For Wargrave Local History Society’s December meeting, Di Evans shared her Reminiscences of Wargrave.
She began by asking the capacity audience “Are you sitting comfortably?” – from the “Listen With Mother” children’s radio programme – as she recalled her time growing up in the village.
She had attended the old infant school, which was an old Victorian building of wto classrooms with no electricity, gas lighting, outside toilets (the boys’ one not even having a roof) and minimal heating, although the open fire in classroom 2 was useful to thaw out the bottles of milk in winter.
School dinners were cooked and served at the junior school, pupils walking crocodile fashion each way up the hill – she, in due course, moving to that school, and then the senior school in the village.
Di commented that she was enormously thankful to the teachers at all three village schools – 99% of her memories of time there were good, with the other 1% being when slapped on the leg.
Amongst other activities she recalled was a coach visit to London to see decorations for the 1953 Coronation – there were only three children on board, and as they entered The Mall, the driver pulled the coach sunroof right back, and asked the children if they would like to sit on the roof as they went up The Mall.
Di told us villagers she remembered, the wide variety of shops available in the 1950s and 60s. In the village High Street, for example, there were two grocers, a fishmonger, a butcher, an antique shop, an outfitters and drapery shop, two dairies, a post office, two banks, two garages, whilst there was another butchers and a post office, among other shops, and a garage in Victoria Road. None of those shops are to be found there now.
The NHS was also different – patients would call at the surgery to be called in by the doctor in rotation – no prior appointment being needed, while home calls by the GP were commonplace.
Harold Bird ran a very efficient village taxi service, for which bookings could be made by telephoning Vera on Wargrave 96, whilst at the end of Hamilton Road was the Wargrave Laundry, run by the Watts family.
With Easterlings, the builders, also being undertakers, Di said that the village could cater “from the cradle to grave”, and only needed to go to Henley or Reading for large or unusual items.
Village activities included a flower show (which included a handicraft section), as well as the Wargrave and Shiplake Regatta and the well-supported Bowls Club (both of which still exist), Di was a player in the village Hockey Club (formed in 1961).
Di has more to reveal about village life at that time, so we hope she will return to tell us more about her time as one of the operators at the Wargrave telephone exchange.
As is our custom at this time of year, refreshments of festive fare prepared by one of our members, Wendy Smith, were greatly enjoyed during the evening.
For more information about the society, visit the website at www.wargravehistory.org.uk, where more comprehensive and detailed reports can be found.
PETER DELANEY
