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And a Wiltshire New Year to You!

Posted by: Blog Administrator on Jan 4, 2011

Tagged in: Wiltshire , William Henry Tucker , wedding , wages , Trowbridge , treat , trade unions , Swindon , Sunday school , snow storm , Sir Edward Bayntun , schoolmasters , schoolboys , reverends , railway accident , polka , plague , New Year’s Eve , New Year , Lords , Lord Methuen , locomotive superintendent , Langley House , Langley Burrell , Kington St. Michael , Keren Wood , John Couzens , Jeffery Whitaker , Jackson’s Lane , Isambard Kingdon Brunel , inhabitants , Herbert Spackman , GWR , Graham Awdry , gauge , gardener , Francis Kilvert , flooded , experiences , Edwad Awdry , diary , Daniel Gooch , dances , Corsham Court , Corsham , Commonplace Book , clothier , Bromham , Bristol , Bratton , Bella Dixon , ball , authors , architect

 As the New Year is now upon us, I thought to take a look at how some of our previous Wiltshire inhabitants spent their New Years’ Day by taking a look at their diary entries. The authors’ backgrounds range from lords to schoolboys, schoolmasters to reverends, and how different their experiences of New Year were…

 Advert from the Wiltshire Times, 1st January, 1910, p.7

Advert from the Wiltshire Times, 1st January, 1910, p.7

It was the plague that was the main concern at the beginning of January in 1666 when Sir Edward Bayntun of Bromham noted in his Commonplace Book on January 6th  :




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Wiltshire's Sports Stars

Posted by: Blog Administrator on Mar 20, 2010

Tagged in: WWII , World War I , World Record , Wisden , Winter Olympics , winner , Wiltshire League , Wiltshire Historic Photographic Collection , Wiltshire , wickets , white horse , Walter George , Victorian , victor , training , three mile , The Oval , test cricketers , Swindon Town , Swindon Museum and Art Gallery , superstar , Sunday Graphic , Stars , St. Vitus’ dance , sports , smoking , silver medal , Shelley Rudman , Septimus Kinneir , running , runner , Queen Alexandra , Purton Museum , Purton , pub , Prittie , Prince and Princess of Wales , pioneering sportswomen , pharmacist , Pewsey , past , Old Trafford , newspaper cuttings , munitions factories , Morgan’s Hill , miracle mile , memorabilia , media , MCC , Lords , London , Lillie Bridge , Lansdowne Monument , ladies football , King Edward , Jim Smith , James Kibblewhite , innings , injuries , home ground , GWR works , Football Association , fastest mile , Fanny Williams , era , English Record , English Ladies Football Association , England , croup , Cricketer , Corsham Cricket Club , Corsham , cigarette cards , child , Cherhill , Challenge Cup , Cedric Ivan James Smith , carried his bat , caricatured him , career , Calne , brine baths , bowls , bowling , beer drinking , bats , athletics , asthma , Ashes , amateur , 2006 , 100-up exercise

After the success of the local(ish) Amy Williams and the continued determination and perseverance from Pewsey’s 2006 silver medal winner Shelley Rudman in this year’s Winter Olympics, I thought I would bring to light another of Wiltshire’s pioneering sportswomen. Fanny Williams played for Swindon Town ladies football team in the 1920s. Ladies football developed during World War I when the employees of munitions factories formed teams to play each other. The Football Association banned ladies football on their grounds but the English Ladies Football Association was formed in 1921. A national Challenge Cup competition was begun in 1925. Fanny’s boots are kept at the Swindon Museum and Art Gallery.

Wiltshire can also be said to possess famous athletics stars of the past. Purton produced a famous athlete in James Kibblewhite, born in 1866.
P18380sports

James Kiblewhite running for Spartan Harriers in the two mile NCAA Championship, Manchester, 1890 Ref: P18380 Wiltshire Historic Photographic Collection, reproduced with kind permission from Purton Museum 

He began his athletics career in 1884 and enjoyed great success for over 10 years. In 1890 he was selected to run in London in front of King Edward and Queen Alexandra (then the Prince and Princess of Wales). He won many medals but one of his greatest achievements was breaking the three mile English Record and World Record in London. He was employed by the GWR works in Swindon by 1916 and had a son who was also a promising athlete.  Purton Museum holds many items of memorabilia relating to James Kibblewhite, including trophies, medals, gold chain and watch, and newspaper cuttings of his career which are well worth having a look at.








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