49/51 Church Road, Burgess Hill, Sussex RH15 9BH

Woolworths arrived in Burgess Hill in September 1955 on Church Road (now Church Walk).

Burgess Hill Woolworths c1960

Source: Francis Frith

It was one of the later branches to be opened, as you can tell from the store number, and it looks as though it was medium sized from the photo above. I spoke to Burgess Hill local Robert who remembers the store from his childhood, in particular the pic n mix!

The store didn’t last long though, closing just under 30 years later on 15th September 1984. Perhap it was one of the low performing stores, or it was one of the casualties of the Kingfisher takeover when they closed several stores down to gain capital.

The building was later split into two and occupied by Sussex Stationers and Currys. In 2012 they had both closed down.

Source: Burgess Hill Uncovered

In April 2012, a Wetherspoon pub opened here, after a £1.4 million makeover. During the makeover, the ghost of Woolworths past was revealed!

Source: Burgess Hill Uncovered

The pub is called The Six Gold Martlets – here it is, alongside the shiny new Subway, from when I visited Burgess Hill last weekend. I knew it was a Woolworths 😛