Dear Resident, Please join us at Raynham School, Raynham Avenue N18 2JQ for a presentation in collaboration with FisherCheng and Enfield Council on plans to revamp our high Street night time economy and also discuss the Poetry trail from Angel Silver Street to The Meridian Water.
Our River Lea by Keith Mowatt.
The Lea has been our river, Since the days when we were kids,
There was something special about the Lea, As it governed what we did. //
There was always a sense of adventure, An exciting time for me, A bunch of youngsters
out for fun, When we all went ‘over the Lea’. // The joy we got from river traffic, Following
the barges along the bank, We’d watch cranes unload big tree trunks, Then watch them
cut up into planks. // If we were very lucky, And politely asked the man in charge, He
would sometimes let us hitch a ride, On board his horse drawn barge. // The seasons
played an important part, In all things we did, Swimming in the summer, And diving off
‘Chalk Bridge’. // Groping in the muddy bottom, To see what treasures we could find,
It’s surprising what folk throw in the Lea, ‘Out of sight, out of mind’. // One day we found
some metal ingots, While groping around in ‘the drink’, We sold them to the scrapyard,
As they turned out to be zinc. // We’d never had so much money, You’d had thought we’d
won the Pools, The cash we shared didn’t last very long, As we frittered it away like fools.
// No swimming when when the seasons changed, It’s time for hats and coats, As kids
we we still enjoyed the river, As it was time to sail our boats. // Most of our models were
of course homemade, In various shapes and sizes, Some of our models were destined
to fail, But there were one or two surprises. // It was considered to be a success, If your
boat reached the opposite bank, Some barely got halfway, Then capsized and sank. //
Never mind, it was all good fun, And experience would show, Next time we’d make a
better one, And have another go. // I cycled to the Lea a few weeks ago, To the place
where we used to swim, Supermarket trolleys, tyres and bikes were being dredged, By
the local Waterways team. // You certainly could not swim there now, The water looks
polluted, Goodness knows what lies on the bottom, Waiting to be uprooted. // The water
was clean when we were young, And fishing became our sport, The train took us to
‘Rye House’, Where our river meets the ‘Stort’. // We fished all stretches of the Lea, With
fellow anglers who were keen, All the way up to Hertford, Where it meets the ‘Mimram’,
‘Rib’ and ‘Beane’. // We’d shelter under the bridge if it rained, When we fished locally by
the ‘Cooks Ferry Inn’, The North Circular Road ran over the top, We didn’t seem to mind
the din. // If weekend fishing didn’t go as planned, Our disappointment was put to rights,
By Freddie Randall and his band, Who played jazz on Saturday nights. // Although too
young to go inside, We’d stand close to the door, And enjoyed the music being played, And
joined in the shouts for ‘More’. // On the land behind the inn, Known locally as the ‘Cooks
Ferry Hills’, We took our sledges and toboggans, When we were gripped by winter’s
chill. // The Lea was generally frozen, In the days when we were kids, With ice so thick
you could walk across, As many of my mates did. // The ‘Cooks Ferry Inn’ is no longer
there, Demolished long ago, The North Circular Road still runs over the Lea, In a layout
of new roads. // The roads approaching the Lea have changed, As the local roadmaps
show, The little used route over ‘Gasworks Hill’, Is now called Leaside Road. // Entered
from a roundabout, At the junction with Willoughby Lane, Where ‘Jamesons’ made their
chocolates, And ‘Solomons’ shoes were made. // A road, little more than a country lane,
Is now Meridian Way, Its now the A1055, And is busy every day. // You cross a major
junction now, On your journey to the Lea, And pass the land now being cleared, Where
the Gasworks used to be. // The land by the Lea is being prepared, A gradual clearance
can be seen, Along the banks where once we fished, For Gudgeon, Roach and Bream. //
8000 homes will soon be built, They’re going to build another town, All the woodyards and
factory estates have gone, And the offices pulled down. // Some serious dredging will have
to be done, And the banks will have to be altered, Building will soon begin by the Lea, A
new development called ‘Meridian Water’. // The new ‘Meridian Water’ station, On the
City to Hertford line, Is going to be quite popular, When trains run regularly on time. // The
station has already opened, And the effects will soon be felt, With commuters into London,
When all the new homes are built. // The river that we knew and loved, Will soon be
changing forever, Let’s hope the new folk look after it, And I hope it brings them pleasure.
Our River Lea Poetry Trail is a community heritage project proposed to connect Angel
Edmonton to Meridian Water, and the River Lea beyond. It is one of 13 projects to be
successfully funded by the Stories of Enfield grant, supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Local architects Fisher Cheng are collaborating with residents group REACT to bring the project to
fruition and would love your input in developing the trail. Come along to REACT’s November Residents Meeting to find out more about the project as well as to hear other local updates. Date: Saturday 13th November
Time: 2 – 5pm Venue: Raynham Primary School, Raynham Avenue, N18 2JQ
Complimentary refreshments will be provided.
Website: http://www.ourriverlea.co.uk
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/groups/ourriverlea
Instagram: @ourriverlea
REACT 