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Earlswood memories

Here are memories of Earlswood and the local area. You can start now: Add your own Memory of Earlswood or a Earlswood photo.

The Kiln

This most likely stood in my family's New Pond Brickyard. The family firm was W Brown and Sons. The New Pond yard existed from 1813 to about 1938.

Earlswood Brickmakers

This photograph was added to the Frith Website in 2006, I believe.
However, I think it was taken towards the West end of Earlswood Common. I think it is of my Great Grandfather's home, Mackrells. GGF William Brown was a master brickmaker. The family firm was at Mackrells for over 100 years, making bricks and pottery items.
William was Mayor of Reigate towards the end of the 19th Century.

Sadly, the house has gone. It was replaced by Council flats and a close of houses in the 1960's. The name lives on. The flats are grouped around a close called Mackrells.

I would love to share memories etc with anyone who remembers the family & brickworks. Any photos??

Memories of Surrey

Saturday Nights

Market Hall 1899
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What memories this building holds.  It gave the opportunity for a lot of teenagers to have their first Saturday night outs.  It usually cost 1s 6d entrance fee unless there was a fairly well known group appearing that night then it was 2s 6d.  I attended Redhill Tech (my surname then was Watts) and worked on a Saturday in Woolies on the sweet counter and most of the day was spent chatting to various friends who used to come in and there would be great excitement in waiting for the evening to arrive.
I would rush home, wolf down some tea and then spend about 2 hours trying on outfits, usually wearing the first dress that I had put on.  It was such an exciting time, minis were just coming in and there were clothes that were actually designed for teenagers and not trying to make them look like mini adults.  One of my favourite dresses was a mustard coloured dress with black buttons and mock drop collars, oh I... Read more

Redhill General Hospital

Hospital, The Porter's Lodge 1908
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The picture is of the old East Surrey Hospital and I can remember my mother being an in patient there for many weeks around 1954--- as children we were not allowed in to the wards and I can remember waving to my Mum through a window.
I did my nurse training at Redhill General-- starting as a pre nursing student in 1965 and qualifying in 1970. We went between the two sites -- the other one being Smallfield Hospital in Horley which was an old war time hospital. I trained in the days when every hospital had a Matron and there was very strict discipline. we wore starched caps and aprons and the stiff collars were very uncomforable.
The ward at Redhill were named after places in Surrey--- the medical wards were Chipstead and Chaldon. Surgical wards were Bramley and Brockham and the childrens ward was in a part of the hospital that was the old workhouse--- The Spike. The isolation ward was also very... Read more

Training in Redhill General

Hospital, The Porter's Lodge 1908
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I too trained at RHG from 1963-1966 and I don't think any training these days could surpass the excellent training I received there. It was hard work but fun and I learned a lot and met some lovely people along the way. I ended up as a sister on ward 20 at Smallfield hospital and left in 1968 to go to live in Italy for a year - where I met my husband to be whilst on holiday.

Fate has now brought me back to live in Redhill in 2008 - even though I still work in London. I am very shocked at how Redhill has changed beyond recognition and not always for the better. I often think of my colleagues from those times and have recently visited the housing estate where the hospital once stood. There are still many lovely parts to this area and I frequently enjoy sojourns to Reigate and the surrounding towns.  

I would love to hear about other people's memories of... Read more

Market Hall 1915
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Like the young cool girl who remembers the Hollies at the Market Hall on a Saturday night, I too found live music there. I think me and a school mate (from Radnor House School for boys) called Hank Jell, so named after Hank Marvin, attended on its opening night. We saw Nero and the Gladiators supported by Tony Rivers and the Castaways. The next year or two we saw Screaming Lord Sutch and the Savages, Johny Kidd and the Pirates and Joe Brown and the Bruvvers etc. I had two choices to get home, either take the last bus to Dorking at 10p.m. or stay 'till the end and thumb a lift. By the end of 1963 I had an Ariel 200cc motorcycle, no more thumbing! I too drank in The South Eastern, a teacher at Radnor House saw us outside the Market one Saturday night and suggested we wear our school blazers, now how would that get us a whisky in the South Eastern at the age of 15?!Read more

Monson Arms

Monson Arms c1960
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I was born next door to the Monson Arms at 43 Green Lane, Redhill, my father built the house - we were the Brunt family. I used to go and get my bottle of pop and I swallowed a threepenny bit in the off-licence which was at the front of the pub. The owners used to own a dog called Gus - he was a Boxer - and they had two children called Howard and Beverly Stanley. I used to also swim at Redhill pool and was a member of the Marlins swimming club. I went to St Matthew's and also Bishop Simpson. I was one of 6 children - my mum used to work in Taylor's, the fruit and veg store. I remember the Co-op and when they used to have the PG Tip monkeys in there.

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