The big freeze.

I was driving to Crowley Lodge Farm one Sunday afternoon when I was stopped by the local
policeman, he had noticed my road license was out of date,I had bought the car in Manchester
and assumed everything was in order,after talking with the local policeman he realized I wasn't
aware of this and offered to help me,he said come and see me tonight and we will write a letter
to those concerned,this we did and I had to pay the back payment plus the extra to cover me
until the end of the year.When we had finished the paperwork I asked the policeman if it was
alright to use the vehicle on the road while waiting for the decision on our letter,his reply was
Its OK as long as I don't catch you,which to me in those days was a challenge,and he never
did catch me,but did have some scary moments,and remember being relieved to get my new
                 window update and to continue traveling on the normal route.

Policemen in those days were always treated with respect by the community,like Doctors
                 and the Clergy and school teachers to a slightly lesser degree.
Policemen were not recruited on how many A levels they had achieved in those days, there
physical stature was more important,there was a funny story about an incident in the
Warrington district where a horse had dropped dead in the street the police were called and
because they couldn't spell the name of the street proceeded to pull the horse into the next
street so they could make their report out.I believe this story of that particular family as
one of their siblings went on to play the Rugby Union  for England - Wade Dooley he played
55 times for his country he was 6ft 8in tall and  good to watch.when he retired it was Martin
                                 Johnson who replaced him in the England team

When I left Crowley Lodge I moved to the Sandiway area I was helping an elderly couple
to run a small farm,they had no children of their own I lived in a mobile home there on
the farm although not too far from home it wasn't practical to consider traveling every day.
It was during that time the pop music scene was popular I used to drive to Liverpool,I
was at this venue and someone approached me and asked me whether the Beatles were
on stage that night,this was the 1st I had heard of them,it soon became obvious to me why
I was asked this question,they were! and you could sense even, then they were a bit special,
Soon after they recorded 'Love me Do' so this was the famous Cavern Club I only saw
them a couple of times after that,there was another club called the Iron Door close by and
                                                 used to go there also

The winters were particularly cold then,it used to create a lot of extra work just thawing the
water pipes out ,during this period we found this man who apparently had been living in this
wood by the farm for over a fortnight in freezing conditions he was in a distressed state but
after getting him to the hospital were able to save him he lost toes and had damage to his hands
with frostbite,he had left his home and lost his memory,he was lucky we happened to find
       him on that particular day,he certainly would not have survived much longer

As the winter got colder we were having to fill milk churns with water just to feed the cattle
There was a lake on the farm and we used to drive onto this lake with the tractor and
the trailer we had to drop buckets through the ice just to fill the churns,you were not ill during that
                      period any germs were hiding until the warmer weather surfaced
The living conditions were pretty harsh then,I used to stand in front of the mirror in the mobile
home and when I exhaled my breath would freeze instantly on the mirror,it was very was cold !

This latest mode of transport eased the pain of the hard winter,although there wasn't much
                              opportunity to drive with the top down during that period.
It was during the summer of that year they were opening the part of the M6 that was passing
                                                      through the Cheshire countryside.

You were not supposed to use the road until it was officially open but I got a special favour
from one of the men responsible for overseeing this ruling ,It was a very special experience
traveling on this new road with the top down  listening to the tone from the MG engine while
                                     enjoying this new view of the Cheshire countryside

Hard to imagine this car was being driven some 54 years ago it still looks stylish now it was
In Italian Racing Red color and I used to polish it regularly,I had a sheepskin rug on the passenger
side,just to impress.I  remember fitting a new set of Pirelli's and was not too impressed with their
             performance in wet conditions,but overall it was a lot of fun to own and drive

                                             

September19th

September the 19th was the date Ed and I were to take our driving test,I was 17 yrs in
April of that year. There was a rumour going around that they had started to make it more
difficult in Warrington  to pass your driving test,so this put us under more pressure.
I was carrying my lucky four leaf clover and passed the test  so I gave this to Ed who
was  taking his test later, he also passed the test,so we put great faith in the contribution
the four leaf clover had made to the occasion,needless to say, we were both excited and
                      relieved to pass our driving test at the 1st attempt.
A few weeks later my friend Ron was taking his test, he too was carrying the lucky 4 leaf
                       clover,and he to passed,so maybe just maybe !!

I enjoyed Reaseheath from day one even now just thinking about it brings back happy
memories,I am not going to say too  much about it other than to tell you there were 4 of us
in the same dormitory all of the similar age but from different backgrounds and leave the rest
                                                to your imagination.
There is one story I must tell you about, there was a student that sat next to me at meal times
he was a banker in Hong Kong and was dispelled because he had a relationship with a local
girl this was a no go area in those days,his father was high up in the same bank which made
the situation more difficult for him to handle,and eventually affected him to the point where
he had to have an operation and was still under medication then,He used to spend time
writing  to the person in Hong Kong who supposedly had reported him to the bank.
Within 2 yrs of  him  leaving Reaseheath,word came back to us that he had taken his own
life ,very sad.he was very clever and was always on the panel representing Reaseheath
when debating some issues with  other training institutions,he was so well spoken and
                                                       very articulate
He used to come and watch us playing football he said to me once it is better than watching
Rugby watching you play football.I used to play center half  then and because of  Auntie
Bess cooking and Uncle Johns weight lifting I was very fit we used to get odd games
against the local post office and they were older than us I remember stopping one guy
and hearing him exhaling  his breath as he hit the ground,he also expressed his feelings
which I just took as part of the game he wasn't the 1st nor was he the last,but it did
             help me to understand Marks remarks about likening it to Rugby.

When we finished our course at Reaseheath four of us joined a Cheshire contractor
harvesting peas ,this was a well-paid job and hard work, we were divided into two
groups and worked 12 hours each so there was 24 hrs cover we would change over
at the weekend when extra hours had to be worked to facilitate the changeover.
Our role was to load the pea haulm onto lorries,the pea haulm was picked up by a green
crop loader,I held the record for the highest weight of peas delivered to the Birds Eye
factory from one lorry.our team was considered the best team and when the harvest
               finished the contractors offered us more work ,which we excepted

This work involved hedge cutting and on one occasion.were entered into a competition
which we won and were awarded a Cup with some prize money.this was presented by
               Babara Castle, she was a leading figure in the Labour Party

This helped the contractor to secure more work,it was a very satisfying job,there was
always an improvement to be seen in any area you had worked and one of the favourite
comments were 'that looks better'and sometimes depending on the area or the age of
the farmer you could put an 'eh ' on the front,actually there is no ending to all the various
terms you could use,we were just happy to receive all the compliments coming our way.
The only complaints we ever received were from cyclist complaining about punctures
                                    from the thorns left on the road.

We used to get involved in the cereal harvest as well and I had been combining not too
far from home on one occasion and finished too late to make a start at the next farm so
decided to take the combine home with me.I stopped outside the front door I never
forget mother's expression when she opened the door and her words 'where are you
  going to park that ? ' there was a piece of spare ground at the end of the avenue.
                                      so it stayed there overnight.

New Building

After leaving primary school and its old buildings and poor facilities we were to move to
a new comprehensive school and it was opening  for the first time,so it was a new experience
for children and teachers alike.We actually had our own full-size football pitch and with real
goalposts .It was a real culture shock after spending the past 6 yrs in our old primary school

One of my 1st ambitions was to play football for the school not to get high grades in maths
or science,we used to play schools in the Warrington area and remember reaching the cup
final one year against Bewsey we drew 2-2.I remember my uncle Herbert came to watch

I used to travel on the bus to watch Bolton Wanderers play in their home fixtures they were
a top team then in the 1st division of the football league,in those days you could virtually
pick the team that would be playing before you arrived at the ground,not like today with
its injury list.On my paper round, there was a house with a television and I can remember
watching Bolton Wanderers play Blackpool in the famous final of 1953 at Wembley,it was
              known as the Stanley Mathews final and Blackpool won 4-3.

As I grew older so did my curiosity about my father.and I finally caught up with him at his
workplace,I remember asking him when he was coming home,I was still oblivious then
why we were still in this situation.I visited him once more and that time he took me back
to introduce me to his family he had 4 children and the eldest was a similar age to me.
This was to be the last time I would see him, he died on the 6th of January 1955 the
     reason given was he had a thrombosis in the leg during the night,he was 52 yrs.

A funeral service was arranged at Padgate Church and remember  mother Ed and me
attending, Reg was snowed in on his farm in Cornwall so was unable to make it .Mother
insisted that we should walk behind the coffin,she never did divorce father so felt it was
            still her right.It was a very sombre affair with no one speaking.

Britain was starting to recover with people having money in their pockets but USA
was always a very rich country in our minds,a haircut was costing  us 9 pence in
America they were paying 8 shillings.it was a long time before the gap even started to
close,the country was virtually bankrupt after the war and had to ask America for help
with our finances,after a lot of time spent in meetings a deal was finally approved.

The Anglo-American Loan Agreement was a post world war2 loan made to Britain by
the USAon the 15th of July 1946 and was paid off in 2006,the loan was negotiated by
John Maynard Keynes It was for$3.75 billion (2015 = $57 billion) at a low 2% interest
                                      rate,Canada loaned $1.19billion
The final payment was made in 2006 by Ed Balls (strictly)  43million pounds to the US
                                       and 12 million pounds to Canada.

My earliest memories 5-10 yrs

One of my first memories was starting my 1st week in primary school at the age of 5 yrs

The 1st-year teacher was not there and the reason given was that she had lost her voice

we were asked to look for it on our way home  this remained with me for a long time as I

puzzled over what it was we were looking for. The other vivid memories were the poor

Standard of the school meals which were cooked elsewhere and delivered to the

school every day in metal containers

I used to run home at lunchtime, my Grandmothers cooking was much more appealing

on those cold wintery days, her rice pudding was a particular luxury cooked in the oven

next to the coal fire.

The school was a Church of England school with special links to the local Church the vicar

spent a lot of time with the children. My 2 elder brothers had been educated at the same

school with the same teachers ,there was a 7yr gap so we didn't overlap.

My eldest brother was the head chorister at the church I never made it to that grade but did

spend about 4yrs in the choir,we used to get 4 pence attendance money which helped as

well as a trip to Southport once a year.

St Mathew's Church, Stretton.

I remember we had to use a ration book to buy the weekly essentials,which were delivered

from the local village store,which was conveniently placed next to the school we could buy

broken biscuits from there for 1penny.

I always remember that period for it's cold winters, I remember going to bed with a hot

water bottle and waking up in the morning with the windows frozen solid on the inside 

with so much ice you couldn't see through them.

Coal was the main source of heating fuel and we had the same delivery man for as long as I

could remember we had 2 open fireplaces but only one was used,this had the oven next to

it where most of the baking was done. The other one was in what was referred to as the best

room,the door remained closed to this room and was opened only on special occasions.

I remember certain traditions that applied then Sunday was always a special day in the the

week then and was always referred to as the day of rest no shops were open then,and  the

local church was well attended,even the meals we ate were special on Sunday nearly always

a roast meal was served, which was referred to as the Sunday roast and for afternoon 

tea we would always have fruit on the table.

My Grandmother was a  very generous person not only to her Grandchildren she had a

kind way with everyone,I remember the postman would call in and have a hot drink and

no matter who it was she would alway's insist on using the best china and a white table

cloth,she had had a difficult life having lost her husband at the age of 29yrs he died from

anthrax and was one of the 1st people in Warrington to die of the disease, in those days

 there was no social welfare and she had to go out to work to support her two

children,she worked at the hospital and was the main assistant to the Matron  

the Matron was the driving force in the hospital then.

later in life she sold her house and moved in with Mother 

Football was the main sport we would play in school it was always Hatton v Stretton

the playground was on a slope and the surface was very rough but it didn't stop our

enthusiasm for the game.the girls playground was different and they would play 

 rounders,I think !

Birthday's and Christmas were always celebrated in a traditional way with presents

which could only be opened on the day,these were always for children'The salvation 

army used to come to the avenue every year with a melody of Christmas

carols,there were also small groups mainly school children who used to sing 2/3 carols

and would receive a contribution from the homeowner.they would go out every night

about a week before Christmas and at the end would divide their proceeds equally.

A fair used to visit the village once a year for the village fete we used to compete in 

various events and the winners would receive money prizes and then you could spend 

 it later on the rides on the fair the fair would stay for 2nights before moving on to the 

next village .

 There was an American camp within walking distance,we used to collect a bunch of

bluebells and take them to the camp,and we would always come away with Hershey bars

and juicy fruit chewing gum,it was not a happy day when they dissolved the camp soon

after the end of the war.

The Winter of 1946/47 was particularly cold with heavy snowfalls blocking roads and

railways the power stations found it difficult to get regular supplies of coal and power

failures ensued domestic power had to be restricted to 19hours each day

Army troops clearing railway sidings

My parents went to Canada during the depression of the 1930's on  there return to the UK

they bought a new build house in the countryside,it looked out onto open fields,I remember

walking these fields on many occasions,but once in particular, I came across a Badger now

these were always depicted as a friendly character in the Beano Billy the Badger so I tried to

 catch him to take him home ,fortunately I didn't.

Our house was called 'Adanac' which is Canada spelled backward.,

My Father served in the RAF during the war and never returned home after the war he had

a relationship with another woman who was also serving in the WRAF it created a lot of 

friction which I wasn't aware of at the time,my elder brother told me about this later he had

to witness many of the arguments.

I remember overhearing a conversation my mother was having with my brother Ed  he was

was going to meet his father as he wanted to buy him some tools,he was leaving school and 

was taking an apprenticeship as a joiner.

I remember wondering when I would meet my father I must have thought we all had a 

different father.these things were never discussed then.

Mother was quite strict with us growing up having two brothers and no father figure to
discipline us she felt she had to be firm with us,she always had a leather belt hanging on 
the back door and when she went to get that you ran ,she was the only person I feared 
I remember we had a drop down light switch over the bed and one time was playing
with  it was a two part switch and before I knew it I had divided it and got
 an almighty shock from the electric current I managed to assemble the switch and know
one ever knew about that

I am quite amused now when I see parents going to school  with little Jimmy who had
got into trouble with the teacher,In my case, if I got into trouble with the teacher mother
would be the last one to find out.

We were always taught to be very respectful to others especially our elders if a woman
walked into a room we would have to stand  and alway's touch our cap when passing
a woman on the street,and surrendering your seat on public transport to elders and
women .

Mother was a very proud person and would get great pleasure from hearing someone
else praise her boy's on their behavior our eldest brother Reg was better behaved
than Ed and me and was alway's mother's favorite.

As I grew older I used to spend more time going to our local farm and helping out later
it became paid work,every year after the Christmas celebrations were over the farm
would have a visit from the thrashing machine,I used to enjoy this as this was a chance
to earn some extra cash,my job was the chaff carrier

I later got a paper delivery round,in the area that I lived,I used to do this before
going to school,in all weathers winter and summer I was paid 12/6 twelve and
sixpence a week and with the money I earned from the farm I was earning
32/6 thirty-two shillings and 6 pence and during the 6-week summer school
holiday I could earn  £ 30 helping with the potato harvest and  cereal harvest.
The full-time adult wage then would not be more than £ 100 per year.

In the decade following the 2nd world war, more than 70% were employed in
manual labor and were only entitled to 1 weeks paid holiday.

http://www.onmysiteslist.blogspot.com

The farm where I spent all my spare time was also on my paper round so I used to
 get the chance to look at the Farmers Weekly and the Farmer and Stock Breeder
before delivering them even though the Farmer used to save them for me when he
had read them,the Farmer and Stock Breeder finished printing a long time ago
but the F/W is still going strong today.