Since 1970 some of the old buildings have disappeared. WH Hales butcher’s and cattle yard and the old vicarage were demolished. Woodruff Close, Four Gun Field estate, Jubilee Fields, houses in Oak Lane and the new Drakes Close estate did not exist, only the original pebbledash council houses. The cricket club played on a ground in Poot Lane, not in Holywell Lane and Upchurch FC and Upchurch United FC played football on the recreation ground.
Some of the businesses from the period have also disappeared such as builders EC Gransden & Co Ltd in Oak Lane, Upchurch Garage in Horsham Lane, the Upchurch Stores and Off-License managed by J & W Hudson, Wendy Hair Fashions and One Step Behind antique shop in The Street. Upchurch DIY, butcher’s Peter Rutherford and Dawnway Fisheries have all disappeared from Forge Lane.
The nearest doctor’s surgery was based in Rainham and not in Upchurch, although efforts were made to establish a surgery for Dr Khan at the Infant’s School building. The golf club did not yet exist as the land still belonged to Natal Farm owned by the Chambers family and Wakeley Brothers who owned Seventeen Acres hop garden in Oak Lane.
At the beginning of the decade, familiar figures who worked in the village included milkman Norman Long from Forge Lane who delivered milk for Terry’s Dairy, Dick Hales still worked as the village butcher at WH Hales in The Street and Ray Parker worked as the village plumber. John Ardley from the Mayflower barge at Ham Green was prominent in local politics, Cliff Wanstall managed the post office in the present day Snaffles building, Fred Clemons managed the newsagent’s, J & W Hudson had the Upchurch Stores and Off-License and Bill and Jean Cockhill managed The Crown pub. Wallace McNeil Bradshaw served as the village vicar followed by Keith Chare in 1973.
The building of the new Holywell School in 1975 became the biggest issue of the decade. It meant the end of the old Holywell School in Holywell Lane and the Infant’s School in The Street for the education of the village children, although the buildings continued to exist. At the new school in Forge Lane, Mr Andrews served as head and Mrs Tidmus as deputy head. The new school opened on April 27th 1976, although the top three classes continued to be educated at the old Holywell School in the short term.
An attempt to get a preservation order on the old Holywell School failed as Swale Council stated that insufficient local interest existed. Also, the Infant’s School could not be sold because a clause in the lease stated it should be returned to Wakeley Brothers who were the original owners of the land. Eventually, Eric Gransden bought the building for the village after Rich Boakes had used it for the youth club. It later became a private nursery school.
A swimming pool for Holywell School became another important issue. Fund raising began in 1976 until the pool’s completion and opening during the 1980s. Brian Boakes and a group of volunteers constructed the pool which measured 16 x 32 feet. The Holywell School Swimming Pool Committee raised money for the project with numerous events and activities.
The village hall extension also became a major issue during the first part of the 1970s. Fund raising began during the 1960s and ceased in 1974. The extension cost more than £7,000. Local councillor John Ardley opened it on March 30th 1974. In January 1977 a serious fire damaged the building but the insurance covered about £10,000 worth of the damage and the remainder came from a Swale Council grant.
The old vicarage which dated back centuries was eventually bought by compulsory purchase and this resulted in the construction of a new vicarage house, some old people’s retirement bungalows and Bradshaw Close on the site in 1975. Other significant building took place in Oak Lane with the construction of retirement bungalows near Bishop Lane in 1978.
The scouts had been looking for a new site since the 1960s and this resulted in a new scout headquarters being constructed beside the recreation ground along with a car parking area in 1973 with financial assistance from Sheerness Steel and Kent County Council. The new scout building became known as Drakes Lodge. Facilities included toilets, running water and main drainage. The county scout commissioner Mr J Charman opened the building on April 14th 1973.
The main annual village events such as the fete, the carnival and the village marathon continued to take place during the summer. The fete had the same format as previously in June and the village carnival, the most popular outside of Sittingbourne and Medway, remained the biggest village event of the year in August. It took place every year except in 1976 and drew big crowds. A procession with a variety of decorated floats with a carnival queen moved around the village. Lorraine Manley, Beverley Williams and Caroline Martin were three village girls who were carnival queens during the 1970s. A fete took place after the procession when Bert Millen from Jasmil Kennels ran the annual dog show and pupils from Holywell school and the Infant’s School performed dances. Wrestling also became popular with tag wrestling in 1971 and the appearance of famous TV wrestler Johnny Kwango in 1978. Rich Boakes usually played pop music on a raised platform for the crowds in The Paddock while stalls sold a variety of goods and a group of ladies provided tea in a tea tent.
During the week before the carnival, the village marathon took place and started and finished outside The Crown pub. There were competitions for men, women, girls and boys with some competitors in fancy dress. Of those who participated Richard Marshall and David Upton were the most frequent winners during the 1970s.
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The Cast of Lionel Bart’s Oliver! performed at Upchurch Village Hall in 1973.
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The Queen’s Silver Jubilee took place in 1977 for a three day period in early June and created much interest with a variety of activities while Lionel Bart’s popular musical Oliver organised by the church choir took place in the village hall in 1973. It starred some well-known village residents such as Tanya Uglow, Alec New and Bryan and Evelyn Veale and it became one of the most popular and successful village shows of the decade.
Most of today’s village clubs and organisations existed, although some from the period have disappeared such as the table tennis club, the Darby & Joan Club and the Mother’s Union.
While Upchurch flourished and expanded, there was a lot on offer for village residents during the 1970s.
David Wood
About David
David Wood was born, raised and still lives in Upchurch today. He is able to write from personal experience about village life and the changes that have taken place over the years, making ‘Memories of Upchurch’ a very readable and detailed historical study of the village.
David's book is available from David at david3702001@yahoo.co.uk or from us here at Upchurch Matters. Price £12 + postage and packing.
