Good spot! I reckon that's the Royal Naval Club on Wastdale Road.

No, Stanstead Picture Palace was not the Capitol. Stanstead Picture Palace opened in Wastdale Road in 1913. Around 1954 it became the Astoria - but it was short lived and closed in 1955.

This is indeed a very good thread

I do remember the Malt Shovel

FH is still a great place yet for some of the newer people to the area, I think you missed out on some great shops/times

At christmas we used to have a big do in the Dorrell Hall - well most of the rsidents of The Park & Park Hill that is, they were brill

Remember me old dad taking the dog for a walk, he used to always sit on a bench where I think it was Barclays bank and have a quick can or 2, then come in say - no wonder they call it Forest Hill, think he was complaining about it being so hilly, well I know Taymount Rise is pretty steep

Yes they were very happy days

The Stanstead Picture Palace was on Wastdale rd. Now demolished.

sydenhamcentral, here is a picture of the Astoria on Wastdale Road - slide 33. Very impressive.
J.E. Barton's was quite a building too.

Where is the picture? You tease!

Not sure, but try this one

Oops. Here is the link SC. Sorry it's late but I've been away on hols for a week.

http://fhhistory.blogspot.com/

The bakery was called Forshaws

Hi Triangle,
You mentioned Bruce Daniel's motorcycle shop in your post and as you knew him by name I wanted to let you know that Bruce, who was my stepfather, died on the 11th of Jan age 82.
His age doesn't give you a realistic image of him - he was surfing a few weeks before he died! His motorcycle business was so important to him - I don't know whether you knew but in the early fifties he was a BMW sponsored motorcycle racer who won the TT races a couple of times.
He was an inspirational man who lead a very full life ( he was also the veteran waterski world champion in about 85!).
Anyhow lovely to reminisce about local shops and haunts!
Emma

Emmasouthby.
So sorry to hear. I've sent you a PM.
Triangle.

Wow - Thats interesting - I found this

Stanstead Picture PalaceAddress
Wastdale Road, Forest Hill
Lewisham
SE23

Venue Detail
Type: Cinema
Capacity: 834
Date of opening: 16 January 1913 (or 22)


Other Uses of Venue
Subsequent use: Became Astoria in 1931, Balmoral in 1954 then New Astoria, closed 1955
Current use: Demolished

Hi All, Here's a link you may enjoy with loads of old photos of Forest hill and Sydenham

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stevegrindl.../lightbox/

Some lovely old memories of Forest Hill in this thread, I think the greek resturant was called The Doves? had many a lamb cutlet or a Steak late on a saturday night, and the owner didnt mind a late one if he was in the mood, Little fella with one eye if my memories still ticking along, also i can remember on Dartmouth Rd i think where the chinese takeaway now is, the pushbike shop, Edwardes+sons. Happy Days.

I knew the owners of Place Bakeries. they had a chain of bakeries in the ED and FH areas which eventally were sold. They moved out of ED to East Sussex, but died around 2001-2003. They were lovely people.

This is good. The Capitol, Astoria, Swiss Cottage...

http://transpont.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/...-east.html

Does anybody know Rudy Lewis?

I find this thread really interesting. Here's a pic of Dartmouth Road shops from number 55 upwards dating around 1900. Hope this link works!



The lane just before 55a which was Ted Christmas's builders yard still has a foundation stone on the right hand brick wall which was laid by his wife in 1900.

The first shopkeepers at my shop were Gregg and Spencer, upholsterers and cabinet makers from around 1900-1967, with Frederick Gregg and his family and nephew, Sidney Spencer living above the shop.

Steve Grindlay gave me this information and knows so much about local history, here's his blog.

http://sydenhamforesthillhistory.blogspot.co.uk/

As far as I know my shop was then a Television and T.V repair shop. If any of you can fill in any gaps I've missed I'd really appreciate it.

Sorry I've had to remove the picture link of Dartmouth Road as it seems to be going to my email, I'll try to post it another way.

This post was last modified: 04-03-2014 10:52 PM by P1971.

The Honor Oak was the St German, where my dad used to drink, almost daily meeting one of the solicitors from Stimpsons Solicitors. Opposite the pub on the corner of Stanstead Rd and Brockley Rise was the Co-Op outside of which was a vending machine dispensing chocolate and strawberry milk, next to it moving up Brockley Rise was Ghinns (sp?) a haberdashery shop, Andersons Newsagents - Anderson was a miserable bloke, then there was the chemist shop (which later moved over the road to where it is now, which was Barclays Bank - next to Barclays Bank was the Post Office), next to the Chemists was a proper old fashioned fish mongers - tiled walls, this is now Talents the music shop and I am told in a hot summer the smell of fish oozes out, the there was the greengrocers and the bakers and finally as currently a hairdressers. Somewhere within that lot was the launderette and drycleaners - I think.

My family moved in to Cranston rd in 1958 ... been one or two changes since then.

I remember the great smell from that fresh fish shop, when you walked past, it gave you the feeling of being at the seaside.

It was either, the fish shop, or the greengrocers, that became BASS'S i think that was the spelling, if i remember correctly, Alf Bass, had two mini- market shops in Brockley rise, one in that parade of shops and a larger one, in the parade of shops past Dalmain school.

I used to work in that one, after school and weekends. He also had another one in Dartmouth Road, just up from Forest hill station.

>>Thanks for the photos of the Swiss Cottage IWAF. I live just down the road from there and it would have been great to see it still open. Who knows what it would be now. It reminds me of the Dickens at St Katherines Dock.

It could maybe have become an alternative Spoons with the sad imminent closure of the Capitol, though maybe some of the more recent arrivals/snobs would have objected.