I Grew Up In Eltham

A Memory of Eltham.

My family moved to Eltham about 1954/5 and I lived there until about 1966. I attended Middle Park Primary School and later the Gordon School. We lived next door to Working Mens Club on Eltham Hill just down from the Swimming Baths. Have lots of memories of my childhood there. I did a paper round before school and worked at the newsagents in Eltham on Sundays, on Saturdays I worked at the Central Cafe which was always packed with people wanting their popular steak and mushroom pie dinners (one of my jobs was peeling the mushrooms!). Was a busy girl, lol. Used to deliver the paper at the Palace and St John's Vicarage, and the Cottage Hospital I think it was called. Was into swimming in secondary school and had to practice every weekday so fitting this in between paper round and getting to school it was handy living near the swimming baths. Was a member of Lamorbey? Swimming Club. They used to put a floor over one of the pools in the winter and have dances there, I remember the Dave Clark Five being there one time, also had wrestling sometimes. I live in Sydney, Australia, and now know that one of the first two aborigines to travel to England died and is buried in St John's churchyard. I use to love watching the wedding processions at the Church. Remember fairly long walk to school each day and short cut to Gordon School was through the Pleasance. Remember the stepping stones and water, collecting tadpoles there, remember writing history of the place and Sir Thomas Moore at school. Remember real pea souper fogs some days walking to school in winter. My brothers often went to Burtons to dances, it was above shops on corner in Eltham High Street. Collecting my dad from the White Hart pub (he was blind) in the High Street. Lots of memories of Eltham and surrounding area! We did not have tv or phone back then and us kids used to go in Club next door where they had a tv room. My dad played the piano in the Club sometimes and I would hear them all having a singalong. Although I was unable to attend his funeral back in 1969 I understand lots of his mates from the Club were there. I was shocked to see a tv programme some years ago which said (then) that Eltham was the murder capital of the world! Not the Eltham I remember.

---

---