Introduction The Queen Adelaide Public House stood on the Whaddon Road to the west of Meldreth. Now in the village of Whaddon, The Queen Adelaide was in Meldreth for most of its existence, but due to parish boundary changes (see below) it was in Whaddon for just one year before its closure. It is likely that these premises first became a public house in the early 1850s although it may not have been called The Queen Adelaide until the turn of the ...
The Bell (also known as The Old Bell, The Blue Bell Inn) used to occupy the thatched cottage currently called ‘The Old Bell’ which stands opposite the village shop in Meldreth High Street. Built in 1676, the building used to be three dwellings. The earliest record we have for The Bell as a public house is 1726 when one Richard Hadgar was granted a licence to sell beer and wine from the premises. This makes it one of the first public houses in Mel...
King George V died at Sandringham in 1936. His death was mentioned in the school log book on 21st January. (see first text photo below) Two days later it was recorded that the children and teachers had gone to the station to witness the passing of the royal train carrying the King’s body. (see second text photo below) In 2007, Dennis Pepper recalled watching this train: George V died suddenly while he was at Sandringham and this railway line here...
... Electric lights were installed in the school in the summer of 1932 at a cost of £28 18s 10d. The occasion was recorded in the school log book. The school later repaid Mrs Elin. The money was raised from various sources, as shown in this extract from the school log book on the right. ...
Initially, children attended Meldreth School until the age of fourteen. In October 1937 it was agreed that, due to falling rolls, the older children should transfer to Melbourn School. In December 1937, the school received official notification from the Education Secretary that when it reopened in the new year, the school should be reorganised as a junior and infant school. The school informed the parents of children over the age of eleven to sen...
Entire School, 1938 Back row, from left: Gerald Abrey, Norman Plumb, Dennis Wisby, Jack Farnham, Vic Hale, Reg Carter Second row, from left: Rodney Plumb, ?, Bernard Howell, Albert Dash, Stan Pearce Third row, from left: Heather Paterson, Sylvia Stubbing, Millie Dash, Enid Fost, Mary Stubbing, Angela Pepper, Doreen Farnham, Joan Stubbing Fourth row, from left: Freddie Pearce, Daphne Stubbing, Edna Beane, Jean Wing, Eric Pateman Front row, from le...
... Angus Bell An excellent piece of research! ...
Mr Warren operated a shop and a butchers from one of the two bakehouses in the High Street. The contents of both shops and his house were destroyed in a fire in 1908. In 1936, due to Mr Warren’s ill health, the business was offered for sale. In the early 1950’s the building was empty for some time. The Leverington family then moved into the premises following a disastrous fire in 1954 when their shop (located at 59 High Street) was burnt down. La...
This article was first published in The Drifts magazine, February 1984. I visited David Gratch at his home at The Maltings, North End, Meldreth and met a man not only dedicated to his craft of woodturning, but who also has a craftsman’s concern for making furniture which ‘belongs’ to the room in which it is to live. He likes to visit the customer’s home and assess the environment. For example, in making a coffee table for a married couple with yo...
Mrs Thurley ran a sweet shop and tobacconist from a wooden hut in West Way (formerly known as Kneesworth Road) in the 1940’s and 1950’s. “The shop at the top of West Way was run by Mrs Thurley who lived at Number 1. She used to sell sweets, chocolate, lemonade and Tizer, also cigarettes and tobacco. It was very handy as we lived outside the village.” Doreen Clarke The hut can still be seen on ground near West Way. Daphne Pepper also remembers Mrs...
... Below are extracts from the school log books showing examples of the timetable in 1922 and 1928, plus a copy of a school inspection report from 1927. Click on an image for a larger version. ...
25th December 1942 A very enjoyable and happy afternoon was spent by parents, managers and friends at the Junior School on Friday, December 18th, when they were invited to a Christmas Entertainment given by the children. The programme started with a recitation and song by the infants, then followed a very clever “puppet” Aladdin play by the Junior Boys. Miss R Pearce (teacher) is to be congratulated on the excellence of this performance, being a ...
Evacuees in 1939 Meldreth School opened on Friday 1st September 1939 to receive 55 evacuees and again the following day to receive evacuated mothers and children under five. Most of the evacuees were girls from the Oratory Girls’ School at Stewarts Grove, Chelsea. A few of the girls had younger brothers and sisters who also attended the school. At this time, the school had 39 children on roll and could not accommodate an additional 55 children at...
In the 1920s, the infants were under the charge of Miss Wedd who was a strict disciplinarian. A scheme was started at the school, whereby the hands and nails of pupils were checked upon arrival at school each morning. If their hands were clean, then a tick was placed against their name on a chart that was displayed in the classroom. When sufficient ticks had been given, a badge was awarded. Here, Dennis Pepper (a pupil at the school from 1927 to ...
... The musical tradition which began at the school in the 1960s continued into the 1970s. However, from the photographs that we have uncovered so far, clarinets appear to have taken over from the accordions! If you have photographs of music groups from this or any other decade, please email us. ...
If you would like to purchase any of the merchandise items listed below please contact us. All of the money raised goes to support the work of the Group. If you would like your order posted, this can be arranged, but of course there will be a charge for postage and packing. Notelets We are pleased to announce we now have a multiview notelet of Meldreth depicting the four seasons in our lovely village (see image). These are blank inside and are pr...
The bus route probably originated in the early 1900’s and would have been operated by the Ortona Motor Services of Cambridge as service number 8. In 1931 the Eastern Counties Omnibus bus company took over the route and the 108 bus travelled between Royston and Cambridge. In the 1950’s and 1960’s, the bus came through Meldreth every two hours. Do you have memories of travelling on the bus either for school or work? Dennis Watson, who lived in Meld...
I was born in the house at the bottom of the hill adjacent to the station yard in 1937 (offices now, I believe) and lived there for the next twenty two years. I have many happy memories of my time at Meldreth, many of them revolving around the station. My Grandfather, Tom Winter, who lived in the railway cottages at Allerton Terrace and my father, Bert Winter, both worked on the railway most of their lives. I well remember the cart horses that us...
Besides the rich and well known William, John and John George Mortlock there was also a second, less known, Mortlock family living in Meldreth headed successively by William of Royston, his son James (1759 – 1827) and James’ son Simeon, farmer and merchant who died in 1867. William Mortlock the Shoemaker William Mortlock of Royston was apprenticed to Matthew Prior, cordwainer of Meldreth in 1738. (A cordwainer is a shoemaker who worked with cordo...
During the C19th and early C20th much of the centre of Meldreth was owned by the Mortlock family. Besides owning orchards and arable land John George Mortlock also built a number of grand houses in Meldreth. I have prepared a map of Meldreth showing the extent of the property owned by William Mortlock (1778-1833) and put up for auction in 1833 (hatched in green) and the land owned by his grandson John George Mortlock (1835 – 1917) identified from...
The Mortlock Vault Three generations of Mortlocks are interred in Meldreth Holy Trinity Church. Although there is a tomb in the churchyard dedicated to John Mortlock (1807 – 1888) and his family, in fact they are not buried there but rather they are interred in the Mortlock vault located within the church itself. Unfortunately the exact location of this tomb is not known although it is said it is close to the location of the old Pike (Pyke) chape...
Although John George Mortlock was a successful and very wealthy businessman he was very generous to the villagers. During the summer he often opened the garden at Meldreth Court for a children’s party, a play or general village entertainment. He could also be relied upon to donate to village causes and he supported the widows of the parish with an annual supper and a gift such as blankets, coal etc. Beatrice Clay, in her booklet Meldreth remember...
... Christopher Hopkins After seeing this page I went through my old family photos and found the photograph above, which shows the 'dignitaries' on the stage including myself as Chairman of the Council in a rather fetching orange cape and floppy hat combo! I can remember the event quite well, as well as Nick Haywood's go-kart, which if I remember correctly was made by his father from two scooters welded together. ...