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Photographs only of this Grade II listed building (9th March, 1960)

One of the more unusual gatherings at St Michael and All Angels is the annual pet service. This has been going on since 2016, possibly before that, and is always well supported. These photographs, from Peter Rickenberg and Susanne Hunter, were taken on Sunday 15th September 2024. An earlier announcement: And here's the latest: Cover for the 2025 pet service

The History of Thursley Society renamed itself Thursley History Society to recognise that it wanted to report on events nearby but not entirely within its parish boundaries. Grayshott Heritage have kindly given THS permission to reproduce this book. There are a limited number of books available from Grayshott Heritage. The pdf below contains the entire book:

The History of Thursley Society mounted an exhibition of the history of weddings in Thursley Church since 1613. Stories of weddings appear in the pdfs and photographs below but also some appear as separate blogs and can be found by searching Wedding Belles. With the launch of the website, we have taken the opportunity of adding weddings both before and after 2007. If you were married at St Michael's and All Angels and would like your wedding featured, please send photographs and a description via the website. Early Weddings The Squarson: The wedding of Francis Gooch & Catherine Paine, 28th April, 1868 Sir Alfred Giles's daughters: 1872, 1885 and 1887 The Fosberry family weddings: 1873, 1894 and 1949 A Farm wedding: George Warner & Edith Keen, 5th June, 1909 The weddings of the Reeds: 1909, 1957, 1960 and 1963 Father of the Bride: the wedding of Gerard Staveley Gordon & Marjorie Worsley Smith, 10th November, 1920 The Rapleys: the wedding of Vernon Rapley & Margaret Walters, 20th September, 1923 Mr Henry Walters and his daughter, Margaret High Society: the wedding of Richard Henry Anstruther Morris-Markham & Miss Iris Rose Sophia Larking, 22nd June, 1929 Three Wedding Gems: 1939, 1953 and 1971 The wedding of Leonard Raggett & Elizabeth Keen, 23rd March 1940 One Wife or Two? The wedding of Lawrence Pink & Evie Hayter, 1st October 1941 Canadian Union: the wedding of Charles Campbell Graham & Helen Elizabeth Keen, 17th August 1943 Robbie and Eddie: the wedding of Robert Patterson Morgan & Edna Madeleine Hall, 8th June 1946 A Very Long Marriage: The wedding of Richard Partington and Peggy Sayers, 16th September 1950 Dick and Peggy Partington were married at St Michael & All angels and lived together at Heath View (now Acorns) for five years and moved away when Dick got a job at Vickers at Weybridge, building Valiant bombers and VC10s. He spent 25 years working as a ground engineer at BA. They came to Thursley on 16th September 2025, to celebrate their 75th anniversary. They both enjoyed themselves hugely, visiting the church and reminiscing and were on very good form. The wedding of Bertram Webb & Joan Good, 1st September 1956 The wedding of Stephen Waters & Maureen Cottle, 16th August 1961 The wedding of Richard Timberlake & Anne Jobson, 23rd April 1966 The weddings of the Ransons of Bowlhead Green 1969, 1974 and 1992 The wedding of John Gunner & Kay Cottle, 26th September 1973 The wedding of Andrew Constable & Mary Lintott, 6th July 1974 Wedding at The Corner: Harry McNeilly and Jane Watson, 29th May 1976 A highland wedding: David Corbett & Peggy James, 26th September, 1976 The wedding of Peter John Goble & Teresa Ellen Boxall, 17th October 1981 The wedding of Michael and Debbie Spencer, 22nd May 1993 The wedding of Andrew Storey and Jillian Bird, 31st July, 1993 The Vicar's View The wedding of Philip & Angela Traill, née Burry, 11th September, 1993 The wedding of Stephen and Julie Langley, 9th September, 2000 The weddings of the Hall Brothers: 16th October 2004 & 1st April 2005 The Wakeley Weddings, 2006, Joe and Melissa The wedding of Simon Treadwell and Anne Finnerup, 23rd May 2015 The wedding of Peter and Jacqueline Rickenberg, 30th June 2018 The Ultimate Wedding Gift... On the 16th July 1702, Thomas Francis married Sarah Wheeler in Farnham. Two days beforehand on the 14th July 1702, a document was signed which was a marriage settlement (dowry) on Pitlands Farm (now Punch Bowl Farm) where Nicholas Wheeler has given Thomas Francis, Pitlands Farm "and all tenements, messuages, stables etc" on his daughter Sarah Wheeler. Beats being given a toaster!

These houses, comprising eight homes, are on the left as you walk down the Street and are opposite Wheelers Farm Photograph by Sean Edwards 1 Streetfield Bob, Liz and David Etherington moved to "Anchor Cottage", 1 Streetfield, soon after David was born in September 1990. Jennifer was born in 1992. Bob worked locally for a computer recruitment agency in Godalming. Liz, having been a registered childminder for three years resumed part-time work at the National Westminster Bank. David and Jennifer went to school at All Saints, Tilford. July 1997 Edna and Robert Morgan, 2 Streetfield In 1996, Edna and Robert Morgan wrote, "This is one of the more modern houses in the village and is of no architectural interest what-so-ever, but it has been our home since it was built in 1948. Most building immediately after World War II was carried out by local authorities and Hambledon Rural District council erected six house in Thursley. The builders were Miltons of Witley. In 1956 the council gave tenants the opportunity to buy the properties so from then, over the years, we were able to improve the house. We have a panoramic view of The Street and have never considered making a move". No 2 Streetfield Cattle at rear of Streetfield, 1984 View of the village from the bedroom window of 2 Streetfield, c1965 The village from the garden of 2 Streetfield, Christmas Day 1981 Sale particulars for 2, Streetfield in March 2024 https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/145794980#/?channel=RES_BUY Dale Workman with her daughter, Tammy, 3 Streetfield, in 1997 Nick Wisdom, 4 Streetfield, 1997, where he has lived since the 1960s

See separate entries for Badgers, Shepherd's Cottage, Pax Cottage and Olde Hall. Photographs only PAX COTTAGE* OAK COTTAGE ROSE COTTAGE Property particulars in September 2025: https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/160192829#/media?id=media0&ref=photoCollage&channel=RES_BUY BADGERS* SHEPHERD'S COTTAGE* Surnames of former owners of Shepherd's Cottage include: Winter; Twyman. Holman OLDE HALL* A Mystery Solved! The photograph below has long mystified the society and despite its appearance in the Parish Magazine, nobody came forward to identify it. Step forward committee member, Sally Scheffers who would not let it go and continued to ask around. Finally the suggestion that it was the original front of the Back Lane cottages (ie Oak Cottage, Pax Cottage) was confirmed as you can see from the contemporary photographs.

These are not sorted in date order but eventually we hope all will have captions Thursley Village, 1897, shop and bakery Karn's Grocery shop. You can see the poplar tree which was a major landmark especially from the common. The (original) Village Hall with the Three Horseshoes in the background The Four Brothers Is Thursley a Dying Village - NO The vehicles were known as charabancs and were hired for day trips usually to the sea-side. The Women's Institute, c? Thursley British Legion - Branch Standard Dedication, 21st July 1935. Standard Bearer Tom Karn with escorts J Windmill and F Pullen. Meeting of the King's Messengers at The Corner when Mr Wilkinson Lived there in the late 1920s. (The lady in the centre of the picture is Nurse Collins who was District Nurse for Thursley for more than two decades). View of Thursley Village, Christmas Day 1981 Hill Farm Orchard, Christmas Day 1981

Work in progress... The view taken near the corner of Sailors Lane from where The Pines now stands Pitch Place, Long Acres (on Sailors Lane), built by Mr and Mrs Henry can be seen on the hill. The field that can be seen is known as Wonham's Field as Ben Wonham's father, George, farmed as a tenant of the Dye House Estate when the Gooch family owned it. The house in the picture was lived in by the Voller family. View From Kettlebury Hill, January 1985 Houndown John and Annete Graham-Stewart, 1977 Pitchfield Cottage Cynthia Tann, June 1996 The Pines Tim, Margaret and Stephen Walsh, The Pines, Sailors Lane, June 1996 Mulberry and Kettlebury Cottage These properties at linked by a common boundary. Prior to the development of Mulberry c2013, the plot comprised agricultural buildings as can be seen from the photographs below. Mulberry was developed from a former farming/industrial site in 2013. This photograph is c2022. Kettlebury Cottage is on the right side of the photograph. Photographs are from the sale brochure produced by Knight, Frank in 2024 Full details were available here in July 2025: https://www.onthemarket.com/details/15038201/ Pitch Place Farm House Entry from Historic England : Pitch Place Farm House is a Grade II listed building (9th March 1960), built in the late 16th Century. Timber framed on rendered rubblestone plinth with whitewashed rubble and brick infilling, under plain tiled roof, hipped to right and with tile hung ends. Two storeys. Multiple ridge stack to left of centre. Four framed bays with chimney bay. Three C19 arched head casements to first floor under steep gabled dormers with scalloped bargeboards. Two plain casement windows to first floor. Two decorative C19 and two leaded casements to ground floor. Plank door to right end. Wing at right angles to rear and pentice to rear right. All probably pre-WW2, note the entrance porch which does not feature on later photographs Charles Barrington visited Pitch Place Farm when his grandfather lived there in the 1950s. Here he is with his grandfather. He has also written a book which includes his recollections of staying there. https://www.westernfrontassociation.com/world-war-i-book-reviews/what-did-you-do-in-the-great-war-grandfather-the-life-and-times-of-an-edwardian-horse-artillery-officer/ : This aerial view taken in the late 1970s, shows Pichino and its garden at the bottom left before it became a separate property, Kettlebury Cottage on the far left, together with the agricultural barns that are now the garden of Mulberry Pichino These photographs were provided by Salli Tomlinson and date from the 1990s Wulmer Cottage Wulmer Cottage has the date of 1861 detailed in the original brickwork Illustrations taken from Estate Agent's brochure in 2024

An extension to this Grade II listed building (3rd May 1973) was Sir Edwin Lutyen's first commission (see weblink below). He lived in Street House, opposite the Corner, with his parents and joined two cottages to create this substantial house. Douglas and Kathlee Watson, 1997 Surnames of prior owners: E. Gray; C D Heatley (1895); Delaforce; Duncan Scott; Thomas; Hamilton; Wilkinson https://www.countrylife.co.uk/property/house-whose-owner-took-risk-budding-young-architect-called-edwin-lutyens-166482 Front and rear of Knight, Frank & Rutley particulars: https://media.onthemarket.com/properties/3858523/doc_0_0.pdf

D-Day training sites were created in Britain in order to practice for Operation Overlord, the invasion of Northern France by allied forces in 1944. In 1943, in an area of Hankley Common known as the Lion’s Mouth, Canadian troops constructed a replica of a section of the Atlantic Wall. It is constructed from reinforced concrete and was used as a major training aid to develop and practise techniques to breach the defences of the French coast prior to the D-Day landings. (The above and following description from Surreyhills.org/places-to-see/atlantic-wall ) The wall is about 100 m (330 ft) long, 3 m (9.8 ft) high by 3.5 m (11 ft) wide. It is divided into two sections between which there were originally steel gates. Nearby are other obstacles such as dragon’s teeth, reinforced concrete blocks and lengths of railway track set in concrete and with wire entanglements. Many of the relics show signs of live weapons training and the main wall has two breaches caused by demolition devices. The preservation of the Wall is managed by Army Training Estates with the assistance of the MOD Hankley Conservation Group. From Chris.shepheard@chrispics.co.uk who writes: The ones titled Hankley Vehicles are quite interesting: If you look closely [at the aeriel photograph] you will see lots of small light rectangles across part of the common. They were taken post-war when the area was used to store vehicles returned from Europe - each rectangle is a vehicle. I believe they either sold or scrapped eventually but not before the locals had helped themselves to anything usable! Apparently there was no shortage of petrol in Elstead or Thursley after the war. Chris.shepheard@chrispics.co.uk Further information from SurreyLive: https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/nostalgia/intriguing-history-once-formidable-atlantic-19596566 An undated magazine article from our archives:

Photographs only of this Grade II listed building (28th October, 1986) Hedge Farm Cottage was sold in 1952 as part of the break-up of the Cosford Estate: Surnames of previous owners include: Guyatt Snr; J Guyatt; Rickenberg Hedge Farm in 2002 Photograph by Sean Edwards The current owner has expanded and renovated the property since 2002. It enjoys this spectacular view: Photographs taken in 2024:

Grade II listed building (9 March 1960) The entry below was published by SurreyLive under the heading "Secrets of a farmhouse at Thursley: https://www.getsurrey.co.uk/news/local-news/secrets-farmhouse-thursley-4845854 UPPER  Highfield Farm in Thursley has a fascinating history. The farmhouse was, at one time, owned by a school. In 1913 a folk song collector visited one of its tenants and noted down three traditional songs. House detective Philip Gorton has been researching its history for the current owners. He has found out a lot, but there are still details that need to be uncovered and clarified. Here is what he has discovered so far. Situated on the lane to the Devils’ Punchbowl, Highfield Farm is a timber-framed, smoke-bay house that dates from the second half of the 16th century when it was occupied by Richard Boxfold. From then, until 1951, it was owned by various landlords and has been the home of a succession of tenant farmers. By 1662 the chimney had been built and, during the next decade, a second fireplace was built upstairs in the bedchamber for which the tenant, Richard Haddington, was charged an extra 2 shillings per year in Hearth Tax. Perhaps it was to celebrate his latest home improvement that he burnt his initials on to the hearth beam with his cattle branding iron! In 1704, the farm was bought by the trustees of the newly founded Robert May’s School in Odiham. It was a small school with about 20 boys on roll and the rents of the farm went to maintain the building, to provide free education and to fund apprenticeships. The archives of the school record their stewardship of the farm, the continual need for maintenance and relations with its various tenants. Maria Karn came to the farm with her husband Joseph in 1822 and was widowed with two small children 10 years later. Their letters to the trustees reveal how Mr and Mrs Karn struggled to make a living and pay their rent during the agricultural depression that followed the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815. The records show that Maria continued to run the farm through the “Hungry 30s”, supplementing her living by baking and selling bread. Upper Highfield was in the ownership of the school for more than 150 years until Mrs Karn left and the Cosford House estate bought the farm in 1857. Surnames of previous owners include: E Baker; J Baker; Wilton; Abels A series of short-term tenants followed until 1885 when Edward Baker came to the farm.In 1913, a folksong collector visited Edward and noted down three of his traditional songs, John Barleycorn, The Sweet Nightingale and The Cuckoo. It has been many decades since these songs, which reflect Mr Baker’s world and way of life, were sung within the walls of Upper Highfield Farm.  Edward Baker remained at Upper Highfield until his death in the mid 1930s when his son, John, took on the tenancy.It says a lot for the continuity of rural life that he was farming the same 33 acres of land during the Second World War that were tenanted by Richard Boxfold four centuries earlier.  Philip Gorton is a professional researcher who specialises in the history of houses. A recent project is the history of Upper Highfield Farm. He would like to speak to anyone who may have family connections, memories or pictures of the farm or its former inhabitants.He is particularly keen to contact descendants of Edward Baker. If you are able to help in any way, he will be very grateful if you could contact him. Write to him at 11 Orchardfield Road, Godalming GU7 3PB or ring 01483 420763. His website is: www.house-history-research.co.uk Upper Highfield Farm as it is today