Teenage Memories

Cove was a special place, a place where I was born, at 11 Sydney Smith Close...now stands Beverly Crec....

My grandad Matthew Smith lived at 39 Holly Rd, and worked on the railway as a plate layer. Growing up we lived in Hazel Avenue, and I spent all of my childhood on Eelmoor Farm, with Uncle Eddy Arrow. It was a great time for me, he was the local woodman and also kept pigs, we used to do a swill round in RAF Borough. I was also a delivery boy for the local shop, J. E King and Son, also known locally as Cookies because Jim Cook was the father of Joan King.

It was a time when I delivered groceries around RAF Borough, and if the householder wasn't at home I used to let myself into the house and place the groceries on the table,  pick my money up from the table where there would be a row of money, for the milkman, tallyman etc. That was when the world was full of trust, it wouldn't happen today. Great characters abounded in Cove, Old Arthur Lunn, Frank Grenham who owned the Alma, Mr Spreadborough who used to cycle around the parish cutting hair (6 pence a hair cut). Great times were had at Cove Iveyleaf Club ... the coach trips to the coast, Len Rumble the secretary, Verdon Over, Bert Truefit, the airshow every year in September. Cove was a different and special place then, a very close knit community.

Every Sunday it was down to Charlie Christopher's sweet shop for ice creams and mixture of sweets. I think he was the only shop open on a Sunday. We would catch the bus in the one way street near Supply Stores, and go into Aldershot.

Good times, my friends. Perhaps I should write a book about it before it's too late.

Cheers, Peter Smith  (Charlie).