sign in sign up
<<
Home , Chislehurst Caves, Coldharbour Estate, Leaves Green, Mottingham, Park Langley, Royal Naval School

Bromleag The newsletter of Borough Local History Society June 2008

In this issue Ripping up a storm in ‘58 Last post for Bromley landmark

Destruction in the heart of Bromleag The newsletter of the Bromley Borough Local History Society

Society officers

Chairman and Membership Secretary Tony Allnutt Woodside, Old Perry Street, , BR7 6PP 020 8467 3842 [email protected] Secretary Patricia Knowlden 62 Harvest Bank Road, , BR4 9DJ 020 8462 5002

Treasurer Brian Reynolds 2 The Limes, Oakley Road, Bromley, BR2 8HH 020 8462 9526 [email protected].,uk Publications Peter Leigh 29 Woodland Way West Wickham BR4 9LR 0208 777 9244 [email protected] Publicity and website Max Batten 5 South view Bromley BR13DR 020 8460 1284 [email protected]

BBLHS website http://bblhs.website.orange.co.uk/

Bromleag is published four times a year. The editor welcomes articles along with illustrations and photographs. These can be in paper copy, disk or e-mailed. Items remain the copyright of the authors and do not necessarily reflect Society views. Each contributor is responsible for the content of their article. Articles may be edited to meet the constraints of the newsletter. Articles are not always used immediately as we try to maintain a balance between research, reminiscences and news and features about different subjects and parts of the borough. Editor Christine Hellicar 150 Worlds End Lane, , BR6 6AS 01689 857214 [email protected]

Next newsletter deadline — 15 January 2008

2 Bromleag December 2008 News

Contents A little help from the taxman with Gift Aid News P 3 — 5 With this issue comes the Society meetings subscription renewal form and I think Members’ evening you will agree that our rates — printed P 6 — 7 on the back of the magazine — are very reasonable as we have managed village to keep them unchanged for several P7— 9 years. Letters P 10 — 11 Since the year 2000 we have enjoyed claiming back from the Inland Revenue Book reviews 28p for every £1 paid by the many Beckenham Green members who have signed the 'gift aid' P14 — 16 forms. This year our bank account has Features benefited by nearly £600.00, which oils Bromley Post Office the wheels of your society quite a bit. P12 — 13 For anyone who has not signed the Gift The Great Storm of 1958 Aid Declaration, and is paying the Inland Revenue more tax than their P17 — 23 subscription, could we please ask you to sign the declaration when you pay your P24 — 28 subs this year. As they say "Every little bit helps" And it Index costs YOU NOTHING. 2005 — 2008 Brian Reynolds, Treasurer P29 — 31

Keeping in touch We are aware that many members now have email addresses and we would like to include them on our membership database . If you have an email address, please add the details to your subscription renewal form. Email will not replace our usual postal forms of communication.

3 Bromleag December 2008 News BBLHS plans new publications

After a break of some years we have decided to expand our publications output in a range of different ways. Our first new publication will be supporting Bromley Local Studies Library in the producing a history of Cockmannings House, , which Simon Finch at the library is working on with the house’s current owner Marie Reeves. We hope in future to work closely with the library on joint projects allowing researchers to publish small booklets on very specialised topics. But, we also intend developing a series of books bringing together articles on specific topics. In the past our series on Industry in Bromley and Bromley at the turn of the century have proved very successful so our new publications will also be theme based. Our existing publications are now on sale on CD and this too has been successful and our new range of publications will be produced both in print and on CD. Are you interested in transport history? Our first publication will focus on transport history. We will be drawing on some of the substantial articles published in Bromleag in the past, but will also include new material. We know – from our recent questionnaire – that this is a subject that many members are interested in and some are already carrying out research. If you have an interest in air, rail, road, horse or any other form of transport, and would like to contribute to any new publication, please get in touch initially with Christine Hellicar 01689 857214 or [email protected]. The project is at an early stage so no need to put pen to paper at present. But, we really would like to know who might be able to contribute later on, either finished articles or research notes. We will have a publication editor who will be happy to give any help to authors who might feel reticent about turning their research into an article. Now is your chance to share your knowledge and help us move into an exciting new era of local history publications for Bromley.

4 Bromleag December 2008 News Meetings and events January — April 2009 Meetings are held at 7.45 pm on the first Tuesday of the month, from September to July, in the Methodist Church Hall, North Street, Bromley. The hall has free off-street parking, good public transport links and facilities for the disabled. Non-members are welcome at the society’s meetings for a nominal charge of £1. 6 January The History of Bethlem — Caroline Smith 3 February How to research the history of your local area — Michael Rawcliffe 3 March A journey from Blanford the Hayes: the lives and times of William Pitt and his son, Pitt the Younger — Anne Manning

Bromley Library Exhibition An exhibition celebrating the 300th anniversary, this year, of the birth of Pitt the Elder and the 250th anniversary, next year, of Pitt the Younger will be in Bromley Libraries next spring. The Library is also publishing a book by Anne Manning entitled The Journey from Blanford to Hayes, in January. Darwin celebrations Bromley Council’s Heritage and Urban Design team are planning a series of events during 2008 to celebrate the birth of Charles Darwin, we will have details in the March 2008 issue but also look for announcements in the local press. New BBLHS website address Max Batten, has added several new features to our website, which now has a new address so do take a look and make a note of the new address. http://bblhs.website.orange.co.uk/

5 Bromleag December 2008 Society meeting Licences, postcards, war time evacuation and a long gone house

I am sure that some of you looked at the programme for our September meeting and thought a ‘members evening, I’ll give that a miss and watch television.’ You missed a very good evening. There were five tables with presenters covering a wide range of subjects. Our vice chairman, Mike Rawcliffe, brought along a wide variety of post cards showing local scenes of the Bromley area. He explained the difference of purpose over the decades, from advertising the locality to eventually holidaymakers communicating with their relatives and showing what a lovely place Bromley was. The quality and the number of different scenes captured on the cards was amazing. On the second table David Johnson made a plea for anyone who had memories of wartime evacuation to contact him. David himself had been evacuated during the early part of the war and he is compiling stories of other evacuees for a future publication. Patricia Knowlden had a very varied selection of receipts dating from 1909, mainly from the area. She also had a house contents valuation, which was extremely interesting in its detail and the value of things. The fourth participant was Len Smith who gave a presentation on Rookery House, which, alas, is no longer on having been demolished when Bromley College of Further Education was built. His main emphasis was on the library, which housed some very valuable books. So much so that during the war, when the Rookery was taken over by the air force, a false wall was constructed to hide them. As some of you will know, after the war there was a disastrous fire, which gutted the centre of the house, and many of the books were destroyed. His display brought the old house to life again. He went on to show how dangerous Bromley Common was in the past, a rather desolate place and a good hunting ground for highwaymen. He related an interesting story about one ‘Gentleman of the Road’, who after a hold up passed through the tollgate at Pratts Bottom, which was reported to the police. He then apparently turned around and came back hoping the police would think he had gone on to Croydon. A highwayman was later caught and

6 Bromleag December 2008 Society meeting hanged in Bromley and Len wondered if this was the same man? For the fifth table our chairman, Tony Allnutt, brought along several Licences and explained that we may not be aware what many activities require, or did require a licence. The variety on show was extensive and in some cases nostalgic. A very entertaining evening, which I am glad I didn’t miss. Brian Reynolds

Discovering the history of Mottingham

Sitting astride Bromley and and divided by the busy A20 it is easy to pass through Mottingham without realising that it, like other parts of the borough, has its own rich history. At our October meeting John Kennett’s talk Looking at Mottingham and its History took us on a walk around Mottingham old and new to discover the characters and buildings that have shaped the area. Mottingham was a late developer. In the 1750s it was a detached parish having no church of its own, very little building and just one main road but said John: “It was a very important road through what was then forest, linking and Kent.” The road [the present A208, Mottingham Road, not the A20] was also the dividing line between land ownership. The many boundary stones that can still be found today either side of the road testify to that divided history. In its time Mottingham has been part of , , Bromley and Greenwich but has maintained its identity. In a series of pictures John showed us how the landscape remained rural well into the 20th century and , opened by the Queen Mother in 1957, was the last large farm in the old area to be developed for housing. But not all of Mottingham has been covered in bricks and mortar. Chapel Farm, where WG Grace played cricket, has become a sports centre. Grace, of course, died at his home in Mottingham in 1915. Two years before politician Denis Healey was born at a nursing home in Mottingham, a surprise to most of John’s audience.

7 Bromleag December 2008 Society meeting

Slightly bizarrely the best known building in Mottingham is school. Originally Fairy Hall, the home at one time of Lord Bathurst, it became in the late 19th century a ; then a school for the sons of missionaries when it took on the name Eltham College. John speculates that the name Eltham rather than Mottingham was chosen so as to avoid confusion with .

Past reminder: There is still a Porcupine Inn in Mottingham but this picture shows the building around 1910. It was licensed since, at least, the 17th century and appears on Roque’s map of the 1740s. There have been three or more different buildings on the site which was on the main London to Kent road making it a very important Inn.

There are other little gems of old buildings within Mottingham but given it’s rural past it was later developments that dominated John’s pictures. “Everything changes in 1866 with the railway,” said John. Originally the station was called Eltham but changed its name to Mottingham in 1927. Twenty years after the station came the first church. St Andrews sat squarely in fields when first built but gradually around Court Road and Mottingham Road the village began to surround the church. Mottingham also has its unusual corners, a wayside tomb built by borough

8 Bromleag December 2008 Society meeting surveyor Thomas Chester Howarth is still commemorated in Beaconsifeld Road. Because of bomb damage only three of the tablets remain but are now preserved in a memorial area. Bombing took out a lot of Victorian Mottingham but still remaining are some striking Victorian and Edwardian houses. And the war memorial, the earliest built anywhere says John, is a beautifully striking design by local architect George Hubbard. But a place is not just buildings it is people and the people of Mottingham decided in the 1970s that their village – though not ancient – deserved to be celebrated. The first Mottingham Festival was held in 1973 and has been taking place every other year since. John Kennett, who is also chairman of the Festival Committee, concluded his talk with pictures from the festival and with the suggestion that we all get out and have a walk through Mottingham, rather than just pass through it by car or bus, and take a look at some of the interesting buildings that make up this little corner of Bromley. Christine Hellicar

Changing scene The 1950s saw an expansion of Mottingham and new shops along Mottingham Road

9 Bromleag December 2008 Letters Ghostly memories from Widmore Road

An intriguing story about a long forgotten WWII incident has come to light, thanks to a letter published in September’s edition of Bromleag. Lewis Wood of the Banstead History Research Group was seeking information on the shooting down of a German plane in Widmore Road Bromley during WWII. He was contacted by Marie Edwards and was delighted and surprised at her tale. Marie’s story, below, has now been added to the Banstead site, which commemorates the life of night-fighter pilot Peter Lintott, who shot down the plane. "It was about 1947 when we moved into 157 Widmore Road Bromley. A few doors down on the opposite side of the road were the two houses that were damaged by the plane that crashed there. “I never knew whether it was a British or a German plane, but it had sliced off the back of the two houses which were subsequently demolished. They were a pair of semi-detached properties each with a basement, ground floor, first floor and an attic and I remember the steps leading up to the main door. The houses were eventually replaced by flats. “At the time we moved into 157, the property had been empty for a while and the garden was completely overgrown. I was a young girl then, of course, but I remember clearly being told not to play at the bottom of our garden as some of the debris from the plane had fallen there. We had to be careful as there were several small bits of metal as well as two large 'tanks'. I don't really know what they were. “In the house was a large mantle-piece, and there was always a ‘feeling’ by the fireplace. No-one could put a finger on it, but my mother, grandmother and I all saw a man leaning against it. He was a young officer in uniform, fair -haired and clean-shaven and he stood there and said nothing. I don't know if he was British or German. We saw him several times over a period of about six weeks, and I was not scared or intimidated. Each time, he stood in the same place and never said a word. Eventually my grandmother got fed up with him and told him to go away. We never saw him again." There is a rider added by Lewis Wood: “That is strange enough but what Mrs Edwards did not know was that Lintott shot down this plane at 0025hrs on the 25th of April 1943. That day was Easter Sunday.” More information on the crash itself has also come to light with the help of Bromley Local Studies Library.

10 Bromleag December 2008 Letters

In his book Bromley on the Front Line Lewis Blake says wreckage fell in and around Widmore Road and Plaistow Lane, a fire was started in Bromley cricket club, but the main damage was at 124-126 Widmore Road where exploding ammunition set fire to both houses. It was reported, with pictures of the wreckage, in both The Mercury of 30 April 1943 and the Kentish Times. No one in Bromley was hurt but three of the German crew were killed and the survivor walked into a wardens’ post and surrendered. The Mercury report continued: “The German fighter bomber, a Ju88, was brought down early on Sunday and, breaking up fell in pieces over a wide area … one engine unit and parts of the undercarriage fuselage fell in the middle of a residential road. Another engine unit fell in the back garden of a house.” The Kentish Times added more colour: “Early in the morning people heard the rush of a low-flying machine. ‘One of ours’, evidently, was their first thought. Then came a zooming roar as the enemy plane – as it apparently was – tried to get away. A momentary pause and then the sky was lit by a terrific pink and white flash. Silence, but for a bump, as though a heavy object had struck the ground.” One of the German airman who died was also discovered in the back garden of a house … possibly the house where Marie lived as a child?

Searching for Robert Borrowman book

I understand that there are some 40 copies of Robert Borrowman’s 1910 book Beckenham Past and Present in the archives at Bromley Local Studies library, as they have been steadily buying up copies over the years. But I would like to track down some of those still in private hands. If readers have copies of the book I would be grateful if they would contact me with any details that appear on the flyleaf. There were 124 copies bought by subscribers before printing and I'm trying to discover how many books can still be accounted for. My own copy, in the original greenish binding, is inscribed To Aggie from Robert. The book was later passed to Mr Henley then Anne Collins in 1940 (both my friends) and now me. Contact, Pat Manning 0208 650 3418 or [email protected]

11 Bromleag December 2008 Feature Last post for a Bromley landmark By Patricia Knowlden ast year after over a century of service to the people of Bromley, the Main Post Office, in East Street just off the Market Square, was closed. L Post Office business was relocated at W H Smith’s shop in the High Street – upstairs. The fact that although there is an escalator up, to come down you have to use the stairs unless you find the lift tucked into a corner, seems not to be of any importance. I spoke to one lady who was waiting downstairs while her husband went up, and who was perched on the stool of a photographic booth because she could not find a chair either. In Bromley’s shops I remember in the old days there were always chairs for customers. Of course, when the Post office was first established such amenities would have been sparse. According to an old board [featured in Bromleag December 1996] it was in 1685 that William Crumpe obtained the franchise for Bromley’s first Post Office, just half a century after the Royal Mail was created. Not surprisingly, most local offices were set up at the inns where mail coaches changed horses and deposited the mail, and Bromley was no exception. William Crumpe merely lived conveniently near the Bell Inn. He was followed just two years later by Thomas Bennett, who was landlord of Bromley’s other coaching inn the White Hart; and so were two other postmasters of the 1780s, followed by James Wilson of the Bell in 1788. From 1796 to 1857 the position was filled by a succession of wine merchants located opposite the Bell – latterly named Pamphillon’s and now converted into an Aussie bar. Bagshaw’s Directory for 1847 informs us that letters from London and all parts arrived at 5 and 11 o’clock in the morning and at 1 and 6 in the afternoon; they were despatched at 8.30 am and a quarter to one o’clock, half past three and half past seven. The coaches left the White Hart for London and Hastings at 11 each morning, and for Maidstone every alternate day at three in the afternoon. There were carriers who took packages to London, daily. Twenty years on, and Kelly’s Directory lists the main Post and Mail Order Office, Savings Bank and Government Annuity and Insurance Offices as located in the High Street; the Post-master being Joseph Bradley Shilcock who was also, I believe, a chemist with premises just a few doors north of the Bell. 12 Bromleag December 2008 Feature

In his time there were five collections a day and four deliveries. Posting boxes had been inserted in walls and pillars in Freelands and Gravel Roads and another at , emptied two or three times daily. And at Bromley Common a sub-Post Office had been opened with Mr Henry Jenkins named as ‘receiver’. Another twenty years and Bromley had 35 pillar and wall boxes and no less than 10 sub Post Offices. The year 1876 saw another significant change in organisation when the position of Post Master became full time and the Office was moved to Middle Row in the Market Square. According to a photograph in Local Studies it then crossed to the east side, perhaps when William Beale took over in 1890. It was this Mr Beale who was proud Post Master of the new Post Office in East Street in 1896, posing for a photograph with his full staff, whose names are recorded on the back of the original print in Local Studies. Besides the postmen and sub-postmasters and a number of messenger boys, there were the few lady clerks – who may perhaps have taken PO courses at William Baginton’s St George’s College for Civil Servants. So business seems to have prospered and grown for nearly a century. In 1918 a joint post master- ship was created with Beckenham. In 1927 Edward James Stratford was designated Head Postmaster. The building survived both world wars. In 1968 there was so much Christmas mail that the old Drill Hall in East Street became a sorting office for parcels and an extension was proposed to the main building. The Redundant: after over a century of serving Bromley the former Post Office lies empty workforce exceeded 800. But by 1990 things were less rosy. Mechanisation was a possibility although conservative Bromley had refuted this idea a few years before. Other organisations and other methods of communication had become the Post Office’s rivals. Attempts to woo the public by opening a stationery and card counter had little success, nor a Help Desk. A new system of queuing was introduced. The first suggestion of closure came in 1991, though it was staved off for another decade – however not all the sub offices were so lucky. So – by then, the writing was on the wall.

13 Bromleag December 2008 Review

Beckenham Green — 150 years of change

hose of us who have only an occasional acquaintance with Beckenham have often T wondered why the top end of the High Street always seems ‘not quite right’. Dominated by the imposing St George’s church and the open vista of Beckenham Green it lacks the bustle of the lower part of the street, and seems like the edge of the shopping area not the centre that the name High Street implies. The reason for this mismatch is revealed in Pat Manning and Cliff Watkins’ new book The Story of Beckenham Green 1858-2008. The bombing of WWII destroyed the commercial heart of the road, and the post war planners never quite got their act together to redevelop the area. It is a fascinating tale told, as all Pat’s books are, in a clear and precise prose. It is illustrated both by historic pictures and maps and a colour photo centre spread by Cliff Watkins. The book takes us through the context for development of the area in the mid 19th century - the sale, or lease of land, from cash strapped estates and the coming of the railways in the latter half of the century. “From all parts of London, the wealthy and their entourage were able to move to Beckenham to escape from the noise, grime and congestion of the city … The Cator Estate was set to become the stockbroker belt of South London but the incomers needed servicing. Between 1864 and 1870, shops were built along the east side of the High Street, south of the railway and shops began to appear in Albemarle Road in the 1870s.” By 1894 Beckenham was no longer a village as marked by the establishment of Beckenham Urban District Council “Around the Beckenham Green area an eclectic mix was emerging which met people’s shopping, banking, leisure, transport, civic, security and spiritual needs.” The early 20th century saw the town boom and Pat paints a picture in words, illustrated by photographs of the time, of a very varied and vibrant commercial centre with a brand new Italianate town hall, opened in 1932, at it’s administrative heart. In 1935 Beckenham, taking in West Wickham, became a

14 Bromleag December 2008 Review borough. “The new Beckenham Borough Council managed one of the richest towns in Kent and the centre of the town - through a mixture of planning and evolution - was the Beckenham Green area.” For the first five years of the war, the town centre escaped the worst of the bombing experienced by the rest of the borough then in 1944 came the flying bombs. Albemarle Road took its’ first hit in July, two shops were destroyed and a family was killed. But worse was to come as a second bomb, which also killed residents, caused even more extensive damage, including to the Church. Discussions about re-development began immediately. During the post war period complex radical plans came, were revised and then went. Pat sets out the plans, debates and arguments of the time succinctly and they throw interesting light on the thinking of our post war politicians and the aspirations of residents at the time. But nothing happened. In 1958 children were still “playing among the devastated remains of Beckenham’s once prosperous area … any lingering

Beckenham Green in 1945, for 20 years the site was used as a car park

15 Bromleag December 2008 Review

Albemarle Road Beckenham hopes of a post-war renaissance were dashed by the reorganisation of London local authorities into Boroughs in 1965”.

It took 20 years for decisions to become action. Eventually Albemarle Road was re-sited directly opposite Rectory Road and: “The solution to the problem with Church Road was to do away with it all together.” Ad hoc development continued down the years, some demolition, new shops, offices – now flats, and in 1967 on the south side of Albemarle Road, “the former bombsite, which had provided ad hoc parking, was replaced by grass.” In 1972, the area was formally called Beckenham Green. A facelift in 2007 provided the Green with a sign - for which the authors of this book had been pressing for years - and an information panel about the Green’s recent history. Now this book is adding depth to that history panel. It is a fascinating read not just as a nostalgic look at Beckenham in another era but also because it charts the developments of the centre into our present and throws light and understanding on what makes that part of Beckenham as it is today.

The Story of Beckenham Green is available from the Beckenham Book Shop, High Street, Beckenham and from Bromley Librariesat £4.50 , or direct from Jenna Publishing, 29 Birchwood Ave, Beckenham BR3 3PY priced £5.50

16 Bromleag December 2008 Feature The Great Storm of … 1958

By Max Batten

n Friday 5 September 1958, I was on holiday with my family in a guesthouse overlooking the small West Sussex village of Bramber. O After supper that evening, we watched strange whirling clouds, like mini cyclones, moving along the top of the South Downs, which lay between us and the sea. However, thinking little more about it, we went to our peaceful beds only to discover the next day that much of South East had endured a very uncomfortable night, not least in Bromley and surrounding areas. That summer had been generally poor and there were worries about the harvest in England as well as many parts of Europe. A fisheries war with Iceland was in full swing and world events generally were fairly depressing. Over southern Britain, in particular, the weather at the beginning of September was disturbed, with low pressure to the west and high pressure to the east. An occluded front, the remains of warm and cold air masses, was firmly established over central England. This clash of warm and cold led to a cloudburst over Ipswich and parts of Cambridgeshire on 4 September, but no significant problems seem to have been anticipated by meteorologists. Friday the 5th was an unusually warm and humid day. At Mildenhall in Suffolk the temperature reached 82F [28C] and at 4 pm the Air Ministry in London recorded a humidity reading of 70%, compared with a more usual 40% in those conditions. That an evening storm was likely was generally apparent, but not of the violence that followed. It appears that there were two storms, one moved NE from around Chichester which gave cricket-ball sized hail. In Horsham, one at 5 oz (142g) was the largest ever recorded in the UK. The other a tornado like storm moving NNE from near Brighton joined the first one near Knockholt, before moving on to Essex. Its peak in the Borough of Bromley - then still consisting of its various constituent parts - was between about 7 pm and 9 pm when recorders in Tatsfield registered 2744 and 2042 separate lightning flashes in each hour respectively. Later, it was reported that the cloud tops were at least 48,000 ft [14.6 km] and one report of 52,000 ft [15.9 km]. Rainfall recorders measured 2.5” [63

17 Bromleag December 2008 Feature mm] of rain at Sidcup in 20 minutes and, at Knockholt, 5.1” [131 mm] in two hours. Some of the highest figures ever recorded in this country. The South East suffers The effects of this downpour - together with the hail and lightning - was widespread damage. Transport was badly affected with landslides blocking the Brighton line, cutting off Southend on Sea, and there were two collapses near St. Mary Cray and another between and . In addition, many embankments were washed away including between Penshurst and Edenbridge and either side of Gravesend whilst a fallen tree blocked the line at Shoreham and flooding stopped services around , Beckenham Hill and, of course, Clock House. Two train loads of pilgrims to Lourdes set off as planned, but after three hours found themselves back at Victoria. In all there were thirteen blockages on the railway lines in Kent leaving several hundred passengers stranded at for much of the night. On the roads Southend was again badly affected, between Gravesend and Meopham a haystack was washed onto the road and both the railway line and the A25 between Brasted and Sundridge were blocked. Traffic from the Medway Towns towards London had to be diverted via Maidstone. At Gatwick the electricity supply failed, some buildings were flooded, windows in the new terminal were broken and a roof was blown off a maintenance building by an 80 mph gust. In addition, a 15-seat airliner from Jersey eventually landed after suffering severe damage from hail whilst other planes were diverted from both Gatwick and Heathrow. Bromley torrents In Bromley, the storm, described by the borough engineer as “the worst this century”, and certainly for 70 years, caused severe flooding. Around Shortlands road surfaces were damaged, large stones and boulders swept into roads and a line of flooded [and immobile] cars in Queen Ann Avenue and Westmoreland Road, along with two feet of water, stopped buses and emergency services getting through. In all, Bromley fire station received over 200 calls for assistance, which mostly did not arrive until Saturday morning. Over 250,000 gallons had to be pumped from 43 different buildings, although eight houses at Widmore Green accounted for 100,000 gallons alone. In addition, 30 tons of mud washed into Widmore Green, much of it from newly laid verges. Bromley police station - then in Widmore Road - had six feet of water in the cells and both the Royal Bell and Medhursts [now Primark]

18 Bromleag December 2008 Feature needed assistance, the latter having its boiler room damaged by a five-foot flood. Schools like Burnt Ash, Aylesbury Girls’ and the Girls Grammar also suffered flood damage, and the Council lost the use of its boiler room in the municipal offices. Barclays Bank in the High Street had 200 gallons in its lift shaft while Harrison Gibsons [now TKMax], further down the road, had damage on three floors after the flat roof’s drains failed to cope. In all, 18,000 phones were put out of order, with over a thousand still not working the following Monday. A resident in Meadow Road, Shortlands, next to the , reported that after 54 years residence she had never seen such a flood with the Queens Mead recreation ground and the bowling green having waist high water covering them. Residents in adjacent Martins Road also suffered badly. Elmstead Lane was impassable, mostly because of the Quaggy flooding. Lightning strikes were surprisingly few, considering the nature of the storm, but a house in Hillside Road and another in St. Mary’s Avenue were both hit. However, most damage was done by lightning in Bourne Road, Bromley Common where two adjacent houses were struck, one requiring canvas to cover over holes in the roof, the other a new television. On Bromley Common, a despondent farmer at Clay Farm in Jacksons Road was spending “a small fortune in manpower” turning and re-turning the flattened crops to get them dry. In Crown Lane, Mr Blanks, his crippled wife and asthmatic daughter heard a bubbling noise under the floor of their single storey prefab, opened the front door and were met with a wave of water which ruined much of their furniture and bedding. Another disabled Crown Lane resident and her husband had to be rescued and spent the night with a neighbour. acquired a new lake in the dip near the shopping parade, mostly from overwhelmed sewers, whilst Beckenham fireman spent 31 hours pumping out the basement of the Wellcome Foundation buildings. In Hayes, two houses in Pickhurst Lane suffered serious flooding and other property damage. As happened more recently, the playing fields at the bottom of Corkscrew Hill turned into a lake as water gushed down the hill while the Addington Road was made almost impassable by soil being washed off the adjacent fields. In West Wickham itself, where the fire station received 50 calls, flooding around the River Beck at the west end of the High Street affected three council-owned prefabs. The resident of one, Mrs Goodman, had to flee her

19 Bromleag December 2008 Feature dwelling and ended up clinging to a fence, waist-deep in water, before being rescued. Beckenham generally seems to have escaped the very worst of the flooding, partly because Kelsey Park absorbed a lot of the excess water in the River Beck. Fortunately for most residents, the suddenness of the storm prevented sluice gates being opened as would normally have happened. But the park superintendent, Mr Stock, who lived in the park lodge, returned from holiday to find his home severely affected. The low-lying junction of the High Street and Manor Road was equally unlucky. As the initial flooding from the rain drained away overflow from the Beck filled the area up again to a height of four feet. Even more serious for some was the flooding of the Bricklayers Arms opposite the Regal cinema. All the stock had to be written off and customers had no draught beer for a week! Clock House station, adjacent to the Chaffinch Brook, had water up to platform level, a regular problem that was only cured in the 1960s. Green and the surrounding area were also temporarily impassable due to flooding when the Chaffinch burst its banks around 8 pm. One intrepid resident of Forster Road got out his canoe to investigate the extent of the flood, which affected the Twinlock factory among many other businesses. In Penge Peters carpet shop suffered severe loss of stock whist the Odeon cinema had its front stalls flooded as well as the orchestra pit.. The Essoldo cinema was also flooded and remained so until finally pumped dry on Saturday afternoon. At the other end of the borough a wave swept through Midfield Secondary School in St. Paul’s Cray washing books, furniture and coke - the fuel, not the drink - into the playground. Leeson’s Hill Infants School acquired a hole 25 ft deep and 15 ft wide in its playground, which needed urgent attention. Countryside deluge “We thought the end of the world had come,” said one dramatic resident of , as telephones and electricity died. suffered particularly badly with tornado like winds and no electricity for two days. Several houses had their roofs damaged and one prefab collapsed but happily with no injuries occurring. High Street turned into a “running torrent” but in Biggin Hill the fire station was flooded and, since the telephones failed, was little able to help anyone else. The Officers Mess at the aerodrome was struck by lightning, just before the

20 Bromleag December 2008 Feature

Mayor of Bromley arrived for a guest night dinner. On his return to town, Cllr. Brown’s car ran into difficulties in Hayes Road and he took the opportunity to visit several flooded homes. In Knockholt, the scene of so much rain, trees were uprooted and the main road blocked. One resident of 53 years remarked in the catch phrase of the evening “I’ve never seen anything like it” as the local sweet shop had a stream running through it and one cottage in Pound Lane had five feet of water at 2am on Saturday morning. Preparations for the weekend carnival were delayed when the main marquee was flattened by the wind, rain and hail. In Chelsfield a temporary lake 150 yards long filled parts of Skibbs Lane and Bucks Cross Road while a rush of water came down the Sevenoaks Road and into Green St Green High Street. In Farnborough flooding affected many houses in Cobden Road. Martins Bank suffered damage to its strong room, and the parish records stored there, while part of the ceiling of The Woodman collapsed. In the unlucky owner of the White Lion had to cope with a flooded cellar and bar. In 1927 he had been flooded out of his pub in Rotherhithe. In the country areas in particular, though the coming of dawn revealed that much of the water had gone, layers of mud and silt had been left behind, along with bits of road, chunks of timber, crops and general debris. Damage to crops was extensive. Clearing up The amazing thing was that following all the reports of storm, tempest, flooding and chaos on Friday night by Saturday lunchtime most things had got back to normal. The Kent Junior Tennis Championship went ahead as planned at the Old Dunstonians ground near Beckenham Hill. Despite the flooding of most sports grounds and playing fields only hours before cricket matches started promptly at many grounds around the district, and were successfully completed. Knockholt carnival - its marquee restored - carried on to great success with a 1,000 people attending. Bromley Football Club in Hayes Lane played as usual on Saturday afternoon, despite the pitch being under a foot of water at midnight. The main sufferers seem to have been flower and vegetable growers who found their prize exhibits were no longer worth entering at the many competitions being held. At the New Theatre in Bromley the Friday evening performance started only

21 Bromleag December 2008 Feature fifteen minutes late even though a leak in the roof and an earlier flood of water necessitating a rapid move of scenery. Most striking, to modern eyes, was the repeated comment about how problems were sorted out. Waterlogged cars in Westmoreland Road were rescued by a crowd of barefooted youths. In many locations neighbours helped move furniture and bailed out flooded homes. Harrison Gibsons customers helped move furniture out of harm’s way while the 17th Bromley Scouts spent the evening directing traffic outside their headquarters near Mark. Their counterparts in the 21st Troop spent their evening knee deep in water bailing out residents in Sudbury Crescent. In the absence of one householder on holiday in “entry was made” into his house and the contents rescued. Over the weekend, the scouts completed their good deed by sweeping the house clean and drying out the damaged contents. At the White Hart in West Wickham customers were again to the fore, helping the licensee Mr. Scott to mop up. The following Saturday Chiesman’s in Lewisham was running a sale of flood-damaged stock although the prices, 12 guineas [£12.60] for men’s suits and 15s 11d [79p] for shirts were still quite expensive. By 15 September a residents’ meeting in Shortlands was demanding action to deepen the Ravensbourne and provide better flood protection. Further afield, an enquiry was being demanded into the opening of the sluices at Lullingstone, which protected those further up stream but resulted in flooding in Eynsford, Farningham and South Darenth. Although on Monday some people were still without telephones and not all rail services had returned to normal – Blackheath to Charlton and Dunton Green to were still blocked – it is remarkable how low key the reporting was. In The Times, the story of the great storm was relegated to page 15. Also very noticeable was the lack of blame – on weather forecasters, local authorities, public services and of course the Government. The storm was considered remarkable, but one of those things which had to be endured. Of course, in that less affluent age, the damage to household goods must have been much less. Most affected houses would have not have had televisions, fridges or other white goods to be damaged or cars to be spoiled. Carpets, not being fitted, would generally have been easy to lift and store, or dry, and most households probably had painted walls, and not wallpaper, which needed only a wash and new topcoat. Also, very noticeable, was the ‘get on and sort it out’ approach: if something

22 Bromleag December 2008 Feature needed doing it was generally done by the nearest person available, often a neighbour, sometimes a passer-by. Without Health and Safety regulations to hold everything up buildings could be restored, holes filled in and equipment repaired quickly and without fuss. The other big factor, compared with today, was the much higher proportion of agricultural land and houses with grass and earth gardens, all much more able to absorb the rain and quickly drain it away in the following hours. Even though streams and drains were overcome for a short period there were no reports of prolonged ponding or housing estates being made uninhabitable for months. All in all a night to remember but also one that most people forgot quite quickly. Sources Daily Telegraph, 13th September 2008 Bromley & Kentish Times, 12th September 1958 Orpington & Kentish Times, 12th September 1958 Beckenham Journal, 12th September 1958 Sunday Times, 7th September 1958 The Times, 5th, 6th and 8th September 1958 Tudor Hughes, UK Weatherworld, 6th September 2008

BBLH Mining Co – unlimited Recently Michael Rawcliffe kindly lent me a copy of the History of Kent by the mid-19th century John Dunkin. This fascinating and valuable compilation was published in monthly parts with the intention that they should be bound into volumes by the purchaser. But this was not all that was expected of the purchasers. They were warmly encouraged to write to the editor [Dunkin] of this ‘Mine’ of information with their own contributions of ‘Nuggets’ of knowledge, to be included as the results of ‘Digging in Veins of History’. John Dunkin should be pleased that this is just what you and your editor of Bromleag are doing today. So remember that every ‘Grain’ is valuable – working ‘miners’ are solicited to respond … Patricia Knowlden

23 Bromleag December 2008 Feature Sheltering in the caves – welfare underground

In the third part of her article on Chislehurst Caves in WWII Jane Waters looks at how the authorities dealt with health and crime

n 1944, there was concern, by the hairdresser and the nurse, about the number of children with nits sheltering in Chislehurst Caves. I The health of the residents had always been addressed. When the caves were privately run there was a British Red Cross medical first aid station. But before the Council agreed to the caves being an official , in late 1940, they ordered the Ministry of Health to minimise expenditure and not take any actions that could be construed as giving official approval. However, when approval was given the medical station was improved. The floor in the station was concreted over so it was easier to wash down and an isolation bay was installed. A doctor was employed full time and a sister in charge was appointed. There was also a trained nurse and six auxiliary nurses. The doctor, or one of the trained staff, would attend the medical post every evening. The presence of this medical post was very beneficial to the caves. Although called a hospital it did not actually contain hospital beds. It had bunk beds like the rest of the caves. It was very popular with the children. One lady recalls that as a young girl she used to get lost on purpose, she knew someone would take her to ‘the medical’ where she would be given a sweet before being reunited with her mother. Many people recount receiving a spoonful of cough medicine every evening. One of the most famous photos of the caves is that of the children queuing up for cough medicine in the medical station. A lady, who wrote in Modern Cave Dwellers, remembers as a child receiving a spoonful of Galloways cough medicine every night. The cough medicine was likely to have been administered to help against the damp conditions. The caves are very damp and cold. However, when the caves were in heavy use, the normal temperature of 52 degrees rose to around 65-67 degrees.

24 Bromleag December 2008 Feature The medical station also dealt with serious injuries. Jill Cheeseman badly scalded her leg and looking back she felt she should have gone to a general hospital for treatment. However, she comments on how good the daily care was she received from the matron in the caves and was impressed as the scald hardly left a scar. Health issues arising from the damp were mostly arthritis. Lewis Blake, author of Bromley in the Frontline, and former resident of the caves, recalls the damp conditions and says his mother decided to no longer stay in the caves as his sister’s joints became swollen. Another lady remembered the water dripping down the cave walls. She suffers from arthritis at the present and suggests it could be because of her childhood weeks spent in the caves. One of the concerns of having so many people in a contained area was the risk of the spreading of contagious diseases. If someone was suspected of having a disease they were placed in the isolation bay for a diagnosis. If they were found to have a disease, and it was contagious, they would be sent home or to hospital. Fortunately, the isolation bay was not required too often, there were only a very few cases of suspected diphtheria and measles. One lady, who was a young child at the time, stopped staying at the caves as her mother told her diphtheria was spreading from ‘refugees’. No evidence has been found to confirm this suggestion. In October 1942, the isolation bay was converted into a children’s play area. The most serious health issues occurred at the later stages of the war. In 1944, there was concern about the health and the diets of the children and babies. Three babies were taken to Farnborough hospital in September 1944 they later died from gastro enteritis. A health visitor was placed at the children’s centre to make sure the mothers were sterilizing the bottles, as there was concern about the lack of cleanliness in the preparation of babies’ bottles. There were no more cases of gastro enteritis after this. There was also concern about the mothers with young children who were staying in the caves all day. The health visitors were strongly encouraging them to evacuate. The Ministry of Health and the doctor from Chislehurst & Sidcup UDC were eager for the residents to evacuate. As time went on there was a marked improvement in the health of the children, the presence of the health visitor was obviously beneficial. A virtually crime free zone Considering the number of people who stayed in the caves, there does not appear to have been a high rate of crime.

25 Bromleag December 2008 feature

Many accounts claim there was no crime. One lady who was a mother of two took her children to the caves and stayed for a few weeks. Her memories were all positive regarding the stay there, she recalled feeling safe and clean and that she never experienced any theft, crime or arguments. However, although there is no report of any major crime there are a few records of theft and other smaller crimes. An example of a lesser crime is found in the minutes of the council meetings, on the 24 October 1942. It was reported that women employees were caught sorting rags and sharing the proceeds. The information came from an anonymous letter. It was agreed that the council would collect rags from then on. In April 1945, 65 American Red Cross blankets and 61 WVS blankets went missing. This was despite the blankets only being issued on the surrender of an identity card. One of the more negative memories comes from a lady who remembered not wanting to return to the caves as she found them claustrophobic and during a raid she recalls their ration books being stolen. And another lady, who also found the cave claustrophobic, woke to find her bracelet had been stolen. The bracelet was very precious to her and she could not understand how anyone could take a bracelet from a sleeping child. Another incident of probable theft in a raid was a young girl who had her favourite red coat stolen and she had to go to the WVS to obtain another one. One man recalls being in the caves in his teens, when he was aware that certain types of men were nervous as the police often did raids in the caves to catch any deserters. No official records have yet been found regarding police raids, however, that is not to say they did not occur. In November 1940 New Scotland Yard sent some plain clothes police into the caves. They reported that they found the behaviour generally good. They noted that Chislehurst Police usually endeavoured to maintain the presence of three constables in the close vicinity of the caves. On asking the caves manager about any trouble he responded that he did have to evict a gentleman a few days earlier for being drunk and annoying to other residents. This drunken man complained about his treatment at Chislehurst Police Station and claimed he was a Foreign Office Official. In the same report it was noted that there was concern about people distributing communist leaflets entitled “Workers must have what the rich have got”. The plain clothed police were unable to identify any communist leaders, however they were concerned that these leaflets were being left on peoples beds.

26 Bromleag December 2008 feature On a lighter note they also made discreet enquiries about the Bickley Arms Hotel and were able to reveal that although Trust House Ltd were unhappy at losing £1,000 per annum in revenue, made from people visiting the part of the caves they owned, they were quite happy that the income generated from the Hotel, which had trebled its normal amount. The caves were monitored by the main Caves Committee, under these were Cave Captains and marshals and it appears it was well controlled and there was no incidence of any serious wrong-doing or crimes. Resentment There was resentment by some people of those who used ‘deep shelters’ – the underground as well as Chislehurst caves. A lady who was sixteen in 1940, and a captain of a Fire Fighting Volunteer Squad, told of the deep resentment felt by her father for the people who ‘flew off to Chislehurst caves’. Her father challenged a family in their street who were devout Baptists, asking them where was their Christian faith and what were they doing to help others. He went on, she says, to state it was a scandal that his sixteen year old daughter was patrolling the streets while ‘shrapnel fell like rain’ whilst she was protecting their property. A peaceful legacy Looking broadly at all of the accounts of people’s experiences in the caves the one aspect that does seem universally felt is that of peace. One lady - who on entering the caves said they looked ‘horrendous’ and ‘awful’ - after a fairly long and detailed account says the caves were ‘peaceful.’ There were no deaths at the caves from enemy action. Although there was overcrowding at times, there were never any accidents as there was with the unfortunate Bethnal Green underground station. The chalk caves are covered by Thanet sand above, even a direct hit would have been unable to penetrate the caves. There is a plaque at the caves dedicated to the owners at the time and others who helped create the shelter. It states the gratitude to them of the fifteen thousand people who escaped the worst bombing of London by sheltering in the caves. It is a lasting symbol of the profound and perpetual gratitude for the safety of this underground haven.

Sources Air Raid Precautions Wardens Incidents Books. 1939-1945, Bexley Local Studies Centre. Air Raid Precautions. Leaflets/Documents/Literature/ on Civil Defence. 1938-1945 Bromley. Bromley Local Studies Centre

27 Bromleag December 2008 Feature

Boorman, H R Pratt. Hell’s Corner 1940. Kent Becomes the Battlefield of Britain Printed for the Kent Messenger by W & J Mackay and Co. Ltd 1942 Cheeseman, Jill Chislehurst Caves. A Child’s Wartime Memories. 1939-1945 Clarke, Helen Modern Cave Dwellers A Collection of War-Time Memories of Chislehurst Caves. Bromley Local Studies Centre, Unpublished. 1998 The National Archives. London..HO 205/205. HO 205/206 HO 205/563 HO 205/563 Rason, Paul Memories of the Many. 50 Years on. A collection of memories of people from the London Borough of Bromley reflecting on their war. Bromley. Promotion and Design/ Bromley Civic Centre,1995 Wartime Memories 60 Years On Bromley Oral History Archives. Compiled by Adrian Green Orpington: The Bromley Museum, 2005 Books Blake, Lewis Bromley in the Front Line Bromley Libraries, 2005 Calder, Angus The People’s War. Britain 1939-1945 Pimlico, 1969 Darwin, Bernard War on the Line. The story of the Southern Railway Company in War-Time. The Southern Railway Company, 1946 Donnelly, Mark Britain in The Second World War Routledge, 1999 Gardiner, Juliet The Children’s War Piatkus Ltd, 2005 Harrisson, Tom Living Through Collins, 1976 Hylton, Stuart Their Darkest Hour. The Hidden History of the Home Front 1939-1945 Sutton Publishing Ltd, 2001 Inman, Dr Eric Chislehurst Caves. A Short History Kent: Kent Mushrooms Ltd, 1996 Inman, Dr Eric. Chislehurst Caves. References in Chislehurst & Sidcup Council Minutes.1939-1951 Notes Taken By Dr E Inman Chislehurst Library Office.1994 Jones, Helen British civilians in the front line. University Press,2006 Kent County Council. Kent. The County Administration in War. 1939-1945. (Other Author: W L Platts. Clerk of the County Council) Maidstone. Kent County Council. 1946 Longmate, Norman How We Lived Then. A history of everyday life during the Second World War. London: Hutchinson & Co, 1971 Ponting, Clive 1940: Myth and Reality Hamish Hamilton Ltd,1990 Ray, John The Night Blitz. 1940-1941 Arms & Armour Press, 1996 Smith, Malcolm, Britain and 1940. History myth and popular memory Routledge,2000 Newspapers and other publications The Daily Mail. 27 September 1940. Life in Druid Caves. Rhona Churchill Cutting in The National Archives. HO 205/205 The Kentish Mercury. February 1944 Chislehurst Caves Concert. Bright and Breezy Cutting in Modern Cave Dwellers by Helen Clarke. Bromley Local Studies.1998 Le Gear, Rod Chislehurst Caves Ventilation in World War II” The Cockpit. Volume 82. Publication for The Chislehurst Society (Autumn 2004) 6-7 Individuals Consulted Paul Andrews Chislehurst Caves Guide Lewis Blake Author of Bromley in the Front Line Roy Hopper, retired Librarian of Chislehurst Library Rod Le Gear MAAIS, AIFA Writer of Chislehurst Caves Ventilation in World War II

28 Bromleag December 2008 Index

Bromleag contents December 2005 – December 2008

Title Year Month Page Place

People Allen, George 2008 Sept 16 – 17 Orpington Assheton, Thomas 2005 Dec 12 - 13 Beckenham Beckett, Allan [obit] 2005 Dec 8 Farnborough Belsey, John 2007 Dec 26 – 27 Bromley Bowie, David 2006 Dec 6-8 Beckenham Blyton, Carey 2007 June 27 – 30 Beckenham Cook, Thomas 2005 Dec 8-9 Orpington Crompton, Richmal 2006 Dec 10 –11 Bromley Common Darwin, Emma 2006 June 6-7 Downe Dolley, Ernest 2008 March 20 – 25 Chelsfield Downe [famous residents] 2006 June 6-7 Downe Goodworth, John 2008 March 28 – 30 West Wickham Hasted, Frank 2007 Sept 24 – 25 Beckenham Hedley, John 2007 June 24 – 26 Beckenham Kirkpatrick family 2007 March 20 – 25 Keston Mellin, Gustav 2008 June 15 – 18 West Wickham Pitt the younger, William 2006 June 8-10 Hayes Rason, Cornthwaite Hector 2006 Dec 3 Beckenham Silver, Hugh 2008 June 18 Chislehurst Streatfields 2006 Sept 4 Chiddingstone Teichmann family 2008 March 17 –18 Chislehurst Tilling, Thomas 2008 Sept 18 – 24 Bromley Watts, Thomas 2005 Dec 12 —13 Orpington 2006 March 12 Orpington Woodman, Trevor [obit] 2007 Dec 6 – 7 Hayes

29 Bromleag December 2008 Index

Places and Events Air raid shelters 2005 Dec 14 Beckenham Arts and crafts architecture 2007 June 20 – 23 Chislehurst ARP posts in Beckenham 2006 March 10-11 Beckenham Beckenham Green 2008 Dec 14 – 16 Beckenham Beckenham Place 2006 Dec 12 Beckenham Biggin Hill airfield 2006 June 14-15 Biggin Hill Bishop’s Palace, Bromley 2006 March 6-8 Bromley 2006 Sept 8-9 Bromley Bromley Common ponds 2008 March 26 – 27 Bromley Bromley post office 2008 Dec 12 – 13 Bromley Chelsfield Parish school 2007 Dec 22 – 25 Chelsfield Childer Chaine charity 2008 June 7 – 8 Bromley Chislehurst Caves 2008 June 20 – 25 Chislehurst 2008 Sept 25 – 31 Chislehurst 2008 Dec 24 – 28 Chislehurst Farnborough war memorial 2007 Sept 26 – 27 Farnborough Fort Halstead 2008 Sept 8 – 10 Halstead Great Storm 1958 2008 Dec 17 – 24 Borough wide Grade I listed buildings 2006 Sept 6-7 Whole borough Hayes, development 2007 June 18 – 19 Hayes Highfield and Lacy 2008 Sept 18 – 24 Bromley Highwayman 2008 June 11 Bromley Hollydale house 2007 March 20 – 25 Keston Hospitals 2007 Dec 9 – 10 Borough wide Ivy Bridge [railway tragedy] 2007 Dec 15 – 21 Bromley Kemsing village 2008 Sept 10 –11 Kemsing Kent & East Sussex Railway 2008 Sept 11 –13 Kent 2007 Sept 12 – 15 Keston Massey Shaw fire boat 2007 March 12 —16 River Thames Maps and plans, history of 2007 June 14 – 17 Borough wide Mottingham, history of 2008 Dec 7-9 Mottingham Orpington Buff chickens 2005 Dec 8-9 Orpington

30 Bromleag December 2008 Index Orpington films 2008 March 13 – 15 Orpington Pettistice 2006 Dec 6-8 Beckenham Posters, history of 2007 Sept 16 – 18 Borough wide Red Cross WWI 2007 Sept 9 – 11 Borough wide River Ravensbourne 2007 Dec 28 – 29 Bromley 2008 June 14 Bromley River Ravensbourne, disaster 2008 June 26 – 31 Bromley Scouting 2007 Sept 28 – 31 Borough wide Slave trade 2007 Sept 19 – 23 Borough wide Suffragettes 2006 Sept 5 Beckenham St John’s font 2007 June 30 –31 West Wickham – children and fruit pickers 2007 March 26 – 30 St Mary Cray V2 Rockets 2005 Dec 4-7 Bromley West Wickham Elm 2007 June 12 -13 West Wickham Wickham Hall 2008 June 15— 18 West Wickham Widmore Road WWII 2008 Dec 10 – 11 Bromley

Help needed to complete the Bromleag index This will be the last Bromleag index to appear in the magazine. The whole of the index from March 1993 — December 2008 has now been put online on our website at: http://bblhs.website.orange.co.uk/ This will be updated every year but we would like to include the major articles from earlier issues of the magazine, 1974 — 1992, on the website index. I am looking for someone who could help me with the indexing of these early issues. It is not an onerous task and will only take a few hours — unless you get diverted into reading some of the interesting articles — and there is no deadline. If you could help please give me a call on 01689 857214 or drop a line to [email protected] For those members without access to the web, either at home or at the library, paper copies of the index can be provided.

31 Bromleag December 2008 Bromley Local History Society Registered Charity No 273963 History is continually being made and at the same time destroyed, buildings are altered or demolished, memories fade and people pass away, records get destroyed or thrown in the bin. BBLHS was formed in 1974 so that those with an interest in the history of any part of the borough could meet to exchange information and learn more about Bromley’s history. We aim, in co-operation with the local history library, museums and other relevant organisations, to make sure at least some of this history is preserved for future generations. We hold regular meetings and produce a newsletter and occasional publications where members can publish their research. The society covers all those areas that are within the present day London Borough of Bromley and includes : - - Beckenham - Bickley -Biggin Hill - Bromley - Chelsfield - Chislehurst - - Cudham - Downe - Farnborough - -Hayes - Keston - - Mottingham - Orpington - Penge - Petts Wood - St. Mary Cray - St. Paul’s Cray - Shortlands - Sundridge Park - West Wickham.

http://bblhs.website.orange.co.uk/

Subscription Rates Yearly subscription from 1 January Individual £8.50; couple £10. Senior citizens pay a re- duced rate of £6 per person or £8 for a couple. Members joining after 30 June pay half rates. Membership Secretary 020 8467 3842

32 Bromleag December 2008