It was on 20th August 1944 that the German V1 ‘doodlebug’ bomb fell on No. 45 Meadvale Road with devastating effect.
The architect’s plan below, held in the Brentham Archive, shows the 26 houses that were demolished as a result and rebuilt. In addition, a further 29 Ealing Tenants’ houses were very seriously damaged.
Of the 26 houses rebuilt, 17 were owned by Ealing Tenants Ltd and 9 were in private ownership and the cost of rebuilding was met by the government under the War Damage Act of 1943. Generally, they were rebuilt as replicas of their prewar selves. However, from the plans held in the archive we can see that there were some internal layout changes, and that 45-55 Meadvale Road had bay windows built in the front on the ground floor rather than the standard flat arrangement. The owners of 47 and 49 also took the opportunity to have bay windows added to the back of their houses.
Of the 17 houses rebuilt for Ealing Tenants Ltd, 5 were sold on completion and 12 were re-let to the previous tenant between June 1948 and early 1949 (4 years after the bomb fell) but at an increased rent of 25 shillings per week – a bargain!
(This article first appeared in the June 2024 edition of Brentham News)
Brentham Garden Suburb 