BCA Meeting Review - A History of Burpham

If you're interested in purchasing the book, it costs £10 (including delivery) and you can request via email at moira.macquaide@gmail.com or phone/text on 07963 756543.

Moira is continuing to write her local history column in Burpham Pages, so if people have more memories, stories, photos, newspaper clippings, it would be great if they would get in touch with her!

BCA members enjoyed a fascinating talk from Moira MacQuaide on Monday 18th September on the history of Burpham. She previously wrote a book on the history of Burpham Primary School, and this talk covered the wider history of Burpham from the Stone Age to the Domesday Book. It covered subjects as diverse as the open swimming pool, the rural farms, historical buildings and even a conga at the New Inn Lane roundabout! 

Other highlights included:

Local village characters, including the first post mistress were identified

• Starting in the Stone Age, and moving at a fair lick through Burpham's development post Domesday to living memory
• She looked at rural Burpham -Winterhill Farm, Bowers Farm, New Inn Farm, Weylea Farm, Green Man Farm
• The big houses were noted - Marlyns, The Paddocks and of course Pimms Row
• The growth of the primary school from 1908 and 20 odd pupils to today's much enlarged school with over 400 children on roll
• At Sutherland Park, the memorial refers only to nine dead whereas the war memorial has eleven names - thanks to her efforts, GBC are going to provide a new plaque acknowledging this and memorial records will be updated. 
• Several people in attendance remembered certain faces and places that have disappeared, such as the swimming pool where the garage now stands, the farmland that once occupied the site of Sainbury’s and the smithy that became Guildford Signs. It was also good to know that some very decent architecture has survived such as New Inn Surgery, Marlyn’s House and Burpham Court Farm.