Short road which has a huge history

This week I thought we could take a look at a short stretch of road that today hardly merits a glance '“ Gloucester Road.

In the past it would have been a very different situation.

On an 1859 map Gloucester Road is shown with meadows on either side.

If we start at the east end of the road, many people will remember the small tuck shop that existed for many years.

These premises were originally a farmhouse, in the 1700s, named Grove Lodge and then renamed Brook Gate.

It was used for generations by the Munday family for dairy farming.

It is alleged that, when staying at Bognor Lodge as a girl in 1820, Queen Victoria bought a pair of boots from these premises, when the proprietor was Mr Munday the Cobbler.

Finally it was a small tuck shop much frequented by the girls from Villa Maria and the boys at St Dominic's school.

However, following many discussions, it was decided in 1968 that the building should be demolished to make way for road widening, which sadly never occurred.

On some maps at the start of the 20th century appeared a short road, to the side of this shop.

This was apparently named Princess Beatrice Road which was meant to kick-start, around 1892, a new development called the Brookland Estate.

The plans included three short roads but this development never materialised.

The Fletcher family eventually purchased this section of land, one assumes to ensure a clear view of the sea from their home in Hotham Park.

In due course the Bognor Regis Urban District Council, who leased it to Butlins, purchased this land.

It was in 1960 that the possible benefits of this road were realised when there were plans to realignment the boundaries of the Butlins site.

Proceeding along this side of the road we would have come across 18 houses and a block of flatlets, which in 1968 were being used by Butlins as accommodation for their staff '“ me included.

The chairman of the Bognor Plans Committee felt that "Gloucester Road was a gateway to the town and should therefore look nice".

Some of these houses were Edwardian and others built in the 1920s and were all large substantial private houses.

Butlins took many years endeavouring to make decisions on the future of the buildings and their site, but eventually in 1970 demolition was perceived to be the only way forward.

Butlins then built the wall and planted shrubs to act as a barrier along their length of Gloucester Road, in addition to the gardens being developed.

However there was also a suggestion that this land should have been turned into a car park, due to the shortage prevailing around the esplanade area.

When reading newspaper reports in the 1960s and early 1970s, it is apparent that most cleared areas of land were to be designated as car parks.

Finally, the last plot of land before the current Esplanade was occupied by Winchelsea House, which was claimed to have been "one of the smartest period buildings on the seafront".

It was originally a holiday home, known as Mackonochie House and associated with St Alban's Church in Holborn, London.

It was run by a Miss Louise Stewart and was specifically for clergy and workers connected with the church.

It was named after a Father Mackonochie who was renowned for his religious views.

Louisa Stewart died in 1924. From the 1930s to 1957 it was run by Mr H A Mace and supposedly owned by the Maconochies.

During this time it was a place where families could rent flats for the duration of their stay in the town.

In 1958, with the commencement of the work at Butlins it was purchased as staff accommodation.

Finally in 1970 this fine building was also demolished.

If we now cross the road and take a look at the West side of Gloucester Road from the Esplanade to the High Street, we see a different pattern to its development.

The major development from the Esplanade corner to Walton Road was actioned around the early 1900s, and known as the Strathmore Estate.

In 1908 the corner property known as Field House was opened by Mrs Emily Ward and was used as flats for the accommodation of young children and their nurses, while on holiday.

She had previously lived with her husband in the premises known as The Dutch House in nearby Campbell Road.

Eventually, Mrs Ward became known as the founder of the Norland Nursery Nurses Training College.

Also in this vicinity was a house known as Belvoir House, which was eventually taken over and incorporated into Field House.

The complex was eventually closed in 1939.

This is the corner where for a time there were plans for flats and today these are taking shape, with their very modern appearance, which will dominate this corner for many years to come.

Next we have Walton Road, which was originally to be an entrance to two houses named Lane End and Walton House.

This piece of land was owned by James Fleming, father of Lindsey Fleming who wrote the History of Pagham. He owned much of the land, and his intention was to build blocks of flats, but for financial reasons he was not able to complete his plans for this area.

Next there was a building that would have seemed quite grand especially when it was built in the early 1860s and known as Belvedere House, which was a private residence.

This was ultimately taken over by St Dominic's, which was a Catholic prep school, in 1890.

It was apparently built back to front by a very eccentric gentlemen, who had it built with the rear facing the High Street.

There was also a carriage way and a lodge at the side of the building.

St Dominic's operated until 1936 when there were stories of road widening.

They also had need of larger premises, so moved to St Leonards.

The school and land was then sold to the Postmaster General and in 1937 the building was demolished.

Unfortunately, the land remained unused for many years, returning to its original state as grassland, known as Arran Meadow, where horses grazed.

Eventually, in the mid- 1960s, plans were put into motion that resulted in the creation of new government buildings on this site.

The press reported the new construction in 1964 as a mini-Whitehall '“ not something that was welcomed by the townspeople at the time.

There was a two-storey building which contained a long awaited automatic telephone exchanged, costing in the region of 170,000.

The second building was a five-storey building containing the Ministry of Labour, and Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance offices.

Also available from these new buildings was the National Assistance Board offices and the Inland Revenue.

As recent as 1994 there were talks of building a fifth floor due to the lack of office space afforded within this building.

Just recently another phase has been completed with major refurbishments and new offices in this construction.

This one short road in the town has seen so much of the town's history come and go and today it is simply a means by which we travel from the High Street to the seafront.

It is also the starting point of the excellent Seafront Lights, which stretch all the way to Marine Park Gardens.