Author of Chorleywood history book to hold signing on Friday

The author of a new book which gives villagers a chance to step back in time and learn more about Chorleywood’s past will be holding a book signing in Chorleywood Bookshop this Friday (December 5). Rickmansworth, Croxley Green and Chorleywood Through Time by John Cooper was published earlier this year. It looks at the history of Chorleywood, King Richard VII’s visit to Croxley and Rickmansworth’s first railway station in 1862. John has written seven historical books. He said: “The books have been my retirement hobby. I collect old postcards from fairs across the South West. I find a postcard of interest and then research it further. “For example I had a postcard of Chorleywood’s Christ Church, from there I contacted the church and got in touch with somebody who had a pot of knowledge regarding its history.” John then takes a photograph for a modern day comparison, focusing on before and after the war. He added: “The book also takes a lot of research as I have to find experts in the field to help me obtain accurate information.” John, who lives in Harpenden, is a retired quantity surveyor and office manager who has an interest in genealogical research. “The books have done very well in the local areas, it is of interest to younger people who want to know what happened in the past and older people can relate to many of the images and it can jog their memories,” he said. John’s previous book include his first publication A Harpenden Childhood Remembered: Growing up in the 1940s & 1950s and Making Ends Meet… A Working Life Remembered which centres around a man’s working life. Rickmansworth, Croxley Green and Chorleywood Through Time is published by Amberley Publishing is available to buy at WH Smiths. John will be holding a booking signing at the Chorleywood Book Shop on December 5 from 6.30pm to 7.30pm