Who remembers The Mines in Portsmouth? – Nostalgia
On the left is an area I believe was called The Mines as the streets were all named after minerals.
My mother used to live in Diamond Street until being bombed out in January 1941. My father’s parents lived in Stone Street where he was born in 1920 but moved to Milton about 1936.
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Hide AdMany of the streets are the same today as they were then but the housing surrounding them is completely different of course.
In St Paul’s Road, in the top left corner, can be seen the location of the magnificent St Paul’s Church, another wonderful building lost in the blitz of the Second World War.
The church, one of the finest buildings in Portsmouth, is said to have had the largest single span roof in the country.
The walls remained after the church was wrecked in 1941 and a great effort was made by parishioners to have the church rebuilt. Sadly it was eventually demolished.
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Hide AdSo we move to the picture of St Paul’s on the facing page – a magnificent edifice.
It stood in St Paul’s Road, where St Paul’s Square is today, and was known as the Mother of Southsea churches.
It has some personal connections as my grandmother, Ruth Sutton, and her family, including my mother Mary, used to attend services there.
The church was consecrated on October 24, 1822, and cost £16,000 to build of which, £2,000 was raised by public subscription.There was room for 2,000 parishioners.
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On August 24, 1824, the Italian opera singer Angelica Catalina, the most famous singer of her day, appeared at the Portsmouth Theatre and afterwards took part in a concert of sacred music at the church.
She was a soprano with a range of nearly three octaves and attracted an audience of 1,000 paying 10s 6d for a seat in the gallery or 7s 6d in the body of the church.
Below is the wrecked interior of St Paul’s after a German bombing raid on January 10, 1941.
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Hide AdSadly, it could not be saved and was finally demolished in 1959, 18 years after it was bombed.
• Today’s final picture shows Twyford Wharf in the upper reaches of Portsmouth Harbour in 1968.
It's not a location that comes to mind. Perhaps it disappeared with the development of the Continental Ferry Port? I’m really not sure and need your help.
If you remember working at the wharf or can remember it, or knew exactly where it was, please let me know.