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Romford
Romford maps
Historic maps of Romford and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Romford maps
Romford area books
Displaying 1 of 14 books about Romford and the local area. View all books for this area
You can read extracts and browse photos from these books.
Memories of Romford
Displaying a selection of personal
memories of Romford.
There are 18 shared memories to read.
Add your memory of Romford
or of a photo of Romford.
Oldchurch Hospital 1956-57
I have such memories as a 17 year old of working in the 'Admins Office' in Oldchurch Hospital. I think I just walked in one day, got an interview and started on the Monday - no job centres or CVs needed then. The boss was Mr Totts and Mr Izzard and Mr Jarvis were his under colleagues. I used to have to walk across every morning to the Matron's office to collect the personal belongings of anyone who had passed away the previous day, which were then collected by relations at our office some time later. I remember there were relatives coming in on a regular basis to collect the belongings of a small child that had died of leukaemia. It seemed to be rife in those days. I also recall a young man coming in to the office one day looking for a position. his name was Colin and he was very keen on cycling and I think he had served in Korea. He had a start there... Read more
When Buses Ran Past Lloyds Bank .....
I am told that once upon a time buses ran through Romford Market towards Gidea Park. Apparently I was happily standing in the queue with my mother and newly-born sister in a pram waiting for a 174. I held tight to Mum's coat so as not to lose her. Imagine my surprise to find that the coat in question belonged to a stranger, and my mother and sister had boarded the bus and were moving away! Luckily the kindly lady looked after me until my poor flustered mother and sister returned. Thank you, kindly lady. Louise Hands-Heathfield (now living in Bournemouth).
My Early Days in Romford
I was born in 1929 in my parent's house at 40 Medora Road, adjacent to the old football ground. Any time I hear the Sousa march - 'Liberty Bell' - I am reminded of Saturday there. It was played at the close of every match to get the people to leave in an orderly manner. My father worked at the Labour Exchange on North Street. In the first days/nights of the air raids we slept in the employees' air raid shelter behind the office building. Later on we slept in Shelter No. 4 on North Street across from the Henry Haysom furniture store. That store was hit one night and burned to the ground. The Alms Houses across the street, of wooden constrution, also burned from the heat of the fire. Apart from his day job as manager, my dad also had a full time voluntary night job with the ARP. I became a messenger boy at age 13 and spent one night weekly at the Report Center under the... Read more
The Vogue Cinema
Yes I remember it well, always showed B movies and you were lucky if you saw the complete film without the projector breaking down, when it did there were boos and shouts from the audience. Also the carpets were loose and you took your life in your hands if you had to answer the call of nature. Came out through the Cattle market which was entertainment for free. Happy Days Eh
School Days
I also went to the County High! My teacher was Miss Hewson, the music teacher was Miss Harris and Miss Bubbers, I can see her now storming down the corridor, she made me stand in front of her one day and talk without using my hands, which to me was agony! LOL. I can only remember a few names, Ann Knight who was a brilliant painter, I believe she painted a mural on the class wall, Sidonie Platt and Valerie Powell who was a brilliant seamstress. I lived at Harold Hill at the time and used to get the 174 which used to stop outside the shool in those days. We used to sometimes have a school dance with the Royal Liberty boys' school. Oh such fun days they were. My name was Pat Trotter in those days, I became Pat Smith in 1956, then the name I have now in 1987. I am now 73 but the memories are like yesterday. It was a very good school though... Read more
Memories of Romford
I was born in 1940 at Recreation Avenue, London Road and have many happy memories of my birthplace. I attended London Road Junior School from 1946 to 1951 and remember three teachers as they were all vegatables, ie the headmaster was Mr Beans, the maths teacher was Mr Greens and the English teacher was Mr Onions. I came home through Spring Gardens in which there was Colverns factory. I spent many happy hours over Cottons recreation ground and used to get told off by the park keeper for walking across the putting green. I remember the tall slide in the playground and the zig zag which would probably be a health and safety issue today. We had our first television from Mr Maxted in London Road, a 9inch HMV, and sat around the 11 degree circle as we had a bullseye magnifiying glass fitted, watching Silvia Peters, Mary Malcom and Macdonald Hobley. I remember playing cricket and getting one on the head. I attended St Andrews Church Sunday School. I... Read more
St. Mary's High School
I'm wondering if anyone remembers St. Mary's High School in Western Road. I attended the school when I was very young in 1946-9, before my family emigrated first to Canada, then to the USA. My best friends were Zena O'Shea, Rebecca Brown and Valerie Dunbar - and I can still remember clearly most things about the school - not least, Sister Bernard, the formidable headmistress, Miss Hogg, who terrified us all (but who I'm sure meant well) and Miss Dennis the piano teacher whose strictness I have to thank for the fact that I can still play my scales!
The school was run by the Sisters of Mercy. Our winter uniform was a navy blue gymslip tied around the middle by a 'girdle', its colour indicating our House (mine was 'Red'), and our odd looking little hats were round and brimless with the sides pinched together by little epaulettes which allowed them to be altered to fit. (We called them 'sick bowls', quite understandable if you could see them). ... Read more
BBC Documentary About Harold Hill
The BBC is looking at the day that Margaret Thatcher introduced the 'Right to Buy' scheme, allowing people in council houses to buy their own homes.
The film will look at the benefits for several million people who became homeowners, and the difficulty for councils in replacing the stock of social housing.
We have BBC footage of the time when Margaret Thatcher visited Harold Hill when the scheme started.
We're trying to track down people from Harold Hill who bought their council home using the scheme in the 80s and find out how it affected their life.
If this applies to you, please could you tell us a bit about your experiences?
Or if you know anyone else who bought a house in Harold Hill in the 80s, please do let us know.
Below is our e-mail and telephone number.
Thank you for reading.
E-mail: real@reallife.co.uk
Tel: 0113 237 1005
