Saturday 28 March 2015

ECLIPSE MEMORIES

Eclipse Memories from Mavis Gray, nee Peacock, former old girl of St Margaret's School, Henleaze, Bristol.
On Wednesday, 30 June, 1954 there was a partial eclipse of the sun. I remember well as it was pretty hot and we were all in our pink and white summer dresses with our panama hats on (you had to wear them at break and lunch times) standing in the playground, looking up at the eclipse through pieces of negative! When we were not looking at the eclipse we would have been playing Jacks, skipping or playing Pick-a-Stick I expect. I don't think we ever played Hopscotch and I still do not know how it's played!
My husband was a photographer for some years in the RAF and he was horrified when I told him this story. Luckily, we have proper glasses for this Friday's eclipse that we purchased for our family trip to France which included an eclipse sighting in 1999. The visit, with my husband and our nine year old son included a EuroDisney, Amiens (where the Armistice was signed) and Beauvais, where I went to school for 3 weeks just before my'O' Levels at St Margaret's. It worked wonders!
I remember the lovely Kindergarten teacher, Miss Patricia Reid, who I read on Friends Reunited has now, sadly, died.
Some of my ancestors ran the Peacock's Boot and Shoe Factory family in Kingswood, Kingswood.
I attended St Margaret's from September 1951 until July 1960 when I moved across to Clifton High School.

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