Joseph Alderman the Tailor By Neil Rees Joseph Alderman in Swanbourne Joseph Alderman (1843-1933) was born on 27th April 1843 the 8th child of Charles and Hannah (nee Tarry) Alderman.  He was well educated for the time and a staunch member of the Primitive Methodist chapel. On 6th April 1868 he married Louisa Mildred Claridge […]

The Kibble Family of Swanbourne by Neil Rees Kibble surname The Kibble surname is quite unusual.   Kibble means to grind and kibble is kibbled grain used for animal feed.  The Kibble family came from Stewkley and were farmers. The Kibble family of Stewkley The Kibble family farmed Cottesloe Farm between Stewkley and Wing.  A number […]

Charlotte Gurnett (nee Alderman) 1839-1926 – A strong Swanbourne woman. By Frankie Fisher Charlotte was born one of 15 children, to a poor agricultural labourer, Charles Alderman, in Swanbourne. She attended the village school and learnt to read and write. By the age of 22 she was working from home as a straw plaiter, a […]

“Ghost” explanations considered By Clive Rodgers Paranormal Investigations & Explanations A search on the Internet using a search engine such as GOOGLE, typing in the search something similar to ‘The Ghosts of Swanbourne’ will pick up some ghost and paranormal websites which tell the story of the ghosts of the village.  In 2009 there was […]

Ghost sightings at properties around Swanbourne before the year 2000 Summary of the village ghost accounts told to Ken Reading and contained in a partly completed manuscript (dated 1997), intended to be part of Ken’s second book on Swanbourne.   The latter was only part completed when he died in 1999. There are several houses in Swanbourne that have been […]

The Fremantle Family By Ken Harris The Fremantle Family Tree- (See Table and Tree at end of article for ease of reference). A.   Captain Thomas Francis Fremantle (1765-1819) Fremantles have lived in Swanbourne since 1798. In the Summer of that year, Captain Thomas Francis Fremantle  purchased The Old House, and a few small fields, as […]

WILL WRITTEN ONLY TWO DAYS BEFORE MURDER OF LORD OF THE MANOR!! By Linda Rodgers Thanks to Carolyn Jones for help with transcription Historic Wills are often difficult to read and interpret.  However, the contents of a Will can shed invaluable light on family relationships, so can be a massive aid in the construction of family trees when […]

The Parish Church of St Swithun By Ken Harris The present church building dates back to 1230, although there was almost certainly a church, probably made of wood, on the same site before this date. It is dedicated to St. Swithun, who was the Anglo-Saxon Bishop of Winchester. The deluge of rain that followed the […]

Photographs of the Baptist Church, Mursley Road                                     REFER to:- Baptist History in Swanbourne by Ken Harris   RETURN to Photographs Category

School Origins and History Swanbourne House School has its origins in 1920, when Lionel and Margaret Evans brought 43 boys from the Junior House, Bradfield to establish the school inner premises at Swanbourne House. Swanbourne House had been built in the 1860s for Sir Thomas Fremantle, later the 1st Lord Cottersloe. But it had been […]