Family Footsteps to Bognor Regis

I have wanted travel to the UK for some time. But I wanted to have time to wander the UK, especially England.  I wanted to have the time to see some of the smaller villages and look at typical English gardens. The other reason is that my Dad was born in England at Bognor Regis and I have always wanted to visit and have a look at where he grew up.

My Dad was born in 1914 and migrated to Australia with his family in 1924. Sadly he did not return to England for a visit.

I do know that when my mother asked if he wanted to go back he had a couple of ‘stock answers’ – (a) I just don’t want to go, & (b) It’s too cold. Later in life when he was unwell he did mention to my mother that he should have gone back.

Being the oldest in the family, I do have recollections of many things my Dad told me about Bognor Regis:

§  Yes, the weather. He spoke of the cold & the snow.

§  The pebbles on the beach, he explained that the beach did not have sand like our beaches.

§  He talked about buying cockles, whelks & I think mussels at the beach.

§  He mentioned a big pier and that you could fish from it.

§  He talked about playing ‘conkers’ at school and with friends, and he expressed surprise when he asked me if I played ‘conkers’ at school and I said I did not know what it was!

§  He mentioned that there was a big castle nearby.

Over the past weekend I did visit the pebbled beach. I saw where you can still buy cockles & whelks and now prawns on the beach. Yes, the pier is still there, but not as long as it used to be, as part of it was washed away in a storm. And the castle nearby is not just big, it is HUGE.

I did find where Dad’s family lived and the house is still there.

The other thing I was keen to find was the church where my grandparents were married. After a false start, I think I have now identified that church but I am waiting on some more details.

By chance I was looking at the family tree that is on the web and discovered that my great-grandfather, Lewis Kingman, lived in the same street as the B&B I was staying at in Felpham – amazing!

I have really enjoyed my visit to Bognor Regis.

This part of my journey is for my Dad, a journey sadly, he did not manage to make.

The pier - still the orginal building.

The beach as I saw it. Yes, people sunbaking & it was 15 degrees!

These days, there are lots of holiday apartments along the beach front.