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1930s development

These historic photographs were taken in 1930 when the development of modern Patcham was starting. This photograph shows the old barn in the valley at Ladies Mile, which became a Methodist church.

The Mackie Avenue development can be seen under construction.

The "Old Barn Area" Ladies Mile Road under construction c.1930, when development of modern Patcham was starting.
Photo sent by Martin Nimmo
Mackie Avenue under construction c.1930.
From the private collection of Martin Nimmo

Comments about this page

  • I love the picture of Mackie Avenue construction. I was born in 181 Mackie Ave 1944. I am the youngest of the Watson family – we all went to Patcham School. My parents talked of walking out to Mackie Avenue, before it was built, to choose a house. I was very lucky growing up there – I had a wonderful childhood.

    By Diane Candler (nee Diane Jean Watson) (18/01/2013)
  • I don’t see where I’m standing in the photo.  Is that Ladies Mile Road in the foreground, or is it Braybon Avenue and Mackie Avenue? I’m interested because I lived at 181 Mackie Avenue.

    By Ron Edmonds (29/03/2013)
  • The picture is taken from Ladies Mile Road, about where the white house is now, looking down onto Mackie Avenue.

    By john finch (22/07/2013)
  • I can date the pictures a bit more accurately than ‘c1930’. I researched the Ladies Mile Estate for part of my doctoral thesis and spent many an hour [in fact many hours!] in the Building Control Office at Hove Town Hall looking at the dates of planning permissions. The top picture of LMR appears to show no houses beyond 123 LMR other than The White House. That puts it as after 1932. My mum and dad’s bungalow would appear in 1939 in The White House garden west of the big house. The picture of Mackie Avenue below shows construction being completed at the foot of the Cinder Path ‘twitten’. That would make it about 1934 as building stopped at the hedge line that becomes Baranscraig Ave; the space between the final house in the picture and the photographer, becomes the Mackie Club. The photographer [atop the White House!] is near the hedge line which is a very old field boundary. I would guess both pictures were taken sometime in 1933-4. More details in my thesis [all 85,000 words!] a copy of which is in Patcham Library.

    By Geoffrey Mead (24/07/2013)
  • Hi Geoffrey – is there an electronic copy of your thesis available anywhere?  I’m also interested in the history of the estate – I live on Overhill Drive – and would love to see any brochures or designs (particularly internal fittings) of the houses in their original state. Thanks.

    By Simon Bennett (10/11/2014)
  • My parents bought a new house in Mayfield Crescent, Patcham around 1937. The crescent formed a link road between Wilmington Way and Braybon Avenue with a North/ South footpath (Twitten) splitting the Crescent and its neighbouring road Greenfield at the apex. My question is : Did the name Braybon stem from the Brighton builder of that name (I think T J Braybon). Am I correct in this assumption?

    By John Snelling (13/11/2020)
  • Reference to Braybon, Yes the developer was Braybon. A scot who was apparently something of a hard taskmaster!
    Had the Whitehouse in Ladies mile road as his residence. Kept a telescope in an upper room to keep an eye on his workforce. (My grandfather did some contract work for him as he was in the plumbing trade. ) This was why many streets had Scottish names. I lived in Craignair avenue for some years, but moved north in 1988. Patcham was certainly a quiet place in the 50s-60s!

    By Norman Porcher (27/04/2021)
  • The above comment on Braybon is not correct. Braybon’s were an old Brighton family.George Ferguson was the Ladies Mile developer who was from SW Scotland and by hearsay was indeed a hard taskmaster!

    By Dr Geoffrey Mead (28/04/2021)
  • Hello Geoffrey. Not sure if you remember me. My grandparents bought 3 properties in Patcham before they were even built! One house in Baranscraig and two bungalows in the Deeside. My name is Jacqui Martin née Flint and my mother was Enid Flint. We attended the barn. I can remember both you and your mother back in the 60’s. Your thesis sounds fantastic and something I would love to read. Is it available to borrow from the library or just for reference?

    By Jacqueline Martin (01/11/2021)
  • Thanks Jaqueline, there should be a copy of my thesis in Patcham Library .’Scattered squalor-Downland Homes: interwar housing at Patcham, Brighton.’
    My mum moved to 125 Ladies MIle Rd in 1972 and I was there for about 5 years from 1982, so not in the 60s. There is one at The Keep at Falmer, but it is not for borrowing. It is also on line at Uni of Sussex Library.

    By Dr Geoffrey Mead (02/11/2021)
  • I grew up in 1 Mackie Avenue as my dad was the local GP. He bought the practice from Dr Rosario in 1948 and the surgery was attached to the house. Patients came in through a side entrance and there was a waiting room, a surgery and a tiny dispensary. It adjoined our kitchen, The surgery was moved in the early sixties when he had two other partners by then and they built the group surgery down in Carden Avenue.

    By Jane Scott (19/01/2022)
  • Jane,
    I wrote up the development of LME as part of my doctoral thesis and your father’s predecessor Dr Christopher Rosario featured in it as he was such a well loved and much spoken of member of the Patcham community. He was always referred to as ‘a real gentleman’ or’ a proper gentleman’ and although I interviewed many of the older residents over many years I never heard a bad word spoken of him, quite the opposite. Many years after I wrote the thesis, Dr Rosario’s son wrote to me as I had some factual errors in my script that I had been told by my interviewees. However he was very pleased to know in what affection his father had been held. Someone told be he was of Indian origin but was born in Trinidad; he was actually born in India. As an Indian in a very white 1930s suburb he obviously won over everyone by his kindness and professionalism.

    By Dr Geoffrey Mead (19/01/2022)
  • Dr Rosario was my family’s doctor and his practice in Warmdean Road was on the RHS heading North.
    I believe I had the Smallpox Vaccination by him when the epidemic struck in the late 40’s I think. I was at that time playing with a lad Malcomb Mowbray (now in Canada I believe) whose mother caught the disease (the first contact I believe) from a sailor. The Mowbrays lived in Mayfield Crescent at the time.

    By John Snelling (31/07/2022)
  • Gosh, this is bringing back a lot of memories. I lived at 38 Mackie Avenue from my birth in late 1945 till I left for university in London in 1964, after which I married and went to Canada where I have lived ever since. I went to Patcham Infants & Junior schools as they were called then (went on to Varndean Girls), was a member of the Brownies & Girl Guides, & took piano lessons from Miss Ashton on Highview Ave N. My main playground was what we called The Chalk Pit behind my house on Mackie – between Mackie & the houses on Ladies Mile Rd. It was smoothed over & grassed as a park many years ago. When I became aware of Google Streetview, I discovered that my former semi-detached house had been demolished and rebuilt the same as before (2009). There is a winterbourne under Mackie Ave & when the water table was very high the water would come to the surface, flow down Mackie and flood our driveway. Perhaps it ruined the house foundations over the years? I’ve never heard of half a semi being demolished & replaced like that with the other half left standing! On Streetview I could see the blue tarp that was protecting no. 40 from the elements. My Dad was a carpenter & builder & always said that the house was badly built – my parents moved out about 1965 & went to live near the top of Braybon Ave. For some years they had that wonderful view north over the Downs from their front windows. Ah, Patcham was great to grow up in. I am still friends with the girl who lived next door to me on Mackie – the other half of the semi – as well as schoolfriends who lived on Baranscraig (now in NZ) & at the top end of Mackie.
    And Jane, my GP was Dr Curtis!

    By Christine (Durrant) Jackson (01/08/2022)
  • Does anyone recall the date when the Clocktower was erected at the Southern end of Mackie Avenue at the junction with Vale Avenue. Just behind the tower was a short “twitten” that led to a grassy area and on to a “swing park”. Just below that was a short twitten crossing Vale Avenue then climbing up towards the track and the gateway into All Saints Church. Just before this and on the RHS stood the Cubs and Brownies HQ Hut. The path went straight on for the Church and Vicarage – right into Vale Avenue by the Farm and left eventually becoming Highview Avenue North. In 1954 my parents moved from Mayfield Crescent to a new bungalow development – Highview Way. If one crossed Ladies Mile Road at the crest of the Hill, one would enter Highview Avenue South where there were very few houses then. On the LHS stood the Allotment patch where my late father had a “patch”. Hoping this invokes some more comments.

    By John Snelling (04/09/2022)
  • John, all the twittens you name and the open areas are still as you recall. The Ladies Mile Clocktower was probably built early in the history of the Ladies Mile Estate which was developed from 1931-36. I have an aerial image of that area from 1934 and it is plainly there then. The allotments in Highview Ave South where your dad had a plot are named Kestons, in the 1842 Tithe Survey they are Kistons, so one letter change in 180 years! From an historical viewpoint they are important as the shape suggests they may be the last of the medieval strip-fields in the parish.

    By Dr Geoffrey Mead (06/09/2022)

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