“We lived in Creekmouth until about 1930, when I was 11 or so and I can’t remember anyone having a car. We kept rabbits and a few chickens. My dad, like a lot of people, had an allotment. My grandfather Soper kept pigs. He had pig styes out in the field. They used to keep a
Hippyrinosaur in the Reeds “I went down the river a lot. Grandfather used to say ‘Don’t go in the reeds or the Hippyrinosour will get you !’ The reeds were along the River Roding and there was a Sandy Beach just past the power station. The main traffic on the Thames were the huge colliers
“When my father first moved to Creekmouth, in about 1878, he worked as a boatman for John Bennet Lawes, who owned the row of cottages where we lived. Most of our neighbours were also employed at Lawes Factory and at each end of the row lived the manager and the under – manager, who were unrelated,
The sounds of the River “From the front door of our cottage, which was next to the Mission Hall, you could have thrown a stone into the River Roding, so as you can appreciate that the first smells and sounds I can remember came in from the river. The sight of the big green crested
My Nan and Grandad Clark lived in No. 11, next door to the Mission Hall. My Grandfather’s name was William. He was a tugmaster and worked for Lawes. He got a cottage when they were newly-built. He had just got married. He used to tow barges down the river and was away an awful lot.
The front row of cottages, numbering from 25 – 50, were built later than the rest of the village, circa 1880s. They differ greatly from the rest of the cottages inasmuch as they all have little porches and pocket-handkerchief sized front gardens. The rear gardens were long and narrow, ending at the ‘Backways’, the strip
This is a modern look at the old Creekmouth School, which is now owned by Squibb Demolition and is a private company. Apart from the porch and the new windows, together with the removal of the bell tower, the building is exactly as it was when it was built in 1902.
One of the Creekmouth Preservation Society’s first events. St Georges Day at the Crooked Billet with local MP Margaret Hodge
Afternoon tea party held at Christchurch Bastable Avenue. We have had various venues since the Crooked Billet changed hands. Following the closure of our “spiritual home” we were, for a short while, cast adrift. However, the licensees of The Lighterman, in Bastable Avenue, stepped in and allowed us to use their premises, temporarily, for our
Christmas Party at the Crooked Billet. One of the many events held at the pub
