Southall 830-1982

Richard J. Meads

 

1895-1910

 

The Bricklayers Arms in Western Road was built in 1898. On the sign display the motiff - 'In God is all our Trust'. In 1895 the Prince Albert, an old beer house on the left hand side of the Gas Factory Straight, closed down and Mr Freemantle gave a dinner, to announce to other local pub landlords, on 11th February, that he was moving to the newly built Railway Hotel (the ‘Glasshouse’) in the South Road. The Plough, North Road, was built in 1896 - Elizabeth King, landlady.

 

Up till 1895 only nine men were employed by the Urban District Board on the roads. This was increased to twelve in 1897. With street lighting on the increase, the council requested the Gas Company to provide two lamp-lighters. Their job was to ensure the lamps were alight. The lamp standards were 11ft. high with a square shaped glass box on top which contained the burner and two mantles. A clock device regulated the pilot for lighting up time. An iron bar was provided on which to rest the ladder for maintenance.

Schools

Four more schools became necessary. On January 14th, 1904 Sir Ralph Littler, CB, KC, officially opened Clifton Road School. It was very modern, built to hold 800 pupils. It cost £9,500, and was a two-storey building, each floor having a central hall 64 ft. by 28 ft. and seven classrooms but no phone or electricity until 1950. It actually opened September, 1903 — Miss Beck, Headmistress downstairs (Infants) and Miss Wilson, Headmistress of the Girls upstairs. On January 12th, 1904 the staff and scholars of Norwood Bridge School were transferred to Clifton Road. Thus one school opened and another closed. Mr Monk was caretaker.

 

An adjacent school - Talbot Road - was built in 1907. Originally for boys it merged with girls to form a Junior Mixed School. The Headmaster was Mr R. R. Elias with a staff of eight. He retired in 1933.

 

Over the years many changes have taken place — it became a Special Backward School at one time and in 1980 became a Special Language School. Caretaker — Mr Shaw.

 

Southall County School (Villers), Boyd Avenue, was built in 1906-7 at a cost of £15,115. The first Headmaster was Mr Pollitt. When opened only three free scholarships were granted to each of the senior schools. All the rest were fee paying. Built at the same time was a Woodwork and Cookery Centre which was also used by other schools. The caretaker's quarters were on top. The first caretaker was Mr Albert Perkins who employed me when I was 9½, doing errands for 1/- (5p) per week.

 

Tudor Road School was built in 1906-7 and opened as Tudor Road Infants on 8th April, 1907. Miss A. Woolford, Headmistress, with six staff. Built to take 250 pupils, it had gas lighting until March 1952, and a telephone was installed November, 1948. Many of the children were transferred from North Road School. Mr Colman was caretaker for ten years.

 

In 1904 the old White Swan, which was at the end of Pluckington Place, closed down and licence transferred to the present White Swan which had been built at the junction of Adelaide and Norwood Road, taking the place of two small cottages and a blacksmith's. The brothers A. & G. Stanley were licensees. They had a great reputation as cyclists and one of them used to ride a penny farthing bicycle. A bowling green was constructed at the side, where the Southall Bowling Club used to play.

 

In 1903 eight very well built shops came into being on the right hand side of King Street between Dagmar Road and Pluckington Place. The leases were granted so that only one type of trade was carried on per shop. Thus, Quinions (Furnishers), Simmons (Confectioners), Owen Barnetts (Fruiterer), Hoopers (Butcher), King and Hutchings (Gazette Office and Stationers), Keevils (Hosier), Heaths (Bakers) with a bakery at the rear. Except for a few years the King Street Sub Post Office has been in this block of shops.

 

Beverley House on the left hand side, next to the Black Dog, was built for Mr Ben Hanson. Just inside Hammond Road, on the right hand side, a small Gospel Hall was built in 1901. The area of Hammond Road had been brickfields. When housing development commenced the standard of building was very poor.

 

Between 1902 and 1905 a great change took place in the Uxbridge Road. Old Leggatt's Smithy and cottage were demolished; South Road widened and what still is the best block of shops erected 1904-5 — twelve between South Road and Herbert Road and three in South Road, the first of which was the National Provincial Bank; the second Arnold and Co., Tobacconists and the third Eastmans and Sons, Dyers and Cleaners. Today, in 1982, the bank is up for sale but Arnolds (there for over 40 years) is still a tobacconists.The  first two of those in the Uxbridge Road became known as 'Butlers Corner' — Mr Scott was manager. A Men's Outfitters, it had a rather unique shop front which had an entrance from both sides with doorway in the middle covered from the front with an independent showcase. Sainsbury's came next, this was built purposely for them and had living accommodation above for staff — a housekeeper was employed — the staff entrance being an iron staircase at the rear.

 

The other shops were first occupied by United Dairies, Home and Colonial Stores, Hallam (Corn Chandler), Drug Stores, Pridous (Stationers), Hutchings (Butcher), Shellshears (Ironmongers), Haddrells (Furnishers). In 1902 three shops were built on the right hand side between Lady Margaret Road and Greenford Avenue. These became Evans (Paper, Tob.), Fletchers (Butcher) and Talbots (Off Licence). These were to be followed in 1903 with three larger shops on the corner of Lady Margaret Road. The corner one was Francis Waklings (Estate Office) with Rustons (Solicitors) and Blowers (Dentist) above. Another block of nine shops were built on the right hand side between Northcote Avenue and Saxon Road. The first of these was a Bakers with bakehouse at rear and the last, the Standard Wallpaper Company. For a good number of years tenants in the others came and went frequently.

 

Over The Green things were also moving. On 8th September, 1906 the Working Men's Club moved into the Chestnuts, with 350 members. The Southall Norwood Public Library was built on the left hand side of. Osterley Park Road, on land given by Messrs Baxter and Gosney, at a cost of £4,000. The gift of the Andrew Carnegie Trust. The foundation stone was laid by Lady Jersey and the opening was 26th July, 1905 by James Bigwood, Esq., MP Chairman of Library Committee, Mr G. Gosney. Books numbered 2,338, Librarian Mr W. L. Coltman.

 

Two shops which stand out quite differently from all the others on the right hand side of King Street were built in 1901. One was a bank - Woodbridge, Lacy and Company - and the other was Dr MacDonald's Surgery. The bank - No 8 King Street - became Barclays and in 1909 moved to the corner of Bridge Road when these premises were built. The King Street shop became an Off Licence, a Mr Coulthurst traded there for over 50 years, and it is still an Off Licence today, 1982. On the bend of Featherstone Road is the Territorial Drill Hall, built in 1901. It has housed the Middlesex Yeomanry, a Company of the Middlesex Anti-Aircraft Searchlight Company (RE), this was until 1937 when, due to lack of space for transport, they moved to the new Drill Hall, Uxbridge Road — it had now become a Furniture Depository.

 

At the corner of Waltham Road and Western Road was a small house and pig farm. The owner got into financial trouble and Mr Gosney purchased the mortgage. Part of the land is where the Baptist Church now is, and in 1908 Dudley MacDonald purchased the rest for £545. Belmont House was built in 1909 by Mr Peter Bell and, after being occupied for a year or two by Dr Vergo, became the Residence of Dr C. W. Seccombe in 1916, and the practice was carried on in the family name until 1981 when the house was sold to become an Elderly Asian Rest Centre.

 

In 1900 the Southall Volunteer Fire Brigade was formed, Mr C. N. Abbott being the first officer. They had a very primitive hand-drawn manual which was housed in a shed behind the Town Hall. In April 1901 a Fire Station was built on to the right hand side of the Town Hall at a cost of £175. The firemen recruited mostly from Abbott Bro. staff, and training began with a horse-drawn fire engine. When a fire occurred a maroon would be set off to summon the crew, who would dash to the station, put on uniform and then often have to wait while the horse was brought in from where it was working at the time. So you can imagine that, although great efforts were made, a good deal of time was lost before they actually got to the fire. Although I cannot remember these teething troubles I have good cause to remember their later efforts.

 

Holy Trinity Hall, Lady Margaret Road, was built by C. Brown in 1905. It was always in demand for social events, it being the only hall available at the time. Holy Trinity Men's Club used the upstairs rooms. Alas, in 1982 the hall has been sold to our Asian friends who must have had a lot of work to do to it for it was in a very bad state due to lack of repairs.

 

St George's Church was built in 1905-6 and consecrated and opened 1906. It was formed out of the Parish of Holy Trinity, and is situated on the right hand side of Tudor Road. Funds for the church came from the sale of St Georges, Billingsgate, and the pulpit and organ screen are from that church. The Living is the gift of the Dean and Chapter of St Pauls and the Crown, alternatively, with net value £730. This meant the old iron church was again taken down and it finished its useful life as a canteen at Eastman's Dye Works, Acton.

 

Mr S. W. Abbott had a nice house built on the left hand side of Uxbridge Road (The Chestnuts) in 1904; and Vine Cottage in Park View Road became, for a period, a Nursing Home and, later, the residence of Mr Bleckfeldt, the Chief Chemist of Otto Monsteds. Also built about the same time, another nice house 'Melrose' for Mr Paton, retired Headmaster of Marylebone School.

 

At the rear of land bought in August 1904 by the Methodists, on the right hand side of South Road, Sunday-school buildings were erected in 1906. This is where the Kings Hall now stands.

 

The provision of a park or recreation ground was a major item on the early Council's programme. In 1902 Mr Baxter offered 12 acres at £325 per On the Steam Field Estate. This would be where Scotts and Balfour Road are now. The offer was not accepted. The present Recreation Ground, formerly known as Bills Charity Land, was bought in 1902 and came into use in 1903 The Lodge was built and Mr Harman appointed as Keeper. In 1909 Southall Council purchased Southall Park. This had been the scene of the tragic fire and was originally Shepherds Haw, residence of Mr Merrick, covering 26 acres. The Lodge was built and Mr W. Perkins appointed as Park Keeper. Later a bandstand was erected and sited on the right hand side of the main path at the rear of the Red Lion. In 1910 another field of about 3 acres was added on to the east side which brought the park to where Green Drive is today. The Uxbridge Road frontage had nice looking iron railings with entrance gates. Alas, these had to be sacrificed during the Second World War. There are also entrance gates at Boyd Avenue. There was a clear view of the railway from the park and, on 12th May, 1910, a fair number of local people gathered to watch the train bearing the coffin of King Edward VII to Windsor. On the Coronation Day of King George V and Queen Mary, the Council provided a children's party in the park. This was on the 22nd June, 1911. After games and a good tea, each child received a medal to commemorate the event.

 

There were two football clubs in 1905-6. Southall Football Club turned professional for one season only -- 1905. One of their first matches was away to Glossop in the FA Cup. The first news to come through was Southall leading 1 - 0 but, when the final result was given, Southall had lost 11 - 1. As a club they did not start in the 1906 season. The other club, Southall Athletic opened the present Western Road Ground on 17th September, 1905 with 300 spectators. The two clubs amalgamated in March, 1906 and commenced to play in the Great Western Suburban League in 1907.

 

By this time another Southall farm had been swallowed up (Southall Green Farm), also Emfield House had been demolished, and Church Avenue made. Elmfield Market and four shops between The Victory on its left hand side - the Corner Shop, Butlers, Men's Outfitters. Four shops on its right with what was to be the Labour Exchange on the corner. Sad to relate here, Mr Richard Cleeve Martyn, one of the first Councillors elected December 1894 and Chairman 1897-8, died 11th February, 1900 at his residence ‘Woodlands', North Road. The Council placed a Memorial Stone on his grave in Havelock Road Cemetery in recognition of his service to the Town.

 

Mr R. W. Baxter had 'South Lodge' built. This is where St Anselm's Church is now and it faced south - thus its name. Also built were premises for the Southall Social Club adjacent to South Lodge on the right hand side of The Green. These are still there today but house an Asian Religious Body. Another large house 'The Grange' was also near there.

 

Hortus House had been pulled down and Hortus Road made. It is a cul-de-sac and, at the bottom was built the Co-op Bakeries. Barclays Bank and Watsons Estate Office, with rooms over the top, were built in 1908-9. Three more large public houses came - the Northcote Arms in Northcote Avenue, Mr Jack Gerrard Licensee. This took the licence from the Black Horse in the High Street which closed. The Beaconsfield Arms in West End Road which took the licence from the Blue Boar, canal side, which also closed; and the rebuilt Grand Junction Arms, canal side, closed the Kings Head.

 

On the left hand side of the station a road leading down to the Goods Depot became the Coal Wharf. A siding had been constructed and coal trucks unloaded. There were several Coal Merchants — Barnes Brothers are the oldest established and are still in business in Regina Road. Others were Belcher and Gibbons, Balltrops, Cornwalls, Lillishalls, Whitehouse. Most had small order offices at the side of the road.