12 October 2018
SIXTY YEARS AGO - Part 1
Our thanks to Sylvia Malt for passing to our
Secretary two booklets that had been saved by the late Betty Rhodes,
former committee member and local councillor: Annual Report on the
Health of the Urban District 1959 and the UDC's Year Book 1961-1962.
Jean writes:-
Then, North Cray was part of the Chislehurst
& Sidcup Urban District Council (based at Sidcup Place) along with
the parishes of Mottingham and Sidcup, and part of the parishes of
Bromley, Chislehurst, Orpington, St Mary Cray and St Pauls Cray. North
Cray had a ward of its own: the North Cray Ward. This had one Council
Member: Alistair Huistean Macdonald, who lived in Oakdene Avenue,
Chislehurst; and whose telephone No. was Mincing Lane 3020.
The
District's Byelaws included Accommodation of Persons engaged in Picking
Hopes, Control of Bulls in Public Places, Improper Behaviour on School
Premises, Sale and Delivery of Coal and Smoke Abatement-Tents, Vans and
Sheds. Noise seemed to have been of particular concern: Noisy Animals
and Hawking; Noisy Instruments from Public Vehicles and Nuisance from
Wireless, Loudspeakers, Gramophones, Amplifiers etc. The council's
General rate was 22s 0d in £, and for Sidcup and North Cray Early
Closing day was Thursday.
There were several
Standing Committees: Public Health; Highways & Works; Parks &
Cemeteries; Housing; Town Planning; Libraries; Finance, Rating &
General Purposes; Allotments and Establishments. Our Betty Rhodes was a
member of Housing, Town Planning and Allotments. Other Committees
included Civil Defence (Betty again), Foots Cray Redevelopment and Road
Safety. Council representatives served on Public Bodies such as the
London and Home Counties Clean Air Advisory Council, National Society
for Clean Air, Rodent Control Workable Area Committee, Standing
Conference of Co-operating Bodies for the Investigation of Atmospheric
Pollution. There was also one on North Cray Charities, one of its
members was Lady Mary Harrington, the mother of our Association's
President - John Harrington.
"Claimed" County Roads included our
North Cray Road. Under Highways, it was reported that shopping centres
were swept manually each day. Under Refuse Disposal, it was reported
that this was by controlled tipping on 83 acres in St Pauls Cray Hill
Park - the principle of this being that refuse was tipped and
consolidated by mechanical means to a depth of not more that 6 ft, and
then covered with 9 inches of earth, resulting in land reclamation.
The
District then had only four operative Tree Preservation Orders. The
number of permanent houses totalled 2,285, including the Bedens Field
Estate, North Cray (485); Felton Cottages (4) and Victor Mills Cottages
(6), Upper Ruxley; and Palm Avenue, Foots Cray (8). For our Parks and
Open Spaces we had Chalk Wood/Mount Misery (69 acres) and what was then
known as Riverside Open Space (123 acres) incorporating Stable Meadow,
North Cray Open Space and Royal Park Children's Playground whose
facilities included two football pitches, one cricket pitch and a
children's playground - although it was reported that part was used for
agricultural purposes. We also had four acres of Permanent Allotments in
Stable Meadow.
The District operated several County Health
Services, including a Child Welfare Clinic in Foots Cray's Memorial
Hall. For Sidcup, there was also First Aid Post in Sherwood Park Avenue
(with a variety of child and women's welfare clinics); a Domestic,
Family Help and Old People's Service at No. 69 Sidcup Hill; a Home
Teacher for the Blind available from the same address - which was also
the location of the County Health Department. No. 71 Sidcup Hill was the
Register Office for Births, Deaths & Marriages, and Speech Therapy
was available there daily.
This Year Book,
with its 55 pages and a comprehensive Index, provided local people with
information about everything they needed to know about their council
services, including the names of who did what - and even in some cases
their home address!
Part 2 to follow, 
