You are here:
Colindale
Colindale maps
Historic maps of Colindale and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Colindale maps
Colindale area books
Displaying 1 of 13 books about Colindale and the local area. View all books for this area
You can read extracts and browse photos from these books.
Memories of Colindale
Displaying a selection of personal
memories of Colindale.
There are 16 shared memories to read.
Add your memory of Colindale
or of a photo of Colindale.
Colindale - The Early Years
I was born in the house on the corner of Woodfield Avenue and New Way Road in 1944 and lived there until the end of the 1970s. My birth was in fact on Friday the 13th of October, which coincided with the dropping of a V2 bomb in Colindale which hit a lamp post on the way down for extra effect. But I survived it, perhaps a bit deafened, to enjoy Colindale in the following years when it was at its best. Yes, Rushgrove Park was the epicentre for my early years both for playing football and socialising. The adjacent Silksteam provided a somewhat rural backdrop and the unofficial pathways alongside its banks were ideal places to ride our bicycles. Of course I had to have one sporting the trendy 'cow horn' handlebars rather than the common straight ones, but I did dispense with the bell as this was considered to be uncool! It was there in 1959 I met my first girlfriend and our date was a visit to the... Read more
3rd Kingsbury Scouts ?
I was just going through the stories on this site, of my old childhood days, in Edgware, Burnt Oak, Colindale and Kingsbury area, and I remembered those cold days where we almost turned blue at the Kingsbury swimming pool (a great training ground for my short stint in the Royal Marines), then something I had totally forgotten about of the past 60 years popped into my mind. The 3rd Kingsury Cubs/Scouts! I was a Cub and Scout there. Went to exciting places like Arundel for summer camp etc. Are there any of the old 3rd out there? Would love to hear from you. Dave ( bootneck58@comcast.net )
My Dad Was at Hendon Police School in 1958
My late father was a police officer with the Royal Malaysian Police between 1953 and 1982 inclusive. In the early years of his career he served under several British officers and was sent to the thick jungle of Malaya to fight against the communist terrorists which were putting up an armed struggle to take control of the country after the surrender of the Japanese in August 1945. I know about it as I have in my possession photographs of him taken with several British officers in the jungle as well as in the barracks. A year after Malaya gained her independence in August of 1957 from the British he was sent to England to undergo a police training course at the Hendon Police School. He was there between August 1958 and January 1959. I still have photographs of him taken at several locations within the compound of the school including one which was taken at the entrance as shown in the picture above. This year, 2010, in May I... Read more
Early Times in Colindale
I was born after the war and lived in Sheaveshill Avenue until I was married in 1971. I lived in a house that which had the dubious distinction of being directly opposite to the Titanine paint factory on the other side of the road. This occasionally provided some excitement and entertainment if there was a minor fire as the local brigade, from the Burroughs, usually arrived within five minutes, but there never was a really major incident to disturb the otherwise tranquil location. The factory staff used to hold practice fire drills on a concrete pad located behind the houses on the edge of what was known as the Backs and they were interesting to watch from a bedroom window.
The Backs was our playground for many years and I'm sure we covered every square foot of it playing one game or another. The land extended alongside the Northern underground line on one side and the Silkstream river - with its tributary which ran from the airfield at Hendon... Read more
The Hairdresser's
My step Dad Alf Baker owned the hairdressers opposite Wakemans Hill. It used to be called Rosalind, named after his first wife who lived above the shop. It was changed to Craig's in 1959. His car is parked outside in this picture, a Green Vauxhall Velox, in front of the bulilding sticking out on the right hand side, (is that the 'new' church).
Sometimes I would have to spend Saturdays in the shop, as my mother, Olive worked there too. I loved the toasted tomato sandwiches from the café next door.
The Good Old Days
Reading this site has bought some lovely memories back. I was born at 99 Lynton Aveuue and lived there happily with my mum and dad, Tom and Alice, and my brother and sisters Mandy, Annette and Richard (Richard and my dad have sadly passed away). I visited Colindale last month and was shocked and saddened to see how the area has changed. Where is everthing? My favourite memories are of Rushgrove Park, the paddling pool, the rope swing by the white bridge, and the strange brick building in the middle of the park surrounded by reeds. Can any tell me if the little shop in Rushgrove Avenue run by Mr and Mrs Patel is still there? Ggreat memories and I always visit when I come up from south Wales.
My Colindale
I came to live in Colindale in 1967 aged 1.5 years, first in Lynton Avenue, then in 1968 the family moved to The Loning where I still am to this day. I have very special memories of the area, White Bridge, Rushgrove Park and 'the pipe', hanging around 'the barriers' with my Mod mates in the 1980s, etc etc. The area has changed over the years, but there is still some of the charm left. I remember as a 10-12 year old taking polystyrene rafts down the Silkstream from the allotments, past White Bridge, all the way to the welsh harp, and catching stickle backs on the way. Many of the old businesses went and new ones have taken their place, with a series of massive developments in progress at the moment. Slowly but surely the old area is fading like a dream. Half remembered as if in sleep. My father, Graham, was an avid photographer and in his effects I found some old black and white pictures of various places,... Read more
More Early Days in Colindale
Life in Sheaveshill Avenue in the early to middle 1950's still seemed to me to be quite rural and as I recall we still had gas lit street lamps - or at least electric lamps using the old standards. The milk was delivered by the Express Dairy horse-drawn milk floats and even the 'rag & bone' man used a horse-drawn cart for his scrap metal and other unwanted items.
Colindale Park was of course our proper playground although unlike the Police College play area we did not have a nice shiny metal slide, only swings, see-saws and a rather dubious sand-pit. For a change then we used to occasionally visit the slide - with pieces of old candles to rub on the metal surface for extra speed! - until we were chased away by an adult who knew that we were 'foreigners'.
The grass covered air raid shelters, semi-buried in a long line in the park, provided ideal grandstands for the obligatory summer-time cricket matches and doubled up as 'BMX'... Read more
