[Rolebama]

I did not want to 'kidnap' Drivingforfun's Soviet Maps thread.

Stockley Park is in West Drayton. Seems some bright spark deemed the postal address to be in Uxbridge. Stockley Park is about four miles from Uxbridge.

As you enter Uxbridge, you are welcomed by signage: 'Welcome to Uxbridge: Home of Brunel University'. Brunel University is in Cowley.

Denham is in Buckinghamshire, yet the postal address is in Uxbridge.

Gamlingay is in Cambridgeshire, yet has a postal address of Sandy, Bedfordshire.

These are just a few examples of why I get stopped by lorry drivers asking for directions.

One of my satnavs uses Excel spreadsheets for POIs. I found a number of POI sites for lorry drivers and the most useful one so far has been Accident Blackspots. Some are obvious, others not so, but interesting to try to work out why.

[Beelzebub]

Originally Posted by Rolebama

Denham is in Buckinghamshire, yet the postal address is in Uxbridge.

Gamlingay is in Cambridgeshire, yet has a postal address of Sandy, Bedfordshire.

.

Royal Mail ceased using "postal counties" about 30 years ago: (postcodes made them redundant) so a correct postal address no longer includes a county. If in doubt, check with the RM Postcode Finder.

[Mark07]

Plus, the county borders have moved a few times.

I grew up in NW England. I suspect that my family home has at one time been located in Cheshire, Greater Manchester and (if you go back far enough) possibly Lancashire as the borders were redrawn.

[Beelzebub]

Originally Posted by Mark07

Plus, the county borders have moved a few times.

I grew up in NW England. I suspect that my family home has at one time been located in Cheshire, Greater Manchester and (if you go back far enough) possibly Lancashire as the borders were redrawn.

Indeed. Where I live used to be in Surrey. In 1965 it moved to Greater London, but kept a Surrey postal address. That was removed in 1996, but Royal Mail failed to communicate that well.
I still get mail addressed to Surrey.

One of my neighbours got seriously upset when Surrey Council announced a massive increase in council tax, even though she'd been paying her tax to a London Borough for 20-odd years!

[Rolebama]

I don't know about Beds snd Cambs, but our local county borders haven't changed in mt lifetime. When I went yo register both my girls when they were born, I had pretty much a stand-up argument about Middlesex no longer being a recognized county. About two weeks after my second visit, I saw workmen putting up a 'Welcome to Middlesex' sign on the A40.

[Drivingforfun]

Interesting thread

I think phone numbers could add more confusion to the mix... When my granny moved to live nearer us a couple of years ago there was something weird about the dialling codes for landline phone numbers. I can't remember what it was, but she moved to the next village from us but had a dialling code for a different county, or something.

I didn't realise that writing the county on a letter was redundant... If you do happen to write the wrong county but the correct postcode, would it cause any issues or is the written county literally just ignored?

[olduser]

These days, if the sorting machines can read the post code, the only person to read the address will be the postman/woman who puts it through the door.

The first machine converts sort code to a bar code and prints on the envelop, the bar code is then used for any further sorting.

[Drivingforfun]

Originally Posted by Rolebama

I don't know about Beds snd Cambs, but our local county borders haven't changed in mt lifetime. When I went yo register both my girls when they were born, I had pretty much a stand-up argument about Middlesex no longer being a recognized county. About two weeks after my second visit, I saw workmen putting up a 'Welcome to Middlesex' sign on the A40.

What was the argument about / which "side" were you arguing for? I decided to look up Middlesex as it's one of those places I'd heard of loads of times and never really paid any mind to where it was - apparently it was divvied up to neighbouring counties in 1965?? What am I missing? 😆

[Rolebama]

Originally Posted by Drivingforfun

What was the argument about / which "side" were you arguing for? I decided to look up Middlesex as it's one of those places I'd heard of loads of times and never really paid any mind to where it was - apparently it was divvied up to neighbouring counties in 1965?? What am I missing? 😆

Sorry, I was born in Middlesex. She was trying to tell me in 1975 that Middlesex did not exist, but one of the questions she asked was relevant to where I was born. Again, in 1980 when I was back registering my second daughter, we went through the same rigmarole about where I was born. In the mid-80s, was when they put up the signs:"Welcome to Middlesex".

As an aside to this she also argued that I could not have been born at home, it must have been a hospital.

[Beelzebub]

Originally Posted by Rolebama

I don't know about Beds snd Cambs, but our local county borders haven't changed in mt lifetime. When I went yo register both my girls when they were born, I had pretty much a stand-up argument about Middlesex no longer being a recognized county. About two weeks after my second visit, I saw workmen putting up a 'Welcome to Middlesex' sign on the A40.

There was (and always is) local resistance to any boundary changes. I recall particularly lots of news stories about Rutland residents erecting signs etc.
The ones you saw must have been unofficial, since Middlesex Council no longer existed as a highway authority (or indeed anything else).

[Drivingforfun]

Originally Posted by Rolebama

As an aside to this she also argued that I could not have been born at home, it must have been a hospital.

Ha ha, that's quite funny

Originally Posted by Beelzebub

There was (and always is) local resistance to any boundary changes. I recall particularly lots of news stories about Rutland residents erecting signs etc.

I think I remember something like this recently, a road called Black Boy Lane or similar, named after chimney sweep boys who were sent up the chimneys, it was interpreted as racist and re-named after an activist; more or less everyone on the street protested

[olduser]

Originally Posted by Drivingforfun

Ha ha, that's quite funny




I think I remember something like this recently, a road called Black Boy Lane or similar, named after chimney sweep boys who were sent up the chimneys, it was interpreted as racist and re-named after an activist; more or less everyone on the street protested

Did they change it to, 'Sooty Boy Lane'?😀
No maybe not, Sooty fans would object!☹
The, 'Sweeps Apprentice Boy's Lane' is getting close but it's a mouthful.
Doe's, 'Dirty Boy Lane' sound better?😏

[Rolebama]

A story doing the rounds some years ago was that the 'townies' that had moved in to a village resented having an address in Pigs Bottom Lane. They called on the relevant authority to change it, but could not reach a unanimous decision as to a new name. The original resident's proposal was accepted and it was changed to Ass Lane.
Whether it is true or not, I don't know, but I'd like to think it is.

[Rolebama]

@Beelzebub The signs 'Welcome to Middlesex' were, as I say, put up in the 80s. Whether it was some kind of 'revolt' against being included in Greater London, I don't know. I don't know if they are still there, but I shall look out for them, and post result, hopefully tomorrow.

[Rolebama]

I went out last night and looked for the two signs local to me, and they are gone. I have to say I don't know when they were removed as having seen the one being put up, I did look out for others, but like a lot of roadside furniture, they became 'invisible'.