This article was first published in the West Sussex Gazette on November 30th 1995.

'Her house, almost opposite the Congregational Chapel in Tarrant Street, was the first telephone exchange in Arundel. Her mother operated the board during the day, and she helped when she got home and took the emergency calls at night. There weren't many phones then, but sometimes she had a busy time.'

Ron Greenwood (74) recalling his infant years at Arundel in the 1920s and early 1930s and referring to Letitia (Letty) Hills, deputy head of the local school and a disciplinarian to boot. Other teachers from his schooldays of 60 years ago included: Miss Breech, Miss Weedon, Mr. Roberts (a Welshman), and Mr. Cowd the headmaster.

'I remember how far children had to walk to school then. The Denyers, for example, I seem to think had to walk from South Stoke and back again each day; and another child from Warningcamp had a long walk too, that could have been Basil Chitty.

'On very foggy or snowy days in winter the teachers would tell the children with a long walk home, to be off at 3 pm while they could still see their way. Can you imagine walking that distance in pouring rain? One boy came from Madehurst but I seem to remember that after a short while he did get some sort of transport - in a delivery van that coincidentally arrived just at the right time for him.'

'I remember that on Saints days Standards 4, 5 & 6 went to St. Nicholas Parish Church for a service and on other special days as well. I was a very regular attender on Sundays and in my time was in the choir, served the altar, pumped the organ and stoked the boiler in winter. I did the last job to help poor old Mr. Dalton the verger who had a very bad chest and could not cope with the sulphur fumes when clinkering out the boiler fire.

'Once a month the assistant priest, Rev.Ullathorne and I got on our cycles early Sunday morning and biked to Tortington to give Communion to about six people in the little church there. It was fine in the summer but winter was a different story. The Ford road always seemed to have a foot of snow on it. Rev. Wynne, the Vicar, never went.

Ron has many happy memories, for as children they had practically no fear of strangers because no-one was ever hurt as they are today.

'We could go anywhere at any time and without fear. Sometimes a child would go astray and then every able-bodied man turned out to search for them. Usually they were found unharmed, just lost.

'I used to look forward to the fair coming and setting up in the field that was between the river and the Chichester road, I think that was called Spring Dyke or Spring Dick. The former would have been more likely as a stream from the watercress beds in the Water Woods came through there and via a ditch or dyke into the Arun.

'When Goodwood Races were on we would go and stand up on a wall where the Chichester road went up hill and wait for the stagecoach with its four horses and the man behind with his long horn to come through on its way from Brighton. We would shout out to the race-goers on board 'throw out your mouldies' and they would shower us with pennies and other coins.'

Pocket money was never lavished on working class kids in those days. What little their fathers earned was needed for essentials.

'Pocket money for most did not usually amount to more than two old pence in the course of a week and that was for the chores that were allocated.'

Happy days in hard times for children growing up in the 1920s and 1930s.

In next week's penultimate episode of Ron Greenwood's memories read about fuelling the home fires and some Arundel shopkeepers of 60 odd years ago.

This article was first published in the West Sussex Gazette on November 30th 1995.

Proud line-up: Arundel Scouts and Cubs outside their thatched headquarters in 1933. First on the right, back row, is one of the Cowd boys (Mr Cowd was school headmaster). Ron Greenwood stands next to him. Second right third row is Jim Hammond, who lived down by the river bank next to Haggetts builders yard. Centre front row is Dick Haggett, whose father owned the aforesaid yard.
Since this article was published, Mr H W Mills of Arundel came forward in May 2001 and identified some more faces:-
Front row: Eddie Franklin, Dick Haggett, Jack Swaffield, Cliff Beasley.
2nd row: Ray Read, Ernie Treaghs, Jack Daughtrey, Miss Kensall, Mrs Parsons, Skipper Phillips, Bill Ayling, Frank Kendall, Jim Hammond, Bert Mills.
3rd row: Cyril Alsford, Mervic Attwater, Bob Haskett, Tom Finch, Gordon Alsford, Ralph Blackman, Jim Daughtrey, Ted Kensall, Fred Campbell, Ray Swaffield.
Back row: Geoffrey Cowd, Fred Swaffield, another Franklin, Charlie Woolgar, Ron Greenwood, Tony Cowd.