Teffont, Wiltshire

A good place to live

My mum & dad along with my brother & me came to live in Fovant in 1952. Mum & dad owned the butchers shop in the village. My brother Brian & me went to the school, we both made lots of friends. It was a good school, the teachers were nice. Every Sunday my dad played the organ at Fovant church. There was lots of things to do in Fovant. We played football in the street, went for bike rides around the other villages. I had lots of pets. I had a lamb called Larry, I used to take him for a walk on a lead. One day the Bishop of Salisbury came to see my dad & because dad was busy in the shop the Bishop had to wait . I was going for a walk with my lamb so the Bishop asked me if I minded if he came with me. I said that was ok, so we went down the village, it was great fun. Sadly mum& dad & my brother have passed away & the butchers shop is on longer there, but I shall never forget living in Fovant, it was a good & safe place to grow up in.

Years Ago.

My grandparents lived in the old rectory which was a few hundred yards from the Beckford Arms. I spent many happy holidays there with my cousins. We had wonderful Christmases, lots of snow and in the better weather long bike rides. Idyllic days. Shopping in Tisbury, and going to Wardour Castle, also my grandfather liked to go to Scats.

Chipperfield's Circus

In fact these are not Lotmore Cottages, which were along the road that leads to the River Wylye, immediately left in the photograph past the front of the Royal Oak pub on the left, about 50 metres down on the right.  I know this because I lived in Lotmore as a small boy, in the first of two semi detached cottages.  There was a hilly field opposite that led up towards Grovely Wood.  Chipperfield's Circus used to rest in this field when not on the road.  Sometimes there were elephants there.  Old Mr Chipperfield made me a wooden dog on wheels which we called Chipperdog.  Lotmore was demolished many years ago and some late 50's council houses now stand on the site.

Granny''s home

I have never visited Druid's lodge, but have been brought up with stories of it.
 It was for some years the home of my Grandmother.  She was the daughter of Thomas lewis the Irish Race horse trainer.
  Thomas was installed in Druids Lodge about 1907 by Lord Cunliffe who owned the 1913 Derby winner Aboyeur.  Thomas was his trainer.  
Granny went to school at the Gadolphin school for girls in Salisbury.  She was about 16 at this time.
Stephen Donaghue was one of the young jockeys there at the time.  According to my granny, she taught him to write his name so as to be able to sign cheques !
 If anyone reading this small article has anymore information on Thomas Lewis, I should be grateful.  Although he died in 1938, I do not know what or where he went after the start of the 1st world war.