Memories of my Alphington childhood 1935–1949 – Chapter 16
The Institute
Photo by Rowena Jay. Copyright © Rowena Jay.
Exeter Falcons 1947 First Post War Year
Exeter Speedway
Magic Lantern
Magic Lantern Society
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Alphington Halt 1950's
John L Smith
Alphington Speedway 1st Meeting
Speedway Swapshop
GWR Saddle Tank Engine as used on the Teign Valley Line
Philip Miller
Village activities and services
By Philip Miller
In the Institute
The Institute was one of the main focal points of the Village. We met there as Cubs and Scouts as did the WI and other groups. A 'Men's Institute' was situated to the rear left of the main building, it was constructed from corrugated iron.
The Library was held weekly in the Institute. Large wooden boxes were brought by van from Exeter and set up on trestle tables in the hall. With no TV in those days the Library was well supported. I guess I read all the Biggles and Just William books. I had a particular keenness for travel and adventure stories.
Quite often we had film shows in the Institute which were great fun, films such as Laurel & Hardy, Charlie Chaplin etc. Concerts were held, I remember Victor Perkins in his Cubs uniform singing 'There'll be blue birds over the white cliffs of Dover ' and all the mums with tears in their eyes. Not because his singing was awful, far from it! It was a rather emotional wartime song looking forward to 'Peace there after'.
I remember a man giving us a long talk about his travels, he illustrated his talk with what we called a 'Magic Lantern Show'. Glass slides had pictures in colour and in reverse so that when the picture appeared on the screen it was the right way around. The lantern had a bright light behind the slide, this consisted of a paraffin lamp, later converted to an electric light bulb.
There was the annual Nativity play performed by the children from the school. Plays performed by the drama group were very popular.
The Teign Valley Railway
We enjoyed other activities and outings. The Teign Valley railway playing its part.
Our wonderful little railway. Running from Exeter St. David's Station to Newton Abbott was one of the prettiest branch lines in the country. What a pity it wasn't preserved, it would have made a wonderful tourist attraction.
On more than one occasion it proved a valuable asset when the main line railway at Dawlish was breeched by the sea. It provided a temporary bypass for traffic to Plymouth and beyond. I remember seeing a large main line express crawling through Alphington Halt on one such occasion. It could only crawl on this single track railway but at least it got its passengers to their destination however late.
No trains ran on Sundays so the track was a good way to walk to Ide. In springtime the banks of the railway were a mass of primroses and other wild flowers. The girls would pick posies of flowers to take home. Beyond Ide the track passed through Perridge Woods where we camped as Cubs and Scouts.
Trips from Alphington on the Train were always a treat to look forward too. We would take picnics to Christow or the other way to St. Thomas Station then change onto the mainline to Dawlish Warren. Boys would often board the train to St. David's Station to go train spotting! For others it was a journey to work or school.
From the footplate high on the embankment through Alphington the crew could clearly see the mushrooms growing in the fields. An unscheduled stop was called for whilst the fireman scrambled down the bank with the driver and sometimes the passengers shouting directions to the fireman to guide him to the mushrooms. It wasn't long before the train was on its way again and the mushrooms on the shovel over the firebox with a few rashers of bacon and eggs! Yes this really happened.
Other outings
Sunday School outings were another special treat. We went on the Charabanc or as we called it the 'Chara' we still hadn't got around to calling them coaches!
The Chara took up to Teignmouth or Paignton. Our pocket money being spent on the penny slot machines or a bag of winkles.
A dip in the sea was favourite but for some it proved a bit of an embarrassment, especially for the girls. Clothing coupons were required during and after the war for quite a while. Bathing costumes and trunks did not feature as essential clothing so mums resorted to knitting costumes. A well known ladies weekly had published a knitting pattern showing the ladies how to knit a costume using used wool that they had salvaged from disused garments. The costumes looked and fitted fine when they were tried on at home, but disaster loomed.
As soon as we hit the beach the new knitted costumes were put on and we were down to the sea and for a while we had a great time. It wasn't until the first girl came out of the sea that the design fault became apparent. Soaked with water the costumed sagged and hung like a limp rag well below the knees ... there were screams and tears ... back to the drawing board. Needless to say, those costumes never saw the sea again.
A post war visit I enjoyed was a visit to Plymouth and the Naval Dockyard at Devonport. Our Headmaster at Alphington at that time had served in the Royal Navy during the war so was an excellent guide and made it interesting for us.
In order to be able to go on the Sunday School outings we had to attend Sunday School. With double summertime in force my mother set the clock the wrong way and on one Sunday morning my sister and I arrived two hours early.
Attending Church
In Later years my pals and I would attend Evensong in the Church at half past six. This was a condition of the Youth Club.
The Rector, Prebendary, BC Bennett or as we nicknamed him 'Pop' Bennett was quite a portly man who occasionally dressed in the style of the old clergy, Breeches and gaiters. I was somewhat in awe of him. I think it was from when about eight years of age I was chosen to read the lesson in church. I had to read from the lectern and the only way I could see the bible was to stand on tip toes, I could have done with a box to stand on. The Rector was in his pew just behind the screen loudly telling me to "speak up boy, speak up"! I am sure the whole congregation heard him if not me.
At Evensong when it was time for the sermon, as the Rector mounted the pulpit the church lights would be dimmed. Within seconds we would hear a shuffle and then the church door creek open. Mr Moxey from whom we rented our home, had left his pew and was off across the road to the New Inn. Opening time at the pub coincided with the start of the sermon. Mr. Moxey, always wearing his bicycle clips constantly sat close to the door in anticipation.
Rose cottage
Mr Moxey a bachelor lived with his sister a spinster at Rose Cottage,(now demolished) near Brooklands (now demolished) in what is now Church Road. Rose Cottage had a large kitchen cum living room, it had a flagstone floor, and in the centre of the room was a large scrubbed top farmhouse table. Cooking was on a very big cast-iron coal or wood stove and oven. Mr Moxey had a high back Windsor chair beside the fireplace.
Mr Moxey was another character that I remember well, I was very fond of him and as our landlord he was very kind to my family. He made my sister and I a very nice rabbit hutch. By trade he was a Builder and Carpenter. He owned some properties in the village our home, 17 Devonia Terrace being one of them. I enjoyed going to Rose Cottage when we paid the rent. Miss Moxey always had a few sweets for my sister and I. Mr Moxey allowed me into his carpenters shop. I loved the wood and the smell of the shavings. I guess that is where my love of woodwork stemmed from.
Speedway and greyhounds
With the war behind us things were moving apace. Speedway and greyhound racing came to the Village. The greyhound racing was a bit of a damp squib. I even wonder if it was legal.
Men, not local men, and equipment suddenly appeared in a field off Brook Lane. I have no knowledge of Greyhound Racing but I think this was what is called a 'Flapper Track' We boys, inquisitive as ever had to see what was going on.
The men set up a long straight track. The hare was a bladder covered in a rabbit skin. It was attached to a long cord. At the other end of the cord was a bicycle frame mounted on a platform. The cord was coiled around the wheel. A man sat on the bicycle frame and peddled for all his worth to wind in the hare for the greyhounds to chase. Much to our amusement the operative had to sit with his back to the action so could not see what was happening and as he peddled like mad the bladder being much too light took off into the air like a kite with the dogs sat howling at it.
When it landed there was an almighty fight amongst the greyhounds.
What we witnessed was a rehearsal and I guess they got it perfected in time.
From memory there was only a couple of meetings. Punters and Bookies arrived and we lads sat in the hedge cheering on the dogs until we were chased off. It was a very comical episode.
Speedway was something completely new to our young lives in 1945, we could hardly contain our excitement. From the moment work started in the field off Brook lane we kids were there to 'supervise' and generally get in the way. However it became a good source of pocket money for a while. The first meeting took place on the 5th July 1945 with some of the Country's most famous riders taking part.
A speedway track usually has straights and bends but this one was circular. The earth dug out to make the track was used to build the barrier. That is all that separated the riders from the spectators. There was no Health and Saftey Act in those days.
When the track of cinders was laid it called for a lot of levelling out and we lads earned pocket money raking the cinders. For our efforts we had free entry and on race nights we were again busy with our rakes. We got to walk around the pits to admire the bikes and the fabulous sports cars some of the riders owned. SS Jaguars and the like. Speedway night just didn't come around quick enough.
Alphington's non leauge Speedway didn't survive for long. Exeter Falcons returned to the County Ground when the army moved out. It was a much more professional affair with the Falcons in Division 3. It proved a very popular sport. I recall the very first post war Falcons v Plymouth Devils meeting, a real local derby event. The road through Alphington was solid with people making their way to the County Ground. I had been home from school with tonsillitis. I pleaded with my mother to let me go. " If you go tonight then you go back to school tomorrow" was her response. How could I refuse. I went with my father and came home covered in black dust from the cinders but very happy.
Cricket and fun fairs
The cricket team played in the playing field post war. Much earlier in the 30's there had been a cricket pitch at the bottom of Blenheim Road. All that was left of it in my early childhood was the ruins of a hut that had been the changing room cum pavilion. The field was ploughed up during the war for cereals and is now an extension of Blenheim Road.
My sister recalls that the Circus and fun fair came to the field behind Devonia Terrace (now Legion Way) I regret I cannot recall the occasion and would love to hear from anyone with the same recall. However I do remember a circus coming to the playing field.
Saturday cinema
Village memories would not be complete without a mention of the Gaumont Cinema , Exeter for Saturday morning pictures. There was a mass exodus of children from the village each Saturday as we descended en bloc on the cinema. It was a Club membersip and we had a club song that we sang at the start of each show:
We come on Saturday mornings
Greeting everybody with a smile
We come along on Saturday mornings
Knowing it's well worth while
As members of the Gaumont 'Club'
We all intend to be
Good citizens when we grow up
And champions of the free
We come on Saturday Mornings
Greeting everybody with a smile
Smile, Smile,
Greeting everybody with a smile
It cost us 6d (2½p) What fun we had for that.
A cinema crowded with hundreds of screaming kids all gathered together in one place and not a teacher in sight. We boo'd the badies and cheered the goodies. The noise was deafening.
Apart from the films, there would be competitions, fancy dress or talent contests.
Alphington performer
By far the best singer in Alphington was Victor Perkins. He entered a singing contest on stage and sang 'We'll gather lilac in the spring again' when he finished we Alphington kids raised the roof and cheered like mad. But we made more noise booing the opposition and that was a big mistake because the contest was judged on which contestant received the loudest applause...With the Exeter Children cheering their contestant whilst at the same time we were booing, it resulted in Exeter winning by virtue of the noise! Poor Victor he was by far the best. When I took a Saturday job I had to forfeit the pictures. It was a great wrench.
The last of Philip Miller's memories continue in chapter 17.