Wickford As A Boy

A Memory of Wickford.

A part of my boyhood was spent on a smallholding just outside of Wickford, the smallholding was called Littlemead. When I first went to Wickford my uncle Ted picked us up from the railway station in a pony and trap, the horse was called Lady. At Littlemeade there was no running water, no electricity, no gas, the source of heating and cooking was a black range in the main room. All I can remember of the location was that when we left Wickford we went to the top of a hill and turned right, it was quite a long drive before we went over a railway bridge and very quickly turned right down a lane to where there was a prefab. Littlemead was beyond this across two more fields. Quite close by was a windmill as I remember and a big house owned by someone called "The Major". We had dogs pigs cattle and of course Lady. Another thing I remember is that a public footpath to Wickford went right past Littlemead. Other memories include huge spiders, and being plagued by foxes. My memories are of and idylic situation where I was extremely happy.