Halcyon Days

A Memory of South Ockendon.

My family moved from south London when I was about 4. We moved into no 5 cruick-avenue. Those were the days when only the odd family had a car, you would go to a neighbours house and pay to use there phone. All adults were mr or mrs, even close neighbours were addressed that way, never by first names.my best friend was jimmy Gorman who had moved hear from Grimsby. We would wander the woods and fields bird nesting and causing general mischief to the local farmers. One farm hand we called 'fat winch' actually he worked. For farmer winch. He rode an old black bike and if he caught us he would dish out a slap. In those days Vellacots mansion at the top of ford place was a lovely old building with a wide imposing driveway leading up to the house, with big oak gates.my mum Mary used to work there as a cleaner. We would swim in the mardyke river with the kench boys. Over the ' spikey' bridge to primrose wood and the sand pits where they did motorbike scrambling, essex arena now.those days we had 4 secondary schools, Culverhouse boys n girls, Lennards, and earles court. Green buses those days 328 and 370 and green line took you to London. We used to walk to the quarry at the end of pilgrims lane which in those days was a very narrow lane, we would fish all day for roach n Rudd coming home late in the evening. One of the strange things was that as kids 14 years old we had 12 bore shotguns and would wander along the mardyke up to orsett , usually got chased by gamekeepers ! All changed one but lovely memory's.

---

---