Growing up around Sutton

Helene Anderson wrote.....

I remember so many things from Sutton that I don't really know where to start. I suppose my earliest memory (or one of them) goes back to when I was three years old, in St Helier Hospital for tonsillitis. I remember the surgeons name still, Mr Black. Every day (I think I was in for a week) I got from my Mum and Dad a post card with a character called 'Teddy Edward' on.

Milk was delivered by Express Dairy, the milkman's name was Morris (or Maurice). I remember the depot in Shorts Road. It wasn't very big. Next it was Unigate that delivered our milk, Dennis was the name of one of the Milkman (one did the weekdays, another did Sundays)

West Street Lane, Carshalton

For school I started at St Marys Infants School, West street, Carshalton - in Miss Quick's class, (she went on to be headmistress). I remember the three playground ladies at lunchtime, Mrs Henry, Mrs White and Mrs Black. The alleyway by the school smelled of catkins in the autumn. If I get the same smell now I am transported back to infants’ school. I would love to go back to that school and find out what books we were reading, am not too sure what we used to learn to read, there was Book 1, Book 2 Book 3 and Book 4. Wow, the pride when one finished one book and went onto the next. It was about a family, not Peter and Jane or Janet and John, but another book. The school was much smaller at the time, the main building as seen from West Street today. There was another building the rear of the school, a sort of prefabricated basic building, used as the canteen for a while I think. This was demolished, and I think two new class rooms were built in the 1960s. Due to there being fewer buildings than today the playing field was larger. I remember the Christmas parties in the infants’ school, we, the children, would take food and one day just before Christmas we'd have a party. Each class I think doing its own thing. If on the train passing by I still look at the school with great fondness. I am not 100% (perhaps 95% sure?) but we did have some school books with LCC as at that time Sutton had left Surrey and want then part of London (even though the LCC officially no longer existed). I'm sure there must have been an interim period when LCC things were still used in the time of the GLC.

Mrs Davy was the secretary at the infants’ school. Mrs Newell was the secretary at the junior school.

The internet is wonderful. For years I have remembered Cuisenaire being used at school (infants) to help us count. Now I find they are actually called Cuisenaire Rods. Each rod was a different colour according to length in cm. White 1, Red 2, Light Green 3, Lavender 4, Yellow 5, Dark Green 6, Black 7, Brown 8, Blue 9, Orange 10.

A natural progress after that was to St Mary's Junior School, Shorts Road. When I was in the borough only a few weeks ago I was amazed to find the same crossing-lady is still there from the 1960s! In the junior school there were two classes for each year, Junior 1 and Junior 2 occupied the older buildings and Junior 3 and Junior 4 were in the more modern buildings. For class 3 it was some sort of prefabricated building, quite big, and airy. For class 4 a smaller structure made of wood. In the summer on nice days for the lunchtime break we would be taken to the field by the infants’ school. The lunchtime break started at 12:00. There were three sittings – at 12:00, 12:30 and 13:00. I think the worse memory of school is the school milk, in the bottles of one third of a pint I think. Left out in the sun ready for us to have at the 10 30 break or 'playtime'. Oh, and school dinners…..

Sutton High Street looking north

Sutton High Street

Sutton Arcade

Fond memories of High Street, Sutton. Mum had a pram and on this pram was one of those chairs to put toddlers on, I sat on this while my sister was in the pram (Coach Built Prams had them I think). We walked everywhere, Dad didn't have a car until the early sixties I think, perhaps 61 or 62, and I remember him setting off each morning to cycle to work in Brixton. On rare occasions later, having walked up the High Street we'd get a taxi home if there was a lot of shopping to carry, I was born during the 'reign' of the FX4 but there were still a lot of FX3 taxis about, dark rear window, open luggage platform (there are a lot of things I have looked up in recent years based on my memories to check what was what). Lilly & Skinner had a roundabout or similar inside it I'm sure to keep children amused. The Brixton branch had more but (I'll explain Brixton later)….. Oh, the lift man at Shinner's scared me (mind you so did the park keeper at Brockwell Park!). London Palladium was a treat, the Pantomime. By this time Dad was working at Balham, he would drive and park outside where he worked and we'd get the tube from Clapham South to Oxford Circus. That was so special. We did that for a few years.

Another regular 'pram' trip was to get the orange juice. I think this was at a building in Festival Walk, just off West Street. Plus the clinic in Rochester Road, Carshalton.

A favourite past time in the summer was going to feed the ducks at The Grove, goodness, how many children must have done that through the years. There was a shop in North Street, just by the road that leads to Carshalton station. A sweet shop then that I believe had a hatch, a small glass serving hole where you could by your ice creams and lollies without going into the shop.

During the school holidays Mum would take us out, to museums and things. First the bus to Morden and then the Northern Line to where ever. The 157, it chugged everywhere, it always seemed to be under strain except when heading north on St Helier Avenue. I remember the Monument clearly; I only got halfway up that, I was petrified. One thing I do remember on buses and on trains are the bulbs that gave off a gently light, a sort of yellow light, nothing like the fluorescent lights to day on buses and trains.

The Grove, Carshalton

The Grove House, Carshalton

I now look back trips to Carshalton library with great happiness, in the autumn it was best. Such a small library and now I think of it a cosy. Oddly don't have many memories of it in the summer but the autumn, falling leaves, dark evenings, brilliant. The borough has done well with libraries, later went to Sutton library (even went to evening classes run by SCOLA!) and then later I often went to Wallington library. For the evening classes, well, the first thing that attracted me was the chance to learn German, which I did. Three years of evening classes for that. Later I learnt French at evening classes at Sutton Manor and at Wallington Girls High Schools.

Most of my memories seem to be based around the autumn, the winter and when people ask me about London here I always say they must see London in the rain, it is special. Another autumn memory is the 5th November. I think initially we used to have a few fireworks at home but then later we started going to the display at Carshalton Park. Friend of our parents came down from the Isle of Dogs (E14) for the day. The displays were brilliant and with hot dogs and such trimmings it was a great evening out.

Our maternal grandparents lived in Brixton so some of my memories are based in Brixton. I just recall green trains! Our Grandmother would take us from Carshalton to Streatham by train then we'd get the bus to Brixton Water Lane. I'm sure that the signs on the bridges in North Street and West Street Carshalton said "Southern Electric" or similar, they were green also. Then the trains were blue, then grey and blue then..... I'd rather try and forget Connex! I'm sure most people would. Anyway, the trip without grandmother nowadays doesn't sound much but then it was so exciting. We'd see our Grandfather in his shop on Brixton Hill, back to our Grandparents flat for fish fingers chips and peas and then Dad would pick us up in the evening.

Ah, I remember one year during our holiday on the Isle of Wight we had to come back to Sutton for a cousins wedding, just for the weekend so we came back by train, brilliant! Boat to Portsmouth and then the express train to Sutton from Portsmouth Harbour, well, I say express, Portsmouth and Southsea, Fratton, Havant, Emsworth, Southbourne, Bosham, Chichester Barnham where it joined with the Bognor portion (that intrigued Dad I think). Headcode 40 to Victoria. Complete with buffet car, such style! The buffet car was always in the Bognor Regis portion.

Coach & Horses, Carshalton

Sutton Station

We had some good holidays. One big adventure was going to Guernsey. Getting a lift to Waterloo, then by train to Weymouth Quay and the boat to Guernsey. Three-hour train journey finish with the train travelling along the roads in Weymouth.

I had my first trip abroad courtesy of the London Borough of Sutton, an exchange trip to Minden in (then) West Germany.

Our (paternal) Grandfather was very much a local man with an interest in the area. He was one of those responsible for the reforming of Carshalton Athletic FC after the First World War. Part of his obituary reads;

HELPED RE-FORM THE “ROBINS”
Then there was the reformation of Carshalton Athletic Football Club as a senior team.
This proved a long and costly process and occupied the whole of the period between the two world wars,
the second of which almost defeated local footballers of this cherished ambition.
Mr. ***** was treasurer throughout the whole of the period
and was one of those who put quite a lot of money as well as of effort into the project

Someone has taken the time and trouble to do a most comprehensive family tree with four main branches (Ardingly, Buxted, Framfield and Mayfield) of the family going back centuries. These four main branches \ families have never strayed far from the south east, main haunts being Sussex, Surrey and London.

Dad played cricket for Surrey Grove Cricket Club, based in Poulter Park. Summer Sunday afternoons spent watching cricket, the occasional away match. I remember the pavilion there, tea at half time (does one have half time in cricket?). The smell of tobacco lingers in my mind, a certain type of tobacco, pipe tobacco? Only a couple of days ago I passed someone smoking and the smell hit me, it was the same as at cricket that many years ago. Just for a few seconds I was back in Poulter Park with Mum, Dad and my sister for a cricket match, 1967 all over again.

I think I remember the overhead cables for the trolleybuses in Westmead Road (though not sure), but not the trolley buses. I wonder if the cables were left for a short while after the trolleybuses were withdrawn?

Throwley Way, Sutton

Sutton Civic Centre

Red Rover Tickets on the buses in the 1970s, brilliant! Days out with friends in school holidays. I think the first time we tried it we got as far as Brixton, next time Oxford Street was the place to be, gosh, must have been about fourteen then? I remember one time I got the train to Victoria, can't remember why, and at the tube station (Victoria) asked for a map. "How much?" I asked. "Fwee" said the woman behind the window. I duly put three pence on the silver dish. "Nah" she said "fwee" - "that is fwee" I replied, I counted out the money, "one two fwee". "Nah" she said again "fwee, costs nuffink".

Often went to the Granada cinema to see films, Mum would take us to see the latest Disney film - though I think mum was a bit disappointed when Jungle Book came out (1967) it was shown at the Curzon in Cheam Road, the Granada was a better cinema. I have been a fan of George Sanders (Shere Khan) ever since though. I think by then the Curzon had been turned into a cinema with three screens (Studio 1 2 3). The exception being 'Lawrence of Arabia' – the Odeon Leicester Square for that one when it was released.

Coopers on Wrythe Green, gosh, everyone (most?) must remember Coopers, the brothers and the two big dogs there. Not far from Coopers along Wrythe Lane was the gasometer where Mr Plumpton had his scrap yard. Now on the site is Plumpton Way.

I think in many parts Sutton had a functional style of architecture for its municipal buildings, nothing out of the ordinary, at least at the time though now one might say it is ashamed that so many are gone as there are few examples left of 'ordinary' architecture. Would be curious to learn when the fire station in Throwley Way closed though.

I learnt to swim at Sutton baths, it was freezing!!!! There was a woman there on Sunday mornings (who I would say was an old woman, but when one is only about six or seven even someone of thirty might seem to be getting on so perhaps she wasn't so old, just older than me) who helped children learn to swim. Epsom baths was better, then they built Morden bath, that was smart. Fish and chips on the way home on a Saturday if we went swimming, the fish and chip shop in Westmead Road, Gildos it was called. Italians. I couldn't see over the counter, fish and chip shops always seem to have high counters. One of the mysteries of childhood was 'what on earth happens the other side of the fish and chip shop counter?'. I would stand next to Dad as he bought four portions of chips and whatever, Dad always had Cod Roe. Mum and my sister plaice (or perhaps cod) and me Rock. The woman in the shop called everyone Mike, I'm sure if Queen Victoria had walked in for a Saveloy and chips with a wally she also would been called 'Mike'. The sad part is that when one grows up and is able to see over the counter one is perhaps a little disappointed. There is no sudden revelation though, one doesn't grow 30 centimetres in a week and is suddenly able to see over the counter, one grows slowly, sees the other side bit by bit.

Someone told me there are no fresh fish shops in the borough now. Nicholson's in Manor Road Wallington having closed. I remember there being fish shops at the bottom (northern end) of High Street, Sutton, I think at the northern end of King William Street, Carshalton (or Green Wrythe Lane). Wrythe Lane, in the parade of shops between the hospital and the roundabout at Rose Hill. Now I suppose people just buy their fish at the supermarket but I for one thoroughly enjoyed gong to Nicholson's in Manor Road. I was spoilt in a way. Later I lived in Wallington and had around the corner Nicholson's and a fish and chip shop on Manor Road.

One year (in the seventies) I helped do the scenery for the local pantomime at the Charles Cryer Theatre. It was built at Oaks Park, in a building there. The guy in charge of the scenery was called Eddie, I think he worked doing the scenery for an opera.

The first supermarket that I remember was in Carshalton, Victor Value, later bought out by Tesco I believe.

Westcroft Leisure Centre, Carshalton

Our dentist was a Mr Healy in Banstead Road, just by the parade of shops there. I think the house is still used as a dental surgery. The fun part of that was the toy shop just a couple of doors a long; well, we'd have to stop and look at least. Our doctor was in Colston Avenue and I have this odd memory that each time we saw him he had a radically different hair style.

Places I went to later on….. in Grove Road, there was a restaurant that did hamburgers, probably it was where Orme Road is now. Have an idea it was called the 'Crazy H'. Most time was spent outside the borough though, The Kingston Mill and then Pizza Express in Kingston being an easy going convivial night out.

I left Sutton in the late 80s but by 1991 was back, ended up in Wallington. Work wise had nothing to do with Sutton, I was with the Surrey Ambulance Service in the 1980s. Later I was with the London Ambulance Service, working at Waterloo.