Growing-up With Southall From 1904 (Memories of R.J. Meads)

 

                        We got into many scraps together. He was a great animal and bird lover. This led to us going after Sunday School to Muddy Lane ( now Allenby Road ) birdnesting, not to steal the eggs but to find the nests and watch them. I remember he climbed a tree and found an owl’s nest, and disturbed the owl sitting. She flew out and attacked him. We of course got into trouble for coming home smothered in mud. He also had several caged birds in the garden at the back of the shop, one of which was a kestral for which he got scraps of meat from Mr. Anstis. I was not surprised when he left school, he went to a farm to learn and later went to Australia where he bacame a farmer and died out there; Penny’s ( Ebden’s ) – we used to be sent there especially around Christmas time for such things a “Tarragon Port” ( 1/9 – 8½p – a bottle ), Scotch whisky ( 3/9 – 18½p a bottle ) and quart bottles of oatmeal stout ( 1/- 5p – per bottle ). When Ebden’s took over, the shop took on a more modern look. The family became involved in Town and Church affairs, the boys in the choir and Scouts; next to this used to be what we called the Police House, with trees in the front. It was formerly the residence of Mr. W. Pearce, who was a big contributor to Holy Trinity Church and died Feb. 1887, after which it was bought by the police. At the rear was the small station and, two other stations having since been built and demolished, now stands there the new fortress-like station; Juggins and Pearce – large yard supplying hay and straw and other cattle feeding stuff. I remember they had a chaff cutting machine which had to be turned by hand and one of my schoolmates’ father who worked there had two fingers cut off. We also used to have rides on the carts sometimes during the holidays; Sanders – his bakehouse was in the cellar, and us choirboys were the plague of his life. One Easter my brother Tom got a temporary job helping with the delivery of the hot cross buns, which were 13 for 6 pence.
 
                        After Holy Trinity Church and Vicarage came the “Chestnuts”, residence of Mr. C Abbott, and Mr. and Mrs. Paton’s Melrose House, Red Lion field, where Southall Football Club used to play, and then Longford Avenue with a big house, the residence of Mr. Reginald Brown, Surveyor to the Southall Urban District Council.