Comments on: Social divisions? The Fossway wall

By: Alex Hodson

Alex Hodson — Tue, 30 Jan 2024 17:23:34 +0000

Hi, as you mention, there was the Cutteslowe Wall in Oxford which was the best known such barrier, but there were others, including a wall in Downham, South London.

There’s a link our post on Cutteslowe and Downham here:
https://pasttense.co.uk/2018/09/10/class-walls-cutteslowe-downham-and-roadworks/

I will add a link to this page on Fossway…

Alex

By: Jean Dove

Jean Dove — Sun, 31 Jan 2021 08:32:33 +0000

I lived on Monkton road in the 50s and 60s. My parents had a bakery shop there. I do not remember a wall but do remember the blocks in the road. I also remember at that time the road was not well maintained and had to whatch out for pot holes when cycling.

By: keith carlton

keith carlton — Wed, 12 Nov 2014 21:05:49 +0000

Joy is correct in her assumption, private road maintained by the residents, although the residents took some persuasion in the late 70s to stump up for a ‘Frost Covering’ ie road surfaced tarred and gritted.
Ex 30 Monkton Road

By: Gary O'Neill

Gary O'Neill — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 08:08:20 +0000

I am chair of the residents committee (officially rather grandly known as the Muncaster Private Property Owners Association). The estate roads and barriers are maintained by subscription of the 109 residential households. We are currently giving consideration to maintainance of the barriers and are likely to seek a decision on any changes at the AGM in March 2015. It is likely to involve a presentation and I am looking for any photographs of the original barriers. Despite extensive research on-line all I have found is your website. Have you located any photographs I could use ??

By: YorkStories

YorkStories — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 20:03:08 +0000

Am glad you found it interesting Helen, thanks, I hoped you might. I have to thank the correspondent who emailed me about this originally, without that I doubt I would have registered the significance of the remaining bits of wall.

As there was obviously a similar example in Oxford, perhaps such physical barriers between private and council housing were quite common at one time in towns and cities throughout the UK? If anyone knows of other examples, please add a comment.

By: Helen Graham

Helen Graham — Sat, 11 Jan 2014 15:57:16 +0000

What a completely fascinating post – thanks so much Lisa for emailing it to me earlier on this week (and sorry I didn’t read it before now). As someone involved with York’s Housing Crisis group today – and as new housing developments are being planned – it seems very timely indeed to track back the ripples, divisions and outright exclusions generated through York’s previous waves of housing development. Thanks again Lisa.