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Northumberland Heath
Northumberland Heath photos
Displaying the first of 2 old photos of Northumberland Heath. View all Northumberland Heath photos
Northumberland Heath maps
Historic maps of Northumberland Heath and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Northumberland Heath maps
Northumberland Heath area books
Displaying 1 of 13 books about Northumberland Heath and the local area. View all books for this area
You can read extracts and browse photos from these books.
Memories of Northumberland Heath
Displaying a selection of personal
memories of Northumberland Heath.
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Barnehurst Avenue
My memory is of Barnehurst Avenue, where I was born in Number 48, and I had a great childhood from then on. I remember playing in the road as there were not many cars, going to Martins Grove swimming and playing. I had lots of friends when I was growing up who all lived in the road, we had a great time. I remember waiting for the ice cream man on a Sunday, and playing in the allotments behind my house at the bottom of the garden. If I could buy a house down there now, I would.
A Long Way From St. Pauls Road
Hi, my name is Susan Thompson, formerly Hawkins and I'm 54, I was born in the above address and lived there for 18 years although my parents lived there for over 40 years. I went to Brook St. school finally leaving in 1967 at 15 years of age, I'm afraid I didn't shine at school, I was bored for the last year or so, but I survived, working in the Co-op in Northumberland Heath and numerous other fairly dead end jobs.
Fortunately for me, I met and married a very good and hard working man called Joe and 3 months after we married we went to Australia where we lived for 7 years.
We had 2 children and decided to return to England, we didn't settle there, we currently live in Dublin, my husband is Irish.
I have lots of memories of growing up in North Heath, we played out on the street and we roamed Bursted Woods, gathering chestnuts in the autumn and picking armfuls of bluebells in spring,... Read more
Kent memories
Barnehurst in The Late 40s/50s
I still live in Barnehurst having moved back in 1947. The picture of Barnehurst Road, although the scenery hasn't changed much the shops have. The corner shop on the right was United Dairies and there was a butchers shop a coal shop, a cleaners, two grocers a post office. two newsagents. Nowadays it is mostly take away restaurants and estate agents. If you turned right at the end of the road, went about 400 yards there was a little farm house with no electricity owned by a Mr Brazier whose land at the rear was an orchard. I then lived in a house that backed on to it. He used to patrol it at night with a lantern in case someone scrumped his apples. He lived with his two sisters and was rarely seen. The trees in the background are Bursted Woods which are still there. I must have climbed virtually every tree in those woods. The pub (Red Barn) is still there. Trolley buses were the mode of transport... Read more
A Pool of Evocative Tears
I was 8 years old when this picture was taken. It is hard to express how evocative this innocuous little picture is to me. Is that a box of tissues on the right?. Well this picture really set me off blubbing. At this end of the pool was a toddlers pool, part of but fenced off from the deeper part. I was there with my little brother Paul and we called him Doughnut. He must have been just three. Well I lost him, there was quite a crowd and I looked all over Martens Grove for him asking everyone if they had seen him. I was absolutely alone and terrified, as it all emptied out I think I must have got a bit hysterical. You didn't wander round with a mobile phone like today. There wasn't a phone box very near. We didn't have a phone at home anyway, but I was too scared to go phone the police in case he came back to the pool. It was beginning... Read more
Barnehurst - Where I Grew up
I lived in Mayplace Road East - firstly at no. 332 (from the age of 4) and then (after returning from living in Essex for a couple of years), at no. 310. Both these houses were more or less opposite to the Manor House and the delights of the golf course where we wandered for hours finding stray golf balls and birds nests! I recall the ruins of what we thought was a wonderful old castle - I have never found out what it really was.
I had been born in March 1949 at my auntie's house in Manor Road, which although just round the corner was actually Crayford. My parents had left the area when they married in 1946 as my father was then to work at Huyton, just outside Liverpool. But my mum was so home-sick and the Xmas before I was born they went down to stay with her sister and mum never returned to the North. Dad sold the house and they bought a house a... Read more
Mayplace County Primary School
Absolutely loved my time at Mayplace County Primary! It is sn old cliche but they were best days of my education! Great atmosphere at the school - I remember two teachers, Mr Jakeways the headteacher and Mr Cooker my form teacher. We lived in Bexley but used to cut through Shenstone Park and in the summer go to the open air pool near the school (Martins Grove).
I now live in NW England and work as Director of a disability charity. I went through the education route myself with PGCE and M. Ed, and am very grateful to the school for giving me such a great start in life.
Colin Thornton.
Halcyon Days
During the Second World War a land mine fell by parachute in Courtleet Bottom, somewhere near the junction with Rydal Drive, I believe they called in the navy bomb disposable team. I went to Barnehurst School, Mrs Mumford was the head teacher. The sheltered accommodation wasn't built then, it was all overgrown. On the way home from school we had good times playing on the steep path and in the bushes (including kiss, chase, and truth, dare, promise or must!). That path was brilliant for toboggans in the winter. My mate Chris Rainsbury's family was something to do with one of the shops, I also worked as a paper boy in the newsagents and also the other newsagent corner of Merewood Road, Mrs Clark owned it. The car showroom at the corner of Grassmere was a petrol garage, in the mid fifties I used to get my scooter petrol there, 3/6d a gallon! I moved to Barnehurst in 1940 after being 'bombed out' from Catford SE6, we were the 'Blitz' refugees, not... Read more
