Longford (inc. The Red Hills)

Just a little anecdote about Longford that may interest Kaga. When I managed the newsagents shop on Longford Bridge in1963-4, I once had an old gentleman come into the shop and told me that he used to be a paperboy there in 1914. He told me that he finished his round at 4pm each day. This would have included going as far as Hawkesbury I believe as we were delivering to Grange Road and Sutton Stop in the 1960's. Before my family took over that shop it was owned by Mrs Spittle who I believe had been there a long time as she was very old when she sold it. Kaga may know of her.

Hi there LongfordLad. On your mention of Longford Orchard you stated the 20A bus was Longford and Bedworth bound. I need to correct this because the 20A went down Windmill Road to Manor House estate. I know this from living in Windmill Road for a very long time! Cheers (don't mean to be petty!)

Longford Lad. Wasn't it a yew tree. rinkbiker, I think you're rather young, the 20A never went down Windmill Road during my time in Coventry, it followed the trams and went to Bedworth, but someone will tell us when it changed.

The following page, Bus Service 20/20A, shows the history of bus route 20A and it seems it did use Windmill Rd starting in 1957.

And just to add to the confusion 20A is currently using Windmill Rd, and 20E is terminating at Longford (Oban Rd).

And to add even further to the confusion . . . the o p said no.20, not 20A

Midland Red, I did say I thought he was rather young, meaning we are talking of different times. According to that time table the 20/20A started in 1940 to replace the trams, didn't go down Windmill Lane till '57, a span of 17 early years. Not surprised the trams were taken off the route, the tracks were blown up right outside the Foleshill depot. Rinkbiker, Dan Tebutt was in my class at Foxford School 1930's, could it be the same Dan? Hey, I was pushed or walked down Windmill Road regularly, let's say from Aug 1927 and all through the thirties, that was the time when you could buy a plot of land in Windmill Road Cemetery for a few shillings. Argon, I recall going in the shop a few times, but it is more likely I may have known Mrs Spittle as a young girl.

Hi. Just a few memories about the river Sowe after it emerges from under the old gasworks. At times there was so much oil and such I'm sure you could have run a diesel engine off it! About 200 yards along its course it was joined by a much cleaner stream that came from the rear of the Vinecote Road and Red Hills direction. It was in this stream that us boys from St. Thomas' Road used to fish for sticklebacks with a small cane, cotton, a matchstick for a float and a worm! Who needed video games! Now, we used to transfer our fish catch in a bucket and carry them to the river at the bottom of our street in order to stock it up and save us a long walk to the fishing grounds. It was a sad mistake for the fish, because of the oily pollution from the original river Sowe we never saw one living fish in the area again. I am talking about 1950 when austerity was pretty rife and you had to make your own fun. Try telling that to grandkids who play these video games and the only exercise is the thumb! Gawd 'elp us! Cheers.

rinkbiker It was St Thomas' Rd I visited in 1927 onwards to 1944.

Does anyone remember the fire on Lady Lane at a old historic house where the first prototype engine was made. The fire destroyed this building. It was left standing for years until it was demolished completely to build new housing recently. I remember watching the fire at this building. It must have been over 20 years ago. I was only little. Sheep were kept in the field beside it for sometime. I grew up in Longford and lived on Lady Lane at number 17 and number 9 The Croft until I was around 11 when we moved to Alderman's Green.

LauraCovFan, You sound very young. There was also a Lady Lane behind the 'slough' back in the 1920/30's, and there is a topic called 'Wyken Slough' you might find interesting if you have not found it already.

Helen - most of your dazzling posts are several centuries before all the rest of the posts about factories etc, but the most dazzling of all to me is your post 3, when you said "The street is a swine". But I haven't heard that in 70 years and takes me back more than 80 - Coventry saying, Longford saying, the skating rink saying. The Longford skating rink in the thirties, you could hear the noise before you got near. You opened the door and was met by a loud blare of noise - laughing, screaming, crying, shouting, the thump of bodies hitting the barrier, the noise of the skates and the din of a cracked waltz record, bodies tumbling, moving in an anti-clockwise movement round a small oval rink, the pushing and shoving to get skates, dozens of bodies all trying to get between the barrier and the skate counter. You knew you would get bumps and bruises but still eager - you were given a pair of skate boots, any size between 6-10, too much of a hurry to sort out both by you and the attendant, then a dozen of you trying to cram on to a bench that held 6 to sit and put on the skate boots and then everywhere kids were saying "These boots are a swine to put on" - one of the most popular sayings used in Longford in the thirties. A pretty young Longford girl sat on the end of the bench, pretty but 'stuck up', a bit of snob, frustrated she said "Damned swine" then turned to see if any one had heard - guilty - and smiled. Just made my day. I smiled "Sods ain't they. Ta-rah".

I lived in Longford in an area that was a farm in your day Kaga, not far from where the railway crosses the main road.

A nice tram passing under the railway bridge at Longford.

I like the photo Prof. It took me back to the times when I used to deliver newspapers to those houses in the early '60's Good memories, except that I also remember the persistant smell that came, some days into our shop on Longford Bridge, from DeMulders factory in Woodshires/Wilsons Lane I forget which. Looking at a present day Google map of that area I was surprised at how much had been demolished in the name of progress. My father in law had a small factory in Sydnall Roadnext to the railway bridge, now part of an industrial complex as I see it. Sometimes I am glad that I no longer live in the old town.