North Molton

Read and share memories of North Molton and Devon inspired by Frith photos

Memories of a four year old

My memories of Court Hall School started in 1955 when I went with my brother from our London home, at the tender age of four and five. My father was told not to visit us for 3 months and so we were left. The head was Mr. Owen Reidel, and his wife Simone, who was French. They had two children, Nicole and Anthony. I remember the school as huge and rambling, and the ground equally so. There was a kitchen garden and Mr Reidel kept bees. There were two classes, Mr. Reidel taking the older group, and another teacher the younger ones. I don't remember her name unfortunately. There can only have been at the most 20 children in the school, ...read more here
Contributed by Rebecca Pinniger

Memories of a four year old

My memories of Court Hall School started in 1955 when I went with my brother from our London home, at the tender age of four and five. My father was told not to visit us for 3 months and so we were left. The head was Mr. Owen Reidel, and his wife Simone, who was French. They had two children, Nicole and Anthony. I remember the school as huge and rambling, and the ground equally so. There was a kitchen garden and Mr Reidel kept bees. There were two classes, Mr. Reidel taking the older group, and another teacher the younger ones. I don't remember her name unfortunately. There can only have been at the most 20 children in the school, ...read more here
A memory of North Molton contributed by Rebecca Pinniger

Barnstaple Street South Molton

I was born at 18 Barnstaple Street, in 1941.  My name was Kingdon.  My dad had a newspaper shop and he sold crystal sets until 1944.  I have many happy memories playing with the children who lived in Barnstaple Street and Bidders Court.  The Taylors lived in Barnstaple Street and their father was a saddler.  I remember farmers riding along Barnstaple Street to visit Bob Taylor to have their saddles fixed. Mrs Dight sold sweets and Mr Bond sold sewing machines.  Bob Howarth was the dentist.  There was a blacksmith and Chanters the bakers and Lethbridges - a grocery shop.  On market days the farmers rode in to town on a horse, or walked with their cattle and sheep. Sometimes the ...read more here
A memory of South Molton contributed by Angela Bavidge

My School

I was born at Filleigh and went to Filleigh Infants School.  But then at eleven years old went to school at South Molton Secondary Modern. It was 1953 and the school was quite new, opening in 1952 if I remember correctly.

As I recollect  Mr Larson (above post) had an upholstery business in South Molton. My memories are of the Terraneaux buses taking me from where I lived to South Molton School and the bottles of school milk that we were instructed to drink at break time. The Headmaster was Mr Hawkes, we kids called him "Buzzard". I remember the the sound of the children saying "Watch out, Buzzard's coming". Those were the days.
A memory of South Molton contributed by michael tucker