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West Woodhay
West Woodhay maps
Historic maps of West Woodhay and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all West Woodhay maps
West Woodhay photos
We have no photos of West Woodhay, although we do have photos of these nearby places:
Kintbury| Hungerford| Eddington| Newbury| Hurstbourne Tarrant| Chilton| Chilton Foliat
West Woodhay area books
Displaying 1 of 12 books about West Woodhay and the local area. View all books for this area
You can read extracts and browse photos from these books.
Memories of West Woodhay
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Berkshire memories
Combe
I was born and brought up in Combe, born in Slate Cottages, the second one from the end as you go past, my parents also lived in the end one. I spent most of my young life living at Rights Farm, until I got married and left to live in Hungerford
Combe was then a great place to spent your youth, I always said I would like to live there once I was married, but things change, different places from around the world seem better. I fell in love with Tauranga, New Zealand, but Combe is still in my heart, my parents are buried there.
Ancesters
My great grandmother was born in Kintbury in 1844. Her name was Sarah Holmes she married somone with the surname of Millin. She eventually moved to London and became Sarah Horne. Is there anyone in Kintbury today who recognises these names?
Can a local historian tell me about Kintbury in the 19th century?
Jenni Morris
Highclere When I Was Young!
I am the eldest son of the Mills family, we lived in the stable yard at the rear of Highclere Castle, at the age of 5 I went to Highclere primary school, a Miss Baker was the Head, assisted by the Misses Eva and Cissie Thirkell. The school is now a private house, has been for some years, it was situated just below the lodge gates of the Carnarvon estate. Was a long walk from the Castle to School, I remember the winter of 1947 a lake called Red Pools froze solid, great fun on that! and the free milk froze, had to be thawed by the classroom stove!. Later joined the Choir at St Michaels and all Angels church, just below the school, Rev Wormald in charge then, on one occasion for some reason I was the only choirboy that turned up, I had to lead the singing solo! I later joined the Bellringing team, ringing master was a Geoff Dodd, after this a gang of us used to gather outside... Read more
School!
Memory of the hated Catholic school I was sent to, me being one of three Church of England girls, meant I was treated like an outcast! Beautiful house, and grounds, I learnt to ride there, it was my only way to get away from those awful nuns in their long black habits. I loved the horses, all the time I was there you would find me with them, or standing in the passage at night in the dark facing the wall, while the rest of the world slept! Spooky! Oh yes, detention was my second name. Such a shame that wonderful house and grounds belonged to the church, a lot of cruelty went on there, thank God I wasn't sent on to its sister school, New Hall! It went on to become Norland Nannies after that, I would be interested to know what happened to it.
School, Denford Park.
I wrote a while back, does anyone ever read any of the messages written? I asked if anyone knows what happened to the Catholic convent run by nuns at Denford House? it became Norlands Nannies, but what happened after that? I also know that it is haunted!
Happy Days at Denford Park
I spent three happy years at Denford - the nuns loved us to pieces, and I felt that they always acted in our best interests (though maybe nowadays one might frown at some of the 'best practices' of those days ... but fashions change ....).
Sister Mary Ben driving a tractor as we picked potatoes in the autumn, picking snowdrops for Covent Garden Markets in February, roller skating, playing in overgrown bomb craters (magical - really!). Sister Mary Peter's library, our gardens with Sister Mary Anrew, roast potatoes, bread and cheese, but junket - juck. More privileged pupils had riding, dancing and tennis lessons, but I never felt disadvantaged by not having any of these 'extras.' The nuns inadvertently instilled us with the basic principles of feminism long before it became trendy. It was an all female world (except for ancient Father Darcy and Othello the handyman) and we absorbed the feeling that we (future women) were capable of doing whatever we... Read more
Denford Park
I came here from Austria with my sister to work as au-pair girls in this boarding school. We found an ad in a German newspaper for girls to help with domestic chores etc. My sister and I wrote to the Mother Superior, (Mother Magdalene John) applying for the job(s), and to our surprise we got a reply back within a week from Mother Superior, offering us both jobs straight away! Needless to say we were over the moon having been given the opportunity to go abroad to work and learn the language. But convincing our parents that we really wanted to go was no easy task, anyway, eventually they consented and we packed our bags and set off on this new adventure. Back in 1959, people rarely went abroad to work. so it was very exciting indeed! We took the train from Mayrhofen in the Zillertal to Innsbruck and from there the train to Ostende in Belgium. Taking the ferry to Folkestone and the train to Victoria. from... Read more
