This is a recent message I received with some wonderful material which was sent
to us by Valerie Compton of New Zealand.
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Dear David,

As I sit here at my computer here in New Zealand and read your excellent web
site, I thought it would be of interest to some of your viewers to read an
account written by my father, Sydney John Thomas Shaw (Tom) who was born in
Coleford in 1915 at 226 Newland St. It is about his memoirs as a young boy.

He has just recently passed away at the age of 91 and he was very proud of his
heritage, often saying with pride, that he was descended from one of the oldest
races in England "The Silurian Race". I used to show him your web page and he
would get very excited to see the places he remembered.

I have also included a newspaper cutting sent to my grandmother, Winfred, nee'
Brown. It is of her parents John and Louisa Brown Golden Wedding celebration, a
photo and write-up about it. A Harry and Maggie Baldwin also came out to N.Z and
lived in the same town as my grandparents, Huntly, Waikato in North Island. I
believe they were from the same family as the ones mentioned in the newspaper
cutting.

I do hope you enjoy reading his memoirs and the newspaper cutting. Some viewers
may recognise the surnames.

Keep up the fantastic work you all do. To all you good folk of Coleford. I would
like to tell you how proud our family was of Winifred and John Shaw and my own
father Tom. He was always a good, honest and hard working man, a wonderful
husband and father. He made a good life here in New Zealand for his family and
we were extremely proud of him. They were all a credit to the "Forest of Dean".

From New Zealand...our warmest wishes to all.
Valerie Compton nee' Shaw.

My Memoirs by Tom Shaw
http://www.forest-of-dean.net/joomla/stories-and-articles My_Memoirs_by_Tom_Shaw

Golden Wedding 1936
http://www.forest-of-dean.net/joomla/stories-and-articles Golden_Wedding_1936