Personal recollections of Webb grandparents
I knew three of my grandparents, Mabel DESBOROUGH, Philip JACKMAN and Elsie HULL. All were born in the 1890s and there is factual data about them on this site. But the intention of this page, and the equivalent one on the Vaughan Davies line is to tell some personal memories.
Mabel, "Nana" as I knew her, had lost her husband George WEBB before I was born. I remember that she did live with my uncle and his family, before getting a ground floor council flat in New Addington probably around 1965. She was only 4' 8" tall and was a member of the local Jehovah's Witnesses. She did not drive, but there was a shop she could walk to and get provisions. I remember the intense smell of TCP whenever I was in her flat. Even when I was young it was clear that she did not have as much money as my other grandparents
I remember her coming with us to a holiday cottage on the North Norfolk coast in 1966, 1967, 1968. I don't think she came to the beach with us or visit places; she just enjoyed chatting to the lady next door. Other than that I do not remember going anywhere with her.
I think I may have stayed there in the 1960s, but mostly I think it was my younger brother who did. I am not aware now of any reason for this difference, maybe it was just because he liked her more than I did. I think she could play the piano, and that might have been a connection, but I don't think my brother started to learn until later. After our house was extended in 1971-2, she would come and stay with us. She was with us for her 80th birthday party in Jan 1973, and most of her children and grandchildren were present. By that stage though I don't think she went out much, and realistically was not well, travelling between our house and her flat regularly. She was with us for several weeks in early 1975 before she died. Having to have my brother share my bedroom was stressful to us, though of course nothing compared to what my parents went through.
She was active in the Jehovah's Witnesses, though in my personal memory, she was probably not strong enough to going round to people's houses. But she did have strong views (for instance an argument about whether the tide was coming in or not, and complaining about inflation and shrinkflation, so I imagine that she would have been a force on the doorstep.
Elsie and Philip ("Gran and Grandad") lived in a 3 bedroom bungalow about 3 miles from our house. This closeness, and the fact that they were active for longer, and had a car, meant that they were always around. They acted much more in the role of "traditional" grandparents providing all sorts of unpaid parental services. So a sample....
I think that most Christmas Days, we would go round to lunch with them. This would involve lunch, the Queens Speech at 3pm, and games and then tea. Their great friend Dorothy Dee would always be staying with them at Christmas, she was a former teacher and was always good with games. Quite often on Boxing Day, they would all come round to us for lunch. After lunch, whether or not it was Christmas, Grandad would have "40 winks", in other words, a nap. He would sit in his armchair and sleep, snoring, and ignore all the tidying up going on around him. Once the washing up was completed, it was time for a drink. Gran would come in with the tea tray and say "here's your tea", and he would wake up.
Grandad in particular was good with people, able to talk to anybody. When we had some new neighbours to our house and Gran and Grandad were visiting one day, Grandad came in and said "Well, I've introduced myself to your new neighbours". Mum and Dad had not spoken to them, certainly did not know their names. I imagine that the reason he enjoyed being in the services was the opportunity to meet and talk to all sorts of people. Gran was more reserved, but she certainly seemed to have lots of friends, both in the village and further afield. One of their social circles seemed to involve having cocktail parties regularly on a Sunday. When Gran and Grandad hosted the party, we all went to join. Cocktail parties were not my thing, and to be honest it was difficult to talk to people I didn't know, who were typically 60+ years older than me. But I remember Grandad holding court in the winter, with his back to the open fire, smoking a cigarette in the first part of the 1960s, (though he had stopped by the end of the 1960s); he was definitely life and soul of the party.
Grandad loved to tell stories of things from his life. One of his favourite opening lines was "Now let me tell you a chestnut." Gran would let him know that she already knew the story, but of course we didn't. Unfortunately few of them have been written down, but I do have some recordings and transcripts of his life and what he did in World War 2.
I think that Gran was the clever one. She had a thirst for knowledge. But perhaps because she was quieter, or maybe being a woman growing up in and around World War 1. But of course it was her who ran the house, and she was an excellent cook....
Gran and Grandad lived in a large plot; there was an area of grass (not flat though), and then a large beech wood. We would come and collect beech leaf compost to put on Dad's vegetable plot at our house. They kept free range hens; and in the 1960s, maybe early 1970's would have a large lorry from Greigs come and collect lots of eggs. Then they decided that this was too expensive and sold eggs direct to friends, neighbours etc, and even to people just stopping when they saw the sign. Only in the very late 1970s or even 1980s did my parents have to buy eggs in a shop.....