Anne writes: I adore your blog and love The Arbury effect! The area is pumped full of history from the ancient folk of Arbury Camp to today, and reading about it all makes me feel good as I live on the North Arbury Estate. It's a buzz! I'm interested in the old Manor School. I once met a woman who told me she was part of the first intake at the Manor Girls' School in 1959. She gave me lots of details that I didn't write down (I should of done), and I remember something about the dining hall being in the old main building. In my 1980's days at the school (when it was mixed) it was in what we called The New Block. Hi, Anne! Thank you - we're very glad you like the blog. Andy of the Arbury Archivists interviewed Mrs Johnson (Firman), original headmistress of the Manor Girls' School and deputy head of the co-ed school, in 1983. We will be featuring full details at some point, but she recalled that the dining hall was in what became the main admin corridor in the...

Sundays in South Arbury - minus the open shops, mobile phones, the World Wide Web, etc, etc, etc... the 1970s were rather different to today. Sundays used to be very quiet days back in the 1970s.  In South Arbury, the estate seemed to go to sleep. And, as a kid back then, I was often bored to death. The day would sometimes start with a couple of the family's adult members feeling rather... er... fragile - after a night out at the Labour Club in Romsey Town the night before. Saturday nights were always the main weekly 'night out' for the 'night outers' amongst the elders of my tribe. Over-imbibing was not usually a problem, but sometimes a head or two did throb the next day. I used to wonder why adults bothered with alcohol. Until I left school and disappeared into the nearest boozer (the Snowcat) to celebrate. Klackers weren't really as interesting as the World Wide Web - and they could be pretty hard on your knuckles. Great Nana lived in a flat in Brackley Clos...

While we deal with Arbury history here and the original estate and historic area, not electoral wards, it is sometimes frustrating that the City and County Councils have, over a period of many years, rather botched up an area electorally in which a great deal of community spirit has been generated - and which even hosted a community project to put its history on record. Arbury Is Where We Live! We know we're not alone in this, and, of course, with three of our Arbury Archivists living in 'King's Hedges Ward' there has been concern. We know that the whole of North Arbury is not King's Hedges in any logical sense (in fact NONE of it is historically), and it undermines the work of the local community, Arbury Archivists, Arbury is where live! , etc, over the years to put the area's history on record and also to create community facilities like the Arbury Adventure Playground, Arbury Community Centre, North Arbury Chapel, etc. We also know that King's Hedges War...

Some of the Brett family in the Park Meadow at the Manor Farm on Arbury Road, 12 September, 1908. This became the site of the Manor School. Mrs Grace Hinchcliffe's grandparents, Richard and Amelia Brett, lived at the Manor Farm on Arbury Road and her father, Henry, farmed a five acre smallholding there all his life. Mrs Hinchcliffe was interviewed several times for the Arbury Archive. She had great wit, warmth and a wonderful memory and provided us with a wealth of information about Arbury in the days of the old farms. She was a schoolgirl from the mid-1910s until the early 1920s. On one occasion in 1986, we asked her about Arbury Camp: She said: 'Well, I knew of it and Arbury Camp Farm, up the end of Arbury Meadow Road by Histon Road. I knew there had been archaeologists there because my Dad told me and I knew it was very old and I thought it had ancient tents. You know, it was an ancient campsite. Well, I ask you, daft, wasn't I? I asked my Dad what they made the tents ou...

   Well, we're not very experienced at video-making, but we've gone ahead and made our very first Arbury Estate and district history video. We've already spotted numerous faults, but please be kind! We will improve! We've called our YouTube channel Cambridge Bits & Bobs because, while the main focus will be Arbury, we will occasionally be featuring other parts of the city.