By 1982 my grandfather had died and my mother had built a bungalow on half his land while her twin brother, David, living in Bromley, used the old shack as a weekend place. He loved it but his wife hated it. A deal was done … It was Maggie’s idea. She knew I loved the place and she had loved my Granddad. Why not build the ‘house of our dreams’? I got busy with a crayon and the Lego – yes, really! It was a time when house prices had been rocketing for years and we cleared £20k when we sold up at Bedhampton … which paid for the land. For a few brief days, we were debt-free land-owners, but with nowhere to live! We moved in with my mother …
A (slightly) posed shot of Maggie knocking down my Grandparents’ shack. The brickwork in front of her was the chimney stack – everything else was timber, corrugated iron and … asbestos!
Maggie in the South Western-est part of the footings of our new house on my Grandparents’ plot. It would never have been built without her drive.
The house in its final guise (the separate garage came later. The yellow lines show the extent of my grandparents’ plot, bought in 1952 for £900. Half the plot had cost us £20,500 in 1982 and the construction a further £35,000 … plus Maggie’s (unpaid!) fees as Clerk of Works, a role she accomplished brilliantly despite her lack of experience!
Peter Robert Turnill, third and youngest son of Joan, b 1/5/1947, m 19/10/1971
Little more than a shed! The picture shows it in 1982 shortly before we demolished it. The house to the left was built by Joan and occupies half the plot they bought in 1952. They had about 2/3 of an acre of ground.
Margaret Ianthe ? ? Hanson, first child of Derwent & Margaret, b ??/??/1942, m ????? d ??/??/2008? Ellen holds Ianthe – taken 1/3/43
Richard Brian Turnill, first child of Joan & Victor, b 23/10/1942, d 12/1/1961. Douglas must have got lost somewhere.
They certainly did …
Derwent George Cooper Hanson was their 3rd child, born 8/9/1918, and thus just 21 at the start of the war. Died ??/??/??
Margaret Williams, born ??????,
