Chiswick
Dad's home in Chiswick was in a terrace, as shown at left with Lucy Whythe, his Mum, outside the front gate.This house was destroyed on 11 November 1940 during the Blitz, and his parents were killed at the same time.
I know almost nothing of his parents, other than that his Dad worked for The Times during the First World War as a proof-reader. He collected the pictorial inserts the paper produced during the war, in particular showing the naval engagements, and had these collated into a series of leatherbound books (I think there were ten of them). They would now be unique and of great historical interest, but unfortunately they were lost when we cleared the house in 1982 after Mum & Dad died, and I don't remember what happened to them.
An old Bible-box, lined with
newspapers from 1878, mounted on top of a chest of drawers
to create something like a Davenport writing desk.
A chair in a very French
style, with signs of gilding on the woodwork and upholstered
with golden fabric. This was damaged by the bomb, with its
back two legs broken, but Dad had it repaired and
reupholstered and it was a treasured part of our home ever
since. Dad reupholstered it once, and I have since
completely renovated it, re-glueing the joints to
strengthening the frame and springs before having it
professionally reupholstered. The photo at right shows it in
its fully-renovated form.I don't know any more of the history of these two items, and I wish I did. The old Victorian newspaper used to line the Bible box, in particular, intrigues me.
But in the 1930's, through his younger teenage years, this was a happy home. We have a record of it during this period because he bought a Box Brownie camera and took a number of black and white photographs using it.
These show him playing with Meccano while his Dad does the gardening...
... or camping out in the garden with a small tent and his dog,
or dressed in
his Sunday Best in the garden.
There
are also two very poignant photos of Dad with his Mum &
Dad out for a walk in the countryside, dressed in their
Sunday Best.In one of them, Dad sits on a gate, flanked by his Mum & Dad.
In the other, his Dad squats down to pick a flower from the roadside.
In the first photo, Dad looks no older than a young teenager, so they must have been taken in the late 1930's, just before war was declared. It is difficult to think, looking at these peaceful pictures, that his Mum & Dad would die so suddenly only a few years later.
There is one other picture that shows Dad's close relationship with his Dad, with them both side by side in two rowing boats.
I have no idea where this photo was taken, but it is certainly not Chiswick! I presume they were on holiday somewhere, but I can't find enough information to identify where it was.
There are a few photos of Chiswick, such as these two of the River Thames at Strand on the Green. To the left is the view downstream, towards the City of London, and to the left the view upstream, towards Oxford.
This photograph
shows a confectioner's shop in Chiswick.I believe there is a story here: Dad told me that they once bought some chocolate from this shop, but found it tasted of paraffin. They complained to the manufacturer, who was extremely apologetic and sent them a boxful of chocolate in the post to make up for it.
Dad said he went straight back to the shop to buy more chocolate, hoping to repeat this bonanza, but found a frosty welcome: Apparently the chocolate manufacturer had not been impressed by the poor storage strategy used by the shop, and had put them on notice to improve it. When the shopkeeper realised Dad had been the one to complain, he was unimpressed.
Chiswick House and Gardens
There are a number of photographs that
I believe show the House and Gardens in Chiswick, such as
this group (with Dad third from left) beside a statue of
cherubs in the garden.There is one photo, to the right, which I find fascinating, of a 1930's car in the stableyard of the House.
I would love to know the history of this car, the make and model, and whether it still exists. The number plate, I believe, is GBK 2, if that helps anyone find any records of it?