Potter Street
Potter Street photos (12 available)
Potter Street maps (2 available)
Map of Essex
Beautifully hand-drawn and coloured, dating from around 1840
Personalised maps
Create an historic map centred directly on any postcode!
Potter Street books (17 available)
Braintree Town and City Memories
Hardback
Braintree Town and City Memories
Paperback
Chigwell Photographic Memories
Paperback
Potter Street memories
Read and share memories of Potter Street and Essex inspired by Frith photos
The White Horse
I was born in the "White Horse" on 7th October 1937. Mrs Woolard helped in the pub and looked after me when my Mum and Dad were busy. Mrs Woolard and her husband Alf lived on the other side of the Green. There were lots of her relatives in the village and everyone was very friendly. We moved to Hare Street, Great Parndon in the early 1940's and I started at Great Parndon Primary School which was near to St. Mary's Church. We used to walk to school across the fields from Hare Street. during the war (WW2) Nazi Germany dropped incendiary and high explosives (bombs) and some of the kids used to try to pull the unexploded bombs ...read more here
Contributed by George Nicholson
Essex memories
The White Horse
I was born in the "White Horse" on 7th October 1937. Mrs Woolard helped in the pub and looked after me when my Mum and Dad were busy. Mrs Woolard and her husband Alf lived on the other side of the Green. There were lots of her relatives in the village and everyone was very friendly. We moved to Hare Street, Great Parndon in the early 1940's and I started at Great Parndon Primary School which was near to St. Mary's Church. We used to walk to school across the fields from Hare Street. during the war (WW2) Nazi Germany dropped incendiary and high explosives (bombs) and some of the kids used to try to pull the unexploded bombs ...read more here
A memory of Potter Street contributed by George Nicholson
Pardon Hall
Pardon Hall WAS NOT demolished - the Victorian house still lies at the centre of the hospital site and is currently used to house the Past Graduate Medical Centre and Trust offices. Paintings done by Elizabeth Arkwright in the late 19th Century still adorn the doors walls and ceilings of the house. Sadly Parndon Hall is not accessible by the public.
A memory of Harlow contributed by Ursula Myers
Edmunds Tower
This photo and the one next to it showing St Pauls must have been taken from the top of Edmunds Tower. I lived there from 1970 - 1974, the views from the roof were wonderful. It was then a walk away from the town centre over the big car park and then back of the big shops (Woolworths was one of them), the view now is very different and the town centre is on the doorstep!
A memory of Harlow contributed by Sue Spiller
Extracts From Potter Street & Essex books
The White Horse stands on the edge of Harlow Common.
An extract from from"Harlow Town and City Memories".
This is the new parade of shops built by Harlow Development Corporation. Dorringtons (right) is a local baker with several shops in and around Harlow. Welfords, the general store of Old Harlow (H22026, page 25) has a corner site. The Red Lion next to Prentice Place (centre right) has 17th- and 18th-century features behind later additions. During the Second World War, the Red Lion was an ARP post. The empty roads were typical of the day - at this time, cars and garages had not yet become an important factor in the new estates. The King’s Head was demolished two years after this photograph was taken.
An extract from from"Harlow Town and City Memories".
Potter Street Junior School and the infant school were on the same campus, and were typical of the many schools that had to be provided quickly for the very large percentage of school-age children in Harlow New Town. Later, as the numbers of children decreased, the two schools were amalgamated into a primary school. The local comprehensive school is within easy walking distance along one of the old lanes preserved by the planners.
An extract from from"Harlow Town and City Memories".
Great care was taken in planning new areas, with safe open spaces where children could play unsupervised. Note the unfenced playground equipment, and the little box on old pram wheels that so many children made, so typical of the time. This development of 178 dwellings was built in 1952-55, so these children will have been able to go to the brand new school in the village.
An extract from from"Harlow Town and City Memories".
Perry Spring was built round a courtyard, and included a community centre. Some sculptures, ‘Torsos’, by Karel Vogel, were sited outside. The centre was to be managed by the Potter Street Residents and Community Association. Landlord and tenant matters were to be dealt with by the residents’ committee. This has proved to be one of the most successful associations in Harlow.
An extract from from"Harlow Town and City Memories".