I was born and brought up in Bourne and was married there almost half a century ago, before emigrating to Canada and I now live with my husband Richard at Vancouver Island, British Columbia. My Mum and Dad were Maud and Cyril Brake and my grandfather was William Henry Redshaw (1856-1943), a photographer with studio premises in North Street, and whose pictures of the town that have survived show Bourne as it was in past times.

But although I now live many miles away, I am still drawn to the place of my birth and in the spring of 2002, Richard and I decided to revisit the places of my childhood and to seek out old friends and meet previously unknown relatives and their families who had only recently been discovered through the Bourne Internet web site, and so I returned to Bourne and what a happy experience it was. 

We spent such an enjoyable holiday looking up old friends and acquaintances, reminiscing about old times and about all of the changes that had taken place since we left. We were amazed at the development on the outskirts of the town and it was not to our liking because so much of it looked the same. Over here in Canada, it is referred to as "cookie-cutter housing". 

We walked around Bourne Wood and saw the work that had been done there. It was lovely. This is where I walked with my sisters when I was young and where we spent so many happy hours as children. We also had a wonderful outing to our favourite bluebell spot at Dole Wood, near Thurlby, where the flowers were in full bloom and we strolled through the Wellhead Gardens in Bourne which were so beautifully kept, much more so than in our schooldays. The trees were all in blossom but we noticed that the walnut trees had disappeared and I remember that we scrumped the nuts off the trees and were chased off by the park keeper Rettie Green who terrified us all. He caught us once and threatened to take us to the police station but we gave false names. I was Vera Bacon! 

The grammar school too, that I attended as a girl, had grown enormously from the small buildings of my days and we heard from our friends that all of the schools in the town had an excellent reputation. But the Market Square was disappointing. The fountain had gone and what a pity it was not moved to the War Memorial Gardens rather than the cemetery. Also, the Dinky sweetshop where we spent many happy hours was no more. It is now a barber's shop. 

The Thursday market was not the same either. It used to be a day to look forward to when it was held along the kerbside in the streets and we used to walk up and down the stalls where there was always something new to see or buy. And the Tudor Cinema had become a Chinese restaurant, not quite as I remember from the film matinees of my childhood. My mother's wool shop was located next door and the police station was on the corner of North Street and Burghley Street but now moved to West Street. I remember being put in one of the cells for half an hour to teach me a lesson, a punishment arranged by my parents with the co-operation of the local constabulary who were our neighbourhood friends. A very frightening experience for a young girl and I have never forgotten it. 

One sad and sorry sight was No 49 North Street, the end house in the terrace that was our home for 30 years. Although the front was more or less intact, the back part had been demolished and our lovely big garden where we played as children had disappeared. When I lived there, these houses were beautifully maintained and were a joy to my mother. Still, it was good to know that these houses were about to be restored rather than pulled down because they had become a distinctive part of Bourne's heritage but when we saw it, our old house did look a rather forlorn and lonely place and was no longer the cosy home I remember. 

The Abbey Church where we were married 50 years ago was beautifully maintained and the flower arrangements were stunning. In the churchyard, we found the grave marker of our great great grandfather John Redshaw (1761-1834), a saddler from North Street, and his wife Elizabeth, which made me realise that I still very much belonged to Bourne. 

This was a very nostalgic trip for us and we have you to thank for enabling us to link up with family and friends through your wonderful Bourne Internet web site. 

Text and album family photographs contributed by Heather Nash (née Brake) of Vancouver
Island, British Columbia, Canada, in May 2002. The photograph of Heather and
Richard was taken during a later visit in 2011.

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