Doc D's moblog: 'We have no orders to save you'
by DocD
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Yes, yes people I have emerged from my self realised obscurity to bestow knowledge on all headz. Used ta be out and about now strictly lying low dispensing wisdom.
Too much going down to stay quiet, now all of us have to rise up and speak truth to power.
There has to be more to us than dhal roti and Nokia phones...
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Local history (DocD style)
But seriously though I used to play around here when I
was a kid. Don't remember da old Merton Park station
but definately remember the old railway track. It's
only afterwards that I found out about William Morris
and Merton Priory and all that stuff. My Mum used to
work in one of the nearby factories when we were kids
and there was big Paper Mill opposite the Bus Garage.
I went to Alphea Middle School (RIP) jus' down da road.
Both pics from some old Railways site I went on.
,merton,railways
Twiglet says:
I'm originally from SW17 myself but know Merton well. When married in the 80s we had a house in College rd Colliers wood and I witnessed the Board mills being pulled down and replaced with the Savacentre.
Certainly it is an area that has seen massive changes in 20 years, very few have improved the area IMO.
DocD says:
Used to have a mate on College Road. You're right the Wood has gone down hill. Used to have a Co-op and a couple of schools. Apart from da nice nature trail around da back of Fortescue Rd all I see is retail centres, ugly flats and more traffic.
kel says:
I've always been curious as to what a Collier was/is - I'm from near those parts too and it seems to come up loads in place names (e.g. just round the corner from my mum's house is a road called Colliers Water Lane).
Twiglet says:
As far as I'm aware a collier is a coal miner although it's hard to understand what connection this area has with mining!!
Twiglet says:
Having said that, I once heard that when the underground was expanding, London Transport "made up" names for certain areas. I have no idea if that's true but Mill Hill is supposedly one of the made up places. Perhaps Colliers wood is too.
DocD says:
Wilkpedia says that Colliers Wood takes its name from a wood that stood to the east of Colliers Wood Road approximately where Warren and Marlborough Roads are now located. This wood remained at least until the 1870s. Locally it was known for the charcoal that could be obtained there.
There also used to be a Italian place called 'Rehab Pizza'... Not sure if it's still there.
Edurne says:
ETA has declared a "permanent stop of fire"!!!!!!!!!
chris johnstone(chrisj66uk-at-hotmail-dot-co-dot-uk) says:
i lived in colliers wood (in newborough house) behind the old safari garage, i remember some of the old places i used to go to like the old houses where north road now stands and the old atkinsons scrap yard, the sewerage place and alphea middle school (which is now Alphea Place) i remember the old co-op... burge and gunson plumbing as it is now. I remember old Dr Devan as well.
Me and my friends used to build treehouses in the site of the old leather factory (connellys)which are now prestige apartments!The old wandle park was one of my other haunts.
chris johnstone(chrisj66uk-at-hotmail-dot-co-dot-uk) says:
does anyone remember the steam rallys the was held in wandle park during the 80's?
pearl says:
i was born in collierswood in the 50's - my great grandfather started the abbey cork mills (byrgrove road) and it stayed in the family till it was sold off in the 60's. my mother whos in her 90's was born in the stone cottage on the high street. visited last monthand couln;'t believe the changes - didn't recognise thenplace. would love to see some old photos of what it was like in my memories!!!