Swindon in the Past Lane

Little London Court is today a complex of smart, new apartments and offices, but the area once had the dubious reputation of being the meanest street in Old Swindon. The area was named after a small community from London who settled there at the beginning of the nineteenth century. By 1807 it was known as London Lane and in 1855 as London Street.  Photographs exist of a thatched cottage still standing shortly before the area was flattened during the 1960s. In 1850 George T. Clark, an officer from the Board of Health, made his damning inspection of Old Swindon.  There he found the town lacked a sewer system with the effluent from houses draining into cesspools.  All the town’s wells were contaminated while the public water supply was the dirty church pond. Inspector Clark’s report and accompanying map published in 1851 noted blood flowing down Newport Street from one of three slaughter houses in the vicinity, tainted water on Prospect Place and a filthy ope...

I first met Sam James when he was three. I was a play group assistant at Lower Shaw Farm and so was his mum, Madeline.  He enjoyed climbing and exploring – and painting, although we had to watch him as he liked to lick the paintbrushes.  He’s come a long way since then and twenty years later I caught up with him at his Swindon home. Sam, who suffers from cerebral palsy, is the eldest of six children. He attended Robert le Kynge Primary School, transferring to Commonweal School, and then going on to Cirencester College and graduating from the Royal Holloway University of London. In conversation Sam discusses education, his political beliefs and what the future might hold. It was nice going to Cirencester (College) as there was a real separation between work and home. When I was at college I worked obsessively and when I was at home I vegetated in front of the television.  It was nice to have that separation. I went to Royal Holloway University of Lond...

Our second edition of Swindon Heritage is with the printers as I write and will be dropping through your letterboxes by the end of next week - that is if you are one of our fast growing list of subscribers. You can also buy it at various Swindon outlets (for list see below) but if you're wondering why you can't find a copy in the WH Smith Regent Street store read  Mums in Media. Readers thought our first edition was pretty impressive, but we think you'll find this one even more so. With a stunning photo of Diana Dors on the cover, our Summer edition has a swell 84 pages. Nearly ninety year old former drummer Bart Hathaway shares his memories of the dance band era when the Johnnie Stiles award winning band delighted Swindon audiences. And still on a show biz theme Mark Child looks at the history of the Empire Theatre, the subject of his latest book All for the Empire, co authored with retired librarian Roger Trayhurn. But we're not all glitz and glitter and if fo...