Following upon the success of my
first book Oldland the Village and the Parish written some
twelve years ago, I have now produced a new and larger book to
describe the history of the area in and around Oldland, and to also
include the villages and habitable neighborhoods of Kelston; North
Stoke; Swineford; Upton Cheyney; Beach; Wick; Churchley; Bridge Yate;
North Common; Warmley; Cadbury Heath; Barrs Court, and Gee Moor.
Whilst nothing momentous happened historically in these areas, there
is and was a very personal history of ordinary people struggling to
eke out an existence as they were controlled by the harsh and some
times bleak and humdrum reality of their existence. The vast majority
of our forbearers have left us very little to fill the void of their
anonymity, other than names in the Parish Register, or occasionally
fading names recorded on a headstone however, there is a section of
the past community whose deed have been recorded, but not always for
the right reason as poverty and hunger drove them to crime only then
to be judged unfairly by the dominating landowning minority. In
addition many of our antecedents were employed in dangerous jobs
where matters such as Health & Safety were totally unheard off,
and all too sadly their names have been recorded at an inquest, and
thus it is for these reasons that names appear in the book, but by
doing so I have hopefully a small window on life as it once was
hundreds of years ago.
Where possible I have also
attempted to include the interesting and the unique side of the
history, and to try and capture the area's pronounced
colloquialism. Much is to be discovered, and for those who would like
to see a pictorial history of the past one-hundred years then I
recommend you to my books in the "Around" series.
Price £12.50
ISBN: 0-9545117-5-1
