How long have you been in Chatham?  I've only been here one year now.

And where'd you come from?                                                                        

We come from Birmingham.                                                         

How long were you there? Twenty five years.                                                    

What made you come to Chatham? Better business, better area.                        

And people are more respectful and decent round here and things are better.

where do you come from originally? Jullundur India               

Otway Street. where the road narrows to pass through the railway bridge.

Little has changed here between 1980 and the present, the cars maybe!

Edward Street in 1980, and 2022,                                    

Much more foliage in 2022 than in 1980!                  

Hartington Street in 1980 and 2022                     

What do you think of all this new development here?

Well, at first I didn't like it, but now, you know, it seems a waste of our houses, so many houses and they’re only putting up a few, but now we've got used to it. I think its very good too, I don’t like these big flats, though, a lot of them along new road. They say the bad old days, I don’t know, we used to enjoy ourselves. Used to be quite a good old town there. Mind you, though, the pubs, they've halved since I was a young lad, nearly every house down the high street was a public house. I was on night work for about 40 odd years, then done night and day, sort of thing. I’m retired now, I like a little flutter, that’s it, as far as I’m concerned I’d like to stop here.

The Magpie Inn, in 1980, 2004, and 2021, by which time it had become the Magpie Centre, associated with the adjacent All Saints Church

A pair of derelict houses in Silver Hill, just off old road , in 1980, and nicely refurbished in 2021

Frank Mires’ Motorcycle shop in 1980, 2004, and 2021

Looking across the valley from Magpie hall road across to Luton road, and in the distance at the top, Longhill Avenue. In 1980 and on the right in 2021, Longhill avenue has acquired the controversial block of flats called Mathews tower.

The Junction between Chatham Hill and Luton Road, in 1980, before they widened the junction, Left. And Right, what the junction looks like in 2021, once the house on the left, along with others, was demolished. To take the photo from the same position, I had to be standing in the middle of one carriageway of  busy Luton Road!

There used to be quite a big shopping area along the road. Used to be. Yeah, used to be. Was that well used? That was well used. That was the co-operative on the corner of Luton Arch there. They were big shops there. They were all big shops there. What do you think the caused the decline?. Well, the whole point of it the way I reckon that out, is, they wanted to better themselves. They went down further down my Chatham high street and they're no more better down than what they were at Luton Road!

Luton Road, 1980 and 2022. Only the people have changed!

A bobby on the beat on his bike in 1980, a sight you don’t see now! Albany road leading to Luton Road, with the former Brickmakers arms on the left. Now a Chinese Takeaway in the picture on the right, taken in 2021

Luton High Street. The centre of the “Village” of Luton, which it still was to a certain extent in 1980, and in 2021, the shops have changed hands, the cars are different and so are the people!

Another view of Luton “Village” in 1980 and in 2021. The old forge on the right of the picture has gone, to make way for pavement widening, but is that low brick wall the last remains of the forge?

This must have been a village. It was a village. My mother and father, over there where that garage was, they were born over there. and I was born over there. when that was a farm. All that place over there that used to be a farm. All round the back of you was a farm, there was Crittenden’s farm up there. That was all farmland and You go along, you go along the road here, up here and just around the corner and go right out through the rec. You can see every situation, the brickfields we had to work in.

The Elephant and Castle pub on the corner of Castle road. and Luton Road, latterly a Chinese Take-away

The power station for the tramway system in Chatham and Rochester, as it still existed in 1980, alongside the bus station. All has now gone, to be replaced by a housing estate called, ironically “Tramways”

The Tam o Shanter pub, halfway up chatham hill Opposite the Tam-o-shanter, the last highway robbery was committed in Great Britain in about 1852. A footpad actually apparently not a mounted highwayman, held up a coach belonging to an Army officer or a doctor from the Fort Pitt area. 

“The site that I'm dealing with at the moment is a redevelopment site. It was a large area that was covered by compulsory purchase orders. Most of the houses were unfit back in 1970, It's called Maida Road Phase one. And I'm now working on the phase two. That site is bordering on the road and it comprises 52 flats and seven Invalid peoples bungalows.”