Meals on Wheels.I recently kept a long overdue appointment with Gladys Taaffe, one of Chipperfield’s nonagenarians, to discuss almost half a century of involvement with Meals on Wheels.Way back in the 1950s, when Hemel Hempstead was developing rapidly as a new town, members of the W.V.S. were asked to help set up a Meals on [...]

A Further Link With Callipers Hall. Part 4.By yet another of those strange coincidences that seem to crop up more and more frequently, I recently came across some further information about Callipers Hall. When I attended the March meeting of Hemel Hempstead History Society, a fellow member asked me whether I had ever heard of [...]

Was Henry Seymour Moss-Blundell the next owner of Callipers Hall after Robert Broughton? 1921 Mr. & Mrs. Moss-Blundell held a garden fete at Callipers Hall, to raise funds for repairs and improvements of the Church Institute (Village Hall). 1920s Annual Horticultural Society shows were held in the park at Callipers Hall,just beyond the lodge. There [...]

Part 1 of this extract from Chipperfield Within Living Memory was published in the May 2003 issue of Chipperfield News. Due to lack of space, we were unable to publish the remaining parts, but we can now print part 2 below:Having established that there was a boarding school at Callipers Hall between 1856 and 1863, [...]

This month Chipperfield will be saying farewell to Peter and Mary Fox. They moved from Croxley Green into The Briars in Croft Lane 18 years ago and since then have played a most active part in village life.Both have made a major contribution to St Paul’s Church, where Peter has served both as Treasurer and [...]

Several years ago, the Chairman of the Kings Langley History Society passed on a letter to me from a lady in Cornwall, who was trying to find out more about Callipers Hall, Chipperfield, where a Rev. Charles Johns had been a teacher between 1856 and 1863. I made several enquiries, but no one had heard [...]

Looking back to 1932 – Buffalo Sunday An article in the September 1932 issue of St Pauls Church Magazine made me take another look at the photograph on page 123 of our millennium book, ‘Chipperfield Within Living Memory. It is a fascinating picture taken at the war memorial and in the original it is easy [...]

Edith Midgley, who died on 16 November last year, lived all her life in Chipperfield. Many people will have recollections of their own association with Edith, but as a tribute to her, I have brought together some of her own memories which she recorded in 1998 for the `Chipperfield Within Living Memory’ project. Edith, an [...]

As Remembrance Sunday 2002 approaches, it is an opportune time for me to pass on to you some of the details that my son Andrew has discovered about our village War Memorial in past issues of Parish magazine at the County Record Office. In February 1919, the vicar, Canon Jeffries, raised the question of war [...]

Looking Back to 1909Copies of St Pauls Church magazines have been deposited over many years with the County Records Office at Hertford. My son Andrew recently referred to a batch from 1909-14, which Lieut-Colonel “Bob” Morkill sent there when he was churchwarden. They make interesting reading and the following notes about 1909 are based on [...]

The Judges for the Hertfordshire Village of the Year Competition paid two visits to Chipperfield this year. First they came in May to judge the village on how it cares for its environment and were given a tour by Councillors Holliday and Nobbs. Then on 9 July they were given a presentation in the Baptist [...]

Specially commissioned by the Parish Council, every child attending school or playgroup in the village has been given a Chipperfield Jubilee Mug. A limited number are available for sale this month, price £3 each and can be ordered and collected from Mary Nobbs at Dellfield, The Street (01923 269480).

An English oak tree was planted by Derek Townsend, the Mayor of Dacorum, on Saturday 16 March 2002, to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. After a rainy period, the day dawned bright and dry much to everyones relief. Members of the Parish Council and the W.I. assembled for the occasion. Nine year [...]

Working Men’s Club and Reading RoomIf you turn to page 102 in the village book, you will find an article about the Social Club. Patrick Milner, the club’s president, provided the information and apart from the fact that his grandfather told him that men used to meet in each other’s houses, play cards and enjoy [...]

To find out how Hertfordshire people celebrated the Millennium Year, treat yourself to a new book called Community Life in Hertfordshire -2000. It has been launched by the Hertfordshire Association for Local History Recorders Group and copies are available at the Chipperfield Larder at a price of £10. Each of the 65 towns and villages [...]

As one of the ways of marking the Millennium, Chipperfield Parish Council decided in 1997 to publish a book entitled “Chipperfield Within Living Memory”. As I had previous experience of recording peoples memoirs, I was pleased to be asked to lead such a project in the village. A team of people including Rita Forsythe, Lucy [...]

With this copy of the Chipperfield News all residents of Chipperfield Administrative Parish should receive a short questionnaire. This seeks everyones views on the key things which go to make up the village character, what helps to enhance it and what detracts from its attractiveness as a place to be.As mentioned in last months issue, [...]

The Dacorum Heritage Trust has just unveiled its latest exhibition, which focuses on local notables soldiers who served during the First World War. Among those featured will be Corporal Francis Vercoe of Hemel Hempstead, whose DCM medals were recently purchased by the Trust, as well as all three Dacorum men who were awarded the Victoria [...]

The Curator of Dacorums Museum Store at Berkhamsted wishes to build up a photographic record of Dacorum men who died in World War I. If you are a relative of one of the fallen soldiers whose names are inscribed on Chipperfields Memorial Plaque and if you know of an existing photograph which could be borrowed, [...]

Those who attended the Annual Parish Meeting on 12 April will have heard that a wealth of material has been forthcoming for the millennium project Chipperfleld Within Living Memory. However, I am still anxious to have some stories and pictures of three local inns, all of which closed in 1914. They were The Swan. The [...]