A stroll through time: Wantage road’s rich history

Long before weekend street parties and modern festivals, Wantage Road was already a bustling hub of community life—its story stretching back well over 30 years. From horse-drawn carts and Victorian terraces to matchday pilgrimages at Elm Park and wartime celebrations, let’s rewind the clock and explore the moments that shaped our street.

Victorian beginnings & early 20th-century life

In the late 1800s, Wantage Road emerged as a residential artery lined with red-brick terraces and modest shopfronts. Horse-drawn delivery carts clattered past for daily essentials, and families set down roots in neat bay-windowed homes. Street lamps were gas-lit, and letterpress notices tacked to telegraph poles announced local news.

Post-war reprieve: Victory in Europe Day, May 1945

Residents draped handmade bunting and crafted newspaper-folded party hats to mark VE Day—joy against the backdrop of war-scarred Britain.

When news of Victory in Europe arrived on May 8, 1945, the street transformed overnight into a scene of jubilation. Improvised bunting—stitched from fabric scraps—and newspaper hats typified the resourcefulness of a community emerging from years of hardship. Long tables groaned under shared fare, and neighbours finally had cause to celebrate together once more.

Elm park matchday rituals, 1950s–1998

Fans queued in brisk morning air, winding around the corner toward Elm Park’s ticket office—eager for every home fixture.

For nearly half a century, Reading Football Club’s Elm Park ground sat just around the corner on Elm Park Road. By the 1950s, throngs of supporters—bowler hats, scarves, and ticket stubs in hand—would snake down Wantage Road, waiting patiently for gates to open. Street vendors seized the opportunity, selling hot tea and match programmes, while neighbours peeked out to gauge the day’s turnout.

• Peak crowds: Attendances regularly topped 20,000, meaning queues could stretch from the turnstiles up to the junction with Waverley Road.
• Community pulse: Matchdays were social events—old friends catching up, local bands sometimes playing impromptu pre-match tunes.

An aerial photograph of Elm Park, the former home of Reading Football Club in the 90's. A great view of the Spread Eagle and Wantage Road at the top.

Architectural shifts & mid-century modern

As car ownership rose in the 1960s and ’70s, front gardens gave way to driveways. Shopfronts modernized their signage, and gas lamps were replaced with electric streetlights. Yet even as the façade changed, the close-knit spirit remained. The Spread Eagle pub (later renamed) and the corner grocer became informal gathering spots where residents traded gossip and good-natured banter.

Why it matters today

These snippets of Wantage Road’s past—VE Day celebrations, Elm Park matchday lines, terrace-house life—remind us that our street has always been more than brick and mortar. It’s a tapestry woven from shared experiences:

Resilience & resourcefulness (wire-stitching bunting from scraps).

Community rituals (weekly football queues forging unlikely friendships).

Ever-evolving streetscape (from horse carts to hatchbacks, gas lamps to LEDs).

As we plan future gatherings—be it commemorations, street fetes, or simply a neighbourly cup of tea—let’s honor these traditions. After all, every generation adds its own chapter to the story of Wantage Road.

Your Turn:
Do you have memories or heirloom photographs dating back before 1995? Share them with us at history@wantage-road.uk so we can keep our community’s heritage alive for decades more.