Sunday 30 July 2006

Visit to Littleport

Hello Everyone ,Well Jean and Pete came to pick me up around ten am yesterday morning,and off we went to Littleport,we found the place the open day was being held ,and we were  made very welcome ,we met Mr Bruce Frost ,and with the aid of documents,Pete had taken with him it was soon established ,Pete is a decendant of the rioters,and not the branch of the Harleys of  Harley Davidson fame ,Bruce explained there are two branches of the family name ,and he would dearly like to find a connection to the two familys ,hes sure there is one but though he has  records going back to the seventeen hundreds , still hasnt found one ,but hasnt given up hope .

The Littleport riots came about in 1816,when at the end of The Napolonic war in 1815....the ordinary man was working hard to support a family on farm labourers wages ,it was said The Farmer /land owner was spending as much on a shirt for him self,as it cost to pay three mens wages,and to cut a long story short ,the men decided to rebel and went on a tour of the village taking from those better off than themselves ,whilst some few succeeded in getting away,many were caught it is believed to be approxamately fourtyfive (possibly one woman ?)they were tried in Ely,and recieved sentances,ranging from prison sentences  varying lengths,deportation to Australia,and five were hung, Isaac Harley (Pete's ancester )was one of the five ....As you will see we found the' Barn'which is indeed a council conferance room ,and took pictures of the plaque and the model ,we then left to go on to Denver Sluice ,another story another day .....but we then  saw the church ,and found the grave stone for The father of the motor bike Harley who went to America,and teamed up with the Davidson bros ,and the rest as they say is history ,opposite the church St George,stood the best of all  a stainless full size model of the first Harley Davidson ,glinting in the sunshine ...apparently in 2003 ,Littleport was host to thousands of motor bike fans to mark the hundred years of the partnership ...

We went on to Denver and watched the boats coming through the locks ,motor boats, sail boats and the lovely long boat I have photographed ,and just as if she knew Donna offered this lovely graphic this morning what a bonus ! thankyou so much Donna, Donna can be found in my side bar ...

I hope you enjoy the pictures and the story and account of our day .there is more but I will save it for another time, Have a Blessed Sunday everyone ....With Love

                                                       

 

26 comments:

Anonymous said...

Beautiful graphic and pictures.  But Jan, I thought Denver was in Colorado?  LOL...I learned something new.  there's a Denver in the UK.  Have a good Sunday evening.  Linda in WA

Anonymous said...

Nice entry & great info. Know you had a good time!
Hugs, Sugar

Anonymous said...

Oh wow, what an interesting story!
I love the models made to re-inact the scene. Very cool!
You look awesome on that Harley Davison too!! Looks like you were enjoying it..hehe!

Great Entry Jan, loved it!

Lv Ste
xxx

Anonymous said...

Great story and pictures. Very interested in the motorbikes as you know. we had a big Harley rally in Perth three summers ago you should have seen all the 100s of bikes sparkling in the sunshine the weather stayed perfect for them. Love Joan.

Anonymous said...

Hi Jan - a lovely entry today, and don't you all look like your having fun sitting on the 'Harley'.
Jayne x

Anonymous said...

How exciting to find that someone you know is related to the people who rioted in Littleport!  I love geneaology and history.  Put them together and what awesome stories they make!

Loved the pics too, Jan!

Jackie

Anonymous said...

It's all so interesting Jan! You'll have to keep a close eye on Pete incase he thinks it's OK to start a riot now he knows it's in his blood!! Lol!I love that stainless steel Harley! Jeannette xx  

Anonymous said...

Jan I found this entry really interesting and the full size model of the first Harley Davidson is awesome ~ love the pictures of you all sitting on it ~ sounds like you all had a lovely day ~ Ally

Anonymous said...

Hi Jan...

love the graphic Donna made for you...looks like you all had a great time...intresting story...have good evening and best wishes.

Astra!

Anonymous said...

Jan...great pics too!

Astra!

Anonymous said...


Hi Jan ,what a appropriate graphic from Donna  with the long boats.Wasn't it a truly amazing day,thanks mainly to you and Maurice ,we found out such a lot of information  of the Harleys,riotors and bikers.Its a day we shall all remember for a long time ,so glad you set it up for us .So funny what Jeannette said about Pete  thinking he can cause a riot cause its in his blood!!!lol Thank you for sending the photos to us ...........With love from us both Jean and Petexx

Anonymous said...

Great graphic ! I really enjoyed that story Jan, I love all that history stuff as you know! The pictures were great especially that Harley, you make a good biker bird! Linda xx  http://journals.aol.co.uk/lindachapmanuk/metamorphing

Anonymous said...

Fascinating, Jan.  Love the boats and locks and what a coincidence that Donna posted that graphic at the same time you were making an entry.  xxxx  Chris

Anonymous said...

What an interesting day, love the pics too. Such a shame that Pete was infamous as opposed to famous, lol. Mind you, fair play to his ancestor, you gotta stand by your principles.
B. x

Anonymous said...

What a great way to spend the day!  It's fun to research our roots.  The long boat is beautiful.  Do people live on those boats?  I would like to be floating along that river about now.  Looks so relaxing!   Kathy

Anonymous said...

Timing is everything, eh?  LOL  Looks good.. goes well with the story.
d

http://journals.aol.com/nightmaremom/Thisandthatandhockey/

Anonymous said...

You take the nicest little trips. Very interesting as usual. Paula

Anonymous said...

Thank you for letting me share the wonderful photos you took.

I am an old 'biker' myself but did not aspire to getting a Harley.

By for now,

John.

Anonymous said...

What a great story....loved the pics too.
You suited being on that bike - and you looked like you were enjoying it!!
Hugs,

Anonymous said...

What an interesting day out.

I am deeply into my own family history and as a result spend a lot of time helping others that don't have such a 'detective' brain as I have. I found one of my ancestors was hung drawn and quartered for sheltering some of the Gunpowder Plotters. Very interesting for me  but quite horribble when I try to think about what that meant to him and his family.

I'll look forward to hearing about the Denver Sluice.

Anonymous said...

It is always exciting to find out anything about your family tree.  All so interesting and what a stunning graphic Jan, did you send her a photo or something?

http://journals.aol.co.uk/jeanno43/JeannettesJottings/

Anonymous said...

Wow!! at the photo's Jan, I love the one with the Harley and the Church in the same pic.  Would love a trip on those narrow boats.  Looks like you had a great time. Rache

Anonymous said...

This is a very interesting entry and thank you for providing us with all this history. Now I know the origin of Harley Davidson!
I must admit I felt very sad while reading.
You look great sitting on the bike!!
I'm sitting here wondering why we learn so much more from the British than the Americans??????
Anyway, Donna's graphic is beautiful and thanks once again.
Dianna

Anonymous said...

what a fascinating tale! and lovely graphics to boot!
thank you so much Jan!
love,nat

Anonymous said...

Interesting entry.   You looked like a real
Harley girl, all you needed was a bandana. Dawn

Anonymous said...

Hi Jan,

Thanks for the interesting story.  Sadly the photos didn`t come up for me but I`m sure they were very nice!  I`m glad you enjoyed your visit to Littleport. :o)

Sandra xxxx