Chelmsford walk

Nine of us assembled at the Stone Bridge to meet our guide for the walk, Chelmsford expert Alan Pamphilon.

From the Stone Bridge we walked to the Town Sign at the junction of the High Street with Springfield Road. Alan reminded us that at one time the Conduit rotunda stood at this spot. When the borough council (as it then was) decided to demolish it, local opinion caused the council to move it to its current site in Tower Gardens instead. At that time vehicles could still drive along the High Street, so a policeman would be on duty at the junction to direct traffic.

From there Alan led us up the High Street, pointing out the interesting buildings and saying something not only about them but also about former occupants. What is now the Range on the eastern side of the High Street at one time housed Bonds department store. Mr Bond acquired four adjoining shops and made them into one. He had window displays not only on the ground floor but also on the first floor. These were designed to be seen by bus passengers; double decker buses halted at the stop immediately outside the store.

On the opposite side of the street was a rival store, Bolingbroke & Wenley. Mr Bolingbroke and Mr Wenley originally traded from separate premises in Moulsham Street but, since their businesses were complementary, decided to combine them into one department store when they moved to the High Street. Like Bonds, this was formed from different shops that had been joined together. However, in the case of Bolingbroke & Wenley, as well as each floor being on different levels as one moved from one of the original shops to another, they also sloped! Alan recalled the white goods on display leaning at angles.

Another shop on the western side of the High Street was owned by the Montague Burton tailoring company, later known simply as Burtons. Since all their suits were made at a factory in the Midlands, the shop was smaller than would be necessary if tailoring was done on the premises. Burtons liked all their shops to have a uniform appearance. Although the shop has changed hands since, the upper floor is still in Burton’s art deco style.

The Saracens Head Hotel is a well-known feature of the High Street. This was built as a coaching inn, as can be told from the large central arch. Visiting judges hearing cases at the courts in Shire Hall would stay there as it was one of the best hotels in Chelmsford.

When the hotel closed it became the local fire station. The fire escape ladder made the fire engines too large to fit through the arch. The ladder was therefore stored in Moulsham Street. If it was needed, the firefighters would have to drive the fire engine to Moulsham Street to pick it up.

Towards the end of the Second World War, the premises were used by the American Red Cross as a hospital for fifty American airmen. Obviously they needed feeding, so the Red Cross advertised locally for catering staff. They had 150 applicants! Perhaps the American airmen were an attraction for the young ladies.

After the war it was restored as a hotel but is now empty and in a rather sorry state.

The Shire Hall at the top of the High Street dominates the area. This very attractive building is now owned by the Shire Hall Trust. Later in the year they will be consulting local groups about the future of the building. One of our number suggested that we could hold the dinner celebrating the centenary of Rotary in Chelmsford there in 2027.

We stopped in Tindal Square near to the statue of Judge Tindal, who was born in Chelmsford. He served as a judge under Queen Victoria. While presiding over a criminal trial in Chelmsford, he stopped the case, saying “I cannot try this man. He is insane.” This was the start of insanity as a defence in criminal cases.

One of the cannons captured at Sevastopol stood outside what is now HSBC, pointing towards Duke Street. Some students loaded it with a blank and fired it, causing damage to nearby buildings and street furniture. After this the muzzle was blocked and the cannon moved to Oaklands Park.

Sadly, Tindal Square is not as it might have been. The buildings around it, including the Corn Exchange, all had Georgian facades. These days they would be valued but they disappeared with the remodelling of the town at the end of the 1960s.

From Tindal Square we made our way down Tindal Street. This is narrow but was at one time full of business premises. The White Hart occupied part of the western side. In its day it was the best hotel in Chelmsford.

Alan drew our attention to some of the photographs on Boots’ outside wall, which were of Tindal Street and the adjoining area. [I have passed them many times without paying them much notice. I am now persuaded that they are worth studying. Webmaster]

Tindal Street brought us out to Half Moon Square, named after a small pub that once stood on the northern side. One of the things we noticed about Alan’s talk was the number of pubs he mentioned.

A short stroll then took us to Bell Meadow. Alan told us that there were houses down to the river but that these were demolished in 1969. A year later and the council would not have been allowed to do it.

We said goodbye to Alan at Bell Meadow. Some of our number then had to leave but four of us remained to make our way back to the top of Tindal Street for lunch in Cote, which was very enjoyable. We may go back there on another occasion.