Bohemia Village Voice

Picture from ‘Hastings of Bygone Days – and the Present’ by Henry Cousins, published by F J Parsons 1911.

By Edward Preston (Jan 2008)

Upper Bohemia occupies the land between the main roads leading to the two town centres: Bohemia Road to Hastings and London Road to St Leonards. Sunday, 1st November, 1875, was the last day on which ‘Pay Gates’ were in operation in the town.

Until then, Bohemia had been surrounded by the Magdalen, Newgate, Tower, and Silverhill toll gates, although these were sometimes known by different names. Development in the locality was fairly rapid from the 1870s, with new streets appearing in quick succession – e.g. Aldborough Road in 1881, Cranbrook, Salisbury and St Paul’s Roads in 1883, Horntye Road in 1884 and St Peter’s Road in 1886.

Bohemia Road, being a long road, was developed in short terraces. These were numbered separately to begin with, but were then combined into Bohemia Road; but it was not until 1902/1903 that the present numbering  was finally settled – some properties having changed numbers three times.

Besides that, some street names were also changed; this in 1886-1887, what had at first been named Park Road, became New Park Road, and only became Upper Park Road in 1904.

Edward Preston