Glemsford
- voices from the past
When this web site started, it didn't really have a purpose, other than to use the "new" medium to record a few details of a place I lived in and love, and to indulge in a little electronic vanity publishing.
As the site has grown (so that it is now two sites), it has attracted some interest and a lot of other peoples' thoughts, information, research and reminiscences about Glemsford.
It has been very gratifying to find that, at least, part of my view of the past is shared by others and supported by the History they can tell.
I have, for years, rattled on about real History being the story of "ordinary" people. By that, and by those inverted commas, I mean no condescension. I mean that I find the everyday lives of Everyman and Everywoman far more interesting and vibrant than all the Kings, Queens, despots, dictators, exploiters of privilege and birth - those, in short, who rode on the backs of my heroes.
George Boreham qualifies as a Glemsfordian by birth, and the family history detail here demonstrates his Suffolk roots, despite the fact that from 1925 he had moved north, further north and west, to his long-term home in Keswick.
Steve Scott (George's nephew) has sent me some fascinating stories from George's youth which George himself wrote down and Steve has transcribed, and given me permission to publish in this form.
The "Toy Shop", published here, seems to me to capture what I have come to know as the spirit of Glemsford in a deceptively simple way.
The first story: "The Lamplighter"
The others you may read by following this link.
Return to:
Glemsford Home Page
Glemsford History
This story, which dates from the childhood of George Boreham, is thought to be from about 1911:
The Toy Shop
Ivy (my sister) and I were looking in the shop window at some toys, hand in hand with our noses pressed against the glass. We only had a toy at Christmas, there was never money to spend on toys. Then looking at the ground we spotted a sixpence, Ivy picked it up but alas it was a cardboard sixpence. I don`t know what we would have done if it was a real sixpence as we had never had one before.
So holding the cardboard sixpence we continued to look in the shop window and Ivy spotted a Dolly in a box at fourpence ha-penny and wishfully she said I could buy that dolly I have sixpence. Then a voice behind said come inside the shop: "I`ll show it to you," again he said "Come along in and I`ll show it to you," and he walked into the shop. We followed clutching each others hands, we were both sore afraid, nothing like this had ever happened to us.
We stood in front of the counter while the man got the dolly out of the shop window and put it on the counter in front of Ivy. She looked at it in wonderment, never had she possessed such a dolly, the man asked Ivy "Would you like the dolly?" then he said "Let's see your sixpence," quaking with fear and gripping my hand so hard I nearly cried out, she put the sixpence on the counter. The man picked up the sixpence, examined it very closely and then slipped it in his waistcoat pocket, then he wrapped the dolly and gave it to my sister with three ha-penny change and said thank you good-bye.
Dumbfounded we ran out of the shop and all the way home, we told the tale to our mother and she was as scared as we were, she took it from Ivy and put it in the top cupboard in the kitchen, saying "He`ll be back for it, as sure as night follows day he`ll be back and maybe bring a policeman with him."
But he did`nt come back and after a month Ivy was allowed to play with it. I often think of that shopkeeper with his large white apron and wonder how much he knew of that cardboard sixpence - God bless his soul.
Here is a digest of what we know about George's Glemsford roots, based on what he told his family and the research Steve Scott has done.
George BOREHAM was born on 10 Dec 1904 in Whitechapel*, Glemsford, Sudbury , Suffolk.
He died on 27 Mar 1972 in
16 St Herbert St , Keswick.
He was buried in St Johns , Keswick. He was a Gas Fitter
(*"Whitechapel" is a name given to Steve by his Uncle George. I have to admit the name does not strike a chord with me, but I would love to learn if it was the name for part of Glemsford.) SC
George's father was Charles Boreham.
Charles BOREHAM
was born in 1874 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
Charles BOREHAM and Eliza MIZON were married in 1895 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
Eliza MIZON was born in 1869 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
Charles BOREHAM and Eliza MIZON had the following children:
- Elsie M BOREHAM was born in 1899 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
- Eva V BOREHAM was born in 1901 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
- Ivy D BOREHAM was born in 1901 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
- George BOREHAM.
Charles BOREHAM was the son of Walter Boreham and Isabel (Isabella) Nice.
Walter was born in 1840 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
He appeared in the census for 1871 and 1881 in Brook St , Glemsford as a silk weaver.
He died in Jun 1888 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
Walter BOREHAM and Isabel NICE had been married in Sep 1862 in the Sudbury
registration District.
They had 9 children:
- Henry W BOREHAM was born in 1858 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
- Laura BOREHAM was born in 1864 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
- Ellen BOREHAM was born in 1867 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
- George BOREHAM was born in 1870 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
- Charles BOREHAM.
- Walter BOREHAM was born in 1877 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
- Ernest BOREHAM was born in 1880 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
- Victor BOREHAM was born in 1883 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
- Ada BOREHAM was born in 1885 in Glemsford, Suffolk.
Steve has a great deal more genealogical detail which I will add as the pages develop.