Mary Green – A Bottisham Girl
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down the High Street. The surgery at Tudor House seemed a
terrible place - it smelt, and the ceilings were black from the
smoke of the oil lamps. Alcoholic drinks appeared plentiful at
the surgery! Each Trinity Sunday there was a feast on ‘The
Hill’ opposite Holy Trinity church. An influx of visitors
packed the church and village pride ensured that all the
gardens were tidied for the occasion. After Sunday evening
service the congregation waited on the slope in front of the
church until eight o’clock, when the village policeman gave
the starting signal,
at which point all the horses, pulling the
fairground equipment, charged down the High Street. It was a
terrifying sight for all the small children. The fairground men
claimed their positions on The Hill and partly erected the
stalls during the Sunday evening and completed them the next
morning.. With rough roads it was not uncommon, at any time,
to hear a runaway horse charging down the street; an
experience frightening for children and adults alike. A
runaway horse could be the consequence of fighting between
the drivers!
There was great pleasure trailing across the flower covered
fields, without any fear of what the environment might hold,
and then through the woods and return by ‘Whitelands’. The
Swaffham stream carried much water, and sticklebacks and
Tom Thumbs could be caught. When Mary passed the Golden
Ball beer house in the High Street, she thought it a happy
place. The light shone out of the open door and the singing
sounded as if the customers were having a wonderful time.
The first radio in the village was owned by a Mr Daniels who
lodged in the Golden Ball. Mary enjoyed her dad’s crystal set