Kathy Smith contacted Stuart Bond: "We were
so pleased to find your web-site on Godmanchester. I thought you might
like to have my mother’s memories, which have been related to me
many times, to add to your web-site. In August 2000 we took her for
a visit to Godmanchester and saw her old house, the Chinese bridge,
etc."
If you too have stories or memories
about Godmanchester, then drop them to me and I'll gladly add them to
this section of the web site: Stuart
Bond
GODMANCHESTER MEMORIES
I was born in Chadley Lane Godmanchester in 1914 . Then
later moved to 22 Old Court Hall. It was a small terraced house. At
the end of the row of houses was a watch-menders shop owned by a Mr
Gutteridge at first, then Mr Percy Peacock the cobbler . I remember
a lady that lived opposite was a little strange and only wore sacks.
Dot Foster was my friend at school . Miss Bird was one
of the teachers at Godmanchester Infants. Later we had to walk to Huntingdon
to go to school, even in the snow, it seemed a long way.
On wash day the copper in the kitchen had to be lit and
when it was my turn I singed my eyebrows. We used to cook the Christmas
pudding in the copper too.
I remember the lamplighter man, and also the town-crier.
Sometimes we would walk to Duck End and pick a bucket of blackberries,
then take them to the rag and bone man and he would give us 2d for them.
I don’t know what he did with them. Also we went flower picking
to St Ives, and fruit picking for Chivers. On a Sunday we would go apple
picking and get paid 6d, which we gave to the teacher and she would
save it for the Sunday School trip to Skegness.
There was a tragedy at the Chinese bridge, my younger
brothers friend was drowned in the river. One day the dust cart was
collecting a large amount of rubbish near the rec, well the cart slipped
and the horses were pulled into the water screaming, it was an awful
noise .
Another memory is the night soil men. They would come
to collect in the early hours of the morning. The men wore a yoke with
two pails which would be emptied into the cart. When we had to go to
the privy at night my mother would tell us not to swing the lamp around
but we did as it frightened the rats away. It was our job to cut up
The News of the World and string it for toilet paper, but on no account
were we allowed to read it.
Miss Toogood lived in a large house with orchards. We
were invited to parties there and always went home with a bun and an
orange, which was a real treat.
When I left school I went into private service for Vicar
Birder at St Marys Church at Huntingdon.
Ethel Gaiger nee Simmans.
