My Life In The Village

A Memory of Hartest.

My memory of Hartest, a place that is very dear to me, relates to the period between moving down from Somerton in 1945 and living there until I moved to Hadleigh in 1970 for my work.
As an Evacuee, together with my brothers Malcolm and Laurence and my Cousins Betty and Jaqueline Wiles and our respective mothers, we were evacuated from London's East End in April 1941, having been bombed out in the Blitz.
Our first year was spent at Moorhouse Farm in Boxted, then to a cottage at Somerton and eventually to Hartest in 1945. My mother started as the school cook and we used to eat in the Institute. Passesd my 11 Plus exam and went on to Sudbury Grammar School, (along with Tim Seabrook). Married and continued to live in Hartest from 1959 to 1970 when my work took me to Hadleigh.
I have very fond memories of Hartest and all of the children that grew up together over the years immediately after the war. Great times, great friends and wonderful memories. I could go on for ages but must keep this message fairly short.
Keith (Cully) Doidge.
Any contacts I am on keith.doidge@tiscali.co.uk