HIGH STREET - 1911 - 1932

Bannisters / Bridge Hotel / South Lane

Text By Laurie Stonehouse

The first three pictures are old postcards showing the local celebrations for the Coronation of King George V in 1911.The remainder were taken in 1932 and show the large store owned and run by Bannisters. The High Street is slightly different now, Bannisters store is long gone and the Barclays Bank building was demolished in 1981. The buildings in the photo following on from the National Westminster Bank to the corner of South lane were damaged during the Second World War and this area was rebuilt during 1953 when our present Queen ascended to the throne. The shops and flats that now occupy this site were aptly named Coronation Buildings.
One of my favourites is the one showing Bannisters & Sons shop which has many signs on display, can you read them? I've included a close up image of the shop window. Looking further down is a view onto Denton Island with a glimpse of the row of cottages known as Sefton Terrace. The Bridge Inn still has the gigantic words (HOTEL) on it's roof. (I'm not so sure that the Local Planning Authorities would allow this in 2009). The street name sign seen on the wall above the Southern Railway's Information Board says South Lane which was the twitten that ran from the High Street to Dacre Road (now South Way) and this twitten is still here in spirit modifed now to form the short walk into Newhaven Square and then along the path between Somerfields and the Multi-storey car park.

Photo:Coronation - 1911

Coronation - 1911

H Hills Collection

Photo:Coronation - 1911

Coronation - 1911

G Amy Collection

Photo:Coronation - 1911

Coronation - 1911

G Amy Collection

Photo:High Street - 1932

High Street - 1932

G Amy Collection

Photo:Bannisters / Sefton Terrace - 1932

Bannisters / Sefton Terrace - 1932

Edited from the top photo

Photo:South Lane - 1932

South Lane - 1932

Edited from the top photo

This page was added by Laurie Stonehouse on 27/07/2009.
Comments about this page

Does anyone remember when Bannisters became Sargents Grocers? My mum worked there part-time when I was at primary school in the mid-sixties. I used to go there after school when she worked in the afternoon and remember the old wooden drawers full of loose sugar, dried fruit etc. The grocery shop was on one side and the butchers on the other. A lot of housewives in those days would put their order in the shop and it would then be delivered by Percy Jenner, who was quite well known locally at the time. No plastic packaging then, things like bacon and cheese were wrapped in greaseproof paper and seemed to taste so much better!

By Helen Wagstaff
On 03/08/2009

Looking back at this, I've just realised that Sargeants was a bit further up the High Street and not where Bannisters was. The building is still there. Anyway, does anyone have any memories of it?

By Helen Wagstaff
On 05/09/2009

Helen was quite right, Sargeants was further up the High Street opposite what is now the HSBC bank, I worked there in about 1945, the grocers was on the ground floor and upstairs was the estate agents. This was run by two brothers , I remember one was Mr. Wally . After a few months I was transferred to "bottom Sargeants" where Mr. Tree was the manager.

By Anne Holden
On 05/07/2012

I remember the estate agents, but not who was working there in the 1960's. When mum worked at Sargeants, there were two managers, Mr Allingham and Mr Benison, or, Mr A and Mr B as they were affectionately known as by the staff. Mr Benison's mother had the tiny sweet shop at the Bridge Street bus stop.

By Helen Wagstaff
On 05/07/2012

Does anyone know what happened to the buildings to which 'South Lane' is affixed (last picture). Just after the war they were known to us small boys as the 'bombed buildings' and we played in the ruins which were screened from the High St by a large, impenetrable fence. I don't think they were bombed. Newhaven was, however, quite seriously damaged by the explosion of an ammunition barge under the cliffs near the breakwater about 1945. All the windows in the High St were blown out. I remember waking up covered in broken glass and debris one morning.

By Lionel Warnes
On 24/01/2013

I remember the bomb damage, the shop windows were blown out and all the cigerettes were damaged. I remember my mum, Mrs Warnes, drying them out while I was smoking them at 4/5 years old.

By Edwin Warnes
On 04/03/2013

My father once had a Saturday job in Bannisters, I suppose it must have been in the 30's. He used to tell that one of his jobs was to wash the maggots out of the meat.

By Ron Herriott
On 05/03/2013
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