Alan John Marshall
Thanks to Alan for this marvellous account:
Market Gardening in Boundstone Lane
I was living in Sompting Road up until the mid-1960s. Myrtle Stores were at 109, just up the road from Myrtle Road. I remember so much about Boundstone Lane, and the school being built on the land which my father worked as a Market Gardener. In the War, and just after, they had an orchard there, with lots of gooseberry bushes under the apple trees; daffodils in the springtime; and I used to go finding birds' eggs along the line of elm hedge, beside the twitten - that ran along the northern edge of Dad's gardens.
Middle Boundstone Lane then was just a true "lane" with a rough surface, and big puddles in the rainy times. I was born right at the top of Upper Boundstone Lane, just below the cemetery.
The Frightening Shelters of South Lancing Primary
Also, just at the end of the War, when I must have been about 4 1/2, I attended the South Lancing Primary School. That was a very unhappy time for me. I remember the air raid shelters, they were under the northern ramp of what is now the railway bridge. Frightening places, closed by big double doors sloping up the side of the ramp.
A Bittersweet Move to North Lancing Primary
A teacher there, a woman whom I was frightened of, had us lined up for punishment, for trespassing on the grass slopes of the ramp. I remember something like having to dip our fingers in mustard water and suck on our fingers. Was this just a figment of my imagination? Or did it really happen? I cannot be sure. Anyway, the fear of that school and the screaming from me in the mornings at having to go to school made Mum keep me at home until I was 5, and then they got me into North Lancing Primary School, under Miss Daisy Humphreys. That was much better.
That is all I can come up with right now, but if anyone is interested and wishes to connect with me further, you can use my email address, anakial@hotmail.com and let me know who you are.
Alan
8th October 2008
The Grover Nursery and Myrtle Stores
Alan adds..
My parents, Peter and Cecily Marshall, were very close friends of Percy and Mildred Grover. The Grovers had their nursery at the corner of Boundstone Lane and the "top" road (Southeast corner), with several glass houses there. After retirement, Percy and Mildred moved up to near Storrington.
My dad was from a very old family of Lancing, and Mum's parents ran Myrtle Store for several years. Dad's parents had the semi-detached houses 2 doors up built in 1912, and the space between the back of those houses and Myrtle Crescent was a market garden too.
A Firework Disaster in Middle Road
We had a huge bonfire in Middle Road, each Nov 5th. One time, I was only a very little boy, my chip basket full of fireworks, was put "for safety" down by the fence, "out of the way." But someone lit a Roman candle on the post above, and my whole basket full went up at once. I was so sad and in tears for the remainder of the evening.
Alan wrote further
Sompting Road Memories and Family Tragedies
Mum died on December 23rd 2000, as a consequence of a road accident in Sompting Road. She was knocked off her bicycle. Quite an active cyclist was Mum, at 86 years old. Dad survived her by almost 2 years, and spent that time in Ibiza with my sister.
Dad was related to the Bushbys, Fullers, Lishers and Charles Colbourne, who was a very respected butcher in Brighton (Chas. Colbourne). Colbourne's drapery store used to be at the top of Penhill Road.
From Sussex Grapes to Lancing Tomatoes
Dad's aunt Mary lived at Skirwith, the market garden which occupied the site on the corner of Crabtree Lane and Grinstead Lane. One of their greenhouses had a grapevine growing in it. I understand that prior to the late 1800s, grapes were grown extensively in Sussex because of the high sunlight intensity between the Downs and the sea.
Then, improved sea transport meant that imported wines and grapes from France made the grape industry of Sussex unviable, and the "new" crop of tomatoes became very popular.
Having grown tomatoes virtually all his life, and with a good reputation for sweet and tasty produce, Dad continued in his retirement to grow tomatoes in his little backyard garden at Cokeham Lane.
 |
| The Rowans, 113 Sompting Road |
He was born at The Rowans, 113 Sompting Road, and told me in those years there were very few other houses in Sompting Road or Boundstone Lane. Indeed, I remember when both sides of Upper Boundstone Lane were orchards. (That is the area between Crabtree Lane and the Upper Brighton Road.) The last house on the right-hand side at that time was occupied by McIntyre, one of the coal merchants. Boundstone Lane at that point was still a muddy, puddly, unsealed road surface.
The Paving of Boundstone Lane
A pretty good job of rebuilding the road was done, around 1951/2 I would say, because I left North Lancing Primary School in 1952 and it had been done whilst I was there. The foundation of the road surface was a mixture of old house bricks, flints, and rubble down to a depth of approximately. 1 1/2 feet. They used a steamroller for surfacing.
I attended Worthing High School from 1952 to 1957(Dec).
Editor note:
I emailed Alan on 16/12/2011 to establish he is available for correspondence. He has confirmed this.
He added this note to his profile:
Son of Peter John Marshall, market gardener, who was the son of Percy George Marshall. Numerous family links: Lisher, Fuller, Grover, Bushby, Long, Colbourne, Judd.
I now live in Tasmania. Born 1941. Attended North Lancing Primary School, Worthing High School.
