Laburnum Terrace

Bill & Lena Selman of 16 Gloucester Road, Thornbury

William Arthur Selman and his wife, Martha A. B. Selman, bought the house from the Hodges estate in the late 1950's.  They were known as 'Bill' and 'Lena'.  They are listed as living there in the 1957 Electoral Register and in the 1959 register their son, Arthur William Beverley (Bev) Selman was also living there.

As we got to know the Selmans, when we moved into number 18 in the 1970's, we considered them as 'locals', but there is some confusion about their origins.  Their daughter, Ann, tells us they moved to Thornbury in the 1950's from Rudgeway where Bill had been working for Sir George White; they lived in a flat in the grounds of the White home there.  Previously the family had been living in Tickenham near Clevedon where Bill had been a farmer.  Ann was not aware of any previous connection with the Thornbury area, but we thought Mrs Selman told us that she came from the Hackett, an area on the outskirts of Thornbury about half a mile from the centre.  We have also found that Bill was born on 13th July 1907 and the birth was registered in the Chipping Sodbury area.  We have a note that he was baptised in Thornbury, but don't now know where we saw this! 

In the late 60's when Chris first met Bill, he was working for the Thornbury Rural District Council.  He had previously worked as a 'binman,' but his physique and general health and age meant that he was restricted to less strenuous tasks such as street cleaning.  His regular duty was as attendant at the cattle market each Thursday.  Apart from opening and closing the market, his main activity was chatting to the farmers.  After the market closed he had to clean it up mostly with the aid of a hose pipe, and this was completed on Fridays.  Chris, himself was working for the Council trying to introduce new working methods and increasing productivity - in the case of Bill, he gave up, realising it was a 'lost cause'.

Bill's affinity to farmers and his general demeanour gave Chris the impression that he had been a farmer at one time and this has been confirmed by his daughter.  We have also been told that Bill had been a roadman for Gloucestershire County Council before joining Thornbury Rural Council.  He certainly had the ruddy red features usually associated with roadmen, and their favourite tipple (cider).  Bill himself was a diabetic when we knew him so this had curtailed his drinking of cider.

They had two children that we knew;  Ann and "Bev".  Ann married for a second time in the same month that we did in 1979.  We know this because Mrs Selman had an uncanny knack of knowing everything that we did.  It was unnerving to have her congratulate us on our forthcoming marriage when we had not told anyone - even close family.  Then she explained that she was at the Register Office and happened to see our names.  It doesn't explain how she knew what we ate (she asked why I didn't give Chris a proper Sunday lunch) or that I read in bed.

Bev was always a worry to his mother.  His first wife was called Sheila, but he had more than one partner which shocked Mrs Selman who was very strictly brought up.  He settled down a lot after he gave up rough cider - he said he was troubled by the fact that some of his friends were going blind.  He was a lovely man though and very good natured and generous.  Click here to see more on Bev

The Selmans were 'rural folk'.   Bill had an allotment in Thornbury, and he used his garden to grow vegetables.  He used to cycle up and down the High Street with his garden spade and fork long after it was safe for himself or other road users.

They also kept chickens, or probably bantams would be more accurate.  We often heard him going out to the chickens in the very early hours - he could be heard singing "chick, chick, chick, chick, chicken, lay a little egg for me".  We could track his movements pretty accurately.  We have had many neighbours, with massive stereo equipment and even an operatic singer but one of the few sounds we ever heard through the wall was Bill Selman.  He seemed to belch as he left his bedroom in the morning and then we would hear "manerrrrrs" in a rich Gloucestershire accent.  This was then followed by the song to the chickens - 'chick, chick, chick, chick chicken, lay a little egg for me' - much more characterful than having an alarm clock we thought.

Bill died in December 1988.  Lena had died a couple of years earlier.

This page was last updated: 21/03/2012