Golden wedding links with Frithelstock

Born near to each other 78 years ago at Frithelstock, Mr and Mrs Herbert Gill went to school together, married some years later and have now celebrated their golden wedding.

They now live with their son, tom, at Lower Hele, Bradworthy. Not far away lives their other son, Clifford, who travels each day from Woolsery to his work in a Bideford garage.

Mrs Gill, one of ten children, went into service at a Westward Ho! farm on leaving school at 13 and then returned to Frithelstock. On her marriage she and her husband continued living in Frithelstock and from 1914 to 1922, and from 1939 to 1945 Mrs Gill ran a small shop at Frithelstock Stone.

Mr Gill, one of 11 children, went into farm work on leaving school at the age of 14, and then worked as a roadman with Torrington Rural Council for many years and later branched out on his own buying a horse and using it to cart stones.

In 1922 he took Lower Dunridge Farm, in Parkham parish, and when he sold that in 1927 he purchased Drummetts Mill at Torrington and worked up a flourishing business as a corn merchant. In 1937 he moved to Milton Damerel to live in semi-retirement until he and his wife back to their shop at Frithelstock Stone for the war years.

After the war Mr and Mrs Gill lived in Monkleigh before moving to their son’s farm at Lower Hele nearly 12 months ago.

Gazette article dated 17 April 1959