Great Bookham

Bookham Cottage

The fence on the right is the end of the boundary of Bookham Cottage.  This was a pretty cottage-style house set well back from the road.  In the late 20s it was bought by Herbert Allen my grandfather from the Duke of Northumberland (although no idea why he owned this property). The gardens were to the back of the house and  (from the photos I have seen) very beautiful. The land was bounded by the footpath which ran from the corner of Crabtree Lane to the top of the Recreation ground. Many years later the property was sold and is now an estate of bungalows.  The road through the houses is called Allen Road after Herbert & Ellen Allen.
Contributed by Paula Clements nee Absalom

The Webbs and the Martins

I remember this house on the right and think it was called The Grange. (Not the same as the Hotel also called The Grange.) I knew it in the 50's when Mr & Mrs Webb lived there with their son John. Mrs. Webb was the person who first took me riding up at the Carter's stables on the Dorking Road.

Later in the 60's I remember the Martins lived there -  Steve and Tim.
Contributed by Paula Clements nee Absalom

2, Grove Cottages, Leatherhead Road

My brother Ray and myself lived at this address, depicted on the right of the photograph, with our parents, Alec and Doris, known as Dot and Davie. During the war a child from 1, Grove Cottages crawled through the fence and was killed on the road outside by a passing coach. Just beyond our house, which used to be a public house called The Saracen & Ring, a flint and brick wall was demolished, almost opposite The Victoria Hotel, by a Bren-Gun Carrier on the way to Normandy with a convoy of military vehicles.  The wall was never re-built.
Contributed by Tony Davie

Grove Cottages

I remember Grove Cottages and the families who lived in both No 1 & 2 in 1965.  My parents were friendly with the Davies in No 2 and as a teenager I visited No 1 on many occasions along with all our crowd.  The LeNoble family made us all very welcome and the cellar was a great meeting place for all us youngsters - happy memories.

I was born and grew up in Bookham. My family owned family grocers shops in the High Street, on Dawnay Road and on the Grove estate. My grandmother owned the sweetshop which is little changed today.  
Contributed by Paula Clements nee Absalom

Lower Road

My parents were married in St Nicholas Church in 1960 - Valmai Daily (my mother) grew up at 234 Lower Road with her brother, Adrian and parents Dot and Drew. My Grandfather was a local electrician who spent all his free time at Effingham Golf Club and my grandmother (having retired from midwifery) was for many years the nurse at The School of Stitchery. I spent many of my early years in Great Bookham and then every school holiday when I went 'to work' with my Grandmother at The School of Stitchery and made many friends there. Names I can remember are Ellen & Ron Young (friends of my grandparents) and children I used to play with in ...read more here
Contributed by Jane Corby

My home

I lived with my parents and brother, Ray, at the top of the High Street at 2, Grove Cottages, Leatherhead Road.  I lived there until I married Jean Rumming from Hersham, Surrey in 1960. This used to be a public house later closed down by Mrs Christie. The Royal Oak public house is on the right. We both belonged to St. Nicholas Church choir at the bottom of the High Street. High Court Judge Tucker lived just beyond the Oak and employed a lady gardener. I was a resident constable, PC 745. Henry Williams lived on the Lower Road, towards Fetcham, PC549 and John Carr. PC574 lived on the Lower Road towards Preston Cross.  His police house had a fully operational ...read more here
Contributed by Tony Davie

December 24

My parents, Rose Marston and Roy Sopp were married in this church! I have the wedding photo of them standing in the side entrance.
Contributed by Eunice Livingstone

My Dad's shop

My Dad ran a grocers shop in this parade in the 60's.
Contributed by Paula Clements nee Absalom

Grocers shop

This shop on the right, was first opened by my Dad's father, Henry Absalom, it was next door to a sweet shop his wife Ethel ran.  Ethel started a little shop from much further down the High Street during the 2nd World War when Henry came down from London to work as an armaments worker at the factory opposite the station.  She ran her shop originally from her front room from a tiny house further down on the right. Then they had a little shop which was later a fish shop and I think might now be a computer shop. Eventually they opened the sweet shop, the grocers and the chemist which was run by someone else (I cannot remember his ...read more here
Contributed by Paula Clements nee Absalom

Grange

My grandfather set up this shop on the right.
Contributed by Paula Clements nee Absalom