MEMORIES OF FOOTS CRAY PLACE

By John (Doug) Sharp

Foots Cray Place 1746

It has been suggested that it might be a good idea for me to write a few lines about my early days at Foots Cray Place. I suppose it is true that there are few folk who can give a first-hand account, and actually describe their day to day life at this wonderful estate, so let's go, and see what it was like to live at one of Britain's stately homes. I hasten to add that this experience was in a somewhat modest manner, but nevertheless all of the 'perks' were there.

My dear old Dad was a gardener, and had previously worked at an estate in Titsey, Surrey. It was in a lovely little gardener's cottage nestling in the foothills of the North Downs that l first saw the light of day - way back in 1917. In late 1924, my father changed his job, and went to work as Head Gardener for Lord & Lady Waring at Foots Cray Place. To my young mind this was something of an adventure, although it was tinged with a certain amount of apprehension. It meant uprooting from the place 1 had known and loved, and also having to find new friends in a new surrounding.