Rushden Research Group: Holidays 1950s

Holidays 1950s

The Rushden Echo and Argus, 4th August, 1950, transcribed by Gill Hollis

Rushden's Holiday Week - Day Trips Popular

Are the ever-increasing facilities for day excursions proving more popular with Rushden and district people than spending all August week in the rather more traditional manner by the sea? Comparisons in local bookings serve to suggest that this is so, and that more people are showing a preference for road rather than rail travel.

More people than ever are taking advantage of numerous day trips to such places as the Wye Valley, Windsor, London Zoo, Warwick races and Stratford-on-Avon. One local agent reports his bookings of weekly runs to Bridlington, Clacton, Scarborough, Margate, Skegness, and Yarmouth to be completely full.

The Wye Valley and Cleethorpes (included for the first time this year) prove to be the most popular of the day excursions. Evening tours, too, are proving a marked success. Many who are going away for the week are showing a preference for the road journey and are taking advantage of a daily bus service from Bedford to Southend, Yarmouth, Dovercourt and Clacton.

"Specials"

Blackpool, favourite resort with Rushden people, has, however, proved the favourite of railway bookings. A "special" will leave from Higham Ferrers and Rushden at 10.45 p.m. tonight. At 2.05 a.m. as well, another train has been laid on for London to serve those people showing a preference for the East and South Coasts. The station-master, who reports just a "steady flow" of bookings, commented on the popularity also for bookings to Lowestoft and Clacton.

Birch Bros.' daily coach service from Rushden to London has fairly heavy bookings for its hourly service and the United Counties Bus Co. has about 16 places to offer on its holiday "agenda."

In Camp

Over 100 boys from Rushden, Higham Ferrers, Irthlingborough, Raunds, Thrapston and Wellingborough branches of the Boys' Brigade will be camping at Reculver, near Herne Bay, in Kent.

The advance party left by road with equipment on Thursday morning and the main body travelled by train from Wellingborough this morning. They will return on Monday week. Mr. C. A. Espin is in charge of the Rushden contingent.

Fifteen boys from the 2nd Rushden St. Mary's Scout Troop will be camping at Rockingham during August week under the charge of Mr. W. E. Knott. District Commissioner Don Winters reports the boys as travelling either by lorry or on bicycles.

The 1st Higham Ferrers and 8th Rushden Scouts are amalgamating and will be in camp at Hadley Wood, Essex, during the holiday period under the charge of Mr. E. Odell, of Higham, and Mr. H. Mundy, of Rushden. The 1st Rushden Troop will be staying in Derbyshire with Mr. B. Greeves.

The stay-at-homes will discover August Monday attractions in Sharnbrook fete, Milton Ernest gymkhana, and the Dean and Shelton flower show and sports.

Most local factories will be closed for eleven days from Thursday evening to a week on Tuesday.

Rushden Chamber of Trade have recommended to local tradesmen that Monday and Tuesday of next week should be closing days.

The Rushden Echo and Argus, 3rd August 1951, transcribed by Gill Hollis

The Holidays are Here Again
Off to seaside and mountains
To-night and to-morrow (Saturday) Rushden and Higham Ferrers will undergo their annual “evacuation” with the bulk of the population departing at all hours by train, coach or car for the holiday resorts.

North Wales is especially in favour on the list of railway advanced bookings. The north-east coast is being favoured, too, for Scarborough rates second in popularity. Margate is easily the best local patronised south-east coast resort this year.

For the bulk of the holidaymakers, who will be the shoe-men and their families, it will be the first ever opportunity of a two weeks “break.” Not many, however, have been able to extend their seaside visit over the second week.

The Blackpool “special,” no doubt, will have its share of the regulars when it steams out of Higham Ferrers station at 10.45, to-night, and 11 coaches have been laid on. The 5.30 a.m. train to London on Saturday will probably have 10 or 11 coaches to convey hundreds on the first stage of their journey to the seaside. On Monday there will be day and half-day excursions to London and to Southend. Rushden station reports a busy time handling luggage which has been sent in advance.

A Rushden booking agent reported that quite 75 per cent of the local coach bookings are for Yarmouth. Eight coaches will be filled on Saturday morning by Rushden people who are returning the following week.

Irthlingborough station which operates a through service to Yarmouth and Lowestoft reports “fair” bookings to these two resorts. There will be trains at 6.5 a.m. and 7.16 a.m. on Saturday.

Excursions

The United Counties Omnibus Co. Ltd., will be running excursions every day, and the most popular, judging from many advanced bookings, is to the Wye Valley.

Messrs. Birch Bros. will run relief buses on Saturday and during most of the holiday week. They have also arranged East Coast trips.

An advance party of the Boy’s Brigade from Rushden, Higham Ferrers, Kettering and Wellingborough left for a 10-days holiday at Herne Bay on Thursday. The remainder of the 130 leave by train today (Friday).

Scouts from the 2nd Rushden Troop will travel by road to Ampthill Park on Saturday for a week’s holiday under the charge of Mr. W. E. Knott.

Scouts In Camp

About 20 Scouts from the 8th Rushden Troop will visit Sunbury-on-Thames with Mr. H. Munday, and the 1st Higham Ferrers Scouts will spend their holiday camping at Rockingham Park, Mr. D. Wildman will be in charge.

None of the Girl Guides and Girls’ Life Brigade units in the district has planned a camping holiday.

Local attractions include Sharnbrook fete and Milton Ernest gymkhana on Monday.

During the second holiday week a Minor Counties cricket match between Northants and Warwickshire second elevens at Rushden Town ground will provide entertainment for sporting enthusiasts.

The Rushden Echo and Argus, 3rd August 1956, transcribed by Jim Hollis

Thousands book for holiday trips

Among the thousands of Rushden and Higham Ferrers people who begin their holiday travels tonight or tomorrow morning a record number will be going to the Continent.

Dismal weather during the last few days has had little effect on the flow of advance holiday bookings by rail or coach. Even the day trip arrangements for those who will be sleeping at home are well forward.

Rushden Co-operative Society’s travel bureau reports: “Last Saturday morning the office was full. We have more Continental bookings this time – the most we have ever done – and many of them are for small parties of young people. Bookings for the “usual” places, such as Blackpool, Yarmouth and Lowestoft, are well up to standard.”

Special Trains

Yorke Brothers, who ran 28 coach loads to Yarmouth from the Northampton district last week, expect to take at least 20 loads, mainly from Rushden and Wellingborough tomorrow. Their average coach load is 39. From next Sunday to Friday, August 17, they are running 48 excursions – to Skegness, Yarmouth, race meetings and country mansions. They report a normal response and their manager says: “I don’t think anybody is going to worry about the weather.”

British Railways say that bookings are up to the average, but they expect to take many more before the holiday trains leave Rushden and Higham Ferrers. First of the special through trains will leave Higham Ferrers for Blackpool at 1.50 a.m. tomorrow, the second for London at 4 a.m. and the third for Scarborough at 6.25 a.m. Other places well favoured this year are Brighton, Llandudno, Eastbourne and Folkestone.

Apart from its well booked up express services, the United Counties Omnibus Co. is busy with arrangements for day trips from Rushden. Three coaches are fully booked for Cheddar Gorge next Thursday. Portsmouth and Southsea trips on Sunday and Monday are also fully booked.

Birch Brothers say they will be running plenty of relief buses, especially for the London service tomorrow morning.

Mr. Jim Knight, who books for Associated Motorways, told us that the weekly services for the August holiday had been fully booked since Easter. The rush for day trips is larger than usual, and he thinks this is because new trips have been added.

Mr. Ross Neville has filled several seaside coaches for tomorrow – some of his bookings closed last February – and states that quite a number of people have booked for August Week tours to Land’s End and John O’Groats.

Outings & Holidays