Portslade: The Town That Washed Hove's Dirty Linen 🧺
For decades in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Portslade was the industrial heart of the Brighton and Hove area's washing trade, earning a reputation as the place "Hove sent its dirty washing." Multiple large-scale commercial laundries thrived here, employing hundreds of local workers, mostly women, and leaving a lasting mark on the town's history and landscape.
The Major Player: Petersfield Laundry (Est. 1879)
The Petersfield Laundry was arguably the most famous and significant employer in Portslade.
Began: The business was established on the Upper Shoreham Road (now Old Shoreham Road) in 1879. New works were opened on the same site in 1896, under the proprietor Arthur Wellesey Green.
Scale: It was a major industrial employer in the region. By 1911, it was claimed the laundry employed around 100 ironers alone, illustrating the massive scale of its operations.
Operations: Petersfield Laundry specialised in shirt and collar cleaning, boasting an advertisement in 1907 that claimed it was "the only Gold Medallist in the County for Shirt Dressing."
Closure: The Portslade site was certainly operational well into the 1920s.
1 While a definitive closure date for the Portslade facility is not publicly recorded, the wider company continued to operate from Hampshire, eventually becoming Petersfield Linen Services.
From Suds to Sedans: The Southern Cross/Star Laundry (Est. 1900)
The history of the Star Model Laundry (also referred to as the Southern Cross Laundry) is unique, as its industrial site was directly converted into one of the area's most well-known motor businesses.
Began: The laundry was started around 1900 by Alfred Tate on the corner site at Southern Cross (Foredown Drive and Old Shoreham Road).
Innovation: Alfred Tate was an early innovator in transport. After a car accident in 1896, he converted a Daimler to create what is considered the first commercial vehicle in Sussex, using the top of a horse-drawn cart for the conversion.
The Transition: The laundry operated until the late 1940s. However, Alfred's sons, Albert and Fred Tate, started an engineering and film transportation business next door, using a small corrugated shed to repair their vans.
Legacy Link: In 1929, the brothers purchased the Southern Cross corner site, converting the laundry premises into the headquarters for their growing motor business. That site is still occupied by the Tates Motor Group today, a direct evolution from the laundry that stood there over a century ago. You can read more about their company history on their website:
Tates Motor Group - About Us
Other Local Laundries and Collection Points
While Petersfield and Southern Cross were the largest, Portslade supported other laundry services:
Westup Laundry: Operated by Albert Dudeney, this business was located at the corner of Shelldale Road and Abinger Road.
Collection Points: The busy commercial thoroughfare of Trafalgar Road was a central hub for Portslade. Though records don't name a specific laundry shop, the location was known for its commercial activity and likely housed a collection point for one of the major laundries operating in the area.
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