Visiting My Gran’s Birthplace Of Saffron Walden In Essex

Posted on 25 September 2015 by

When we visited the market town of Saffron Walden in Essex in the summer, I just had to take the photograph on the right because it reminded me of a postcard (seen on the left) which most likely belonged to my Granny Hibbitt (Ivy Alice Hibbitt, née Dando) and which is now in my possession.

St Mary's Church, Saffron Walden, Essex

St Mary’s Church, Saffron Walden, Essex (click to enlarge)

My gran was born in Saffron Walden in 1904 and was baptized in St Mary’s Church on 23rd October of that year. By the time of the 1911 census, the family had moved to Plymouth but I can’t be certain exactly when they arrived.

Gran had an affinity with Saffron Walden and when she and my Grandpa settled in Tavistock, they called the name of their bungalow in Chollacott Close, Walden, although now it has a number. I know that they visited Saffron Walden at least once (and probably many more times) because I have a cine film of them in the town.

It was nice to finally see the sweet shop where my gran was born. The Golden Butterfly at 2 Market Street was a sweet and tobacconist shop then and still is to this day. I bought a bag of sherbet lemons so I could have a peek inside.

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99 Years Since Henry James Weaver Died In The Great War

Posted on 8 September 2015 by
Memorial Board in St Andrew's Church, Curry Rivel

Memorial Board in St Andrew’s Church, Curry Rivel

8TH SEPTEMBER

Today is the 99th anniversary of the death of my great-grandfather, Henry James Weaver, accidentally killed by a bomb prematurely exploding during training at a base in France during WW1.

The photograph shows Henry’s name on the War Memorial board near the back of the church in Curry Rivel, Somerset – Henry’s home town.

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Cine Footage Of Anne Hibbitt’s Christening Day

Posted on 7 September 2015 by

My grandparents and parents used to use a cine camera before and after I was born and my Grandpa Geake recorded the films onto video tape in the early 1990’s. Since then they’ve been transferred to DVD and converted to mpeg files.

Last week it would have been my Granny Hibbitt’s (Ivy Alice Hibbitt, nee Dando) birthday which reminded me that I was Christened on the day she turned 59 so I decided to upload some footage of the event onto YouTube.

The cine film includes me as a baby, my parents, both sets of grandparents, my aunt and my elder brother. I was baptized at St Eustachius Church in Tavistock and the film was taken outside the front door of my Granny and Grandpa Geake’s house in Crelake Park, Tavistock.

Without further ado, here’s the cine film.

This video can also be viewed on my YouTube channel at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E24LcKN0vHg
and in my website gallery at:
https://www.hibbitt.org.uk/gallery/videos/video-album/0032-christening/

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Huckleberry Pudding Recipe From Mrs Beeton’s Cookery Book

Posted on 4 September 2015 by

The following recipe appears in the ‘American Cookery’ Chapter of my gran’s 1894 publication of ‘Mrs Beeton’s Cookery Book and Household Guide’.

Huckleberry Pudding Recipe

Huckleberry Pudding Recipe

HUCKLEBERRY PUDDING.

INGREDIENTS. — A pint of huckleberries(or whortleberries, as we call them), 2 eggs, a pint of milk, a saltspoonful of salt, 1/4 teaspoonful of soda, 1/2 teaspoonful of cream of tartar, enough flour to make a thick batter.

Mode.-Mix the cream of tartar with the flour, and dissolve the soda in hot water, then make into a thick batter with the other ingredients. Pick and mash the berries, dredge them with flour, and stir into the batter. Pour the mixture into a buttered mould, and boil 1 hour. Serve with some very sweet sauce.

Time, 1 hour. Seasonable from July to September.

See this post for more information about the book.

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Early Triumph Motorcycle Reminiscent Of Grandpa’s WW1 Service

Posted on 29 August 2015 by

Harvey and I visited the Shuttleworth Collection in June at the Old Warden Aerodrome near Biggleswade in Bedfordshire where they keep a wonderful collection of historic aircraft and vehicles dating from the first half of the 20th century. It’s a fascinating place and well worth a visit if you happen to be in the area and have an interest in early aviation.

They also have some vintage motorcycles and, amongst the collection, I spotted an early Triumph which looked familiar to me. Pictured below you’ll see it was a 1924 5.5hp Triumph S.D. (spring drive) which used the same basic engine that gave excellent service for despatch riders during the Great War.

1924 5.5hp Triumph S.D

1924 5.5hp Triumph S.D

My Grandpa Hibbitt was a despatch rider during the First World War and this reminded me of the motorcycle he was sitting on in a photograph dating from this period.

Charles George Hibbitt was a Motorcycle Despatch Rider in WW1

Charles George Hibbitt was a Motorcycle Despatch Rider in WW1

In the photo, he is seated on a Triumph Model H which was the first Triumph not to be fitted with pedals, so was a true motorcycle. The Triumph Engineering Co Ltd had been using the advertising slogan Trusty Triumph since 1910 and the Model H became known as ‘The Trusty’ as it proved reliable in wartime conditions, despite a weakness in the front fork spring. This was prone to break on rough ground, so despatch riders would strap a leather belt around it as a precaution. The picture shows that my Grandpa did this very thing.

More than 30,000 Triumph Model H motorcycles had been produced by the end of the war in 1918 and by the time it was discontinued in 1923 a total of 57,000 had been produced.

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