Mary Green – A Bottisham Girl
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A Bottisham Girl
The Story of Mary Green - born and lived in Bottisham since
1914
At the age of three Mary attended the National Church School
in Bottisham. She remembers the headmaster, Mr Morgan
who lived in the White House, Lode Road, as being free with
the cane. There was a clear distinction in the village between
those who attended the Church School and the pupils at ‘Bleak
House’. Bleak House was a private school, in a little pink
cottage, run by two sisters, Miss Hollins whose sister, Mrs
Hinton, cycled each day to teach at the school near the Toll
Gate at Devils Dyke, Newmarket. The Bleak House building
remains a private house in the High Street. There was no
regular transport for the young to use: it was either walking or
hope for the carrier’s cart, from the Golden Ball, to take
things to Cambridge. Like many others, Mary remembers
George Osbourn’s mother walking to Cambridge pushing a
pram. At the age of 11, Mary transferred to Cambridge High
School, going by train from Lode Station and then walking to
the school in Mill Road, Cambridge. She left school at 16
years of age, (explained below). As a ‘Brown Owl’ under the
eye of Commissioner Mrs Gilbert (the doctor’s wife) Mary
enjoyed joining some 20 other Brownies. More advanced fun
came with the Imperial League Young Conservatives.
Some events stand out clearly in the memory. Once, when a
small girl, she cut her leg on a spike in the cemetery and she
was carried each day by her Dad to Doctor Wood’s surgery in
Tudor House. The doctor occasionally gave her a penny which
was immediately spent at Woollard’s sweet shop, a few yards