Colony Farm and The Sycamores

Image: © Bob Jones Taken: 13 Jan 2009

Apart from the barn which is used by a local farmer as a grain intervention store, there are no other farm buildings nearby. A bungalow, unrelated to the barn, is called 'The Sycamores' (see OS 1:25,000) after the two trees standing next to the track. The name 'Colony Farm' (OS 1:50,000) relates to the short-lived Owenite Manea Colony, formed in 1838. As referred to in Image the actual site of the colony was probably adjacent to the Old Bedford River, although no visual evidence remains. This farm may have taken its name from the nearby colony, but it is more likely that this was not the actual site. A separate interesting fact is that a Handley-Page Halifax aircraft crashed in the field opposite the farm in April 1944, having been shot down by an intruder Messerchmitt, with the loss of six of the seven crew. See http://www.aircrewremembrancesociety.com/raf1944/Dibbins.html

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