 A packed audience in the Cleary Hall were privileged to be given a walk
through Deal from the 1920s to the 1940s thanks to one of our own
members, Christian Ball.
Starting with the ruins of Sandown Castle, which provided her as a
child with a delightful spot to sit down particularly on the way home
from picnics in Sandwich Bay, we were taken along Beach Street past the
Coastguards’ Station. Instead of the rows of cars parked along the
front that we see every day, instead boats would be pulled up all along
the road. At North Street there were houses on both sides of the road,
with the backs of those on the seaward side being right onto the beach.
Seagirt House, now long gone, had wonderful views and there was always
a hive of activity around the Boatman’s Rooms.
Indeed the word Christian used to describe the seafront, and also the rest of the town, was ‘bustle’. In fact, the whole place was bustling with the boatmen and the porters who were everywhere pushing their carts through the streets – carts selling milk, or shrimps (particularly on a Sunday when they were a treat for afternoon tea), fruit or vegetables, or carts to take your luggage from the station or your purchases home from the shops. And the shops … from memory Christian counted 10 gentlemen’s outfitters, seven grocers, eight chemists, six shops that sold women’s clothes and four cinemas.
But, to continue our walk… At the top of Griffin Street there would be a concert party every summer at which the entertainment was the ‘Prom pom-poms’. Deal Pier also provided opportunities for amusements for children who could enter the fishing competition for 6d each. Mr Rose, the tailor, had a shop with big windows in which the prizes were displayed. No child went home empty-handed, even if he or she didn’t catch a fish, as there was a barrow loaded with chocolate to be given out after the competition. One of the famous stories about the Deal Pier is, of course, when the ‘Norah’, the Dutch Ship went through it. Christian remembers it happening on what was a bitterly cold day.
Not all memories of Deal at that time were happy ones. Part of Middle Street, now the Middle Street car park, was badly bombed and six shops on the High Street were demolished by a direct hit. At that time she was working nearby at Stewart Dunn Photographics, which were situated on the first floor of the building, which is now Oregano, and also the other side of the Alley. Indeed, the curious little bridge across the alley was built by the company to enable employees to get from one part of the works to the other.
When Christian was young there used to be shops where the Duke Street car park is today, including a shop on the corner which sold 1st World War clothes. To this day she remembers the curious smell that pervaded the shop. And at the bottom of Water Street there was a high-class grocers, which was called ‘Teddy Midnight’s’, because it stayed open to midnight … and, of course, your groceries were delivered – a far cry from Sainsbury’s nowadays!
|
History 
