Southall Chat

Southall-History actively solicits and gratefully welcomes any personal recollections, or scans of old photographs of the town, from current and former ‘long-time’ Southall residents.

Building this website on Southall’s past is to a great extent something of a community project, as although the editor can compile numerous facts, figures and even images relating to Southall’s past, page features are afforded a ‘life of their own’ with the addition of personal contributions from old Southallians.

The period covered by Southall-History extends from the earliest times to the mid 1980’s and all contributions will help to build this free resource into a substantial source of interest for anyone interested in Southall as it used to be; in former, perhaps more genteel times. Feel free to leave your experiences below.

159 responses

  1. april wood ashton avatar
    april wood ashton

    I have a scanned photo of Southall and its blacksmith’s forge c.1910- I send it in for posting on the site, but to where and what size / format?

  2. April ashton avatar
    April ashton

    A local paper of the time may have reported the accident with some detail including details of a Coroners Report which may help

  3. Adrian Penny avatar
    Adrian Penny

    Your help please.

    My grandfather Francis Samuel Honey lived in Southall between 1905 and 1955. Unfortunately he was electrocuted in Wraysbury in 1955 but I have no ideas whether he was buried or cremated early in 1956 as I was 11 at the time.

    Please do yo know any way I can find out

  4. Hazel Bell avatar
    Hazel Bell

    I have a copy of “Contribution to Victory”, an official publication by AEC of Southall, about the Associated Equipment Company’s production of vehicles in WWII. 124 pages, 13″ x 8″, plentiful photos. I would be willing to pass this on to you.

  5. Ross Turner avatar
    Ross Turner

    Hello, I would be very grateful if anyone could help with searching for details of where my friends father may have been buried in 1960.

    Sadly my friend lost his mother in 1958, and although his father re-married, he took his own life in 1960 when my friend was only 11 years old, then moved up north to be with relatives.

    This completely changed the course of my friends life, but he was never told where or what happened to his father after his death. He would be hugely grateful for any help in locating his grave as most online searches haven’t found anything and the cemeteries in that area can’t find any records either.

    My friends father was William Charles Burchill Plant. Died on the 7th feb 1960 and lived on Bycroft Road.

    Many thanks.

    1. april wood ashton avatar
      april wood ashton

      I am assuming that you have had the records for the cemetery in Havelock Road, Southall, checked?

  6. y avatar
    y

    southall county school 1906 built ..became grammar now Villiers high…boyd ave .tennis at side on southall park

    1. april wood ashton avatar
      april wood ashton

      Thank you – I have now discovered that it was originally named Southall County Secondary School, and was built 1906/1907, and as you now so rightly say is now called Villiers School.
      – does anyone know who the builders might have been
      – whether the early school records – ie Admission & Discharge Registers – have survived. I have contacted Villiers school who have no knowlege of them.

  7. april wood ashton avatar
    april wood ashton

    Which school in Southall was considered to be the Grammar School, offering scholarships c.1905 ?

    1. Geoff Snelling avatar
      Geoff Snelling

      Southall Grammar school was located at Villiers Rd next to Southall Park.
      There was also a Technical Grammar school located in Beaconsfield Rd.
      Both required a Middlesex Count Scholarship to be able to attend. I attended the Tech school from 1954 to 1958

  8. april wood Ashton avatar
    april wood Ashton

    Does anyone have any information about the Southall Film Studios? My Uncle born in 1908 and who lived in Townsend Road worked on their construction and I have lots of photos of the ongoing work

    1. Geoff Snelling avatar
      Geoff Snelling

      The Southall Film studios were located at the opposite end end of Queen’s rd. from Dudley Rd. It was remade into a small works area sometime in the 1950’s and I worked there at A J Wilkinsons Engineering from 1964 thru to 1965.
      The Wilkinson Family also at that time managed the Havelock Arms Pub in the King’s St.

      Geoff Snelling

  9. April Wood avatar
    April Wood

    My grandparents moved into a newly built house in Townsend Road in 1908. It appears to have been built by the Southall Development Syndicate. Does anyone have details / knowledge of The Southall Development Syndicate – I am assuming that they were involved in the development of Southall, leading up to and just beyond WW1. The Company had London Registered Offices and were wound up in 1922.

  10. peter langley avatar
    peter langley

    Hello This is Peter again. I wrote in this forum on March the 6th 2018 . regarding my mother Julia Irene Langley nee tullett. who lived for many years in St Bernards hospital. up to 1965 when she passed away there. I wonder if anyone has any details of her . Someone may have worked there in the 1950s and 60s. I am finding it almost impossible to find anything about her, on the geneology sites. Love to hear from anyone who worked there.

    1. april ashton avatar
      april ashton

      NHS records are being released – you may find some details there; also Ealing Library may be able to advise you

  11. Tony freer avatar
    Tony freer

    I am researching details of an article published in the south all gazette in June 1964. Any ideas what may have happened to photographs and or photographers from that time. One photograph was published, but wondering if others around unpublished. Long shot obviously.

  12. David avatar
    David

    Hello
    I am cleaning out some storage in our local church and have found programmes for concerts of the Southall Philharmonic Society, patron Ralph Vaughan Williams. Are they of any interest to you?

  13. MIKE ELLIS avatar
    MIKE ELLIS

    Hello,
    Can anybody assist me with my research into St. Mary’s Orphanage, North Hyde? I have postcard showing the Prince of Wales talking to the Orphanage’s Bandmaster, probably sometime in 1923, but I have not been able to put an accurate date to it
    Thanks.
    Mike Ellis, Broadstairs, Kent

  14. Sheena McKenzie avatar
    Sheena McKenzie

    Hello. I have been unsuccessful finding the name of a company/factory which was located above Burtons store in Southall in the 1960’s. My mother worked there making bras, and this is the only item she remembers being manufactured there. Can anyone help? Thank you.

    1. April ashton avatar
      April ashton

      A local paper of the time may have reported the accident with some detail including details of a Coroners Report which may help

    2. April Ashton avatar
      April Ashton

      A local business directory may help you

  15. Raymond avatar
    Raymond

    I was born in Southall 1949, my parents, grandparents and greatgrandparents lived there too. Mainly Balfour Rd, Townsend St. I have a photo taken of me and my mum during the Queens Coronation street celebrations, in Balfour Rd. All us kids enjoying a nice long table of party food i guess, cant remember much about it. I was about nearly 4yrs old at the time.

    I hav a photo and wish to know how to contribute? Also, this site dosn’t seem to update that much, allthough many have commented?

    I now live in Sweden.

  16. peter avatar
    peter

    my mother was in St Bernards hospital from the early 1950s and lived there until her death in 1965. She first was admitted as a parkinsons disease patient. I have memories as a child going to visit her with my father , but not being allowed to see her. At about 18 years old I did get to see her , and have very sad memories . By now she was too far gone and could n’t communicate with either of us.

    Through the years our family found it so hard to talk about her. Now after many years of wanting to find out about her upbringing. I am trying to do research. I am struggling with finding out where she even came from.

    Her name was Julia Irene Tullet . I would love to hear from anyone who may have any information about her or your own stories of St bernards. Wishing you all a happy healthy year. Peter

    It would be so nice to be able to put meaning to her life.

    1. April ashton avatar
      April ashton

      Was this the Hanson family who were builders of renown in Southall?

    2. April Ashton avatar
      April Ashton

      Have you looked to see if the NHS records are available?

    3. MO avatar
      MO

      I have never used facebook before so I don’t know whether this epistle will get to you. I am a novice at email etc. Re. your undermentioned posting years ago …my father worked at St.Bernard’s Hospital as a registered nurse for years, before and after the 2nd world war. I worked there in the office, briefly from 1964. Patients had some sort of social life with regular dances etc. and during the war received a better diet (oranges etc) than those in the outside world. The hospital had it’s own pig farm, library, and bakery etc. and patients could work in the vegetable gardens. Some were allowed out unsupervised to shop in Hanwell and return at night. My father always told my mother that if he “went do-lally” she was not to worry if he ended up in St. Bernard’s as the patients were well looked after there. Personally I think it was a better system than the haphazard “community care” psychiatric treatment patients get nowadays. I hope this small information is any comfort to you.

      My mother was in St Bernards hospital from the early 1950s and lived there until her death in 1965. She first was admitted as a parkinsons disease patient. I have memories as a child going to visit her with my father , but not being allowed to see her. At about 18 years old I did get to see her , and have very sad memories . By now she was too far gone and could n’t communicate with either of us.

      Through the years our family found it so hard to talk about her. Now after many years of wanting to find out about her upbringing. I am trying to do research. I am struggling with finding out where she even came from.

      Her name was Julia Irene Tullet . I would love to hear from anyone who may have any information about her or your own stories of St bernards. Wishing you all a happy healthy year. Peter

      It would be so nice to be able to put meaning to her life.

  17. Roger Cox avatar
    Roger Cox

    I am researching the Steel family and particularly their involvement with Southall Market and Market House . My wife`s father , Henry George Noel Steel, was born in 1913 at Market House . RJ Meads book has a reference to Mr Steel the Auctioneer and this I think must be his father Charles Frederick Steel . I would very much like to expand on this and welcome any feedback to achieve this . Any details about Market House , for instance a photo , or it`s precise location ,will be much appreciated . Is it still standing?.

    Many thanks

    Roger Cox

  18. Janet Bulmer avatar
    Janet Bulmer

    My husband is related to the Hanson family. His great grandfather was Arthur Hanson. He removers last visiting the family home Revelstoke on south road in the seventies and was wondering if the house still exsists. ? Do you also know which graveyard the family are buried in. We have a few pictures of the family taken in the garden of the house and a lovely one of the two brothers Ben and Arthur Hanson.

    1. April ashton avatar
      April ashton

      Was this the Hanson family who were builders of renown in Southall?

  19. Stephen c avatar
    Stephen c

    Can anyone help ? Where can I get pictures of the southall carnival and of jubilee gardens from the 70s and 80s.
    It seems like the history of the carnival and it’s 3 days in southall park over the August bank holidays have all but been forgotten. Also there used to be a school just inside jubilee garden that was derelict when I was a boy and we used to play inside the remains, does anyone know if this was a school. My mum used to say it was for children with special needs.
    Lastly is there anywhere that I could visit that is likely to archieve old pictures of southall.

    1. Nick Taylor avatar
      Nick Taylor

      I do not have any pictures of carnival in 1970’s or 1980’s but I may have a few of the Carnival in the 1960’s if that is of any help

      1. Jay Duffield avatar
        Jay Duffield

        My Dad used to help run the Southall Carnival on behalf of the Southall Chambers of Commerce tent and carnival and I was a regular on the floats every year as a child and I would love to see some photos from the 60’s

    2. Frank E. avatar
      Frank E.

      Hi Steve, not sure if you,ll ever read this but the building just outside (was in my day) the gate was a library were I spent vast amounts of time back in the early ’50s. The only building I remember just inside the gates was a ‘pavillion’ type building common in parks in those days with bench-type seats along the outside walls. Never was a school inside the park.

      1. Stephen C avatar
        Stephen C

        Hi Frank I’ve only just seen your reply it’s funny but I forgot that I asked the question.
        I remember the pavilion, it was located at the end of the tarmac just inside the large area of the park then the path went right up to the swings, the large slide and the witches hat. There was no path to the left just two big trees a little further down. I remember the pavilion being in a bit of a state and we used to wait in there for the rain to stop. I remember an Asian guy who used to call himself Elvis and he had slicked his hair back like Elvis. I also remember all the bags of glue that used to be in the park from the glue sniffers at the time. Glad that stopped. Going back to the building that I was told was a school it was located on the left just as you walked in the park but was set back a bit and was fenced off. There was lots of broken glass on floor of the derelict building. It used to back on to rear of the gardens on St. Peter’s Road.

  20. Emma Parker avatar
    Emma Parker

    Hi, I’m trying to research a relative of mine (a great great aunt) who died at Hanwell Asylum/St Bernard’s in 1944.

    I know Hanwell’s collection is divided between 4 locations, but not which one has the patient records.

    I am also trying to find out where I can access local newspapers from the time.

    Can you guys at Southall History help me at all please?

    Thank you!


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