I remember how Ludham used to be....


Ludham is a small village and its streets and thatched cottages seem timeless when you first see them. However, the pace of change has never been quicker in modern life and Ludham is not immune to this process.  Village life has changed out of all recognition in living memory. Older residents remember running water first arriving at their houses and how mains drains and rubbish collections transformed their lives. They are speaking of the 1970s and not some time in the distant past. Many of these changes have been for the better and now the Village is a very different place.

These days, many Ludham residents have only recently moved to the area and they are often unaware of how different Ludham life used to be. This is why it is so important to record the memories of Ludham people.


On this page, we have gathered together a collection of Ludham memories. We hope you enjoy them. Do keep looking in, we are adding more on a regular basis.

 

 

 

Use the buttons above to navigate the site.

 

 

 

Written Memories

Just Click on the links below.


Constance Reeve.  Memories of growing up in 1930s Ludham


Helen Watson  A Ludham childhood.


Evelyn Whitethread. Memories of childhood visits to  Ludham


Joan (Pop) Snelling. An anecdote about a war time clothes prop


Yvonne Boldy. Memories of a lifetime in Ludham


Kathie Jones. Coldharbour Farmhouse


Mike Fuller. Mike recalls his school days in Ludham.


Garages of Ludham. Remembered by Mike Fuller


Nita Townsend and Rhona Brown.  Lots of memories from sisters and long term residents of the area


Brian Slater.  Happy times in Ludham


Franklin Hankin  Memories of Ludham Manor and the Dutch House.


Tommy Thrower  A lifetime in Ludham


Beulah Gowing  The landlord's daughter and much more


Beulah Gowing  A talk with music given by Beulah to the Mother's Union in 1988 with many Ludham memories.


Beulah Gowing  Diaries and Press Cuttings. Beulah recorded all the everyday events of village life in her diaries from 1984 to 1989. They are fascinating because they record the ordinary things which are so easily forgotten:

1984      1985      1986

1987      1988      1989


Peter Gordon Smith-Evans
  Ludham Village Life - Late 1940s to the mid 1950s


Rita Woodford   Memories of a Ludham Evacuee


Frank Graham   Memories of the Ludham Army Camp


Sid Clarke   Growing up in war-time Ludham, sneaking into the Army Camp, and working at Walton Hall Farm.


Tom Grapes  War time memories of a secret radio


Nona Nivea Dashwood-Howard  Staithe Road and 100 years living in Ludham


Ruth Daniloff (nee Dunn)  A Ludham childhood and adventures in the USSR.


Gillian Abel   Growing up in Ludham


Peter Bearman   Memories of a Ludham Artist


Clare Routledge Memories of Lamb's Cottage and its owners.


Bryan Hogg BEM Living in Ludham Twice. Note - this is  link to an external website.

Memories on Video

Just click on the links below.


Memories of Ronnie George. Ronnie lived  a couple of miles away in Potter Heigham. This is a film he made himself about his life and memories.


Ludham in the 1950s.  Cine film showing Ludham events. Commentary by Mike Fuller


Memories of Martin Walton. Lots of memories from a local artist and long term Ludham resident.


Talking Shop with Tommy Thrower. Memories of a life in Ludham by the 3rd generation of the family to run the village shop.


Eric the Marshman. Here are memories from the well known Ludham character Eric Edwards MBE


Nurse Betty Pettit. Two videos of Nurse Betty talking about her life as the District Nurse and also about being evacuated during the war.


Dolly Grapes remembering the Ludham Carrier's Cart


Audio Memories
Just click on the links below


Chesney England. A life in Ludham


Donald Wright  2nd March 1995. His life in Ludham. Interviewed by Martin Walton.


Frank Thrower. Growing up in Ludham Post Office. Interviewed by Martin Walton


Kenneth Grapes.  1994 Tape 1. Life in Ludham. Interviewed by Martin Walton.


Kenneth Grapes.  1994 Tape 2


Nita Townsend and Rhona Brown. 1994. Sisters in Ludham interviewed by Martin Walton


Martin Walton and Nancy Legg. The Ludham Society
Tape 1    Tape 2


 

 

More Videos:

You can find more videos on different Ludham subjects on our Videos Page. Just click on the button above.

 

Do you have any memories of Ludham?

People often tell us that their memories and experiences are not important or trivial. In our experience this is rarely the case and we all have something interesting to say. Why not contact us and tell us your memories? We will be happy to listen and to make suitable recordings so that your stories and memories are available to future generations.

Just send us an e-mail to:

 enquiries at
              ludhamarchive.org.uk

  



Recording the memories of Ludham residents is an important part of the Archive Group's work.


Recordings can take various different forms. The most common are:


Written memories. Often these are letters or e-mails sent to the Ludham Archive, although they can take the form of transcripts of audio recordings. (We sometimes do this when the sound quality is poor).

Audio recordings.  We sometimes make audio recordings of Ludham residents talking about the past. However, we prefer video recordings if we can do them as they bring the memories to life.

Videos. This is our prefered method of recording memories. We also make videos of  talks given to the Archive Group.