James Gray: This photograph of about 1920, shows Patcham Fountain and the bus terminus, with beyond a large house partly hidden by the trees. In those days the open Tilling bus ran straight from Patcham to Castle Square but no further. jgc_35_013
2018: The Patcham Fountain remains the same and is well maintained to the present day. It is located close to the very busy A23 road. The building to the north of the fountain is now a steakhouse but was for many years the Black Lion Pub.
James Gray: Old flint cottages in Church Hill, Patcham (formerly Spring Street) photographed on 5 March 1961. I had this taken so that if ever these are demolished a visual record will remain. jgc_35_045
2019: There has been very little change in the houses since 1961 when the early image was taken. The chimney on the house to the fore of the picture on the south-facing wall has been truncated to allow for a window to be inserted. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: View towards the church. jgc_35_053
2019: Despite the many cars on the road the two images are fairly similar. The road layout is the same and the flint house on the right foreground appears to be unchanged. The buildings on the left in the 1910 image (north side of Church Hill) have gone and there is now a ladies’ hairdressers on the site. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: View from Church Hill across the pond to the old church. The pond, which for many years was an essential feature of Court Farm, was drained and grassed over in about 1937. jgc_35_054
2019: The church remains as it looked in 1907 as does the wall to the front. The wall is in the process of being renovated. There is now a grassy area on the site of the former pond. See also jgc_35_115 below. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: Old London Road, Church Hill and the Jubilee Fountain, period 1910-1920. jgc_35_055
2019: The busy A23 still runs to the west (left) side of the Jubilee Fountain but it is now a busy four-lane highway. The large house behind the fountain was demolished and the Black Lion pub built in 1929. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: The old thatched cottage at the foot of Church Hill and just above the present Black Lion Inn. Period unknown but maybe during the 1920s. Now demolished and replaced by lock-up garages. jgc_35_060
James Gray: The cottage at the foot of the hill, is still there, though the thatched roof has been replaced by corrugated iron, and the cottage is empty and derelict jgc_35_117
2019: The farm buildings behind the thatched cottage have also gone as well as the thatched cottage mentioned by James Gray. The house to the right in the image (north-east and further up Church Hill) looks to have similar dimensions to the dwelling in the original image and may be a modernised version of the original house. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: One of four photographs [see also jgc_35_062 to 064] of the main street in the village. jgc_35_061
2019: This quiet, quasi-rural scene still looks much the same. The main London Road, at the bottom of the hill, is now much busier. (Photographer: Chris Nichols)
James Gray: An antique dealers’ advertisement of one of the old houses in Church Hill. Period, 1950s. Now No. 5 Church Hill. jgc_35_071
2019: The 1950s advertisement indicates that the building was a shop, which is no longer the case. It also implies that the building was detached, but that was merely a mid-20th century example of ‘photoshopping’ an image. The flint frontage and outsize chimney remain recognisable. (Photographer: Chris Nichols)
James Gray: Photograph of the junction of Church Hill and Vale Avenue, in 1958. The famous long barn, seen on another page and now converted to residential use, is off the photograph to the right. jgc_35_083
2019: This scene is basically unaltered apart from more traffic and the turret-like building on the corner in the Village Barn development. The old Tithe Barn was converted into residential use in the 1980s. (Photographer: Chris Nichols)
James Gray: Patcham Church and dovecot, from Vale Avenue. This area has since been despoiled by building and this process is likely to be continued. jgc_35_104
2019: It is not possible to replicate the James Gray photograph as Vale Avenue now consists of houses and dense vegetation. Here is a view from from Church Hill that includes the dovecot and church to show they are both very much part of the Patcham landscape. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: The dovecot, period unknown. jgc_35_113
2019: This Grade II listed dovecot dates from the seventeenth century or even earlier and was restored in 2007. It still stands in garden of Patcham Court Farmhouse. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: Yet another of the popular photographs of Patcham Church and the pond. Period, about 1910/12. The building seen at the right adjoined the vicarage. jgc_35_115
2019: The pond has disappeared and the building to the side of the church is fairly modern and houses the All Saints Church Centre. The church and walls remain the same, but some foliage has been removed, leaving us with a clearer picture of this lovely church. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: These photographs of Church Hill, or Spring Street as it was sometimes called, were both taken about 1910. Now, more than 50 years afterwards, there has not been a great deal of change. The main change is the disappearance of the village pond and the stream which trickled from it, down the hill, in rainy weather. jgc_35_116
James Gray: View of Church Hill – period about 1900. The photograph provides a good view of the village pond, now long since dried up and grassed over. Additional Information: Wagon_35_118
2019: There is still little change to this scene other than the many cars parked along the thoroughfare. As James Gray describes, the pond was taken away over 50 years ago, but the houses and wall remain unchanged. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: The postcard gives a glimpse of the old grit road straggling up towards Patcham Church. The large house to the right of the trees was the farmhouse of Place Farm. Additional Information: Postcard was sent to a Miss F Carpenter, 214, Trinity Road, Wandsworth Common, London, in 1905 from G. jgc_35_119
2019: There are a lot of trees now in view but it is still possible to see the line of buildings in Patcham village and up Church Hill towards All Saints Church which is hidden behind the trees.
James Gray: Skating on Patcham Pond December, 1902. The photograph shows also the farm cottages and the dovecot. jgc_35_120
James Gray: The exact period of these photographs is unknown. They probably date from between 1900 and 1910. Additional Information: Children and ducks – see jgc_35_116. jgc_35_123
2019: The pond has been replaced by a grassy slope. Some of the farm buildings and the dovecot in the 1902 image do remain but are now hidden by a row of trees in full leaf. There is still a flint wall in evidence in both pictures. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: [See caption for jgc_35_123 above.] jgc_35_122
2019: The farmhouse is the large building in the centre left of the James Gray picture and is still standing and can be seen peeping through the trees in the 2019 image. All the other buildings in the image have gone. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: The two larger photographs, which show the buildings of Court farm [see also jgc_35_126 below] and the Churchyard wall, date from March 1931. jgc_35_124
2019: The image shows the gable end of Patcham Court Farmhouse. The building has changed since the 1931 image in a number of ways and the adjoining farm buildings have gone. The small adjoining house or annexe in the early photograph has been replaced by a garage with a double pitched roof. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: [See caption for jgc_35_124 above.] jgc_35_126
2019: The flint wall around the church remains and has very recently been renovated. Most of the farm buildings have gone but the building directly adjoining the church wall remains and is part of the tithe barn which is now private housing. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: Farm buildings at the top of Church Hill. The old tithe barn has a total length of 320 feet and it is reputed to be the longest barn in Sussex. Its medieval beams are of adzed oak. Some years ago the farm and its buildings passed into the possession of Brighton Corporation and there was a danger that the barns might be demolished, but they have been reprieved for the time being. Date of the two photographs [jgc_35_129 and 130] 20 June 1954. jgc_35_129
James Gray: [See caption for jgc_35_129 above.] jgc_35_130
2019: The tithe barn was built in the 17th century, but was scheduled to be demolished in the 1950s. It was converted into private dwellings and a village hall in 1986/7. Apparently the wooden interior beams have been preserved. (Photographer: Clare Hughes)
James Gray: The date when these amateur photographer’s views were taken [jgc_35_131 to 135] is not known. The buildings seem empty and dilapidated so it could be about the mid-1950s when the future of the farm was uncertain. jgc_35_133 is the best as it shows the extent of the famous long barn, reputed to be the longest barn in Sussex. jgc_131 and 132
James Gray: [See caption for jgc_35_131 above.] jgc_35_133
2019: The long Patcham Tithe Barn was converted into housing known as The Village Barn in the 1980s. Gray’s photograph appears to have been taken from an upstairs floor in the nearby farmhouse. (Photographer: Chris Nichols)
James Gray: [See caption for jgc_35_131 above.] jgc_35_134 and 135