Blatchington Road

James Gray: A parade of hackney carriages and private ones, assembled in Eaton Road between Denmark Villas and Goldstone Villas. Note the stand pipe, for filling the water carts. Period – the early 1920s. jgc_14_047

2018: There is now an entrance to what was Holy Trinity Church vicarage (now a private house) behind the first hackney carriage in the original photo. The standpipe has gone. The eastern end of Blatchington Road was renamed Eaton Road in 1879 but the stretch between Denmark Villas and Goldstone Villas appears always to have been in Blatchington Road. (Photographer: Alison Minns)

James Gray: A group of civic dignitaries around the new Fire Alarm. From a study of the people seen, this probably dates from 1924 or 1925. jgc_14_048

James Gray: Queues outside the Haddington Street entrance to the Empire Picture House, which extended as far as Blatchington Road. I have tried hard, without success, to establish the year for the photograph. The almost complete absence of young men of military age suggests the 1914-1918 War period but it could equally well have been 1919 or 1920. Additional information: The film “The Tiger’s Trail” was made in 1919. jgc_13_130

2018: The James Gray image shows the queue outside the Empire Picture House, with its entrance in Haddington Street, not to be confused with the Electric Empire Picture Palace in nearby George Street. Both flourished for around 20 years between 1910-1930 before closing in the face of new competition from the converted Lido, later Hove Odeon, at the top of Denmark Villas. The building functioned for many years as a (rather small) Sainsbury’s before passing to Be Wise and finally QS Stores, yet another budget clothing outlet. It is now closed, derelict and graffiti-ridden – unusual in this otherwise bustling corner of Blatchington Road. (Photographer: David Sears)

James Gray:  The other Empire was not far away, in Haddington Street. This was Hove’s first cinema, opened on 10 December 1910 by Mr H E Scriven, a young man then still in his teens, who had been the first operator at the Arcadia Cinema, Lewes Road, in the preceding year. This was a two-storey building, which fronted Blatchington Road, and it was adapted to a cinema with a balcony by the simple process of cutting away part of the floor of the top storey. jgc_14_147 

2018: The Empire Cinema on the eastern corner of Haddington Street and Blatchington Road was demolished many years ago.

James Gray: This solemn scene in Blatchington Road in July 1907 needs no explanation. The facades of the buildings on the north side seem unchanged today, except for modern shop fronts, and Woolworths has replaced the distant corner building. At the left, note the newsagent shop and, next door, the shoe shop. Now in 1985, 78 years on, they are still the same, newsagents and shoes, though in different ownerships. Additional Information: The funeral procession of the late Edward Eager JP. July 4/07. jgc_13_122

James Gray: This church was erected in 1864 to serve the recently built district of Cliftonville. The photograph was obviously taken very soon afterwards in view of the Church’s new appearance. It is interesting to note the hedgerow and open fields beyond, in the area now covered by Goldstone and Denmark Villas. At the period, these formed part of Rigden’s Farm which extended northwards to the railway line. The newly planted saplings in front of the church are the tall trees of the present day. The line of chalk in the background is probably the excavations for Denmark Villas.  jgc_14_040

James Gray: Another later view of Holy Trinity Church. Additional Information: Trees planted outside the pavement line, and protected from grazing horses.  jgc_14_041

2018: The gates from the street to the south of the Holy Trinity Church (now the Trinity Medical Centre) have been replaced and a new white door added to the south entrance. Attached to the original church building is now a new porch with grey tiled roof to the west and an external pulpit to the south east.

What was the old vicarage (now a private house) has been added to the east of the church. The pavement at the north-east end of Ventnor Villas has been extended outwards into the road to form a curve. The street lamp on the right of the original photo has gone. There is now a lot more street furniture. (Photographer: Alison Minns)

James Gray: Look at the right side of this photograph and you will see a low three arch railway bridge. This was the original bridge, built in 1840, which took the narrow farm road over the railway on the site of the present Drive, Hove. This was replaced by the second bridge in 1876 which in turn gave way to the present bridge in 1954. Note the stooks of wheat between church and bridge. jgc_14_042

2018: See jgc_14_040 and jgc_14_041 above for a description of the Holy Trinity Church. The land to the north-east of the church has now been developed and no bridges can be seen. (Photographer: Alison Minns)

James Gray: Holy Trinity Church. jgc_14_043

2018: Holy Trinity Church is now the Trinity Medical Centre. The church now has white doors at its south entrance. Attached to the original church building is now a new porch with grey tiled roof to the west. The railings (leading down to public conveniences?) have been removed and are now covered with grates. The water trough has gone, as have the original lamps. There is a new Blatchington Road street sign, though the old one also remains. There is a new bus stop, bus shelter and waste bin. There is also a recent square wooden structure (to house new street furniture?) (Photographer: Alison Minns)

James Gray: No comment.  jgc_14_045

2018: Holy Trinity Church is now the Trinity Medical Centre.  The original entrance gates to the south were replaced in 2017.  What was the old vicarage (now a private house) has been added to the east of the church. The standpipe has gone. (Photographer: Alison Minns)

James Gray: Year unknown, but the dress of the congregation suggests the period just before the 1914/18 War. jgc_14_046

James Gray: Looking west along Blatchington Road at about the same period. The north side of this road consisting almost entirely of private houses, trees had been planted at regular intervals. As traffic increased these became a nuisance, and at the request of residents and shop keepers, they were removed in 1925. Motor buses first traversed this road in the same year. jgc_14_128

2018: No comment. (Photographer: James Agace)

James Gray: Taken about 1898. The bus is standing on the south side of Blatchington Road, at the corner of Sackville Road, facing east. The house behind the bus is 63, Sackville Road, and by the horses heads is the entrance to 2, Blatchington Road. jgc_14_135

2018: A shopfront has been built out to the pavement at 2, Blatchington Road and the building is currently occupied by a picture framing business called Frame of Mind. No 63 Sackville Road is still in residential use, as flats rather than one home. (Photographer: Steve Agace)

James Gray: Looking west towards Sackville Road in 1959. Not a great visible change 30 years later apart from no traffic control signals. At the corner of Haddington Street Sainsbury’s Store had yet to come and go. jgc_14_145

2018: No comment. (Photographer: Steve Agace)

James Gray: The three shops, 78, 80 and 82, Blatchington Road prior to their reconstruction to form the new Co-operative Store. 
Date, 23 October 1957. jgc_14_154

2018: The Co-operative store has been built on this site. (Photographer: Ivor O’Mahony)

James Gray:  54 and 56 Blatchington Road, together with four houses in Belfast Street, 33 and 39 were demolished in 1964. On the large cleared site was built the new Tesco store opened at Easter 1965. These streets were laid out in the 1870s. Blatchington Road, from George Street to Belfast Street, was formerly called Conway Terrace. Most of these premises were shops from the start, whereas from Connaught Terrace to Sackville Road all were, at first, private houses. The two photographs were taken early in 1964. jgc_14_162

2018: This corner site building originally built as an early Tesco supermarket is now occupied by a branch of the supermarket chain Iceland. (Photographer: Ivor O’Mahony)

James Gray: 46 Blatchington Road. jgc_13_133

2018: This row of small shops on the south side of Blatchington Road is little changed since the original image was taken – although the shops serve different needs for today’s clientele. On the right, No 46 is now called Run, providing running shoes and clothing. Tom Wiles who lived and traded in George Street, Hove (see jgc_13_131 and 132 on the George Street (Hove) page) worked for a short time from the back room of the milliner’s shop at this address. No 48 is now The Boutique, a dress agency selling new and second-hand designer clothing and the premises of the dairy just glimpsed on the far left is trading as Poppetts, selling ‘preloved’ children’s clothes and toys. (Photographer: David Sears)

James Gray: This is a very early photograph of this church, which was built in 1867. Originally the low building beyond it, with the steeple, had served as the church until the main building was erected. Later, during the reconstruction, the steeple was lowered and the original church rebuilt as Ventnor Hall.
At the time of this photograph, 1873, Blatchington Road was being built and beyond George Street can be seen two small private houses. Until 1870 George Street was shut in by a high wall and traces of the recent removal of this wall are clearly evident at the side of one of these houses. jgc_13_148

James Gray: This picture, taken outside the Church Hall, needs no explanation. It gives an excellent display of women’s clothes of 1915. jgc_13_149

2018: It is unlikely that women who attend what is now the Central United Reformed Church would pose quite so decorously and in such large numbers outside the Church Hall facing onto busy Blatchington Road before going on a ‘Cliftonville women’s afternoons & class outing’!