6 Comments Posted on September 10, 2022September 12, 2022 by dapperdaveanddinkydi Food, Interesting Stuff, Travel

Too old to have this much fun!

So we managed to last for dinner but it wasn’t really worth waiting for. The Salmon entree was ok but the rissoles for mains were pretty ordinary (I think of the 12 served to our table of 6 travellers, 10 were returned untouched which is really sad) and we didn’t bother to wait for dessert.

We slept well in a very comfy bed and breakfast was great – everything you could possibly hope for in the buffet. Then we met our guide, Sara McDonald, who had finally arrived at 1 this morning. Think flying from London would have been a much better idea.

About 10, we walked to the subway to go into town to the main square, Marienplatz where we met our local guide for the city tour. It was a typical city tour and we loved the markets.

Fresh fruit. I bought some very expensive cherries but they were ripe, juicy, sweet and so
delicious!

We visited the Jewish quarter. About 10,000 from Munich were killed in the camps. Those who are here now have a new Synagogue which was built in 2006.

The new Synagogue. The Wall resembles The Wailing Wall in Jerusalem and people pray here and leave messages to God just as they do in Jerusalem.

Just as the glockenspiel was about to play in Marienplatz, there was a large roar of thunder and the rain poured down. It was very bad timing.

Our Munich Beer Tour started next and we had a great guide. During our walk to the first stop underneath the Beer Museum he told us about Hitler’s early life in Munich and about Kristallnacht or “The night of Broken Glass”. We tried three beers and had white sausages with German mustard which were delicious. This took me back to my childhood as Dad used to like them too. We tried three beers and I liked them too. We decided to have a wander by ourselves rather than continue on the tour. We had to get some cash and little money as you have to pay to go to the toilet here. We also had to buy face masks as you must wear them on the trains – not just any old masks but particular ones. Jobs done, we caught the train back but got a little confused and spent more time on the subway then we should have.

It was lovely to get back to the hotel as we were exhausted. We are definitely not as fit as we used to be!

2 Comments Posted on September 9, 2022 by dapperdaveanddinkydi Food, Travel

Flying Lufthansa and beginning our Great Rail Tour-with Travel Marvel

A very early start this morning as we needed to be across to Heathrow by 6. Getting through was pretty fast and we were soon having breakfast.

One last serve of Clotted Cream before leaving England. My pancakes were delicious.

When we checked in, the attendant asked if we would like to check in our carry-on for free but since it contains our medicines and my stoma gear we declined. They announced at the gate that you could have only one piece of hand luggage so we shoved my handbag and David’s man bag into our carry on. What a joke! Some people had three big pieces and, of course, by the time we got on, there was absolutely no space left in the luggage rack.

The flight attendant said we’d have to put them under the seat in front. That meant we had no legroom. It was really uncomfortable. I don’t recommend flying with Lufthansa!

We had a medical emergency on board. Not me, this time. They were calling for a doctor or medical professional to assist. It sounded serious but we had no idea what was happening.

Munich airport is quite large so we had a long walk to customs but they were very efficient and we were out very quickly. The cab provided by the tour brought us to our hotel, The Steigenberger, where we headed to the restaurant for a delicious lunch

This afternoon we have rested. Our tour guide is coming by train from London and is not here yet so our introductory dinner is not until 9pm. I’m not sure we will last that long but we will see. We are certainly looking forward to our Great Alpine Explorer Tour.

3 Comments Posted on September 8, 2022 by dapperdaveanddinkydi Genealogy, Searching for ancestors in Wiltshire, Travel

A day of farewells and moving on…

This morning it was time to pack and make sure we left our lovely Freshford home clean & tidy.

Firstly we farewelled George and Graeme who walked to the little station down the hill at Freshford to train to Bath & then Paddington then Kings Cross then to their new home in York. I’m pleased to say that they made their fast changes and arrived safely.

Then Ben loaded up the car with our luggage, dropped us off at the Bath Spa Station & returned our car. Then the four of us sat in the station lounge until our train to Paddington at 13:13. Once there we hopped on the Heathrow Express and then cabbed to the Ibis Styles Hotel where we are staying the night.

We’ve just had a very pleasant dinner in the hotel restaurant with Kay and Ben & have said our goodbyes. It’s a long way from Canada to Australia. Will we see them again? I certainly hope so. I’m feeling very sad that we have parted once more.

Queen Elizabeth’s death was announced whilst we were having dinner. I think Australia should be a republic and have our own flag but I still feel sad. She was a great lady who worked long and hard and I admired her for that.

Tomorrow we are off to Munich bright and early so now it’s time to sleep.

We are so lucky to have spent this week with our extended ALLEY family; to have met new members and to have explored the places where our ancestors lived. It’s been absolutely great. Thanks everyone.

8 Comments Posted on September 7, 2022 by dapperdaveanddinkydi Family history

Roaming Lacock & Trowbridge searching for our lot

This morning we headed off early to Lacock, a beautiful little village taken over by the National Trust after WWII to maintain as it was then.

It is beautiful and people still lived there. My photos are a bit spoiled by the cars parked in the street but I think they do show how lovely it is.

Two Harry Potter movies, Pride and Prejudice and numerous other shows have been filmed here and you can see why.

This is St Cyriac Church in Lacock. We have some burials in Lacock but we couldn’t find any headstones for names we recognised.

The graveyard of St Cyriac Church, Lacock

Then it was off to Trowbridge where Ben found a great car park but then we lost ourselves. We had a wonderful walk alongside the river trying to find the street. When we emerged from this pathway we were in Castle Street, just where we wanted to be. This street was very relevant to our search.

After lunch in a dodgy cafe, we went looking for 62 Castle St where Frederick ALLEY (my GGrandfather) was born to Job ALLEY & Ann RICHMAN on 12 March 1845. Most places had no number so it was very difficult to actually locate No 62.

This was the best we could do. Is one of these No 52? We were not sure.

On 30th March, 1851 the family stilled lived there and Job, aged 52, was a dyer. Martha, their 13 year old daughter was a dressmaker. We couldn’t identify No 75 Castle St either where the family lived on 7 April, 1861. Here my G Grandfather Frederick was a cordwinder or shoemaker & his mother Ann ALLEY nee Richards was a grocer. Her daughter, Annie helped in the shop.

We then went searching for the Baptist Church and there we had a great find it is no longer a Baptist Church but is a Vineyard Church. We were very lucky that the Minister was there and he let us into the church.

Inside the Vineyard Church which used to be The Baptist Church and on the back wall we found……..

A plaque on the wall of the Trowbridge Baptist church honouring Louisa Matilda Richman ALLEY, my Great Grand Aunt, Frederick’s sister. She was involved in the church and lived to be 104.

It was in this church that my great grandparents Frederick ALLEY and Elizabeth GOULD were married on 14 July 1864. I think it was a very important part of the life of that family.

As we walked along the street we passed the Alms House where Ann ALLEY nee RICHMAN died 11 Oct 1892. She was 83 years old and had been born in Hilperton.

The Trowbridge Alms Houses where Ann ALLEY nee RICHMAN died. It’s the left hand one of the 4 matching gables on the left hand side of the picture. They looked very pretty today not sure what they would have been like in 1892.

We found the remains of The Baptist Tabernacle but unfortunately it’s a building site and is becoming apartments so we couldn’t really take a good photo. This was where my grandparents Frederick Ernest ALLEY and Rose YORK were married.

At St James Church my GGG Grandparents, Thomas RICHMAN and Martha MARTIN were married on 3 April 1804. William ALLEY, son of Job ALLEY and Sarah GUNNER was a bellringer here and was very famous for his skill.

We searched the graveyard here but the inscriptions were very hard to read so we didn’t find any we recognised. On our way back to the car, we found the free Trowbridge museum which showed much about the wool trade which was interesting.

Then it was time to head back to Freshford, being chauffeured by our trusty driver Ben. At home, the kettle was quickly on, tea made and we sampled the traditional Wiltshire cake, The Lardy Cake, so named because it’s made with …. You guessed it – lard. Not our favourite but we had to try it because we all leave Wiltshire tomorrow.

It’s quite sad that tomorrow we all go our separate ways. We’ve had a lovely time, we’ve reconnected with Wendy and Frances and it’s been great. Thanks everyone.

2 Comments Posted on September 7, 2022September 7, 2022 by dapperdaveanddinkydi Family history

STEAM museum at Swindon

I’m celebrating. My body clock has realigned. Lights out at 10ish, wake about 6:30. Thank goodness!

Yesterday we returned to Swindon to visit Steam which is a museum telling the story of Great Western Railways. Everyone agreed that it’s one of the best museums they’ve seen. So many of the men in our family worked here and many did their apprenticeships there.

The first was my GG Grandfather, Frederick ALLEY, who moved his family to Swindon about 1869, 1870 and he started work as a labourer. Prior to that he was a cordwinder or shoemaker in Trowbridge. By 1881 he was a machine man and his son Frederic Ernest (my grandfather) was apprenticed as a boiler maker. His younger sons became apprenticed as they reached the age of 15. Twins, Frank & Jesse, we’re too; Frank as a tin smith and Jesse as an engine painter. Jesse’ apprenticeship was for 6 years! Others of the family joined the company too. When Frederick retired he was instrumental in forming an organisation for the retired men & he was secretary of it for many years.

When we arrived at Steam we were very happy to meet up with Fran and Wendy once more. (Christine was too busy getting ready to fly to the Greek Islands). Wendy showed us a wonderful old family bible given to my GG Grandmother, Elizabeth GOULD, by her mother Ann GOULD née MILLARD on her 21st birthday. It has all the family dates written in the front. What a find!

I’ll tell the story of the museum in pictures

It was tough. Only 10 minute toilet breaks or you were docked pay

Life was tough. There was no safety equipment of any kind not even noise protection and there were many horrible accidents. The company built a whole town of housing and set up a health system which became the beginning of the National Health.

We really enjoyed our visit to Steam to see how and where our ancestors worked.

Leave a comment Posted on September 6, 2022September 6, 2022 by dapperdaveanddinkydi Genealogy

Beautiful Bradford on Avon

This share house is working very well in Freshford. Yesterday Graeme produced eggs on toast for breakfast and a joint effort led by Ben produced a very tasty spaghetti bolognaise accompanied by a fresh salad for dinner. It’s great fun being all together and making deeper connections.

After breakfast Ben drove us to the Railway Station in Bradford on Avon along some very dubious roads – they are very very pretty roads but they wind and weave; the hedgerows are high and you can’t see ahead of you. Why does the GPS do this to us, I wonder?

At the station we met our guide for the day, Phil Arthur who is an accredited guide for SW England. We were very pleased we hired Phil for a couple of hours because he was so very knowledgeable and he explained the history of the town and what life would have been like for our ancestors who lived there back in the 1800s.

My grandmother was Rose YORK who was born in Trowbridge which we will visit on Wednesday but going back from her, the YORKS, HARRINGTONS and HUDDS lived in Bradford, I should have taped Phil’s talk because I’ve forgotten so much of the detail. I think the first written record of Bradford was 1152 but it is much older. Roman ruins have been found, as you would expect with it being so close to Bath. It is named because it provided a crossing place or ford across the Avon River.

The bridge across the river with its funny jail where drunks were thrown to sober up. They were said to be “under the fish and over the water”. Look closely and you will see the fish on top of the jail.

There’s an amazing Saxon Church which has had many uses, apart from worship, over time even as a storage place for the wool industry which our family was involved in

Many of our family were in the wool trade. Up until the 1850s it was a domestic industry with people doing the work in their homes. The clothiers were wealthy men who lived in flash houses and allocated the various stages of the process to the weavers or dyers etc

Meanwhile the workers such as our lot were very poor, lived in crowded houses in crowded street and the whole family worked hard.

Most of the worst areas have been demolished and replaced with better housing.

In the 1850s woollen mills were introduced, all built beside the river which of course became very polluted. Big vats of urine were heated and used to clean the wool. It was a very unpleasant place to live and work. By the early 1900s the industry was finished but Bradford was saved by a rubber industry

An iron duke used in the rubber industry., started by the MOULTEN family.

The Holy Trinity church here featured heavily in the lives of our family with many baptisms, marriages & burials. We didn’t have time to chase down individual people.

The Holy Trinity Church, Bradford on Avon

Kay, George and I behind the font where our lot were baptised

The church was refurbished with money gained from the sale of a valuable old painting of Jesus which was found hanging on the wall in the church.

Some of the men in our family were masons. The church was built from stone dug from an area just behind it. I imagine there would have been plenty of work for masons with all these beautiful stone buildings.

Bradford is such a beautiful place now but life here for our family in the 1800s would not have been fun!

The lovely old tea house built in the 1500s. We didn’t have time for scones with jam & clotted cream today. David and I were lucky enough to do that in 2016.

A view looking across the river and up the hill.

David and I caught the train back into Bath to visit the dentist who said to pop in on Monday if I was still having trouble. But he wasn’t working yesterday so that was a waste of time. David did find new shoe laces which had been on our shopping list for about 6 weeks so that was something.

Kay & Ben & George & Graeme headed off to Stonehenge which was about a 40 minute drive.

4 Comments Posted on September 5, 2022 by dapperdaveanddinkydi Family history

Who would we find?

Day 4 was a busy day driving around Wiltshire visiting villages searching for links to our ancestors. Our fearless driver, Ben finds his way through narrow lanes, in and out of tight spots. I’m so glad I’m sitting quietly in the back seat.

Our first destination was Winsley where we found nothing bud did think about my 3rd great grandparents, John YORK and Sarah SHINGLE who married on 29 November 1798. Then in South Wraxall, it was my GG Grandparents, Hannah HUDD and George YORK who married.

We then drove through Hawkeridge which seems to now be an industrial estate. It was there that Thomas ALLEY, my 4th Great Grandfather was born to Henry & Jane ALLEY on 14th October 1700. Near there in Holt, on 6th April, 1817 my GGG Grandparents William HARRINGTON & Ann POWELL were married.

Westbury was our next stop and it was coffee time. Fortunately we found a little take-away shop open & it had beautiful carrot cake. We walked down the street to find Holy Trinity Church. I just loved this tree – I wonder how old it is

The church we found was The Parish Church of All Saints. Whereas we were looking for The Holy Trinity Church. It was a lovely old church and we searched the graveyard for any names from our tree.

The church was quite large and had many beautiful stained glass windows.

We stocked up on groceries in Westbury and then found the Baptist Church on our way out of town but found nothing of importance there. We couldn’t leave town without seeing the famous Westbury white horse and here it is:https://www.britainexpress.com/counties/wiltshire/ancient/westbury-white-horse.htm

Then we were off to Dilton Marsh where we found St Mary’s Church where my GG Grandmother was baptised on 21 October 1808.

Kay, George & I in front of the very font! Wow!

We searched for gravestones we might recognise but found none. It’s very sad to see the state of so many graves and graveyards.

We then moved onto the Dilton Baptist Chapel where my GGGG grandparents, Thomas ALLEY & Martha TAYLER were married on 15 September 1730 and my GG Grandparents, john GOULD & Ann MILLARD were married on 24 September 1827. Their son, Alfred GOULD was baptised in the church on 26 March 1832.

There were many graves here and we took photos of those with names we recognised. There were many MILLARDS & as we check our family trees we will probably find some that match.

Sunday roast at The Hollies in Dilton was next and was delicious!

Then onto North Bradley where we were hunting the GULY or GULEY family. We found the very large grave of Gifford GULY & his wife Ann TADD. It was most impressive!

Gifford GULY & Ann TADD with a Vault memorial.

We found other GULY graves too and will try to match them to our tree but it was time to head back to Freshford to put our feet up. What a day!

3 Comments Posted on September 4, 2022September 4, 2022 by dapperdaveanddinkydi Family history, Searching for ancestors in Wiltshire

A wonderful gathering of the Alley Clan

Yesterday, at The Kings Arms, a lovely old pub in Swindon, there was a gathering of more than 30 descendants of Frederick ALLEY and Elizabeth ALLEY née GOULD, my great great grandparents and their spouses. Many thanks to my second cousin, Wendy BURROWS and third cousin, Christine PRICE and Fran BEVAN, a wonderful genealogist who linked me into the ALLEY family when I first started my journey to see where I came from after discovering that I was adopted. These three ladies organised the day for us.

Who are all these people & where do they fit in our tree?

The room was a buzz of noise. Everyone was very busy chatting, catching up with old friends or making new connections and establishing how we were related. I have to admit that I cannot remember the names of all those people or place them in the tree. Thank goodness we will meet with Wendy in Swindon later in the week and she will sort us out.

My grandparents were Frederick Ernest ALLEY and Rose YORK. They had 5 children and descendants of three out of the five were here. William Frederick was the eldest and Kay PROSSER is his granddaughter. George was the second son and Colin McMurdy is his grandson. Their third child was Louisa and as far as we know she never married or had children. Then came my father, Sidney Herbert who is Georgina’s grandfather as her Dad George was my big brother. Last was Grace but Kirsty JUDD, her great granddaughter was unable to be with us.

Christine PRICE, David EDELMAN and Colin MCMURDY

After lunch, we went to the Radnor Street Cemetery where Frederick ALLEY, Elizabeth GOULD and their son Edgar Gould ALLEY are buried in the one plot, Section C, number 3526. Fran had researched and prepared her tour well, of course, as she writes a wonderful blog about the cemetery, nearly every day. The cemetery was created for the non-conformists and as Frederick and his family were very involved in the Baptist Church, this was where they were buried. Andy BINKS joined us to show us the on-site chapel where the services took place.

Frederick and Elizabeth had 18 children. Sadly 7 of them died as babies and three are buried in this cemetery. There are no records of where they were buried so Fran suggests that they would have been in a massed grave. So sad! How would you cope with that?

The plot where Frederick, Elizabeth & Edgar are buried. Wendy had placed flowers on it on Friday.

Frederick’s brother, George Richman ALLEY, had seven daughters and one son. Those ALLEY women were all amazing women, living to great ages and achieving much. Fran is particularly excited by the story of Emma Louise HULL née ALLEY who was a suffragette campaigning for the right for women to vote. She had three short spells in jail, even though she was not a militant campaigner.

The chapel and its bell tower. The bell would have been rung for funerals

We all had a wonderful day, a simple dinner at home and I was early to bed. I’d like my body clock to adjust a bit better so I could stay up later and sleep past 4:30. Maybe tonight?

8 Comments Posted on September 3, 2022 by dapperdaveanddinkydi Family history, Food, Searching for ancestors in Wiltshire, Travel

Beautiful Bath

Our second day here in Freshford began with bacon & eggs for breakfast. These had been left for us by our landlords. That depleted our food stores so it was off to the beautiful farm shop run by volunteers, Galleries Shop & Cafe, about 3 miles away. Poor Ben had to cope with a few back seat drivers whilst driving down really narrow lanes in an unfamiliar 7 seater Suzuki with clunky gears. He managed very well! I was very happy that I was not the driver.

We stocked up on necessities and lovely fresh fruit & veg. I can’t wait to get into the strawberries at breakfast.

We do love getting fresh produce from markets!

We decided we’d like to go into Bath so we caught the train. The station is only a couple of hundred metres down hill so it was an easy walk & a 10 min ride into town. I have been having trouble with the roaming on my phone so David and I hurried off to the Apple store where 2 genii checked it over. I had it set up properly but they couldn’t find out why I’m not receiving texts or emails when I’m out and about. Very annoying! So we’re having to rely on Messenger to keep in touch and arrange meeting points. I’ve also been having trouble with sore gums where my dentures were rubbing ( my dentist at home interfered with them during my recent check-up). Luckily I found a lovely dentist who fixed them for me.

Guess who was happy to meet up with everyone after the dentist! I really enjoyed my first pint of the trip.

Bath is a beautiful city. David and I spent a few days exploring it in 2007 on our first trip to the UK so I wasn’t too upset that I spent my time at Apple and the dentist. Here’s a few pics

Beautiful butterfly decorations just near the station.

At home, we had a relaxing time chatting and then George cooked us up a lovely dinner with our fresh vegetables which was a fitting end to a good day.

Each day we have ridden on a Great Western Railway (GWR) train which has been quite special. My great grandfather, Frederick ALLEY and his wife, Elizabeth GOULD, moved to Swindon about 1870 and Frederick worked at GWR. Many of their sons did apprenticeships at GWR.

I guess that’s where this trip began!

5 Comments Posted on September 2, 2022 by Family history, Genealogy, Searching for ancestors in Wiltshire, Travel

Travelling again

It’s been ages since I’ve blogged and even longer since we’ve been out of Australia but over the last couple of days we have safely, but wearily, travelled to the UK and we are now very comfortably settled into our home for the week in Freshford, a beautiful little village in Somerset. It’s just over the border from Wiltshire; which is why we are here.

Also with us are my Canadian cousin Kay & her husband Ben and my niece, Georgina (George as she likes to be called) and her husband Graeme from Geelong in Australia. They are all from a ‘Victoria’, just not the same one.

So why are we here? We three women are all descendants of Frederick Ernest ALLEY and Rose YORK and we have traced the ALLEY and YORK families back to somewhere around 1750 in Wiltshire. We are on a pilgrimage to go back in time and to visit the places where they lived and died. More of that in the following days.

George, Graeme, David & I travelled by train from Paddington to Bath Spa on the Bristol line on the Great Western Line through Swindon which was very relevant to our current search. There we met up with Kay & Ben and since our hire car wasn’t ready we caught taxis to our home for the week.

We have a delightful 6 bed home in Freshford and the whole area is so pretty. Here are the Victorians chatting (the men about football and the women sharing family pics) meanwhile David was catching up on the news from home

This is “The Freshford Inn” where we had a refreshing ale and a delcious dinner last night. David and I were very weary so we came home to bed (only 200m or so but very steep) and left the others to party.

It promises to be a wonderful week and we are all looking forward to tomorrow when we meet some of our relatives who still live in England. What fun!

Dapper Dave and Dinky Di