Transcript Detail
| Transcript Title | Smart, Lizzie (O2021.2) |
| Interviewee | Lizzie Smart |
| Interviewer | |
| Date | 01/02/2021 |
| Transcriber by | Lizzie Smart |
Transcript
Hertford Oral History Group
Recording no: O2021.2
Interviewee: Lizzie Smart
Date written: February 2021
NOTE: This is one of a number of self-recorded personal history transcripts. It is typed directly by the individual and, since it was not conducted by interview, is in a different format to that normally adopted by HOHG
Growing up in Leahoe Gardens in the 1950s/60s. Lizzie Smart (Dann)
Leahoe Gardens was a small, county council owned estate of maybe 20 or 30 houses, tucked away behind County Hall and Leahoe House at the bottom of a short hill. In the 1950s it was largely undeveloped. The house we lived in, number 3 had been converted from the old stable block along with numbers 1, 2 and 4. Little evidence of their former use was apparent apart from the shape and the hard, cold stone floor, awful for having a tantrum on. I once got up in the middle of mine to get a pile of cushions and continue. The small estate was a thriving community and an idyllic place to grow up, as there was a ready-made gang of children of similar ages and numerous very safe places to play. The various adults were known as Auntie this and Uncle That and shared childcare was common.
The children were encouraged to be creative. We organised small fairs, plays and dressing-up competitions which the Aunties and Uncles came to and bought things and watched and listened, seemingly enthralled. Somewhere my mother had a small black and white photograph of one of the dressing up competitions but I have no idea where it went.
In the 1950s the County Hall workspace was limited to the main building, the tax offices building, the county library and some offices in Leahoe house. Opposite our house was a field that you could walk across to access Wallfields where my Dad played bowls. When I was a very small child the milkman kept his horse, Silver, in this field. It was edged by what we knew as Little Wood, leading down to Pegs Lane. Much of the field was later built on to house a multi storey car park but I was able to watch squirrels in the beech trees outside my bedroom window until I left home.
At the top of the little hill from our house was an orchard. I remember not being supposed to pick the apples but of course we did. Sadly, this was built on in the early 60s and became a block of flats and a suite of garages.
At the rear of our back garden were the allotments. I had hours of fun as a child picking my Dad’s raspberries and scoffing peas. The allotments provided the venue for one of the annual community events; the November 5th bonfire and fireworks. Baked potatoes were roasted in the fire and the Thomson family, who lived in the nearest house, provided the cooked sausages. Everyone attended. Again, this land was later used to build another block of flats and this block irrevocably changed the aesthetic of the estate as it separated our stable block from the row of houses opposite at the end of the allotments and took away the bonfire space, stopping what had been a popular event and putting an end to home grown produce. We thought they were an eyesore too.
From the far side of the allotments it was possible to climb a steep path that led up to the sports facilities at the rear and side of Leahoe house. There was a bowling green, and tennis courts and the social club was on the ground floor of Leahoe house leading out to the tennis courts. They had an ice cream freezer there, which meant lollies on Sundays. In the freezing winter of 1962/3, Leahoe House was the only place we could access water and used to go up for a wash in the loos every day.
From the front of Leahoe House the road led onto the cricket pitch and pavillion with an excellent climbing tree to the side. There were matches most weekends and as my Dad was an umpire, I scrounged cricket teas. The cricket pitch was surrounded on two sides by what we called Big Wood. Big Wood was fringed by Bullocks Lane and Horns Mill Road and was fairly steeply wooded. One day we children found a discarded load of used sanitary towels and told one of the adults, who organised a search party for the tramp, we were sure had injured himself badly. I suppose it was easier than explaining. These woods in particular allowed us to resemble William Brown’s outlaws and we often met the local equivalent of the Laneites for wars. For most of us, I suspect it was our first tentative understanding of sex too, as pornographic magazines were also often dumped there until one of the adults found them and spirited them away to a more secure dumping ground.
Opposite the cricket pitch was a putting green and, provided we had our own putters, we could use it as often as we wanted. I don’t ever remember anyone other than us using it!
The County Hall building provided a playground all on its own. I learnt to roller skate (Christmas 1962 and I wouldn’t take the skates off, even to go to bed) and ride a 2 wheeler bike. The best places for these activities were the covered arches to the front of the building and the sweeping pathway around the rounded space at the end. (Was this a chapel? It had a magnificent stained glass window. ) This pathway led to a verdigris statue of a naked woman which we looked at with great interest!
No adults worried about us playing and we were free to go off in large gangs or small groups. It’s hard to imagine that happening now. There were enough of us to organise rounders games and enough big girls (always big girls) who were sensible and trusted enough to take us further afield to the swings in the Castle Grounds via the small alleyway that bordered the estate and separated it from West Street or walk us to and from school at Morgan’s Walk.
I suspect more of the sports pitches might be huts now. I seem to remember even before I left that the bowling green behind Leahoe house was converted. I returned in my 50s to visit the estate when I was in the area. What had seemed vast and exciting to me as a child and was usually full of children playing already seemed small and tired and was eerily quiet even though it was well past the end of the school day. It was dispiriting. Perhaps the best way to go back is simply like this and it’s been a really good trip.