Around The Chalk Pit

A Memory of St Paul's Cray.

I lived at 1 St. George's Close, off Chalk Pit Avenue from 1946 to 1954. At first, the Chalk Pit was still there, as was the Oast House, where the shops are now on the corner of Chalk Pit Avenue and Main Road. I first went to St. Paulinus Infant School, next to what was then St. Paulinus Church in Main Road and then to St. Paul's Cray Rectory Paddock Junior school, which, at the time, was old Nissan Huts. Each surrounded by a brick wall and, presumably previously an old Army depot of some sort. The chalk pit and oast house provided great adventure playgrounds for the local kids. From St. George's Close, you could look across the Cray Valley and see virtually nothing but corn fields, later all housing estates. The top end of Chalk Pit Avenue petered out into a dirt track by what was known as 'The Clump', a stand of trees on the right hand side. There were then open fields and a little further on was a gypsy encampment. Very often the gypsy horses would gallop unattended, down Chalk Pit Avenue to drink in the River Cray during the night and then amble slowly back, going into gardens and eating whatever they could. We would quite often find a couple of them wandering round the recreation gound next to Rectory Paddock School. Next to the Oast House, in Main Road, was a small parade of shops (still there) and I remember queueing at Nicholsons, the sweet shop, when rationing came off sweets. Some of the families who were our close neighbours were Warren, Hackney, Dane, Pink, Moss, Woodgate, Rangecroft, Galloway, Knapp and Smith that I remember. Some of those that were kids in those days might remember using bits of tin as toboggans to slide down the steep sides of the chalk pit and getting covered in nettle rash from all the stinging nettles at the bottom. Luckily, there were plenty of dock leaves to soothe the pain!. The other great playgrounds were 'The Brook'( the River Cray) and the lake belonging to a fishing club. Rafts and boats crudely made from bits of wood and canvas were the order of the day. Summer games were Cowboys and Indians in the chalk pit and billy-carts and pieces of wood on roller skates as early skate-boards, to race down Chalk Pit Avenue. Luckily there were few cars in those days. In winter, if there was heavy snow, a snowball started at the top of Chalk Pit Avenue would be huge by the time it got to the bottom and would roll across Main Road into the gardens of the terrace houses opposite, and take weeks to thaw. Bonfire night was a neighbourhood affair, with a huge bonfire on the flat area above the Chalk Pit and all the neighbours would bring fireworks. John Warren (the boy next door) and I were caught by a local policeman when we were cutting a tree down for the bonfire, next to the Oast house. He threatened us with all sorts of things if the tree came down and we were terrified for days in case it did. Just before firework night it blew down in a strong wind but he didn't carry out any of his threats. Mind you, we kept well out of his way. 'Smokey Jo' was a character from those days. He was a vagrant who travelled around the area on an old bike without chain or tyres, just scooting along. On a trip back to England a few years ago (I live in Australia), I saw a photograph of Smokey Joe on the wall of a pub in North Cray Road.

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