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Pitsea Broadway – Page 5: High Road, The Parade and Lost Businesses

The North Side of the High Road

The High Road contained a mixture of purpose-built shops, converted houses, pubs, professional offices and workshops. Some were demolished for Broadway North and major road schemes; others survive in altered form.

The Old Railway Tavern shops

Railway Tavern c.1859–c.1927; retail conversions from 1928; later demolished for Broadway North.

After the pub licence moved to the new Railway Hotel, the old tavern became three shops. Occupants included Lloyds Bank, Long's Stores and Pitsea Post Office; H. English and Tucker & Sons traded as family butchers; Broadway Fish Supply sold wet and dry fish.

J. E. Hall / Warr's – greengrocers

Shop from c.1920s; Warr's c.1950s; demolished for Broadway North.

A Tudor-fronted property used as a greengrocer before the post-war parade replaced it.

W. Norton & Sons

1940s; demolished for Broadway North.

Sold second-hand furniture and operated removals/warehousing. Norton's later occupied No.3 Broadway North.

Churchill Johnson / Hadlands

Churchill Johnson 1920s–1964; Hadlands 1964–1970s; original building demolished.

Both businesses were ironmongers/timber/building merchants. The building was replaced by Sankey House.

No.81 Sankey House

Sankey's 1970s–c.1980s; Londis c.1980s–c.2000s; Premier/Carter Store in 2000s; Bargain Booze/Select Convenience from c.2011.

The site shifted from ironmongery into supermarket and convenience/off-licence retail.

Tudor Building – Lloyds and haberdashery

Lloyds Bank from 1934; historic shop unit later incorporated into bank.

Mabs and later Pollard's sold haberdashery/wool from a street-level unit that was eventually incorporated into Lloyds' premises.

The Parade – Four Long-Running Shop Units

No.1 – Conway & Son / St Luke's Hospice

Conway & Son before 1949; later St Luke's Hospice charity shop.

Conway & Son were butchers and poulterers. The premises later became charity retail.

No.2 – shoes, news, appliance repair and charity retail

E. E. Hoad before 1949–after 1956; Chocolate Box c.1950s; Aaron Domestics later; St Luke's by 2009.

The unit evolved from a boot and shoe store to news/tobacco, washing-machine repairs and finally charity-shop use.

No.3 – confectionery to menswear, sport and Indian food

H. E. Shinn before 1949; A. W. Rust c.1950s onward; Leisure Sports in 1990s; Pitsea Spice c.2000s; Curry Garden from c.2011.

Alf Rust's menswear business was particularly long-lived and grew from a Pitsea Market stall. Later uses reflected changing shopping habits: sports goods followed by restaurant/takeaway trade.

No.4 – surgery to estate agents

Doctors' surgery c.1949; John Fisk from 1996; David Abbotts from 2010s.

The property moved from healthcare to estate agency.

Later High Road Units

Later infill brought further businesses including Indian restaurants, takeaways, hairdressers, printing/ink services and florists. Examples documented on this stretch include Spice Inn/Del Tandoori, Pizza Go Go, Hair Oasis, Need 2 Print and Jeanette Florist. These newer units demonstrate how the High Road continued to evolve even after the main shopping focus shifted toward larger retail developments.

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