I remember Well Hall............ memories of Eltham

The High Street and Well Hall Road, 1960s

“We moved back to Eltham in 1951.  We had been re-housed in Deptford, but mum missed Eltham so much we moved in with Nan in Lovelace Green, then moved to Well Hall Road in 1957.”*

Now one of the nice things about the blog is the way people want to share their memories of Eltham and along the way I get to make new friends and learn a lot more about the place where I grew up.

All of which is an introduction to a new series which reproduces those memories.

It began yesterday when Jean commented on the story on the old ABC cinema in the High Street.

“So many memories, of me and my then boyfriend [now hubby] at the cinema. We had one of our first dates in the ABC Eltham in 1963.

I also remember the Gaumont on Eltham Hill, but of course the Odeon at Well Hall Road was a fav. 
From the age of 11 yrs old I lived at 232 Well Hall Road, just down from the roundabout.

Many memories, moved to Well Hall Road in 1957, with my parents, Stan and Vi wade, and little sister Susan.

Still have so many family in the Eltham area.” 

And in turn some of Jean’s family chimed in with their own reminiscences.

George admitted “I used to go Scrumping in Well Hall Pleasuance and reflected on “getting a size Nine copper's boot up the backside” when he was caught.

Junior Show Time at the Pleasaunce on August 20th 1967

And the Pleasuance still has the power to bring out more recent memories like that from Amanda who “goes there lots. They have a little play area at the back and it’s lovely down there. 

We usually get fish n chips over the road to take with us,” which is pretty much what we did in the 60s and which I repeated nearly 30 years later with my own children.

In the same way just as our Jill went to the summer shows at the theatre by the moat so did Jean and I bet many will have similar memories of Junior Showtime during those long hot school holidays.

Not to be out done there will be others who share Jeans recollections of the workmen “digging up the tram lines on Eltham hill.  The road surface was wooden tar blocks, and my Nan sent one of the family up to collect the wood blocks for the fire at home.”

Now for that memory I am very grateful because I too can remember Dad bringing home similar wooden blocks for our fire in Lausanne Road.  But with the passage of time I had begun to discount it as just my imagination.

All of which goes to show just how important memories are.

Pictures; from the collection of Andrew Simpson

*Jean