Where Is This? No.154

Published on: 2 Apr, 2015
Updated on: 2 Apr, 2015

By David Rose

Plenty of readers correctly recognised last week’s mystery vintage view as being at the foot of Woodbridge Hill, showing Midleton Road before the improvements to the A3 when the bypass was built to bypass the bypass!

Interesting that both Brian Holt and David and Ann Bailey in their replies recalled watching the busy day-trippers’ summer traffic there and the jams. Not much different from the build-up of traffic on the A3 there every afternoon now!

Going back to those days when many of the vehicles had to make their way up and down Woodbridge Hill, there were also the jams on Saturday mornings as the trippers made their way to the coast.

It soon built up along Worplesdon Road in Stoughton. We lived in Baden Road, off Worplesdon Road, and used to chuckle at all the people getting hot and bothered in their cars. Our family didn’t own a car. When we went to the seaside we either went by train or travelled early in the morning on one of Safeguard’s day excursion coaches.

One Saturday my dad was walking down Worplesdon Road past the Royal Hotel when a frustrated motorist shouted to him something like: “Is there any way out of this?” My dad suggested he might like to turn left and go up New Cross Road (then a through road) and join Stoughton Road and try to make his way through Guildford by that route. “Yes, yes, I know,” the driver barked back. He then dashed up New Cross Road. As my dad walked into Baden Road he was surprised and laughed as the motorist appeared once again. The man had turned right off New Cross Road and had gone down South Road into Baden Road and, of course, met the jam once again side on!

But busy weekend traffic was not the only time the roads here got clogged up. Royal Ascot week was also another occasion when local people came out to see the posh cars and earlier still the charabancs. My mum used to tell me that when she was a child they would stand by the roadside and as the charabancs slowly passed would shout out: “Got any spare coppers.” If the racegoers had had a good day winning some money, they often obliged by throwing the kids some coins.

And even in more recent times you could watch Rolls Royces, Bentleys and so on, travelling to and from Ascot on the A322. (Perhaps you can today when the races at Ascot are on?) I recall witnessing a larger number of ‘Rollers’ one summer’s evening in about 1981 when I was sitting with my old mate Simon Vine (who sometimes reads this column) outside the Ship Inn at Pitch Place having a beer. He was back from his studies at Bradford University at the time and I remember him saying to me: “You never sees cars like this in West Yorkshire.”

The quirky view showed part of the Wayside pub beside the river, whose address is now Millbrook. It was, of course, once the Jolly Farmer and the word that was once on the plaque was ‘Farmer’. The word ‘Jolly’ was on a panel to the left with ‘1913’ in the centre panel, which remains. The building replaced an earlier pub in 1913.

Click here to see last week’s post and all the replies at the foot of it.

Here are this week’s teasers…

Do you recognise this aerial view?

We continue with a transport theme and an aerial view of a Guildford road junction pictured during the floods of September 1968. Do you know where it is and can perhaps name some of the buildings? If you have any memories of those floods, please add those too.

A school, but which one?

This week’s quirky photo shows part of a school (I think I have to give you at least one clue), and it is on the outskirts of town. Do you know which once and where it is?

If you know the answers please leave a reply in the box below. All replies will be posted at about the same time next week, along with a new post with the answers to this week’s photos and the next pair of images.

Responses to Where Is This? No.154

Paul Robinson Reply

April 2, 2015 at 10:14 am

This picture is of the bypass A3 and the Wooden Bridge pub. Great picture.
Paul Robinson Reply

April 2, 2015 at 10:16 am

I think the school is Merrow Park Primary.
John Lomas Reply

April 2, 2015 at 1:27 pm

This week we are looking at the junction of Woodbridge Road with the bypass.

The large building between Woodbridge Road and the river is the “Avashot and Riskit” bus garage and offices. The building to the left of the junction was a car showroom and garage. When I left Guildford it was an Austin/Morris dealers but I’m not sure about 1968.

Just above the word view in the caption is the forecourt of what was previously (maybe still was in ’68) (initials needed) Barnes garage. They were Vauxhall/Bedford dealers and when I had a Saturday/holiday job there around 1957-59 they had a body shop where they built such things as mobile libraries on Bedford chassis.
Ralph Back Reply

April 3, 2015 at 7:17 am

The first picture is of what was the Aldershot & District Bus garage and Wadham Stringer’s car dealership, better known at the time as the Morris Depot, where Woodbridge Road met the then A3 at Ladymead.

I remember having to catch a bus in order to traverse the flooded A3 between here and Woodbridge Hill on my way home from Guildford Technical College and Westborough while training as an apprentice electrician.

The second photo is of course that of Westborough Infant School in Southway, Westborough, which I attended between 1957-1960, failing my eleven-plus exams before going to Onslow County Modern School.
Les Knight Reply

April 4, 2015 at 3:20 pm

Aldershot & District bus garage in Woodbridge Road.
Chris Townsend Reply

April 5, 2015 at 8:14 pm

The aerial view shows the Morris Depot on the left at the junction of Woodbridge Road and Ladymead.

On the opposite corner was the Aldershot& District bus garage. The river at Woodbridge is on the right.

I used to know the school as Westborough, built in 1933 on Southway. The Willows School is there now, sharing the site with the St Francis Centre.
Margaret Cole Reply

April 6, 2015 at 10:56 am

This is the Aldershot & District Bus Garage in Woodbridge Road opposite the Morris Depot.

I was working at The Stoke that Monday of the 1968 floods. My car needed bailing out, so from Worplesdon Road I went through Bellfields – a horrendous journey.

I was an hour late but everyone else was as well, not a good day to be on the road, but we all just soldiered on, although a bit bedraggled.

The clock picture is of Westborough School, Southway, now called The Willows a SCC special needs school.
Doug and Bill Staniforth Reply

April 7, 2015 at 4:22 pm

The aerial view is of the Morris Depot, Woodbridge Road. On the left is the BMC car showroom which became Wadham Stringer, the large building is the Aldershot & District Bus Garage, there was the Bridge Cafe on the other side of the junction.

If only The Guildford Dragon had been around then to supply speedboats to help the flood victims.

It’s Guildford’s finest School, Westborough on Southway which has produced many of Guildford’s most upstanding citizens.Oh, I just remembered, we both recieved scholarships to attend, there was a 5 year waiting list.

Hi Chaps, How many Guildford Dragon loyalty points have you got now? Let us know and we can tell you what they’re worth. Ed
Brian Holt Reply

April 7, 2015 at 8:51 pm

1. Aerial view of Woodbridge Road. On the right is the Aldershot & District bus garage, which was extended to provide more workshop pits to service and repair buses, and is now the site of Magnet kitchen store.

On the left is the Wadham Stringer showroom, known locally as the Morris Depot and is now H A Fox Jaguar showrooms.

2. The former Westborough School in Southway. It is now The Willows and St Francis Centre.
Ed Gardner Reply

April 8, 2015 at 9:11 pm

I used to work as a fitter for Alder Valley on the corner there, just before the buses went deregulated.

Used to have good summer busman weekend holidays down in the West Country to play cricket!