Ushaw Moor Memories (Backup)

Memories of Ushaw Moor and Deerness Valley

Monday, 1 February 2010

Martin Gallagher - Gallaghers Shop

My Grandad was Martin Gallagher who built and ran the little grocers shop at the top of Arthur Street with his wife Ruby. They had two daughters, Shirley and Isabel (my Mam). Auntie Shirley and her husband, Tom Wilson (from Bearpark), succeeded to the shop then it passed to my Auntie Lily and her husband Bert. It finally closed around 1979/80. My Mam and Dad were living at 13 Arthur Street when my sister and I were born in 1964 and 1966.

We moved to Gilesgate in 1969 but I still spent a lot of my childhood visiting relatives in Ushaw Moor, by then my Grandad had moved to 11 Whitehouse Lane. I remember my sister and I being taken up to the allotments - to me it was like stepping into another world, pigeons everywhere! We would go for walks along the College Road then call in at "the shop" where we were allowed to choose a cake each. My favourite to this day is a peach melba.

My Grandad had a lovely Border Collie called Taff who used to fly to the back gate every time he heard a noise in the back street. In the end, the wall had to be re-pointed as a consequence of his regular pounding.

I used to love going to see Auntie Lily in the shop. Surely every childs dream is an auntie who lives in a sweet shop! I remember the awe in which the electric meat slicer was held and how odd it seemed that the eggs (all white shells in those days)were counted out from trays into paper bags. The smell of paraffin still instantly brings back memories of the shop. I always wondered why the sign board read "H & L Adams" when my uncle was called Bert, I couldn't believe it when he told me his real name was Herbert!

My Grandad moved from Whitehouse Lane into 16 Cochrane Terrace then to a nursing home in Coundon (where he was born in 1909) and died in 1996. The rest of us have spread all over the place, I live in London, my sister in Cardiff, Auntie Shirley and Uncle Tom in Guisborough and my Mam in Northumberland. Auntie Lily still lives in Ushaw Moor and I visit her with my children.

Posted on behalf of

Judith Vincent Greenwich


Original Posting

4 comments:

  1. Michael Hope-Jefferson1 February 2010 at 05:52

    Yes I remember the shop with fond memories. My mam used to send me there to get her tights for the weekend on a friday, honysuckle 10-dernier, and could always use the change to bet a 10p mix up.........Was gutted when it closed and become a doctors.

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  2. Thank you Judith for a very good start to the month on this site!

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  3. I cam remember Martin and Ruby opening the shop. Living at Victoria Court it was handy to use the shop instead of going down thw street. I can also remember their two daughters Shirley and Isabel. Happy days.

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  4. hi i remember martin ruby most people used 2 tic on at there shop they definatly looked after the community i remember taking a note and at end of week they got paid me mam used 2 get american tan tights n tubes of bella hair lacquer my fav sweets toffe bnbons anglo bubblys dainty bars n refreshers we lived in ladysmith we all used 2 sit on that wall outside people would have gone without but thanks 2 your grandparents they diddnt they were wonderfull hope u enjoy my little story about them thanks xxx

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