Exciting Times

A Memory of Corsham.

I moved to Corsham with my mother approx 1947. She became housekeeper to "eventually" my stepfather Jack Giblin.
He worked firstly at a big house-Pockeridge ?- as a messenger, subsequently as a stoker in a boiler room at Hawthorn. We lived in a cottage near the house, no electricity, oil lamps and cooking by oil stove, a "chemical" toilet at the bottom of the garden which was emptied once a week by a lorry. Near the house was a reservoir where we sailed in an old tin bath. schooled in Corsham infants then moved to a school in Hawthorn, Memories are now 75 years old as i was about seven years old, left about 9 years old. I do remember air shafts? being dug using mini railway for carrying waste soil away. there was one between our cottage and a WAAF billet area where we sold wild flowers we picked to make pocket money .
I have tried to work out locations on Google satellite view but no success. I guess most of these places have disappeared, Shame because I believe a lot of meetings were held there planning the invasion.
Exciting place for a 7 year old to get into mischief.
John King
Newbury

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