1890

Mayors Of Eastleigh 1890-99

1890

MAYORS OF EASTLEIGH 1890-99

At the end of the 19th century Eastleigh was a rural hamlet but the coming of the railways was about to change the face of Eastleigh forever, the town that grew up around the station and railway would need a new method of civic government.

1890

Home Farm

1890

HOME FARM

Adjacent to the new recreation ground Eastleigh's first town hall was to be built. Mr Thomas Chamberlayne offered 4 acres of land in Leigh Road to develop a recreation ground which was conveyed to the council 'To Eastleigh and to his seed for ever'.

1895

The Home Tavern Opposite the Train Station

1895

THE HOME TAVERN OPPOSITE THE TRAIN STATION

The first station house in the town still reflected Eastleigh's rural past. The London & South Western Railway company decided to bring its Locomotive and Carriage workshops from Nine Elms to Eastleigh.

1899

First Civic Offices

1899

FIRST CIVIC OFFICES

A growing new town needed a new method of government and the development of Eastleigh Council soon followed. Then, in 1895 the Urban District Council was created, with the first civic offices opening in 1899.

1899

Bishopstoke Elders

1899

BISHOPSTOKE ELDERS

In 1872 Eastleigh had been a settlement of two villages, Eastleigh and Bishopstoke, three taverns and a cheese market. As the new century dawned Eastleigh was to rapidly develop into an industrial centre.

1900

Mayors Of Eastleigh 1900-09

1900

MAYORS OF EASTLEIGH 1900-09

The advent of the railways led to a period of extensive development to provide houses for workers, churches, cemeteries, and other amenities that would be expected in an urban centre.

1900

Railway Foundry Works

1900

RAILWAY FOUNDRY WORKS

The local population was significantly boosted when not only the locomotive works moved down from Nine Elms in London but also its workforce.

1900

Railway Workers

1900

RAILWAY WORKERS

The railway works dominated the town and how the town itself developed with its grid shape of roads and rows of terraced house.

1902

The Foundation Stone of the Holy Cross

1902

THE FOUNDATION STONE OF THE HOLY CROSS

The foundation stone was laid for Holy Cross Roman Catholic church on Leigh Road in this year, replacing a temporary iron structure and the new cemetery was also laid out.

1903

Loco-works Aerial View

1903

LOCO-WORKS AERIAL VIEW

Bishopstoke Bridge was constructed in 1903 and the main loco-engine cleaning and running sheds transferred to Eastleigh from Northam in the same year.

1909

Locomotive Works

1909

THE LOCOMOTIVE WORKS

The locomotive works provided employment for 1100 people , the railways were the main provider of jobs in the town.

1909

Railway Workers Outing

1909

RAILWAY WORKERS OUTING

The railways company also provided entertainment for their workforce.

1910

Mayors Of Eastleigh 1910-19

1910

MAYORS OF EASTLEIGH 1910-19

As the 20th century dawned the town of Eastleigh embraced new inventions and technology from moving pictures to flying machines, but the decade ended with the conflict that became known as The Great War.

1910

The Picture Palace

1910

THE PICTURE PALACE

Cinema was one of the great inventions of the 20th century and Eastleigh had its first movie theatre in 1910 when The Picture Palace opened on Market Street.

1910

Aviation

1910

AVIATION

Pioneer aviator Eric Rowland Moon flew his man made monoplane Moonbeam Mk II from the field of what would eventually became Eastleigh, now Southampton, airport. Moon went on to join the Royal Flying Corp in the First World War, survived that action, only to be killed in a later accident.

1911

The Variety Theatre

1911

THE VARIETY THEATRE

The Variety Theatre was completed in 1911, with a stage, flies, dressing rooms and an orchestra pit. Its capacity was about 700 in the stalls and balcony. It opened on Whit Monday 5th June 1911 under the direction of R. J. Pollock. From 1914 films were shown on Sunday evenings at The Variety Theatre, as live performances were prohibited on that day.

1918

Clearing Hospital WW1

1910

CLEARING HOSPITAL WW1

A World War I Hospital for wounded soldiers coming back from the western front was erected on Leigh Road Recreation ground. Many of the horses going to the front were shipped down to the docks from Eastleigh Railway Station.

1919

Remount Depot

1919

REMOUNT DEPOT

Constructed in 1914 the Remount Depot was the largest in England, 40,000 horses and mules and 25,000 servicemen passed through en-route to the Front before it closed in 1920.

1919

Construction Workers

1919

CONSTRUCTION WORKERS

The Locomotive Engineers Club and Institute building opened adjancent to the Irish Society building, the latter a reminder that much work on the constru

1920

Mayors Of Eastleigh 1920-29

1920

MAYORS OF EASTLEIGH 1920-29

The ending of the Great War ushered in many changes, including votes for women, and in Eastleigh the investment in new amenities. Leigh Road Recreation Ground which during the war had been used as a clearing station had now been evacuated and the Council purchased for public use the slipper baths which had been erected on the site for the use of the troops. But the council were at pains to point out that a large proportion of smaller properties in the District had bathrooms or bath facilities of their own.

1920

Eastleigh Aerial View

1920

EASTLEIGH AERIAL VIEW

Aerial View of Eastleigh in the 1920's.

1921

The Atlantic Park Hostel

1921

ATLANTIC PARK HOSTEL

The Atlantic Park Hostel was constructed from redundant hangers on the airfield and became a transit camp for European immigrants who were emigrating to the United States.

1921

Pirelli Cable Works

1921

PIRELLI CABLE WORKS

Also in 1921 Pirelli Cable Works came to the town where it operated for 80 years until the site was developed for housing. The street names reflect the history of the factory.

1923

J. E. Willis Flemming Opening Monks Brook Bridge

1923

J.E. WILLIS FLEMMING OPENING MONKS BROOK BRIDGE

The amenities of the town were further extended in this year when both Fleming Park was created and the town hall was added to the Civic Offices.

1926

Surrey Flying Services

1926

SURREY FLYING SERVICES

Surrey Flying Services from Croydon brought their aircraft from Croydon to Eastleigh for air taxi work, joy riding and parachute jumping. A young lady who worked at Atlantic Park became the first woman to make a parachute jump at Eastleigh Aerodrome.

1928

Building Derby Road

1928

BUILDING DERBY ROAD

1928 saw the development of new council housing estates like those of Derby Road to house the growing population who came to the town to work on the railways and in Pirelli.

1930

Mayors during 1930 - 1939

1930

LORD MAYORS OF EASTLEIGH 1930 - 1939

This is the decade which began with the Great Depression and ended in the Second World War; it is also the decade when Eastleigh petitioned to become incorporated and in 1936 saw that wish granted when King Edward VIII signed the borough charter.

1930

The Town Hall

1930

THE TOWN HALL

The Town Hall contained a large Assembly Room with stage, dressing rooms, crush hall, buffet, severy and kitchen being used for dances, concerts, meetings, and charitable occasions.

1930

Barton Peveril School Dining Hall

1930

BARTON PEVERIL SCHOOL DINING HALL

Recreation was provided via an open air swimming pool at Barton Peveril and six recreation grounds plus facilities for football, cricket, hockey, rugby, netball, tennis, bowling and golf.

1930

Pirelli Factory Cable and Wrapping Shop Floor

1930

PIRELLI CABLE AND WRAPPING SHOP FLOOR

As well as the well established Railway works the other major industry in the town was The Pirelli-General Cable Works which covered some 27 acres of central Eastleigh and was the original place in England where oil-filled cable for ocean transmission was made.

1930

Pirelli from the air

1930

PIRELLI FROM THE AIR

In the 1930's, Pirelli employed more than a thousand people.

1935

The Public Library

1935

THE PUBLIC LIBRARY

The Urban District Council raised a rate of 2d in the pound for the library service, which had moved between various rooms until the Public Library was built in 1935.

1936

R.J. Mitchell and his team

1936

R.J. MITCHELL AND HIS TEAM

In the same year that Eastleigh gained its charter R. J. Mitchell and his team from Supermarine were test flying their latest design, which built upon their Schneider trophy-winning seaplanes. On the 5th March 1936 the first prototype spitfire took to the skies taking off from Eastleigh aerodrome. Edward VIII had landed at the airfield after examining the new fighter plane in Southampton.

1936

The Charter Souvenir

1936

THE CHARTER SOUVENIR

The charter petition was successful and the town became an incorporated borough in 1936 and remains the only incorporation enacted during the short reign of Edward VIII. The mayor had received a chain of office in 1934 presented by NALGO but in 1936 the rest of civic regalia, still in use today, was presented by a range of local companies and individuals. Pirelli Cable Works presented the Mayor's Mace.

1936

Civic Offices

1936

CIVIC OFFICES

There were two mayors in 1936 marking the change in the council's status.

1936

Mayors Regalia

1936

MAYORS REGALIA

The Mace [Pirelli Cable Works]; Silver Pen Holder [Mrs Tankerville-Chamberlayne]; Silver Letter Opener [Boys Brigade]; Clock [Limmer Trinidad Ashpahlt Co.]; Table Lamp [George Baker & Son] Georgian Candelabra [J S Sherwood]; ; Gavel & Plinth [Cllr R Benett]; Mayoress Badge [ W A Wright]; Silver Tea Set [Southampton Gaslight & Coke Co]; 17" Silver Salver [Lloyds Bank]; 10 ½" Circular Rose Bowl [National Provincial Bank]; 17th century style oak two door cupboard [Clifford Mathews esq].

1936

The Charter Celebration

1936

THE CHARTER CELEBRATION

1936

The Eastleigh Fire Brigade

1936

THE EASTLEIGH FIRE BRIGADE

The brigade had a captain and twenty men who were all kept on a retainer. There were 200 fire hydrants in the District each with an average pressure of water of 80lbs per square inch. The fire station was situated behind the town hall and was equipped with a Dennis Fire Engine which had a capacity of 400 gallons.

1937

Basque Refugee Children

1937

BASQUE REFUGEE CHILDREN

On Thursday 13th May 1937 the Southern Daily Echo reported that 'four thousand child refugees from Bilbao' were being sent to England, fleeing from the Spanish Civil War. Mr G H Brown of Swaythling Farm offered his 30 acre field for a refugee camp site which was situated on the left hand side of Bournemouth Road and north of Chestnut Avenue.

1940

Mayors Of Eastleigh 1940-49

1940

MAYORS OF EASTLEIGH 1940-49

The 1940s were over-shadowed by the conflict of the Second World War, Eastleigh played its part building spitfires and keeping up morale when local girl Christabel Drewry became the model for the strip cartoon Jane drawn by artist Norman Pett for the Daily Mirror.

1940

ARP Practice on The Pirelli Factory Roof

1940

ARP PRACTICE ON THE PIRELLI FACTORY ROOF

On the home front everyone had to do their bit and at the Pirelli factory as well as making parts for spitfires their ARP had to practise to make sure they were ready to deal with the effects of air raids on the town.

1940

Brian Simpson

1940

BRAIN SIMPSON

Brian Simpson worked at the main Eastleigh Spitfore works in 1946, where Mark 9 and 12 Spitfires were produced for Turkey, Belgium andother countries . Simpson worked on the last Spitfire which was delivered to the RAF in 1949.

1940

Lancaster Bomber at Eastleigh Airport

1940

LANCASTER BOMBER AT EASTLEIGH AIRPORT

Tragedy struck the airport when a Lockheed Hudson took off and collided with a barrage balloon the plane crashed into a house killing residents and flight crew. An unexploded bomb which fell on the airfield was defused and presented to the town where it was placed outside of the Town Hall and used as a collecting box for the local spitfire fund.

1941

Benny Hill

1941

BENNY HILL

After returning from evacuation in Bournemouth a young teenager started work at Woolworths in Eastleigh and then left to become a milkman at Hann's Dorset Dairies in the town. When he found out the local concert party was short of a member who had been called up he volunteered to take his place. Thus the career of comedian Benny Hill began.

1944

D-Day

1944

D-Day

D-Day is remembered for the invasion of Europe by allied forces the wounded were taken care of by nurses, like local girl Lydia Alford, who flew out to the war-torn beaches, they were known as the Flying Nightingales.

1945

V.E. Day Street Party

1945

V.E. DAY STREET PARTY

When peace in Europe was declared on VE Day street parties took place all over the country. The party in Hamilton Road, Bishopstoke took place in front of the air raid shelter.

1949

Post War Prefab Houses

1949

POST WAR PREFAB HOUSES

Due to the amount of bomb damage to public housing many people had to be housed in temporary accommodation called 'pre-fabs' such as could be found at The Hundred off of Chestnut Avenue, still in use in 1949 with their Anderson shelters visible in the gardens.

1950

Mayors Of Eastleigh 1950-59

1950

MAYORS OF EASTLEIGH 1950-59

The 1950s were a time of austerity, Eastleigh had to rebuild constructing new homes to replace those which had been lost in the war, but the town continued to expand, though some parts of the borough still retained its rural heritage. During this decade Eastleigh's first female mayor, Mrs E R Beavis took office.

1950

Councillor Olson discusses the Polish Refugees

1950

COUNCILLOR OLSON DISCUSSES THE POLISH REFUGEES

As part of this civic heritage project Cllr Olson has taken part in an oral history project to record his memories.

1950

Councillor Olson discusses the Hiltingbury School

1950

COUNCILLOR OLSON DISCUSSES THE HILTINGBURY SCHOOL

As part of this civic heritage project Cllr Olson has taken part in an oral history project to record his memories.

1950

Falcon Square Housing

1950

FALCON SQUARE HOUSING

The bombing during World War II had devasted the housing stock in the country. In Eastleigh new social housing was developed such as Falcon Square on the Aviary Estate.

1950

Barn Thatching

1950

BARN THATCHING

After the bleak years of the Second World War Eastleigh started to grow and build but still retained much of its rural heritage.

1951

1950's Police Car

1951

1950'S POLICE CAR

More people were able to afford cars including the local police force.

1952

Rural Eastleigh

1952

RURAL EASTLEIGH

Eastleigh still retained much of its original rural charm and it was not unusual for people to keep livestock in their gardens.

1958

Ramally Cemetery

1958

RAMALLY CEMETERY

In 1958 Ramally cemetery opened providing ¾ of a hectare of grassland with areas designated for Church of England, Roman Catholic, Jewish and non-conformists faiths.

1959

Heinz Burt

1959

HEINZ BURT

As the swinging 60s loomed Eastleigh's own pop star Heinz Burt was learning his craft with his local band The Falcons. He was spotted by the producer Joe Meek and went on to play with the Tornados on their space age inspired hit 'Telstar'.

1960

Mayors Of Eastleigh 1960-69

1960

MAYORS OF EASTLEIGH 1960-69

The 1960s were a period of change for Eastleigh as the country finally started to put the war years and post war austerity behind them.

1961

Councillor Godfrey Olson

1961

COUNCILLOR GODFREY OLSON

Cllr Godfrey Olson, Eastleigh's longest serving councillor became mayor for the first time. As part of this civic heritage project Cllr Olson has taken part in an oral history project to record his memories.

1961

Councillor Olson discusses the Nightingale Youth Centre

1961

COUNCILLOR OLSON DISCUSSES THE NIGHTINGALE YOUTH CENTRE

As part of this civic heritage project Cllr Olson has taken part in an oral history project to record his memories.

1961

Councillor Olson discusses the bombing during WW2

1961

COUNCILLOR OLSON DISCUSSES THE NIGHTINGALE YOUTH CENTRE

As part of this civic heritage project Cllr Olson has taken part in an oral history project to record his memories.

1962

Chestnut Avenue Cottages

1962

CHESTNUT AVENUE COTTAGES

In the early 60s the passion for modern architecture saw some of the old thatched cottages on Chestnut Avenue demolished.

1963

Councillor Olson discusses twinning Eastleigh with Villeneuve

1963

COUNCILLOR OLSON DISCUSSES TWINNING EASTLEIGH WITH VILLENEUVE

The 1960s saw a number of initiatives to strengthen the links of friendship between places in Europe. Eastleigh twinned with Villeneuve St George in France and Kornweistheim in Germany.

1966

Barton Peveril School

1966

BARTON PEVERIL SCHOOL

The Eastleigh Youth Centre opened by Princess Margaret. Barton Peveril also extended it's premises with new school buildings in the 1960s.

1969

Chandler's Ford Train Station

1969

CHANDLER'S FORD TRAIN STATION

In a sign of things to come, the end of the decade saw the closure of many smaller train stations including that of Chandler's Ford.

1970

Mayors Of Eastleigh 1970-79

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MAYORS OF EASTLEIGH 1970-79

The reorganisation of Local Government in 1974 brought about the biggest changes in Eastleigh since incorporation in 1936, Hamble, Netley, Bursledon, Hound, Hedge End, West End, Botley all joined the new Eastleigh Borough Council area.

1972

Chicken Hall Lane Generating Station

1972

CHICKEN HALL LANE GENERATING STATION

The industrial centre of Eastleigh was developing and a new generating station was built in Chickenhall Lane.

1974

Councillor Olson discusses the growth of Chandler's Ford

1974

COUNCILLOR OLSON DISCUSSES THE GROWTH OF CHANDLER'S FORD

As part of this civic heritage project Cllr Olson has taken part in an oral history project to record his memories.

1975

Civic Offices Construction

1975

CIVIC OFFICES CONSTRUCTION

1975 saw the construction of a New Civic Offices complex on the site of Home Farm on Leigh Road, with a state of the art new council chamber and new open plan offices.

1976

Princess Margarett Opening the Council Offices

1976

PRINCESS MARGARET OPENING THE COUNCIL OFFICES

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1977

Civic Offices

1977

CIVIC OFFICES

The building of the council's new headquarters was completed in 1977, no longer known as the town hall the new building was called the civic offices.

1977

Council Chamber

1977

COUNCIL CHAMBER

The new offices were considered state of the art with a modern design reflecting the 1970s.

1977

Civic Offices Interior

1977

CIVIC OFFICES INTERIOR

The old town hall had been made up of small individual offices but in the spirit of the modern world the new offices were designed to be open plan.

1980

Lord Mayors of Eastleigh 1980-1989

1980

LORD MAYORS OF EASTLEIGH 1980-1989

TThe 1980s saw increases in the population and the need to build more houses with estates at Boyatt Wood and the expansion of Hedge End from a sleepy village to a major residential suburb. The mayoralty they found themselves even more in demand supporting community endeavours like Borough in Bloom, and charitable events to raise funds for Botley Farm Museum, opening new carparks, planting trees or leading campaigns against litter.

1980

The First Word Processor in Eastleigh

1980

THE FIRST WORD PROCESSOR IN EASTLEIGH

The first word processor arrived in the civic offices and was installed outside of the Director of Administration's office. The machine was so noisy that the printer had to have its own sound proof box.

1980

New Housing

1980

NEW HOUSING

The 1980s saw increases in the population and the need to build more houses with estates at Boyatt Wood and the expansion of Hedge End from a sleepy village to a major residential suburb.

1982

Artist Impression of Crest Hotel

1982

ARTIST IMPRESSION OF CREST HOTEL

Round the World yachtswoman and best selling writer Clare Francis opened the new Crest Hotel with 120 bedrooms it was aiming to attract business travellers and week-end tourists.

1982

New Tourist Information Centre

1982

NEW TOURIST INFORMATION CENTRE

In 1982 the town's first ever Tourist Information Centre was opened.

1985

Council Chambers with Speakers

1985

COUNCIL CHAMBERS WITH SPEAKERS

A new speaker system was installed in the council chamber.

1989

150th Anniversary of Eastleigh Railway

1989

150TH ANNIVERSARY OF EASTLEIGH RAULWAY

1989 saw celebrations to mark the first arrival of the railway though Eastleigh 150 years earlier.

1990

Mayors Of Eastleigh 1990-99

1990

MAYORS OF EASTLEIGH 1990-99

Eastleigh entered a new phase of development in the 1990s, changes in industry saw a shrinking of the railway operation in the town, although it remains a significant part of the Eastleigh story.

1990

M3 Construction

1990

M3 CONSTRUCTION

In 1990, construction started on the new M3 motorway linking Eastleigh to the capital.

1990

Railway Workers

1990

RAILWAY WORKERS

Railways workers head home after a days work.

1993

The Last Eastleigh Passenger Unit

1993

THE LAST EASTLEIGH PASSENGER UNIT

1993 saw the last Eastleigh Hampshire Unit on passenger duties at Eastleigh Station.

1995

The Railay Man by Jill Tweed

1995

THE RAILWAY MAN BY JILL TWEED

The Railway Man statue by Jill Tweed, was the town's first major piece of public art it was erected in homage to Eastleigh's railway heritage. The statue is positioned not looking at the station but looking off into the distance, looking towards the future.

1997

Eastleigh Council's Website

1997

ASTLEIGH COUNCIL'S WEBSITE

Eastleigh Council launches its first internet site.

1997

The Point Theatre Opening

1997

THE POINT THEATRE OPENING

The opening of The Point Theatre after a successful bid to the National Lottery which enabled the capital conversion of the old council buildings to a 300 seat theatre and dance studio.

2000

Mayors Of Eastleigh 2000-09

2000

MAYORS OF EASTLEIGH 2000-09

The new millennium saw the council on the move again with the civic offices moving back into the town centre.

2000

Old Town Hall Remembered

2000

OLD TOWN HALL REMEMBERED

When the Town Hall buildings became the town's new theatre the original foundation stone was saved and moved to the entrance of the new theatre.

2000

Millenium Garden Celebrations

2000

MILLENIUM GARDEN CELEBRATIONS

Like many towns and cities Eastleigh had projects which celebrated the millennium. This included extending Leigh Road Recreation ground to create The Millenium Dancing Garden next to The Point.

2001

Demolition of Pirelli Cables

2001

DEMOLITION OF PIRELLI CABLES

Pirelli Cables premises demolished to make way for new housing, ending a hundred years of history.

2010

Mayors Of Eastleigh 2010-19

2010

MAYORS OF EASTLEIGH 2010-19

Eastleigh is still developing and changing but the mayor remains as the first citizen the final set of slides reflect the symbolism of the mayors office.

2014

Mayors Declaration Book

2014

MAYORS DECLARATION BOOK

Each new mayor is sworn in at an official mayor making ceremony each May.

20014

Acceptance Letter

2014

ACCEPTANCE LETTER

Each new mayor has to take an oath of office and sing an official acceptance letter.

2014

Chain of Office

2014

CHAIN OF OFFICE

The mayor wears a chain of office whilst at any official engagement during his year of office.

2014

The Mace

2014

THE MACE

Another important symbol of the mayoralty is the mace carried during mayor making by the mayors sergeant-at-arms.

2014

Mace Close Up

2014

MACE CLOSE UP

The mace, though now just a symbol, was originally a weapon to protect the mayor when on official business.

2014

The Robes

2014

THE ROBES

The mayor wears robes of scarlet and a tricorn hat during the mayor making ceremony, young visitors to the mayors office get the chance to try on the outfit.

2014

Document Cases

2014

DOCUMENT CASES

The mayors used to carry all important official document in a special document case.

2014

Civic Offices

2014

CIVIC OFFICES

After forty years the council offices moved back into the centre of the town to Eastleigh House. The mayor has an office in the new Civic Offices but moving with the times there is no longer a council chamber or parlour. This year also marks the 40th anniversary of the current borough of Eastleigh, and as part of the commemorations a new mayoral mace has been commissioned and is being created by Prysmian [originally the Pirelli company who donated the original mace] and local artist Carly Mann.