These three pictures show the Shirt Race over several years. The first race ever took place in 1953 to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. All the contestants wore long night shirts hence the name.
The children's race is seen by the bridge in Buckland Road. In those days the race started by The Swan Inn just beyond the bridge on the left.
In later years, the night shirts were done away with and with fewer and fewer prams available, the modes of transport have varied and the costumes are now so good there is a competition before the races to judge the best one.

Newspaper article in Oxford mail mentioning local pubs. In Bampton, The Malt Shovel and Elephant and Castle; The Strickland Arms in Ducklington and The Horse and Jockey in Black Bourton, The Plough at Alvescot, and the Lamb at Filkins. John Kent, 85, was the Landlord of the Malt Shovel for 34 years, he originally came from Suffolk and was a gamekeeper in Lincolnshire and Bradwell Grove. The Malt Shovel was in Lavender Square and there is an inscription on the chimney showing the date of 1659. It used to be a Malt house. The Elephant and Castle in Bridge Street was about 350 years old and had a thatched roof at this time (1957), the landlord was Clarence Dalton, ex RAF, who had another pub in London, The Prince of Orange at Greenwich. In 1957, the Landlord of the Talbot Hotel, an old coaching inn in Market Square, was a Mr Flood, and the inn itself was about 500 years old. The New Inn (now Morris Clown) was also a coaching Inn and the landlord was W.F. Wagner. The landlord of the Horse and Jockey at Black Bourton was Mr Alan George Burgess and the landlord of The Plough at Alvescot was Mr Leonard Killick, and the landlord of the Lamb at Filkins was Cyril Clements.

Helen Cadd wrote"The photo was posted over from America by Olive McCabe, nee Olive Peacock back when the photo was taken . Aunty Olive found the photo in a set of drawers she was clearing out.

Harry Pocock with his thrashing machine and tractor in 1958 driving out of Church Street into Broad Street. Edwin, Ruth and Joe Buckingham are on the tractor with him.

An invoice from Harry Pocock & Son, Agricultural and Thrashing Contractor to Alex Townsend of Ashtree Farm (in Weald Street) for threshing and baling @ £47 5s (£47.25p) but with a contra account of 2ctw of tater (potatoes), 2 men combing and 5 gallons of paraffin £8.11s.6d (£8.55½p) giving a bill of £38.13s.6d (£38.65½p) sent April 1959.

An invoice from Harry Pocock & Son, Agricultural and Thrashing Contractor to Alex Townsend of Ashtree Farm (Weald Street) for threshing and baling sent December 1959.

Seen in the spring of 1963, talking with Marjorie Pollard in Cheapside, when we had huge drifts of snow.

Collection of SPAJERS dance tickets from 1958 and 1960 and 1970. for Shirt Race Ball held at Weald Manor and WI Hall.
Featuring Frantic Fred and his Fantastic Foursome, his Family and his Frolics. Fabulous Butch Quartz (who was Fred's son) and his Four Pintz, Profit was used to promote the Shirt Race

9 Photographs showing various events and dances hosted by the SPAJERS .
the following named as known
Neville Woodley, Dixie Deane, Don Rouse, Josie ,Frank Hudson, Paul McGarth
Jo Peck, Francis Shergold, Mrs Clarke, Mrs Jackson, Mr and Mrs Mansfield, Mrs Ellis
Jean Howell, Dor Thompson

Sales brochure for Calais farm January 15th 1959

Sales brochure for University Farm, Lew June 25th 1959

Beam Cottage, Dor Thomson with Julie and Roger Powell

These ladies were at a British Legion Christmas gathering in the early 1960s.