Cecil Amor was a regular contributor to this magazine since 2007. He was born in Rowde, a small Wiltshire village near Devizes. He attended the local village school then Devizes Grammar school. His hobbies included building small model aircraft with friends. Cecil had a thirst for learning and he and his teachers would have liked him to have continued at school, but the norms of the time meant that he left to go to work at 15.
Cecil chose a career in electrical engineering. He was apprenticed to a firm in another Wiltshire town, cycling long distances.
He did National Service, serving in the RAF. One responsibility involved battery charging of aircraft ground-support equipment. He later recalled he was glad not to have incurred the disciplinary charge imposed if a battery was found not to be ready for service.
Cecil’s ambition was to become a chartered electrical engineer, so he enrolled in night school to obtain the necessary qualifications to join the Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE). This took much determination, as it was uncommon to be admitted without a university degree. Cecil later went on to become a Fellow of the IEE.
Cecil met his wife, Gillian, at a dance in Devizes Corn Exchange. They married and had two children, Antonia and Nigel.
In 1967 Cecil was offered a position at Hirst Research in Crawley, so the family moved to Horsham in West Sussex.
His final position was at The Design Council in London, helping firms develop innovations by introducing them to designers and manufacturing specialists. During his career he was involved in the first microwave ovens, 1980 Munich Olympics, mega-Watt energy systems, and James Dyson’s first project, the ball-barrow.
After retirement in 1989 Cecil and Gillian moved to Bradpole. He embraced hobbies including researching Dorset’s stone circles and his family ancestry. He also translated French patent applications into English. Over the years he was actively involved in many local organisations, including Somerset and Dorset Family History Society, Treasurer of Bridport Society of Friends Alms House Trust, Bridport Museum committee and Bridport Heritage Forum.
Cecil was a founder member of Bridport History Society, which formed in 1995, becoming Chairman for 20 years and subsequently Honorary President. He was a regular contributor to the Society’s Journal and was involved in exhibitions, seminars and historical walks.
This year he received a special award for Outstanding Individual Contribution from the British Association for Local History.
He is remembered for his gentle manner, his love of his family and friends, for his active mind and for his readiness to encourage others.
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