A Sentimental Journey
- No. 02
Ilkeston - Larklands
w/e 9 September 2007
All
this week's pictures were taken with a Kodak DX6490
Gonna take a Sentimental Journey, Gonna set my
heart at ease.
Gonna make a Sentimental Journey, to renew old memories.
A few weeks ago I was forced to seek refuge in a bus shelter
when the heavens opened and I was caught in a storm. The pictured
I posted on the Home Page taken from the shelter resulted in
a number of emails and instigated the start of this occasional
series. One such email came from former Ilkeston resident Bob
Martin whose "journey" does not cover a great distance
but takes a long trip down "Memory Lane" as he recalls
some thoughts of the area around the bus shelter on Park Road
from the time of his residency nearby.
The bus shelter now stands outside the Chinese Take-Away, the
Sun Wah which was formerly the fish and chip shop but Bob remembers
when the shelter was an open concrete structure further to the
left and nearer to the top of Green Lane.
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Before the days of twenty four hour drinking licences, the chip
shop used to do a roaring trade at closing time and attracted
much trade from the pub next door. The Larklands Hotel was built
around 1955.
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Drinkers also frequented the Larklands Club just a few steps
away on Green Lane which later became the Concorde. The inn sign
features a picture of the world famous supersonic aircraft with
the dipping nose but with its demise I wonder whether another
change of name will be forthcoming in the not too distant future.
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 On
the opposite side of Park Road across from the former chip shop
was the Larklands Mission. Bob recalls Wednesday nights there
when film shows were run by a man named Tom. Bob writes, "It
was mayhem in there, sometimes the projector would get knocked
by the kids running round, sending the picture flying across
the walls and ceiling!" Well they say what goes around comes
around and the Mission, after a period as a pottery warehouse,
is now used as a day nursery for young children and while it
may not be mayhem, I'm sure they have a lot of fun running around
inside.
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Bob also remembers rain storms from his time here and recalls
that a manhole cover at the end of Millfield Road at its junction
with Park Road would pop up under the pressure of the water.
There are now two manhole covers near the end of Millfield Road
but it looks as though neither of them has been lifted for a
long time.
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 Flood
water would (and still does) run down the hill like a river on
the pub/chip shop side of Park Road, continue into Green Lane
opposite the Post Office (left), pass in front of the Concorde
before running into St John's Road seen here on the left in the
picture above. And here, looking back up Green Lane is where
Bob's sentimental journey must come to an end.
Cue song:-
Never thought my heart could be so yearny. Why did I decide
to roam?
Gotta take that Sentimental Journey, Sentimental Journey home.
If you have a sentimental journey of your own that you would
like featured, email
a few details to me.
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