Memories of Wareside

Wareside

I remember many happy childhood days spent at my grandparents' cottage up the hill towards the railway station. There was a block of four cottages on the right hand side of the road. My grandfather's name was Silas Wren, and he was well into his eighties in 1952. We had moved to Southend on Sea because my father had risen through the ranks with the LNER and had become motive power superintendent at Southend Victoria, a position that he held until his death in April 1953. My mother Harriet Jane Wren continued to live in Westcliff until her death in October 1983. Owing to a family rift, I never discovered where my mother was buried, although I believe she may have been interred in the Wareside village cemetery with my father. This Mother's Day has got me thinking about these memories, and I intend to return to the village to make some enquiries.
My mother was born in Ware, and lived in the Blue Coat Cottages in Blue Coat Yard, which was another place I remember fondly.  My mother, on leaving school, went into service at Thunder Hall in Ware.

Memories of the Red Lion

I was born in 1966 and lived in the Red Lion. My dad and mum were married in 1961. My dad lived in the village all his life, moving to the Red Lion on his marriage. My dad was formerly of Temperance Hall, down the road from the village stores.
Mum and Dad lived in the Red Lion in one room for several months before Dad had renovated it to be liveable. The Red Lion has a circular stair case which runs from the celler to the lounge then on to the second floor then on to the attic which was renovated in 1978ish when Dad also rebuilt the chimney on the back of the property, adding a twist to it.
There was three of us, myself and a brother and a sister. We played in the ditch which ran through the Red Lion property and the surrounding fields. We used to go to Jacob's Ladder which is on the way to Bakers End if you follow the ditch north. We played at Hogham Woods and stole Mr Gosnal's apples from his orchard which was across the road from the village shop. As you went up Fishers Hill on the right was a tree and we called it the fairy tree, I don't know why, it was always called it and in the field at the top you were guaranteed mushrooms when the season was right.
There was 3 new houses built at the Red Lion Yard, and a set of garages. The Tudor Cottage which was owned by a ladie called affectionately by us as 'Bossy' is still there to this day also.  I remember walking up Fishers Hill with me mum and Bossy and her dog Jamie which was a little Yorkshire terrier.

As you go over Fishers Hill and come down the other side there was a water well which is still there to this day and I can't resist trying to get the wheel running whenever I am in the village for a walk.
I attended the village school along with all the other children from the village. Outside the staff room was a rose garden where we had our school photos taken on starting school. We had a school swimming pool. The autumn was always a favourite time of year at school as the conker trees at the bottom of the school fields were laden with conkers. We had a fab cook, Mrs Carter, and dinner ladies were Mrs Storey, Mrs Rowe and later came along Mrs Chappel who was also the school secretary. If you were picked to ring the dinner bell you felt important for the rest of the day. My first teacher was called Mrs Reed and our class was in the hall where the dining room was. I remember Mrs Porter also, she played the piano for assembly in the mornings and taught the older children. We also had a swimming gala every year and it was always fun. We even had a bonfire night at the school with the fence to the next field as a safety measure, and for the Queen's Silver Jubilee we had a Jubilee Day at the school which was like a huge fete with party, music and loads of games and food. I left Wareside School in 1977 which was the year  of the Silver Jubilee and we all got a mug with a pic of the Queen on and a coin also.
The drama group started about I would guess 25 yrs ago, maybe longer, and the village hall over the road from the house was full of laughter and music and the shingle path which went from the Red Lion across the front of the village hall was tarmaced.

The village has changed so much since I left there 20 years ago. My parents, brother and sister still live there. My brother now has a house in the grounds of
Temperance Hall. My sister Lives at Hillside Cottages overlooking Hogham wood.  My parents moved to formerly named Bakers Mead which they looked up and found originally it was named Glengarrie which affectionatly means 'Home over the Valley', so they changed it back to the original name.

I was baptised in the village church and sang in the choir for many years
and have my grandparents buried there, along with my uncle, Dad's brother.

The village had many pubs years ago including the Cross Keys and the Fox as well as the White Horse and the Chequers.

As for the treacle mines, lol it is a myth. Up from the Red Lion was a small row of houses and a little old lady sold treacle toffee many years ago to passers by and so hence the treacle mine myth of Wareside ...

Visits to Wareside 1964 - present

My dad was born at Hillside Cottages in Wareside in 1929 (I think). I remember visiting my Grandmother there up until she moved to Ware round about 1978/9. She lived in the house with the "Hillside Cottages" sign on the front. I remember going to visit every Saturday afternoon. The front garden was a typical cottage garden where I would collect seeds in summer from the flowers and there was a huge apple tree in the back garden that dad would prune and we 3 children would climb to collect apples. There was also a well on one side that we were always told to say away from. One of my favourite pastimes was making "mud pies" using the earth from the dug over vegetable patches at the back. We would also go for walks over to "Hogham". Not sure if this is it's real name but it's the coppice of trees you can see from the front of the house, straight ahead in the distance. This would involve crossing the old iron bridge over the river (now replaced) and then over the old railway line. We also used to collect mushrooms from a particular field along by the railway line. They grew every year. My sister used to collect bits of china from the Bourn also out the front of the cottages in the field opposite while my brother rummaged around in the rubbish dump in the same field (now flattened and grassed over). We would stay for tea at Gran's (always marmite sandwiches with butter warmed by the fire and fruitcake made by gran) and she would always let us have a sweet each bought from the Wavy Line shop at the end of the row of cottages and on the opposite side of the road (now a house I think). I remember sitting on the front door step in summer after dark watching the bats fly about. I adored that house, so if the person(s) living there now ever wish to sell, please get in touch. My dad went to Wareside Primary School and I think he still occasionally meets up with other school mates there. My Grandmother is buried in the church at Wareside and used to play the organ there when she was little so I think she lived locally most of her life aswell.