horndeanmatters

One of the planning conditions for the Gales development was for an Archaeological survey to be carried out. This is usual in buildings with some long heritage that will be lost due to demolition, and as a part of the desktop study, the team working for Linden Homes came across some old photos. The top one is circa 1905, a good 9 years before World War 1, and compared with the one I took this evening on my iPhone (sorry, no plate camera handy) it is fascinating to see how the cottages have changed in the last 108 years.

It looks like there was an old thatched cottage on the left. Perhaps this was lost to a fire and was rebuilt set back from the road, the layout of which we are highly critical of, but in 1905 there was not even a footpath (nor busses and lorries to speed through the village). Porches and light columns have appeared and the Chimney line has changed with several being reduced or even removed. Even the iconic Gales Tower we seek to preserve has had a lot of work done on the roof, probably to improve against water ingress. In all about 20 major changes in a spot the difference competition that would keep kids (and adults) busy for hours.

On to more serious matters though, and this is the price of beer (wholesale) for the tied inns. In 1933 the list proudly shows dozens of awards for beers and ales long gone past, and a Barrel of XXXXX Ale would set you back by 153/- (153 Shillings). Australian wine was also on the offering (I wonder if this is where they got the brand XXXX in return?) and to place your order you would ask the operator for ‘Horndean No10’ a long way away from the 11 digit numbers we have now, or telegram ‘Gales, Horndean’.

Thank you to Linden Homes for kind permission to use these extracts from the Archaeological report.