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Steppingley, the Village c1955
Steppingley, the Village c1955 Ref: s380001
Memories of Steppingley, the Village
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Ampthill, Market Place c1955
Ref: A158030
My abiding memory of Ampthill is when I used to go to the Saturday pictures with my cousins and the fire engine would be called out. The only problem was the siren that called them out was the old wartime air-raid siren. What a noise !!! I lived in Maulden but often visited Ampthill. thanks for the memories. !!!
Shared on 26 November 2007
Ampthill, Market Place c1955
Ref: A158030
Browsing Ampthill, for the first time, I came across the above photo. On the left just above the logo is a shop blind that used to protect the meat in the window display from sunshine (when it appeared). That blind was the bain of my life in 1952/3/4 when I was a so called "butchers boy". It never ran correctly on it's tracks, and I caused many a car to swerve my long pole manipulations putting it up and down. Funny when I think about it. The bicycle outside (possibly me pictured) was used for deliveries. The carrier full of orders for Maulden and surrounds was a steering hazard particulary in the snow. One Saturday morning I came to grief down Maulden hill and spent an hour scraping dirt and stones from meat with my pen knife before going on my way. The complaints arrived back at Ampthill well before yours truly. Oh the humiliation and all for 2/6p a week. Humiliation was for being caught out, not for stony meat. On the positive side the grumpy woman that lived down I think it was called "Duck Lane" never ordered meat again.
As a retiree I live in a nice environment/climate in Tasmania. 15 years ago I passed through Ampthill on a visit and I believe the butchers shop was a launderette. That's progress for you!!!!
It has been great to reminice with the aid of the Ampthill web site. Keep it up.
I can see my old Ampthill address, 14 Flitwick Rd on Google Earth. How Ampthill has altered.
Anyway, Greetings from Tasmania, Paul Guyton.
Shared on 03 September 2007
Ampthill, Market Place c1960
Ref: A158070
The lady with the white coat and shopping basket on the right hand side of the photo is my grandmother - Clara Billington - and lovely to see her in print!
Shared on 21 April 2007
Ampthill, Church Street c1965
Ref: a158067
The shop next door to The Ampthill News was and still is Cheesman's the chemist and the shop next door to that was Underwood's an electrical appliance shop.
Shared on 11 May 2006
The first time I went to Marston my boyfriend was taking me to visit his parents. I was 15 and he was 17. We caught a train from Bedford St John's and got off at Milbrook Halt. His family lived in a Brickyard home in "Jubilee Cottages". It wasn't as modern as my parents' council house as it had no hot water and an outside non-flush toilet. He thought that I was posh because we had two flushing toilets, one inside the house and one outside. His house had no bathroom either.
Back then the Brickyards were still working and I remember all of the chimneys in the skyline.
His family moved to Peterborough a few months later and we have only been back a few times since.
Shared on 16 June 2008
