Welcome to Evenlode Books, the bookshop (and more) for Charlbury, Wychwood and the Evenlode valley.
<< Please use the links on the left to find your way around.
There is a Ditchley connection on the site now. Under 'Local history and visitor information' you will find a brief biography of Nancy Tree. Ronald and Nancy Tree bought Ditchley in 1933 and the house was used by Churchill during the second world war as a safer alternative to Chequers.
We now have the complete text of Jesse Clifford's My Reminiscences of Charlbury, written in 1892, complete with notes on his family by Jesse's great great nephew Geoff, who lives in Charlbury today. You'll find it here under 'Local history and visitor information'.
You'll also find a page about our books by Dorothy Calcutt under "Books of local interest". Dorothy is one of the most lucid and articulate observers of the changes that took place in the towns and villages of this area in the last century. We're proud to have published four books by her.
Other recent new pages include "Grow Your Own Cows" and "The Wine Tipster": click on the links in the sidebar. There is a page devoted to books by local poets. "More books about West Oxfordshire and the Cotswolds" features an ever-growing number of books by various publishers.
We are always adding to the pages devoted to local books. For instance, we now offer free downloads of chapters from A History of Charlbury and Wychwood and Cornbury. Click on the pages for those books.
If you are new to Charlbury or are planning a visit, some of the information under "Visitor information" will help you.
The Oxford Mail once published a feature on the bookshop.
Why all this stuff?
The second – and for me equally important – reason is to make information AVAILABLE. That is part of what bookselling is all about, after all. For instance, featuring the Museum DVD here makes it searchable on Google, so anyone in the world can find it and order it. And someone from Newcastle did! Having a page on Jesse Clifford means that his descendants and relatives in any country can easily find out about him, and learn what further information about the Cliffords is recorded on gravestones in the churchyard. The page devoted to the books by Dorothy Calcutt gives her an international presence she didn't have before, complete with photographs, and she deserves it.
I happen to believe that putting information 'out there' is worth doing for its own sake, and I'd like to make more material available. Hundreds of people come to Charlbury each year searching for places associated with their family members, and all of them have already been on the internet looking for clues. There must be many, many thousands more out there looking, but who never make it here – whether from Doncaster or Bournemouth, Kansas or Auckland. If you have family documents or other material of local interest that would also be worth making searchable/findable via the internet for people all over the world, let me know. Maybe I can help. Email me at jon@evenlodebooks.co.uk
'Memories of Charlbury'
The Museum DVD
In 1977 four elderly Charlbury residents (Reg Smith, Sidney Price, Walter Busby and Fred Thornett) were interviewed on tape, talking about their lives in the town and including vivid memories of nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Charlbury. During the interviews they talked about old photographs from the museum's collection, describing the people and buildings in them, or talking about the events shown in the pictures.
The interviews, together with the photographs, have been skillfully edited onto a DVD produced by Charlbury Museum. It lasts about 50 minutes and is in three sections: the lives of the interviewees; places; and events. It makes compelling viewing for newcomers and established families alike, and costs only £7.50.
We'll post it anywhere in the UK for £8 (£9 if you pay with a Visa Debit Card).
If you have friends or family who have moved away from the town, this is a perfect gift to bring back old times (and beyond). Equally, if you want to learn a great deal more about the town's history over the last hundred years and more, buy one for yourself.