Oh to have records which were perfect in every detail. The photo below is described as one of nine photos dating from 1957-60 of the Market Place and surrounding areas during demolition of old buildings to make a council estate.
Photo dating from about 1960 showing Ivydene and the old Vicarage in Market Lavington
This description hardly fits the bill for this picture. We have an aerial view with some of the new housing in place. There’s a line of chimneys along the bottom edge. A little bit of the Market Place shows at the bottom left corner but essentially we have a view of an area to the north-east of the Market Place.
Let’s start with the Ivydene area. Ivydene had once been the home of Bus proprietor, Fred Sayer and during World War II it became the HQ for a search light battery. To a large degree, though, it is now off local radar. Well, it vanished 50 or more years ago so most people never knew the place. But here it is in this photo.
Ivydene – former home of Fred Sayer
As we can see, there is a terrace of buildings. We think Fred Sayer had the larger building at the right hand end.
Further left we can see the pair of cottages on The Terrace.
Cottages on the Terrace. The Blakes and the Wilkins lived here
Less than a month ago we featured the wedding of Mary Cooper and William Blake. They made their married home in one of the cottages and when their daughter married she and her husband (Percy Wilkins) lived there.
At the time of this photo the agricultural engineers had the yard and sheds behind Ivydene. Behind them was the former vicarage which became, in recent years, a part of the nursing home.
The old Vicarage. In Victorian times the Reverend Edward Blackston Cokayne Frith held sway
We can see the big sweep of the drive in front of the house. That drive leads out onto High Street and at the top right of the photo we can see some of the houses at the far end of High Street, towards the old Congregational Chapel.
A part of the High Street in Market Lavington
It is unusual for a photo not to leave us with more questions. Just behind the old Vicarage there are two large barns.
Does anybody know anything about these barns?
Does anybody know any of the history of these buildings? It looks as though access was from the Vicarage.
Tags: 1960, Agriculture, engineer, Market Lavington, Museum, vicarage
Market Lavington Museum 
November 27, 2013 at 5:57 pm |
I’m curious about the Wilkins family in the area, as a Percy Wilkins is mentioned in this story. My surname is Wilkins, and my maternal ancestor William Phipp (1756) married an Elizabeth Wilkins in Potterne on 8th June 1777. She was born in Market Lavington in 1757. After her death in 1785 he had a son out of wedlock with her sister Ann. He then had 13 children out of wedlock with her sister Sarah, one of those children, Richard, being my great-great-great-grandfather. Strangely this family of Wilkins is not related to me, my Wilkins ancestors coming from Berkshire and Oxfordshire, but I would be interested to know because of the Wilkins/Phipp connection, whether Percy is a descendant of Elizabeth, Ann or Sarah Wilkins? Are there Wilkins in Market Lavington today?
November 27, 2013 at 6:58 pm |
I don’t think I can help you for I haven’t researched the Wilkins family. There are descendants of Percy locally, but not actually in Market Lavington.
Check out https://marketlavingtonmuseum.wordpress.com/2010/12/02/percy-wilkins/ for a bit more information.
Rog
Curator
November 27, 2013 at 8:19 pm |
Rodger, The two barns did indeed belong to the Old Vicarage, they were used for battery chickens by the then owner who also had West Park farm. Mr Hardy if I recall correctly. Can I add that they caused quite a stink in the village ? (the chickens that is) When the barns were demolished, tennis courts were put in their place.