Another one in the series of "Where did it all go wrong?" ...

Flicking through the book on Manningtree Station last night, I noticed this photo of the Station Arms from 1911:

Apparently this was the station pub until 1973, and the back left of the photo you can see the roof covering platforms 1 and 2, and the station building itself.

The pub was supplied by the Cobbolds (Who incidentally made Ipswich Town FC into a successful club - it was said that the only time the club was ever in crisis under the Cobbold's was when the boardroom ran out of sherry! One of the stands at the ground is now named after them), a local brewery, and also supplied bed and breakfast. Just behind the pub (To the right) the roof of the station master's house (Long gone ...) is just visible. Finally on the left of the photo, a set of iron railings can be seen running down the side of the station road - apparently an escaped Nun from East Bergholt attached herself to these in an attempt to stop being sent back to the convent! Bearing in mind she had a family, and wrote a book about her escape I'm assuming she was successful.

And compared to how it the building is now?

What happened?! The ornate brickwork has all be plastered over, and the chimney stack is gone. When you walk past the building now (It's now an office with some flats - one of Charlotte's school friends lives there) it looks so sterile, especially when you consider how it used to look.

Although there is a front door still in the original location, it's not used - the new 'front' door is round the side opposite the cars queuing to leave Station Road, and the door at front right of the building has been coverted to a window. The layout of the road has changed significantly, with the addition of an underpass under the train tracks so cars can avoid the level crossing. I couldn't recreate the original 1911 photo, as I'd have been stood in the middle of the road.

The saddest part for me is the loss of the brickwork, it made the building - now it looks so out of place.

In other news ... I'm going Go-Karting with 17 people from my office tonight. We did spend yesterday studying the layout of the track, and discussing braking strategies and racing lines ... I think the general consensus though is to basically floor it.

We will all be kitted out with crash helmets and race suits, and have had another long discussion on suitable footwear - I've plumped for Converse Hi-Tops, more 'feel' ...

So depending on both my ability and those I'm going with (We have at least 2 non-drivers!), this could be the last blog post.

It's been a pleasure.