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Memories of Ludham
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One of the very important tasks the Ludham Archive undertakes is to collect and record people's memories. Very often people say that they have nothing of any great importance in their lives, but it is the small details of Ludham's past which make their memories so important.
Sometimes people send their memories in the post, but often we record them either as audio recordings or as videos. A DVD of some of the memories is available from our shop.
Here are some examples of memories that people have sent us. They give a fascinating insight into a vanished Ludham
Constance Reeve
Constance Margaret Reeve nee Riches born 27th January 1930 at Church View, Norwich Road, Ludham
GP Dr. Brown Midwife Nurse Leadson, Norwich Road
Christened 2nd March 1930 at St. Catherine's Church
I lived at Church View from my birth to 1936. The two houses comprising Church View belonged to my Uncle Alfred (Tedda) Riches. The house built during the reign of Queen Anne previously belonged to a doctor. Redcot and Lamb Cottage also belonged to Uncle Tedda. The occupants of Lamb Cottage were Miss Lamb and Miss Hagen. Uncle Tedda was the village carpenter/undertaker with a workshop in School Road. He was a bellringer and church chorister. The village blacksmith, Mr. Anderson, worked next door to the carpenter's shop. My early recolection is of the roaring furnace fanned by bellows and shire horses waiting to be shod.
There was no electricity during my years at Church View. Water was taken from the pump in the yard and carried down to the semi-basement kitchen. Used water was carried up to the ground floor, across the shingle yard to be used in the garden. Four 'privies' served the four properties and were located in line at the back of the property concealed under an ivy covered arch just beyond the garage. A climbing red rose grew in that area. A garage had a rope ladder to an apple loft. Just before the garage there was a washroom, with bath and sink. The inside walls of the outhouse/washroom were lined with a composite fibreboard. My recollection is of a traditional tin bath in front of our living room fireplace.
Uncle Tedda kept pigs and chickens. I enjoyed collecting eggs with Aunt Annie from the nest boxes in the large shed across the start of the garden. The chickens scraped amongst the apple trees. There was a flag pole located in the back yard for use on appropriate occasions. I had angora rabbits as pets. Periodically their offspring were sold. My father Harry Riches was employed by M & GN (Midland and Great Northern Railway). He used to cycle to work at Catfield Station. Being on shift duty he was able to cultivate the large garden with a wide variety of crops - potatoes, cabbage, root vegetables, peas, beans, onion, marrow, asparagus, beetroot, Spring onion, lettuce - blackcurrants, gooseberries, rhubarb, pears. Surplus apples were placed in a wheelbarrow at the front of the house, and available freely to the yachting fraternity and others. Onions were pickled, chutney and jam made.
Towards the end of the garden on the left hand side was a bungalow occupied by Mrs. Davey, whose daughter became Head of Nursing at County level.
The Revd. Mohan lived at the Rectory. I used to go through an adjoining fence to play with his daughter Patricia. Fetes and tennis took place on the rectory lawn. Medlars grew in the garden. Sunday school was in the Church Hall. I enjoyed a Sunday School outing to Cromer by train from Potter Heigham and recall drinking ginger beer from stone bottles on the beach.
There were tennis courts at the village hall; bowling green and billiard room at the King's Arms. (Beulah Gowing nee Turner, local historian lived there). We used to play in the upstairs billiard room when the room was not in use.
Mr. Albert Knight kept the harness makers at the corner (now a tea room). Much of the village featured in the film "Conflict of Wings". Village hedgerows in spring contained primroses, violets, hawthorn then wild roses and poppies.
In 1936 after we moved to Norwich, Church View was modernised by Col. and Mrs. Daniel (nee Bush). The Bush family lived in a thatched cottage on Norwich Road next door to Nurse Leadson.
My general memory was that the village seemed isolated although on the Norwich to Yarmouth bus route. We walked or cycled to visit relatives at Catfield. Car ownership was rare. Uncle Frank, a baker/confectioner, at Wroxham visited us by car. Uncle Tedda bought a Ford 8 in 1936. Visits to Wroxham and Yarmouth would be limited to an occasional trip on a holiday period. Mrs. Powell, a village grocer, would collect and deliver our weekly order and would bring a "selection" of items on approval from the Yarmouth shops when required. My first raincoat came via Mrs. Powell. We had no radio but had a cherry wood piano and solid oak furniture. Mother took pleasure in keeping Church View immaculate; the front steps were whitened with hearthstone and the living room fireplace polished black with Zebo. Stairs and front room carpets were cleaned with stiff handbrush and dustpan. Tableware had a weekly polish with Silvo.
In those more difficult days outings were restricted to the traditional annual holiday. We would journey to Felixstowe via bicycle to Wroxham Station. Rail travel for us was free but as holiday time was unpaid, Father stayed on at work. Felixstowe was my mother Hilda Riches (nee Jolly)'s home. She met my father when he was stationed there in the Army (Royal Norfolk Regiment) having survived the Battle of the Somme.
Significantly Uncle Ern and Aunt Kathleen regularly came each August from Lewisham, London by motorbike and sidecar to stay at Church View. My Uncle Ern was extroverted and brought other friends with him. I recall Uncle Ern's love of music. He was skilled with both violin and double bass.On a summer's evening he and other guests would perform open concerts in our front room. This was well received within the village. Folk would dance joyously in the road in front of Church View. Another guest played our piano and one of our visitors fron London brought his drum set. On other occasions they would fish the local water. Uncle Ern was photographer for Deptford Gas Works and took holiday photographs. One of his photographs which I still have is a photograph of the Cutty Sark under full sail on the Thames prior to its containment in the nearby dry dock.
Toys were chiefly handed down from within the family. I recall a doll's pram, home-made cot and doll's house made from an orange box, a wooden cart, wooden engine and a clockwork train set which ran on a circular track. Rupert Annual was a regular Christmas present. (Uncle Tedda read the Daily Express and I was thus introduced to Rupert). I learned to ride my first bicycle, which did not have pneumatic tyres, on the long garden path. Cousin Phyllis Riches who lived next door at Church View was my mentor. We spent hours cutting and pasting in scrapbooks in her father's office which was above their kitchen.
I enjoyed my one year at the local school, conveniently sited in School Road, which I reached via our garden path. The head teacher was Mr. Kitchener. Other teachers were his wife and Mrs. Mattocks. A highlight of school was an outing to How Hill. On the occasion we were conveyed on a hay wagon. I recall the daily delivery of bottled milk for each child. The classroom was heated by a large open/guarded fire and the milk was thawed out as necessary. I learned to read and recognise fractions in the first year. I still recall the smell of plasticine. There were a number of dolls and I recall a caterpillar track toy. I was perplexed by the singing in the adjoining classroom of a "foreign language" - the tonic-sol-fa! We staged Babes in the Wood at the village hall. I was a fairy in white paper dress decorated with tinsell made by Mrs. Mattocks; the dark haired little girls wore pink! We had wands made by Uncle Tedda in his carpenter's shop. A huge tin of sweets kept us quiet while waiting to make our debut. Education was to a good standard. I was able to integrate well when I later attended school in Norwich. My cousin Helen (Nell) Skillern who lived in School Road was awarded a scholarship to North Walsham High School.
Birthday parties were a significant event attended by school friends and my cousins Nell and her brother Bob. Favourite games were Hunt tthe Thimble and Blind Man's Buff. An artificial Christmas tree had candles which were lit for a very short time and watched carefully! Party food I recall was jelly, blancmange, egg and cress, marmite.
It was usual for us to spend time pre Sunday lunch in next door Church View when father and uncle would enjoy warmed bottled beer. Walls ice cream vendors visited the village by tricycle. Their slogan was "Stop me and buy one". We could put a card in the window for vendor to call. Bread was delivered by Mr. Nicholson of Stalham. Local milk arrived by pony and trap in a churn to be measured out. I enjoyed buying chocolate toffees, 5 for half-penny at Cooke's shop conveniently situated at the corner of School Road. Father bought our first tinned produce (peas, raspberries, fruit salad) at Woolworths, Norwich circa 1935 when he began working at City Station, Norwich and returned to Ludham at the weekend.
My cousin Madeline Newman maintains a family tradition of reuniting the family on Harvest Thanksgiving Sunday at Catfield, well attended by relatives from other counties. Inevitably concersation centres round our formative years.
Helen Watson
I came to Ludham with my family in 1926 at the age of 3, from South Wales where my father was a miner. Due to the miner's strike in 1926 my mother and father decided to come to Norfolk to look for work. My mother's family lived in Catfield and Mum and Dad met during the first world war when Dad was stationed at Mundesley. There were thirteen children in my mothers family and one of her older brothers lived in Ludham at Church View. He had offered us accommodation in a cottage at the back of his house and possibly a job for Dad with his building firm, Dale, Riches and Clarke. Mr. Dale was the building man, Uncle Fred (Mr. Riches) was the Carpenter, and Mr. Clarke was the painter and decorator.
I cannot remember anything about the journey except that we arrived in the dark at Wroxham station and were met by another uncle who had a bakery and tearooms near Wroxham Bridge. We were bundled into a small van with our few belongings and taken to Ludham. There was a big yard shared by the neighbours and a very big garden to play in. It must have been early in the year as on Valentine's Jack Valentine came after dark and left small presents on the doorstep. These were attached to a long piece of string and when you went to pick them up they were pulled away. This went on until you were quick enough to snatch them. Another trick was to tie door handles together, knock on both doors and hide around the corner to watch the tug of war. My Uncle was great fun.
We later moved to a semi-detached cottage on the Norwich Road next to a big white house, which stood back ftom the road and was sheltered by a high laurel hedge. I think it was called Eversley House and a very posh lady lived there. A blind lady, Mrs. Knights, lived next door and I used to run errands for her and read to her when I was older.
We had an outside bucket toilet which was emptied into a big hole in the garden. There was a ditch running alongside the garden and under a low bridge over the Norwich Road to the marshes beyond. It was fed by water from a spring on School Road and another spring near the little bridge. My brother and I often fell in when we were getting frog spawn, catching tiddlers or gathering watercress. We gathered mushrooms in the early morning from the fields next door.
My mother cooked on a big black cooking range which had to be blackleaded at least once a week and the fender was polished with 'spit' and newspaper. The big black kettle was always on the hob ready to make tea when anybody called. There was also an oven in the wall which had a large black door and three brass knobs, and a small fire was lit underneath especially for the baking of bread. In the summer a double Valor oil stove was brought in for cooking. It gave off fumes which discoloured the ceiling. My mother made wine from parsnips, nettles, dandelions, damsons, and elderberries in a big brown pot which stood on the pantry floor for weeks with toast and yeast floating on the top. It was bottled and corked and left on the pantry floor for Christmas and special occasions. Sometimes the corks would blow off and the wine was everywhere. Mother also used to preserve eggs using isinglass in a large crockery pot in the pantry. They kept for months and came out covered with a thick white coating. She also preserved beans in kilner jars with layers of salt, which was washed off before cooking.
When I was seven my father had an accident at work. He fell off a roof and fractured his pelvis and was taken to St. Thomas' Hospital in London. This was a terrible time for my mother and I know she worked hard scrubbing, cleaning and cooking for the lady in the big house and other people to put food on the table for my brother and myself: She went to London once or twice to see Dad in hospital and I think Mr .Dale paid the fare but there was no help from the State in those days. Dad was away for quite a long time and when he came home he was unable to do heavy labouring. When I came home from school I helped with the household chores and learned to cook and at week-ends was left to see to the meals etc. while my mother went out to work.
At this time bread was delivered by horse and cart from a bakery in Homing. Fish was obtained from Mr .Slaughter who lived in the end cottage opposite the Church Room. He had a horse and cart and sold fish around the villages. (Incidentally his eldest daughter has just celebrated her 100th birthdayand lives in Yarmouth) Milk was also delivered by horse and cart in large churns and ladled out into jugs. Mr .England was the main butcher in the High Street. Mr. Albert Thrower had a grocers shop next door, ( he was known as 'Pop' Thrower as he had an old Ford Van which made a popping noise when it started oft). Mr .Fred Thrower had a coal business and was also a pork butcher on the Norwich Rd. near the Vicarage drive. He killed the pigs in a large shed in his yard, by slitting their throats and then scraping off the hairs in their backs with boiling water and metal scrapers. I can remember hearing the pigs squealing and one day went to see what was happening -it was horrible. His wife made very good pork brawn.
Mr .and Mrs. Powell ran another grocer's shop in the High Street opposite Stock's Hill and a Mrs. Clarke had a small sweet shop opposite the Manor gates on Hall Common Road. I cannot remember who kept the Post Office at that time but George Thrower, Fred's eldest son took it over and Mr .Harry Grapes opened a Fish and Chip Shop in one of the cottages opposite. Mr .George Knights had the Saddlers shop (now the Tea Rooms ) assisted by his son Albert. Mr .and Mrs. Herbert Cooke had a sweet shop and general stores at the other end of the High Street on the corner of Catfield Road. Mr. and Mrs. Turner (Beulah's Mum and Dad) ran the King's Arms and Mr. and Mrs. Warren ran the Bakers Arms on the opposite comer .(now the village green).
My brother and I were given l/2d pocket money most Saturdays after we had cleaned the knives and forks, and took ages to choose our sweets at either Mrs. Clarke's or Mrs. Cooke's shop -bulls eyes which changed colour when you sucked them, aniseed balls, licquorice torpedoes (girls liked the red ones to use as lipstick), sherbet dabs, strops of licquorice, coconut icing etc. We played with hoops, tops, skipping ropes and hopscotch on the road Each had a season of the year, but why or how I do not know, it all just happened.
Evelyn Whitethread
My Mother (Annie Elizabeth Rice) was born in one of a pair of cottages facing the approach lane to How Hill -in those days I believe a fruit farm, She was the middle of 5 daughters.and her Mother died when she was 4 years of age. Her Father was a fisherman and he brought up the girls, with the help of the eldest until my Mother was 13. He was good to his girls, and they lived off the produce of his small piece of land and the chickens which he kept, plus no doubt some fish.
She told a most interesting story to us when I was a child, that one of his really good layers "went missing" .He could not find her anywhere, but after three weeks he saw her returning across the meadow, followed by a lot of healthy chicks! and weren't they delighted!
After her Father's death, there was nothing Mother could do but to come up to London to her Aunt. She knew this Aunt well, as she visited another Aunt at Neatishead (near Wroxham) and Mother spent a few days there with her when a child, especially when her cousins came down there for their Summer holidays.
Mother mainly had "living in" jobs as cook and nurse-maid to the Mistress's baby, and loved her work, returning to her Aunt for " time-off" .Here of course, she met up again with her Cousins, one of whom she was truly in love with. So she became Mrs.Annie Jolliffe, and I am one of their children.
To return to Ludham. My Aunt Pamela (next to eldest of the family) married a farm-labourer Bob Watson, (a widower), who had already a family of children, but they had 3 more of their own. We often stayed with Aunt Pamela at The Malthouse then at one of the cottages which backed on to the Ludham Church graveyard, and I often looked out to see the owl at night which was hooting, as Aunt said he would be perched on the Church. (Without success). Lastly she lived in one of the Council houses, where I believe she died.
There was a tiny Baptist Church near the graveyard house, seating about 10 People, so we filled it up. Later I spent my holidays or weekends when I was working at "M.M" mainly with the eldest cousin (Now Annie Slaughter) at 36, Whitegates, or with Cousin Leslie Watson. He had a farm and after retirement a lovely bungalow and large plot of land at"Tanga", Fritton Road. which no doubt is still occupied.
It is sad that after so many years, I have no Cousins to visit there. But I do wonder if you know Cyril Thrower who owned the large Village stores or his Manager (I believe his name was Billy Sloper, who was a resident in a house with a beautiful garden near the village centre). If so, please remember me to
them. I believe they both attend the Methodist Chapel, which we attended after the little Baptist Chapel became a Boot and Shoe Repairer (Probably now demolished).
I loved the Broads, and one of my cousins, Bob Watson, would always take me for a row on the River. Incidentally, my Mother's Uncle Bob Rice owned the Mill which stood by Ludham Bridge. I wonder if it is still there?
Some photographs from Evelyn Whitethread
Mother's birthplace, Rice Family home 1878
Granny Rice's cottage, Ludham Bridge
Ludham Schoolroom
Bullard and Sons Brewery Dray, Yarmouth Road Ludham
