Photo's of Bermondsey (Buildings)
Caledonian Market 1958
East Lane Market
Wolseley Buildings - Wolseley Street
My husband and I often talk about Georges the chip shop in Dunton Road. I lived round the corner in Earl Road. Loved to see the photo on your site. The shop on the corner was Rushton a shoe menders my mother went to school with the owner. My friends and I used to go into Georges and get thrupence of chips and a penny pickle onion. I loved the crackling in the corner of the bag soaked in the vinegar.
The chips warmed us up on a cold night as we played out. Happy, happy days. I think George got closed down due to sanitation reasons. He was such a nice bloke though and the chips never did up any harm....
Bermondseyboy I would love a picture of the Bermondsey Baths, the gates of the Alaska building and Looking West from Cherry garden pier, any chance mate? Thanks
Peek Freans
Storey sent in by Bermondseygirl
The sweet smells of a factory that produced some of the country's favourite biscuits - like the Garibaldi and the Bourbon - are to be revived after 16 years.
Peek Frean & Co employed about 3,000 workers |
With the help of a £33,000 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), the 123-year-old biscuit company Peek Frean & Co, which closed in 1989, is making a 'comeback' in the form of an exhibition. From September, The Pumphouse Educational Museum in Rotherhithe, south-east London, will host a permanent exhibition about the company, which was based in Bermondsey, south-east London. Peek Frean & Co was the first mass producer of biscuits and employed over 3,000 people in its time from when it opened in 1866 to when it closed in the late 80s. The exhibition will include collections of Peek Frean artefacts dating back to 1900, which have never been publicly displayed.
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It will also feature recorded interviews with former employees, several of whom still live in the area, as well as sound and pictures so that visitors can explore the factory's past. To complete the experience there will also be a "smell pod" which will allow visitors to experience the aroma of the factory. Caroline Marais, from the museum, said: "We are grateful to the HLF for providing this opportunity to give local, national and global visitors a sense, and even a smell, of the past."
Peek Frean & Co operated for 123 years in south-east London |
Peek Frean & Co stood at the centre of the local community in Bermondsey and was the biggest company in the area at the time. Besides the Garibaldi (made in 1961), Shortcake (1912) and Bourbon, formerly Creola, (1910), other celebrated lines included Marie (1875), Chocolate Table (1899), Golden Puff (1909), Glaxo (1923), and the cocktail snacks, Cheeselets and Twiglets. It also made a 6ft wedding cake for Queen Elizabeth II's wedding which will be on display in the museum. Former employee Graham Stephens, 71, who worked there from 1957 until 1987, told BBC News that generations of families often worked at the factory. "Peek Frean & Company was a very friendly firm, a very caring company for its employees.
Queen Elizabeth II's wedding cake is on display in the museum |
"As an employee you were really made a fuss over. We had great fun working at Peek Frean." The factory closed in 1989 when its then US-based owners, Nabisco, decided that the company had too many manufacturing units in the UK. Mr Stephens has provided the museum with memorabilia, including a whole range of biscuit labels and a booklet outlining the history of the company for the first 100 years. "The exhibition will show what life was like in those times. I do think it will be very good for children to see how life was both before and after the war," he said. The museum will be producing educational worksheets for schools and a booklet on the social history of the factory to accompany the exhibition. Sue Bowers, HLF Regional manager for London said: "The factory is over 120 years old and was loved by the community and people who worked there. "The company played a crucial role in developing Southwark's unique character. This project will ensure everyone can celebrate that inheritance."
Queens Buildings
BERMONDSEYBOY MANY THANKS FOR THE GREAT PICTURES it was great seeing the old Alaska gates again, thank heavens they dont knock everything down.I was very interested in the photo of Bermondsey Baths shown in Spa rd on the corner of the Neckinger, I never knew it was there as the Municiple Offices were there when I was a kid. I am sure that the old Bermondsey Town hall and the Library are showing in that picture, am I right? Cheers Mate
johnoj
Regarding Bermondsey Baths you may be getting confused as I did with the two pictures of the Baths, one is the old Baths in Spa Road at the corner with the Neckinger next to the Town Hall and the other in Grange Road next to the Alaska Factory alas they have both gone
The older baths was replaced by the original Bermondsey Borough Council Power House when Bermondsey generated it own electicity before London Electricity I exspect you remember that and it was a DC supply which was lethal should you get a shock. Those were the days
Joe Foster
i remember the lovely piece pudding and savloy from here
Fosney you are right about the baths, I never knew they were in Spa Rd, but now you have mentioned the power house in the Neckinger that has brought memories. We used to love poking our heads in there and getting the full blast of the turbines and thinking what a wonderful job the man in charge had.. Are the Municiple Offices still there or have they gone? also in that photo of Spa Rd I noticed right at the top a shot of Spa Rd Mansions a great place to run up the stairs to the top floor and look over to Crystal Palace and beyond.. Anybody remember the old games we used to play in the street, jimmy jimmy knacker i'm a coming,tin can copper knob used to have great fun with them and more.. We would be out all day wandering around the Tower Bridge wharves taking in the lovely smells of all the different spices, paddling in the River, which was very dangerous as it was easy to slip in the mud. Many a clump round the ear was my reward for coming home muddy,,. Great days, we were poor but happy, not like a lot of kids today..
Hello Bermondsey Girl
Was the fish & chip you mention almost opposite The Dun Cow in Dunton Rd, know as 'The Hole in the Wall', run by George who sported a 'Bobby Charlton' hair style? Great chips and the soggy vinigar in the bottom of the cone of newspaper he would make for you! Great after a few pints in The Apple & Pear, The Collen Bawn in the Blue or the Duke of Wellington,Green Man or Dun Cow, I can smell those chips even now!
Kind Regards
Hi Crosby
That's a very interesting plan, Arundel and Worthing Buildings were damaged in the bombing. It seems odd to me now that the only one left is Arundel. All the others ( apart from Worthing )which were perfectly allright have been pulled down to make way for a small playground.We used to play a lot in Worthing Building, they were very badly damaged, some of the staircases and floors missing. But we had great times climbing over it and getting up on the roof.
The arial photograph of Tower Bridge Road to Grange Road on close inspection looks like the block of Harold Estate where The Bermondseyboy lived is in the early stages of building, just the groundworks and foundations in place?
Rod.
Tower Bridge Road 1934
In the background is Rankin Bros. Cork Importers
