King Street its shops and alleyways

Every school day for five years, I stood outside the main post office in King Street waiting for a number 10 or number 109 bus to take me to school. Strange that I remember so little about the street.

Vivish and Baker stood opposite the bus stop selling papers, books, artist materials and had a printing works at the rear of the shop. It was many years later when I married that I found out my father-in-law had been running this establishment all those years.

Down the side of this shop was an alleyway that we used as a short cut either to Gabriels Hill, or to the Granada cinema. I remember many Saturday mornings walking down this alley to the cinema and there sat an old man with a tin of envelopes. He would place a ten shilling note inside one and mix them up. You could pay him sixpence, and choose an envelope hoping that this would buy you the one with the note in. Surprisingly I never saw anyone win.

Haynes had an electrical store in King Street and if my memory serves me correctly it stood off the road a little way, next to a church. Someone tells me that the church is still there, cannot say that I have noticed it though.

Avery the weighing machine manufacturers had a showroom on the same side as the post office and next to Clarkes furniture store.

Photo courtesy of KFRS

Clarkes suffered a fire in 1994,the heat was so intense that the helmets of the firefighters were melting. Clarkes have now moved to the site previously occupied by the Wig and Gown public house in Week Street.

Next to the Ritz cinema was another alley that we always called Pads Hole. Next to the cinema was an antique shop, the front of this is still standing today, and next to that was Paynes pet shop. We bought tortoises here and took them home in a box; I think they cost the enormous amount of five shillings.

There were two large garages along from the cinema, one called Ansteys and the other called Miles.

Ansteys sold and serviced Austin cars and Miles sold and serviced Triumph and Morris. Not sure when but they amalgamated and became Anstey Miles. There were two further showrooms in Gabriels Hill and Lower Stone Street.

Cliff Vanns

Maidstone I remember it well: I remember my late Gran oh what a lovely old lady living at Number 80 opposite the (funeral directors) it was what they called an Almhouse (don't now why) no electricity lighting was by gas lamp. I think it is an employment agency now who ever agreed to that needs ******* this block of 4 houses should have been kept intact as they were so that school children especialy of today could see what it was realy like to have a tough time.

Jim Clinch

Maidstone I remember it well: Maidstone: I remember it well. I was born here in 1927. My family had a shop in King Street, 30, next door to the Baptist Church. The shop is still there together with the side passage that led down to a garden under the Baptist church east window. The shop was run by my great grandfather James Clinch, a tin smith, until he died in 1924. His son William took over until he died in 1945 when the business closed in 1945. The shop was full of tin kettles, saucepans, any thing made of tinplate. But nobody wants tin goods these days with aluminium and plastics. Has anybody got a photo of the south side of King Street? There are many photos of the north side, probably because it was in the sun.

Cliff Vanns

Maidstone I remember it well: I also used to work for Anstey Miles between 1967 & 71 at Tudor Garage on the London Road (Opposite Castle Way)& also at their workshop in King Street on the other side of the road from the ABC Cinema. Use to enjoy driving round the town (on road tests of course) in some really classic cars of the time, Triumph Stags, TR6's, Triumph 2000, as well as the Rover range they were certainly good days.

Vivienne Peen (Snow)

Maidstone I remember it well: Maistone I remember it well, I used to work at AnsteyMiles after they amalgamated, it was my first job on leaving Secretarial College, round about 1971. I remember going to the old Cinema and having to stand up for the national anthem. I also used to frequent the Wig and Gown, and met my husband there over 35 yrs ago. We were married at what used to be The Tudor House Pub along the A20 at Bearsted, and is now The Marriott Tudor Park Hotel.