Kempston, Boating On The River c.1965

Photo ref: K96303

Such a shame. Many wonderful hours spent fishing around the Mill and surrounding waterways - Deadman's Pool, the backwater, shingle island, Manor Island and 'The Bend'. All swept away one year and turned into a canal! Shame really...

I remember the bend in the River well, as I used to fish in that area in winter for pike, and in the summer lower down fish for eels... such a long time ago.

I remember well pushing my police bicycle around Kempston, covering Spring Road across to St Johns Avenue and over to the chantry factory estate. I was the last of the resident beat officers living and working my patch from my police house in Chantry Road, then moved to Ash Walk. Great times giving talks to pre school children at the hall near the fire station and visiting Springfield and ...see more

Walking free through the wet grass leaving dark trails. Ahead the meadow rises to the mill bank where we stand in silence. Silent and smooth the deep mill race slides towards the wheel. Turning away we follow the bank upstream to the New Overs. Standing on the wooden sluice walk we look down the slide to the deep pool below. No water over the spillways in summer, the shutters are down and slides are dry. Later in the ...see more