Margaret Rushton Alexander Marshall Lodge (aka Alec) was the third son (of six sons and six daughters) of Sir Oliver Lodge, British Physicist and noted inventor, and the first Principal of the new University of Birmingham at Edgbaston. As did two other brothers, Lionel and Noel, Alec and his older brother Brodie eventually went into business using … Read more
Samuel Wackrill, the son of a prosperous draper from Chelmsford, and an experienced draper in his own right, arrived in Leamington in 1861 and set up a drapery business with his brother Jack. In common with other tradesmen of the time, the brothers worked very long hours. There was no early closing, or Bank Holidays, … Read more
Frederick and Elizabeth Whitehead were born at 3 Lansdowne Terrace (now numbered 5 Willes Road), Frederick on the 6th January, 1853 and Elizabeth the following year on the 21st November. The Whiteheads had been farmers and brick makers in the town since the eighteenth century but William, the father of Frederick and Elizabeth, had become … Read more
Corporal William Amey VC, MM, – the Man William Amey was born on the 5th March 1881 at Duddeston, in the Aston area of Birmingham, the last-but-one of the eight children of Charles & Elizabeth Amey. When he left school he worked as a chandelier maker for Verity’s Ltd, electrical manufacturers, so presumably had some … Read more
Norman Painting was born at 28 Grove Street Leamington Spa on 23 April 1924, the son of a railway signalman. He was a gifted scholar who went on to win scholarships first to Leamington College for Boys, (September 1935 – July 1938), then King Edward VI School Nuneaton, Birmingham University and ultimately Christ Church College, … Read more
William Louis de Normanville’s family originated in Normandy. His grandfather, the Marquis de Normanville had escaped from the Revolution in 1792, leaving his family behind in the sadly mistaken belief that women and children would be safe from revolutionaries. In England he married again and eventually dropped the title. As a young man William de … Read more
This photograph shows the ancient cobbled footpath and bridge across the River Avon at Saxon Mill. Outwardly this is just a footpath crossing the Avon, which happens also to mark the Milverton/Warwick parish boundary. The footpath extends from the river crossing as far as the Coventry/Warwick Road and is properly defined with a row of … Read more
A few years ago, my dad brought home a dusty old envelope from the Town Hall, where he works.It was about to be put in the bin, so he brought it for me to look at. I was excited when I saw that the contents all related to one person, Richard Toovey. But who was … Read more
Josef Kalaś was born in Czechoslovakia and served in the Czech army before the outbreak of WW2. During the 3rd Reich Occupation, he fled via Poland and joined the French Foreign Legion. He was released to fight with his countrymen at the outbreak of war, and eventually, having survived the last battle to stem the … Read more
During the 1939-1945 war, Leamington experienced a number of air raids which caused the death of 13 people and severe injuries to 39 others. This information was not made public at the time, for fear of damaging morale, but it came to light when the Local Medical Officer of Health published a report after the … Read more
What’s in a name? The Newbold part of the above local name is quite simple, – the ‘New’ denoting a parcel of land newly brought into cultivation. Whilst ‘Bold’ is Saxon for a building, the two words together indicate an area of land or village more recently established than the adjacent villages. This could have … Read more
Thursday 18 June marked the 73rd anniversary of Operation Anthropoid and the mission of the seven Czech soldiers to assassinate the Nazi tyrant Reinhard Heydrich. The Friends of the Czech Memorial Fountain, including many living relatives of the 4000 soldiers billeted in and around Leamington in WW2, gathered in Jephson Gardens on Sunday 14th June to … Read more
Contact the Secretary, Margaret Rushton: secretary@leamingtonhistory.co.uk
June 9, 2026
Nelly (later known as Eleanor Velasco) Thornton was born in Stockwell, London, on 15th April 1880 to Frederick and Sarah Ann Thornton, who was also known as ‘Nellie’. They had...
May 26, 2026
This is Mark’s own brief personal and professional story about how he became interested in the history of Leamington Spa and producing films about the town’s full, varied and fascinating...
May 6, 2026
Acknowledgements to Contributors Writers of Articles Stella BolithoNigel BriggsPeter CoullsBarry FranklinMichael JeffsAllan JenningsMichael PearsonDr Sylvia PinchesMargaret RushtonSidney SysonRichard TaulbutDr John Wilmot Substantial Contributors to Articles. Kay Bugg; Alan Griffin; Dr...