Walter Colin Harse was my father and (Alfred) Colin Harse of 27 St Giles, was Grandad. That is why I am Walter Colin Ivor. Why they called me Ivor I have no idea. Auntie Vi or Tid, was the oldest then Winifred, then my father and the youngest was Madge.

My mother, Rosetta Oxley came from Coventry, her father being a watchmaker.

My mother met my father when she was a barmaid at a Public House in the Cornmarket.

My father died on 20th May 1960 aged 75 so he would have been born 22nd Sept 1885.

Dad at a young age was a soldier, Cavalry Regiment. Dad served in the 1914-18 war, in the transport corps and saw some of the worst fighting but luckily went through without a scratch.

Then he was a butcher, then a taxi driver until about 1927 when he joined Morris Motors, in the Transport Department. I joined him in the same year.

My first memories are of my early school days at a Kindergarten run by two sisters and a brother, the 'Kings'. The brother was known as 'Monkey King' because of his looks.

The School was at the bottom of Worcester Place, a large house backing on to Worcester College grounds.

When the first World War started, my Mother went to live at 27 St Giles, as Dad had joined up to serve his country in the Royal Engineers.

In 1916 my Mother and I left 27 St Giles and took up residence at 1 Richmond Road.

I well remember going with Mother to view this house and the door being answered by a man with a hook in place of a hand. I remember being told at a later date that he was a shunter in a local Railway Yard and had lost his hand in an accident in the Yard.

I have a vague memory of the 1914-18 War. I can remember going to stay with my Mother's sister at Coventry and seeing a Zeppelin raid on that City.

I can also remember going with Mother to visit Aunt Alice ( no relation) in South Oxford when the factory hooters sounded, indicating an Air Raid.

I also remember my Mother having the Flu that struck England in 1917. She was very ill with it. It must have been near my birthday, and could have been 1916, because I had been promised a ladder from the local toy shop in George Street- I forced her to leave her sick bed and buy the ladder for me.

I also recall my father coming home on leave from France, and Mother and I going to the Station to await his arrival. I well remember, as we walked along, my Mother singing a well known song of the day "If You Were The Only Girl In The World."

As we waited for Dad's train to arrive, they unloaded a train full of German Soldiers- Prisoners Of War. These men stood on the platform and one wanted to give me his watch, but my Mother forbade this, much to my disappointment.

That evening my Father went out for a drink and on his return home, about 10pm, he was very drunk. I well remember him sitting on the floor and offering me a bottle of beer, with a promise of half a crown if I could hit him over the head with it. I would have done so if my Mother had not restrained me.

I also remember being left alone in the house with some fireworks which had been given to me to celebrate the end of the hostilities. We had staying with us members of the Doyle Carte Opera. They were at the Oxford Theatre. I was so anxious to try these while they had all gone. I chose one that was on a stick, put it in the fire and then held it up the chimney. You can well imagine the end of the story - my hand was badly burned.

It was about 1919 and I found myself a page boy at Aunt Win's wedding. The ceremony was held at St Giles Church and the Wedding Breakfast at 27 Giles St. (Photo taken here.)

It was the custom that we all visited 27, so after tea we would all get togged out in our Sunday Best and in those days we all had special clothes for Sunday wear.

The time that I am writing about, my sister Madge had not been born so there were just the three of us.

We would leave Richmond Road about 6.30pm and find a not too happy welcome awaiting our arrival.

After my parents had paid their respects, we settled down to an hour of music, played on a very nice gramophone, or Aunt Madge would play the piano to us.

There was always an air of some unpleasantness between 'Ma, Grandad and Madge and Mother, but being young I was only aware of it but not the reason for it. I never did find out the reason.

When Aunt Win and Uncle Walter were married my Mother must have been carrying Madge, because early in May 1920 I was packed off to 27.

I did not enjoy this although they were always kind to me. I hated it.

I shared Aunt Madge's bed, her room being right at the top of the house overlooking the garden. 'Ma and Grandad's room was on the same floor but at the front of the house. The other room on this floor was occupied by a person well-known in the 20's and 30's.

The first floor was the holy of holies and one was never allowed to linger on that level, so it was of great interest to my young mind.

The home was a wonderful place and was my dream of how one should live. It was very well furnished and had an air of wealth about it. It was very old. At one time it had been a Coaching Inn. It had a very long cellar which went under Keeble College. The cellar was a mile or more in length and had a well but we did not draw any water from it.

I was never allowed down there but did manage to have a look one day. Entrance was gained through a heavy door in the hall, at the bottom of the staircase.

At the front of the house were two shops. I cannot remember who had the one to the left but the right hand one was part of the Cycle Shop which Grandad used. Madge and I used to man the shop, where we sold Cycles and spares, Boxal Boot Polish and Metal Polish and puncture repair kits which were packed in long tin boxes about 4 inches in length. I cannot remember ever seeing a customer!

It had a large shop window in which cycles were displayed. What I do remember is that there was a gas fire and Madge always had some potatoes which we baked in front of the fire. Madge and I always got on well together and she took me swimming, but I never liked water. I was thrown in and this put paid to swimming as far as I was concerned, and those outings came to an end.

At the back of the shop was a storage room for cycles and then came the workshop, Grandad's domain. This was where the repairs were carried out.

Grandad worked in the workroom and would then disappear.

In latter years I found out why - he was an under-cover Bookmaker! He got caught many times by the Police and paid some very heavy fines.

Connecting the front of the house to the living quarters to the rear, there was the kitchen. To get to this there was a long passage. The kitchen was the worse part of a nice house. And the toilet!! This was more or less a hole in the ground. You sat on a large wooden seat with a drop of some 9 feet, so it was a frightening experience for a small child to go to the toilet. I hated it.

Opposite the kitchen was a door leading into the garden. The photo of 'Ma and Madge is taken by that door. Also the wedding picture was taken there, on the lawn 

Beyond this point was the factory and it was to me an Aladdins Cave. 

There was an old motor car chassis which my father had bought with the intention of building a body on it and using it as a taxi. From the day he got it, it never went again.

My father became a taxi driver after the 1914-18 War.

The factory had an upstairs and this was where Grandad kept all his treasures.

A lot of his time was spent at large Country House sales and he had amassed a lot of nice things. One that I can recall was a jewel studded dinner service. It was very beautiful and must have been worth a lot of money even in those days. I wonder what happened to it and all the other things after his death.

Grandma used to make a lovely seed cake - caraway seeds. I can still see my supper - a slice of cake and a glass of milk. I have always maintained that nobody could cook a seed cake like my grandmother and nobody could make a Yorkshire like my mother and that still holds good although 70 years have passed since.

In due course my sister was born and, after a while, I returned home for meals, only going back to 27 to sleep.

It was arranged that I should go to Bedford House School, which is the School my father went to.

This was in Walton Street and the Head Master was Mr Robinson. It was a nice School and I enjoyed my days there. Later it was decided that the fees were too high and I went to a State School - St Phillips and St James.

I could feel my stay at 27 was nearing an end, as there seemed to be something going on between Mother and Grandma. I used to go home at lunch time and then return to School until the end of the afternoon session. Then I would go back to 27 for sleep, leaving home at about 7pm.

It was at this time that Grandma told me we were going on holiday in the Summer Break. We were going to see Aunt Win and Uncle Walter (Winifred May Antwis, nee Harse and Sidney Walter Antwis.) and in due course we arrived in Swansea.

I recall that their house was near a Convent and from the garden we could see a tall chimney that had Baldwin's on it, and was a steel works. One of the joys of my stay was visits to the covered market. They sold lovely toy lead trains, which I lost my heart to and I had a great collection.

We also used to go to the Mumbles on the tram that ran along the sea front.

I can still see the lighthouse and being warned about how quickly the tides came in and not to bathe there.

While we were there I got Yellow Jaundice and had to stay behind until I was better. I cannot remember how I returned to Oxford, which I did in due course.

I remember Colin being born to Aunt Win but I never did meet him. Nor did I ever see Aunt Win and Uncle Walter again.

I wrote to them when I got their address in Milford Haven and I watched Aunt Win receive the Maundy Money from the Queen.

I remember little of the years that and and my sister Madge spent together as children. The age gap of 7 years meant that when she started School I was ready to leave and start work.

While staying at 27, we went for another two holidays. The next was to Weston Super Mare and the other to Bournmouth.

The Weston holiday I remember little of, but going to Bournmouth was different. When the great day arrived a Fly, which was a horse drawn carriage, came to collect us and take us to the Railway Station. There were very few Motor Taxi's and I think I knew all the drivers. There was my father and Charlie Smith- this was Aunt Alice's husband - the one on the wedding photograph, and Fats- I never did know his real name but I knew him for some 50 years in later life.

In Bournmouth we stayed at a Boarding House at Richmond Hill. I always remember that because, at School we sang the song 'Sweet Lass Of Richmond Hill'

While there we went to the Theatre and saw The Blue Lagoon. This was the last of my holidays with my Grandparents. I never did have a holiday with my own Parents.

After we returned from Bournmouth, I went back to live with my Mother and Father and sister Madge.

It was after this that I went to Phil and Jim. This was a School that was split into 2 halves, the second half being in Juxon Street where Madge and Ben lived.

Life at School was very interesting and I progressed very well. Our Head Master was Mr Dent, very tall - about 6 foot 4 inches. I remember we gave him a lovely new Cycle. I can't remember what the reason was. We had gardening lessons with Mr Trollopp and our gardens were on Port Meadow.

Whilst at this School I entered into my first business deal. The people that kept the Paper Shop in Walton Street were a family by the name of Phelps. The shop was at the end of Worcester Place. They had a son called Tony and they asked me if I would take him to School. He had just started Nursery School.

So for 9 old pence and the cost of a carrier for my bike on which he could ride, a deal was struck.

Tony Phelps in later life became the Treasurer of Ipswich.

I had two School chums that lived in that Street – Ernie Soames, he became a Warder in the Prison Service and finished up, on my last known whereabouts of him, as a Warder at Dartmoor Prison. The other was Gordon Barnes. He lived at number 8 and his father opened a shop there, selling groceries and later had a van he travelled the country in, selling his wares. Gordon would let no-one but my Mother cut his nails and I don’t know why!

This brings me to the end of my early years. I left School at 14 and went to work at Morris Motors and from then on is another story.