John Norris Remembers
Take us back to the 60's! What a vibrant place Swaffham Prior once was, what a pale shadow we seem now. But in this installment of John's memoirs, you might read about what your house was like then, before it got poshed up...
WHEN IWALKED ALONG THE HIGH STREET, starting at the thatched cottage on the corner of Cadenham Lane, I first came to Mutton Row. Here lived John Boddard who in my time did useful work on the estate. Much of his time was spent in cutting down ivy from the bigger trees, a very necessary job if the tree is valued at all. The next two cottages were much as they are today. Next to them were three cottages built close to the road being pulled down. On my first visit they were complete but empty, on the next only the skeleton timbers were standing. Eventually Mr Sheldrick built the present house himself. When the cottages were removed it was possible to see the end of Anglesey House for the first time for many years, and the pargetted plaster was revealed.
On the other side of the road stood the chapel and next to it the thatched cottage of the Synonds family. I well remember later Mr Day pulling off the thatch into the drive of Mr Low's house. I was surprised how much there seemed to be, a huge pile. This roof was then covered with asbestos. Not a pretty sight I'm sure, but practical.
The church and cottages opposite have not changed much. The shop was of course open and very busy. The Asbee sisters were very old and had delegated the running of the shop to the Sheldricks. Everything was sold there; coffee, lamp wicks, bacon, nails, buckets and spades! Even the smell of the place was interesting. It was only when the house was occupied by the Waters family that I got any idea of the size and interest of the garden. Next door again was the Sturgess butcher's shop: again, hardly any alteration during the past fifty years according to the old photographs.
One place that has changed is the cottage opposite. In this dilapidated place lived David Godfrey. His one obsession was to make sure his roof was "tardid" every year. The front of the house was untidy, the doors patched and daubed with paint and all the windows blocked up so that one could not see inside. The other half was occupied by Mrs Clarke, and looked a little better. As David was the landlord of them both, repairs here were crying out to be done. One interest to the children were the steps, much as they are today, providing a run up and down exercise.
Cooper's shop and house together with the corner house where Mrs Dowdeswell lived have not changed at all. Al l these properties had gates and fences where necessary as sheep were regularly driven along the road, and if your barricades were not up to standard you could get many visitors!
The school grounds extended to the porch down Station road, and across to the Reading Room. The loos were against the gate, rather primitive affairs, and the site of much scholastic fools'play. All the school activities were carried on in the "old" building.
Behind the school was Mr Ambrose's stack yard. Here were several very old ash and elm trees, huge specimens which had all been struck by lightning at some time. Indeed, most of the trees in this area have a sizeable dead trunk in their middle with regrowth on either side, showing the effect of an electric storm.
The field surrounding the school and reading room was called Camping Close and had clunch walls down station road and along the High Street. The hard winter of 1963 crumbled these walls so that they were not cattle proof any more. We then cleared away the clunch and put up a post and rail fence, some of which is there today.
The entrance to Camping close opposite Byes Yard (or, more recently, Knights Manor) was the way in for the fair people. After Thurstons had been to Reach Fair they came to Swaffham Prior, and set up their stalls in Town Close, after towing their l iving vans to Camping Close. Mrs Thurston always asked for permission and gave five pounds to the church funds.
Going across this field was the water supply to the Hall and the sewage works down Station Road. This plant served the houses on Greenhead Road, the rest of us being on our own septic tanks and soakaways. This was not too bad as the village is on quite a hill, and the water soon drained away; indeed the septic tank at Anglesey House was not emptied in either mine or the Kitchens' time! To get on, the next house I saw was the new one built by Mr Day and just occupied before our first visit.
As so many repairs had to be done to Anglesey house, we called on Burt Day to see what he could do. Nana Day was most hospitable, and welcomed Marion and I into her new house where we enjoyed a glass of her speciality Elderberry wine. The repairs were discussed and a time table arranged for the work. Mr Day's staff consisted of two very reliable workmen and himself. Bill and Ben we called John Wartnaby and Mr Harry Bradford. They struggled with rotten stairs, floor boards and clunch wal1s, furred water pipes and a very leaky roof. These matters I shall deal with in another place.
Opposite to the Days' is the village blacksmith. At this time it was in going gear, Mr Bailey tending to the Ambrose string of horses, and repairs to the old bits of machinery such as harrows and duck-foots. His business stopped as soon as the Ambrose enterprise stopped. Next door to the smithy was the Adams' old house. At this time there were two front doors, and no additions at the back. These were added by Miss Ozanne shortly after the calor gas man had left. (I forget his name!)
Bondgate House on the other side of the road was now occupied by Mr Eric Day, who had moved across the road from the old end-on cottage. This house was at one time the post office as well as being the headquarters of the carpenter's business. The old buildings in which were housed the band saw, and mortising machine, which were ancient, together with a new planner had that old world atmosphere which has now disappeared.
Proceeding furthur down high street we come to the almshouses. These were pulled down in the early sixties as being too far gone to repair. They consisted of four dwellings of two rooms each, converted from an old large farm house. The bedrooms upstairs were in a different direction to the ground floor rooms, so that part of the bedroom was over the next door neighbour's. As was common with so many houses of this period the loos were in lodges across the drive to Hall Farm, and are now used as a store for paper. The wash house containing a copper boiler(made of iron) and a place for the inevitable mangle, was further down the lane in the belt of trees. Part of the tile floor can still be seen near the swings, and the gardens still bloom with alyssum.