I've been visiting Finchingfield in Essex all my life, although I've never lived there. My mother's family name is found in the church records of 1632, not long after the records begin. My grandfather was born there but moved to London as a young man. My mother used to holiday in the village as a child, spending the summer weeks with her grandmother who lived in a cottage right next to the stream that feeds the pond (just to the right of where I stood to take this photo). She continued to visit other relations as an adult. With my father she often spent weekends there during the war years, to get away from the London bombing. They travelled by tandem, and stayed at a lovely old farmhouse a mile or so from the village.
The above is an excerpt by Roger Beckwith, from his wonderful site, Finchingfield from the 1930s to today. Please visit his site for more of Finchingfield's fascinating history. |
| |