F. Compton Bassett, where I too was trained as a W/OP & TP/OP (Telegraphist). And yes, who would ever forget the Station cookhouse "menu of the day" choice, which consisted, more often than not, of either bacon & egg, sausages, kidney & egg or steak and kidney pie with a good dollop of mashed potatoes and baked beans,
and for dessert a slab of fruit cake or boiled ...read more here
A memory of Compton Bassett contributed by John J Bautista
R A F Compton Bassett. No 3 Radio School
I cannot believe that I am the first ex "Wop/TeleOp" to stumble across this site and to pen a few words of nostalgia for the old camp and the surrounding towns. Calne in particular. The jokes we made about the bacon factory, e.g. 'Same lorry collecting from the cookhouse as brought our supplies'. Nipping thru' the hole in the fence around camp to pop along to the pub for cigarettes. The camp itself and all the boys (for that is what we were, 16/17 yr olds) who contributed to the memories I have of that part of my life, during 1946/47, I found so enjoyable. The friendiness of the Calne townfolk. I last visited the Calne area 15 years ago and ...read more here
A memory of Compton Bassett contributed by Clifford Wall
Long Service
I remember as a child being taken to see my uncle Ewart who was employed at Calne Railway Station for 55 years. My cousin Jean (his daughter) told me that he also used to use a long pole to put out the gas street lamps when on his way home. As a lad he had worked for Angells greengrocers but had always wanted to go the railways. Sadly the station has now been demolished, probably the demise of the Harris bacon factory played its part. The Harris factory had been a major employer in the town and had made good use of the railway to move its products.
A memory of Calne contributed by Michael Ponting
Extracts From Cherhill & Wiltshire books
This view can be seen from
the A4 road to Marlborough.
Situated on the edge of
the Cherhill Downs, just
below the earthworks
known as Oldbury Castle,
this is the second oldest of
the Wiltshire white horses.
It was cut in 1780 under
the instructions of a local
physician, Dr Christopher
Allsup. The shape was
marked out with a series
of white flags, which were
positioned under his
instructions shouted through
a loud-hailer. It is 123 feet
wide and 131 feet high, with
8000 square feet of chalk
exposed. Nearby is the 125-
foot Lansdowne Monument,
an obelisk designed by Sir
Charles Barry and erected
by the 3rd Marquess to
commemorate his ancestor,
the economist Sir William
Petty. It was renovated by
the National Trust in 1990.
An extract from from"Calne Living Memories".
At Nos 1 & 3 High Street
was J H Cole & Sons, a
drapers (left). It was a high-
class shop, and offered
many services. David
Morgan, an engineer at
Harris’s for over thirty
years, used to be a delivery
boy, and remembers
polishing the big brass
window sill every Saturday
morning for 10s a week.
The shop closed in 1968
when it was demolished as
part of the road widening scheme.
An extract from from"Calne Living Memories".
Richard Cowdy’s bronze
sculpture of the two pigs
at the entrance to Phelps
Parade was unveiled in 1979,
four years before the closure
of C & T Harris & Co. It was
given by Calne Civic Society,
and has become a popular landmark.
An extract from from"Calne Living Memories".
The north-
western corner is
a continuation of
Kingsbury Street, and
the parish church of
St Mary dominates
the view. The first
houses on the right,
Nos 6 and 7, were
originally one house
dating from the mid
15th century; the
medieval timber roof
construction still survives.
An extract from from"Calne Living Memories".
On the right is South
Place, former home of
members of the Harris
family, which became
the surgery of Dr
Grant in 1947. He later
formed a partnership
with Dr Rivett, and
they practised here
until the premises
were demolished in
1962 to make way
for road and housing developments.
An extract from from"Calne Living Memories".