Growing Up In Horton

A Memory of Horton.

I lived in Horton from my birth to my 22nd year. I went to the Horton Church School first in 1941. There was a separate playground for both boys and girls, and a small door leading into the shelters. When the air raid siren went we all had to go into the dark, windowless shelters until the all-clear. One day a Nazi plane machine-gunned the pavement near the school. Being a church school, we sang "Now The Day Is Over" at the end of every school day. I thought it very mournful!
Mr. Brown had the Grocers' shop near the school, and one section was a post office. Opposite, was Mr. Dove the newsagent and his shop was divided into two, the other side being for greengroceries. A tiny Horton Bakery served the schoolchildren with buns for morning break. Not too far away lived the then Queen Elizabeth's aunt (Lady Bowes-Lyon) -down a long winding lane with a river running under a small bridge.
During the war, the stained-glass window at the back of the church was blown out by the bombs. There was a dear 80's-odd Rector there then, Dr. Edwards, who resided in the 17th century-Old Rectory, up from the school. There used to be a rumour that the famous Dick Turpin used a secret tunnel running under the church to escape and if you stamped on the ground near the back of the church, it rang hollow! Probably hearsay of course.