CRANFORD 1938- 1946

The Berkeley Arms c1965
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My parents moved to Cranford in 1938, I was 3 years old. My dad was a pastrycook / baker and had got a job with a local firm in Cranford across from ‘The Berkeley Arms Hotel’ To the left of the hotel was a cherry orchard. A bakers shop and a hairdressing salon with a two bedroom flat had been built opposite, this was where we lived. The garden was huge, and had 26 fruit trees in the bottom half. My dad was to work in the bakehouse of the firm’s second shop. This was on the Bath Road as well. on the corner of Wellington Road near Hounslow opposite a pub called ‘The Windsor Castle’ which I think is still there. Next door to the shop in Cranford, was a detached house which was also a bank. Then came several more shops, a grocers, a greengrocers, a newsagents, a wool shop and a butchers. This was on the corner of Waye Avenue where several of my friends’ lived. We all went to the school in Berkeley Avenue, ‘Cranford Junior and Infants School’ At the junction of Berkeley Avenue and the Bath Road was a small thatched building with petrol pumps. Cranford then was more like a village, mostly fields and the odd farm, and no airport. My brother was born in 1939, the second world war had just started, and my dad did not have to go in the army because of his job. He kept greyhounds and used to exercise them in Cranford park which was a short walk away. There was a temporary church across the road leading to the park. It was called ‘The Holy Angels’ There was also a nursery where plants could be bought. A little further along was a petrol station. My dad had a small car which he could not use because of the war, so he rented a garage in the forecourt of a pub called ‘The Jolly Waggoner’ Opposite this were fields and a small airfield. Heathrow (as it was called then) was started much later in 1946, and was sited near Harlington. Next to the bakers shop below our flat were two very old cottages, they too had big gardens with lots of fruit trees. A grocers shop was next, and a hardware shop, A block of three shops owned by ‘The Co op’ was next. A grocers, a butchers and a greengrocers with a flat above. There was also a hall that could be hired. I used to have dancing lessons there !! Next to the dairy yard was an alleyway which led to Berkeley Avenue. Then came a shop selling bicycles and prams A café was next. You could buy ice cream cones and wafers through a special window in the front, inside were tables and chairs where you could enjoy ice cream sundaes. My favourite was a glass of tizer with a scoop of ice cream. The owners were Italian, and the café was called ‘Continental Café’ Then a fish and chip shop and a wet fish shop, round the corner a chemist shop called ‘Dunns’ I actually worked there when I left school! A drapers shop came next then ‘The Victoria Wine Shop’ The last shop on that side of the road, was a shoe menders. Now you were at the top of Berkeley Avenue.