Richmond and Twickenham Times Nostalgia: Historical pictures & articles from Richmond and

Then and now - L B Richmond upon Thames

10:52am Friday 2nd January 2009

A bit of a cheat on our part because they are two different buildings. Pictured top is Hampton Station Infants School in 1956. Erected in 1874 in Station Road on a site now occupied by Rushbury Court flats, it lay between the Railway Hotel and Falkner’s business which sold gardening materials and plants. By 1965 the inadequacies of the Victorian property prompted the planning of a new school, hastened by publication by 1962 Ministry of Education figures showing an expected national increase of 21 per cent of children aged five and six between 1963 and 1970.

Kensington to Castelnau via Rome

10:55am Friday 2nd January 2009

Vb>Emily Evans Bell with her travel diary after return from the Grand Tour; portrait by Ludovici RA, 1867 (courtesy Irene Cockroft). In the painting, Emily wears her long, dark hair loose as she must have worn it when travelling. As she was travelling with her husband, loose hair would have been socially acceptable. Had she been travelling unaccompanied, loose hair might be taken to signify loose morals. In an early photograph of Emily, her hair is worn in a profusion of long curls impossible to achieve without the services of a skilled lady’s maid.

Then and now - L B Hounslow

10:51am Friday 2nd January 2009

Junction of Brentford High Street with Ealing Road, looking west in 1961 and showing the old Red Lion pub on the corner. There has been a Red Lion in Old Brentford since at least the 1660s, presumably on this site. The pub was rebuilt in 1907 and demolished in 1970. The old name for Ealing Road was Drum Lane as there had been a pub on the east side of the junction called the Drum Inn since at least 1722. It had been demolished in 1921 for an earlier road widening exercise. Up to the 1960s shops and houses lined the High Street right up to the junction with Ealing Road but the council was pursing its policy of opening up the area, and when this photograph was taken there were already plans for widening the road and improving the road junction. The modern view shows Osier Court, built in the late 1980s on the west side of the junction and the McDonald’s fast food outlet on the east side which replaced the modern Red Lion pub. From Carolyn and Peter Hammond’s 2006 book Then & Now Brentford.

Working with Richard Dimbleby

1:52pm Thursday 18th December 2008

This summer, the parish magazine for All Saints’ Church, Isleworth reached its 500th issue. For many years Sundial was produced by Ken and Helen Cooper, and a bench in their memory was donated by their children and placed near the church sundial, overlooking the riverside scene.

Once a Marine....

1:47pm Thursday 18th December 2008

Resplendent in full Royal Marines Association uniform, Tod Raven-Hill, MBE, secretary of Richmond Probus Club talked to members about his war time experiences.

Then and now Richmond upon Thames

1:42pm Thursday 18th December 2008

Garth Groombridge photographed scenes about 30 years ago, concentrating on buildings due for demolition. His book Teddington, Twickenham & the Hamptons Past & Present provides a contrast with today’s view. Above, part of the old Red Lion Hotel pub and restaurant in High Street, Hampton. The adjacent number 3 was originally a motor and cycle works and later tyre storage premises from 1897 until 1962. Here it stands mid demolition in around 1981. Station Road is on the right. When this photograph was taken below the Red Lion had been converted and was occupied by a marketing company. No 3 is Heron Court built in 1982.

Did you know Bessie Anderson?

3:42pm Thursday 4th December 2008

Garth Groombridge, author of Teddington, Twickenham and the Hamptons - Past and Present, writes: “My cousins and nieces and I are attempting to research our family tree, and we have started collating old family photos. “And the picture above is from the collection I inherited from my mother.

The holiday railway

3:46pm Thursday 4th December 2008

From The Illustrated London News, February 3, 1849, courtesy of Bryan Woodriff: ‘This holiday railway is now completed and was opened for traffic on Thursday. It is but a mile and a half in length and branches from off the South-Western line, thirteen miles from the metropolis or a mile beyond the Kingston station. It consists nearly of one continuous line of embankment, eighteen feet in height, graduating from the main line until it crosses the river Mole and reaches level ground close to the foot of Hampton Bridge. Our view shows the Hampton station a not unpicturesque structure in the old English style of deep red brick with stone dressings. Thence across the bridge to the palace is less than five minutes’ walk; so that notwithstanding several stoppages you may reach Hampton Court from the Waterloo station in less than three quarters of an hour. This new branch is expected to be a lucrative addition to the main line, since it appears from the government returns, that 178,000 persons annually visit Hampton Court Palace. There are to be five trains a day from the Waterloo Station and an equal number back, including one parliamentary or penny a mile train. Apart from this convenience, the scenery of this short branch has some fine bits of landscape with occasional glimpses of the river and the massive palace. Hence we have speed and the enjoyment of pleasing country combined in this new accommodation.’

Memories of motorcycle football

3:50pm Thursday 4th December 2008

Ken Stone of Isleworth, sent this action shot from a grass track event at Stockley Park in the early 1950s.

Peeling back the layers of Strawberry Hill

4:10pm Thursday 27th November 2008

THE MARBLE HILL SOCIETY “The Exquisite Taste for Tea” On Sunday 2nd November, Keith Hathaway a member and volunteer guide of the Marble Hill Society gave an afternoon talk in the Great Room of Marble Hill entitled "The Exquisite Taste for Tea" to the society. Keith explained that tea drinking has a 5000 year history and that one myth placed the discovery to an incredibly precise date - 2737BC, with a named individual as its inventor - the Emperor Shen Nung. But the true history of tea is even more amazing than the myths. Keith took the society through the stages of development in China until tea drinking was encountered by Europeans and adopted in the 17th century. However the British were slow to embrace their national drink. The Dutch had been tea addicts for 50 years before it came to England in 1657. But then Charles II's court enthused over it. Tea drinking spread through coffee houses, which were male preserves. Subsequently it spread to the pleasure gardens such as Vauxhall and Ranelagh where all classes and sexes mingled quite freely and who adopted the elegant enthusiasms of the wealthy elite. One of those 18th century enthusiasms was drinking tea after a hard night's entertainment. It was the 18th century equivalent to “clubbing.” Yet it was not without its dangers, as high prices and even higher taxation encouraged smuggling and adulteration. Having explained the history, Keith went on to explore the British "tea ceremony". Building on a series of images taken from 18th Century paintings he was able to illustrate many of the aspects of tea etiquette and customs in the eighteenth century. He explored images showing how the exquisite taste for tea was enjoyed not only by the very rich but also by the very poorest members of society. After the talk the members were able to enjoy an excellent tea including cakes made from Georgian recipes made by members of the society and also an opportunity to taste green and black teas popular in the Georgian era.

Quest for painting of gatekeeper's house

4:04pm Thursday 27th November 2008

A conversation about the old gunpowder mills, now Crane Park, with 87 year old Mrs Margery Pfeffer produced the photocopy, right, of a painting made in 1929 by Margery’s childhood friend, 12 year old Doris Brannan, showing the gate keeper’s house.

From our picture files November 1983

2:31pm Thursday 27th November 2008

A brass plaque on the back of a seat which has been installed in Edensor Gardens, Chiswick, reads "From the local residents to the local residents". The seat, which cost £160, was ceremoniously ‘unveiled’ by Conservative councillor Jo Langton when she cut a white ribbon. The money was raised by people living on the estate from raffle ticket sales. Said Mrs Dee Page one of the organisers: "We are hoping to raise enough money for another seat, as well as a Christmas party. Many old people live around here and appreciate somewhere to rest for a few minutes". She added: "Hounslow council were very helpful and arranged to instal the seat". One of the residents' dogs Sam is seen on the right adding his voice of appreciation.

Remembrance is the best war memorial

3:46pm Thursday 27th November 2008

The final instalment of Cathie James’ researches on St Michael’s and the Great War - 90 years on, as recorded in the church magazine, 1915-1918.