Lovely Laindon (Part 8) (9 of 9)

(Chapter 9: Laindon At Last)

Mum and Dad took the bull by the horn in the spring of 1933 and we all moved to Laindon. Despite all the help we had been receiving both at Wembley and Laindon, the position at Wembley could not be improved upon and the temporary nature of everything that seemed to pervade continuing to live there could, just as easily, be matched at Laindon where, at least, an end to construction was now in sight. Accordingly, the rather limited amount of furniture we possessed was loaded into a pantechnicon van and we set off from Wembley, my mother and me riding in the special compartment over the vehicle’s cab in which my father was riding in order to show the driver the best route. All I can recall of this particular journey was the van pulling off Laindon High Road, up the rough hill that was Windsor Road and into Tyler Avenue and thence into Basil Drive which, at the time, was still just a grass covered track leading across the field that had been designated as Station Rise Estate.  Because this field had once been under the plough, travelling along “Basil Drive” had a switch back ride effect which must have left a particular impression on my young mind.

We were taking a chance moving in, although any doubts about the legality of doing so were partly covered by the fact that, at least, “Allwood” next door was liveable in for short periods, while “Cranford” definitely was not.  If the Authorities were made aware of my parent’s intentions they would have thrown a fit.  Only the large bedroom in “Cranford” was anywhere near in a finished state, the living room and small bedroom had no floor boards as yet and although the scullery floor which was to be solid based was laid, it was only bare concrete and was awaiting tiling. To all intents and purposes, “Cranford” was a shell and we were camping in it. My Father’s shed at the “top” of the garden was to be part of this camping lark and we intended to make do.  There was an old black leaded stove in it and this was to be used for cooking pro tem.  We had arrived and hence forth I was a Laindon resident with all that that could come to mean over the years.

(A footnote: The series of essays entitled “Lovely Laindon”, now concluded with this part, was intended to stimulate interest in other Laindoners  and encourage all who have moved into, or were born in, Laindon, particularly those who did so in the first half of the twentieth century, both to record for prosperity the reasons why and or how they did so.)

9 of 9

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