My grandfather was George Henry Ayling brother to William James Ayling known in the village as ‘Winkle’ or ‘The Bun King of Lickfold’. His father was George Ayling who was the village postman and a shoe maker: I’m told that he died of a heart attack whilst emptying the post box at Halfway Bridge. His Father was Henry Ayling a gamekeeper born in Easebourne but lived in lodsworth, his sister Priscilla Ayling married Charles Hills of ‘Moorlands Farm’ Lodsworth.
If anyone has any information on any members of my family I would be very interested.
Tony Ayling
We’ll come back to you with a fuller response, but in the meantime you presumably know Mike Hubbard who is an authority on this branch of the family.
Ian Buckingham
If you do a search for ‘Ayling’ on this website you will find an enormous number of mentions under:
‘Farms & Nurseries’, ‘Shops’, ‘Lodsworth in 1912’ by Harry Carver, 11 burials since 1900 in St Peter’s churchyards (there have been over 30 in all), ‘Unusual nicknames in the early 20th century’, ‘The Randall family of Lodsworth Stores’ which included Charlotte nee Ayling a ‘Dependant Brethren’ (also called ‘Cokelers’), and in the catalogue of our Lodsworth Community Archive.
Ian Buckingham
Thank you so much for the prompt action to my request and many thanks for all the effort you have put in.
Best wishes Tony
Hello, please can you help me, I’m trying to find out if we are connected to your family. My Aunt Kathleen (nee Aylen) age 96, was born & raised in Beckenham, Kent. She has told me that she remembers there were 2 shoes shops, one in Beckenham High St. & one in Bromley High St. & we had a family connection to them. The family name being spelt Aylen & it was a spelling mistake on a birth certificate that the spelling was changed to Ayling. I see that your reference is that your family originates from Eastbourne. I have trace back to my Great Grandfather Robert Aylen born 1805 originally from Hammersmith.
I wondered if there is any connection with our families as I would love to update my Aunt of my findings.
Kind regards
Theresa Dark
I well remember going to Mrs Ayling’s sweet shop in Lickfold. This must have been in the late 1950s when I was about 6 or 7, and she was an old lady then. We lived in a house which was known as Jock’s Lodge then, and I believe is now The Orchard. My sisters and I used to walk down to Mrs Ayling’s as a treat at the weekends to get some sweets. The ‘shop’ was actually more like her front room, but was treasure trove for us in those days. I can still picture it remarkably clearly.
Mrs Ayling was my Granny. I moved from Colliers Cottages to Fernhurst in 1954 and have been there ever since. I remember the shop in the front room but prior to that it was in the building in the garden on the Lodsworth side of the house. I believe a garage now.When her arthritis got so bad it was easier for her to cope. I never remember her standing upright. Michael Hubbard remembers delivering your families post.