Ushaw Moor Memories (Backup)

Memories of Ushaw Moor and Deerness Valley

Saturday 31 October 2009

Alfred Bates Turner

I was wondering if you could give me some help regarding a resident of Ushaw Moor in 1917. Private Alfred Bates Turner was the Son of James and Eliza Turner, of 2 Broadgate Cottages, Flass Hall, Ushaw Moor, Broadgate, Co. Durham, he was serving with the Sherwood Foresters when he was killed at Houthulst Forest, nr. Elverdinghe, Belgium.


I was in Ypres last weekend attending a dedication of a Memorial Stone to The Foresters at Tyne Cot Cemetary, I was talking to a fellow W.F.A. (Western Front Association) Member from Belgium who told me they had the original headstone naming Private Turner and it would be nice if we could find any information out about Pte. Turner or if there were any living relations who we could make contact with, with regards to the headstone as we near the 100th anniversary of World War 1.


Could you tell me if Ushaw Moor has a W.W.1 memorial and is Pte Turner named, also any information that may lead to finding a relation would be gratefully received.


Yours


Lloyd Cartwright

W.F.A. Member

Wednesday 28 October 2009

From Here To Eternity

The memories page is a wonderful facility and I have thanked Paul several times for creating it. Having said that - are memories just an exercise in both rampant nostalgia and remembered pain, or something much more? I think there is much more to memories: they are a tool that enable 'stock taking' and they provide information to enable each and everyone of us to move on. I have experienced  joy, but much of it was chaotic and badly planned - if planned at all. It is time to achieve some coherence together with positive action. What about you?

So how am I going to achieve this all action coherence? Well I am old enough and wise enough to know what I want to do, given my present circumstances and likely budget. I do not need old time religion. I do however need a fair amount of luck. The rest is down to me. One thing I have not got is the foresight to know how much time I have remaining - annoying that one.   So many of my past friends are no longer on the planet; David my best man at my wedding; Brian the lovely lad, together with his pint of beer, last seen hitching a ride through the galaxy on a 42 bus; Dennis my old left winger and neighbour, long gone. Those lads are a warning - to get on with it. So how many years to build into the plans? I will make a bold guess : how about eleven?

If I have something like eleven years it is time to list the aspirations and cut my cloth - with inbuilt flexibility of course. Mind you I need to build in four years of decreptitude so that leave me with a vigorous seven years.

Seven years? Not long is it? Well as you  know it is not how long you live - it is what you do with it. I'm off for a pint.

WB

Saturday 24 October 2009

Pitmen Painters

They were the inspired, and in turn inspirational, painters from Ashington of bygone years. Like any other group, or social stratum, miners had their fair share of sensitive, spiritual and talented people. You can google them - pitmen painters Ashington - UK of the web is best rather than the whole world -  and find a lot of interesting information. 

Again it is not about Ushaw Moor people - but it is about a group of the very same type - hardworking underpaid miners that enabled and fed our advanced economy, especially during wartime.

WB

Friday 23 October 2009

Pass It On

The memories site appears busy and varied but that is misleading. There are too few contibutors - and if they were to cease their twittering, tapping and often thoughful contributions - what would be left to keep memories alive, entertaining and fresh?

If you have found time to delve into the local pathways of history provided by this site - pass it on to a friend! Show enthusiasm that is a bit more than a passing interest. Keep village history alive and fresh. Better still interview a senior citizen or a 40 odd year old, or whatever, and with their approval get their story on to the site.   

Pass it on. You might also consider yesterday's article entitled 'Are you an ex miner'and respond to it - if at all possible.

WB

Monday 19 October 2009

Early Planning - Christmas Cake 1947 Style

Rationing did not end until almost the middle 1950s. The 1947 Christmas Cake was therefore not quite the version one could enjoy a few years later!

Ingredients:

85 grams sugar - soft brown - then - let me think - let's have a few bullet points!

  • 2  eggs

  • 3 tablespoons Golden Syrup

  • 225 grams plain flour

  • 2 1/2 grams Bicarbonate of Soda

  • 5 grams cinnamon ground

  • 5 grams mixed spice

  • 450 grams dried fruit mixture

  • 3 tablespoons tea cold and well strained

  • 1 pinch salt and finally

  • 115 grams of margarine


Instructions


[1] Line a 7" (18 cm) cake tin with greaseproof paper.
Preheat the oven to 150C 

[2] Cream the margarine and sugar and gradually add beaten eggs, then the syrup.

[3] Sift all dry ingredients together - add to the creamed mixture along with the fruit and  tea.

[4] Then spoon into the cake tin  - then make a hollow in the centre so the cake will stay flat on top.

[5] Bake for 2 hours until firm to the touch and the sides have shrunk away a little from the sides.

[6] Cool in the tin. When cold remove from the tin & store in an airtight container

This receipe is at your own risk: the writer cannot be held responsible for wrecking your Christmas or dampening your spirits.

WB

Sunday 18 October 2009

Off The Top Of My Head

I suppose that many of us are already aware of the circumstances surrounding the Ushaw Moor miners' strike - but even so Paul was right to give it another airing. It must be enthralling when read for the first time. I am absolutely sure that an inspired writer could make something of the dispute and create a popular BBC drama. In the right hands it would be far more interesting that  King Arthur and Merlin - I quite like that programme but it is fantasy, unlike the fascinating  Ushaw Moor dispute. The colliery manager was appalling and the mine owner was  not much better. 

It was all about deference then; all that bowing and scraping [and being ripped off by the aggravating wealthy class] understandably created an aggrieved work force. In Victorian times the powers that be actually thought  that if  workers became unemployed it must be their own fault. There was little understanding of how to operate an advanced economy and a large number of the poor suffered as a consequence.  

There is much more to it than that but I must close for lunch - suitably wound up!

WB

Saturday 17 October 2009

Striking miners and the master of the colliery

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="310" caption="Ushaw Moor in 1932"]Ushaw Moor in 1932[/caption]

USHAW Moor’s original colliery village overlooked the actual colliery about three-quarters of a mile to the west of the present village and was the scene of a troublesome strike in the 1880s.

The colliery owner, Henry Chaytor, of Witton Castle, was an uncompromising master.

Sanitary conditions in his terraces were appalling and wooden huts housing additional miners were described as “the most wretched dwellings it was possible to conceive”.

Conditions in Chaytor’s mine were no better, and men complained of working in 18 inches of water.

READ MORE

Friday 16 October 2009

Proud West Stanley FC

The full FA Cup record of Ushaw Moor FC is elsewhere on this site but tonight let us have a brief look at some of West Stanley football team's FA Cup exploits. I believe that West Stanley played in the South Moor area - if anyone can give any useful information regarding that I would be thankful.

Back in the 1905/6 season they drew at home to Northampton 1-1 before losing the replay 3-0 away. A few years later they lost against Watford by 4-1.

Perhaps its best season was in 1919/20:

Leadgate Park [Home] 2-0, Rotherham County [H] 1-0, Gillingham [H] 3-1 and then Tottenham H [A] 1-4 defeat. Yes West Stanley played against the Spurs! During that season Tottenham finished up champions of the Second Division [now called The Championship]. The Gaumont Cinema showed clips of the match a few days after the event. In the FA Cup that season Spurs also beat Bristol Rovers 4-1 West Ham 3-0 but finally lost to Aston Villa 1-0. In the following year Spurs actually won the FA Cup, beating Wolves 1-0 in the final.

Acknowledgements to the FCHD for much of this information.

WB

14 and 15 George Street 1901

Jimmy and Eliza Turner lived at number 14 with their offspring Margaret, James, Robert and Alfred. Mr Turner was born in Lancashire and his wife was born in Willington, County Durham. All four children were born at Brandon Colliery.

Tommy Rodgerson [coal hewer] and his wife Mary were at number 15. Tommy was born in  Northumberland and might be related to me [I will look into that]. Their offspring at this time was: Edward [coal hewer], Elizabeth, Mary and Thomas.  

So Alf and Tommy just missed each other- but by how many years? Whatever Alf might say the number of years was small compared to eternity! In other words Tommy got on the bus  of life  just before the one Alf caught - as it were. Just humour me!

WB

Thursday 15 October 2009

7 And 8 George Street Ushaw Moor 1901

Richard [a coal hewer] and Jane Brunskill occupied number 7 together with their offspring: Hilda, Hannah, Richard and infant Dora. They had lived in Ushaw Moor for several years.

Edward and Rebecca Heron lived next door at number 8 with their children - Louisa, Thomas, George and John. Like neighbour Richard -Edward was a coal hewer. 

Does any of that jog a memory of family living in Ushaw Moor years ago?

WB

Counting Down To Firework Night

It will soon be firework night and I sincerely hope that no Deerness Valley resident suffers injury because of it. The obvious thing to do is read the instructions on the box and obey them. Never go towards a firework on the assumption that it has not been lit properly.Even better - consider attending an officially organized display. Those are just three examples of good practice, but there are several more. It is best to think about it and plan for safety. Local councils often give advice in local freeby papers or magazines  - so look for them and take heed.

As you know there is a big history to this: not that long ago there was very nearly a very big bang. We were told about Guy Fawkes at school but I have researched it a bit more. Here is a short extract from one of my 'uni' essays for your enjoyment, or otherwise:

Geraint Thomas and his fellow experts from the Centre for Explosion Studies of Wales, Aberystwyth, estimated the number of kilograms of gunpowder used, assumed that it was powder similar to Trinitrotoluene [TNT] and used that information to compare the likely pressure of the blast wave at different radii, by reference to existing damage data tables. Their conclusions were: that within a radius of forty metres everything would have been razed to the ground; within one hundred and ten metres buildings would have been at least partially destroyed and some windows, as far as nine hundred metres away, would have been blown out. Thomas has cautioned that several factors would have affected the calculations e.g. [1] although gunpowder is generally less powerful than TNT, the experts factored into the calculations that the expertise of Fawkes would have brought the powder up to TNT levels and [2] the damage tables assume a blast in the open air, which did not apply to the plot. Thomas felt that those factors would have balanced out. [www.newscientist.com/article/dn4338-gunpowder-plot].  

  A further study, conducted by consultants from the engineering company Arup in 2005, went to great lengths to reproduce the likely power and effects of the intended explosion. They constructed and blew up a precise replica of the 17th century House of Lords, having filled it with test dummies. They concluded that the planned explosion would have killed all those in Parliament and everyone else within one hundred metres of the building. [www.timesonline.co.uk/101news/uk/article584830.ece]. Although the two researches were far from identical, both sets of professionals have reasonably demonstrated that the intended Gunpowder explosion would have wiped out the ruling elite, demolished the parliamentary building, and its environs, as well as killing many more people and damaging more distant property.

 On a much wider front the appalling danger for Catholics, had the plot been successful, is very persuasively put by Professor Ronald Hutton. He argues that the plotters would  almost certainly have failed to secure the support of the vast majority of the Catholic community – they would have been surprised and appalled by the sheer scale of the crime; certainly Henry Garnett, the leader of the English Jesuits, was aghast on hearing of the plot. Hutton maintains that the already existing mistrust of the Catholics and the intensified hatred for them, in the event of a successful plot, would have easily translated into Catholic bloodshed at a level similar to the massacre of the French Protestants on St. Bartholomew’s Day in 1572. [www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history/e-h/hutton.html.]. Consequently any hope of Catholic supremacy would have been dashed.  

I hope that did not bore you. 

WB

Reigniting Relationships

I have found the act of visiting Ushaw Moor and talking to old school mates a much easier process than doing it by the more sterile method of e-mail. A face to face meeting helps one to read the eyes and expression of the old mate; the level of their interest can be assessed and a way forward more easily decided. In contrast an e-mail is a medium that can bring misunderstandings and complete misreadings. I can give you an example of a probable misunderstanding; when replying to an old chum I typed something like - I will be glad to put you on my Christmas card list but you can sent me a card bi-annually if you  are hard up - crass writing that - he cannot have seen that it was an attempt at banter - not a judgement that he was very old, poor and perhaps miserly!  

WB

Monday 12 October 2009

Please Get Me Out Of Here

No one can claim to have mastered an understanding of the world and I have failed miserably, just like everyone else. Having said that, now and again one can meet people, or study their writings or sayings, and be inspired; it is as if there is some sort of brief illumination in an otherwise dark place. At such a time we all have to be alert and wary before feeling good about a received message: afterall we have all got our pet ideas - some are probably original- but perhaps most are gathered from newspapers, or other media products, that do little more than reinforce out own existing mindframe of prejudices and bigotry. Do I hear 'speak for yourself?' 

Assuming that I have been careful what do I then find? Lots of good people, a smattering of brilliant people and a fair selection of tacky people. Sadly tacky people tend to dominate and poison the world's well. Much of the world is in an economic mess and although some of it is misfortune, a lot of it is caused by naked exploitation. There are starving millions, many of them  being handed false dogma instead of a plate of food  and often their predicament is compounded by bad governments and other opportunistic organisations. On the other hand better off people are being fed messages that  potions and creams will always make them look younger, and what is more, they are worth it and should take care. 

Ofcourse you can always pop into Summerfields because the choice is so wide and much of it is good for you. Then there is that other supermarket - I have forgotten the name - that will refuse an adult the opportunity to purchase wine if they are accompanied by an underage youngster. Help me.

Earlier I said that some people are capable of illuminating the way through the tacky dark wood, or words to that effect. Well if you have not already done so try Richard Dawkins and his associates. Also try Johann Hari. Listen to Channel 4 news - it does not take prisoners and can often be relied upon to ask the very questions that you are wanting to put.  

What has the above got to do with memories? Well it is the almighty contrast with another world: Ushaw Moor and Sleetburn c 1954 -1960. It such a world we can conjure up innocence, sunshine, regular work for the uninjured Ushaw Moor miner , bluebells, the baker's van with its custard tarts, Stan Watson and his wide selection of fireworks, lost school caps, Harry Barlow,  Soccer Gleghorn, Sherburn County School being battered 11-0 by Ushaw Moor County and on and on. Was it  better then? No sir, the big world outside of that six year valley bubble was probably even worse then, for many, than the big world is today. 

I always look forward to discussion and argument. Sadly even the mention of  Richard Dawkins fails to activate a storm in this particular wild wood. That is so sad. Still there are other woods.

WB

Friday 9 October 2009

Never Mind X Factor - Entertain Us!

I have been 'posting' articles since April 2006. I prefer the word writing to the word posting - but that might be a form of personal deception.  Now might be a good time for you to entertain our known contributors!  It is your turn! Show Brian how you can cartwheel. Show Alf how to clean up pigeon mess and give Peter a lesson in village history. Sheila might give you an audition - for what I am not sure!

WHAT IS ON THE DESK IN FRONT OF ME?

-A Binatone telephone receiver - calculator -A box  with the words 'oil filter' written on it -my wife's spectacle case - the PC - the printer come copier and scanner- two Dell speakers - a digital camera.....

WHAT CAN I SEE FROM THIS ROOM'S FIRST FLOOR WINDOW?

- A wet evening

-13 cars down the avenue 

WHAT WAS MY LAST PIECE OF READING ABOUT?

Politics - go to Johann Hari on the web - he will give you an insight into Tory incompetence in a way far better than I could achieve.

WB

Thursday 8 October 2009

Newcomers Feeling Cold?

My goodness it is cold in Ushaw Moor today! On the subject of coldness are newcomers welcomed to the village? Is there a fair amount of integration? There are some people that seem to resent newcomers on the grounds that they are buying property that long standing villagers cannot afford.

 I am not in sympathy with such whining locals. The typical mining village was created because of economic considerations, that is the profit motives of landowning big shots or industrialists, and for no other reason. Economics will continue to change landscapes and if newcomers are attracted to the houses that are being built, can afford them because of their hard earned cash or mere good fortune, so be it.

Newcomers ought to be made welcome and I am not saying that they are not in Ushaw Moor. No doubt there are many types of newcomers, ranging from pleasant to obnoxious, but as long as they do not encroach on long standing villagers' rights surely there is no serious problem. Has any newcomer bought an expensive house next to a church and moaned about the church bells? How annoying is that?      

So what is the score? Is Ushaw Moor a happy place? I bet the newcomers are not knocking on your door asking for sugar because they have run out of it! They are new blood nevertheless.

WB

Sunday 4 October 2009

Ushaw Moor On The Net

Part of the art of using the internet is being able to recognise quality and spot rubbish. Sometimes it is easy - you might appreciate academic credentials and recognise impressive bibliographies, on the other hand......

We can tuck into Deerness Comprehensive on Facebook or something called Ushaw Moor Legends. If you do make a meal of it do not be surprised if you develop an upset tummy. Or put another way: If u do make.....

In the past the village has been warned about aliens, examined under a famous detective's microscope and even a Durham University students' club has mangled the village's history. 

Still all publicity is good publicity [they say].

WB

Innocence - A Viewpoint

Childhood innocence is ofcourse the overture to adulthood and it has its plus points. The brain of a child is usually less clogged up with unimportant and often unnecessary detail:  is is generally more sensitive to the planet and often has superior abilities that enhance the power to observe, touch, smell and even listen. Bluebells, honeysuckle, butterflies  and the smell of the colliery locomotive are unforgettable. The smell of the  pit ponies stalls is equally memorable. I never had a problem with the netty and sex was not on the radar.

Adults can recover from their silly mental preoccupations. There is hope. The smell of wallflowers - unless they are ill and tired wallflowers - is utterly fantastic even to grumpy man. The feel and smell of early autumn is uplifting, as is the bodily reward for exercise in the garden -  far better than getting bloated and constipated in some foreign suntrap.

 

WB

Saturday 3 October 2009

Ushaw Dude's Scenes Of Ushaw Moor

The choice of the miners' hymn Gresford is an excellent one; it captures the spirit of the place and the people. I feel humble and undeserving of the two photographs that include my image - because I did not toil in the Ushaw Moor mine. Neither did I, because of my age at the time, worry about the dangers to which my wider mining family was exposed. Over the generations thousands did worry about their family and friends.  As I say - I feel humble.  

Cloughy at this rate you are going to end up on a pedestal alongside Brian Clough.

WB

Friday 2 October 2009

Winns Boarding House



[caption id="attachment_851" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="Winns Boarding House"]Winns Boarding House[/caption]

A Bus Trip from Ushaw Moor stayed at Winns Boarding House in Approx; 1953.


Mr & Mrs Winn used to live in Ushaw Moor.

I am sure someone will recognise themselves or their friends or relations.

Cheers, Alf R

###Posted on Behalf of Alf Rothwell

Thursday 1 October 2009

Be Wary Of Newspapers And Tories

So the Conservatives have courted The Sun successfully. Whatever Mr Brown might do to put a brave face on it, newspapers are able to persuade and influence people to do things - like vote Tory. I am not one of the few dogmatic Geordies that used to step out of a pit cage; I am living down 'sooth', long retired from pen pushing, and concerned about what the Tories might do in power. No doubt their worst excesses will be prevented by potential voters wrath: nevertheless - is it really likely that they will help the North East with any great enthusiasm? No. Cheshire maybe.

A couple of years ago, within an article published in a national newspaper, a view was expressed that Bearpark and the word hideous go together. My reaction was - I hope not. In any case people make a village, not the buildings. It never struck me that Bearpark was hideous. Is there anyone out there, without hidden agenda or  prejudice, with a view they can share with us?

Sleetburn has not always been flattered by the press or even the occasional ex resident, but it has character and much of its population seem to possess quiet dignity as well as a generous slice of commonsense. I recall that its working men's club suffered graffiti back in 1998: the artist, or artists, lacked  merit - but other than that problem Sleetburn looked an unassuming village of worthies. No doubt it had, and has, its share of young 'whatevers' but in time they will grow up, and hopefully some of them will contribute to the community, thanks to government intervention, and in some cases by virtue of their own efforts. Mind you they should not expect positive Tory assistance without a big stink and a big fight.  There again it is a funny old world; imagine the Tories helping the poor and/or disadvantaged, and Newcastle United winning the Premiership in 2011 - now those hopes are on a par.

After all my huffing and puffing, but not because of it, Labour might win the election. If so perhaps it can offer Vince Cable a Cabinet post.

WB

The 1911 Census

Having experienced the initial thrill of  'walking' around the streets of Victorian Ushaw Moor and Sleetburn at ten yearly intervals, by virtue of an Ancestry package, I now have the prospect of doing the same in a back to the future 1911!

The pay as you go 1911 experience is already available - but from October 21st on tap total access, at your leisure, can be a reality by subscribing to the following facility on the Internet site:  findmypast.com

There is no full stop after .com!

Some exciting blurb tells me that:

--It is the first census where there is a form for every household rather than just a street-by-street summary: you get your own ancestor's handwriting

--It is over ten times larger than the 1901 census

--It has glorious technicolour images, more personal details to help you built up your tree and even details of deceased children.

WB