Chandler's Ford Today

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The Mosque

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A group of us from U3A visited the Masjid Abu Bakr (Masjid means Mosque) in St Marys, Southampton. St Marys boasts three mosques within 150 yards of each other. This one caters for 1000 of the 1.9 billion Muslims worldwide.

Why would a group of elderly Christians visit a mosque, particularly in times like these? All of us were brought up in the Christian tradition, some practising, some C of E by default, some, like the author, with no religious belief and others hovering between ­– the agnostics. Curiosity united us. We were invited to remove our shoes and the ladies covered their hair.

The verger

We were met by the ‘verger’ who explained the five pillars of Islam; the obligatory rituals and practices of all Muslims. The Shahada ­– the creed “I bear witness that there is no deity but God…” equivalent to the Apostles’ Creed. Salah – the practice of prayer, five times a day while facing Mecca. Zakat – almsgiving, set at 2.5% of what you have remaining after meeting your household expenses. Sawm – fasting during the month of Ramadan and, finally, the Hajj – a pilgrimage to Mecca to be made once in a lifetime by all who can afford it. [Read more…] about The Mosque

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Pure Nostalgia

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Last Century

Long ago, my little sister and I had a holiday with our parents and grandparents in Dunoon, Scotland. Grandfather loved things mechanical, steam-driven and related to the sea, so the opportunity to sail aboard the Waverley, a paddle-driven steamship, was as close to heaven as he could get on this earth. He bought tickets lasting a week and we sailed the Clyde with him every day.

From Dunoon, the Waverley set across to Wemyss Bay for more passengers, and the adventure began. We approached the Isle of Arran, a misty blue hillock on the horizon. Gradually, it resolved into a mountain of colour, green bracken on the lower slopes, replaced by yellow gorse and then purple heather over the top backed by the blue sky. At Lochranza, groups of young people disembarked to visit the Youth Hostel. Would I ever be old enough to be considered a youth and leave for an adventure on an island? I hovered between childhood and being a youth, wanting to be considered grown-up.

We sailed on to Campbelltown and then by bus to Machrihanish, where North Atlantic rollers dashed against the rocky shore. Against the wind, the roar of the waves and sea spray like a fog on the land, we held bags of chips in our hands and felt good to be alive.

In the gloaming, we sailed the smooth obsidian-black waters of Loch Fyne with mountains on either side. We had a feeling of space and stillness on the quiet waters. Sheep grazed the hillsides, and white-washed cottages dotted the shore.

Later that year, the Scottish Nationalists removed the Stone of Scone from Westminster Abbey and took it back to Scotland.

SS Waverley off Swanage image by Robert Mason CCO
SS Waverley off Swanage image by Robert Mason. CCO

Last Month

Seventy or more years passed, and my sister and I embarked, once more, on the Waverley but in Southampton. On a beautiful sunny day, our cruise took us to Portsmouth, Yarmouth, around the Needles to Freshwater Bay and back. [Read more…] about Pure Nostalgia

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Winchester United Nations

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At 4.30 am on a Sunday, as the sky was lightening, an ambulance with me on board rocked and bumped from our house en route to the Royal Hampshire County Hospital, Winchester. A sudden fever and collapse caused Madam some alarm, and fortunately for me, her 999 call brought the ambulance within 30 minutes.

‘We’ve got to strap you in, by law,’ explained the ex-soldier paramedic. No need, I thought. But the potholes and ambulance suspension showed it was necessary.

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The RHCH was quiet at dawn on a Sunday, and I was soon in a bed.

‘What’s been happening to you?’ asked Dr Hemeda as he looked me over. I asked him where he qualified. ‘Ein Shams, Cairo. We’ll get you x-rayed.’ We chatted about Ein Shams, as I have lectured there a few times. It is the oldest of Cairo’s Universities and the Centre for Muslim Studies. On my first visit there, I took a bottle of Whisky for my host but thought better of it and kept it in my bag. [Read more…] about Winchester United Nations

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Sri Lanka – a Travel Journal

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After COVID, cancer, the cold and a few other obstacles, we have found our way back to Kandy. We spent a few days sofa-surfing, including a few days in the Hanthana Hills at Jungle Tide, a lovely place to stay. The track up to a lovely traditional house was interesting; see the picture. The views across the valley to the opposite Knuckles range of mountains are fantastic. Eventually, we found a spacious apartment beside the Mahawali River. I told my friend where we were. His response was, ‘We’ll come over for dinner tonight. The whole family.’

The Road to Jungle Tide
The Road to Jungle Tide

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Mary’s Christmas Story – In Her Own Words

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MARY’S STORY

Oh, I’m so tired. I’m glad I’m able to ride some of the time on Eysl, our donkey, though I do have to walk some of the time, to give him a rest too. I hope we’re nearly there. My back aches and I’ve had some pains – I wonder if that’s the baby coming. I haven’t mentioned those to Joseph – I don’t want to worry him. He’s already worrying about where we‘ll stay when we reach Bethlehem, what with so many people on the road going for the census, like us.

I’m tired and I’m afraid. I’m afraid of what people say about me being pregnant and unmarried. Afraid that the shame will mean we can’t find anywhere to sleep tonight. Afraid of what having the baby – the Son of God – will mean for the family. Will Joseph and I be able to have a normal family life? I’m afraid of what the future holds for us all.

The Virgin in Prayer. Artist: Sassoferrato. © The National Gallery, London. Via Wikimedia.
The Virgin in Prayer. Artist: Sassoferrato. © The National Gallery, London. Via Wikimedia.

I do love Joseph. I already did, when we got betrothed. But then when I had to tell him I was with child, I was sure he’d want to walk away. He told me he thought he might, but without making too much of a fuss. But he didn’t, he said he’d stand by me and the baby. He told me he had a dream where an angel told him to take me as his wife, that what I’d said was true – that the baby was conceived by the Holy Spirit, that it’ll be a boy and we’re to call him Jesus. And that he’ll save people from their sins. I’m not sure how that last bit works – but we’ll see. I wonder if it’s what the prophets foretold all those years ago. Could he be the Messiah? My little baby? [Read more…] about Mary’s Christmas Story – In Her Own Words

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Hiltingbury Polish Dependants’ Hostel in Chandler’s Ford

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By Pawel Basisty

My name is Pawel Basisty and I’m member of Friends of Polish Veterans Association in Southampton. Our organisation is trying to make sure that our army veterans and important history dates are not forgotten but celebrated. Often we take part in the same events as British Legion.

This time we will celebrate the unveiling of the commemorative plaque for 75th anniversary of the establishment of the Hiltingbury Polish Dependants’ Hostel in Chandler’s Ford.

The story of the Polish Dependants' Hostel, Hiltingbury by Marian Sobieraj
The story of the Polish Dependants’ Hostel, Hiltingbury by Marian Sobieraj

Unveiling of the commemorative plaque will take place at 4.30 pm 27 of November 2022 in Polish Club Southampton 507 Portswood Road SO17 2TH.
Unveiling of the commemorative plaque will take place at 4.30 pm 27 of November 2022 in Polish Club Southampton 507 Portswood Road SO17 2TH.

[Read more…] about Hiltingbury Polish Dependants’ Hostel in Chandler’s Ford

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Making Monarchs

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The Accession Council

The most urgent matter after the death of a Monarch is a meeting of the Accession Council. When King George VI died, the council met the same day to decide that Elizabeth was the rightful heir to the throne. They adjourned and met again a couple of days later when Elizabeth had returned from Africa. At the second meeting, she was asked to take the Oath. Next came the Proclamation.

Beautiful flower tributes for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. at Winchester Cathedral.
Beautiful flower tributes for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
at Winchester Cathedral.

For me, the Proclamation of Elizabeth as Queen was on a cold February day in 1952. It was an event presaging a brighter future. We assembled at school in Cheltenham while the mayor proclaimed the Queen in his broad rural Gloucester accent. He reminded us to sing ‘God save the QUEEN’, not King, and we became Elizabethans. Now we change back. I sang God save the King in Winchester on September 11th. We are now Caroleans.

St James Palace where the first Proclamation is read. (by Helloworld314 CC BY-SA 4.0)
St James Palace where the first Proclamation is read. (by Helloworld314 CC BY-SA 4.0)

1952

In those days, city centres were being cleared of rubble from the blitz and slowly rebuilt. Some foods, sugar especially, were rationed, and hardly anyone had a TV or a car. Some public buildings, like our school, had central heating but it didn’t work. Wartime identification cards were abolished that year.

In the arts, The Archers was already established, and The Mousetrap opened; both are still running. The church of Rome banned the works of André Gide (who died 1951), while the Soviet Union executed thirteen Jewish poets. The diary of Anne Frank was published. In the sciences, Alan Turing published an important paper on Morphogenesis and was arrested for indecency. Experiments showed DNA to be the material of genes, not protein, as previously thought. Understanding DNA is one of the great scientific advances of the Elizabethan age. Two animals were sighted for the last time before becoming extinct. Britain declared that it had the atomic bomb. That winter, we suffered the Great London Smog, which killed thousands.

Civic and Army dignitaries arriving for the Proclamation in Winchester
Civic and Army dignitaries arriving for the Proclamation in Winchester

Who shall be King?

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Old School Reports

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All parents will have received a school report this summer depicting their offsprings’ achievements during the Summer term. From those achievements, they will extrapolate the next 10 years of the child’s life. My parents must have despaired when they received this report from the Spring Term of 1949 when I was 11 years old. How did it all turn out for me? The school reports I have seen in recent years are wordier and less direct.

Image by Simona from Pixabay
Image by Simona from Pixabay

Holy Scripture – Must put more energy into this important subject. The school was run by a religious fanatic, and we were forced to read and memorise parts of the bible. By this time, I would have read the Bible through once. In the next two years, we were forced to read it again. A few years later, I got a distinction in Divinity for GCSE. As a result, I am one of the best-informed atheists in the Christian religion. In recent years I have learned something about Buddhism also.

French – Tended to laziness. I tried but was it le, la or les: de, du or de la? I had a 33% chance of getting it right. When I needed to learn some French as an adult, I began to make progress only when I forgot all about school French. [Read more…] about Old School Reports

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Photography on the Isle of Wight

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We like to think of the Isle of Wight as quaintly fifty years behind the times, but one hundred and fifty years ago, Hester Fuller, William Thackeray’s granddaughter, declared Freshwater was equivalent to the Golden Age of Athens under Pericles. The analogy does not hold up as Pericles was involved in the Peloponnesian Wars, whereas Freshwater’s Golden Age was roughly coterminous with Queen Victoria’s reign, the period known as Pax Brittanica.

Julia Margaret Cameron
Julia Margaret Cameron

Julia Margaret Cameron (1815-1879) was the facilitator of the Freshwater intellectual powerhouse. Her house, Dimbola, became the site of an artistic Salon from 1860 onwards. Alfred Tennyson, the poet laureate, lived nearby at Farringford and was a regular visitor, as was G F Watts, the artist with his child bride, Ellen Terry, actress. Members of the pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood – Dante Gabriel Rossetti, John Everett Millais and William Holman Hunt were also visitors. [Read more…] about Photography on the Isle of Wight

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St George’s Day Glide

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St George’s Day, April 23rd dawned clear and sunny. A cold front had passed, and a gentle breeze from the North covered the land. With no rain for a while, the land was dry, and so was the air. The sun warmed both and the warm air rolled gently southwards over England. When the air rolled up against the South Downs, it had to rise and being warm, it continued to rise as thermals from the top of the Downs.

This was precisely the right day for soaring the South Downs. Everyone at Lasham gliding club had the same idea, but we made an early bid and were number twelve on the take-off grid with many others behind us.

As soon as the air temperature reached the trigger value for thermals, the tugs fired up their engines and began to tow us into the air. There is a delicious moment when I have my parachute on, I’m strapped in the cockpit, and all the pre-flight checks are done. Then, I can sit quietly, watching the others take off.

Ready to depart

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Hand Gestures

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Of the many hand gestures, from the encouraging thumbs-up to the vulgar V sign, there is one that drew me to the history of the Popes; the sign of benediction. With the hand held aloft, palm forward and the thumb, index and middle fingers extended, and the little and ring fingers curled into the palm, the priest intones the benediction and blessing. See the diagram below.

Jean-Marc Rosier from http://www.rosier.pro, CC BY-SA 3.0
Jean-Marc Rosier from http://www.rosier.pro, CC BY-SA 3.0

The three-fingered sign of benediction and of damage to the ulnar nerve.

 

Strangely the same hand posture is also a sign of damage to the ulnar nerve. The ulnar is one of two main nerves supplying the skin and muscles of the hand. It is usually damaged the elbow. Most of us have banged our ‘funny bones’ and experienced unpleasant tinglings in the ring and little fingers. That is a temporary bruising of the ulnar nerve. [Read more…] about Hand Gestures

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Brickmaking in Chandler’s Ford

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It won’t come as a surprise to any local gardener that brickmaking was a big industry round here 100-150 years ago. Our heavy clay soil, as well as the local chalk downland, made this area an obvious site for several brickfields over the centuries. In fact, in the late nineteenth century in Hampshire there were 100-150 works producing clay products such as bricks, tiles and pipes.

Chandler's Ford Community Halls, Hursley Road.
Chandler’s Ford Community Halls, Hursley Road.

It was in around 1870 that it was discovered that our clay soil was particularly suitable for brickmaking. There were three brickfields in Chandler’s Ford. The biggest, which was also one of the largest in the country, was Bell’s, which occupied the land now taken by Chandler’s Ford industrial estate. The position of the railway no doubt helped its success as this was the main means of transporting the finished bricks. A short single-track branch line ran through the brickfield, joining the Eastleigh-Romsey line at the station near the signal box. The whole process of clay extraction, moulding to shape and firing was done on site. This last was not always popular with local residents due to the fumes emanating from the kilns. This brickfield had the honour of providing 35,000 bricks for the construction of the Royal Courts of Justice in the 1870s.

Brickmaking in Chandler's Ford
Brickmaking in Chandler’s Ford

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The Animals’ Christmas

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Imagine you’re a bystander, just happening to be there, watching the nativity story unfold. Not a convenient passer-by but … an animal. The Christmas story is full of animals, from donkeys and oxen to sheep and camels, so – why not?

Sarah the spider, resident of Mary’s home in Nazareth (note: Mary doesn’t sweep away Sarah’s web because it catches the flies) observes Gabriel and the Annunciation. Daniel the donkey carries Mary and Joseph to the stable in Bethlehem where he also finds rest. Obadiah the ox, who lives in this stable, grudgingly makes room for the interloper and then is present at Jesus’ birth. Lilah the lamb comes with the shepherds, having seen the angel with the amazing news, and Khalid the camel, along with his mates Kanika and Keb, are the transport for the wise men as they follow the star.

The Animals' Christmas - by Aileen Urquhart (Author), Emma Repetti (Illustrator)
The Animals’ Christmas – by Aileen Urquhart (Author), Emma Repetti (Illustrator)
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The Reunion

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We gathered once again for the 65th anniversary of our first meeting in the university’s Anatomy Department. Eight of us are left, but another eight are still living in the far corners of the world. We were like a copse of trees, saplings, whips and small shoots to begin with. We needed to be nurtured and trained in our respective careers.

Reunion

Now, in the late Autumn, we are a dying wood. Our abilities fall away like autumn leaves; our branches crack and tumble. What remains creaks with decay and degeneration within. The killing winter frosts will soon finish us all. [Read more…] about The Reunion

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Past Hospitals in Chandler’s Ford

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I wonder how much you know about hospitals in Chandler’s Ford past? We know of the private Nuffield Hospital in Winchester Road. Many will remember Leigh House Hospital that is gone now, to make way for housing. But there was another, long gone …

Hursley Union Workhouse / Sanitorium / Leigh House Hospital

Chandler's Ford Leigh House Hospital
Chandler’s Ford Leigh House Hospital

In 1835 the Hursley Poor Law Union was officially formed to cover the parishes of Hursley, Compton, Farley Chamberlayne, North Baddesley and Otterbourne. Ampfield and Chandler’s Ford were added to the list in 1894. By 1867 the Hursley parish workhouse, built in 1828, was criticised for its inadequate building (disgusting water closets and a cesspool under the windows of the lying-in and infectious wards, which had been unemptied for twelve years!). [Read more…] about Past Hospitals in Chandler’s Ford

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World War II and afterwards in Chandler’s Ford

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Chandler’s Ford had a population of just over 3,000 people in 1939 and, although only five miles north of Southampton which was badly bombed during the Blitz (57 nights in 1940-41), we escaped lightly. Here’s how …

BOMBS

Two ‘Doodle-bug’ V1 flying bombs fell on Hiltingbury: one landing harmlessly in a field, the other killing the residents of a bungalow in Pine Road (these bombs were presumably aimed at London but, as was the case with so many, they didn’t make it all the way). A couple of ‘breadbaskets’ fell (a Molotov breadbasket was attached to a parachute and so called because it contained both high explosive and incendiary bombs) and a stick of bombs fell in Hursley Road. One German aircraft came over from the north, machine-gunning as it went before flying off towards Eastleigh. As well as the few deaths, structural damage was caused to about half a dozen homes from the bombs. Much more structural damage was caused by the anti-aircraft guns around the area and large cracks in walls and ceilings from ack-ack guns were common.

V1Musee - ByBen_pcc - Self-photographed, Public Domain, Wikimedia
V1Musee – ByBen_pcc – Self-photographed, Public Domain, Wikimedia

During the Blitz on Southampton in 1940, the reflection of the fires could be seen in the night sky here in Chandler’s Ford. Searchlights, air raid sirens and anti-aircraft guns made the village very aware of what was happening locally. During the worst of the Blitz, many Southampton families would come to Chandler’s Ford to sleep the night, or for longer if they were bombed out. Several churches and halls were used as reception centres, providing food and blankets. Local residents often offered accommodation and some people made Chandler’s Ford their permanent home.
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Photo – R.A.F Launches being Transported across the Chandler’s Ford Road / Rail Bridge in 1950s / 1960s

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Did you recognise this location in Chandler’s Ford? Tim Deacon from Southampton sent us this unique photo to share with Chandler’s Ford readers.

The photo shows two R.A.F. Launches (built by The British Power Boat Company in Hythe) being transported by lorries through Chandler’s Ford over the road/rail bridge near the station in the 1950/60s.

Tim is a volunteer boat builder at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard.

Chandler's Ford. RAF launches on the move dated 1955...'1599' nearest camera and '1565' behind. Image via Tim Deacon
Chandler’s Ford. RAF launches on the move dated 1955…’1599′ nearest camera and ‘1565’ behind. Credit: image via Tim Deacon.

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The Main Road Through Chandler’s Ford: Historical Snapshots (Part 2)

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Part Two: 1913

Chandler's Ford War Memorial. At that time it stood at the end of Hursley Road on railway company land, only moving to its present site (outside St Boniface Church )in 1973 being re-dedicated on 4th August 1974. Image via Eastleigh and District Local History Society.
Chandler’s Ford War Memorial. At that time it stood at the end of Hursley Road on railway company land, only moving to its present site (outside St Boniface Church ) in 1973 being re-dedicated on 4th August 1974. Image via Eastleigh and District Local History Society.

If we now time-travel twenty years or so to the eve of the First World War, let’s see what has changed on our route. Once again, we come up from Southampton to the Asda roundabout and up Bournemouth Road. Chandler’s Ford now has a police constable who lives at the police house at 5 York Villas, Bournemouth Road. We pass the home of one R. E. Burke, a lounge steward on HMS Titanic who sadly perished when the ship foundered last year. As we pass the Hut Hotel (see image below, forgiving the cars!), we may see Chandler’s Ford United FC training in a field behind, using the hotel as their changing room. The big brickfield on our left is still busy.

Hut Hotel, image by Christine Clark
Hut Hotel

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Forgotten Letters of John Masefield

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Like most schools, mine had inter-house competitions. One year, it fell to me to be House Captain of Music because I was the oldest boy who could play the clarinet. The Housemaster chose the Captain on age, not on ability. Every boy had to sing in the choir, and the performance piece chosen was John Ireland’s setting of Sea Fever by the poet laureate at the time, John Masefield.

Everyone had to sing, from the few with treble voices to the tuneless late-teen tough-guy growlers. We learned about melding music and words, how to enunciate ‘whetted knife’ as if you were cut by a cold wind; how to sound the sibilants to suggest gale and spray and how to prolong the final word – over. The poem was ended, but the feeling and atmosphere lingered on. [Read more…] about Forgotten Letters of John Masefield

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The Main Road Through Chandler’s Ford: Historical Snapshots (Part 1)

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Part One: 1895

You probably know that most of Chandler’s Ford has developed in the last hundred years or so and that prior to the twentieth century, there wasn’t a lot here, apart from a few cottages, the brickfields, farm land and woods. I’ve been looking at the history of one important feature of our town: the main road – Bournemouth Road and Winchester Road – stretching from Asda to the Nuffield Hospital. I wonder what you know of its history?

Stone train, Chandler's Ford, pre-Millers Dale, April 1976 (for rail enthusiasts, the loco is D1058 Western Nobleman). Image via Eastleigh and District Local History Society.
Stone train, Chandler’s Ford, pre-Millers Dale, April 1976 (for rail enthusiasts, the loco is D1058 Western Nobleman). Image via Eastleigh and District Local History Society.

Let me take you back to 1895. Let’s say you want to travel from Southampton to Winchester and for some reason you don’t take the train, preferring to ride your horse / travel in your carriage or cart by road. The road that goes through our town was the most direct route, a turnpike with an improved surface since the early nineteenth century, unlike other local roads.

Before the railway came in 1847, this road would have been heavily used by the stage coaches that plied between Southampton and London. The horses were changed every six miles and being this distance from both Southampton and Winchester, Chandler’s Ford was the obvious place for the changeover. The coaching stage in our town was where the Fryern Arcade is now, but by 1895 the stables had been redeveloped as a house. [Read more…] about The Main Road Through Chandler’s Ford: Historical Snapshots (Part 1)

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