Military Road

Chatham

Above photo 1983, kindly sent by Tony Smith.

Built on the site of the "Imperial Forces" after this was demolished in the mid 1970s, and looking no more than a prefabricated or portable building, it opened around 1974 as the "Chatham Arms" around the same time that land around it was cleared to make way for the Pentagon Shopping Centre on the other side of the road which opened in 1975, however it had closed it's doors again around 1984.

I believe the locals used to call this the "Cardboard Arms" due to it's structure. Not sure whether it just blew away but it certainly never lasted long and Courage, the owners decided not to replace it with a more permanent building due to its "awkward location."

Yorkie Rhodes who was based locally between 1979 and 1984 tells me that it was known as HQ1 by most of the sailors at that time.

LICENSEE LIST

BUCKLEY Bev & Lorna 1975-77