Memories of Ann Hunt

Ann Hunt

Ann was born in 1945 at Shrodells Hospital Vicarage Road, Watford.(now Watford General Hospital) to parents Peter and Marjorie Hunt. The family owned business G W Hunt & Son, Grocer and Provision Merchant, 12 Scots Hill, was founded by Ann’s grandfather George William Hunt some time between the two World Wars. It incorporated a Sub-post office for a number of years and was also run by Ann’s father Peter, George’s son. The shop had a free home delivery service as well as maintaining a professional service to all their customers.

The year before Ann’s birth, on the night of 19th February 1944 a German parachute bomb fell near Scots Hill and exploded on an outhouse causing 25 casualties of which 7 were serious, but none fatal. The blast affected 210 houses and 7 were demolished including the Gospel Hall which was seriously damaged and just across the road opposite the family shop. Ann’s grandmother was passing the shop window and ascending the stairs at the time of the blast. The effects of the shattered glass hitting her grandmother blinded her for life. However, she continued to do all the cooking and shopping for the remainder of her life, despite her disability!
A similar explosion occurred in 1940 during the night of the 25th September, where on the 93rd alert of the month, two parachute mines fell and exploded near All Saints Church. No one was killed but seven of the thirteen casualties required hospital treatment.
These massive explosions caused considerable damage to the church, church hall and other property. Eight houses were destroyed and three hundred and fifty eight sustained damage. A mile away in Rickmansworth at 80, High Street the shop window of ‘The Fifty Shilling Tailors ’was broken by the blast.

(© Loaned by Ann Hunt) Ann’s Grandfather’s shop, damaged when a German Parachute bomb, on the night of 19th February 1944 fell near Scots Hill and exploding on an outhouse and caused severe damage to the immediate area.

The shop many years later after it was repaired c1970-80 (from from the CGHP collection)

(Shops like G. W. Hunt & Son were not self service, and customers would have to queue and ask for each item separately, the shop assistant would collect the items from behind the counter. Alternatively the customer would hand over a list of their requirements. Shopping was usually done every few days. If there was sufficient space a chair would be provided for the elderly whilst queuing. The Shop keeper took pride in their window displays, and would spent much time on arranging as many items in the windows, to tempt the customers. Some families who were less able to pay on each visit, an account was kept, and this would be settled at the end of each week when the head of the house and family members were paid – usually Friday

From her home in Copthorne Road, Ann attended Yorke Road Infant School and on her walk to school she remembers passing the Artichoke PH to stop and talk to the parrot in its cage which was a local talking point for many years. Occasionally Ann and her cousin would get a lift to school in the back of her dad Peter's grocery van. Ann remembers it always seemed cold at school and the outside toilets were not a welcome visit. In winter the crates with the bottles of free ‘school milk’ were often put on the boiler in the classroom to warm, as they were often frozen. This put her off milk for life.
At the age of seven years her family moved to Lincoln Drive where their home backed onto the Merchant Taylor’s Sports Ground. Little Green Junior School, opened in 1949, also in Lincoln Drive, and Ann attended the school until she was eleven.

(© Loaned by Ann Hunt) Little Green School 1952 - Front Row seated on mat ? ? Second Row seated on chairs Arthur Gray ? ? Ann Hunt ? ? Third Row standing ? ? ? ? ? ? Back Row Head teacher Mr. Worthy ? ? ? ? ? Class Teacher Please can you help to identify the other children in Ann’s class as well as the Teacher?

Joining the Warner School of Dance that was held at All Saints church hall, she often took part in the Revels in the summer. One year when it rained heavily their performance was postponed but was held in Dickinson's Guildhall, New Road instead.

Ann attended Durrant's Senior School in Manor Way and finally the Watford College of Technology in Queens Road, Watford.

In her teens Ann became a Sunday school teacher at All Saints church, was Confirmed and joined the young communicants group. The group was run by the curate Peter Morris who organised a canoeing holiday in the Wye Valley and a narrow boat holiday on the Grand Union canal. These trips left Ann with very many happy memories. Some of the children in the group had parents who were well known celebrities which was useful to some of the interesting activities they were involved with. A favourite was Juke Box Jury based on a popular BBC program between 1959-1967. Keith Fordyce a disc jockey and presenter on British radio and television who would bring his demonstration recordings in for the group to listen too and enjoy as well as distributing copies to the group. Ann still owns some of these early records.

At seventeen Ann trained at St. Margaretsbury Children’s Home in Stanstead Abbotts to be a Nursery Nurse. Whilst there Ann met her future husband and they married in All Saints church. Although they subsequently ended up living in Hertford she still thinks of Croxley Green as where her roots are.