This is just a short entry to let you all know that I am still here. I realise that it’s been quite a while since I’ve written anything (for this website at least) but that doesn’t mean I’m no longer involved or engaged. Over the last few months I’ve been spread quite thin with various Mile Cross related projects; I’ve written a piece about the trees here in Mile Cross for the Norfolk Gardens Trust Magazine (downloadable here soon), I’ve been writing pieces for the new Mile Cross Newsletter, “mileXchange”, which hopefully you read after it dropped through your letterbox recently (if you live in Mile Cross, that is), the second issue should follow shortly. I’ve also been helping to come up with ideas on how to use the soon-to-open community space named the “mileXchange” in the former Draytona Bakery shop on Drayton Road. On top of all that, I’ve also spent a considerable amount of my spare time as one of the lead researchers for the “Mile Cross 100” project which in 2023 will celebrate the Mile Cross estate turning one hundred years of age.
We aim to celebrate a Centenary of Mile Cross by creating a play, a pageant, a website and a book about Mile Cross, so there will be lots to look forward to in the next few months, some of which we’re hoping residents or former residents of Mile Cross can get involved with.
Last but not least I’ve also been leading regular Mile Cross Photography Walks in collaboration with a Norfolk-based charity that focuses exclusively on the health and wellbeing of men, “MensCraft”.
I was approached by a friend of mine who works for the charity asking me if I fancied putting my local knowledge, photography skills and enthusiasm for all things Mile Cross to good use by leading some historical photo walks about the old estate. Of course I happily obliged.
Here’s a selection of some of the images captured (by me) thus far:
We aim to display a selection of photographs taken by everybody involved with the walks next year for the MX100 project, so watch this space.
If you’d like to come along and get involved with the photo walks, please don’t hesitate to give me an email at stu@menscraft.org.uk and if you’d like to find out more about what MensCraft are all about, their website can be found here: MensCraft.
The flyer for these photo walks can be seen below:
With regards to the MX100 project, if you have any memories or photographs of anything Mile Cross related, we’d absolutely love to hear from you, so please do not hesitate to get in touch to register your interest.
So as you can see, I may have been fairly quiet on the website front but there’s plenty going on and plenty of stuff in the pipeline, a lot of which I will be mining for future pieces on this very site, so watch this space!
Thanks once again for reading,
Stu
The Mile Cross Man 
Dear Mr Mile Cross Man,
My son and I read all your historical and local stories whenever they appear in our inbox. I particularly enjoyed the history of the old farm close to where the current Lidl’s is on Mile Cross Road – fascinating.
I live about 50m from the site of the former Kings Arms on Mile Cross Road, on the southern end of the loop of Glenmore Gardens. I have been taking pictures showing the development of the flats just opened on the site, right from when the ground was initially cleared right up to today when people are moving in. Unfortunately I didn’t have the foresight to snap any before the old pub building was pulled down, perhaps there are some from then or even when it was still open? If you are interested I would happily send you all the pics I have, and maybe you could do an article on the history of the site in a future article?
Talking of history, I just found out from a neighbour that, contrary to my belief that our ex-council house home was built in 1952 on virgin land, in fact there were previous houses here which were demolished by the Luftwaffe. I would be very interested indeed to see any photos of this end of Glenmore Gardens when the old houses were still here. Have you come across any?
Many thanks for all your articles,
Best Regards,
Rob Pearce
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Hi Rob, I’d love to see the images you’ve compiled of the build and I may have the missing image you require from when the pub stood derelict. There were no buildings on the southern side of the Glenmore Loop in 1947 apart from a coachworks closer to the bend in half mile road. If I find any images of the Glenmore Gardens build, I’ll let you know.
Regards,
Stuart
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Thank you Stuart. I will collect all my pics, zip them up, and then reply as an attachment to this email, or should I direct them elsewhere?
I assume that the houses on our block of Glenmore Gdns (Nos. 11-17) were built between the wars, same vintage as the houses immediately north of this in the road. There is a 1947 aerial photo which shows the roadway apparently intact and rectangular markings beside it, which I took to be foundations of the current buildings, but these weren’t built till about five years later, so they must have been ruins from earlier?
Regards
Rob P
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Hi Rob,
My email is stumcp12@googlemail.com
I don’t think they were ruins. However, I will check the bomb map. They probably built footings but then took an age due to post war funding shortages.
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Great to see so much community activity for the 100th Anniversary – and great photographs too. Thank you
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Thanks very much for the update, I had been wondering if you were involved in the Mile Cross 100 project when I heard about it. What a great range of initiatives you describe! I look forward to hearing more
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