| Depending on which street or road you live, you may have a small front garden. Gardens were usually surrounded by cast iron railings on dwarf brick walls. Very few original examples remain as most of the railings were removed for scrap during the 2nd World War - together with pots, pans and old machinery, to be used for armaments - the reverse of turning guns into plough shares! The original railings that survived in Cambridge Street did so because they were totally hidden by an impenetrable privet hedge. Replacement railings need to be based on old photographs to get the correct pattern. The front garden gate usually matched the railings. To our knowledge, no original front garden gates survive.
Remember, front garden walls (and side walls for end of terraces) are also protected by Article 4. You need Planning permission to alter them.
Front garden paths were often tiled either with plain terracotta tiles, tiles in a checkerboard pattern, or occasionally, a more ornate design. A small freestanding cast iron scraper might be placed on the garden path by the front door.
The small front borders were edged with cast terracotta tiles in red or blue. Some gardens still retain edging tiles with a decorative rope top. Reproduction tiles are readily available or can be found at reclamation yards. The front garden is important to the overall appearance of the house.
Original railings – Cambridge Street
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