Reflections: The changing face of Station Road – part two
This edition of ‘Reflections’ concludes a short history of the changing face of Station Road, New Milton. Last month, in part one, we looked at the arrival of the railway in 1886 and the rapid growth of shops and private houses around the train station area and southwards.
The crossroads
The crossroads in New Milton has seen considerable change and development over the years. The 1841 tithe map records that the farm land to the north of the crossroads was all owned by Winchester College. Southwards, the fields were owned by John Bursey Esq and the Rev Thomas Beckley. The 1898 Ordnance Survey map shows a clay pit in the area of Boots pharmacy and the town hall. The clay was extracted and moulded into bricks before being left to partially dry out in the sun in an area where McColl’s newsagents and post office is today. The kilns to fire the bricks were opposite the present-day Royal Mail sorting office. The bricks were probably used to build the early shops and houses along Station Road and elsewhere in New Milton. The 1909 map shows the brickworks had disappeared. By 1911 the area was sub-divided into plots for development, with most of them sold.
A postcard image of the crossroads area dated 1916 shows the view looking north. A large private house is on the right with others visible behind the trees. If it were not for the distinctive turret of Lloyds Bank in the distance it would be difficult to believe that this was Station Road. Later the National Provincial Bank was built in the garden. The Westminster Bank was built on the site now occupied by Boots. When the two financial institutions merged, the banks were demolished in the early 1970s and replaced with the buildings we have today. A colour photo of that corner shows a crowd had gathered to watch the Queen travel through New Milton on 15th July 1966 as she made her way to Lymington to open the new town hall. The image clearly shows the two banks on opposite sides of the road.
In the Second World War the crossroads was the scene of the worst of the three bombings of New Milton. On Friday 23rd August 1940 a lone German bomber dropped 24 bombs in a line from Old Milton Road across Station Road and into Spencer Road. The German bomber returned to its base in France and reported it had cut the strategically important Weymouth-to-London railway line. Twenty civilians and five servicemen were killed that day. This newspaper printed a censored in-depth account of the outrage that took place in an unnamed south coast town. The published photos of bomb-damaged Station Road were taken by the then-editor of the paper, Charles Curry Senior.
Mr Gadd’s map
Eric Wyeth Gadd was a school master from Bitterne. He came to New Milton in 1939 when the school at which he taught was evacuated to Milton Parish. His book ‘Hampshire Evacuees’ is a vivid account of life in wartime New Milton. Mr Gadd became the senior fire guard in New Milton, and in October 1942 produced a hand-drawn map of Station Road. The map names every shop and residential premises in Station Road and surrounding area. The original is held in the Hampshire Record Office.
Using Mr Gadd’s map, we can see that the shop which is now Charles Nobles was a restaurant. Just south of the cross roads, on the west side there was an undeveloped plot. This was later bought by Sidney White who, in 1962, built 98 and 100 Station Road. His son-in-law, George Stickland, established Murray’s (Stationers) Ltd, naming the building Stationary House. Mr White’s other son-in-law, John Bartlett opened a butchers in the second shop.
The little shops
On the opposite side of the road was a small section of shops, known as ‘the little shops’. Among the seven shops were Mr Welch’s coal merchants, later run by SH Petley, Hull and Henderson Estate Agents and the newly built Midland Bank, later the HSBC, which is today the sole survivor. Postcard images show a small service road giving access to the shops. Hull and Henderson had a large model of a house outside their shop as an advertisement. The little shops were demolished in the early 1970s with the service road used to widen Station Road at this point. They were replaced by Safeway supermarket which dominated the grocery trade in New Milton and probably hastened the departure of other shops such as the smaller Fine Fare supermarket two shops away and International Stores further north in Station Road. Safeway premises is now occupied by Marks & Spencer food hall.
The post office
On the opposite side of Station Road was the General Post Office. This took over from Mr Novelle’s post office on the corner of Whitefield Road. The building has a date stone of 1933 and some nice architectural features including the white stone door surrounds with ornate Hampshire rose detail and white keystones above the ground floor windows. Oddly, there is no royal cypher on the bronze door of the letterbox.
On the top floor of the General Post Office was the telephone exchange. On 23rd August 1940, 18-year-old Rose Perrott from Barton was a working on the switchboard alongside another lady. A call was received stating that there was an ‘orange alert’ as a German aircraft was believed to be in the area. After putting the call through to the ARP wardens office, Rose said to her colleague that she was going to make a cup of tea for them “before anything nasty happens”. In the rest room, Rose looked out of the window across the rooftops of Station Road. She saw a low-flying aircraft which appeared to be dropping leaflets. The explosions quickly clarified the situation. Rose and her colleague dashed to shelter in the basement. Once the explosions had stopped, Rose decided to return to the switchboard. She knew that emergency calls would need to be put through. She was right. Every light on the switchboard was illuminated. Rose and her colleague were frantically busy making sure that telephone calls were connected. She took a call from a telephone kiosk in Barton. It was her worried father asking if she was alright. This was the only time her composure cracked.
This newspaper reported on 29th September 1994 that the post office counter part of the building would be closing to the public and relocating to Martins Newsagents on the opposite side of Station Road. The building is still used by the Royal Mail for postal deliveries and as a parcel office.
Bradbeers
Next door to the former general post office is Smith Bradbeer. This department store was first opened as a drapery in Southampton in 1837 by a Mr RS Smith. In 1892 Mr Bradbeer joined the company. He went on to be a director, and the business was renamed Smith Bradbeer and Company. By 1905 it had become a large department store at Above Bar in Southampton. Disaster struck on 23rd November 1940 when Southampton was heavily bombed. The company premises were completely destroyed. Within two weeks Smith Bradbeer reopened for business in smaller, rented shops in Romsey and Station Road, New Milton. This shop was small but a vacant plot on the corner of Elm Avenue offered the prospect of room to expand if necessary.
Bradbeers had hoped to rebuild their prestigious store in Southampton. The plans were dealt a blow when the site was compulsorily purchased in 1949 by Southampton City Council. The money from the sale enabled Bradbeers to buy and expand their premises in New Milton.
By 1969 the business in Station Road was going so well that an additional floor was added to the building. The company has continued to expand in Station Road, Old Milton Road and outside of the town.
Westcoft Parade
The land opposite Smith Bradbeer and Co has had many uses. From farm fields to the site of a brick works to private houses and now a parade of shops. From 1911 until the mid 1950s the southern end of Station Road was occupied by a large house on a double plot called Westcroft, owned by Colonel and Mrs Russell. Postcard images of the period show the road dominated by a high hedge.
In the mid 1950s the site was developed into a parade of shops. These included Fine Fare, one of the first supermarkets in Station Road. Next door was FW Woolworths which was a landmark in the town until it closed in 2009. Other shops included Rediffusion, selling electrical goods including televisions. This later became Apollo video rental. Cafes have been popular in this area of Station Road with Harlequin Café and later the Forest Edge tea rooms providing teas and light refreshments. Today the Quench Café revives the weary shopper.
A good example of the reuse of shop premises in Station Road is the shop on the corner of Station Road and Spencer Road. In its long commercial use it has been an estate agents, a music shop, a bike repair and sales premises and a hair salon. The shops in Station Road continue to evolve and reflect the changing needs of local shoppers. Today there are now more businesses offering services that cannot be purchased online, such as tattooing, hairdressers, nail bars and a micro-pub. The Naked Pantry provides ethically sourced groceries and household products.
Memorial clock
On the corner of Station Road and Spencer Road is a large clock. This is a memorial, unveiled in 2011 to commemorate the civilian casualties of the three bombings of New Milton. In addition to the bombing of Station Road on 23rd August 1940, there were two other wartime bombings which caused loss of life. A scroll listing the names of the casualties can be found in St Mary Magdalene Church and in the town hall. A service of remembrance is held at the clock each year on the 23rd of August.
The Rydal public house
Moving further south along Station Road is the Walker Arms public house. This was for many years the Rydal Arms. In 1942 that this was a private dwelling called Rydal Cottage. Advertisements in this newspaper in 1944 show it was by then, the Rydal Arms. For many years the Rydal was run by Mrs Gladys Walker, who was in the Guinness book of records as the longest serving publican in England.
Waverley Cinema
Further down Station Road was the Waverley Cinema which opened in 1929. This was the second cinema in New Milton and had a confectionary shop next door. The Waverley was latterly owned by Mr Jack Plank. In the 1960s he closed the confectioners and used the premises to create the first travel agents in New Milton.
Saturday morning film shows for the local children were very popular. During the war morale-boosting films and comedies were shown. It was also where people watched the Pathé News broadcasts. Happy memories were made at the Waverley. In September 1972 the last film was shown. It was Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines.
From the farm fields of 1841 to the vibrant shopping centre of the present day, Station Road has evolved and developed to cater for the needs of the local residents. Long may it continue to do so.
• Nick Saunders MA is a local historian and chairman of the Milton Heritage Society. He can be contacted via nick@miltonheritagesociety.co.uk
