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A SAD CASE OF 'BUMPING'

DOWN ASFORDBY WAY.    For my readers from out of town Wikipedia will explain that: Asfordby is a village and civil parish in the Melton District of Leicestershire to the west of Melton Mowbray on the A6006 road. The parish consists of Asfordby proper, Asfordby Valley and Asfordby Hill, all of which combined have a population of around 3000 residents. The villages are to the north of the River Wreake with Asfordby Hill situated east of Asfordby proper. Within Asfordby proper there are a few shops, mainly convenience ones. However you can find a fish and chip shop, an Indian restaurant, as well as a kitchen store and a Co-operative shop.' In a manner of speaking, Asfordby could be perhaps described as a 'satellite' of Melton Mowbray and it is likely not to be too long before it becomes joined-up; in many aspects, the village has shared much of our local history. Over the span of the last couple of centuries, the Asfordbys have produced several citizens of note, but two p
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WILLIAM TILL - PHOTOGRAPHER OF MELTON MOWBRAY.       (1856-1912) I really do like the simple photography of William Till, probably more than of all the local photographers who have passed this way from time to time. Uncomplicated and with scant attention to fussy style or technical know-how, personalised with his immature hand-written annotations usually placed carelessly and seemingly lazily along the bottom, they importantly for us today, offer information as to when and less often, where it was taken. The result was usually appealing and especially after a century has passed, his work serves still today to ever remind us of times long passed.   William was an only child who grew up with his parents, namesake William Till, (1816-1871) and Hannah (Parr) who ran a hairdressers and perfumery business in Burton End, near to where the Colles Hall stands today and opposite the lovely twelfth century St Mary’s church. After his basic schooling - education then legally ended at age 14 - he w

AN EMBARRASSMENT OF RICHES

A HIATUS AT THE HALL A century and a half ago, the summer of 1856 was reportedly an extremely good one in Melton Mowbray with dry and extended spells of languorous days and nights, a situation which was I am sure very much appreciated by the hard-working people of that town.  But the long warm days of that high summer were to be rudely interrupted by a series of dark events which would create grounds for grim anxiety amongst many of its inhabitants and perhaps even amusement for others.  Whilst an alleged murderer awaited trial for the vicious slaying of two people in the town and a local businessman was shot in the chest by a crazed young solicitor's clerk, members of the local high society were having domestic problems of their own in the form of an acrimonious domestic dispute in the nearby village of Goadby Marwood which would ensure that the town's magistrates were adequately engaged.   In its Saturday edition of August 30th, 1856, the Leicester Chronicle publish

THE LOST CHILDREN OF FRED AND MARY TYLER.

A LONG LIFES WORK  ================== The below poignant epitaph has been left for us on a tombstone locally; likely forgotten and definitely sadly abandoned now for many years, it stands in a badly neglected former non-conformists' cemetery in the ancient part of Melton Mowbray, propped against a boundary wall;  wherever lie the human remains to which it refers and once stood over, I have no idea. IN AFFECTIONATE   REMEMBRANCE OF   ————— JULIANA Born May 6th, died September 27th, 1843. FREDERICK Born September 21st, 1844, died May 25th, 1846. ARTHUR Born November 2nd, 1845, died January 11th, 1846. MARY Born December 8th, 1846, died May 25th, 1847. JULIA Born December 16th, died March 10th, 1848. FREDERICK Born January 28th, died October 6th, 1849. SARAH ELIZABETH Born January 22nd, died July 31st, 1850. MARY JANE Born March 7th, died August 31st, 1851. LOUISA Born May 22nd, died October 15th,