Lewisham Market Stalls - a nostalgic memory of Lewisham

Lewisham Market Stalls - a Memory of Lewisham.

My very first job was working in Lewisham for Fred Morris. He was a huge fellow that used to drink in the pub my mum and step father drank in just on the Lee high Road. He was a wonderful man who knew that mum was struggling to buy me the things I needed as I got older. He offered me a Saturday job working on his fruit stall, to work every weekend and that gradually became every night after school too. The atmosphere in the market was wonderful. The sights and smells of market, the people that used to come to the market were unbelievable, perhaps the reason why I'm not introvert now and not afraid to be upfront with people. Some of the people that I met in the market (stall holders) were a close knit group and if anyone had problems they used to come together to try and sort the problem out. The winter was bitter as the wind used to blow on the market from Blackheath and more often that not we used to get horrific chills in our hands, but somehow it didn't matter as we were working and used to soon warm up. I worked there when cheesmans was still open and when it shut it had such an impact in the market stalls. Christmas was truly an amazing time on the stalls, we used to have so much going on, very busy but it seemed that the market stall holders used to just crack on with it. I learnt a lot from working on the market. It was an experience I shall never forget.

A memory shared by Belinda Clare on Jun 5th, 2014.
Send Belinda Clare a message.

Comments & Feedback

Sun Aug 27th 2017, at 1:16 pm

masmith116 commented:

hi jonny tharme name is micky smith and lived in nightingale grove till 1957 lived next to the beehive store family of eight I worked in Lewisham market pulling barrow in also remember big bonfires that we had there also remember your cousin Barbara which I still talk about one of many when the railway crash at Lewisham said to me she was going to see the crash she came back and said to me people was walking out of tunnel with there heads under the arms it did not dawn till years later there was a little sweet shop called sprats we bought sweets from so menny memories sorry could speak for ever I sm 70 this year

Add your comment

Report abuse

Tue Oct 11th 2016, at 1:02 pm

andrewporriit commented:

I have found this site by chance as I have started to investigate my family history. My name is Andy Porritt and whilst my Dad, Ron, lived in Greenhithe from birth in 1939, his father was a Lewisham Porritt born in 1911 (George William who married Florence Johnson in the early 30s). As was the case back then, my great grandfather was also called George! I am really interested to find out more about the market and my family involvement, so if anyone here has any information etc, I would really appreciate it. Thank you.

Add your comment

Report abuse

Mon Aug 8th 2016, at 7:34 pm

louisob.louis commented:

PS. excuse my typing as i am not used to all this computer technology so one of my sons lets me use his website.

Add your comment

Report abuse

Mon Aug 8th 2016, at 7:30 pm

louisob.louis commented:

phatchman .my name is Jonny Tharme i had 3 sisters Pat .Maureen .Brenda .and a cousin Barbara James.we lived in courthill rd just up from the queens.Your next door neighbours on one side were MR. and MRS Williams in the little shop he was a lovely man [he had throat cancer]who used to make us kids penny lollies in the old fridge .On the other side you had the Wards ,kenny ward was a good friend of mine for many years We lived next door to the Bonnets ,Janet ,Bobby[he went out with Poppy Porrit for a while before she married nigger reeves] I now live with my wife and family in canterbury Kent

Add your comment

Report abuse

Mon Aug 8th 2016, at 4:40 pm

louisob.louis commented:

Add your comment

Report abuse

Mon Aug 8th 2016, at 4:17 pm

louisob.louis commented:

Add your comment

Report abuse

Mon Aug 8th 2016, at 2:43 pm

phatchmman commented:

Thats right my nan used to organise a lot of things, coach outings etc. I miss her terribly after all these years. she was a one off kind of person.xx

what was your name.

Add your comment

Report abuse

Thu Aug 4th 2016, at 2:03 pm

louisob.louis commented:

phatchman/ iremember old kate porrit and you .old kate used to arrange all the street parties ,v.e /coronation/etc. we used to hold them in 'the retreat' opposite kates house in hither green lane

Add your comment

Report abuse

Thu Aug 4th 2016, at 1:54 pm

louisob.louis commented:

my name is jonny tharme ;i lived in courthill rd. for 50 years .i knew all the porrits in lewisham .bill grey and his family ,jackie, billy .janet wereour next door neighbours during and after the war.alec feeley and i pulled the barrows in and out for 3years,1953/1956 and iworked on the stall for bills boss, albie stevens ialso knew freddy and peter morris and their dad.in those days i knew everyone along the front as we called it nowadays i dont know a soul .how things change;;; is contributor tanderson tommy anderson from courthill rd

Add your comment

Report abuse

Thu Mar 24th 2016, at 2:41 pm

Belinda Clare commented:

I remember the Porrits from when I worked there also.

Add your comment

Report abuse

Thu Mar 24th 2016, at 2:18 pm

tanderson112 commented:

I remember a man called Bill Gray,I used to work for him after school putting the barrows away for the night,Also remember a family called Porrit and a lovely girl named Poppy Porrit

Add your comment

Report abuse

Sun May 24th 2015, at 1:17 pm

phatchman commented:

My nan and grandad porritt had a stall in the market they were one of the first to have a pitch there. My brother John Balcombe also had a stall and my mum Daisy worked for him. Happy days.

Add your comment

Report abuse