I am looking for any information that anyone may have of my dad JOE WEST. I was born when my Mum and Dad lived in 21 Arthur Street, Ushaw Moor.
I don't have a lot of information about him he passed away when I was 9 years old. Which will be about 1965.
I do believe he was a Football Referee and he worked on United Buses at the time.
Before moving to Ushaw Moor he went away to war in the 40s and he got injured in Burma. I believe he spent a long time in hospital and didn't come home with the rest of the troops. His then wife (don't know her name) didn't wait for him (perhaps she thought he was dead I am just guessing here - as he didn't come home) and went off with another man.
I have e mailed you because of some of the stories on your web site, I must admit it has brought back a lot of memories. many thanx to Wilf Bell for that.
Someone must remember him or even have a picture of him.
John G West
Thursday, 30 October 2008
Two Florence Nightingales living in Ushaw Moor in 1901
Florence Nightingale Number1
The younger Florence, aged 9 and born in Waterhouses, was part of the Nightingale family that occupied both 2 and 3 West Street Ushaw Moor.
Her father was John Nightingale a 42 year old colliery Undermanager; born in Northumberland he had gained his manager’s certificate on 26/02/1893. His managerial experience included overseeing the ‘Busty’ which would be abandoned 43 years later – well after his involvement!
Florence’s mother was 35 year old Sarah who was born in St. John’s Chapel in Durham.
Florence had a lot of siblings: Alice [born in Waterhouses], Edith [b Esh], James W [b Waterhouses], Margaret [b Ushaw Moor], Mary J [b Waterhouses] and Phillis [bWaterhouses].
The younger Florence, aged 9 and born in Waterhouses, was part of the Nightingale family that occupied both 2 and 3 West Street Ushaw Moor.
Her father was John Nightingale a 42 year old colliery Undermanager; born in Northumberland he had gained his manager’s certificate on 26/02/1893. His managerial experience included overseeing the ‘Busty’ which would be abandoned 43 years later – well after his involvement!
Florence’s mother was 35 year old Sarah who was born in St. John’s Chapel in Durham.
Florence had a lot of siblings: Alice [born in Waterhouses], Edith [b Esh], James W [b Waterhouses], Margaret [b Ushaw Moor], Mary J [b Waterhouses] and Phillis [bWaterhouses].
Sarah Ellen McGurk and Family
Having previously given a brief mention to an Ushaw Moor girl, Sarah Ellen McGurk, in an earlier article I recently found myself sitting next to her daughter, Mrs Margaret Parks, at a University of the Third Age social history meeting about 265 miles south of Ushaw Moor! Margaret gave me the go ahead to write some brief notes about her family - as follows:
Sarah Ellen McGurk was born in Lanchester on 18th October 1900 and shortly afterwards lived at 10 South Street, Ushaw Moor, with her parents John and Margaret.
Her dad was born in Durham and worked as a local colliery coke drawer. Essentially he removed coke from the coke-oven by means of a tool that resembled a long handled shovel.
Sarah had a brother called Edward [seven years older than her] and a brother called Michael who was four years older. Michael, who was only about 5ft tall at the time and worked at the colliery as a pit pony boy. One day at the colliery his pony would not proceed any further – it then jumped and reared; as a result Michael’s leg was broken and he walked with a limp for the rest of his life. Much later he went to live with his niece Margaret Parks [see first paragraph] in Tottenham, North London. Margaret remembers him because of the amount of snuff he used!
Sarah had a sister, Mary Ann, as well as the brothers mentioned in the preceding paragraph. Mary Ann is not mentioned in the 1901 census so it is likely that she was born a little later - although it is just possible that she was staying at an address other than 9 South Street at the time of the Census.
It is known that Sarah’s mother, who was born in Bishop Auckland, used to bake cakes and hold coffee mornings to raise money to go towards the building of the Ushaw Moor Catholic School.
When Sarah left school she spent sometime working at the Ushaw College laundry.
Sarah died on 19/02/1972.
Now for some further notes supplied by Margaret Parks that might mean something to residents or ex residents of Ushaw Moor:
“The Griffin family included cousins of my mother Sarah Ellen McGurk.
The Keenan family [nee McNab] looked after the McGurk youngsters when their mother died. The Keenans settled in Brandon at 19 Commercial Street.
There were also relations living at New Brancepeth’’.
I will finish with a bit of information about the McGurk’s immediate neighbours in South Street during 1901:
9 South Street - Mr George Young [blacksmith] and his wife Mary. Their daughter Amy worked as a barmaid.
11 South Street – Mr Michael Collingwood [aged 24] coal miner and preacher born in Byers Green. Also his wife Hannah [aged 25] born at the Boyne [I suppose Langley Moor!]
Wilf Bell
Sarah Ellen McGurk was born in Lanchester on 18th October 1900 and shortly afterwards lived at 10 South Street, Ushaw Moor, with her parents John and Margaret.
Her dad was born in Durham and worked as a local colliery coke drawer. Essentially he removed coke from the coke-oven by means of a tool that resembled a long handled shovel.
Sarah had a brother called Edward [seven years older than her] and a brother called Michael who was four years older. Michael, who was only about 5ft tall at the time and worked at the colliery as a pit pony boy. One day at the colliery his pony would not proceed any further – it then jumped and reared; as a result Michael’s leg was broken and he walked with a limp for the rest of his life. Much later he went to live with his niece Margaret Parks [see first paragraph] in Tottenham, North London. Margaret remembers him because of the amount of snuff he used!
Sarah had a sister, Mary Ann, as well as the brothers mentioned in the preceding paragraph. Mary Ann is not mentioned in the 1901 census so it is likely that she was born a little later - although it is just possible that she was staying at an address other than 9 South Street at the time of the Census.
It is known that Sarah’s mother, who was born in Bishop Auckland, used to bake cakes and hold coffee mornings to raise money to go towards the building of the Ushaw Moor Catholic School.
When Sarah left school she spent sometime working at the Ushaw College laundry.
Sarah died on 19/02/1972.
Now for some further notes supplied by Margaret Parks that might mean something to residents or ex residents of Ushaw Moor:
“The Griffin family included cousins of my mother Sarah Ellen McGurk.
The Keenan family [nee McNab] looked after the McGurk youngsters when their mother died. The Keenans settled in Brandon at 19 Commercial Street.
There were also relations living at New Brancepeth’’.
I will finish with a bit of information about the McGurk’s immediate neighbours in South Street during 1901:
9 South Street - Mr George Young [blacksmith] and his wife Mary. Their daughter Amy worked as a barmaid.
11 South Street – Mr Michael Collingwood [aged 24] coal miner and preacher born in Byers Green. Also his wife Hannah [aged 25] born at the Boyne [I suppose Langley Moor!]
Wilf Bell
Some Florence Girls from Sleetburn
Florence was a very popular name in Victorian times and there were lots of them in Sleetburn. Examples of the surnames of some of them, which might trigger memories, are as follows:
Beattie living at 31 Harvey St. [Parents Isaac and Hannah]
Brown Colliery View [James and Elizabeth Jane]
Brownlow [both mother and daughter called Florence] - Planting Row
Calvert 33 Harvey St. [William and Isabella]
Dixon 15 Jubilee St. [Joseph and Isabella]
Eggleston 48 Eshwood St. [Augustus and Mary Ann]
Wilf Bell
Beattie living at 31 Harvey St. [Parents Isaac and Hannah]
Brown Colliery View [James and Elizabeth Jane]
Brownlow [both mother and daughter called Florence] - Planting Row
Calvert 33 Harvey St. [William and Isabella]
Dixon 15 Jubilee St. [Joseph and Isabella]
Eggleston 48 Eshwood St. [Augustus and Mary Ann]
Wilf Bell
An Ushaw Moor Lad's Experience in the Cumberland Coalfield 2/2
I managed to wake up[4.45 am] in time to make my way to Lowca Colliery for a 6am start in my new job as weighman. It turned out to be an incredibly monotonous job. I was required to keep a paper record of the weight of all the individual coal tubs that past by my little cabin, by reference to a big scale, and then total them for submission to the Colliery Manager’s Clerk. I did that for twelve hours a day, five days a week [excluding breaks for lunch]. The money was good but the job was way beneath the potential of any human being. I respected a man called Pat – he had lost the sight of one eye, probably in a mining accident. Part of his job was to ensure that the coal tubs, which were freshly drawn from underground, got to me from the pit top without coming off the rails - and he did it in a very vigorous and efficient manner. I remember another strongly built lad who appeared quite fresh in the morning but always took on a gaunt and haunted look by late afternoon. I sometimes spotted him in the street after work; with the benefit of a shower and smart clean clothing he looked almost a different person. Even in 1964 ‘screen lasses’ were employed at the pit to extract metals and stone from coal. They got tired and dirty but again I admired the fact that they put so much effort in for such low wages.
On the 7th of April 1964 I got out of bed at 4.45 am - Groundhog Day – I guess that you have seen the film - and eventually got to the bus stop to wait for the Lowca Colliery works bus. Two policemen approached me and one of them said to me “good morning sir, may I ask you what you are doing at a bus stop at quarter past five in the morning?” I replied that I was waiting for a bus. He expressed surprise and said ‘waiting for a bus – at this time – what is the number of the bus sir?” I explained that being a works bus, with Lowca Colliery as its destination, it did not have a number. He looked at his colleague – thanked me – and they both walked on. When I got home I told my mother about the incident and she replied that a man, John Alan West, had been brutally murdered, in his home, at about 4am. His house was not much more than thirty yards from the bus stop I used to wait for the bus. What had happened was that Peter Anthony Allen and his wife, together with their lodger Gwynne Owen Evans, had travelled from Preston to Seaton that morning. While Mrs Allen stayed in the car [thinking that the men were seeking a loan from Mr West] they went into his house and stabbed and battered him to death. They stole two bank books and a watch. Evans left his raincoat behind and within it was a medallion - which was inscribed with his name! Needless to say they were soon arrested and charged with Capital murder. They pleaded not guilty but the jury took only three hours to find them both guilty. They were hanged a few months later. It is notable that no further judicial hangings have taken place in the United Kingdom. So I had been interviewed in a murder enquiry!
On the 7th of April 1964 I got out of bed at 4.45 am - Groundhog Day – I guess that you have seen the film - and eventually got to the bus stop to wait for the Lowca Colliery works bus. Two policemen approached me and one of them said to me “good morning sir, may I ask you what you are doing at a bus stop at quarter past five in the morning?” I replied that I was waiting for a bus. He expressed surprise and said ‘waiting for a bus – at this time – what is the number of the bus sir?” I explained that being a works bus, with Lowca Colliery as its destination, it did not have a number. He looked at his colleague – thanked me – and they both walked on. When I got home I told my mother about the incident and she replied that a man, John Alan West, had been brutally murdered, in his home, at about 4am. His house was not much more than thirty yards from the bus stop I used to wait for the bus. What had happened was that Peter Anthony Allen and his wife, together with their lodger Gwynne Owen Evans, had travelled from Preston to Seaton that morning. While Mrs Allen stayed in the car [thinking that the men were seeking a loan from Mr West] they went into his house and stabbed and battered him to death. They stole two bank books and a watch. Evans left his raincoat behind and within it was a medallion - which was inscribed with his name! Needless to say they were soon arrested and charged with Capital murder. They pleaded not guilty but the jury took only three hours to find them both guilty. They were hanged a few months later. It is notable that no further judicial hangings have taken place in the United Kingdom. So I had been interviewed in a murder enquiry!
An Ushaw Moor lad's experience in the Cumberland Coalfield 1 of 2
Less than a year after leaving secondary school I moved with my parents to live in Seaton, near Workington, Cumberland. I was destined to live there for seven years. The name Workington is not very inspirational – perhaps one notch above Grimethorpe - and for me it has a tone to match much of my experience there. Those seven years were meant to be character forming, memorable and fun mixed with a bit of teenage angst and uncertainty. I experienced all of that but the positive aspects were in such pitifully small doses that they hardly compensated for the remaining big blocks of my time -which were filled with inertia and progressively mind dulling experiences.
I suppose I could have paraphrased the above by describing my time in Workington during the 60s as ‘mostly excreta’ [forgive my too rounded edges]. I did not have much going for me - what with a basically caring stepfather, whom by that time had a job that gave him little time to care, and an equally caring mother who had, with a degree of personal justification, despaired of life long before moving toWorkington.
I found myself living in an avenue about a hundred yards from a road that, by turning left, lead to Workington - which was about a mile away. We lived two doors from Keith Burkinshaw, who later became well known for his management of Tottenham Hotspur, and one door from Dave Carr the ex Darlington forward. They were both plying their trade for Workington Football Club.
I suppose I could have paraphrased the above by describing my time in Workington during the 60s as ‘mostly excreta’ [forgive my too rounded edges]. I did not have much going for me - what with a basically caring stepfather, whom by that time had a job that gave him little time to care, and an equally caring mother who had, with a degree of personal justification, despaired of life long before moving toWorkington.
I found myself living in an avenue about a hundred yards from a road that, by turning left, lead to Workington - which was about a mile away. We lived two doors from Keith Burkinshaw, who later became well known for his management of Tottenham Hotspur, and one door from Dave Carr the ex Darlington forward. They were both plying their trade for Workington Football Club.
The Dreaded Nought
Over recent years quite a few contributors to this site have explained why they think it is useful to look back. However having talked to others it is clear that some of them do not agree with chewing over past deeds and events. Overall a ‘live for today philosophy’ tends to prevail in our society - and it has something going for it. People adhering to such a philosophy are right to think that the past is dead, other than in the head. However to live in the present, in an intelligent and rounded way, we need some understanding of the past in order to make sense of some of our current experiences.
We do not need to understand the past to appreciate the intoxicating perfume of the Wall Flower, or the beauty of the setting Sun, but we do need some understanding of it to fully relate to our friends, acquaintances, and loved ones in the present.
One aspect of this excellent site – which makes me a little despondent - is the big 0, zero, comment of late for most articles. There was a time when comments arrived in good numbers – but not any more. I can understand that the early rush of several people’s articles, which mostly reflected direct experiences, would attract comment; it is just a little sad that because some of my recent articles have been historical perspective, or descriptions, they appear to be less attractive to readers - and therefore fail to bring comment in their wake. Surely the dreaded 0 is not always justified. What do you think?
Wilf Bell
We do not need to understand the past to appreciate the intoxicating perfume of the Wall Flower, or the beauty of the setting Sun, but we do need some understanding of it to fully relate to our friends, acquaintances, and loved ones in the present.
One aspect of this excellent site – which makes me a little despondent - is the big 0, zero, comment of late for most articles. There was a time when comments arrived in good numbers – but not any more. I can understand that the early rush of several people’s articles, which mostly reflected direct experiences, would attract comment; it is just a little sad that because some of my recent articles have been historical perspective, or descriptions, they appear to be less attractive to readers - and therefore fail to bring comment in their wake. Surely the dreaded 0 is not always justified. What do you think?
Wilf Bell
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