The1930s were the hey day for the Fife and Drum Band lead
by Boss Perkins. They had a marching band that played at many villages carnivals
and fetes as well as a dance band. They did Gang Shows and even played at local
football cup matches. They did an annual concert which ran into three
performances in Eynsham, then toured the neighbouring villages.
1930
Lady
Baden-Powell wrote to Sir Montagu Burrows on 19th march 1930 confirming her and
B-P staying with them for a rest in the
morning and lunch prior to two meetings
in Oxford. This is an extract from the letter asking them to reduce the
itinerary
as B-P was getting very tired on official visits. The letter does not include an
address but refers to this stay with them at Eynsham.
On
30th April and 1st May 1930, Chief Scout Lord Robert Baden-Powell and his wife
Lady Olave Baden-Powell stayed at Eynsham Hall as guests of the Mason family and
signed their visitors book. Lady Baden Powell returned again on 6th and 7th
June.
The Scout Association archives show that Miss Dorothy
Mason of Eynsham Hall was the Commissioner for Witney and they had scout camps
at Eynsham Hall for local boys and some who were part of a migration scheme for
boys from distressed mining areas during the depression. B-P had come to visit
this scheme which was run by her and Mr Bertram Russell of the 1st Carterton and
District Group. There were 12 boys in two patrols called Ravens and Peewits and
went to a local farm to learn agricultural skills from the farmer. Some of the
boys migrated to Canada and Australia and they corresponded with Miss
Mason telling her how they were doing over there.
This scheme was quite controversial at the time but
according to the Scout Association Archivist Pat Styles in a letter dated 25th
April 2000, was thought to be in the interest of the boys. They were given a 12
week course at Eynsham Hall which was to train them for life overseas. Their
passages were paid for by The Scout Association and they were initially placed
in areas by local Scoutmasters. Some found a good new life, but others did not.
B-P was a firm advocate of the scheme which is why he visited the camp at
Eynsham Hall and wrote the report shown on the right about it.
George Boss Perkins was awarded the Medal of Merit for
good services to the Scout Movement. He also trained the boys in Morris Dancing,
Club Swinging and had toured with the band attending fetes and carnivals all
over the country.
The Eynsham Scout Troop went to Pangbourne for the annual
camp.
George Batts joined the Scouts in 1930. He told Richard
Smith in 1985 that the Scout Master was Bill Harris with Assistants Boss Perkins
and Jack Douglas. Scout Nights were on Fridays and Band Practice on Tuesdays.
George played cymbals and side drum. They played at Many Carnivals and recalled
that they would have played at Whitehall but it was cancelled due to the weather
(date not yet known). There were three or four patrols including the Peacocks
and Squirrels. He attended many camps over the years including Hastings,
Paignton, Isle of Wight and Renham near Henley. They used Bell Tents as there
were many surplus from the first world war. They met in a wooden hut in Queens
Lane.
1931
The Scouts camped at Remenham near Henley and had the
first "Standing" camp by the river in Eynsham. Derek Parker told us
they used to camp by the Thames from Whitsun until summer camp. This
photo from around 1930 is part of the Oxfordshire County Council
Photographic Archive and they have kindly given us permission to use it
here. It shows an ex-army 'Bell' tent, like the ones Eynsham Scouts used
to have, set up next to the Swinford Toll Bridge on the Toll House side,
looking out towards the lock keepers cottage. We're not sure if this is
actually the scouts camping there, but it does give us an idea of what
it might have been like, with the camp kitchen and cooking fire in the
bottom right had corner. We know from the old scouts that they camped
next to Horseshoe Island on the other side of the bridge in the late 30s
and 40s, but maybe they camped on the other side of the bridge in the
early days!
The Eynsham Rover
Scouts were formed. The recorded enrolments in 1931 were....
William Harris,
Cranham Street Oxford - Scoutmaster, Carpenter.
Jack Fowler,
Oxford Road, Cumnor - R.M. Carpenter.
Jack Douglas,
Newland Street, Eynsham - Fitter.
Jack Simmonds,
Mill Street, Eynsham - T.S. Carpenter.
William Bailey,
Oxford - Polisher.
1932
The Scouts camped at Remenham.
The group built an extension to the hut to be a Rovers Den
and lined the HQ with Match Board and Fly Wood. Most of the work was done by
Mons Perkins and F Douglas.
The officials of the Eynsham Scout Group were: District
Commissioner - Major E F Oakley JP, Secretary - Mrs Oakley, Group Scoutmaster -
Mr W Harris, Assistant Scoutmaster and Bandmaster - Mr G Perkins, Cub Mistress -
Miss Oakley, Assistant Cub Master and Rover Set - F J Douglas, Rover Mate -
Harold Fowler, Second Rover Mate and Troop Scribe - J W Simmonds.
1933
The Scouts camped at Sandown on the Isle of Wight.
George Perkins of Columbia Terrace, Eynsham enrolled as a
Rover Scout. He was Assistant Scout Leader and a Gardener.
1934
The Scouts camped at Sandown on the Isle of Wight.
1934 Rover Scout
Enrolments.
Mons Perkins,
Columbia Terrace, Eynsham - Carpenter.
Ralph Russell,
Queen Street, Eynsham - Electrician.
Philip Preston,
Queen Street, Eynsham - Electrician.
Herbert Ainsley,
Abbey Street, Eynsham - Accountant.
Fred Maskell,
Witney Road, Eynsham
Jack Douglas took
over as Cub Scout Master when Miss Oakley, who had run the pack since 1922,
retired.
CAN YOU ADD TO THE
ARCHIVE? Email: MarkW @ (no spaces) Eynsham Scouts
Archive .org .uk
Have you got any photos, videos,
documents or memories you could let us have? Are you able to add any more
details to what's already here like first names, more people, places
visited, things you did, dates, etc? Do you think we've got something wrong
and can correct the information we've been given? Any information you can give us by email
would be appreciated or if you can't send it electronically, we can arrange
to copy your items or record your memories.
1935
The 1st Eynsham Scouts took an active part in the King
George V Silver Jubilee and the Band played at the Horse Guards
Parade in London.
The Scouts camped at Sandown on the Isle of Wight.
1936
Eynsham and District Officials: Commissioner - Major E F
Oakley, Queen Street, Eynsham. District Scoutmaster and Rover Scout Leader - W J
Harris, Cranham Street, Oxford. District Cub Master - Miss R Oakley, Queen
Street, Eynsham. Treasurer - E Sawyer, Newlands Street, Eynsham. Secretary - Mrs
Oakley, Queen Street, Eynsham. There were 22 Cubs, 27 Scouts, 12 Rovers and 4
Scouters.
The Scouts camped in the summer at Hastings and more boys
gained their Kings Scouts Badges.
1937
Boss Perkins retired from all scouting activities and F
Douglas took over.
The Scouts camped at Paignton in Devon and celebrated The King
George VI Coronation with a big event in Eynsham. The day was so popular, it was
decided to make it an annual event and so the Eynsham Carnival was born.
In the picture, back row, left to right - Peter
Dormer, Jack Fowler, Jack Douglas, Bill Russell, Pete Blunt, ?, Ron
Harling, Bert Dormer, Mons Perkins, Phil Preston, Ernie Howard, Bill
Perkins, Bill Bailey, Ernie Floyd, George Batts, Boss Perkins, Harry
Green. Front row, left to right - Donald Good, Raymond Floyd, Chris
Bryant, Bert? Whelan, Ralph Whitlock, Dennis Douglas.
1938
On 25th April 1938, Eynsham became part of the Witney
District. Group Scoutmaster W.J. Harris applied for the merger on 14th April
1938.
Big celebration events were held in Eynsham for the
Jubilee in 1935 and Coronation in 1937. It was decided that there was money in
this so the Scouts decided to organise a village Carnival lead by F Douglas and
Jack Fowler.
The Scouts camped at Goodrington near Paignton with F
Douglas in charge.
Derek Parker joined Eynsham Cubs in 1938, went on
to Scouts and Rovers, and served on the committee helping to
organise Eynsham Carnival, The Eynsham Scouts Gymkhanas, and The
Bosses Night Reunion for 50 years. In this video below he shares
some of his memories of a life associated with Eynsham Scouts
illustrated with pictures from the archive he kept that was the
beginnings of the Eynsham Scouts Archive website.
If you would like to share your memories of
Eynsham Scouting on video, please email us
Mark.
You can send us a video, or we'll come round and film you. If you've
got a few photos, or you'd like to do it with someone else who was
in the group at the same time you were, that might help the memories
flow.
1939
The second annual carnival was held with the decorating of
the Queens Throne done my Mrs Parker and assistants. Hatwells Fair attended for
the first time.