Growing up in Barnes - 1950s

Church Road c1965
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We moved to Glebe Road in 1952 (Cousland) and it was a wonderful place for children. We had a back gate opening on to the common and made full use of it. The grass was cut every year and baled for hay and we used to rush out and build houses from the bales. Every Friday we were allowed to buy 2ozs of sweets from Mr Brown's sweet shop (just out of shot here) then help carry the shopping home from the new "supermarket" Express Dairies. There was also a greengrocer, another sweetshop (The Crescent) and a dry cleaners. The milkman delivered in a new battery van, and there was a rag and bone man who came round with his pony and cart. At the other end of Church Road there was a very smart ladies dress shop and a shoe shop. All we needed was in Barnes. We could fish in the pond for sticklebacks and scoop up tadpoles in the spring. The swings at Vine Road were heavenly, and there were tennis courts at the end of Ranelagh Avenue. Aged 8 and 9 we would walk across the common to the station and get the train to Richmond Baths. We could also walk to the open air pool across the level crossing and over the Lower Richmond Road. I used to wonder how we could have been safe, but seeing your photos makes me realize how little traffic there was so it was very much easier to cross the road. I went to the Convent just out of sight round the corner and was very lucky to have had a childhood in this loveliest of London suburbs. Liz Cousland