North Villa in North Street - later the Westward Hotel

Oliver Claridge, son of Ebenezer, shoemaker, married Norah, daughter of Charles Parker, a shoemaker at Higham Ferrers in June 1903. They moved to North Street to ‘Westward Ho’, where their daughter Audrey Milicent was born in 1910. Audrey was educated at St Andrews School in Bedford, and studied music there too. In 1924 she passed her pianforte Lower Division Exam, and the Higher Division Exam in 1925, and the Rudiments of Music in 1926. One of her diaries includes this list of her Christmas Presents in 1926, and ‘things to get at half-term’.

		Things to get at half term Bath Salts Soap Shirt Ask about Blazer Cream for hands Book Frame for Ben’s Photo Torch and Battery Razor Blade Health Salts
Mother Jumper, Suit, Coat Father £1, Hockey Stick, Tie & Hankey Aunt Kitty Hankies Aunt Nan 5/- Aunt Maud Bracelet & Pencil Aunt K. Note Paper (A) Aunt Effie Note Case Aunt Betsy Chocolates Bakers Chocolates Mrs Cave Lacquer Bowl Doris Thimble Case etc. Mollie Shoe polisher Vera Dominoes Louisa Crystalised Fruit	The little diary kept by Audrey Milicent Claridge in 1926 when she was at school at St Andrews, Bedford, and the pages on which she recorded her Christmas presents and things she needed to get at half-term.

Birthday cake - first picture taken!

Mother and Father (Oliver & Norah)

Vera, Miss Rands, Joan Claridge, Father, Mother – taken at Lilford

Dick Woodcock, Aunt Beaty

Believed to be Audrey M Claridge c1939 taken by W Lacey

Audrey Claridge married Robert C Samet just before WWII, in the Spring of 1939. Together they founded the De Parys Hotel at Bedford. His family were also hotelliers at Hotel Alexandra, Brighton.

They had one son, Guy R C Samet in 1943 at Aldershot. A daughter Claire N B Samet was born in 1940 probably at Rushden.

Letterhead - the directors are B B Samet & R Samet c1947

Her mother died in 1943 and her father died in 1944. In 1945 her father's will left all to Audrey and then to her children. Audrey was living at her former home, Westward Ho, in North Street. Perahps Audrey had converted the house into the Westward Hotel, as in 1950 a licence application was made by Peter Neville, but was granted to only serve residents of the hotel. Her brother George Claridge died in 1953.

Audrey was on board a ship in 1953, perhaps taking a cruise, before making her decisions for her future.

In 1954 Audrey was married to Phillip C Godden. [He had first married Doris Young in 1939, died 1954]

Her daughter Claire took her step-father's surname, but Guy probably stayed with his father [remarried in 1954] as he died at Bedford, aged just 18 in 1961.

Rushden Heritage centre put on a display of Maps assembled by Audrey, for one month only, in January 1998, exhibited by the Amenties Society.

	Caption written by Claire
	Mary Ann reading as the photo above was taken about 1905 by Sam Powell - note the emboidery on her dress. Perhaps she worked it herself?