Firemen outside Eaglescliffe Fire Station in June 1944. Names we know are E.Pickles, Mackey, G. Dale and A. Muff. Anyone else you can put a name to?
Picture Stockton Archive
A Pictorial History of Stockton-on-Tees
Firemen outside Eaglescliffe Fire Station in June 1944. Names we know are E.Pickles, Mackey, G. Dale and A. Muff. Anyone else you can put a name to?
Picture Stockton Archive 
I know I’m late to the party but the fire station was located where the four bay windowed terrace houses stand next to the shop, on Elmwood road.
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The group of four bay windowed houses #36 – #42 Elmwood Road, seem to predate these fire station photos. I thought the station could have been where the shop and two neighbouring properties #30 – #36 are, as they are more recently built. In 1930’s images and maps this area is shown as open space with no buildings.
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Having spoken to my farther (lol) the Fire station was joined to the bay windowed houses. You can actually see them in one of the photos. When it was demolished, the building next to it was also demolished. This left space for the two additional terrace houses and the shop to be built. You can see the shop and terrace houses have obviously been built at the same time.
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Aerial Photo – EPW038905 :- this shows nothing on the left of the fire station. So the fire building pre dates the terrace houses.
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Aerial Photo EPW038905 is dated 1932, so I don’t think the fire station had been built yet?
In that photo you can only just see one corner of the vacant plot on the corner of Laurel Rd.
If you look at EPW038904 (also 1932), you can see: the terrace of bay-windowed houses (#36 – #42) that were later to be adjoined by the fire station, and those are still there today; the school behind on Laurel Rd; and on the corner in-between is the vacant plot where the fire station and mystery building are yet to be built. As you say, after the fire station & building next door were demolished the plot was redeveloped, eventually ending up with the shop and the two neighbouring houses we see today.
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I think this July-1945 image fixes the position of the fire station, as being on the corner of Elmwood Rd & Pinewood Rd, where the shop and two neighbouring properties are today.
https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/archive/collections/aerial-photos/record/raf_106g_uk_481_rp_3027
I just noticed that there must have been room to accommodate 3 vehicles (Dennis Fire Engine, Austin K2 ATV, and another with only part of its cab just visible in photo 2), so a fairly large station for a residential street.
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Hi James what a great picture and site. Looking at other pictures from the site it shows large buildings on the right of the fire station?? I think Laurel Road didn’t exist until much later? It shows Witham Hall and it’s actual size. The only part left 1975-80’s was half of the out building facing the railway. Have spoken to some people in their 80s that have lived in Preston all their lives and have no recollection of the hall? Strange as it was massive?
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A correction, it was actually on the corner of Elmwood Rd. & Laurel Rd., not Pinewood Road, that was on the other side of Elmwood Rd.
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The Dennis Fire Engine registered number DPT 864 was registered in Durham in 1938. “1” was registered in April and “999” registered in December of that year. Therefore this must have been registered in the month of September or October or thereabouts.
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Not a 100% sure but I think they were called Pugh, Pugh, Barney McGrew, Cuthbert, Dibble, Grubb… 😉
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Where was Eaglescliffe fire station?
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Having looked around Eaglescliffe using Google Earth’s Streetview, I think that the Fire Station was based in Elmwood Road. Go along Elmwood Road heading west, and look at the property on the corner of Beechwood Road at its junction with Elmwood Road. The size, design and location of the upper front windows, and the roof-line at the side, are identical with the house that appears in the Fire Station photo.
The other photo shows houses behind the Fire Station with angular bay windows to the ground floor. These match those houses on the north side of Elmwood Road. A map of Elmwood Road in 1930 shows an area of open space on the north side of the road where the wooden garage could have been built for the Fire Service.
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Hi Cliff, great minds… 🙂
(see my reply to Chris)
On Google Street View, you can even see the dirt marks left on the brickwork by the black box that’s mounted near the right-hand window sill in the photo.
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What would we do without good “old” Google Earth !
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No idea but my father was one of the DRIVERS at the Stockton Fire Service and we are talking STOCKTON, not one of the nearby local places. I was born in Stockton and lived and grew up there until I got married, my mother was in her 100 year when she was taken from me just wish she could have reached the 100 card from the queen.
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Ref The comment from Margaret Fox was your father Freddie Fox if so he worked with myself Ronnie Dixon (killed whilst fighting a fire probably one of the best fire men I ever saw) Ken Jarvis, Arthur Abbot, Cyril Spears, Jim Boland. I mention these names because most of them were ex Navy. Peter Stainthorpe
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I think this could be the small brick building next to the P&E Club on Albert Road and also next to The Locomotion pub ? It certainly looks possible on Google Earth Street View !
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A beautiful Dennis possibly a Dart chassis pre war hence the starting handle. The Box Van behind with NFS painted on it (National Fire Service) as it was called during the War would be an Austin truck chassis.
The Dennis went on to make Trucks and Fire Engines after the war producing a forward control cab version that fooled me the first time i got in, the gear box was the reverse of the standard truck box.
Good reliable trucks with many different modes a lot became Municipal Vehicles with various uses, they also built Tanks and Carriers during the war.
Another British Make that is now under the M.A.N. label.
Frank.
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Dennis motors is still in business in Guildford, Surrey.
They merged with Alexander coachbuilders to become Alexander Dennis and the group also includes Plaxtons from Scarborough. The group appear to be owned by NFI a Canadian outfit and not M.A.N which is, I believe a German manufacturer.
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Very nostalgic and clear shots. (I once knew an eccentric man who actually owned TWO appliances very similar to the one here.) Can anyone advise where in Eaglescliffe was this fire station located, please?
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I have no idea where it was but having looked at these photos, I think it could have been on Elmwood Road. https://goo.gl/maps/VkwT91rctpSRPoFw6
I can make the houses in the background of the first photo match up with those on the corner of Elmwood & Beechwood, which would place the Fire Station near where the shop is. The second photo has houses with bay windows which also matches the older properties on Elmwood Roadd. Just a guess. 🙂
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