Taken from the Faringdon Advertiser and Vale of the White Horse Gazette. © Successor rightsholder unknown. All Rights Reserved.

3rd August 1918

The death is announced of Mr John Busby King, aged 70 the late senior partner in the firm of Messrs King and Adkin, auctioneers, Abingdon,- now Messrs Adkin, Belcher and Bowen.

Alexandra Day was celebrated in Abingdon on Saturday last. The proceeds were devoted to Abingdon Cottage Hospital, Abingdon Red Cross Hospital and Sanatorium Comforts Fund, the North Berks Nursing Association, the Radcliffe Infirmary, and the Oxford Eye Hospital. The summary of receipts shows : Stalls, etc.. £169 0s 0 1⁄2d.; rose sales and collections, £134 3s 11 2⁄3d.; concert, show and amusements, £89 8s 9 1⁄4d.; donations, £9 10s.; sale of programmes and sundry items, £5 14s 2 1⁄4d

10th August 1918

Sapper T. Giddings, 10 Mayotts’s Road, Abingdon, reported missing on March 22nd, is officially reported to have died in Germany.

2nd Lieut. P. L. Howard, Royal Berks, of Caldecott Road, reported missing, has been officially reported by the War Office as being a prisoner of war.in Germany.

Bowling Competition. The fifth annual competition by the Abingdon Bowling Club for the President’s (Mr A Preston) Challenge Bowl came off on the Albert Park Green on Thursday. Mr W. Tombs, the holder both in 1915 and 1916, became again the winner of the Challenge Bowl.

On Sunday, St Helen’ Church, Abingdon, observed National Remembrance Day with special services combining both St. Michael’s and St. Nicolas’ Churches. There were large congregations, and at the morning service the Mayor and Corporation attended. The special War Litany was said after the sermon and the National Anthem sung before and after the service. The offertories were for the Prisoners of War Fund and amounted to £32 18s 7d.

17th August 1918

The Bishop of Reading, who resides at the Abbey House, Abingdon, was 90 years old on August 4th.

The Military Cross has been awarded to the Rev. H. Cole, former Curate of Abingdon.

Pte. Harry Crook, Worcester Regt., son of Mr George Crook, of West St. Helen Street, Abingdon, is reported to have been gassed.

During a bombing raid over the German lines on July 30th, Lieut. Kenneth Vivian King, R.A.F., son of Mr G. E. King, Veterinary Surgeon, The Vineyard, Abingdon, is reported to have been killed. Twelve aeroplanes, it appears, took part the raid ever the German Divisional Headquarters, and were heavily engaged, the enemy aircraft not being observed in consequence of a thick mist, until they got to close quarters. Lieut. King’s machine, with two others, was brought down in the British lines, and both Lieut. King and the observer were killed. Deceased, who was 21 years of age, was formerly assistant to his father in the veterinary profession.

24th August 1918

In the Thames Lock Gardens annual competitions Mr A. Baldwin, Abingdon Look-keeper, has again secured the first prize in section 2, which extends from Iffley Look to Roebuck Ferry.

L.Cpl, Reginald Cottrell, son of and Mrs Cottrell, of Ock Street, Abingdon, posted missing on May 27ih, has now sent to say that he is prisoner of war, and is well.

Pte. H. Bond, of Bury Street, Abingdon, is reported as having died of wounds in France July 24th. He joined the Fusiliers when they were billeted in Abingdon, and was transferred to the Royal Sussex, serving in Egypt for 12 months. He had only been in France few weeks.

Taken from https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk.

Returning to Abingdon after a couple of days away we were greeted by the bells of St Helen’s Church. Tuesday is the weekly practice for the Abingdon Bell Ringers.

St. Helen, the mother of Emperor Constantine, is not only remembered as the name of the church, but also in the road names: East and West St Helen Street, and more recently St Helen’s Court.

The current ecclesiastical parish is called Abingdon-on-Thames, following the separation of the Parish of North Abingdon two or three years ago. In earlier times St Helen’s parish got divided into Abingdon Borough and St Helen without the borough. St Helen Without includes Dalton Barracks, Shippon and Dry Sandford.

Thank you to Steve for this (pictures from his postcards all rights reserved) …

I know of three cannons that were on display in Abingdon, all of which, I am told by long gone family members, were captured during the Crimean War. Two were taken away for scrap metal in the 2nd World War.

The first was on a plinth in front of the walk-way under the arch by St Nicolas church. (There is much loved tradition of holding your breath while going under the arch. Failing to do so turns you into one of the stone gargoyles above it.)

The second and much smaller was in the court yard of the Crown & Thistle and I vaguely remember this one.

The third and most impressive sat on a purpose made plinth in Albert park. I remember the now gone empty plinth and the inscription “Sevastopol” upon it.

Thinking of cannons brings this boulder to mind. It is in the Abbey gardens next to Trendell’s Folly. Look carefully and you can see cannon balls embedded in it. We were told they were from the civil war but i’m not so sure. The rock doesn’t resemble anything else in Abingdon which makes me wonder if Mr Trendell, rich as he was, had the boulder, complete with cannon balls, brought in to enhance his folly.

I lost count of the number of pen knife blades I broke trying to get one out!

There is a new exhibition at Abingdon County Hall Musuem, put together by the Abingdon Area Archaeological and Historical Society (AAAHS), who are fifty years old.

They began life as the Abingdon and District Archaeological Society. Volunteers back in 1968 could still take an important part in archaeological digs.

They found many important objects. Some help make up the museum’s collection.

Nowadays, developers are more likely to call in commercial archaeologists.

The society also has many members interested in exploring the history of Abingdon and so have added HISTORY to their name. You can find their growing collection of Abingdon people at https://www.abingdon.gov.uk/partners/history/people and Abingdon buildings at https://www.abingdon.gov.uk/partners/history/buildings.