Pictures of Family Localities
These pictures trace the movements of my father
Henry John Coombs.
Showing what it was like to live in London at various times. If anyone can put a
date to any of the undated pictures I would be grateful.
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11-23 Debnams Road, Rotherhithe 1881 - The families of Joseph Coombs and his his son Joseph amounting to 15 persons lived at 2, Debnams Road
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11-19,
Corbett's Lane, Rotherhithe 1891 - My father was
5 years old and living at No. 2 |
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More pictures of
Corbett's Lane According to Booths Notebooks of the Streets of London survey 1889-1903 It says of Debnams Road "Smell of dirt, windows broken, children dirty, women draggled. Costers and fish- curers, pungent smoke from sawdust fires. It was classed as Very poor, casual. Chronic want. Corbett's lane was classed as Poor, costers, rather better than Debnams Rd Poor 18s to 21s a week for moderate family. |
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My family were connected with the rope making
trade. Rumour has it that we made ropes for the hangman. This a picture of a Rope Walk at Southwark Park Station taken in 1908 |
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Both of these streets were close to my father's birth place at Corbett's Lane
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Southwark Park Road |
Lower Road, Rotherhithe |
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Left - I can remember as boy
getting off the bus here to go to East Lane and then on to Petticoat Lane
with my dad on a Sunday morning. Evelyn Street was names after a very famous man connected with Greenwich. I can't give anymore info as my brother has my book the Greenwich Millennium |
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After my father's first marriage they lived
at 69, Grove Street, Deptford. This was very near the Royal Victoria
Victualling Yard. I think this used to be the Royal Dockyard of Henry
V111. Can you imagine coal being delivered by horse and cart and a train chugging down the middle of your street at the same time.
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East India Company Dockyard in Deptford when the docks were home to tea clippers.
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Left - The Broadway Theatre, Deptford.
It became the Granada Cinema. Just along past the tram on the right hand side of the road was the New Cross Empire
Right - The Lewisham Hippodrome. My brother Chris and I were take to both the Empire and the Hippodrome for pantomimes and other shows.
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The Broadway, Deptford |
About half way along Deptford High Street |
South view of Deptford High Street |
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| The Boating Pond, Greenwich Park. 1940 The pond is in front of the Maritime Museum and at the bottom of the grassy slope from the Royal Observatory. I looks as if the slope has been dug up for growing vegetables for the war effort. I was born 1940 the year this picture was taken. |
Lewisham High Street 1910 Most Saturdays as teenagers we went window shopping and hope to meet some girls. Nothing has changed. |
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| Dartmouth Row, Blackheath - 1947 1940 - I was born here. My house would be just behind over the photographer's right shoulder. 1947 was one of the worst winters on record. Blackheath, Greenwich Park and all those bomb sites where we had some great camps for our gang of kids were our playground. We were never indoors during the holidays. often going up to Jack Woods and walks along the Thames to the Woolwich ferry and back getting into all sorts of trouble along the way.
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Some interesting links
Deptford http://www.ideal-homes.org.uk/lewisham/deptford.htm
History of Pepys Estate (Royal Dockyard) http://www.pepyscommunityforum.org/history.htm
History of Deptford http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/LocalHistory/historydeptford.asp
Pigots 1840 Deptford http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~shebra/pigots_1840_-_deptford.htm
More history of the Deptford Dockyard http://gihs.gold.ac.uk/gihs11.html