Level playing field for Dunstable Town FC was pitch perfect

It was preparing to move from its old ground at Kingsway to Brewers Hill Road, where land was being levelled to create a pitch.

Our photo shows the work in progress at what was to become Creasey Park.

A splendid new clubhouse, with a bar and other facilities, has been built there in recent years.

The Brewers Hill area is in the throes of a major transformation, and it may be difficult for newer Gazette readers to get their bearings, even with the help of the colour photo taken last week from almost the same spot.

The clue in the old photo is the gas holder in the distance, which is still in use close to Dunstable Fire Station.

But other new buildings, including the headquarters of the 1st Dunstable Scouts, hide this in the colour photo. The houses on the right, in Aldbanks, are an unchanged focal point.

Trevor Turvey, very familiar with the area after his years as chief industrial chemist at the AC-Delco factory nearby, has studied old aerial photos to identify the chimneys in the background.

These were once part of a fuel-processing complex, including the old coking tower, which stood alongside the Dunstable North railway sidings. He believes that oil was distilled there to produce gas, but more information about the works would be welcome. The Central Beds Council offices now occupy most of the site.

> Yesteryear is compiled by John Buckledee, chairman of Dunstable and District Local History Society.