In 1915, a young woman staying at the Rose and Crown in Baldock wrote in the visitors book there, ‘Oh, it’s nice to get up in the morning in a beautiful place like this.’ And we can see what she meant from the early photographs in this book: Baldock, with its many trees, wide High Street and old buildings was a very attractive place.

It is not surprising, then, that although the town has only four main streets, they have been photographed over and over again from many angles over the decades. These photographs were often turned into postcards and sent all over the country and it is thanks to Paul Castle and Chris Gomm that we have had access to so many for this book.

It is obvious, looking at the older photographs, that the pace of life was gentler then, although the work was hard, whether on the land, in industry or in the home where only the rich could afford the new laboursaving devices. Relaxation was, therefore, important and was taken seriously - if something was worth organising, then it was worth organising well.

But change is inevitable - each generation believes it can improve on the one before - and if Ephraim Carless who lived here in 1894 could come back he would still recognise the place - although, of course, he would immediately notice the difference motorised traffic has made.

The constant factor, though, is the character of the people who live here. In the 1890s there were a handful of clubs and orgamsations for the townspeople to join; there are now over 50, and an enormous amount of energy is put into fund-raising efforts and arranging events that are purely to be enjoyed - and our Victorian ancestors would have applauded both.

We hope that some of this diversity and energy comes through in both words and pictures so that A BALDOCK SCRAPBOOK will be enjoyable equally to a stranger picking it up as to a local.

Edna Page was born in Baldock and during her childhood lived at ‘19 Steps’ on the Great North Road. During the thirties she was a pupil at Pond Lane School and spent the first years of her working life at Blank’s, the newsagents, in Church Street. She has two sons and two grandsons.

Both Edna and Nora are active members of many of the town’s organisations including St Mary’s Parish Church and the Support Group of the Cancer Care Home at Moggerhanger in Bedfordshire.