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1951 news items

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Saturday 28 July 1951

WHAT THE SKYLON LOOKS LIKE WITHIN
In the first picture taken inside the Festival of Britain Skylon, Mr Ernest Rose, a steeplejack of Mitcham and the foreman responsible for its maintenance, is shown cleaning 170 reflectors and replacing 50 of the 500 lamps. The London Electricity Board had fitted a gadget to record any lightning strike; Mr Rose said that in a storm he would get inside the structure, which would screen him from the flash.

Thursday 2 August 1951

NEW SCHEME FOR FIXING RENTS
Differential basis to be considered by council
ECONOMIC RENTS TOO HIGH FOR MANY INCOMES
Help for those in urgent need
Mitcham Council deferred until September a differential rent scheme set out by the borough treasurer, Mr E. C. Clay. Rising housing costs were putting economic rents beyond lower-paid workers, while homes were still meant to go to those in most urgent need. The Association of Municipal Corporations favoured such schemes so that subsidies were not given to tenants who did not need them.

For safety of children
Council to provide footpath
Wallington and Carshalton Education Executive heard of danger to children from the northern end of Beddington Lane and The Meads Estate who were to attend the new Park Farm school instead of Hackbridge. A sub-committee wanted a continuous footpath from Beddington Lane halt to Derry Road, and the executive asked the county council to approve the cost. At Camden Road, Carshalton, crush barriers were to be considered for 1952-53.

For community centre
The Mitcham borough treasurer was authorised to borrow £2,700 for a community centre on the Pollards Hill housing estate, and also for land in Rowan Road and Rowan Crescent, Long Thornton, for housing.

Political propaganda?
C.O.I. lectures
Coun. E. J. Millis (Con.) called Central Office of Information lectures at the Vestry Hall “political propaganda from start to finish.” The Finance Committee had resolved to charge the scale fee for each booking; after debate a motion to refer the recommendation back for further consideration was carried.

Pollution in the Wandle
What investigations have revealed
Surrey County Council’s Rivers and Streams Committee reported fungus from the Mitcham surface-water sewer (Bull Ditch), greasy matter from the Western Road sewer entering the Wandle, and trade waste into the Pickle Ditch that had since ceased. Night samples between Croydon and Wandsworth were of rather better quality than daytime ones. The committee objected to a bore-hole application by W. J. Bush and Co. at Batsworth Road, Mitcham, and set conditions on a standby bore-hole for Hackbridge Cable Co. at Kelvin Works.

Homes were inundated
Bridge was bottleneck for flood water
At Beddington Central Ward ratepayers’ meeting a resident complained that storm water and sewage had entered homes in Demesne Road, Wallington, with the railway bridge acting as a bottleneck. Flooding under the Manor Road railway bridge was also raised; Coun. A. Stammers said rebuilding was a long way off and there were several bad spots in the borough.

Two killed in road crash
Van and lorry collide
An inquest opened on Friday into the deaths of Mary Thomson, 12, and Margaret Purvis Thomson, 14, of Cromer Road, Tooting, killed when a van in which they were passengers collided with a lorry on the Barnet by-pass near Hatfield on 22 July. Evidence was given by their fathers, George Thomson and William Alexander Thomson. The inquest was adjourned until 7 September.

NO RETICENCE
At Carshalton Council Coun. F. J. Taylor (Lab.) asked why the Housing Committee seemed reluctant to tell the public about plans for the Barrow Hedges Estate. Coun. J. L. Bott denied any reluctance and said decisions had been, and would be, fully reported to the council.

Five hurt in road collision
Five people were injured when a small van swerved to avoid a pedestrian and hit a concrete post in London Road, Mitcham, on Saturday. The injured included the driver, Mr Charles George Joyce, of Carshalton; Mr Frederick Cullis, of Cowper Gardens, Wallington; and Mr Leslie Fowler and Mrs Evelyn Fowler, of Kentish Town. They were treated at Wilson Hospital.

Mitcham girls at the South Bank Exhibition
Girls of Mitcham County School for Girls visited the South Bank Exhibition with pupils of Clayton Hall Grammar School, near Stoke-on-Trent, returning wartime hospitality Mitcham girls had received near Stoke when escaping flying bombs. A picture showed three of them at a picnic lunch at the exhibition.

To be used as sports centre
Future of Mill House
The old Mill House in the centre of Mitcham Common now belonged to Mitcham Council. Borough engineer Mr Riley Schofield reported that earlier owners had meant to use the ground floor as a restaurant; finishing essential repairs would cost about £700, and exterior painting about £300. The Common Conservators were to use tipped land east of Windmill Road for football pitches, and the Recreation Grounds Committee agreed dressing rooms in the laundry building up to about £650.

First with the news
Coun. S. L. Saldanha (Lab.) asked whether Mitcham Council had been told that the Railway Executive was considering closing the West Croydon–Wimbledon line, as reported that morning in the Advertiser. Town Clerk Mr R. H. White said the first he knew of it was from the paper.

507 ask for action
Want recreation ground cleared and laid out
Five hundred and seven residents of the Lewis Road area petitioned, through Mrs V. Palmer, for the Lewis Road recreation ground—called a rubbish dump by councillors—to be cleared and laid out. The Recreation Grounds Committee said nothing could be done at once; the borough engineer was to prepare a scheme for the 1952-53 estimates. Ald. H. T. Simms promised sympathetic consideration.

Watermeads in danger
More subscribers are needed
At the annual meeting of Watermeads subscribers Mr Tom Francis resigned as local chairman after many years; Ald. T. A. East succeeded him. Income was only about £260 and spending exceeded it, a concern to the National Trust. A five-shilling subscription with a key of entrance was urged so that local control of the river-front should not be lost for want of support.

WHY CALL NEW FLATS MAINWARING COURT?
Coun. Ruff wants names with closer local associations
SECOND THOUGHTS ON CHOICE FOR ELM NURSERY
Coun. Tom Ruff (Lab.), a Mitcham native, protested at the choice of Elm Court, Mainwaring Court, Coningsby Court and Paxton Court for new flats on the Elm Nursery estate off London Road. He wanted names with closer local ties, including Mizen for the nursery family. The Mayor (Ald. G. R. Madgwick) and Housing chairman Coun. A. S. Mingay were among those discussing local history in the names.

Volunteers to patrol parks?
Ratepayers ask council to consider scheme
Beddington West Ward Ratepayers’ Association urged volunteer park patrols against hooliganism in Beddington and Wallington. Damage was put at £2,000–£3,000 a year. Coun. S. W. C. Sprunt said two extra patrolmen had been appointed; the Parks Committee was asked to consider treating volunteers like ordinary patrols.

THANKED FOR HIS WORK
At Mitcham Council the Mayor (Ald. G. R. Madgwick) presented Ald. T. A. East, Deputy Mayor, with a vellum of appreciation for his year as Mayor, with a tribute also to the Mayoress. As Festival Week chairman Ald. East said the week had been a success.

Rotary service in action
Mitcham Rotarians lunched at the White Hart Hotel. Rotarian Alfred Young, chairman of Rotary District 14, spoke on community service, including help for elderly people and youth clubs. Visitors were introduced by Rotarian J. Tring; President Rotarian C. S. P. Dale welcomed the speaker.

CRICKETERS’ THANKS
Town Clerk Mr R. H. White read letters of thanks from Mrs Ray Miller, manager of the Australian women cricketers, and Miss Cummins of the Surrey side, for the civic welcome when an international match was played on the Green.

Thursday 20 September 1951

Coalmen charged
Three coalmen—Joseph Stallard, driver, of Fountain Road; William George Stallard, of Pear Tree Close; and Ronald Harris, 21, of Mount Road, Mitcham—were charged with stealing a ton of house coal belonging to British Railways, said to have been residue from trucks at Wallington station. Det.-constable F. Jennings said they were stopped with a local coal firm’s vehicle; a shopkeeper later complained after paying by cheque. Joseph Stallard, who had previous convictions, was sent to prison for one month; William Stallard and Harris were each fined £4.

AGAINST COUNCIL POLITICS
South Mitcham Residents to fight next election
LOCAL GOVERNMENT HINDERED BY PARTY FIGHTING
People ‘fed up’ with politics in local affairs
South Mitcham Residents’ Association voted to put up a candidate at the May borough election. Before the war it had six aldermen and councillors; Ald. Mrs Niven was now the only Independent for Lower Mitcham. Former mayor Mr A. H. Bailey moved that party nominees could not best serve the ward; Ald. Mrs Niven said if they did not fight they might as well close down. The resolution was carried.

They won the “flitch”
No quarrels for 12 months
Four North Mitcham couples claimed the Mitcham Flitch for a year without a cross word. Rain moved the court into the North Mitcham Improvement Association pavilion; the prize, a large tin of cooked ham, went to Mr and Mrs Grimwood of 105 Melrose Avenue. Also competing were Mr and Mrs Freeman of Ashbourne Road, Mr and Mrs Green of Swains Lane, and Mr and Mrs Smith of Melrose Avenue. Mr E. P. Ward, J.P., sat as judge, with Dr Eluned Evans and Mr Dick Gifford as counsel.

Bottle was not clean
Court sequel to milk delivery
The Royal Arsenal Co-operative Society was fined £5 with £3 13s. costs at Wallington for delivering milk in a dirty bottle to a house in Colwood Gardens, Colliers Wood. Mrs Margaret Alice Howard took the bottle to Mitcham’s public health department. Depot superintendent Mr L. W. Steward said the Mitcham depot only distributed milk bottled at Kilburn. For a similar offence at Vale Road, Mitcham, the South Suburban Co-operative Society was also fined with costs.

Lewis Road recreation ground
A photograph showed the ground still a tip, with a cycle track used by local enthusiasts. The caption said more than 480 Mitcham residents had signed a petition asking the council to reinstate it as soon as possible; Phipps Bridge Conservatives had called it a “regular old rubbish dump.”

If branch line closes
Prospect alarms factory workers
Former councillor Mr R. A. Humphreys told South Mitcham Residents’ Association that people using the Croydon–Wimbledon branch, especially factory workers, were alarmed at talk of closure. The meeting backed his call for the borough council to fight to keep goods and passenger traffic. Mr Vincent thought buses might replace passenger trains if the line closed.

31 years in his job
Good character spoilt by theft
Ernest Edwin Kelly, 49, splint maker, of Streatham Road, Mitcham, pleaded guilty at Wallington to stealing two pairs of shoes from Queen Mary’s Hospital for Children, Carshalton, where he had worked for 31 years. He had hidden a pair in bushes; another pair was at his home. After being bombed out in 1948 he had had operations and feared losing his job. He was discharged conditionally for 12 months on payment of 30s. costs.

Worried about a wall
South Mitcham Residents’ Association heard that the borough engineer said the old brick wall round part of The Canons was under constant surveillance. Mr R. F. Palmer wanted the council told that expert opinion confirmed the association’s fears; the meeting agreed.

Reversing van kills woman
Coroner’s comments at inquest
Ronald Chacksford, of Shore Grove, Carshalton, reversing a baker’s electric van in Masefield Close, Mitcham, knocked down and ran over Mrs Sarah Hawkins, 83, a widow of that cul-de-sac. She died of shock from multiple injuries. At the Sutton inquest on Friday neighbours described a piercing scream as the van moved back. Coroner Dr C. F. J. Baron said the jury might feel the death ought not to have happened; they returned accidental death and asked for better rear vision on such vans.

SAVINGS WEEK TARGET
Mitcham’s aim is £17,000
Mitcham Savings Week aimed to raise at least £17,000, about ten per cent on average weekly sales for the year to 31 March. A former Mayor was chairman, Town Clerk Mr R. H. White secretary, and Mr R. A. Burroughs organiser. The Mayor (Ald. G. R. Madgwick) was to open the campaign in Fair Green Gardens, with a street-group membership contest against Carshalton and Coulsdon and Purley.

‘Stop this whispering’
Mr. Randall’s hint to Mr. Robert Carr
At a Wallington meeting Harry Randall, prospective Labour candidate for Mitcham and Wallington, answered sitting M.P. Robert Carr over remarks Randall was said to have made in Canada. Carr had called the talk “off the record”; Randall said Carr should “stop this whispering” abroad and praised the local press for fair treatment of a newcomer.

TO PROTECT CHILDREN
Another attendant for Ravensbury Park
Mr F. Grainger told South Mitcham Residents’ Association their protests had brought an extra attendant for Ravensbury Park in the holidays after a report that a child had been molested. Clerk Mr Harry May confirmed the Joint Committee’s decision to take special care of children using the park.

Well above average
Quality at North Mitcham show
North Mitcham Improvement Association’s garden show and home crafts exhibition in the newly decorated hall had fruit, flowers and vegetables of above-average quality. Prizewinners included Mr F. Page and Mr Wilder for apples and pears, Mr H. E. Bickford for late roses, Mr H. Henley for cabbages and carrots, and several women for bottled fruit, pickles, cakes and jam. Mr A. J. P. Briggs showed a model Flying Fortress.

ELECTION FIGHT WILL BE BITTER
Mr. Arthur Henderson calls for Labour determination
GOVERNMENT’S RECORD AT HOME AND ABROAD
Speaking to Mitcham and Wallington Labour Party at Wallington on Friday, Mr Arthur Henderson, Secretary of State for Air, said the next General Election would be the most strenuous and bitter for years. Conservatives would use every resource to overturn Labour’s small majority. He defended the government’s home and foreign record, said war was not inevitable, and urged determination and unity.

October 1956 news items

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From the front pages of the Mitcham Advertiser in 1956.

4th October
11th October
18th October
25th October

Thursday 4 October 1956

Shops may be built in front of church
A vacant stretch of land in front of Mitcham Baptist Church on London Road—between the borough hall and the borough library—may be developed with a shop frontage, with access to the church retained through an imposing archway. The Rev. Burden said the church hoped to sell some of the land (once intended for a new church facing London Road), extend the Sunday school hall at the rear into a more commodious building, and improve what had long been an eyesore.

HOUSING PLAN ATTACKED
Councillor speaks of ‘key money’
‘WE MAY BURN OUR FINGERS,’ HE SAYS
Coun. C. A. Norris, the only Independent on Mitcham Council, attacked the plan to house 250 local families in the Frimley and Camberley “expanded town” project, under which Mitcham would pay £8 a year for each house for ten years—£20,000 in all. He called that tantamount to paying key money, doubted the wisdom of continuing, and warned that the council might “burn our fingers rather badly,” after the borough treasurer reported an expected additional cost of £11,668 between then and 1961/2.

Lady Mountbatten opens mental health exhibition
‘MORE HOSPITALS NEEDED’
Opening a mental health exhibition at Tooting Methodist Central Hall on Tuesday, Lady Mountbatten outlined a four-point plan: far more money should be spent; more hospitals should be built (“long overdue”); overcrowding should be reduced; and the public should be taught a more enlightened attitude to mental disorders. The exhibition, showing aspects of life in mental hospitals from patients’ and staff viewpoints, was open until 13 October.

Recording of choir is taken during service at church
The vestry of St. Mark’s Church, Mitcham, became an engineers’ studio on Sunday evening when Ronald Hunt (17), of Tamworth Lane, and John Read (17), of Tonstall Road—both church members—recorded the choir singing “The Song of Thanksgiving.” Play-backs at rehearsals had helped organist and choirmaster Mr. D. W. Kent improve the performance; discs for the choir were expected to be cut from the master tape.

THIS WILL FOIL LEAD THIEVES
After staff at Mitcham baths found the buffet floor flooded one morning—an outside lead gutter having been torn away and stolen—the council replaced it at a cost of more than £27 with a rubber composition gutter intended to foil lead thieves.

FOG MARRED THEIR TRIP
Two coach-loads of old folk from the Old People’s Club in London Road “felt” their way to Box Hill on Monday afternoon in thick fog that hid the scenery. Ald. W. Jeffery, chairman of the Old People’s Welfare Committee, and the travellers still enjoyed the outing, with music from the Old Folk’s Band and the “Bright Sparks.”

If everyone backed Sir Anthony…
Lord Lloyd, Under Secretary of State for the Colonies, told the Wandsworth Central Conservative Association at a dinner at the Fountain Hotel, Tooting, that if all parties backed the Government’s Suez policy a speedier solution could be reached. He argued the Government had a right to expect patriotism and co-operation from the Opposition, which he said it had not had.

Clocks go back this week-end
Summer Time ends in the early hours of Sunday; clocks and watches should be put back one hour on Saturday night.

‘Alarming’ drop in membership
R. D. Dines, secretary of the Mitcham division Labour Party, told members at Beddington and Wallington that membership there—and in Mitcham—had been going down “rather alarmingly,” blaming administrative problems. He hoped renewed drives would restore the 1952–53 strength of between 3,000 and 3,500 members.

ALL-IN WRESTLING?
A split-second picture taken during basketball practice at the new Pollards Hill school, where Mitcham Youth Committee had started Friday evening training classes.

The last day of a perfect holiday
On the last day of a holiday in France and Spain, 25-year-old pharmacist Audrey Grime, of Upper Tooting Road, and her friend Jill Greenfield found their 1953 Singer car missing from the Boulogne quayside—then lying damaged on the harbour bottom. After it was raised and shipped to Dover they came home a day late; an Englishman charged on Monday said he had only meant to take it for a joy ride.

1,644 appeal against new assessments
Mitcham Council were told that 1,644 proposals appealing against new rate assessments had been received, of which 80 had since been withdrawn. Borough treasurer Mr. E. C. Clay reported collections 2.01 per cent lower than a year earlier—partly because appellants need pay only on the original assessment until heard—and that 279 summonses had been applied for, no more than last year.

‘BAN FLYING OF MODEL AIRCRAFT’
Residents near Three Kings Piece were being asked to sign a petition calling on Mitcham Council to ban model aircraft flying there. Mr. H. King, secretary of the Park Model Aircraft League—whose members flew powered models there two or three times a week with full council permission for 18 months—called the campaign “ill-natured prejudice” and said traffic on the main road bothered neighbours less than their “tiny engines.”

LOCAL M.P.’S WIFE DIES
Mrs. Elizabeth Hughes-Young, wife of the Conservative M.P. for Wandsworth Central, died on Tuesday at St. John and St. Elizabeth Hospital, Hampstead, after a long illness. She had helped her husband’s General Election campaign the previous year despite being unwell, then retired from public life; they had five children. A private funeral was fixed for the Friday.

30 years a fireman
Station Officer H. S. Shepherd, who joined Mitcham Fire Brigade 30 years ago, retired this week as officer in charge of Mitcham fire station (further report referred to the Mitcham and Tooting Review, page 10).

Arrested shortly after he became engaged
Donald Leslie Aldred (26), coalman, of Derinton Road, Tooting, pleaded guilty at South Western Magistrate’s Court to taking a motor cycle without the owner’s consent, using it uninsured, and driving while disqualified. He said he had got engaged that day and took the machine after drink; the magistrate sent him to prison for a total of six months and disqualified him from driving for five years.

Tennis trophies presented
At a North Mitcham Improvement Association evening—military whist and a dance attended by about 180—cups and plaques for Woodland Tennis Club tournaments were presented by president Mr. Derek Bray. The mixed doubles trophy went to Mr. and Mrs. Fred Challis; the men’s doubles to Mr. L. Ashmore and Mr. J. Reid.

Thursday 11 October 1956

COUNCIL DENY ACCUSATION
‘Level of pond is not going down’
ALMOST SAME AS FIVE YEARS AGO
Mitcham Residents’ Conference alleged that drainage linked with tipping near Windmill Road was emptying Seven Islands Pond on Mitcham Common, despite a Surrey County Council condition that the pond and surroundings be preserved. Croydon Corporation, who control the tip, denied any effect on the level; deputy borough engineer Mr. R. L. Gee said readings that month were within a couple of inches of November 1953, soon after tipping began.

Coronation arches go to Suffolk
Four steel arches which spanned The Mall at the Coronation—erected by Scaffolding (Great Britain) Ltd. of Mitcham, stored at Willow Lane, and weighing 56 tons—were being taken by lorry and rail to Stowmarket to form part of a huge straw storage barn (about 130 ft span, 60 ft high and 180 ft long).

DEATH OF PARISH CLERK
Mrs. Dora Perkins, of Mellows Road, Wallington, clerk of Mitcham Parish Church, died aged 57. Daughter of Mr. A. Champion, who had been parish clerk for 55 years, she succeeded him in 1951 and travelled from Wallington for every service; the Rev. John Thorold, Vicar of Mitcham, called her “a most loyal and faithful servant.” The funeral was at the church; she left a husband, a daughter and a small son.

Rex III, police dog who made 125 arrests, is dead
Rex III, Britain’s most famous police dog, was put to sleep on Monday after specialists confirmed throat cancer. The Alsatian, who lived with handler P.-con. Arthur Holman in St. James’s Road, Mitcham, made 125 arrests in six and a half years, won a gold cup as most outstanding police dog of the year, and once cornered an Army absentee who fired three shots at him in Tynemouth Road.

C.D. drive — 12 have enrolled
Between nine and ten thousand cards urging volunteers for the Civil Defence Corps had been delivered in Mitcham during a three-week Surrey campaign ending 20 October. Civil defence officer Mr. G. H. Bateman said about a hundred replies had been received and a dozen enrolments completed; strength was about 320 against a peace-time establishment of 954.

HIS 39 YEAR OLD QUEST IS OVER
Man meets Italian who saved his life
Mr. Kenneth Littleton, of Commonside East, Mitcham, finally met Ferdinando Molteni, the Italian who pulled him half-conscious from the sea after his troopship was torpedoed off Finale Ligure on 4 May 1917. After decades of contact with the town—including a 1924 visit and a 1928 honeymoon civic welcome—they met this year amid Press and radio enthusiasm.

Plan for swimming club
Mitcham Youth Committee planned to run its Youth Committee Swimming Club from next season on proper club lines—training, life-saving and diving—rather than as a large recreational session, after baths authorities became dissatisfied with behaviour and numbers proved hard to control.

RESIDENTS COMPLAIN
Following repeated complaints about weeds round the edges of Mitcham Common, the Common Conservators told the Mitcham Residents’ Conference they might buy a machine to cut them down, staff shortages having made present work impossible.

G.P.O. REJECT REQUEST
The G.P.O. said there was no possibility of a post-box in Chilmark Road, Mitcham: a census of letters posted in the two nearest boxes showed numbers too small to justify another pillar-box.

HOUSEWIFE WHO STOLE SAYS— ‘I have lost the love of my eldest son’
Mrs. Elizabeth Yeo (45), of Topsham Road, Tooting, told London Sessions Appeals Committee she had lost the love of her eldest son after stealing a comb, brush and other articles from British Home Stores, Brixton Road. A six weeks’ sentence passed at Lambeth was quashed and she was conditionally discharged for 12 months; counsel said her young daughters had taken an active part in what was described as organised pillaging.

Greengrocer obstructed policeman
William Edward Hayes (48), greengrocer, of Longmead Road, Tooting, was charged at South Western Magistrate’s Court with obstructing P.-con. Macintosh and with being in charge of a van causing unnecessary obstruction. He was fined 10s. for the van obstruction and £2 for obstructing the officer after knocking the policeman’s notebook down.

£81 RAISED
Collections in Mitcham for Princess Elizabeth Flag Day on 29 September totalled more than £81, with depot holders’ amounts listed from about £5 to Mrs. B. Elliott’s £17 4s. 3d.

GIRL MISSING
Margaret Runciman (15), factory hand, had been reported missing from her home in Steers Mead, Mitcham, where she lived with her foster parents.

Thursday 18 October 1956

LONDON ROAD DANGER SPOT
‘Sometimes takes ten minutes to cross’
RESIDENTS PROTEST
South Mitcham Residents’ Association branded the London Road and Church Road junction the most dangerous spot in the borough, saying police had recently been posted there in the evening rush when it was often impossible to cross for ten minutes or more. The association again called for traffic lights; the Town Clerk said the borough engineer had been asked to discuss the problem with the county authorities. Members also backed a Whitford Gardens resident’s petition for Fair Green traffic lights to be readjusted, complaining the “cross now” signal lasted only nine seconds.

Attitude of these people is ‘absolute nonsense’
Lady Kilmuir, wife of the Lord Chancellor, told the women’s divisional branch of the Wandsworth Central Conservative Association that every time workers asked for another pay rise without being prepared to do more work it was another step in the country’s decline. She dismissed “class war” talk about making money for those who already had too much as “absolute nonsense,” and said she had little sympathy for people who smoked, did the pools and had television yet claimed they could not afford a 10d. loaf.

Great-Grandmother’s advice to young couples—‘emigrate’
Mrs. Frances Johnson, 74, who emigrated to Australia six years ago with her husband, returned for a five-month visit to relations in Mitcham and Tooting. Staying with her daughter Mrs. Elizabeth Burke in Turner Avenue, she advised young couples to emigrate, citing wages of £15 to £16 a week, neighbourly spirit, and better pensions—an old couple, she said, could live comfortably on £4 to £4 10s. a week.

CHURCH TAKE UP THE CHALLENGE
£2,500 plan is reply to council ultimatum
Tooting Congregational Church prepared to launch an appeal for more than £2,000 to rebuild their hall adjoining the church in Mitcham Road after the district surveyor said it must be repaired or pulled down. Wandsworth Council authorised the work; plans were with a quantity surveyor for an estimate thought to be about £2,500. Treasurer Mr. F. C. Cheney said the 30-year-old corrugated-iron hall, used by Boys’ Brigade, Girls’ Life Brigade and a youth club, would be bricked round, re-floored and extended.

Suzie is up to monkey tricks again
Suzie, a six-year-old Rhesus monkey in the pets’ corner at the Fountain Hospital for Children, Tooting, escaped for the second time in three years after a hole was found in the fence on Sunday; companion Sally was stopped just before she ran off too. The R.S.P.C.A. warned schools not to touch Suzie if seen; a hospital spokesman said they had not found her yet and were relying on the public to report sightings.

THE FIRST RATING APPEALS
The first appeals against rating reassessments were heard at Mitcham Town Hall: 79 properties were involved. The valuation court granted reductions in 24 cases (small amounts, 4s. to £4), refused after assessment in 37, while 12 appeals were withdrawn, one adjourned and five settled before court—almost all last week’s cases concerning houses or flats.

Councillor speaks of ‘dirty politics’
Coun. W. E. M. Townsend told Graveney Ward Conservatives that at the May local elections he had his first experience of “dirty politics” in the ward, alleging the Labour candidate tried to “befuddle the electorate” with a housing report forecasting rent rises that was issued to the Press but never placed before the council. Council rents, he said, had not gone up a penny.

ACTING TORY AGENT
Mitcham Division Conservatives had an acting agent, Mr. C. P. Poulsen of Tonbridge, temporarily replacing Mr. Reg Cook, who had been recalled to the Army because of the Suez crisis. Mr. Poulsen had previously been agent at South Nottingham and Newport (Mon.) and had worked at Conservative Central Office.

140 will go to Hengelo next year
The Mayor of Mitcham and the Chairman of Carshalton Council praised the local A.N.S.C.A. (Anglo-Netherlands Sports and Cultural Association), which links Mitcham and Carshalton with Hengelo in Holland through annual exchanges. After a thank-you party for Dutch visitors, about 140 people from Mitcham and Carshalton were expected to go to Hengelo at Whitsun the following year.

MAN AWARDED £4,000 DAMAGES
In the High Court, Mr. Dennis Patrick Flannery, of Eveline Road, Mitcham, was awarded £4,000 damages with costs for injuries to his left leg after he fell 15 ft while painting a railway bridge at Orpington in November 1955. Judgment was entered against his employers, T. H. Kenyon and Sons Ltd., of Croxley Road, West Kensington.

Few have used cemetery gate
Although the Broadwater Road gate of Streatham Cemetery (at Tooting) had been kept open for a three-month trial, Wandsworth Council were told only a few people had used it. The gate had been closed four years earlier to stop hooliganism and thefts from graves; old age pensioners had acted as gatekeepers, and the question of leaving it open was to be reconsidered in six months.

Another ‘black spot’ causes concern
At a Graveney Ward Conservatives “any questions” session, Mr. Derek Bray asked about road safety at the London Road “black spot” near Tooting Junction. Coun. L. Freestone said schemes put forward included moving the pedestrian crossing by the railway bridge and traffic lights; ideas so far had been turned down by the county road engineer, though lights at the Links Road junction were the main current idea.

More people out of work
The local employment committee at Tooting were told unemployment in the district stood at 712 (211 of them women)—nearly 100 more than the June figure. Seasonal return from seaside work, registration by some married women after school holidays, and to a limited extent arrivals of immigrants from Jamaica, were cited; demand remained firm in paint and varnish manufacture.

Mission appeal a success
The Vicar of St. Mark’s Church, Mitcham, said he was “very pleased” with a two-week mission appeal for hospital supplies to be sent abroad for church hospitals; articles received included medical dressings and bedding.

Swan crashes
A swan crash-landed among the blocks of flats on the Glebe Court Estate, Mitcham, on Monday morning with injuries to neck and feet; after treatment it was taken away to be released on the Thames.

CYCLIST HURT
Mitcham cyclist Mr. Alfred Spencer Best, of Fern Avenue, was detained at St. Helier Hospital on Saturday after an accident with a car in Bishopsford Road; he had a fractured collar bone and rib.

FARE GOES UP
For the planned Hengelo party the return fare by land and K.L.M. aircraft had risen to £12 10s.

TEACHERS WANTED
St. Mark’s Church, Mitcham, wanted at least ten more Sunday School teachers.

Will Ruler be as famous as Rex?
A week after losing Rex III, P.-con. Arthur Holman was training a new police dog at his St. James’s Road home: a 13-month-old Alsatian christened Ruler, chosen at the Metropolitan Police dog training school near West Wickham—the age Rex had been when Holman first had him. Holman expected Ruler ready for duty in about three weeks.

REX’S TRIBUTES
On the Holmans’ sideboard was a pile of letters from all parts of the country paying tribute to Rex III, including one from Lady Munnings (who had presented his gold Black Knight Cup when he became Police Dog of the Year). Unsigned and signed messages alike hoped the next dog would prove as good; a wreath from Worcester Park read “To Rex III. The Best Police Dog.”

Thursday 25 October 1956

FAIR GREEN ‘DANGEROUS’
Traders’ plan for a complete roundabout
THE TWO GARDENS WOULD BE JOINED
Mitcham Chamber of Commerce revived a scheme first put forward years earlier for a complete roundabout at Fair Green, calling present arrangements and traffic lights unsatisfactory, inadequate and dangerous. The plan would join the two island gardens, close the stretch of London Road between them, and round the corners of Upper Green West and Upper Green East so one-way traffic could circulate properly instead of being cut in two by London Road.

Plan for 20 homes for old people
Subject to Ministry of Housing and Local Government permission, an acre at the Pollards Hill Estate on the south side of South Avenue—previously shown in the Surrey Development Plan as part of a neighbourhood shopping area—was to be used for 20 flats for old people. Surrey’s town and country planning committee supported Mitcham Council’s wish to purchase the land, judging existing shops (with possible further eight) adequate for the fully developed area.

M.P.’S VIEWS ON AUTOMATION
‘The ally, not enemy, of full employment’
Mr. Robert Carr, M.P. for Mitcham and Wallington and Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Labour, told an Ealing meeting that automation was the ally, not the enemy, of full employment. He blamed exaggerated publicity for false fears, said unemployment was more likely from factories not kept competitive, and argued increased production would have to come from more machines as the working population’s growth ended.

Good start for C.D. campaign
Mitcham’s autumn civil defence recruiting drive had got off to a good start: nearly 20,000 cards inviting people to join C.D. had been distributed, 139 returned to the Town Hall, and 50 had signed enrolment forms. Officer Mr. G. H. Bateman believed many who replied would become volunteers; about 150 attended a showing of the film “The H-Bomb” at Mitcham Baths.

‘BETTER TO READ THAN SEE TV’
Girls of Mitcham County School were told at speech day at the Baths Hall that it was better to read a book than to watch the television version or listen to a radio dramatisation. Miss Dyson, headmistress of Haberdashers’ Hatcham School, said reading let you stop to look back and think, whereas with television “you cannot stop to think even for one minute,” and urged parents not to pamper children into a passive attitude to life.

QUEEN MOTHER’S COMING VISIT
When the Queen Mother visits the Citizens’ Advice Bureau in London Road, Mitcham, on 14 November, she may listen to inquiries being dealt with in the general office. Due at 3 p.m., she was to be welcomed by the Mayor and Mayoress (Coun. and Mrs. T. H. Longshaw) and Town Clerk Mr. R. H. White, meet C.A.B. officers and founders, see a display at the Town Hall, and take tea with regional and local committee members.

Warning on bogus meter man
The London Electricity Board warned that a man falsely claiming to be a board employee had been involved in robberies or attempted robberies. His method was to say he had been sent to change the meter or switch off the supply, then break open a slot meter or get the householder to watch while he went into other rooms; genuine employees carried a signed photographic identity card.

Watchman died after accident
An inquest at Kingston heard that night watchman Mr. William Henry Davison, 78, of St. Barnabas Road, Mitcham, was fatally injured early on Saturday when knocked down in London Road, Mitcham, by a car driven by Mr. Edward Douglas Woolley. Davison was apparently taking a wheelbarrow of hurricane lamps across the road; none of the scattered lamps was alight, and lighting-up time had not yet ended. The jury returned a verdict of accidental death.

POLICE MAKE APPEAL FOR WITNESSES
Police appealed for witnesses after a woman pedal cyclist was knocked down and seriously injured in Christchurch Road, Colliers Wood, on Thursday evening. Mrs. Ivy Bradshaw (71), of Collingwood Road, Mitcham, was knocked from her machine at the junction of Bridge Road; no witnesses had been found and the other driver involved had not been traced.

Man attacked at Tooting
Mr. Geoffrey Harris, a clerk, of Tooting Bec Road, was attacked by three men in Mitcham Road, Tooting, on Friday afternoon and received head injuries. A police wireless car was called; C.I.D. officers searched for the attackers. He was detained at St. James’ Hospital, Balham; injuries were not serious.

Civic reception is planned for Dutch boxers
Dutch boxers from Enschede were to be given a civic reception by the Mayor of Mitcham (Coun. T. H. Longshaw) on Thursday next before opposing Mitcham Amateur Boxing Club at Mitcham Baths that evening. Mr. George, Vice-Consul of the Netherlands Embassy, and Mrs. del Valle were among those expected at the Town Hall.

PARENTS AND ROAD SAFETY: ‘Some take more care of dogs than children’
At the Balham and Tooting Residents’ and Ratepayers’ Association, chairman Mr. W. J. Barker said some people took more care of dogs on the road than of their children—always putting dogs on leads but taking no notice of small children. Other members blamed motorists’ speed or “low mentality”; Mr. W. W. Paice thought many accidents resulted from carelessness rather than speed alone.

Damage to his greenhouse
The North-eastern Divisional Education Executive agreed to recommend payment of £1 10s. 6d. to a Greenwood Road, Mitcham, resident for repairs to a greenhouse and replacement of plants damaged by balls coming into his garden from the playground of Pollards Hill County Primary Junior Mixed School.

Rear wheels of car stolen
A 1933 Jowett belonging to Mr. Walter Bateman, of Sunshine Way, Mitcham, was stolen from Bond Road on Friday night and found next morning abandoned in Mount Road minus both rear wheels and the spare, resting on its brake drums; it was towed to Mitcham Police Station before he collected it.

‘SUZIE’ RETURNS
Suzie, the six-year-old Rhesus monkey which escaped from the pets’ corner at the Fountain Hospital for Children, Tooting, on Sunday of the previous week, returned to her cage on Saturday.

KNOCKED DOWN
Mrs. Lily Ann Gunter, of Phipps Bridge Road, Mitcham, was taken to the Nelson Hospital, Wimbledon, for treatment after being knocked down by a motor cycle combination in Christchurch Road, Colliers Wood, on Monday.

REVENUE FROM THE FAIR
Mitcham Trades Council attacked Mitcham Council over Mitcham Fair lettings income, arguing the money should go to old people’s homes instead of the rates fund. A branch of the Electrical Trades Union, which raised the matter, had already written to the council.

Pigeon show judge
Mr. Alfred J. Pays, licensee of the Beehive public-house, Commonside East, Mitcham, was to be one of the judges at the International Show of Mitcham Racing Pigeons at the Royal Horticultural Hall, Westminster, opening Friday 30 November. His garden lofts could house 100 or more pigeons; that year he had won the National Flying Club’s Grand National Race first prize of £250.