This drawing of the Gate House of Bampton Castle, more correctly Ham Court farmhouse, was created September 15th 1943.

This letter, dated November 1st 1944 was send by Stan Smith's commanding officer to Stan's father informing him that Stan was missing but may be a POW. He was a POW and near the end of the was became one of the POWs who took part in the what became known as the Long March. They were marched from East Germany keeping ahead of the advancing Russians. Stan walked almost 1,000 miles. He survived.

This envelope and cutting were lent to the Archive by Freda Bradley. Sundown Cottage was in the grounds of Prospect, the house immediately in front of you as you walk down the lane past the south side of the Grammar School. Mr & Mrs Rose bought it and they bought Prospect. The little cottage was later removed.
We don't know why Freda brought the envelope with the cutting; sadly whoever she lent it to didn't record that

A bird was found to have made its nest inside the letterbox at Bampton and Brize Norton Railway station by Mrs Emmie Papworth who along with Mr F G Cannons was a post lady in Bampton about 1960. It was thought to be a member of the tit family and was disturbed only once while the eggs were being hatched.

There was a time when our local post men and women cycled round to both deliver and collect letters. There was a letterbox at Bampton and Brize Norton railway station and it was here a blackbird's nest was discovered inside the box. Great care was taken when emptying the box and in the end, the birds hatched and fledged.

These 9 newspaper cuttings are all from 1968. The topics covered include

Deputy county surveyor faces a barrage of complaints including roadworks in the Market Square, Village green areas being used as dumping grounds, badly sighted new road signs, 19 council houses had been built in Bampton.

Michael Pickard, younger son of Mr & Mrs Pickard of Knapps Farm, is off to Russia with his bride Elizabeth Hart after their honeymoon in Malta with his work for ICI with regard to a new fibre plant.

Theft of a Jaguar in Bampton and the collection box in the Jubilee Inn with money for Bampton's OAPs and £65 from Albert Coles of St Mary's Trailer Court.

Bampton Town football club reached the final of the Fred Ford Memorial Cup

Basic reports from St Mary's, the Bingo club, Darby & Joan club, British Legion, Baptist church and the NSPCC

Work has started on building Lavender Place Flats on the site of the farmyard of Home Farm, the farmhouse being on High Street and recently (2018) renamed Leat House which is a great shame as it's history has been lost with the name change.

Bampton Youth Club re-opens with new leader Mr Michael Yeo

Wedding of Daphne Jackson to Allan Pullin.

George Dafter awarded Imperial Service Medal from the Post Office, he retired and he celebrated his 65th birthday.

Tom Smith was the son of a gypsy Queen and for 1969, the number of people and cars who came to his funeral was a very memorable affair. To this day, locals call the bend just outside Bampton on the Bampton to Brize Norton Road 'Hoppy's Corner.' It's on the right leaving Bampton just after passing the allotments.

In the 1970s Fleur de Lys was a hair salon owned by Margaret Roberts. It is in Bushey Row. There were several owners after Margaret and it was later a video rental shop, a shop selling twee things for gardeners and a Physiotherapy Centre. Now it sells pottery (2021)

Brian and Siobhan O'Rourke owned the Cotton Club and started it in these premises in Rosemary Lane. It acquired a wonderful reputation and I know one seamstress in South Wales who came once every two months to buy her cotton fabric here. After a few years, the shop went across the road into the right-hand side of Duttons and from there it went to the Market Square in the premises that had once been the Central Garage, then Barclays Bank and it was when the bank left the Cotton Club moved in.

This video club shop was well used and its demise was brought about when the local little supermarket began renting films and it was just too easy to get a film from the supermarket while buying other items.
It was a special outing to rent a film from this shop in Bushey Row and a few people collected the posters that used. Now a film can be downloaded something of the magic of making the special effort to go out and rent a copy has gone.