Golden Square
Golden Square is the southern entrance to the heart of the village, the High Street, from the south. Three roads meet here: the A 281 from Brighton which runs up through the High Street to London Road and to the north; the A2037 which comes up from Shoreham and the coast road; and the High Street itself.
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Golden Square 1: This is not only my favourite photograph of Golden Square - from 1909 - but also my favourite photograph of Henfield. It appears as the epitome of a sleepy, sunlit village early on a summer's evening in Sussex. A little bit of nostalgia in a 6x4 postcard. On the left are the houses of what became the Golden Hen and Challens. Prospect Cottage sits firmly in the middle, as it does now, but Chatfields seems hidden under trees. To the right of Prospect Cottage is Ganders, covered with ivy, and then Baigents workshop just beyond it. The fields on the right were variously the village pound, a bowling green and then houses and now a petrol station. On the far right you can see the roof of Tipnoak, which marks the turning into Nep Town Road.
Golden Square 2: I tried to recreate the view in picture 1 - in the 1990s. I forget the exact date but the price of petrol is given as 75p a litre in the photograph! Ganders has been freed from its ivy and Baigents - now a private house - was still a workshop specialising in lens making.
Golden Square 3: A picture from 2014 - note that the petrol prices, at nearly 128p a litre then, have gone down (currently, September 2015) by about 15p per litre. You can see roofing work being carried out to Ganders, on the right of the picture.
Golden Square 4: This was taken from the Green in 2015, on the south-west of the High Street, and shows - from left to right - Challens, Chatfields and Prospect Cottage.
Golden Square 5: Another view from 2015, from the side of Golden Square itself, showing the road to the common and Brighton snaking away between Challens and Prospect Cottage.
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Golden Square: From the car, my guess is a photo from the 1960s - scanned from a postcard. The Golden Hen, then a confectioner's, has its awning down against the late afternoon sun.
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Golden Square: A view taken in April 2016, looking towards Chatfields.
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Golden Square: A view from where the petrol station is now, showing Moustows, Part Forges, Forges and the Golden Hen, with the corner of Prospect Cottage on the right hand edge. This postcard view probably dates from the 1920s. Note the railings on the corner of Prospect Cottage, and the Golden Hen in its heyday as a confectioners.
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Golden Square: A photo from mid-March 2019, showing Part Forges, Forges, the Golden Hen and Challens.
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Golden Square 1: This is not only my favourite photograph of Golden Square - from 1909 - but also my favourite photograph of Henfield. It appears as the epitome of a sleepy, sunlit village early on a summer's evening in Sussex. A little bit of nostalgia in a 6x4 postcard. On the left are the houses of what became the Golden Hen and Challens. Prospect Cottage sits firmly in the middle, as it does now, but Chatfields seems hidden under trees. To the right of Prospect Cottage is Ganders, covered with ivy, and then Baigents workshop just beyond it. The fields on the right were variously the village pound, a bowling green and then houses and now a petrol station. On the far right you can see the roof of Tipnoak, which marks the turning into Nep Town Road.
Golden Square 2: I tried to recreate the view in picture 1 - in the 1990s. I forget the exact date but the price of petrol is given as 75p a litre in the photograph! Ganders has been freed from its ivy and Baigents - now a private house - was still a workshop specialising in lens making.
Golden Square 3: A picture from 2014 - note that the petrol prices, at nearly 128p a litre then, have gone down (currently, September 2015) by about 15p per litre. You can see roofing work being carried out to Ganders, on the right of the picture.
Golden Square 4: This was taken from the Green in 2015, on the south-west of the High Street, and shows - from left to right - Challens, Chatfields and Prospect Cottage.
Golden Square 5: Another view from 2015, from the side of Golden Square itself, showing the road to the common and Brighton snaking away between Challens and Prospect Cottage.
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Golden Square: From the car, my guess is a photo from the 1960s - scanned from a postcard. The Golden Hen, then a confectioner's, has its awning down against the late afternoon sun.
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Golden Square: A view taken in April 2016, looking towards Chatfields.
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Golden Square: A view from where the petrol station is now, showing Moustows, Part Forges, Forges and the Golden Hen, with the corner of Prospect Cottage on the right hand edge. This postcard view probably dates from the 1920s. Note the railings on the corner of Prospect Cottage, and the Golden Hen in its heyday as a confectioners.
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Golden Square: A photo from mid-March 2019, showing Part Forges, Forges, the Golden Hen and Challens.