When I was in the village visiting my father two weeks ago I was looking through the
recent copy of the High Halstow Times. This led me today, during a slack period at
work, to log on to the village website. In the blog I came across the paragraph on
the Memorial Hall and the Plaque. As it is over 40 years since I was last inside the
hall I had a look at the picture of the plaque and saw my Grandfather William
Stockbridge’s name.

I then read through the printed list of names to find it linked to a photograph of
him in uniform, a photograph I don’t remember seeing before, but maybe my memory is
not what it used to be. Reading through the text associated with the photograph I
noticed that it says that he was born in Scotland. In fact following research into
the family tree I have discovered that the Stockbridge family were Cumbrian farmers
going back to 16th Century and maybe earlier.

William was in fact born at Scaleby near Carlisle, North of Hadrians Wall but round
about six miles South of the Scottish border. He could however,my father tells me,
sing with a strong Scottish accent after a drink or two. He moved South with his
parents and siblings some time in the period 1901 – 1911 and settled on the Hoo
peninsular via Essex. William’s brother Thomas was killed in Mesopotamia (Iraq) and
is commemorated on the Basra war memorial while another brother Robert lived in High
Halstow in the cottages opposite the church.

Doug Stockbridge

Ernest Munday was his brother and his nephew (my grandad’s son who is mentioned) died approx 4 years ago but his daughter Freda is now living in Spain). Could you please tell me where the photo is hanging, I’d love to see it properly.

Kind regards, Hazel Owen.

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