The Walters family first appeared in the records for Wickhamford in the 1881 census. Despite his advanced age, Henry Walters, at 84, was described as an agricultural labourer and he was living at Grey Gables, Manor Road. Also in the household were his bachelor son Charles, aged 31, (bapt. Elias Charles) also an agricultural labourer and Elizabeth his granddaughter who is described as a general servant.
Alfred Woodall lived in Wickhamford for about 25 years and made an impact on the local community as a fruit grower, active member of Littleton & Badsey Growers and the Congregationalist Church in Broadway. He was also a J.P., but not locally.
John Thomas William Haines was born on 24th April 1920, the third child of Norris and Florence Jane Haines nee Harris. The family lived in 52 Manor Road, (now ‘Whytebury’), Wickhamford and Norris (always known as ‘Buckley’) worked for all of his life for the Lees-Milne family, initially as a groom, then as a chauffeur and finally as a gardener. Throughout his life John was always known as ‘Jack’ and his elder sisters were Hilda Doris - ‘Doll’ - (b. 1910) and Margaret - ‘Peggy’ - (b. 1913).
Pat Goldstraw describes her memories of village policeman Frank Haines.
Old age brings to many of us affectionate memories of our childhood days. For me they were blissful carefree times spent in our rural village with friends who are still friends today.
I have no objection to change - it is inevitable and we must accept such changes. But children today have lost a very precious gift - the gift of freedom.
‘Drysdale’ is a name that can be seen in Wickhamford in four locations. Drysdale Close is by the playing field, there is a commemorative tablet in the Church to Bertha Drysdale and her headstone is in the Churchyard; also Roger Drysdale’s name appears on the Great War memorial in the Church. There is no mention of the family name in any other record in the village, but nevertheless, their story is an interesting one.
At the time of the 1911 census William and Alice Jane Cox lived at what is now number 93 Pitchers Hill. They had been married for 28 years and Alice (nee Bacon) had given birth to eleven children, all of whom were still alive. William had been born in Ebrington, Gloucestershire; he married Worcester-born Alice there in 1883 and the couple had most of their family in the village. He worked at different times as an agricultural labourer, with a telegraph company and then on the railways but left that job to come to the Vale to grow fruit and vegetables.
When Syd Carter died suddenly at his home in Wickhamford, on the morning of 16th February 1953, the village lost a true character. He was a well known personality famed for his lectures and his broadcasts on rural affairs for the B.B.C. The best way to record his life is to reproduce verbatim the obituary which appeared in the Evesham Journal of Saturday 21st February 1953.
Post-War National Service was based on the National Service Act of 1948. Healthy males aged 17 to 21 were called up for eighteen months into the Armed Services. In October 1950, due to the Korean War, this was extended to 2 years. Conscription was phased out from 1957 onwards, with the last men called up in November 1960 and the last men serving under the scheme leaving in May 1963.
Samuel James Byrd was a son of John Byrd, a butcher with a shop at 27 High Street, Evesham at the time of the 1911 census. This same census shows that Sam was then in the Army at Ampala, in India, as a gunner with ‘L’ Battery, Royal Horse Artillery. His name is with a few others at the end of long alphabetical list of soldiers in the unit. The census list was probably copied from an Army muster roll and the fact that he was at the end probably indicates that he had only recently joined the battery.
These articles first appeared in The Vale of Evesham Historical Society Research Papers. Permission to reproduce the articles has been granted by The Vale of Evesham Historical Society. The author of the articles, the Reverend Peter Braby, a former Vicar of Badsey, died in 1994. His son, Jonathan, has also given permission for the articles to be reproduced.
Maureen Spinks, November 2003
