The Smokey House Farm Estate

 

The history of the barn begins with the Smokey House estate, which served as a vital agricultural link between Portslade and Southwick.

• The Land: The estate comprised an 8-acre, 2-rood "finger" of fertile market garden land that ran northward from the cottage on Church Road, Portslade.

• The Boundary: While the cottage was in Portslade, the farmland crossed the border into Southwick, creating a unique cross-boundary history.

• The Allotment Era: In the 1920s, the land became the primary allotment site for Portslade residents, who crossed into Southwick to tend their plots.

The Old Barn: Architecture and Location

• Construction: It was a substantial brick and flint barn with a slate-healed roof and large sliding doors.

• Position: It stood at the northernmost tip of the farm strip, near what is now the Old Shoreham Road corridor.

• Modern Identity: Today, its site is occupied by the Southwick Leisure Centre and Southwick FCC, with Old Barn Way named in its honour.

• The 1993 Demolition

  The confusion over the April 1993 date is resolved by the massive infrastructure changes of that decade.

  • The Bypass Catalyst: The construction of the A27 Brighton Bypass required clearing the northern fringe of the Eastbrook/Smokey House land.

  • March 1993 Pylons: Just before the article appeared, allotment holders were moved to allow for the re-siting of electricity pylons, a final step in the bypass landscaping.

  • The Final Act: The barn, by then derelict and standing in the path of new access roads, was demolished in April 1993 to clear the way for the bypass completion and the surrounding industrial developments.

  This summary clarifies that the barn was the last physical sentinel of the old Smokey House farm, vanishing just as the modern bypass era began.
  
  

  The transition from farm to allotments is a classic piece of local social history. It explains why so many Portslade families have such strong memories of a site that was technically "over the border" in Southwick.

  The Great Allotment Migration (1920s)

  Following the First World War, there was a massive demand for land where working-class families could grow their own food. Portslade-by-Sea was becoming increasingly industrialised and densely packed, leaving almost no room for new allotments within the parish boundaries.

  • The Acquisition: In 1920, Portslade Council took the unusual step of looking westward for space. They negotiated the purchase of a large portion of the Eastbrook Farm estate (which included the land managed by Smokey House) specifically to create "Portslade Allotments" on Southwick soil.

  • The "Portslade Colony": This created a unique daily ritual for decades. Hundreds of Portslade residents would walk or cycle across the boundary line every weekend to reach their plots.

  • The Barn as a Hub: During this era, the Old Barn (described in your sales notice as a "Large Brick and Flint" structure) transitioned from a working farm building into a landmark for the allotment community. It was the "gateway" to the northern plots.

  Why it Matters to Families Today

  For those whose parents or grandparents held plots there, the 1993 demolition of the barn wasn't just the loss of an old building; it was the final disappearance of the original farm's "soul".

  • The Displacement: The clearance in early 1993 wasn't just for the road itself; several allotment holders were relocated to make way for the massive electricity pylons that had to be moved to accommodate the bypass.
    
    

    The Legacy: Today, while the barn is gone and the Southwick Leisure Centre stands in its place, the surviving Manor Close Allotments remain as the last green link to that 1920s vision of providing "land for the people".