The Best Guide for the Portsmouth Area

Building the Motorway and More Developments

By Barry Jenson 

I think one the biggest changes to this whole area over the year's has been the building of the M27 which cuts through the Paulsgrove housing estate.

When this was constructed,there was an enourmous conveyor belt running from Portchester hillslopes, through Paulsgrove and was suspended over Allaway Ave,The railway line and over the Southampton Rd.This conveyor belt finished at the position of the IBM main offices. The belt carried the chalk that was dug out of the side of Portsdown hill which formed the motorway cutting above Portchester.

Also,all of the seashore behind and to the left and right of the Harbour Lights Pub has been reclaimed. This used to be a lovely area to walk but now sadly has gone forever along with Housing that was along that stretch of the Southampton Rd. A fair number of large factories that were along the Southampton Rd in Paulsgrove have all gone. There was C&A which had a factory just to the left at the bottom of Racecoarse Lane . This has been gone along time ago.The Racecoarse Snooker Club occupies the top level of this former factory. Smith's Crisps had a factory opposite Mother Kelly's at the bottom of Connaught Lane. There is housing on this site now. And over the last few years, the Johnson&Johnson factory has been demolished to make way for new industrial businesses. The huge area that was once the Paulsgrove foreshore,has now been turned into A Tesco superstore with also alot of other small businesses, most being of the legal profession.

Horsea Island has also changed from being a school for Naval Firefighters to a place from which you can become a scuba diver and i believe they also teach wind surfing. It is still in the hand's of the Navy but i believe they do allow outside club' to use the facility? Perhap's i am wrong.When I was a lad, I can recall there being a lot of radio antenna's all over the Island. I am almost sure this was on Horsea Island.

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Comments

Mick B

At 21:04 on 28th November 2007, Mick B commented:

I remember the single storey "Prefabs" in Beverston Rd and Falmouth Rd being pulled down to make way for the motorway. I lived in Beverston Rd from 1956 to about 1977 ish. We used to play on the field between the 2 rows of Prefabs which took the course of the soon to be built motorway and street games in the road which wasn't very busy in them days. We gathered wood and whatever we could find that would burn to make our Bonfire on Nov 5th. We had some competition from the one at the top of Hillesley Rd sometimes.

My Ex maths teacher (Colin Chuter) lived on the corner of Beverston Rd, now promoted and works in Priory School Fratton.

Anyone remember the Submarine which was beached in the area around Horsea Island? We used to hear all sorts of tales about what it was, and where it came from. I never did find out the real story of it. I wonder if anyone exactly knows what it was and it's service career?

Berts Cafe...(Now Mother Kellys) Used to be opposite Smiths Crisps. some lads I know used to skive off school lunchtimes and go there for lunch. Were school dinners really that bad??

How the waterline has changed in the area in the last 30 years.

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Lockwood J

At 21:48 on 28th November 2007, Lockwood J commented:

As an ex PO6 lad and the last Police Traffic Warden in Cosham High street.
I was pleased that there are still people in the Cosham area who can recall places and people.

I went to Manor Court school with my twin brother Stephen and sister Julie, i can also remember Mrs Pipe, Mrs blitz, mr bennett and most of the teachers from the early sixties.

Also can anyone remember the day they a couple of WW2 mines under the railway bridge over the creek. Us lad must have fought the war over so many times that day we all slept for hours afterwards, Oh happy days..

Regards

John Lockwood now living in Chesterfield Derbyshire

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les p

At 17:50 on 31st March 2008, les p commented:

hi i remember them prefabs and when they cleared them out as you made your way along the path to get to school and nearly every day somebody had moved out and left them empty,how many did what most did throw stone breaking every window that you could seen,then going home you come back with a fork or spade digging the plants up to put in your garden.Berts cafe what a dirty place that was,what got me is lorry driver stayed the night there.
that road outside was as bad as the M27 is now trying to cross to get to portchester castle.

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Mick B

At 11:42 on 25th February 2010, Mick B commented:

I also remember people that actually rode on the conveyer belt the carried chalk to the IBM site. Not me though. A while ago I went back to the area I used to play in, and visited Hillesley Road shops, Oh wow!!! They had changed a lot. A friend Garry Martin used to live above the old Co-op there at some point. I remember the old lady with the deep rough voice that used to work in the Spar shop at Hillesley Rd. Cant remember her name though. Time for a re-visit soon I think (it's now near the end of Feb 2010), anyone wanna join me?

Mick Bradley

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