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Betty Aplin’s Memories of the Bishopsteignton Modern Wives

Betty was born in Bishopsteignton in 1935 and has lived in the village all her life. She grew up in Hollowmead cottages 1-2 (joined). These two cottages used to be the gardener’s cottages for the Bishopsteignton House Estate. In fact, Betty remembers her brothers...

Colin Back Part 5: Friends and Businesses

Next door to us was (grandad) Nilson; he had a grinding stone in the form of a wheel for sharpening tools and knives. It had a handle to turn the wheel with the stone going through a reservoir of water. If I did exactly as I was told i.e. fast or slow, I could turn...

Colin Back Part 4: Scars and other aides-mémoires

I still have two physical scars from my time at Bishopsteignton School. One from a burn when I put my arm over the rail that surrounded the ‘tortoise’ coke stove next to Miss Hawkins desk, the stove was for heating the infants classroom; the other is a scar under the...

Colin Back Part 3: Education and Environment

Most of the men in the village grew produce for their families. If they did not have a garden then a corner of a field would do or like my father, many had an allotment in Forder Lane. As well as vegetables for every season, many of the men also grew rows of Sweet...