Favourite Memories
Reconnecting with our shared local history.
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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People who were particularly kind or influenced your time in the community.
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Has it changed over the years?
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How does it feel, seeing these places again, as they used to look?
This week's Places
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Displaying Memories 1401 - 1450 of 2029 in total
I went to The Meads Infant school (Deansbrook) and then on to Woodcroft Junior School (born 1959 maiden name Bradley). Had fun times in Watling and Blundell park. Also Montrose Park when the fair was there and Silkstream. Worked at Fine Fare supermarket at the top of the Watling on a Saturday to earn a bit of cash. I remember bringing my mum home a bag of sugar when there was a sugar shortage, the ...see more
As a child my annual family holiday was spent in Shaldon, first staying at The Teign Crest as a baby and small child, later at The Clipper. Two weeks of blissful freedom - shoeless and carefree. Not many cars in the village in the 1960s, so we children ran wild, only turning up at feeding times. Great family mackerel fishing jaunts, or trips up river to Coombe Cellars in the Hooks' boats. Fabulous clotted cream ...see more
I remember going to Langold Lake, most weekends. They used to set the lake on fire, and Jack Revill used to dive off the diving board into it. He had a young girl who helped him, she used to do the same thing. I ended up living a few doors away from her, at Mansfield-Woodhouse. Used to go to the disco in the Langold Hotel. Can anyone remember the old man who used to have a snooker table in it, he had a sort of youth club thing. It was in a Langold.
Alma Allen was born at home in Asylum Road, Arlesey, now called Hospital Road. They later moved in with Herbert's dad, Big Jim, who lived in the Gothic Farm House that was at the bottom of the yet to be built Lynton Avenue.
One day her little brother George got out and was found cuddling the huge shire horse's leg. This obviously frightened them, but she said the horse stood dead still and never moved a ...see more
My father, John, was a doctor at his surgery/house, Corporation Road and I and my brother John plus mother and father were in the shelter when the mine was dropped. I remember a discussion later about loss of panel patients (Lysaghts and Mannesment) in that street - mother kept the books! I well remember the troops camping on the rugby pitch prior to D-day. I went out one morning and all the troops were gone. It took me ...see more
I was born in Croft Close 1961, at the top of Osborne Road. I decided today to have a look back at the area. I remember the Old police station which was turned into the driving school, I can remember my journey from Croft Close to go past Eric the green grocers, then there was a dairy- come-cafe. Lucas the paper shop, he used to always say 'what do you want' - I never went back much, my mum used to pay the paper ...see more
In 1959 I was 10 years old and the village was my big adventure trip out when I went to the shops for my mum. Upper Belvedere was always known as The Village when I lived there, is it still I wonder? I even went to school there too, Lesness Heath primary, so I have many fond memories. Firstly the shops. Derrett and Dorman comes to mind immediately, they sold toys and to a 10 year old that was magic - they also ...see more
We were the first family to move into the newly built Padnell Avenue Council Estate, moving there in around 1947, our house was one of a pair on the corner of Winscombe Avenue. Where the Council flats are now situated was prefabs and I can name most of the occupants who lived there at that time. I lived there until I married my wife Maureen at St Wilfred's Church, Padnell Road in 1971. I have many fond ...see more
In 1955 I was 11 years old, I lived in New York with my parents and my brother. My mother was from Scotland, she and my father had met when he was in medical school there. 1954 was my mother's first trip back to see her family since she had left them in July 1943. My brother and I fell in love with Britain and everything about it. That summer we stayed in Scotland. We returned in 1955 and spent about 2 weeks in Tintagel ...see more
I have the fondest memories of Caister on Sea. We used to have a week there every year and my sister and I were the only kids in our street that had a holiday every year. Like most people in the East End of London, we had very little money, but my dad worked on the railway and got travel concessions as part of his employment package. This enabled us to travel by train to Yarmouth Vauxhall and ...see more
Though I have some recall of the 1940s - eg starting school in 1948 at the age of three and a half and being reluctant to get off a rocking horse on the first day, it was the 1950s that really kicked in - to the accompaniment of songs like 'McNamamara's Band', 'Open the Door, Richard', and 'Lovely Bunch of Coconuts'. We were still on rations, and it was common for my sister and I to share a divided egg, we had very ...see more
During the Second World War, as youngsters we would look forward to the Saturday mornig matinee at the Odeon cinema (4th building on the left of photo). Entrance was thruppence (three pennies). With our pocket money we would lash out on a penny peashooter with a packet of peas, the matinee used to start with a sing-along followed by a cartoon, then two half-hour films, the last being a western serial. ...see more
My wife Ann lived at 134 Preston Road, sadly no longer a 4 bedroom house. She moved there in 1962 and we both lived with her parents when we married in 1966; before we moved to our own home in 67. I remember that sometimes, before we married, if I missed a bus or train I would have to walk home to Camrose Avenue, Queensbury, it took about an hour. In the picture shown was a sweet shop on the right side just before ...see more
My first recollection of Dersingham was as a seven year old boy in 1941. My mother, sister and I were evacuated from the East End of London during the blitz and arrived, after a long train journey, at the Station Hotel one late afternoon which was owned then by a Mr and Mrs Parminter. After some tea and sandwiches we were billeted on a ...see more
All buses going to Pinner in the 1950's had the destination "Pinner Red Lion" as there was an old pub of that name on the corner of Love Lane and Bridge Street. The bus in this photo has continued its journey having passed The Red Lion and is lumbering up Bridge Street towards The Langham Cinema at the top of the hill (the photographer is probably standing on the pavement in front of either the cinema ...see more
We used to go as a family to the Tea Room which, if memory serves, was called 'Cornerways' for Sunday lunch, as a special treat in the fifties. My father took me to a wine tasting held in the cellar at the Queen's Head in the sixties. A combination of youth and too much 'tasting' - my first hangover! Memories of the annual fair; the roundabout in front of, I think, Woolworths ...see more
I believe the girl walking on the left is my mother Joan Outhwaite (nee Urwin). We have a similar photo of Mum in Redcar.
My family were the last people to occupy Glebe Farm House, Glebe Ave, Ickenham. The area is now called Cloverlly Close. It was built in the 17th Century as a rectory. We lived there from 1933 to 1936, then moved up the road to 3 The Parade Glebe Ave. The only lighting in the farm was one gas jet in the kitchen, now at 85 years of age I still shudder when I remember my journeys at night, through the house to reach my upstairs bedroom, all I had was this one pitiful candle. Eric Hazell.
I lived on Woodcote Valley Road from 1967 to 1989. The pictures from the 1960's is how I remember Purley - I don't recognise the place when I go back there now.
The shops were great - Morgans where you could buy individual farm animals, and I seem to remember one of the shops had a pulley system to take the money to the cash office at the back which sent your change back.
I loved the library - the ...see more
At the age of 7 I was told by my parents we all had to go to Wellesly Road to be fitted with a gas mask. I have a clear memory of this horrifying experience. It was one thing then another, upsetting my childhood world. First in 1939 I was no longer allowed to fly my kite in the rec at Thornton Heath, then there was all the blackout palava; now I had to have this horrible mask whose window quickly got steamed up and I ...see more
There were a few sizeable department stores in Bromley, including Harrison Gibson and Wolf and Hollander (whose flag you can see waving on the left). I am pretty sure it was Wolf and Hollander that suffered an extraordinary fire in the early 1960's - the smoke was visible for miles around. I was in the crowd watching it from the street itself - a significant operation with many firemen struggling to control the blaze, which lasted for hours.
My family lived in Reigate Way, Wallington, Surrey. My twin brother and I used to stand outside our house to listen for the aproaching buzz bombs. On this particular day, one glided in and fell on the playing field and allotment killing a Mr Hunter, our local DIY shop owner.It also nearly destoyed our house, a terriblble time, we were only 13 at the time. My father managed to get us in to the Anderson shelter ...see more
I was baptised by the Rev. Brenn in 1945 and was sent to Sunday School from the age of about 4. I remember being scared to death by the head, the formidable Miss Hoof, who would give a loud blast on her whistle if anyone dared to mess about. My favourite day was the Tuesday after Whitsun when we all went to Bognor Regis for the day. We had to attend a 'short' service, which seemed to last ...see more
I went to Wallington County (no, we weren't 'Wally Boys' as people say these days), from 1957 to 1964. When our son followed me some 40 years later, I found the school very lttle changed from my day, apart from a new science block. They even still referred to the old science block as the 'New Block', and the new science block was therefore the 'New New Block'. Whilst I usually coped with academic lessons ...see more
I lived just behind the Duke's Head from 1945 till the late 60's, and I believe this was where my parents met before World War II. My dad was working as a part time barman and my mother was sent by my grandmother to inform my grandfather, that it was time for him to drink up and get himself home for his tea! Mr Parker, the pub landlord in the 50's used to keep a dog called Duke. He was a friendly ...see more
Having left Australia on an open-ended working holiday to England in January, 1974 with my girlfriend, it was hard to imagine that within six weeks of arriving in London we'd be living on a leaky old narrow boat in Braunston near Rugby, and that six months later - still living on the boat - we'd be calling Leighton Buzzard home for nearly two years.
The boat was called SADLERS WELLS, and in the ...see more
I recall Hides Department Store and a box of soft toy rabbits for sale. Jacksons Stores (the supermarket) and poking a bag of rice causing the whole stack to collapse to the floor accidentally as a child. The pub 'The Rose' perhaps is /was its name which had a wooden barrel outside which my father reminded me to kick each time we passed, as I had done first. Going to the cinema with my auntie Sesie, ...see more
In 1974 I left school in Durham and worked in Chigwell for 3 months, at a place I believe was called Grange Farm (?) Groups of mainly foreign young people stayed there as their base for trips into London. I worked in the kitchens and made many friends and had some great experiences there. The chef was a very fiery Welshman! I now live in South London and have often thought about revisiting old places there. So many happy memories.
I was born in 1942 and brought up in Walthamstow in NE London. We were a working class family and Dad always managed to provide us with 2 weeks' holiday somewhere. How we came to holiday in Wroxall is still a bit of a mystery. Neither Mum nor Dad had ever been to the Isle of Wight before. In August 1952 we had the first of three annual fortnights holidays on the Island.
The first year,1952, we ...see more
I worked under ground at Abercynon Colliery from 1951 until 1953. I worked on the coal face in the "S" district, a five foot coal seam which was about 100 yards in length and which had a slight gradient. I also worked on the roadway in the "F" district constructing the roadway which followed up with the coal seam. My Buddy who I worked with on the road construction in the"F" district ...see more
I have just spent the weekend with my father, his father was the keeper at the Dreamland Zoo in the summers of the late 1920s/early 1930s. My grandparent's (and my dad's) home was a living wagon. My grandad - Leonard Robinson - upset my grandmother by taking his infant son into the lion's cage, and sitting the baby on the lion's back. My father, & grandfather survived the jaws of the lion - and my nan's wrath! No too sure about the lion though?
I remember most of these places shown in the photographs and as I look at them memories flood back! I remember learning to swim by the steps on the quay and drinking cider whilst hiding amongst the sprat boxes piled high on the quayside. Taking empty pop bottles stored behind Plattens milk bar and returning them to the counter to receive money back on the empties! Walking the 'greasy pole' at Regatta ...see more
My grandparents lived in Maescynon for many, many years. I have fond memories of going up the farm for fresh eggs. Walking with my Nana to help her at the co-op and then stopping at Mrs Bray's for sweets. My grandfather's garden was full of beautiful red roses. He worked all his life at the Tower Collery. I still can see him coming home in the mornings covered in coal... One of our most treasured pieces of ...see more
My adopted uncle Artthur and Auntie Eadie used to be the caretakers here .My sisters and myself used to spend our summer holidays here. It had a beautiful old raspberry tree and and a babbling brook - I still can never get enough of fresh raspberries. There was an old church that a path from the house went up to - we used to love going there. I believe it was owned by a judge who used to work in London during the ...see more
I was a member of the Odeon choir and it was around this time that we were taken to I think it was the Festival Hall, to compete against choirs across England and I got a bronze medal, I think it was the Star Festival. Unfortunately my medal has been mislaid over the years but I remember that we were later taken to a recording studio in London - Tothill Street - where we recorded for an early television programme. ...see more
My parents (Ken & Gwen Gardner) bought a small general store on Chapel St, when I was aged 5 in 1969. My memories are lovely and will always be with me. Our next door neighbour was Mr Jim Curtis, always remember him, a lovely man who had a Monkey Puzzle tree in his garden and used to give me rhubarb over the fence from his garden. My best friend was an old lady who lived over the road named Mrs ...see more
My grandparents lived in Ditcheat; Sarah and Hubert Burrows. They had three daughters, Elisabeth (Bessie), Gertrude (Gertie), Pamela and also a son Mettford (Mett) Burrows. My mother Pamela, like her siblings, was born in Ditcheat (she was born in 1920). She went into 'service' as a young child and when the war came she volunteered to travel to a town named Corsham in Wiltshire where she met and ...see more
I was born on the day that Osterley Station opened 25th March 1934. I grew up in Tennyson Road/Avenue, Hounslow, and moved to Gresham Road in 1944. Hitler missed me by 5 minutes with a Doodlebug while I was at Alexandra Junior School; demolishing the shelter just after I decided to go home after a 'staying in' stint! I then went to Spring Grove Grammar School. I can remember fishing the lakes before they filled ...see more
It was a long walk to Wanstead Park from where we lived as children. We lived at Stephens Road, Stratford West Ham. Weekends and school holidays Mum would pack a picnic for the six of us, usually jam sandwiches or cheese if Mum had some, and a bottle of orange squash. We also had our jam jars and nets for fishing in the ponds for sticklebacks, a bat and ball, also a football, and off we would go for the day, as ...see more
My family lived at Trelights. My Uncle Reg was a school teacher in London although he was a Trelights boy, when he came home in the summer holidays in his old Austin 6 he would often take us to Polzeath, they were special days. Off we would go loaded up with sandwiches and apples, oh and don't forget the little primus stove to boil the kettle for cups of tea and the wooden boards for riding the waves. ...see more
My mother & I were rushed into the cellar of the 'George Hotel' which was opposite Woolworths which took a direct hit. We came out afterwards and I was rushed home from what seemed quite an adventure for me, but it was 35+- years after that I had a sudden flashback and realized how lucky we were, as several people were killed that day. Not long after another bomb dropped close to us on a ...see more
My family lived at 'Bryher' New Polzeath. I went to Hoiliday House School, Harry Edwards was the Headmaster. He lived with his wife and children in a cottage at Porteath Farm. What better place could there be to grow up. I still keep in touch with Melville Coad, we were at school together, his father was the local butcher. We had some great times; apart from the evacuees, the war ...see more
Coming across this picture sparked memories of such happy times I had as as a child spending my summer holidays in a chalet at Seaview. It was not unusual to stay for four or more weeks in one of the chalets and spend practically every waking hour being on the beach or walking into either Whitstable or Herne Bay. I remember rummaging along the beach finding bits of pottery from the houses that fell into ...see more
I was born in Trench in 1948; my father worked at the Granville Pits. We moved to 'The Old Yard' when I was about 4 years old. We had such a good community, the homes were bungalows and houses. We lived in a little bungalow with no heating other than a big old black leaded grate. No running water in the house, just a cold tap in the outhouse, where mum did her washing every Monday by lighting a big copper boiler to ...see more
I went to school here in the 50s/60s; it was known as Wroxeter and Uppington C of E School. There were just two classes, the big class run by Miss Thomas the Headmistress and the little class run by Mrs Saltmarsh. Our dinner lady was Mrs Habberley, after lunch two of us used take the left-overs in a bucket to the buildings next to the school and feed it to the pigs. We went to Shrewsbury swimming baths once a ...see more
I was born in Eastbourne Road, in a house opposite the sand pits and the common. My name was Wendy Mitchell. With my sisters and brother I would spend hours picking bluebells and primroses and climbing trees there. At the bottom of our garden across a small field was Leigh woods which had a stream running through it. We would cross the stream via a fallen tree at what was known as Diana's ...see more
I have very happy memories of Hazel and I looking after the Eight Bells for Jack and Sylvia when they went on holiday. This was for a few years in the late 60's and early 70's. Most sadly, my lovely wife Hazel, 'nee' Cook, died very suddenly just a year ago today, 26 March. My family came together with me last Sunday, 25 March 2012, and the new Vicar, Andy Wolton, said a few prayers for us after the service, at ...see more
My family are the Frees from Leiston. There are too many to mention but my dad is Harry and my Uncle Sperry is mentioned in a few people's memories.
We were so fortunate to be able to spend all our summers at Uncle Jack Fryer's cottage. We stayed there from the 1960s until he sadly passed away. Jack was always smiling and nothing was ever a bother. Living at the cottage was basic but oh so comfortable, the log fire ...see more
During the war we lived at 4 Sunnyside Terrace. At one point during 1942 Mr Chaffey, the coalman, could not deliver coal because his horse and cart could not get up the hill because of ice and snow. We were rapidly running out of coal. I suggested to my mother that I go up the hill in the middle of the night and cut one of the trees down that were growing in the copse. I did this and sawed the tree in sections ...see more
I remember well the parade through the village on the occasion of the Silver Jubilee. My mother and several other mothers dressed six of us young boys as toy soldiers and we had to march in the parade. However, the best thing in the parade that I can remember was a model of the Queen Mary. It was loaded over a car. You could not see the car, only the majestic liner floating through the village. ...see more