WW-2
Cippenham's Cinema
The six month old Commodore Cinema, 20 May 1939 Cippenham has only ever had one cinema. Originally named the Commodore it opened its doors on 30 November 1938. A stone’s throw from…
THE CIPPENHAM COLLECTION
Explore the archive
People, places and stories from our village’s past.
50 stories
WW-2
The Mystery of the Cippenham Duck
In the late 1960s when I was a small boy, I was playing one day on Cippenham village green with two other local boys when they announced that they were going to play on the “duck”. I didn’t…
WW-2
The Cippenham V1
In World War 2, Cippenham escaped relatively lightly from German bombing. At around 8:40 AM on 23 August 1944, however, a V1 flying bomb (doodlebug) fell from the sky and exploded near to…
19th Century up to WW-1
Disastrous Fire at Cippenham Green, 1908
A century ago, house fires were much more common than they are today. Open hearths and naked-flame lighting created opportunity for accidental fires to start and the higher flammability of…
Medieval
Cippenham Royal Palace
There is a tradition that in Cippenham there was once an Anglo-Saxon palace which was home to the Kings of Mercia. In A Topographical Dictionary of England published in 1848 [1], the entry…
Uncategorized
Lost buildings of Lower Cippenham Lane
Lower Cippenham Lane is probably the oldest route through Cippenham. It is noteworthy that one end heads from the likely sites of John, Earl of Cornwall's Cippenham Palace in the direction…
Uncategorized
Station Road
Here is a very nice postcard photograph of Station Road dating to some time in the thirties. Station Road, Cippenham It has been digitally processed by us to increase the detail as much as…
Uncategorized
The 1940 bombings of Cippenham
The Slough trading estate and outlying villages could be said to have escaped lightly from German bombing in WW2 by comparison to other industrial areas and London. The reason for this…
Snippets
Fire at Cippenham Court Farm in 1919
This article from The Evening Telegraph, Thursday, June 5, 1919 DISASTROUS FIRE NEAR MOTOR TRANSPORT DEPOT Cippenham Court Farm, which adjoins the Government motor transport depot at…
Uncategorized
Norman's Garage
Norman’s Garage was a petrol forecourt and car showroom that sold Talbot and Chrysler cars. It was on the west corner of Stowe and Bath Road. This photograph was probably taken around…
18th Century
Inside the Great Barn
The Great Barn is one of a group of buildings that were once the nucleus of Cippenham Court farm. Positioned on the south side of Cippenham Lane opposite Westgate school playing field, the…
Uncategorized
Webbs Garage
Many people will remember Webbs Garage as a long-standing landmark on the Bath Road, situated between the White Horse Inn and the Essoldo Cinema, but who can tell us more? When was it…