I still remember my mum's six-digit number you had to quote to put the purchase towards her dividend!!
Life was so simple then!!
Back in the 1960's I lived with my nan for a while in Abbey Wood near the RACS on Mcleod road and I too can still remember the number she needed for her stamps! For some strange reason I can also remember my granddads 1963 British racing green Ford Zephyr 4's number plate. Strange how odd remnants from your childhood stick in your memory
The RACS purchased 170 acres in that area to build the Abbey Wood estate in the 1890s. There is a plaque on the wall of that coop commemorating the fact. It is on the side wall in Bostall Lane I've just checked on Google maps - it is still there.
I still remember my mum's six-digit number you had to quote to put the purchase towards her dividend!!
Life was so simple then!!
Back in the 1960's I lived with my nan for a while in Abbey Wood near the RACS on Mcleod road and I too can still remember the number she needed for her stamps! For some strange reason I can also remember my granddads 1963 British racing green Ford Zephyr 4's number plate. Strange how odd remnants from your childhood stick in your memory
The RACS purchased 170 acres in that area to build the Abbey Wood estate in the 1890s. There is a plaque on the wall of that coop commemorating the fact. It is on the side wall in Bostall Lane I've just checked on Google maps - it is still there.
Anyone remember those tubes in Cuffs that carried little pots with cash in up to the cashiers office? I used to watch the lady put the money in then load it into the tube and pull the lever, I'd take off chasing it across which ever level we were on until it reached a vertical tube and it would take off out off sight leaving me collapsed in a heap on the shop resulting in much laughter from fellow shoppers. It got so bad that my teenage children refused to shop with me.
Yes, absolutely remember them as a kid. I always thought Cuffs was the posh store and Garratts the other side of Macbean Street was the poor relation. That was when Woolwich was a proper shopping area with Powis Street having cars and buses going up and down. It seemed to change completely when they pedestrianised it.
I still remember my mum's six-digit number you had to quote to put the purchase towards her dividend!!
Life was so simple then!!
Back in the 1960's I lived with my nan for a while in Abbey Wood near the RACS on Mcleod road and I too can still remember the number she needed for her stamps! For some strange reason I can also remember my granddads 1963 British racing green Ford Zephyr 4's number plate. Strange how odd remnants from your childhood stick in your memory
I can remember all my old man's reg numbers, the first being his Sutherland Green Austin Cambridge (191 CLD). I still have to go back and check ours when I have to put it into a parking machine. Most people just don't have the connection they used to have with their cars now.
When my missus managed to scrape all down the side of ours a few weeks ago it was just a case of "f**k it, let the insurance sort it out"
My old man would have been gutted, partly because he'd have felt stupid doing it but mainly because he'd damaged his pride and joy.
Anyone remember those tubes in Cuffs that carried little pots with cash in up to the cashiers office? I used to watch the lady put the money in then load it into the tube and pull the lever, I'd take off chasing it across which ever level we were on until it reached a vertical tube and it would take off out off sight leaving me collapsed in a heap on the shop resulting in much laughter from fellow shoppers. It got so bad that my teenage children refused to shop with me.
A Lampson tube.
Lamson, not Lampson
Had them in the old British Library, where I worked as a young man. They used to send ticket requests from readers in the round reading room to the bookstacks.
I still remember my mum's six-digit number you had to quote to put the purchase towards her dividend!!
Life was so simple then!!
Back in the 1960's I lived with my nan for a while in Abbey Wood near the RACS on Mcleod road and I too can still remember the number she needed for her stamps! For some strange reason I can also remember my granddads 1963 British racing green Ford Zephyr 4's number plate. Strange how odd remnants from your childhood stick in your memory
I can remember all my old man's reg numbers, the first being his Sutherland Green Austin Cambridge (191 CLD). I still have to go back and check ours when I have to put it into a parking machine. Most people just don't have the connection they used to have with their cars now.
When my missus managed to scrape all down the side of ours a few weeks ago it was just a case of "f**k it, let the insurance sort it out"
My old man would have been gutted, partly because he'd have felt stupid doing it but mainly because he'd damaged his pride and joy.
Me mum and dad had a VW Beatle that I can't remember the number of, far too young, but I remember me old mans Volvo A408 DMV (I then got a Merc CLK in later years that was S808 EMV)
Was Chiesemans and Army and Navy. The ground floor bit was definitely a moody little market.
Sorry to hijack a Woolwich post and waffle about Lewisham ..
I moved out of Lewisham/Blackheath, my home town, ages ago and was away for a LONG time .. how things have changed yet strangely remain nearly the same .. what was Chiesmans (spelling) and (I believe) later the A&N has been razed and the site now holds one of the biggest Police Stations in London, if not the country ... there is a big indoor shopping centre nearly opposite the old RACS and I think the market stalls which were a feature for donkeys years in the area round the clock tower are long gone .. looking at the place on Google maps what amazes is the volume of traffic .. half Lewisham centre has been demolished to accommodate vehicles, a bus station and the DLR
I think it's the biggest police station in Europe. Holds the horses as well, so you can follow the trail of poo when we're at home. Most of what has been knocked down to make the roads back to where they were was the other side of Rennel St from the shopping centre. The market is still going - I used to work next to it until 2 years ago and it was fine, though I think the disruption from building all the flats for investors and changing the roads has definitely affected its trade. It stretches from the clock tower to outside the now closed BHS. What's far worse than the transport is the sprouting of tower blocks near the station. Most of them are ugly and far too dense. In a way, it's lucky that a lot are not there to be lived in, as the infrastructure would not cope.
And back in Woolwich: Here's a photo of my late Mum's that was taken there during the War. Both she and her sister were stationed there whilst in the ATS. I can pick out my Aunt but not my Mum - neither are the 'happy' looking one near the front! Any ideas where exactly the photo was taken? Woolwich Common near the junction with Nightingale Place perhaps?
Great picture of the trams outside the Odeon and the cinema queue for Joan of Arc (1948) starring Ingrid Bergman.
They are actually Trolleybuses rather than Trams CO. Parsons Hill was the terminus for bus routes for many years. Here's a view from the opposite side. EDIT - I see GlassHalfFull got there first
I'm trying to work out where that Matchless/Ajs shop would have been ? looks like its on the the site of the Bingo hall . Anyone got some pictures of the old Matchless factory ? seems like a forgotten part of Woolwich history as there is very little information online about it .
Great picture of the trams outside the Odeon and the cinema queue for Joan of Arc (1948) starring Ingrid Bergman.
They are actually Trolleybuses rather than Trams CO. Parsons Hill was the terminus for bus routes for many years. Here's a view from the opposite side. EDIT - I see GlassHalfFull got there first
I'm trying to work out where that Matchless/Ajs shop would have been ? looks like its on the the site of the Bingo hall . Anyone got some pictures of the old Matchless factory ? seems like a forgotten part of Woolwich history as there is very little information online about it .
The Granada cinema/Bingo Hall is out of picture to the right. The Matchless/AJ shop looks to me to be slap bang in the way of the "new" ferry approach/roundabout and was maybe demolished to make way for that?
Have found an address for Matchless AJS at 44 Plumstead Road Woolwich
Taken from Plumstead Stories (on line memories site):
A special place for me was the Matchless/AJS motorcycle factory. It lay between Maxey Road and Burrage Road, on the northern side of the main rail line. I could stand at the wire link fence and stare across the rail line to the gleaming motorbikes waiting to be loaded on to the trains and lorries for delivery. It was a hive of industry, with bikes being wheeled out of the factory and pushed up and down various ramps. Men dressed in grey overalls would straddle a bike, give the crank a kick and ride the bike away down the other end to some distant shed. Intermittently, big black steam trains huffed and puffed between the bikes and myself. The smell of smoke would permeate my nostrils and chest, leaving a decidedly coal-like taste in the mouth.
If you look at this photo taken from the opposite angle in 1970; the matchroom building would have been to the right of where the photographer was standing. To the left of the central lamppost you can see a car in the background that is positioned roughly where the 2 trolleybuses are in the original photo.
Have found an address for Matchless AJS at 44 Plumstead Road Woolwich
Taken from Plumstead Stories (on line memories site):
A special place for me was the Matchless/AJS motorcycle factory. It lay between Maxey Road and Burrage Road, on the northern side of the main rail line. I could stand at the wire link fence and stare across the rail line to the gleaming motorbikes waiting to be loaded on to the trains and lorries for delivery. It was a hive of industry, with bikes being wheeled out of the factory and pushed up and down various ramps. Men dressed in grey overalls would straddle a bike, give the crank a kick and ride the bike away down the other end to some distant shed. Intermittently, big black steam trains huffed and puffed between the bikes and myself. The smell of smoke would permeate my nostrils and chest, leaving a decidedly coal-like taste in the mouth.
That has brought back so many memories - thank you.
The Maxey Road factory was a special place - especially for a 11/12 year old walking past everyday on my way to school from Plumstead to Woolwich in the late 60's. Matchless and Nortons being test ridden along Maxey Road and Burrage Road. The smell, the noise - I can sense it still so clearly.
Have found an address for Matchless AJS at 44 Plumstead Road Woolwich
Taken from Plumstead Stories (on line memories site):
A special place for me was the Matchless/AJS motorcycle factory. It lay between Maxey Road and Burrage Road, on the northern side of the main rail line. I could stand at the wire link fence and stare across the rail line to the gleaming motorbikes waiting to be loaded on to the trains and lorries for delivery. It was a hive of industry, with bikes being wheeled out of the factory and pushed up and down various ramps. Men dressed in grey overalls would straddle a bike, give the crank a kick and ride the bike away down the other end to some distant shed. Intermittently, big black steam trains huffed and puffed between the bikes and myself. The smell of smoke would permeate my nostrils and chest, leaving a decidedly coal-like taste in the mouth.
That has brought back so many memories - thank you.
The Maxey Road factory was a special place - especially for a 11/12 year old walking past everyday on my way to school from Plumstead to Woolwich in the late 60's. Matchless and Nortons being test ridden along Maxey Road and Burrage Road. The smell, the noise - I can sense it still so clearly.
Happy days.
I know a good few year back (20) that a small celebration of the Matchless/AJS works was done in the market square and in the old art gallery opposite the COOP , quite a few of the old bikes on display , but if you look online there are very few photos of the old works , seems strange that a company of that size that employed so many people of Woolwich has very little history to refer back to .
Have found an address for Matchless AJS at 44 Plumstead Road Woolwich
Taken from Plumstead Stories (on line memories site):
A special place for me was the Matchless/AJS motorcycle factory. It lay between Maxey Road and Burrage Road, on the northern side of the main rail line. I could stand at the wire link fence and stare across the rail line to the gleaming motorbikes waiting to be loaded on to the trains and lorries for delivery. It was a hive of industry, with bikes being wheeled out of the factory and pushed up and down various ramps. Men dressed in grey overalls would straddle a bike, give the crank a kick and ride the bike away down the other end to some distant shed. Intermittently, big black steam trains huffed and puffed between the bikes and myself. The smell of smoke would permeate my nostrils and chest, leaving a decidedly coal-like taste in the mouth.
That has brought back so many memories - thank you.
The Maxey Road factory was a special place - especially for a 11/12 year old walking past everyday on my way to school from Plumstead to Woolwich in the late 60's. Matchless and Nortons being test ridden along Maxey Road and Burrage Road. The smell, the noise - I can sense it still so clearly.
Happy days.
Never knew about the matchless factory, and got a 53 bus from Charlton to Plumstead when at school (Bloomfield) probably larking around on the top deck, or finishing the homework. Of course there were the girls from Kings Warren, who were a great distraction. That area has changed a great amount, still the Lord Raglan pub in Burrage Road, where in the 6th form couple of the teachers took us for a drink when we left school. (Cannot see that happening these days), and the Methodist Hall seems to be there where we took our 'O' levels. Spent lunchtime at the Chip shop, or the Bakers, and buy a packet of fags, which of course we smoked on the top deck of the bus on the way home, trying to impress the young ladies. Needless to say the young woman thought we were rather common, despite the advances, when we did have the bottle to actually speak to one of them.
Anybody recognise this ? Found it on a random Google search. It's obviously Woolwich / Charlton because of the Woo telephone number. Some right likely lads too.
Anybody recognise this ? Found it on a random Google search. It's obviously Woolwich / Charlton because of the Woo telephone number. Some right likely lads too.
Anybody recognise this ? Found it on a random Google search. It's obviously Woolwich / Charlton because of the Woo telephone number. Some right likely lads too.
No sorry no idea of the location, Is that you in the photograph?..... One in the middle looks like Keith Moon. Great photograph though. Yes, that was the 'funny money ' I was talking about earlier in this posting.
Not me in the photograph. Ffs Ken that must be late fifties ? I was born in 56. I was wondering if it was in one of those streets that run opposite Charlton Lido. There are a few shops down there that fit the age I think.
Not me in the photograph. Ffs Ken that must be late fifties ? I was born in 56. I was wondering if it was in one of those streets that run opposite Charlton Lido. There are a few shops down there that fit the age I think.
No, I don't think it's there Shootie.
Looking at the photo, it's a very narrow road and what looks like a very wide pavement....
Comments
(No plaque though)
When my missus managed to scrape all down the side of ours a few weeks ago it was just a case of "f**k it, let the insurance sort it out"
My old man would have been gutted, partly because he'd have felt stupid doing it but mainly because he'd damaged his pride and joy.
Had them in the old British Library, where I worked as a young man. They used to send ticket requests from readers in the round reading room to the bookstacks.
Most of what has been knocked down to make the roads back to where they were was the other side of Rennel St from the shopping centre. The market is still going - I used to work next to it until 2 years ago and it was fine, though I think the disruption from building all the flats for investors and changing the roads has definitely affected its trade. It stretches from the clock tower to outside the now closed BHS.
What's far worse than the transport is the sprouting of tower blocks near the station. Most of them are ugly and far too dense. In a way, it's lucky that a lot are not there to be lived in, as the infrastructure would not cope.
Anyone got some pictures of the old Matchless factory ? seems like a forgotten part of Woolwich history as there is very little information online about it .
The Matchless/AJ shop looks to me to be slap bang in the way of the "new" ferry approach/roundabout and was maybe demolished to make way for that?
Taken from Plumstead Stories (on line memories site):
A special place for me was the Matchless/AJS motorcycle factory. It lay between Maxey Road and Burrage Road, on the northern side of the main rail line. I could stand at the wire link fence and stare across the rail line to the gleaming motorbikes waiting to be loaded on to the trains and lorries for delivery. It was a hive of industry, with bikes being wheeled out of the factory and pushed up and down various ramps. Men dressed in grey overalls would straddle a bike, give the crank a kick and ride the bike away down the other end to some distant shed. Intermittently, big black steam trains huffed and puffed between the bikes and myself. The smell of smoke would permeate my nostrils and chest, leaving a decidedly coal-like taste in the mouth.
To the left of the central lamppost you can see a car in the background that is positioned roughly where the 2 trolleybuses are in the original photo.
Anyway, here's the link http://www.arthurlloyd.co.uk/WoolwichTheatres/Odeon1970.jpg
The Maxey Road factory was a special place - especially for a 11/12 year old walking past everyday on my way to school from Plumstead to Woolwich in the late 60's. Matchless and Nortons being test ridden along Maxey Road and Burrage Road. The smell, the noise - I can sense it still so clearly.
Happy days.
http://www.oldclassiccar.co.uk/matchless.htm
Looking at the photo, it's a very narrow road and what looks like a very wide pavement....