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Sulhamstead
Sulhamstead maps
Historic maps of Sulhamstead and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Sulhamstead maps
Sulhamstead photos
We have no photos of Sulhamstead, although we do have photos of these nearby places:
Theale| Burghfield Common| Englefield| Mortimer Common| Bradfield| Tilehurst| Stratfield Mortimer| Woolhampton| Pangbourne| Silchester| Purley On Thames| Reading| Tadley| Brimpton| Mapledurham| Yattendon| Basildon| Caversham| Frilsham| Crookham
Sulhamstead area books
Displaying 1 of 12 books about Sulhamstead and the local area. View all books for this area
You can read extracts and browse photos from these books.
Memories of Sulhamstead
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Berkshire memories
Great Great Grandfather
According to the 1871 census my Great Great Grandfather Thomas Downing was the miller. In the census he is living there with his family including his daughter Elizabeth who became my Great Grandmother.
Theale..The Birthplace of William Frederick PARSONS
William or 'Billy' as he was known was born in the house at 38 Crown Lane Theale on the 24th. September 1911, the eldest son of Frederick James and Matilda (Gladys) Parsons and their house was along the lane from The Crown Inn which was situated on the corner.
Billy's dad sadly died aged 32 at Crown Lane / Blossom End when Billy was 5 years , his brother Charles was 3 and his mother was pregnant with her third son Herbert who was born a few months after his father's death. Life in those days as a widow with 3 children was very hard and sadly baby Herbert died at 15 days old, causing added great sadness to the family, however somehow they survived. At 10 years of age Billy was bringing some money into the home by working for various villagers, he was also working for the local butcher whose name escapes me at present, but he was taught the trade and at 12 years of age was... Read more
Working in Theale
After leaving school in 1952 jobs around Theale were mainly farming, Parker Timber Co. or Theale brewery. I worked at the brewery until I joined the army in 1954. I worked with Derek Parsons, Ron Cole, Ken Duckett, Bert Minchin the delivery driver, Ginger Becket his mate (he lived at the Sunnyside Camp), Bob Harrison the foreman and Mr Howse the manager. Also working there was 'Simmo' Simmonds, the landlord of the Bull Pub next door. Theal at that time was getting very busy with the A4 running through the middle of the village. People thought that when the M4 was built the village would die but as can be seen today this was far from the case. I bought a house in Wigmore Lane in 1968 and lived there for 16 happy years. We moved to Wiltshire 25 years ago but as my son now lives in Wigmore Lane we still visit Theale quite a lot.
Tyle Mill
Hello Anne Sorrell! I saw your reference to your forebear at Tyle Mill. I hold an ever-increasing Index for Berkshire Millers and Mills. I have your Thomas DOWNING at Tyle Mill in 1864, and 1869. Hope this helps! Do you have any further info about him and the mill? I would be interested to add further to my Index. Thanks and Kind Regards, Tom HINE.
Millers at Tyle Mill
Thomas Hine mentioned that there is a record of tenants of Tyle Mill. My great great great uncle, Edward Fordham, was the miller in the early 1850s. I would be interested to know if Thomas has any further information. He had been born in Hertfordshire near Royston but moved to Sulhampstead for a few years before returning to his roots and taking up the trade of corn merchant.
Life in Burghfield in The 1950s
The passageway led from Clayhill Road all the way through the village, and came out on the Reading Road, some 2 miles away, the passageway was used by us children daily as a short cut to school, and it went by the side of most people’s fields and the odd house.
Further down the passageway and at the top of a steep hill (looking down), was Mr Barker’s bungalow. My father told me once that one dark night during the Second World War, Mr Barker’s bungalow was hit by a stray bomb, apparently after a raid on London during the blitz in 1940, and on their way back to Germany, a plane jettisoned its remaining bombs in and around Burghfield. His house roof and walls were badly damaged, and although he had this repaired, you can still see the damage caused by the bomb and shrapnel.
I’m told you could see the distant lights and search lights high in the night sky that was used to strafe the... Read more
Mrs Blands School
We moved into School House in 1941 when my dad, Mr Halfpenny, took over as Headmaster. I was 3 and my sister Sheila 7. I loved living on the school premises and would creep into the infants class with my gas mask when the teacher, Mrs Carbine, wasn't looking so I could dive under a desk when they practised sheltering from an air raid. My younger sister, Christine, was born in School House in 1945 and brother, Keith, in 1948. I remember helping my mum to make huge bowls of jelly and blancmange for the school Christmas party every year. There was great excitement one night when Gregsons shop opposite the school was broken into by some boys from the borstal, not something that happened very often in the 1950s!
I too, remember Terry Clark, he and Keith were great friends and are still in touch after all these years. My best friend who lived in the close was Jenny Mars and we spent many hours playing in the... Read more
