Tennyson Road in The old boundary between the parishes of Whiston and Rotherham ran roughly along the southern (right-hand) side of the road.

Transcription

1 HERRINGTHORPE. In the summer of 1939, just before the outbreak of the Second World War, my parents moved to Herringthorpe. They had been married in June 1938 and had spent the first year of their married life living with my mother s mother on Nottingham Street. Now they had been given number 30, Campbell Drive one of the new council houses which had been built in Herringthorpe after It was here that I spent my childhood and teenage years, from January 1943 when I was born, until I was married in Although our house was less than ten years old when my parents moved there, Herringthorpe itself was very much older. One story is that it was named after a son of the king of Norway called Haeringr, who may have fought alongside the Saxon King Athelstan at the battle of Brunanburg in 937. Some people think that this battle took place at Brinsworth, but whether or not that is true, Herringthorpe could be at least as old as that. It was originally part of the parish of Whiston, the old boundary between Whiston and Rotherham running roughly along the line of Tennyson Road (picture below). By the beginning of the twentieth century however, Herringthorpe had been absorbed by Rotherham. As a result, when parliament passed the Wheatley Act in 1924, giving local councils permission to built council houses with subsidies of 4..10s..0d from the rates, Rotherham Corporation decided that Herringthorpe should be the site for 300 such houses. These were to be built on the nine-acre estate which had belonged to Herringthorpe Hall and they changed the rural hamlet into a residential suburb of the town. Tennyson Road in The old boundary between the parishes of Whiston and Rotherham ran roughly along the southern (right-hand) side of the road. 1

2 Although its estate disappeared under new housing, Herringthorpe Hall itself survived. It had been built in 1773, replacing a much earlier house and stood on the west side of Herringthorpe Valley Road, just south of Chaucer Road, on the site now occupied by Herringthorpe Close. In spite of a furore of local protest and a preservation order, it was eventually demolished at the end of the 1970 s. However, when I was growing up in Herringthorpe, it was still there. For most of my childhood it was occupied by George Baker, the managing director of John Baker and Bessemer, Ltd. George Baker was the third son of John Baker, who had set up the firm, and had followed his father into the business. One of his main achievements was the construction of the steel works at Kilnhurst, where he continued as manager, and he had, also, been awarded an O.B.E. He left the Hall in 1955 and John Wall, the Town Clerk of Rotherham, moved in with his family. Herringthorpe Hall was a far cry from our modest council houses. A sales brochure of 1905 described it as having an entrance hall, dining room, breakfast room, butler s pantry, store closets and two kitchens. On the first floor there were six bedrooms a bathroom and WC. The second floor consisted of three attic rooms and a box room and there were large cellars in the Herringthorpe Hall in 1978, just before it was demolished. (From the Rotherham Advertiser, 31st March, 1978) 2

3 basement. There were stables outside as well as two cottages and gardens. It was, therefore, not surprising, that in spite of the fact that Herringthorpe Hall was only a stone s throw away from Campbell Drive where I lived, it (and its inmates) were set apart from the council estate, and barely entered my consciousness as a child. Other houses from the old hamlet also survived the building of the council estate and were there in my childhood. Two of them are still there. Rose Cottage (picture top right) stands on the south-eastern end of Browning Road, while another stone built cottage (right) stands just round the corner, butting onto Herringthorpe Valley Road beyond three detached, early twentieth century houses. The only other building which had survived when I was a child was Old Hall Farm, which stood on the eastern side of Herringthorpe Valley Road. Like Herringthorpe Hall, this farm has now been demolished and St. Bernard s Roman Catholic High School, which opened in 1961, was built on the site. When I was growing up, the farmer was Herbert Stephenson who lived there for over thirty years from the early 1920 s to the late 1950 s. Top: Rose Cottage in Middle: A survival from the old hamlet, in Bottom: Old Hall Farm, seen here in the 1930 s. (From the brochure for the opening of Herringthorpe Valley Road, held in the Local Studies Section of Rotherham Central Library, Ref. No / 352.9). 3

4 Browning Road (seen here from near Chaucer Road in 2003) is the spine of the estate, running from Badsley Moor Lane to Herringthorpe Valley Road. In spite of these survivals from the old hamlet and a smattering of newer private houses (for example along Woodall Road and Allendale Road and near the junction of Herringthorpe Valley Road and Wickersley Road), by the time I was born the name Herringthorpe meant the council estate. Work had started on it in 1929 near Badsley Moor Lane, north of which Rotherham s first council estate had already been built in East Dene. Over the next three years the builders moved south towards Tennyson Road, Chaucer Road and Shenstone Road, stopping short just before the private houses which were beginning to line Wickersley Road. The estate was bounded on the west by Middle Lane South a new extension to Middle Lane. Beyond Middle Lane South were Herringthorpe Playing Fields, which were also relatively new at this time, being officially opened in Map showing the extent of the new estate (coloured in grey) in relation to the old hamlet of Herringthorpe. (Based on the 6 to the mile Ordnance Survey Map, surveyed in 1919 and published between ) 4

5 To the east the council estate extended to Herringthorpe Valley Road. The estate of private houses built by Beedons between Herringthorpe Valley Road and the earlier Parkin estate (which ran up to the Brecks) was not started until about 1959 after I had left school, so during my childhood that land was covered by fields. Beyond the fields the stream ran, as it does today, through Herringthorpe Wood to Dalton. As children we used to play in the stream and these woods, crossing Herringthorpe Valley Road to get there. This road had been opened in 1933, replacing the old, narrow, Herringthorpe Lane, the original road through the hamlet from Wickersley Road. Nevertheless, even in its new form, it was not nearly as busy and dangerous for children to cross as it is today in Top: Herringthorpe Lane winding its way through the hamlet, with Herringthorpe Hall on the left and Old Hall Farm behind the cottage on the right. (Picture Ref. No.02706) Above: The same view in 1933, after the road had been widened. (From the brochure for the official opening of Herringthorpe Valley Road, held in the Local Studies Section of Rotherham Central Library, Ref. No / 352.9). 5

6 This, then, was the Herringthorpe in which I grew up. The houses were clean and new and there were gardens to play in. There were open spaces nearby Herringthorpe Woods, the playing fields, and just along Middle Lane there was Clifton Park. There was a modern primary school on Badsley Moor Lane, which was only a few minutes walk away from our house. There were shops and a church even closer at the junction of Browning Road and Chaucer Road, while Rotherham town centre, with its shops, markets and cinemas, was only a short bus ride away. So, in spite of the problems created by the Second World War, which still had two years to run after I was born, and the shortages in the years which followed the peace, this was a good place to live as a child. Harvesting the fields of Old Hall Farm in the 1950 s. The land drops away to the stream and woods where we played as children. The houses on the horizon are on Brecks Lane. (Picture courtesy of Ian Hawkridge.) 6

7 HOME LIFE. Our house number 30, Campbell Drive had three bedrooms, a lounge, a kitchen and a bathroom and toilet together, which led off the kitchen. Mum and Dad had the large bedroom at the front of the house. I had the box room as my bedroom. It was just big enough for a single bed, a chest of drawers and a small chair. I shared the wardrobe in the other bedroom with my sister. The kitchen had a pantry and a coal-house on one side of it. After Mum and Dad had a gas fire fitted we took the walls down and made the kitchen bigger. We had a fair sized back garden, a small front garden, and a side garden with a garden shed. It was a cosy house really. My sister, Marlene, was born in May I think this is the first thing I can remember. She is five years younger than me. On the day she was born I went with the children next door to visit their grandparents and picked some flowers from their garden for my mum. There were four children next door to us. We were all of similar ages. One of the boys contracted polio. He was very ill for a Our house number 30 Campbell Drive was the one on the left in this pair, seen here in The windows and doors have been changed since my time. 7

8 long time. He was in an Iron Lung because he could not breathe for himself. I suppose it was the forerunner of the life support machines of today. Dad kept chickens during the war, and for a long time after. They had a run across the bottom of the garden and were fed on corn. We had two chickens and a cockerel. The chickens were called Blackie and Red, and the cockerel Henry. Blackie was really tame. She would come in and out of the house. Mum used to go crazy, but we always had lovely fresh eggs until they got too old to lay them. Below: The open-air market on Market Street in the 1950 s. (Ref. No ) Bottom: Some of the Chaucer Road shops in These still include a betting shop, a fish and chip shop and a post office, though in my day, this was on the other side of the road. Our nearest shops were on Chaucer Road. I remember that there was a post office, an off-licence, Havenhands fish and chip shop with their sweet shop next door, a newsagents (owned by the Farr family, a turf accountants and Lockwoods fruit and vegetable shop. However, Mum did most of her grocery shopping at the Coop on Cambridge Street, East Dene. But Saturdays always included a visit to the market then along Market Street and Domine Lane. The market was always full of 8

9 people. Lots of things were auctioned off, e.g. pots, pans, towels and bedding. I liked going to the sweet shops. All the sweets were in glass jars and had to be weighed out. I remember that chocolate raisins were 6d in the old money for two ounces. As well as chocolate nuts and raisins we sometimes bought Bluebird Toffees, Mint Imperials, Mint Rock, Liquorice Allsorts and Wine Gums. There was not the same selection of chocolate bars that there are today, but I remember we had Cadbury s Dairy Milk and Bournville, Mars Bars and Fry s Chocolate Cream. Herringthorpe Church of England was on Browning Road, near to The Cinema House on Doncaster Road as it was in my time in all its eastern glory. (Ref. No ) where the library is now. It was a single story building with a flat roof and a small tower above the door with a cross on top. My sister and I went to Sunday School there until I was about ten years old. I m not sure why we stopped going. We used to go to the matinee at the Cinema House on Doncaster Gate on Saturday afternoons. It cost about 1p (2d or 3p in old money). The films always seemed to be about Roy Rogers and Trigger, his horse, or Hopalong Cassidy, or the Lone Ranger. And the equipment always seemed to break down, so we all booed and shouted Put a penny in the electric metre. As I remember them, the films were in black and white. The first film I saw in colour was Gone with the Wind. Mum and I went to see it. I loved it then and still do. When I was eleven, I started to write to Zdenka, a girl who lived in Prague in Czechoslovakia. She wanted to improve her English as she was going to teach it. We wrote about how different our lives were. She was born in the small town of Kladno in Bohemia. There were four in her family her Mum, Dad, Zdenka herself, and her brother Charles who was the youngest. They were Catholic and went to church every Sunday. Her father worked in a factory, the same as my father. She did very well at school and became a teacher. She also married in the 1960 s and lived in an apartment and is still living there now. I 9

10 still have her letters and Christmas cards and my sister has a celluloid doll which came from there. I have some ornaments as momento s, but I also have a copy of Ivanhoe translated from Czech into English. We still keep in touch, but only at Christmas. She is the same age as me and has three children. I was very upset in 1968 when I watched the Russian tanks roll into Prague. PARENTS AND GRANDPARENTS. Mum went to a small school run by the Parish Church on Nottingham Street. Later she went to South Grove. She left at fourteen years old and worked in a fruit shop, but the pay was not good so she went to work at Kenyon s making sweets. Liquorice All-sorts were her speciality. Kenyon s was on Morpeth Street in the town in those days. Mum made friends with another girl there and they remained friends until Mum died. They went away on day-trips, had nights out dancing and went to the cinema, etc. They were bridesmaids for each other and she and her husband became my god-parents. My Grandma (mum s mother) had a piano which mum s elder brother played, so they often had sing-alongs in the evenings. Mum met Dad because he had a friend who lived next door to her. They married in 1938 a year before the war broke out. Dad was in the A. R. P. during the war, going to work in the day and fire watching at night. One day in 1941 Mum was coming home from work when the Germans began to blitz Sheffield. She remembered having to go into the cellars under the Town Hall. She felt sure that Rotherham would be blitzed as well, but it wasn t. The nearest hit to us was the one on Danum Drive, Clifton. During the War there were Holidays at Home in Clifton Park, with activities such as concerts, and bands, but I don t remember this. Top left: The fruit shop on Moorgate Street where Mum worked after leaving school. (Old Postcard) Left: My parents on their wedding day 6th June, They were married in Rotherham Parish Church where I was later christened. 10

11 After my sister and I were born Mum didn t work again until my sister started school. Then she worked as an office cleaner At Robert Harry s on Westgate. They sold parts for cars. I never went there, but Mum worked there for eighteen years until she retired. She worked from 8 o clock in the morning to mid-day, so she was always at home to get us up for school in a morning and when we came home from school. Both my Grandad and my Dad worked in engineering at Gummers Ltd. Grandad retired at 65 years old, but stayed on as a labourer until he was 75 years old. Dad was there until he died in 1977 when he was only 65. We began to be better off when Dad was made foreman of the machine shop. Dad used to work Saturday mornings. Sometimes we would go to meet him with Mum and sit in his office for a while. I was always fascinated by the machines and wanted to know how they worked. Most of the staff were ladies except the machine setters, who were men. One of them was my cousin. He was about ten years older than me. They set the machines for the ladies to do the jobs required. My father at Gummers Engineering Works on Rawmarsh Road, where he worked as a foreman. 11

12 We always visited Dad s parents Grandma and Grandad Naylor on Sundays. They lived at 11, Haldane Road, Eastwood in a council house which was exactly the same as ours. We walked there and back (about 2 ½ miles 4 kilometres in all). Grandad used to whittle, which is carving out of wood. He often made dolls. I don t know what happened to them. He used to cobble all the family s shoes. They weren t thrown away. Grandad mended them for us. Grandma had long white hair. I loved to brush it and plait it. Auntie and Uncle lived next door to Grandma and Grandad. Auntie baked wonderful oven bottom cakes in her coal oven. As uncle worked at Silverwood Pit, they always had a roaring fire. Grandad had an allotment in Broom Valley. He grew great sticks of rhubarb, which were good with a bag of sugar. Above: How to peg rugs a skill taught me by Grandma Evans. Below: Grandma Evans in the 1940 s. My mother s mother Grandma Evans used to peg rugs. My cousin and I used to cut up old coats (or anything made of wool) into squares, which were washed and dried and then cut into strips four or five inches long and one inch wide. Grandma bought a piece of hessian the size that the rug was to be. The strips of material were then pegged in and out of the holes in the hessian. The rugs looked great when they were finished in a mixture of all sorts of colours. Grandma s rugs were made to order so a buyer was assured. Grandma Naylor taught me to crochet, while Grandma Evans taught me to knit. French knitting was something else we did. You needed an old cotton reel with four small nails in the top, some wool and a darning needle. We visited our Grandma Evans on Saturdays. She had been a widow since she was only thirty four year s old and, so, brought up my mum and her two brothers on her own. Grandma Evans would do anything to earn money. Grandma Evan s house was on Nottingham Street, where the library is now. It was a terraced house with two bedrooms, a living room and a kitchen complete with Yorkshire range. There was no bathroom and the toilet was outside across the yard. Grandma had a cat Toby. He was a right character. 12

13 He had a rocking chair. If anyone sat in his chair he would get at the side of you and push you until you got up. Or he would jump on the back of the chair and finish up draped around your neck to get you out of his chair He was very crafty, but loveable. Grandma was an unofficial midwife and layer-out of the dead. I don t think I understood what that meant until I was a teenager. She was a wonderful woman. Mum and Dad went out some Saturday nights, usually to the Trades Club in the town centre. This was a working-men s club with entertainment. My Mum s brother, Uncle Harry, was the secretary there for thirty-five years. Grandma Evans looked after me, my sister and my cousins Valerie, Roselyn and Barry for the evening. We must have been a handful! When I was older I looked after my sister at home in the evening. We were supposed to be in bed by nine o clock but this didn t often happen. Above: The junction of Frederick Street (on the right) and Nottingham Street (on the left), as it was when I used to visit Grandma Evans. Her house was about half-way along the righthand side of Nottingham Street. (Source of picture unknown) Right: Nottingham Street in 2003, looking in the opposite direction. The Library and Arts Centre and Norfolk House have replaced the old houses. 13

14 BIRTHDAYS AND CHRISTMAS. We always had a special tea when one of us had a birthday. Usually it was salad with boiled ham, trifle and cake. That was a treat as the rest of the time we had a cooked evening meal, which was served when Dad came in from work at around six o clock. At Christmas we all helped Mum with the dinner, peeling potatoes and vegetables. After lunch we would play the games we had had bought snakes and ladders, ludo and monopoly. Jig-saw puzzles were a favourite as well. We had one large present at Christmas and perhaps a couple of small ones. The rest were from relatives and friends. In those days expectations were not like today computers, designer clothes, holidays abroad. But I can look back on my childhood, and know that we had the best my parents could afford and we were very happy. My sister and I opened our Christmas presents together and then we went into Mum and Dad s room to watch them open theirs. Books were a treat for Christmas and birthdays. My favourites were Jane Eyre, Heidi and Little Women. I remember having a blue and white second-hand bike for my fourteenth birthday. I rode miles on that bike to Whiston and to Rotherham to see my Grandma. Of course the traffic was a lot lighter in those days. Just before Christmas or just after (I m not sure which), Grandma Evans took all her grandchildren to the Regent Theatre for the pantomime. She had six grandchildren (my cousins) in all. She saw five of them every week myself The Regent Theatre on Howard Street, which was just round the corner from Grandma Evan s house on Nottingham Street. (Ref. No ) and my sister Marlene, two other girls Valerie and Roselyn and a boy called Barry. They were the children of my mum s youngest brother, Uncle Harry and his wife, Aunty Lily, who lived on Tusmore Street in the centre of town. She only saw her other grandchild (my eldest cousin, Brenda) now and again, as her parents were divorced and Brenda lived with her mother and 14

15 stepfather. I loved the pantomime and have very vivid memories of Cinderella, Puss in Boots and Jack and the Beanstalk. There were no big stars playing the lead parts, and it was all very traditional, with the Dame played by a man and the hero and heroine both played by women. There was also lots of audience participation with everyone having to shout at the villain Oh no he didn t or Oh yes he did. Or sometimes when there was a large spider or a ghost behind him, we had to shout It s behind you. This made it more exciting. SCHOOL. I went to Badsley Moor Lane Infant and Junior School. The only thing I can remember about the school is the hall, which was in the middle of the building, with all the classrooms round it. We walked to school, leaving home at about a quarter to nine, as it wasn t far away. We always went on to Herringthorpe Playing Fields for Sports Day in the summer. From Badsley Moor Lane School I went to South Grove Secondary Modern School. I had to leave home earlier at about ten past eight as the school was much further away. We went to town by bus and then walked up Moorgate. In summer we would walk home on a nice day. Boys and girls were still separated for lessons when I was there and had separate playgrounds. We had a navy and white uniform. This included a gym-slip except in the last year when we could wear skirts. In the summer we wore a blazer or a navy cardigan and in winter a navy blue gabardine coat. We also wore a navy blue beret. If parents couldn t provide the uniform it was supplied by the Education Department, and not Top Right: Badsley Moor Lane Primary School. (Picture courtesy of Peter Hawkridge, 2003) Bottom Right: South Grove Secondary School, which was demolished in (Picture courtesy of Peter Hawkridge, 2003) 15

16 Form 1E (East) in , my first year at South Grove. I am at the far left on the back row. My best friend, Christine Adams is on the far left on the front row. She came from Ickles. Our form teacher (fourth from the right on the back row) was Miss Conroy. She taught P.E. The other classes in our year were 1W (West), 1S (South) and 1N (North). wearing it could lead to a pupil being expelled though I can t remember a time when this ever happened. The lessons at South Grove were Maths, English, Geography, History, P.E. (Physical Education), Cookery, Music and R.E. (Religious Education). In Cookery we made fish pie, shepherd s pie, rock buns and scones. Most of the teachers were all right except for one the Maths teacher. I was terrified of her. She would walk up and down the classroom hitting her hand with a ruler, saying, You will learn because I will make you. I don t know how she thought she could do that if you didn t have the brains. She would also shout from one end of the corridor to the other, so her nickname was Foghorn. We had assembly every morning. I was in the school choir. I was also a prefect. Our duties were to go into the detention class until a teacher arrived, which was horrendous as all the riffraff of the school were there. We had to change the towels in the girl s loos, make sure no-one ran down the corridors, fetch in the milk in the mornings in other words it was all a bit of a skive. We went swimming once a week to what was the Old Baths on Main Street, near to where Yeat s Wine Lodge is now, with the Turkish Baths and Slipper Baths next door. Inside the Baths there was a bust I think it was of Captain Webb who swam the Channel. It was all right once you got into the water after dealing with the massive black beetles. They were horrible we called them black clocks and killed them with our shoes. Mrs. House was the swimming teacher. The first time of going to the Baths you had to jump in. That did not bother me as I had learned to swim when I was seven years old in the sea at 16

17 Bridlington. Lots of kids were scared, however, especially as if you didn t jump in you were pushed in, which must have been terrible. My best friend at South Grove lived in some old houses on Sheffield Road at Ickles. They have pulled the houses down now, but every time it rained for more than twenty-four hours they were flooded out. It must have been awful, but they always seemed to cope. I sometimes used to visit her at weekends and also another friend who lived on Maltkiln Road off Alma The old baths and post office on Main Street. (Ref. No ) Road. I walked there and back and usually stayed about two hours. We used to talk about the usual things for teenagers music, makeup and boys, though we didn t know many boys as they had their lessons upstairs. WEEKENDS AND SCHOOL HOLIDAYS. I never remember being bored in the school holidays. All the children from our street used to go either to Listerdale Woods or Clifton Park to play. To get to the woods we had to cross Herringthorpe Valley Road, but it was not so busy with traffic in those days and St. Bernard s School had not then been built. In Clifton Park we played games such as Tag. One person was chosen to be It and they had to chase the others. When they had caught someone they tagged them and then they became It and had to chase the others and so on, until everyone had had a turn. We took sandwiches and a bottle of tap water with us. Pop was only allowed in our house for Sunday dinnertime and it was Tizer. We were always well behaved well almost always. I do remember falling into the stream in Listerdale Woods and having to go home wet and covered in sludge. We had been told not to go into the woods that day so were in trouble for that. I was in bother with my friends too, as they were all grounded for a week. I, also, remember one hot summer writing my name on a curbstone with tar and a lolly stick. I took care not to write it outside our house, but of course Mum found out and I was grounded again. 17

18 We used to play cricket down next door s path. They were the only one s who had a car and, therefore, a drive. On one occasion I hit the ball and put it through someone s window. I was very upset about that as it cost me two shillings and sixpence out of my pocket money until I had paid for it. Other games we played as children were whip and top, hop-skotch, snobbs, skipping, marbles and two balls, where the balls were thrown up against a wall while a rhyme was chanted: Queenie, Queenie Caroline Wash her hair in turpentine. Turpentine made it shine. Queenie, Queenie Caroline In hop-scotch nine numbered squares were drawn onto the pavement in chalk. A pebble was then thrown onto the first square and you had to hop onto that square, pick up the pebble, turn round and hop back. Then the pebble had to be thrown onto the second square. You then had to hop onto that square, pick up the pebble and hop back. Then you did the same with the third square, and so on. If you didn t throw the pebble onto the right square, or hopped onto the wrong square, or toppled over as you hopped, someone else had a go. The first person who managed to do this on all nine squares was the winner. I can remember a street party for the coronation in We had a Queen and her attendants. We had a draw and all the girls names were put into a hat and the one that was drawn out was the Queen. The rest were her attendants. Our mothers made the dresses. We had a procession around the street, then the Queen was crowned. Afterwards we had the party with tables laid out along the street. We had sandwiches, jelly, ice cream, buns, cake and pop. The Statutes Fair. (Ref. No ) We, also, enjoyed going to the Statutes Fair, which came to Rotherham every spring and autumn. It was held in an open space next to the old Central Railway Station, where the police station is now. There were plenty of different rides, for example the Waltzer, a Big Wheel and a big Swing Boat. There was a rifle range and a coconut shy. There was also a stall I can t remember what it was called 18

19 where there were clowns heads which moved from side to side and you had to throw a ball into the clown s mouth. The ball then ran down lanes which each carried a score. If you got a high score you won a prize, usually a fluffy animal. There were also stalls selling hot dogs, candy floss, toffee apples and beef burgers. We didn t have TV until about Radio was a big thing when I was younger. I remember listening to Mrs Dale s Diary, The Archers, Dan Dare and Journey into Space, and Forces Favourites on a Sunday lunchtime. HOLIDAYS AND DAYS AWAY. Our next door neighbours had a caravan for holidays. It was on the south cliff at Bridlington. We had some great holidays there. We went by train, taking a case full of summer dresses, and swim wear, but also cardigans and a coat in case it was chilly. There were no showers on the caravan site, only a toilet block with handbasins. I remember learning to swim in the sea at Bridlington. I was friendly with a girl whose Mum and Dad had a chalet there. We were always there at the same time in the school holidays. I often wonder how she s getting on these days. I think she lived in Driffield. We played games usually ball games such as tennis, or catch, but mostly we went to the beach to collect shells and drift wood, trying to imagine where the wood had come from, perhaps even from wrecks. One year we put a note in a bottle with our addresses on, but we never got a reply. We also went on a day trip to Cleethorpes every year in the school holidays. Dad was a member of the Trades Working Men s Club. He paid into a club for the day-trip so the train fare and spending money was taken care of on the day. The excitement standing on the station that day was great. Later on we went further afield Great Yarmouth, Blackpool, Mum and Dad in Blackpool in 1940, before I was born. The motorbike and background scenery were provided by the photographer. Photo s like these were all part of the fun of a trip to the seaside in the middle of the 20th century. 19

20 Masbrough Railway Station in the 1950 s. (Ref. No ) Torquay. We always went on the train, as Dad never had a car. I loved trains and the railway. I used to go down to Masbrough Station sometimes to trainspot. We used to stand on the bridge over the lines and when a train came in we were engulfed in the smoke. Mum used to complain that we came back smelling like bad eggs. We also sometimes used to go by train to Millhouses Park in Sheffield. There was a swimming pool there and also a stream to paddle in. POSTSCRIPT. In 1958, at fifteen years old, I left school to work in a shop. My childhood in Herringthorpe had come to an end and I felt very grown up. Jobs then were quite easy to come by and I was given a few options. I left school on a Friday and at the beginning of the next week I went to the Labour Exchange, as it was then called, on Moorgate. It was daunting for me to go to the Labour Exchange as I was quite shy in those days. I talked to the lady and told her I wanted shop work. I had two or three interviews, but don t remember them except for the one at Spiers handbag and accessories shop on Frederick Street. I was sent for an 20

21 interview with the manageress. Her name was Miss Skull. She was dressed all in black and was quite scary. The impression I got was that she basically wanted to know if I was honest and hardworking. She asked a few questions about my home life, looked at my last school report, and gave me the job. I think Mum and Dad wanted me to do something else, but that s what I wanted to do, so if I was happy so were they. Mr and Mrs Spiers were both very nice. They were Jewish and invited the staff to their daughter s wedding at a synagogue on Ecclesall Road in Sheffield. The bride and groom were under a large canopy and it was all very impressive. I stayed at Spiers for six years and then went to the soft furnishing department at the Co-op, selling curtains, cushion covers and bedding. Top Right: The old Labour Exchange on Moorgate Street, where I went to find a job after leaving school. In 2003, this is the Eric Mann s Building and is used by Rotherham Council. Middle Right: My sister Marlene and me in the back garden of 30, Campbell Drive. I am wearing the outfit I bought to attend the Spiers daughter s wedding including 4 stiletto heels! Bottom Right: The Co-operative Society buildings on the corner of Main Street and High Street, where I worked after leaving Spiers. 21

22 22