Requests for Information We have a request for information regarding this picture. It was brought to one of our meetings by a visitor in the hope that someone can identify the people in the photo. She is able to identify the person in the back row 5th from left as Cyril Watkinson from the Bakehouse and Victoria Sterry in the front row 2nd from left. This snap shot was taken from a glass frame so not the best quality due to reflections. If you are able to help, please pass any information you have to one of the committee or complete the form on the contacts page on the web site

An account of a teenage lamplighter in sudbury following world war one. The Young Sudbury Lamplighter You are here: Home: People & Memories: The Lamplighter A fascinating account of a teenage Lamplighter in Sudbury just after the Great War. by George Boreham. Foreward by Steve Scott My uncle, George Boreham, was born at Glemsford on 10 October 1904, son of Charles and Eliza (they were at Brook St 1901). He left c.1925 to live in Halifax, Yorkshire and in 1928 moved to Keswick, Cumberland where in 1931 he married my Grandmother's sister, Elsie Robinson. He was a great story teller and never lost his Suffolk accent, some of his stories he wrote in a note book, and I thought you might be interested in this one, it is as written by him. He continued to work as a gas fitter until his last few year when he was sexton of St John's Church, Keswick where he is now buried. The Lamplighter The First World War was over and I was fifteen. I had served two years of my seven year apprenticeship with the Sudbury Gas Company. The air was pregnant with the expectancy of things what’s (sic) going to happen now that peace had come. The better place for heroes was being launched and the town’s progressive group were demanding that the street lamps should be lit: their slogan was “the Zeppelins are gone, don’t keep us in the dark any longer ". The two fitters and myself at the gas works felt the impact of this demand as we were urged by the boss to overhaul all the street lanterns and public lighting equipment as quickly as possible. This urgency was exciting for me we had laid low during the war and veiled everything from the Zeppelins, and now suddenly we had become important, now we could make light, as much as possible and as quickly as possible. I worked with enthusiasm caught up with the land fit for heroes to live in. It was hard work as the four years of neglect to the lanterns was not to be put right in 3 or 4 weeks and besides the old pre-war naked light were (sic) to be replaced by the new incandescent mantle burners; the heroes were not to have died in vain! Although we were in a hurry, the progressives were in a (sic) even bigger hurry to have the streets lighted, as I was cycling home from work one evening I saw a motor car going slowly up the street, stopping at each lamp post, on top of the car was a coffin with two hooded figures sat astride, as they stopped at a lamp post one of the figure bent down and from the coffin brought out a little lighted Chinese lantern which they hung on the lamp post - these lanterns were all different colours and looking back down the street the effect was picturesque and fairy like . I did think them very daring and cheeky to hang them on our lamp posts, what would Grimwood our boss at the gasworks say? This was the first public protest I had seen, a new way to get things done, “the war had liberated the slaves ". Next morning at the gasworks was all hustle and bustle, my mate told me to get the big handcart and fix the lantern rack onto it, it held a dozen lanterns, we were to get some Lamps ready for lighting that week-end. The hand cart was loaded with a dozen repaired lanterns, dozen new mantles and burners, ladders and tools for the job. What a load it was, typical of those days if it could be loaded on a cart then a man could pull it. By the end of the week the first lamps were ready; these were the ones on the outer edge of town, crossroads and market square. It had been a busy week and I was glad when Saturday came with its half day off work. My enthusiasm had been sorely tested by the hectic week with the lamps so as I entered the workshop on Saturday morning my mind was pleasantly occupied with thoughts of freedom to do what I liked, I was suddenly brought down to earth when as soon as I stepped inside the workshop my mate said “The boss wants to see you”. "What does he want to see me for?" "You’ve got to light them lamps tonight." "What me, light them lamps?" "Yes, you lights them about half past four and puts them out starting at ten o’clock." "What? Ten o’clock at night!" "You’re not afraid of the dark are you?" "No I’m not afraid of the dark." "Well that’s settled then, you tell the boss you’ll light them lamps and you’re not afraid of the dark, any way you’re the only one who knows where they all are and you’ll get paid extra." So at the age of fifteen I was the first Sudbury lamp lighter after the First World War, I did this for the whole of that winter but by the next winter with many more lamps lit they employed a full time lamp lighter. This was one job I was not sorry to lose as I was often afraid when I put out the friendly gleam and left myself in the dark and isolation on the edges of town, and especially on Saturday nights when the pubs were turning out, the drunks would stand arguing and brawling round the lamps you can imagine the reception I got when turned up to put the light out!

Pearman family of Glemsford Pearman Family You are here: Home: People & Memories: Families: Pearmans Rita Burgess has been researching her family for a very long time. She was one of the speakers in the early days of the Local History Society when she gave a talk about her relative, Rifleman Byford, which may have inspired many of those present to get out and look for their roots, too. Apart from her work on Rifleman Byford, Rita has also focused on the Pearman and Hempstead families. In 2005/6 she kindly provided more material for the site. Her early researches put her in contact with Richard Deeks. Richard deserves, in many ways, the title of "The Father of Glemsford's History". Without his efforts (originally inspired by his own family researches) it is unlikely that much of the Village's history would have been properly recorded. Certainly much of what is now known would have been left to rest in the Local Records Office, just occasionally pored over by an enthusiast or two. That, or the story would have been left in the hands of well-meaning but inherently inaccurate legends, lovingly but deceptively recorded as fact by dewy-eyed romantics. Two of Richard's works stand out for attention: "The Matmaker and The Magistrate" gives a detailed insight into social and labour conditions in our part of Suffolk in the middle and late 19th Century. "Glorious Glemsford" is engagingly simple, bringing together of vibrant pictures of the Village's past. And, of course, Richard was the driving force behind the creation of the Local History Society. In her piecing together of the Pearman family's past, Rita was helped by Richard in her organisation of a family gathering. The notes, reproduced here, are part of Richard's contribution. They reflect his attention to detail and his very humanity, his insistence on seeing people as people, and valuable contibutors to our present, regardless of their background. The History of the Susan Pearman Cup By Richard Deeks 1989 This magnificent silver cup is unique, or perhaps more appropriately, its history is remarkable. It is elegantly shaped, with a large bowl mounted on a stem with a rounded foot and 2 handles made of pure silver, weighing 20 oz and quite valuable. It is competed for annually by villagers entering garden produce in the Glemsford Flower Show and won for the first time in 1936 by Mr Pawsey of Egremont Street, Glemsford. The cup was donated by Mrs Sarah Ellie of Richmond, Surrey, to commemorate her remarkable grandmother Susan Pearman; not only was she a mother and housewife, silk weaver and a member of the Providence Chapel on Hunts Hill, she was also a midwife and had attended over 3000 births in the area. That must be a pretty good record for any individual during the last half of the 19th century and early 20th. Susan Pearman was born Susan Brown, daughter of Hannah and Thomas Brown on 17th August 1817 in Hunts Hill Glemsford, and after working as a silk weaver she went on to weave velvet by handloom. She married William Hempstead Pearman (also born 1817) on 25 November 1837 and had 7 children in all, one being illegitimate. In the 1851 Census, Susan Pearman is living with her parents and one sister, Christiana, and her baseborn daughter Ellen. William Pearman was a remarkable man. He had had 2 minor convictions for theft but in 1841 was convicted of receiving stolen pigs from a Sudbury landowner and sentenced to 14 years transportation to Tasmania. However, he did return to England after 12 years, spending some time after his release from Tasmania at the goldfields at Ballarat, Victoria, Australia. On returning to Glemsford a wealthy man, he purchased land and a shop on Hunts Hill. When he learned of Ellen, Susan’s baseborn daughter born whilst he was away in Australia, he said “You broke a cup, I broke a saucer, we’ll call it quits”. William and Susan continued to live and prosper in Glemsford, him as a blacksmith, she running the pork butcher’s shop, alongside her work as a midwife. William died on 18th February 1897 aged 80, Susan died 11th December 1903 aged 86 years. They are both buried in the same grave in the east end of Glemsford churchyard where their memorial headstone was recently discovered under bramble bushes. So here, with the Pearman Cup, is a continuous reminder of man’s inhumanity to man – those who survived transportation had a very tough time, also it is very rare for a transportee to return home to England. And, some of the descendants of both Susan and William still live in this area, both Browns and Pearmans. This short story illuminates just a corner of our village heritage, which I believe needs to be revealed so that we may live in a more considerate world. Stealing Sheep (quoted with permission) from Sue Cain: My Grandma recently told me of an ancestor who was called William Hempstead who was transported to Tasmania after being convicted of stealing a sheep. He was also 23. I thought I'd do a search on the Internet and found your page. My family are from Feltham, which ties in with [the] Great Grandfather who taught matmaking. She said that William's wife divorced him for 3/6 after 7 years but she did say that he was given permission to move around the colony and he did become a wealthy man before returning to England when he was 60 and buying property. Although there are slight differences between the details your site & my Grandma's story, there are a lot of striking similarities (my Grandma is in her 80's & the story has been passed down from a few different people I believe so I imagine there have been some confusions here and there - nothing has been written down). I was wondering if you had any more family history details. My Grandma hasn't said which side of her parents family that William was related to but her surname is Cain , her father was 'Holland' and her mother's maiden name was 'Francis' and they were from Sunbury. There are some intriguing similarities here, but also the sort of differences which make the interpretation of the past so constantly fascinating. Despite what Richard had to say, at the time of the 1861 Census, Ellen Pearman, the "baseborn" child of the transportation, was living with her Hempstead grandparents. Needless to say, Rita and Sue are in contact with each other and, yes, it is the same family!

An account of a day in May 2000 by local glemsford residents One day in May 2000 You are here: Home: People & Memories: One day in May 2000 Various local residents give an account of their day on any day in May 2000 to mark the arrival of the new millenium. One day in May 2000

Information relating to the history of the Parish and Church of Glemsford Anchor 11 A History of St Mary's Church Font You are here: Home : Buildings and Streets: Church and Chapels : A History of St. Mary's Church Font By David Newell I have been involved with the conservation of St Mary’s Church Font for nearly three years now and by the time you read this I am hopeful that work will have started on the conservation project. (Phase 1 to start on August 23rd 2017.) We believe that the font was installed in the church sometime between 1350 and 1450, so it is about 600 years old. We have baptism records going back a long way but not all the way back to when it was new although we know who the Rectors were during this period. The list of Rectors is on the wall in the south aisle of the church. Which of these Rectors was the first to use this brand new font? Was it John Rauf (1373-1381) or, later in our time slot, John Dalden (1443-1471), or one of the five Rectors in between, and who was the first child to be baptised in the font? We can only speculate who the first child was – so I will! Was the baby boy or girl the child of one of the two landed families in the village – the Goldings or the Mondes – or the child of a local tradesman, the butcher, the baker or the candlestick maker? Maybe the child was the son or daughter of an agricultural labourer who grew up, married and died here in Glemsford and is buried in the churchyard, but this is not very exciting. What if…!!! I am now letting my imagination run away with me. If our child was a boy born at the end of the 1300s he could have found himself as one of the archers at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. All communities were required to provide part-time soldiers in the event of war. “Indentured retinue” or “household retainers”. King Edward III declared in 1363: “if he be able bodied, shall, upon holidays make use, in his games, of bows and arrows… and so learn to practise archery.” Our child, from an early age, would have been required to practise archery every Sunday. At the Battle of Agincourt, Henry V’s army consisted of about 6,000 men, 5,000 of which were archers, against 30,000-40,000 French, mainly knights on horseback and men-at-arms (foot soldiers). Some 10,000 French died that day, with less than 400 English losses, so it is almost certain then that our child would have returned to Glemsford and lived out his life in peace; brought up a family who, in turn, would have been baptised in our font – and so on for many generations. A fantasy maybe but there is an historic family saga here waiting to be written, not by me. Where is the novelist in the village? Back to top

History of industry in Glemsford Industry You are here: Home : Buildings and Streets : Industry The history of industry in Glemsford is varied. Below you will find the information we have gathered so far. E.W Downs The Flax Industry The Old Wheelwrights Horsehair Factory Matmaking The Silk Mill E.W Downs The place of an engineering company in village history E.W. Downs Ltd, today best known for its products in the area of potato harvesting and grading, the company has been active in Glemsford (just off Fair Green) for over 150 years. The company can be traced back to the work of a blacksmith, using his ingenuity and skill to repair and modify various items crucial to the work of local farmers. Typical of that sort of work, Mr Downs was called upon to carry out other tasks too; several church towers around Suffolk contain bells hung by Mr Downs. Glemsford's own church (of St Mary the Virgin) had its own bells completely re-hung in 1863. Other examples are to be found in Long Melford and Chevington. From the 1840s, the original Edward Walter Downs turned his hand to manufacturing new pieces of agricultural machinery. Suffolk, however, was never a county solely dependent on agriculture, being, as it was, one of the leading cloth manufacturing areas in th e country from the middle ages onwards. Villages like Lavenham and Kersey are world-famous, but Glemsford too had its wealthy clothier community as is witnessed by the number of prosperous hall houses in the village. However, as the Industrial Revolution took hold, and the focus of the cloth industry shifted to the developing towns and cities of Lancashire and Yorkshire, so the traditional weaving centres of East Anglia declined in importance. One of the effects in a village like Glemsford was the concomitant development of the mat-making and silk industries, providing a form of employment for the people of the village, often within their own homes. The mat-making industry used coconut fibre as its raw material, and Downs found new work in the manufacture and repair of the various machines used in the process. (Evidence of the importance of mat-making to the village is further demonstrated by the fact that the original "seal" for the village school, opened in 1874, was a combination of a matloom and a palm tree, and, of course, Richard Deeks famous account of the Long Melford riot of 1885 is called "The Matmaker and the Magistrate".). By referring to company documents and illustrations, Mr Rodger-Brown highlighted this early change in Downs' fortunes. At one time, there were 9 separate mat-making operations in the village. Samuel Downs (son of the original E. W. Downs) developed the work of the company, often demonstrating his skills by creating bespoke pieces of equipment to suit individual customers particular needs. Foreign competition hit the company badly, particularly as native producers of coconut fibre began to get involved in the manufacturing side of the industry. At the end of the Great War, Downs had reached a low ebb, which is when the business was acquired by Mr Rodger-Brown's father. The revised business maintained its interest in the matting industry - in fact, expanding into carding and shearing machines, as well as producing "plantation" machinery such as were needed to remove fibre from husks. A further connection with the past was maintained with the employment of W. H. Playle, a cousin of Samuel Downs, as senior foreman. Upon the death of Mr Rodger-Brown, senior, in 1955, the company was kept going by his wife - Donald's mother - with the help of just 4 employees. The company then began a gradual transition back towards its agricultural origins. In 1967, it produced its first piece of farm machinery since 1860 - a powered hopper for stock feeding, designed by Donald himself, and in 1968, Downs produced the first piece of potato machinery, a line for which the company is now so well known. Despite ups and downs in the agricultural market, and the fortunes of the company, the story continues to develop. Downs now employs 45 people on its site in the heart of the village. Annual sales now exceed £3 million. It has been rewarded with gold and silver medals from the Royal Agricultural Society of England; purchasers have included the former Soviet Union and the present Czech Republic - in fact 40% of its sales are for export. Its products have ranged from the relatively humble potato harvester to giant elevators for grain storage and a "banana tractor", designed to run on an aerial cableway. Most recently, the story has turned full circle, because Downs were again commissioned to re-hang the bells in Glemsford's own church tower. Glemsford Local History Society is most grateful to Mr Rodger-Brown for his contribution to the activity of the Society. It proves just how much the activity of historians is the activity of the present. It also shows quite forcefully the extent to which Glemsford is still a living village. e w downs flax Flax Industry This photo, of the workforce there in the 1950s, gives an indication of just how important British Flax was as an employer in the area. We know quite a lot about the Horsehair, Coconut Fibre and Silk industries in the village but Val Ost's work refers to the old Flax Factory on Lower Road, where the Avent works is now. Together, the photos suggest some sort of continuity of an industry which has left a mark on the village. The traditional view has been that the production of Flax, and Linen, was an irregular occupation, growing in importance in wartime, when extra linen was needed for sheeting, bandages and such-like. Certainly, we know that there was an influx of Land Girls during the Second World War, to work in the Flax Industry. This older photograph on the right, shows employees at another Flax Factory in the village - The Croft, off FLAX Lane. wheelwrights The Old Wheelwrights The old wheelwright's shop on Tye Green, for long the home of the Hartley family. Horsehair factory Horsehair Factory Peter Dickinson's memories of the horsehair factory in Glemsford. The Horsehair Factory by Peter Dickinson A recently discovered video of the horsehair factory. Matmaking Matmaking In 1980, Richard Deeks published The Matmaker and the Magistrate . In many ways, the book broke entirely new ground in the history of Glemsford. It is, specifically, a study of the 1885 Riot, but has broader importance. Before its publication, little had been done to investigate the history of the village in any detail, with the exception of the Reverend Glass' s broad-sweep Ice Age to Now study, A Short History of Glemsford , published in 1962. After The Matmaker and the Magistrate , many, including Richard himself, began to look in something approaching academic detail at this great village, and it is no exaggeration to attribute to Richard the foundation of Glemsford Local History Society and, in turn, this web site. In his opening chapter, Richard talked about the background to the various textile industries - particularly horsehair and coconut fibre - that existed in Suffolk in general, and Glemsford in particular. Matmaking by Richard Deeks The Silk Mill The Silk Mill A wonderful view of Glemsford Silk Mill, with the huge pond apparent. Silk weaving has happened in Glemsford since the 1820s. Back to top

A child's eye view of living at Glemsford Station during the 1940s by Celia Hall Station You are here: Home : Buildings and Streets: Glemsford Station History moves on. Those of us of a certain age have to come to terms with the fact that events of our life time, that still seem like "News" or "the way things are", are already History for the younger generations. When Celia Hall offered to contribute more of her work about life on Glemsford's station during the 1940s, we were delighted to accept. A Child's Eye View by Celia Hall An Arrival I was five years old when I arrived at the station with my parents, Charles and Mary Turner, and my brother Peter, who was 15. It was an icy February day and we found that the inside of the station house was colder than outside. It took days for the one kitchen range to warm the house enough for us to take off our outdoor coats. This coldness was probably partly caused by a crack down one wall in my brother’s bedroom through which we could see daylight. Later we were told this was the result of a bomb being dropped behind the house. It was not a good start. The Signalwoman However, things began to improve for me once I could begin to explore the station and surroundings. My first surprise was to find that we had a signalwoman rather than a man. The staff at our previous station, Worstead, in Norfolk, were all male, so I was pleased to see a young woman here. She had taken the place of a man who had been called up into the army. Her name was Lily Farrance and she was a war widow, which I found terribly sad. We took to each other immediately and I spent a lot of time with her in the signal box over the next two years. Then the war ended and she had to leave to allow a man to take the job. The signal box was fascinating – bells rang, levers were pulled and I could look down on the passengers waiting on the platform and watch the tiny branch trains pull in and stop just outside. The drivers and firemen soon got to know me and Lily would hand me the tablet (giving right of way to the train on the single track) to hand to the firemen. She told me to say ‘Right o’way to Clare’ as I did so, though I had no idea what it meant and just repeated it parrot-fashion. This always caused amusement for some reason. On winter evenings, Lily cooked cheese on toast for my tea on the black stove at the end of the signal box and I enjoyed eating it at the table overlooking the platform where I could watch what was going on. The Stationmaster's Office My father’s office was not such a friendly place. If a train were late there was much bell-ringing and urgent telephone calls on a large black wind-up telephone and messages tapped out in morse code. I kept in a corner while this was happening. My father took great pride in all ‘his’ trains being punctual, constantly taking his gold watch out of his waistcoat pocket to check the incoming train times and ensure that the outgoing trains left to the second. He was formidable if anything went wrong. His clerk must have found him difficult to work for Gangers and Shunters There were, of course, other staff on the station. A group of gangers ‘lived’ beside the track in a hut made from sleepers, with a thin chimney poking out of the roof to take the smoke from their stove inside. Their job was to inspect the rails and track for faults and remedy them. They had a long distance of track to look after and to travel to the farthest points they used an ingenious type of trolley. This consisted of a wooden platform on wheels. Poles could be attached to two of the wheels and by moving these poles up and down all the wheels could be made to move. The faster they worked the poles, the faster the trolley would move. I longed to travel with them, but it was considered too dangerous. I could only watch them working close to the station. They moved along the track tapping the rails to determine by the sounds given whether anything was wrong. The shunters, who arranged the goods trucks into the required formation for a particular train, were highly skilled in the way they went about doing this. They would alter the points to enable trucks to be moved from one track to another, then the shunting engine would ‘nudge’ a truck down the track towards a second one. A shunter would stand by this truck and calculate the exact moment to lift its coupling chain and drop it over the hook on the first truck. They continued until the whole arrangement was complete. I’d watch this for hours. Mixed Freight All kinds of goods travelled to and from the station – grain, sugar beet, coal and livestock. On one occasion a pony arrived and the farmer who had come to collect it put me on its back and sent it off down the lane and over the bridge with me clutching its mane and trying not to fall off. I’d always loved horses but it was the first and last time I rode one without a saddle and bridle. Porters and Carman The porters, who had a tiny room on the platform, were kept busy all day. They opened and closed the crossing gates, carried passengers’ luggage to and from the trains and kept the coal fires going in the ticket office and waiting room. It was their job to paint the edge of the platform with the right-angle shaped brush and maintain the station’s gardens. This was deemed very important because all the stations on the line competed each year for the ‘Best-kept station’ prize. The last member of staff was the carman who drove the station lorry carrying goods to and from the station. I regularly had lifts to the village with him. Travel by Train Trips on the train were always fun in the single carriages with their leather straps to open and close the windows, landscape pictures on the walls above the seats and a mirror in which passengers would check their appearances before leaving the train. Less comfortable, but exciting, were the times I was taken onto the footplate of the goods engines working in the goods yard. The cold of the wind coming in contrasted with the intense heat from the firebox as the fireman stoked it up. I bounced around clinging to anything I could find to stop myself falling out. (No health and safety rules then.) The Community I knew a great many people because of living at the station. Besides the staff I became friendly with all the passengers and each year my father arranged for me to sell flags for the railway benevolent fund because he knew that no one would refuse to buy a flag from me! In the village I was known as the ‘stationmaster’s daughter’, which meant that I had to behave myself because my father would have been informed quickly had I not done so…. Further accounts from Celia The Yard and Orchard My perfect playground Keeping Clean Keeping amused Not as expected Heating, lighting and water Less happy times War, storms and floods by Celia Hall by Celia Hall by Celia Hall by Celia Hall

Source of information for genealogy in Glemsford Families You are here: Home: People & Memories : Families The Allen Family The Allen family were involved in an alarming fire in 1896 on Egremont Street . Henry Allen (above), who was rescued from the great fire of the 1890s, lived for virtually the whole of the 19th Century, and by the time of his death owned several properties in the area around The Cock and The Angel. History of the Allens Alarming Fire! The Oakley Family Ben Oakley has been sharing some information regarding the Oakley family who lived in Glemsford since at least 1624. Ben has links to Farrance, Humm, Hartley and Theobold in his family tree. Members of the family lived in Old Chequers as well as many other houses around the village. If you would like to get in touch with Ben you can visit his website here or send an email If you have links to the Oakley family and would like to share information. The Brown Family Find out more about the Brown family of Glemsford. The Pearman Family Information regarding the Pearmans. The Butcher Family A family of weaving and silk work The Watkinson Family Sid Watkinson discusses

The history of noteworthy houses in Glemsford Houses You are here: Home : Buildings and Streets : Houses Glemsford has a rich history and with it some very interesting houses. Monks Hall Monks Hall The unmissable beauty of Monks Hall. The Old Rectory The fine early nineteenth century house, formerly the rectory, now Coldhams, a private house. Cobwebs Chequers Chequers Chequers: a 17th Century hall house; one of several in Glemsford. Formerly the old post office but now a family home by the name of Cobwebs. Back to top

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An account of a day in May 2000 by local glemsford residents The Morris Men of Little Egypt. A short history of the last 25 years by Neville Parry You are here: Home: People & Memories: The Morris Men of Little Egypt. The side (Morris teams are called sides) was first formed in June 1988. The then Rector at St Mary’s Church – Adrian Mason – wanted some Morris dancers at the Church Fete, which was always held in the Rectory gardens back then. He couldn't locate a Morris side (at least not a side he could afford!) and so a request went out via members of the fete committee for volunteers to form a Glemsford Morris side as a one-off for the fete. Frederick Sanders (who then lived at Five Gables Cottage on Plum St) heard the cry for help and was an ex-dancer and musician with Belchamp Morris Men. He enlisted the help of John Aldous, who also lived (and still does) in the village and was also an ex-member of Belchamp Morris. News spread by word of mouth and the likes of Peter Ford, Paul Jaques, David Irvine, Steve Clarke, Derek Richards and Chris Britton were recruited from the village. I had just moved to Glemsford in January 1988 and knew Frederick through work and I was also persuaded to join. We practised for a few weeks in the Church Hall and managed, eventually, to learn four dances in time for the Church Fete. Our wives managed to produce some make-shift regalia, Bell Pads, Baldrics etc and we all purchased white decorators trousers and white shirts and we were ready for the big day. We danced our three dances (twice each I recall) and with accompaniment from Frederick on Melodeon received a tremendous reception from the gathered hordes at the fete – mostly partners and friends of the dancers who couldn't wait to heckle from the sidelines and watch us strut our stuff. And that was it; we disbanded after several well-earned pints at the Black Lion. Then, early in 1992 we were approached again by the organising committee of the Church Fete and asked if we would like to do a repeat performance for that year's Fete. I recall we were enticed with the promise of free beer, and so it was that most of the men, together with some new ‘volunteers’ got back together for another one-off performance at the Church Fete on 11th July. We danced at both the Church and at the Black Lion. I can also recall that the Rector, Adrian, turned up dressed as a ‘Hobby Horse’ (although that may have been the next year! He was certainly a very good sport) This time after the Fete was over, and we were reflecting upon our glorious performance over several more pints in the Black Lion, someone had the bright idea of keeping the side going and it just seemed like a good idea at the time! So that was it. The side was named The Morris Men of Little Egypt*, new uniforms were created and I was elected Squire – a position that I have been privileged to hold for the past 25 years. Initially we had a rule that the side was to comprise only of men who lived within the Parish of Glemsford. This was maintained until we started to struggle with getting musicians and dancers. The rule was then relaxed to allow musicians from outside the parish and then dancers. We still uphold the tradition of a ‘Men Only’ Morris side but we do have (and are very thankful for) lady musicians. We now have members that regularly travel from all over Suffolk, Norfolk, Essex as well as France and Belgium to dance with us – such is the appeal of our side. We have danced all over England and had numerous trips to Europe,notably Germany, France and Ireland where we have always been extremely well received by the unsuspecting locals. In the summer months commencing at dawn on 1st May we wear our original ‘Cotswold’ kit – white trousers, shirts, rush hats and Baldrics. After October and through to 30th April we wear our ‘Horkey’ kit which comprises loosely of 19th century agricultural wear – collarless shirts, boots and heavy trousers. The styles of dances that we perform draw heavily from the Cotswold and Welsh Border traditions but over the years we have also developed our own unique style of Morris – with some dances that we have made ourselves from scratch – most celebrate the bucolic nature of our village heritage. The Morris sticks that we use in our dances, the longest of any Morris side, are winter-cut hazel which we take from a secret coppice within the Parish boundary. Our white handkerchiefs are woven from the finest Irish linen and are always perfumed with lavender and essential oils. Our summer months are filled with dancing at pubs, fetes, festivals and events, but we also dance during the winter period at selected events, notably on Boxing Day at the Angel Inn which has now become a staple of Glemsford village life. This is also the occasion when we unleash our traditional Mummers Play on an unsuspecting audience. Based around the age old struggle of good against evil, we now weave in appropriate tales and anecdotes from the year in our village. If anyone is interested in joining us, you can contact us by email at: littleegyptmorris@gmail.com We practice most Tuesdays at the Methodist Church Hall, followed by a ‘theory session’ at the Angel Inn with refreshment after the rigorous practice session! Neville Parry, Squire, The Morris Men of Little Egypt *I am sure that some of you will already know the origin of the colloquial name for Glemsford but if you have a spare hour, and for a couple of pints, any member of the side will tell you how the name ‘Little Egypt’ came about!

Pearman family of Glemsford Watkinson Family You are here: Home: People & Memories: Families: Pearmans By Sid Watkinson Earlier this year I received a phone call from the secretary of the GLHS, stating that a Canadian couple had contacted her with a view to doing some research into their family history while on a tour of the UK. Naturally I was intrigued especially when she mentioned that the lady’s maiden name was Watkinson and that her ancestors came from Glemsford! After an interesting exchange of emails, they paid me a visit after having done some research in the church yard of St Mary’s. It transpired that we were indeed related as we shared a common ancestor, an Ambrose Watkinson , baptised in Glemsford, 1641. The family line continues until 1736, when another Ambrose Watkinson married twice and the family line divided. A certain George Watkinson emigrated to Canada in the 19th century while my ancestors remained in Glemsford and the UK. Anyway the outcome was that we worked it out that we were fourth cousins, once removed! One more interesting fact that came out was that the surname Watkinson, was the fourth most common name in Glemsford at one time in the middle ages and now approximately 500 years later, and as far as I know, I am the only one left!