Nostalgic memories of Hanwell's local history
Share your own memories of Hanwell and read what others have said
For many years now, we've been inviting visitors to our web site to add their own memories to share their experiences of life as it was when the photographs in our archive were taken. From brief one-liners explaining a little bit more about the image depicted, to great, in-depth accounts of a childhood when things were rather different than today (and everything inbetween!). We've had many contributors recognising themselves or loved ones in our photographs.
Why not add your memory today and become part of our Memories Community to help others in the future delve back into their past.
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Displaying Memories 31 - 40 of 51 in total
It is a winter evening, and Saturday. I am in Ealing Broadway and for a change I think I will get a train home to Hanwell. Not every train stops at Hanwell but I board one. West Ealing, we slow and stop, pretty soon we are on our way and pass under Jacobs Ladder at West Ealing. The brakes go on and we arrive at Hanwell. A few people get off and disappear into the night. I stand and look ...see more
I remember the police box outside of Elthorne Park. Sometimes the light on the roof would flash and a policeman would answer it.
From the Uxbridge Road you can see the Warcliffe Viaduct. However if you cross the grass you can explore it more fully. I often went in the 50's and 60's to look at it close up. There were allotments then, but I very rarely saw people working on the them. Looking up at Brunels great masterpiece filled me with awe. How many bricks? How long did it take to build. It looked so great to a small boy, ...see more
You used to go to a phone box and send a telegram to your valentine. To pay you put the amout the operator said into the slot in the box. If you were lucky when you got home your mum said something like, "There is a telegram for you, whats happened?" This was because telegrams were used in the war to convey bad news. I remember leaving St Thomas youth club around 2100HRS, on a wet night, with Ruth under my umbrella in the rain and cold. We were so happy in those far off days.
The club was on Sunday night. There was even a group, cannot remember the name, but Chris Booker ran it. I remember the first time I heard them, pretty good they sounded too. One Sunday at evensong they played in the church, onward christian soldiers I think. That was around 1961/62 and really ground breaking. Live music and in my club. Some names: Graham Trotter, Nina Burden, Ruth Hammant. I believe ...see more
I was a toddler in 1947 when we moved to Brants Walk in Hanwell. We were living in Shepherds Bush. When I think back to the 3 bedroom flat we had, I feel we were very lucky. It was nice and I was very happy there. I went to Brentside Infants in 1951 and then to Brentside Junior Girls School. I failed the 11 plus so ended up at St Annes. At 15 I left school and got a job at Curry's Head Office in Ealing. I ...see more
To anyone living in and around Hanwell, Cuckoo School was the edifice which overlooked many of our homes. The school where Charlie Chaplain was sent as a boy had a gothic and slightly spooky appearance. Many a child would be told that if you looked up at the high windows you would see the plaintive face of a child's ghost peering out. I believe we all convinced ourselves that yes, we ...see more
My parents both grew up in Hanwell - both living in Hillyard Road during the War years. After they married my mum and dad actually had to live in a pre-fab in Braybrook Street, just backing on to the prison in Hammersmith, but eventually when I was 6 months old they were allocated a council house in Browning Avenue in 1955. I will add many memories in here, but this is specifically in regards to The Bunny ...see more
It is 1959 and I have been looking at a pair of Winkle Picker shoes (pointed toe shoes) in the window. I now have the money to get them £59/11, nearly three pounds. I enter the shop and try them...my they feel good. I walk home to Studley Grange Road with them in their box and carefully un-box them in my bedroom. I was on the edge of adulthood.
I meet one of my friends, he is going fishing, it is around 6:30pm. We go down Green Lane to the canal and turn right over the River Brent. He starts to fish between the locks. Mr Hunt from Studley Grange Road passes and says hello, he is walking his dog. I think to myself he is very content, perhaps he has cracked the meaning of life. I tell my friend I am just popping over to the railway. One ...see more