I went back to work “afloat” at the Dockyard but this meant that I only saw my friends at the weekend, as they were working at Herstmonceux Castle in Sussex during the week. They  includedPlumbers, Painters and Carpenters and they told me of a vacancy here, recommended the Castle and so I applied for the vacant position of Electrician to help create the new Royal Greenwich Observatory there. Evidently the weather conditions at Greenwich were now deemed as unsuitable because of London’s smoky night sky so this new site, which is sited close to the English Channel, with its clearer night skies is much better suited for the Observers.    This I applied for and was successful and finally came here in September 1947.  The electrical engineer on site was Eric Stoakley who was a very talented person. He welcomed me to a happy future, which it has been for nearly 40 years.

Our first task was to turn the “Hearts of Oak Insurance” Company Storage huts into dormitories, for the incoming members of the RGO Staff from all parts of the Country.  This was ‘conduit’ work, plus painting and plumbing for bathrooms, rest rooms and games rooms etc. Until the local Council had finished flats and houses in the Village for them to move into, as we finished this work, we lived in the Static area and had our meals in a Hostel canteen which was a large hut in the West corner of the Castle courtyard. It was run by the Hostel Warden, Mrs. Ramsey, with a corridor from the Kitchen. There was a female canteen staff, one of which I met on my first day here. We courted and married in September 1950.  Ration books were needed in those early days, so, between 15-20 of us living in, we did a lot better than most people. There was a female Dormitory as well but this was brickwork. The Chronometer Department occupied one large hut and one small one.   The Clubhouse was split in two for a rest room, snooker room, table tennis and pantomime section. There was a permanent stage and lighting platform with spots, dimmers etc. at the back.

We concentrated on the Castle next: The Astronomer Royal’s residence which was the North east side of the Castle, second floor, and then the first floor, Ground floor and Subway which consisted of the wine cellar and preservation cellar, which held the produce of the kitchen garden that the groundsmen tended daily, fetching in fresh veg. everyday in later months.  The wiring bits had to be found and rewired to suit requirements. The library floor was too weak for such a volume of books, so the first floor and ground floor had to be demolished on the West side and steel girders erected and concrete blocks installed, in conjunction with the new wiring conduits, needed for the present sections. There were hand winches in the library attic that we still have, to lower the 3 main fittings to the floor for cleaning and relaying of the galleries.

The Ballroom or Long Gallery needed regraining in the wooden panels so an experienced Carpenter, a Peter Dawson, spent several weeks with a bench making up new moulded panels that you can see today. Also, he so cleverly made by hand new carvings and mouldings for the Staircase hall, quite a hard job in oak to match the old wood.  During this period offices were installed in the Ballroom, with partitions and lights placed in troughs facing upwards onto the ceiling, but unfortunately the springing in the floor was cut for the support, which of course ruined the floor.

The two cottages to the West side of the Castle were once garages so we had to modernise these for the two foremen to live in: Ted Rowlands, foreman of works and Eric Stoakley, the electrical engineer. The cottages to the North West were Mr. Mick Longford’s, Head Messenger, with the garages for the A.R.s car and Castle drivers where the tea rooms are.  We had to have labour to dig (by hand) all the cable ducts and pits to the Meridian group Solar dome and E.Q. group from the hut station near the river beds. The Works Department lads did a great job, there are still a few left today. Mr. Chubb Barnard, the Messenger, did his share.

I forgot to mention that the Ground floor beneath the library was the original Chronometer Department rating rooms, with 3 rooms of different temperatures because of the rate changes with temperature. The Duke of Edinburgh paid us a visit to inspect the assistants at work, (I have a phot0 of this)