Growing Up In Barnes 1950s

Hallo there Liz
Do you remember me? We lived on Laurel Road, around the corner from you, Geeta and Renuka de Lima. Unfortunately my darling sister Geeta was killed in a car accident when she was 21. I look back at my time in Barnes (we moved there in 1959) with such happiness and also sadness that it has passed. I loved our school, the Convent of the Sacred Heart. Your sister Valerie Holmes was there. Wasn't she a Head Girl? I also miss the nuns: Sister/Mother de Chantal, Sister Theresa, Sister Catherine (who despaired of my awful sewing) and headmistress Sister Augustine or "Gussie", although we never called her that in her hearing. Geeta was very fond of Sister Peters. Sister Bernadette taught the younger ones. We used to have cycle races on Glebe Road. Yes, there must have been very little traffic then as it was never dangerous. I remember Mr Brown the sweet shop owner, once telling me off for some reckless cycling on Church Road that could have killed me. I wasn't happy with him at the time but today I wish I could thank him for looking out for me. There was a small grocery shop towards the centre of Church Road run by Rod, a friend of my Dad. Mrs Wyborne (no idea how you spell her name) worked there and used to make tinned salmon fish cakes on a Friday which we used to buy. All shops closed half day on Wednesdays then. We spent all our spare time playing on the common and one summer we made homes in a large area of blackberry bushes which we called "Bush Village". Beverly Brook ran at the bottom of our garden and eventually opened out into the common. We thought we had lost Geeta one day on the common but after much searching we found that your mum had taken her in and was looking after her. My mum made a little posy out of Lilly of the Valley flowers from the garden as a thank you for your mum. Friday for us was "sweety day". Dad used to come home from work at about 7pm with sweets. Often I would wait for his bus to arrive on Church Road on a Friday to get my sweets. What a piggy I must have been. Still am! I do remember when the pond opposite our convent froze over. We used our school cases as sleds to slide over it. It was also hosed down with water to make the ice smooth and a few people actually skated on it. Like you, I believe we were so lucky to have spent our childhoods in Barnes.

I went to the convent in 1952 I cried at the memories of my days at the convent of sister Theresa playing netball and sister Augustus and how we used to ping paper balls at the habits that they had on there heads .I lived in Acton and had to take 2 buses to get to school I changed buses in Hammersmith and took a #9 bus to Barnes I was the only girl that lived in Acton but I had many friends at school It was long before you went there I am 77 years old now and live here in Paris Texas .I left England in 1966 and went to live in Montreal Canada I lived there for 8 years then moved to the US .You talk about the pond on the common and we used to go blackberry picking on the common, I am so happy to have found some one that went to that wonderful school .My name is Mary Theresa Mcmahon but all my friends called me Tessie I have been a Brooks since 1957 how time flies do let me know if you get this let me know where you live now

Hi There I went to the Convent in Barnes from 1958 to 1967 when it was forced to close and moved to Oxford, all because a Catholic primary school was wanted in Barnes.
I'm Sue Riggs - was Cheshire, we lived in Rectory Road. I have so many happy memories. Sister Bernadette taught me first in Kindergarten. I loved Miss Walsh who was also the Music teacher. Sister de Chantel and SisterTheresa who we called Tessa she taught Drama which I loved.

I loved the shows we used to put on at the end if the Summer term. I remember being in Pier Gint and Thomas Becket. I remember going to Switzerland with the school in 1966(i think that was the date).
More about Barnes does anyone remember Mr. Weedon's sweet shop in Church Road also Walton Hassell &Port an old type of deli.
I now live in the South Coast in Sussex an 63.
I could carry on writng about so many wonderful times at school and most of all living in Barnes, I was so luckyi have such a wonderful abd hapot childhood.

HI, I ALSO WENT TO THE SACRED HEART CONVENT AND REMEMBER SISTER THERESA; SHE WOULD PLAY SPORTS WITH US WEARING STRIPED SOCKS! MY FRIEND AT SCHOOL WAS JILL BOSHER AND I THINK SHE LIVED IN NASSAU ROAD. I ALSO HAD CLASSMATES NAMELY GABRIELE, GEORGINA (WHO WAS A FRIEND OF MARY WHO LIVED IN FLATS JUST ACROSS THE HAMMERSMITH BRIDGE) AND KNEW OLDER GIRLS WHO WERE IN A GROUP WITH BERNADETTE DRIVER; THIS WAS A GIRL WITH MASSES OF LONG RED HAIR AND A CHINESE GIRL. MISS WALSH ALSO TOOK MY CLASS FOR MUSIC AND WE WOULD LISTEN TO THE RADIO (I HAVE A PHOTO OF HER WITH SISTER AUGUSTINE). I REMEMBER SISTER CATHERINE WHO ONCE CRIED BECAUSE OF MY SEWING WHICH I FELT VERY GUILTY ABOUT. I ALSO KNEW SLYVIA, WHO HAD SOME BACK TROUBLE AND THERE WAS A SMALLER GIRL WHO MUST HAVE HAD A LEG INJURY.AND WORE A CALLIPER. FOR A SHORT TIME WE HAD A FRENCH TEACHER WHO I THINK WAS CALLED WALSH WHO MY FRIEND JILL WAS SCARED OF. HER MOTHER ASKED ME WHAT I THOUGHT WAS UPSETTING HER AND I SAID ABOUT THIS. SHE LEFT AND JILL CAME BACK TO SCHOOL. WE ALSO HAD AN AUSTRALIAN TEACHER WHO CAME IN SMOKING A CIGARETTE AND WORE TIGHT DUSTY SWEATERS AND SKIRT, AND SHE THREW A BLACKBOARD RUBBER AT THE CLASS, ON ONE OCCASION! ONE DAY WHEN MARY, GEORGINA AND I SAT DOWN AT OUR OLD-FASHIONED DESK, THE SEAT FELL OFF. I REMEMBER DOING LOTS OF DRAWINGS OF CROSSES DURING DIVINITY THAT WE COLOURED IN WITH PASTELS AND BEAUTIFUF PRAYER CARDS THAT HAD IDYLLIC WOODED GLADES CAUGHT IN THE EVENING SUNSET; I THOUGHT THEY WERE MAGICAL. I HAD A VERY DISFUNCTIONAL CHILDHOOD BUT I REMEMBER THOSE YEARS WITH GREAT FONDNESS AND WILL ALWAYS BE GRATEFUL TO THOSE WHO MADE IT SO. AS I TRAVELLED FROM KENSINGTON, ALSO ON THE BUS THROUGH HAMMERSMITH, I OFTEN ARRIVED AT SCHOOL BEFORE ANYOTHER CHILDREN AND IT WAS MAGIC TO WALK INTO THE PLAYGROUND, IN THOSE SUMMER DAYS AND IT WAS JUST ME AND THE SQUIRRELS WATCHING FROM THE WOODS. JILL AND I PLAYED 'HORSES' WHICH INVOLVED A GREAT DEAL OF GALLOPING ABOUT, ME ON MY STEED 'CHAMPION' AND SHE ON 'FLICKA' . I LOST TOUCH WITH JILL AFTER A VISIT TO WHERE SHE MOVED TO IN DEVON...MYSELF AND THE FRIEND WHO CAME WITH M, HAD GONE OUT TO THE FISH AND CHIP SHOP. WE WERE SUPPOSED TO BRING THEM BACK BUT TWO BOYS STARTED FOLLOWING US AND WE RAN BACK AND HID. AT THAT MOMENT JILL'S PARENTS RETURNED AND PRESUMED WE WERE MESSING ABOUT IN SOME WAY; THE BOYS RAN OFF SO THEY LOOKED GUILTY OF SOMETHING. WE WERE AWAY FROM HOME FOR THE FIRST TIME AND A BIT SCARED OF HER MUM, SO WE DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING AND WE ALL WENT IN. JUST TO SAY TO JILL I'M SORRY THAT I DIDN'T SEE YOU AGAIN. IT WAS A SILLY MISUNDERSTANDING AND WE SHOULD HAVE SAID WHAT HAPPENED...JUST SILLY TWELVE YEAR OLDS WITH NOBODY TO ADVISE US, BUT WE HAD SOME HAPPIER TIMES AT OUR GREAT SCHOOL AND PLAYING AROUND BARNES POND.
BEST WISHES TO ALL, CYNTHIA.