NEWHAVEN IN 1920

Aerial picture taken 100 years ago

By John Hills

Our Newhaven pictured here in 1920, this is believed to be one of the first aerial pictures of the town, showing a lot of the buildings we have lost in the past 100 years.

Most of the houses and business properties back in 1920 were supplied by gas for cooking and lighting, except for one! The only house connected to electricity at that time was a house in Western Road, which is just to the left of a white flag pole shaped like a cross at bottom centre of picture 2. This property was connected to the D.C. electricity from the London & Brighton Railway Company supply on the East Quay. The cable ran under-water across the river, buried in the mud from the East Quay to the West Quay and emerged just south of the old coal wharf, from there it was suspended between white poles on its way up to Western Road.

In the second picture (bottom right) you can just make out two of the white poles one either side of the old boys/secondary school in Bay Vue and a third just left of the house it served. 

Later on in the 1920's quite a few properties in the town had their electricity supply from the railways electricity supply on the East Quay. Early in 1930 Newhaven had its own power station built in New Road, the main grid nationwide grid supply arriving a lot later in the 1940's.

The main electrification of the town started in the early 1930's, with the  bulk of the infrastructure of the network work being carried out by the Newhaven & Seaford Electricity Supply Company which was based in Claremont Road, Seaford.

Initially each house was allowed 3, ceiling lighting points and 1, 15amp power socket usually fitted in the kitchen.

The very last property in the town connected to 220v D.C. supply from the railway network, was the Ark Inn on West Quay. This was finally converted to the standard 240volt A.C. supply in the late 1960's, by a local firm H. J. Hills who previously worked for the Newhaven & Seaford E. S. C. installing H. V. mains cables locally.    

Both pictures are clickable if you wish to see them in greater detailed.