Wilton, West Street c1965

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.

SORRY BUT WE USED TO CALL IT GIBBS AND SPEW

Yes, I worked there when i was 15 with two other boys. I remember Tony Fletcher and Alan Blackman (are you still out there?). It was a dark warm place when on full tilt, it looked like London in the fog. I remember the characters like old Seth, he could drink beer straight from the furmentation tank whilst it was still hot, yes, it was free, we used to have a ration of two pints a day hence I was legless after my first, then I usd to save it till the weekend to sell to the oldies who could drink as much as they could get. Seth was a bomb, he loved the geegees but it would take him 26 minutes to go to the bookies and back so he devised a way of getting out. I didn't know where he did work in the brewery, only that every now and then he would come to where I was on the barrel wash, it was a monster to me as a lad. It was a large long grey machine with steam bellowing from a large hole, it was a whole year before I saw where they went. No walking about then. Any way it worked like this, the barells would come down a long line similar to a rail track smelling of stale beer, to where I would knock the bung out, be it rubber or cork, and turn the barrel round so the hole in the barrel faced down. Then it would rise on another track and go up about 12 feet to the gaping hole where inside it would have a large probe (a stainless rod with holes in) inserted in it, and with this the roar of boiling water and steam to wash it out. Anyway, Seth would push me aside, cheerfuly wink, smile and turn the barrel so the hole faced up, and as I watched for the first time, oh my, there was an amazing sound as the probe with full steam smashed into the barrel. There would be lights flashing, bells clanging and men yahooing as the monster came to a grinding halt, with me watching as Seth was gone. I remember looking up as the foreman bounded toward me shouting "You stupid young f-----, where's the brains in kids today, I need men not idiots". Ha ha. It would take 36 minutes to stop the wash and renew the probe, which gave Seth the time to go to the bookies and nip in the Swan for a quick one, while new boy was getting his butt kicked. At the age of 16 my hormones started to work when a new bottling line was formed and many girls came for jobs, they were all too old for me, but ahhhh! The days of whistling! I fell in love with one of them, she looked Spanish with long dark hair, she was a dark eyed beauty who got caught doing something with one of the brewers, I never did find out what, and yes, they sacked a guy for urinating in a fermenting vat. There was a public outcry, only to find out he'd been a prisoner of war in Japan and the froth on the beer had sent him off somewhere... Charlie Plum the local boxer would bring his club down on a Friday to skip barrels and lift the 56 pound weights (he would fight in the ring at the fair for ten bob). When they got to Salisbury they were pretty scared, I never saw it though, I was too young to get in, it was over 18s only. I remember the drays, the lorries, the smell. I saved some money one Christmas and bought a whole tray of cokes (in small glass bottles) and had to walk home all the way to Bishopdown as I was not allowed on the bus. I got arrested by a man, I never forgot, D I Harvie locked me up for stealing, yes, the same day we finished for the holiday, someone had broked into the brewery and they thought it was me. It took my mother 29 minutes to come and get me, all she got was "Sorry lady, only doing our job". They rang the boss. Two whole years I'd worked there and he didn't even know my name, he told the police "Sorry, I can't recall him". There was Terry, 25 and good looking, all of the girls used to wait outside to see him, he was strong as an ox, well he was to me, a little skinny 'un. The tea lady would bring tea in a big urn and bickies, Royal Scott, those are my favourite. But then came Stones, then Red Barrel, then light beers, it all changed now with new taste buds to fulfill so we began to die. Me, well I was now in my third year and my hormones were going gone balistic so I was off to the leather factory to work with another load of characters, but hey that's another story.

GIBBS MEW BREWERY

Does anybody remember Gibbs Mew Grewery on Gigant Street?

The Old School

My place of work. I have done a lot of work on collecting archive photos and making electronic copies of some of the many fascinating letters and articles written by the old girls 1880's to present.

Street Where I Live

Nice to see that not a lot has chnaged since this photo was taken to what it is like to day.
More cars and people now of course.