Ealing 1934 To 1953

A Memory of Ealing.

I moved to Hanwell in 1934 and was sent to Wynnstay School for girls and little boys, it was in The Avenue, not too far from West Ealing Station.   I went to school on the 211 bus for a year then cycled, about 1 1/2 miles each way. In 1937 I was moved to Harrow View House School in Cleveland Avenue to meet up with Billy Cato, part of the Cato ironmongery empire. September 1939 saw the end of that school and I was sent variously to Ealing College near The Boadway and later to Hamilton House School in Florence Road leaving there in 1943 for Merchant Taylors. During those years I lived in Mayfield Avenue, Brunswick Road, Uxbridge Road and Corringway from 1940 to 52 when I married and moved to 49 Madeley Road. Many a time I cycled past Hanwell Lunatic Asylum not knowing then that I had an ancestor buried in the grounds, my mother never told me! 1935 I was in King Edward Memorial Hospital for a tonsilectomy, that hospital is now in the grounds of the old asylum! During the Hitler War (WW2) we had a shelter in the garden but that was not a success in that it flooded in the winter so we got a Morrison shelter indoors. Warmer but probably not as safe. During the 'Blitz' we spent the nights in the shelter and in the day time life went on as normal except that food, although enough, was in short supply, there were not many obese people around in those days. If you had the money you could always get a meal at Joe Lyons in Ealing Broadway or The ABC (Aerated Bread Company).
In 1949 I got a Saturday job serving in Bentalls, Ealing Broadway, they had bought out Eldred Sayers department store. From time to time I had employment in the lab at Vab Plating in West Ealing, that business never suffered a power cut during the bombing and it was assumed that they were on the same power supply as the hospital. In 1944 along with a Michael Powell I started a Scout Troop at The Church of The Ascension, there were a number of lads evacuated from Docklands in the area and they joined, calling themselves 'The black hand gang'; I was told a couple of years ago that it still functions but at another church. The first Scout camp was held at Stoke Row, near Reading and that was the time the first Atomic Bomb was dropped with the war ending about 10 days later. Life did not at once return to normal, there was still rationing until 1954 but it did get easier.   
Of my schoolfellows I am in touch with Peggy Cato, now Peggy Wilkie, from Wynnstay, Peter Mulligan who lived in Corringway died about 2005 as Mick Mulligan, JohnSudbury of Boileau Road died about 2007 so if there any of you out there I used to know contact me before we all pop off, cryogenic@clara.net; written September 2009