Swindon in the Past Lane

  You won’t find this little book promoted all over social media, which is perhaps a shame. But that wasn’t why it was written. I know we all say our opus magnum has been a labour of love, but for Marcia Church her book was just that. Marcia lived on Eastcott Hill and in the 1990s she befriended an elderly neighbour, Leonard Page. Leonard was born on July 30, 1904 the only child of Charles and Alice Page. The family lived at 4 Eastcott Hill at the time of Leonard’s birth, moving to number 17 by the time of the 1911 census. Leonard had a wealth of memories about a bygone Swindon and Marcia decided to write them down as she felt sure they would be of interest to someone. Well, they most definitely are and following her death earlier this year her typed manuscript found its way to Andy Binks, Chairman of the Swindon Society . Swindon – A Peep at the Past has been published exactly as Marcia typed it – complete with spelling mistakes, typos and wonky printing. It was a labour of ...

So, what or where are you most looking forward to revisiting as lockdown eases.  I can't wait for the record offices and especially Local Studies in Swindon Central Library to re-open. I have documents and books I am desperate to get my hands on for research purposes. Talking about research and books, the Library Shop in Swindon Central Library is offering a deal on my two books, Struggle and Suffrage in Swindon and the recently published Ladies of Lydiard available at £25 for the two. The story of Swindon is that of a town of two halves. Transformed by the coming of the railways the women were on the front line of change, shaping the new industrial town and transforming the old market one. The story of Swindon's women includes artists and actresses, political activists and social reformers, as well as the ordinary women who worked in the factories, raised their children and made a difference. Struggle and Suffrage in Swindon tells the story of these women. From Mary Slade who ...

It's never too early to introduce your grandchildren to history - even if they really, really don't want to know! When my daughter said she’d never walked along the canal, I immediately went into local historian mode. What a lovely idea for an educational day out. We made a picnic lunch and armed with cameras we headed off with grandchildren in tow. Our walk took the route that begins behind the Esso Service Station at the bottom of Kingshill and extends into the Wichelstowe housing development. Begun in 1795 and under construction for 15 years, the Wilts & Berks canal opened in 1810. Stretching 52 miles from Semington Junction on the Kennet and Avon to the Thames at Abingdon, the canal was used chiefly for the transportation of coal from the Somerset mines. Its most profitable period was during the construction of the Great Western Railway and the Swindon works when it was used to convey materials. Sadly, the collapse of the Stanley Aqueduct over the River Marden in 1901...

  Swindon is an interesting town – no, honestly it is. From medieval market town to Victorian industrial hub, Swindon had members of the aristocracy living at Lydiard House and innovative engineers in New Swindon. We are surrounded by heritage at every turn. In West Swindon you might think the ancient agricultural heritage had been lost beneath the 1980s housing development, but even here there is plenty of evidence remaining. Wick Farmhouse and the neighbouring properties overlook the field which gives the housing estate its name – the Prinnels. In 1841, following the Tithe Commutation Act 1836, records reveal that Jonas Clarke farmed 150 acres of land at Wick, but the history of the farm goes back much further than that. Owned by Alfred of Marlborough when the Domesday survey was compiled in 1086 the farm passed to the Ewyas family down through the Tregoze, Grandison and Beauchamp families to the St. Johns who owned it for more than 500 years. The Victorian Wick Lane now fo...

Things have been rather quiet of late in the Past Lane but I’ve been pretty busy behind the scenes. First there was Grave Matters, a survey of the churchyard at St. Mary’s, Lydiard Park and the small cemetery at Hook. As part of a team of volunteers I have been working on photographing and collating the inscriptions on the headstones and writing histories of some of the people buried there. The work of the Grave Matters group will contribute to the Project Archives enterprise – for more details visit the Friends of Lydiard Park website. Next came the discovery of the fascinating Woolford diaries. Elliot Woolford farmed at Hook Farm from 1899 until his death in 1941. Throughout that time, he kept a diary, begun in 1892 when as a young man he started his farming career at Bagbury Farm with his brothers Rowland and Charles. The diaries provide a view of everyday life in the rural parish of Lydiard Tregoze during a time of great social change. As might be expected Elliot takes great...