Nostalgia by Michael Eagleton

Plenty of readers still have memories of the Dean Street area in Marlow as it used to be, and, following this column three weeks ago, I had several requests for more pictures.

Those printed previously were when all the properties were empty and awaiting demolition.

The above pictures, taken by the late and great Cyril Chalk, show many streets and alleyways obviously nearing the end, but some still occupied.

This can be judged by a couple of marvellous washing lines.

Bucks Free Press:

The Jack Payne Dance Band was before my time, but my mother had been a fan and there was one of her records by that band, a 78rpm, “Over The Garden Wall” which I used to play as a kid on a wind-up gramophone.

I well remember a bit of the vocal: “Wonderful things are hanging on the line, over the garden wall”.

Cyril’s pictures are tiny 2” X 1” snapshots, now faded and going yellow.

I have done my best to restore them, giving them a new lease of life, and they include, as well as Dean Street itself, Hatches Row, Eaton Place and Primrose Lea.

Bucks Free Press:

Last but one snapshot shows the Nag’s Head pub, still in business at this time.

In the picture three weeks ago it was part demolished.

It stood alongside the only open bit of ground in Dean Street – Tillion’s Field. Finally, the unofficially named “Gasworks Alley” a short cut to the town centre.

Best of all unofficial names in the area was “Packman’s Puzzle” and I was only found the explanation for this a few years ago. A “Packman” was apparently a tallyman calling weekly to collect instalment payments on goods already supplied.

If a customer was short of readies he or she would hear the dreaded knock on the front door and dash out at the back, into the garden and round to the house next door to wait until he had given up and gone away.

Contact Michael on michael@jazzfans.co or 01628 486571