My Brighton and Hove | Places | Streets | Belgrave Square, Portslade

Slum Clearance
Belgrave Square was located off of Wellington Road in Portslade and was the first road west from the bottom of Station Road. The houses were removed as a part of the slum clearances of the North Street area of Portslade in the mid 1950's. Most of the occupants were moved to the then newish council houses in Mile Oak. A bus stop now sits at what was the entrance to Belgrave Square.

Granny Callingham
The lady in black at the bottom of the road may well be my maternal Great-Grandmother, Fanny Callingham, who lived in the last house down on the lefthand side (on her right in the photo). Two of her daughters, Daisy Medlock and Nellie Botting, lived in other houses in the square and her other daughter (my Grandmother - Kate Smith) lived around the corner at 9 Seaford Road. I can just about remember my Grandmother taking me to visit her Mum before she died around about 1953 or 4 ( I was born in January 1949). I recall a horse drawn coal wagon delivering sacks of coke to what I believe was a small foundry in the opposite corner of the road to her house. Afterwards, Granny Callingham would take great delight in sending me out with a medium sized tin, minus the lid, to pick up any lumps of coke the coalman had dropped. I would have been about 4 or 5 years old at the time and can also remember being sent with my Auntie Jean (who is only five years older than me!) and a white pottery jug with a small linen handkerchief over the top of it, to the off-license of the Halfway House on the corner of Station Road and Wellington Road, to fetch Granny Callingham's daily quart of stout. How things have changed!

Belgrave Square, Portslade ready for the VE Day Celebrations on 8 May 1945

Photo from a private collection

Added to the site on 14-02-06

This page was added on 26/06/2006.

Comments:

What an amazing picture, been reading a lot on history of Portslade and never knew this road existed till now.

By Tara (04/03/2006)

Just doing my family tree and found Belgrave Square through this site. No wonder I couldn't find it on the maps. My Great, great Granddad lived at No.6. (Burgess Family) I will make a visit to the area soon. Thank you.

By Ivor Williams (27/03/2006)

Iwould like to say�I remember Belgrave Square and the shop on the corner, though I can't remember the people who own it. We live in East Street and we would be sent with a list of groceries to purchase from the shop. One day in the second war my friend and�I were on our way to the shop when we were stopped from going on the sea front as a convoy of tanks and American soliders were going through,we had to wait a long time before they would let us through. I have told my sister to have a look at this site as she lives in Brighton and�I live in Australia. I would like to see more photos of Portslade on these sites if anyone has them.

By Patricia Finneran (nee Morley) (02/06/2007)

By chance I came across this site. My Auntie Daisy and Uncle Joe lived in this area when I was a little girl. Joe was my mother's brother and they had�two children: Norman and Carole. It would be interesting to see if Daisy Medlock was my aunt. I have been compiling my family tree and would like to add this picture to my archives - that is if it is correct.

By Christine Carden (31/01/2008)

Christine, I can confirm that your Auntie Daisy was also my Great Aunt Daisy, and that her husband was Joe Medlock. This is where they lived when I was young. Soon afterwards, when the properties in Belgrave Square were due to be demolished, they moved to Wickhurst Rise, Mile Oak (North Portslade). If you go to "Streets", "Wickhurst Rise" on this site you'll see a photo I added showing your Uncle Joe on Christmas Day 1960. (In spite of the text under the photo, the house was actually Auntie Daisy's and Uncle Joe's, not my grandparents). Sadly Norman Medlock died about 18 months ago now, but Carole lives not far from my wife and I in Brighton. If you'd like to get in touch I am contactable at alan@alanlphillips.wanadoo.co.uk and I would galdly let you have copies of any photos I have.

By Alan Phillips (13/02/2008)

Alan Phillips your Belgrave Square slum clearance article interested me because of the comments about the foundry. There was indeed a small aluminium foundry in the corner of the square which was owned by Briggs and Baker. These two gentlemen worked together at CVA in Old Shoreham Road prior to setting up in business. I worked for them as an apprentice in the 1950 era. It may be of interest to you that I remember a chap who lived in the square and who worked in the foundry as a fettler. His first name was Ernie, I am unable to remember his last name but I do remember he had serious trouble with his health and had a lung removed,after which he returned to work. About 1957 the foundry moved to new premises at Newhaven

By bryan millard (25/02/2008)

I worked at CVA and knew Mr Baker (Pat Baker) who owned an aluminum foundry in Newhaven, interesting that I now learn that it was originally in Portslade. I was a young apprentice and at one stage worked under Pat Baker who was an inspector. He had been at CVA for many years and I understand that he ran his foundry and worked at CVA at the same time! Additionally he was a JP, must have been a very busy man! Interestingly, I now work in Newhaven, there is a foundry close by currently being demolished! I wonder if it is his old foundry?

By Peter Groves (17/04/2008)

Bryan Millard and Peter Groves, Many thanks for your information. I was pretty sure there had been a foundry in Belgrave Square, but others had told me I was wrong and that it was just a horse stables. I remember CVA (later to become part of Kearney and Trecker Ltd) being based in Portland Road, before they moved to Hollingbury (where Asda now stands). Were they also in Old Shoreham Road?

By Alan Phillips (10/05/2008)