Biographical Details

My grandfather was born on 17th February 1891 at Sayell's Farm in Sundon, Bedfordshire. My memories of him stem from the latter part of his life, when he lived in Dunstable, where he died in 1975. He came from a Sundon family - my great-grandfather ran the village Post Office at Sayell's Farm until he died. Grandpa Frank had one brother, Harold, who died in 1923.

He married my Grandma Margaret ('Maggie') on 24th January 1917. I don't remember Grandma Margaret at all as she died when I was a baby. Shortly after marrying Maggie, my grandfather joined the Royal Engineers. He was posted to France and Belgium on the 10th March to fight on the Western Front towards the end of the First World War. He still managed to keep up his interest in natural history, collecting eggs and going on many nature rambles during his time in the Department Pas-de-Calais. We still have many of his rambling diaries complete with many pressed flowers and other memorabilia from his time as a soldier. On being de-mobbed on 11th November 1919, he returned to his home stomping ground and spent the majority of his working life at E.W. Hudson & Co Engineering Works in Luton.

Despite his career in Engineering, Grandpa Frank was an academic at heart. The notes for each clutch of eggs include a wealth of information about the plant life and moths and butterflies that he encountered while collecting. In addition to his encyclopaedic natural knowledge, he also quoted Shakespeare at will and had a fondness for Brer Rabbit! He wrote incessantly: nature notes, diaries, articles ... for himself and for others, it wasn't important. He was an extremely talented artist, his drawings accurate to the smallest detail, skills all of his grandchildren have inherited to varying degrees. I can only hope that this is some small way to commemorate those skills.

Thursday, 27 March 2008

Yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella) - (5) - England, 1927

Blackthorn. Hedgeside with other rank herbage, mixed hedge, Gipsy Lane (The Icknield Way). 2.5ft high.

This portion of the old Roman Road was a favourite hunting ground of my boyhood, and many a pocketful of speckled treasures have I brought home from it on a Saturday morning. We were always a little bit nervous on account of the gipsies who used to camp along the grassgrown track. Saw wood pigeon nest in maple about 10ft high, and a broken egg on the ground underneath. Many Silverground Carpet Moths on wing, and along the Leagrave-Chalton Road found several nests of linnet etc. from fledge young to fresh eggs.

Sundon, Bedfordshire, June 11th.
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