DENTON 1950's

I have a copy of this card in my collection. It was published as card D13266 by Shoesmith & Etheridge Ltd of Hastings. I bought mine in the early 1970s after I moved to Denton. My feeling is that Shoesmith & Etheridge are now part of Judge's.

This picture shows St Leonards Parish Church, where I served as a choir boy in the 1960's. I would imagine the picture was taken during the 1950's prior to the massive expansion of bungalows which took place in the 1960's period. The old vicarage is shrouded in the trees shown above church roof area, where the large garden was used for fete's and summer fayre's, the new vicarage is again hidden by these trees but closer to the church , this view looks across to the Guiness Trust Housing location now also extended .

The pair of semi detached houses just above right centre in the photo, with white bay windows, is where my Uncle and Aunty lived. Their names were Oscar and Gwen Walser. Oscar was one half of the local plumbers 'Walser and Turner' who had their workshop on the Riverside just past the Blacksmiths Arms -mentioned elsewhere on this site. I used to walk from my home in Brighton Road to visit them and my cousin Steven. We spent hours playing in the open space in front of the houses which led down to the 'Flying Fish'. I also had another Aunty and Uncle who lived in 'Brands Close' which would be at the top centre in the photo but can't quite make out if the bungalows had been built at this time. Thanks for posting the photo Richard, bought back some very happy childhood memories.

In the fourth photo you can see the four bungalows in Acacia Road, we lived in the second one up you can see the open fields opposite, the house opposite our bungalow used to keep bees we used to get swarms in the garden. It was a great place to live and play. I remember Steve Walser we were good friends for many years, didn't his dad set up a caravan park at the three lakes at South Heighton?

Terry, you are correct. Oscar set up the Hampden Vale caravan park with Ron Bassett ( formerly a Builder ). Richards comments at the top of the page are correct the house below the Church was a pig farm owed by ? Jones ? I think Richard was the Sons name. A year or two younger than me .

George Jones was the pig farmer and he lived with his wife Betty in Meadow Cottage opposite the Church. I lived in the barn on the corner in the Hatchery grounds where my father started off the day old chicken production for W D Evans Ltd (a Midlands company); at that time only left half of the barn was converted and my sister Barbara and I had great fun swinging from a rope tied to the beams in the unconverted part. I believe the hatchery buildings were once used as a glue factory. As a young boy I used to travel around with George in his lorry to collect unused food to feed his pigs; many years later I ended up as his accountant and also acted for his boatbuilder/carpenter son Richard (who still lives in Denton) until I retired. Funnily enough I acted for Ben Turner who was Oscar Walser's partner in the plumbing business. I was a choirboy at Denton Church, as was my wife Anthea and her sister Lindsay (nee Ellis) and later became Church secretary as well as covering for Ray Jones as treasurer when he was taken ill. Although Lewes residents now my wife and I attend the service at Denton on Christmas Eve; we were married there and our son Ben was baptised there so we have a long and happy association with the Church.

There was another pig farmer in Denton behind us in Acacia Road, his name was Sam Sorrell. You knew they were there when the wind was in the right direction.

I was a member of the choir at church. I was also in the Scouts, but by the time I joined, Ralph Reader had recently left. Can anyone tell me who the two were who ran the Scouts in the 50s ? I seem to recall one of them had an eye patch.. I can remember going on cook-outs on the "planney" but if it was wet we would go to the Vicarage and have them in the garage. The other thing I remember about Scouts was British Bulldog. One particular boy used to win every time - who was that?

I can also remember Panda Diesels starting up behind Ralph Reader's old house, they later moved to the end of New road. Are they still going?.

Hi, Sometime before I left school, I was taken to the detached house in the middle of photo 5 by my father,who had the job to rake out and repoint the brickwork. I thought, " what a boring thing to do" and was glad when the job was complete. The pocket money was good though. I seem to be following Terry about on this website and the reference he made about Panda Diesels leads me to believe that this is something to do with a David Brandon, cousin of mine, who, I have been told is a very skilled fitter. He must have inherited those talents from his father Les.

I have a couple of Sam Sorrell stories from when we used to live in Acacia Road which backed on to Sam's Farm. There were a lot of chickens on the farm which encouraged a family of foxes to live in the field out the back. My brother Trevor and I used to love them being around and would watch the cubs playing in the twilight of the evening.  However, they were also breaking into the chicken yards and making off with the odd bird so we'd heard that the farmer was going to find the den and set it with poison. My brother and I sneaked out early one morning to dig out the tunnel but alas we were too late to save them. However the farmer was furious with our efforts and stormed in to talk with my parents over the incidents but I think we denied it was us. There was also the time when I was probably about 8 or so when my mum told me to find her a piglet to get rid of my hassling her while she was cooking one day. She was a little surprised when i returned shortly afterwards holding a squealing piglet from Mr Sorrell's yard that I had sneaked in and captured for her. She told me to take it back.

I remember growing up in the village, my Uncle George and Aunt Bett worked the pig farm. Those where some fun times growing up in the village.

 If I remember right the boy who always won " british bulldog" was a rather large lad called Christopher Gibbons who used to live in the RAF houses on the corner of Station Road and Beresford Road. They have since been demolished and the site built on.

Hi, does anyone remember Ronald Bassett? I'm a family friend and would be keen to know more of his life in Denton and Newhaven. I understand that he built a lot of the houses in the town.