Godstone, The Bell 1907

Photo ref: 57232

As soon as I was old enough to drive, my Dad taught me, we used to drive down to Godstone from Kenley quite often and we would go to either the Hare & Hounds or the White Hart for a beer, sometimes a meal. In my courting days I would often take girls to either for an evening out, behind the White Hart is a footpath that leads all the way up to a small lovely church and beyond that to a lake. I still love visiting Godstone, it is a beautiful part of Surrey.

Michael Roffey, my GGGF was Head Gamekeeper on this estate until his death in 1907. Many of the Roffey clan worked and had cottages on the Estate. Lagham House is still surrounded by the moat from the 13c. Lagham Castle; the moat is a scheduled Ancient Monument.

I lived in Hillbrow Cottages on the Eastbourne Road from 1950 to 1970s. My father, George Mison, worked in the sand quarry in Bletchingley and mum, Elsie, was a housewife. There are only 12 cottages at Hillbrow and so there were about 7 children around the same age. David, Susan, Michael, Wendy, Ian, David and me. We used to play up on the common or paddle in Diana's Fountain. If you went further ...see more

My Mum and Gran came to Godstone with me as a baby, we moved from Croydon because of the Second World War. My granddad, Alfred Sreatfield, now dead, had helped to build 13 Salisbury Road. I was christened at St Nicholas Church, and went to school in Godstone, and later in Bletchingly. I played on the green, and waked to school along the bay path, we scrumped apples and had lots of fun. We left ...see more