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THE RIDGERS FAMILY OF WINDLESHAM |
ERNIE RIDGERS' MEMORIES
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Ernie was born in 1911. After his marriage to Doris Turner in 1937 he moved to Bracknell in Berkshire. He was the eldest son of Ernest Ridgers and Mary Dance. Copied from "The Book" a part of Ian Ridgers's interesting family website Ian Ridgers relates... The
meeting came about when IRENE returned to work following the
birth of MARTIN our first child. Whilst working on the ward
as a Midwife she came across another Mrs Ridgers and they
agreed that it was difficult is to get people to spell the
name correctly and joked about the possibility of being
related. It transpired that her father-in-law’s name was
ERNEST, GEORGE, WILLIAM RIDGERS. Colin greeted this with
some excitement as ‘George’ and ‘William’ appear in
most generations. A meeting was arranged between Colin,
ERNEST and his two sons MICHAEL and PETER. ERNEST told
us that he was named after his father, his father’s father
and his father’s father’s brother. He also recalled that
there was a sister ALICE(A2) who had died at a young age.
This coincided exactly with our family tree and so
the link was established ~ we had descended from WILLIAM
(W2)
and ERNEST had descended from GEORGE(G2). Michael, Peter,
Colin, et al shared a set of great, great grandparents!
A transcript of part of the August 1981 meeting between Ernest, Ian and Colin follows.
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"My family lived in a very old house in Windlesham. It had acres of ground. It was the old Windlesham Farm and supplied the whole village with milk and water - it had the only well in the village” "I remember the Zeppelin raids coming over during the war. I also remember Grandfather (William Ridgers) being killed, I was only five years old then. " 58 year old William Ridgers died at Frimley Cottage Hospital from head injuries in August 1915. He was killed when his cycle was hit by a car on Blackdown Road at Frimley. "During the war
(1914-18) people had flocked to Windlesham from London, we
had twelve sleeping in the house on the floor. As soon as the Zeppelins were
heard the people would go outside to watch them, scared to death. |
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Ernie's father- Ernest Ridgers |
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"Father married MARY DANCE from the Wye Valley. Last May we
visited the area and passed by the house where Grand-Father lived.
The River Wye ran along the bottom of the garden. I could see the garden
where I had played as a boy - just after the war. I remember the house as the
front door Ernest and Mary lived at the old family home in Windlesham and had eight children. Four boys and four girls. Ernest (1911), Allan (1913), Stanley (1915), Dorothy (1909), Vera (1910), Norah, Harold and Muriel (1921). |
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Mary Ridgers |
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"There
was no insurance in those days - so when the house burnt down me and my father
built another house. Mother died in 1932/33 long before the war. Muriel, Norah
and Harold were still at school when she died. |
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Harold |
Not much left |
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Ernie and his father |
Ernie |
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"Dad was left all alone. When the war came in 1939 me and my two brothers were called up. I was getting married and had the offer of a house from my future father--in-law. My next brother (Alan) was also getting married. He had no money so we all agreed that he would live in the house and look after Dad." "My other two brothers and I went off to the war and I was sent to France. At home
Dad was treated very badly by my brothers wife. She ran him down to the
solicitor and had his will made over to her.
When we returned from the war we were advised by the solicitor that there
was absolutely nothing that we could do to change the will. So we lost
everything. Dad died and she bought
a house in Staines with the money which she eventually left to her son.
He blew the lot".
I must mention out of fairness that since the above was first published, Ian has been contacted by Martin Ridgers from the USA, a descendant of the brother mentioned above. He says that his family have a different account of that will change. (TB)
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The new house |
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Ernie's Bracknell Family "
I
was one of the first eight men to enter Ostend on D Day.
My job was to recce the town for mines and any booby traps.
We then had to start clearing houses in readiness for the troops to come
in. Later I participated in the
battle for the Ardennes and was in Hamburg when the cease fire was signed.
I was sent to Belsen concentration camp to help clean it up after which I
returned to England". |
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June 1937 |
June 1962 |
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Stanley Ridgers Lightwater Family. He married Florence Milton in 1936. They had two children, Elizabeth Ann (1941) and Malcolm (1948) |  |
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July 1936 |
Around 1960 |
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Harold - Stanley - Vera - Alan - Muriel - Norah - Dorothy Brenda's wedding at Bagshot in 1959 |
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My acknowledgements to Ian Ridgers for kindly allowing me to copy Ernie's memories. Photographs from Ann Geeves (Elizabeth Ann Ridgers). Daughter of Ernie's brother Stanley.
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