Memories of a verger part 3

A Verger’s memories of St. John the Baptist Part 3

Bob then spoke about his family and his early life

My mother was one of ten, I was born there and spent a vast amount of time with Grandparents.  I had good parents mind you, but I always seemed to be drawn to them somehow or another.  And she was born in 1849, both of them, a very devout woman was the old lady.  She wore a bonnet and cape, and there was always grace before meals.  Bob talked about her handwriting – she used to write with two fingers on the pen, the old man he could read but could not write and had to sign with the cross.

He was a carter, two horses at sixteen years old, they used to travel from Oldham to Manchester in those days with goods, and he was also born in 1849.  My grandmother lost her husband very quick, he was a foundry worker, five foot nothing, but had full command of the lot of them.

The store, Dixons was at one corner of Church Street and the co-op at the other, and she used to shop at lot but the house was at Newbank, top of the school gates, she used to come up with both hands full, and a dozen of flour on her head, and she used to go through the institute ground and through the playground of the school.  The school master used to say take those off your grandmother and get home, but back right away.  Aye, flour on her head and she was five foot nothing, but it was hard going.

When asked about his brother and sisters

They all survived, but Edith died before her twenties, but the rest, Aunt Alice retired to Fleetwood and then they are buried in St. Annes, oh, she couldn’t do with cremation.  Get away, I said, it’s only proper way now. 

You could do anything in those days, have a few pigeons or rabbits in your back yard there, but today they want it in triplicate and it wouldn’t be allowed anyway, no matter who signed it. 

There used to be a short distance union, not homing pigeons, they used to throw them up on Highmoor, Brighton Road there, and with a tail wind a good pigeon could do it in one minute.   The stop watches were synchronised and then UP -You had to throw up the birds at the synchronised time.  There used to be different lofts and pubs in particular.  It was big money, the Christmas Sweep was £5.00!  The old stopwatches were synchronised. (There followed a little conversation about homing pigeons and the Devonshire Pub in Lees which lead Bob on to another recollection) 

There was an old war veteran of the 1914-18 war who lived in Den Lane there and he used to walk from Hey to the Pots and Pans Memorial Service every Armistice Day and I hardly ever saw that chap (John Swan) without something in his lapel almost throughout the year even if it was only a spring flower.  His last journey was from the Devonshire pub, they thought that much of him, the lads.

Bob spoke about Dr. Grundy being buried in the old graveyard, by the dividing wall between the old part and the new part, and if you go down towards the middle of the old part there’s a gap that lets you into the new part, and he’s buried there under the black flag.  It mentions his maidservant on the gravestone, she came from down south somewhere.  His wife is there was well.  There’s an interesting photograph in the vestry – he’s there with his dog!  After he had done fifty years the window near the Stamford Road gates was installed and the bosses are carved out GDG and the date, and then of course he went on thirty years after that and the floor tablet was put down.  My grandfather used to say he had an umbrella as big as a bell tent! 

Bob asked Margaret Shelmerdine if she remembered Old Vic the Red Setter, he used to stand in front of the Ice Cream Van and he wouldn’t budge until he had had his cornet.  Bob said Margaret’s Dad showed him one day – just watch this he said, he pulled his pipe out of his mouth and put it in Vic’s mouth and there was Vic the dog walking about with the pipe.  He was a grand ‘un, he would stop the Ice Cream Van and he wouldn’t stir until he got his cornet. 

Bob spoke about the Football team, the Cricket team and the Hockey team.  You had to make your own amusement in those days he said.  There used to be a billiard league, one place we used to go to was a little cottage with the upstairs broken through and it housed a three-quarters table and if the ball got under what they called the dip, you were up against the wall and you had to use the poker to play with instead of a cue.  On one occasion when we went and we had to open the door to get a particular shot in – aye all sorts went on.

There then followed a lot of general conversation after which the tape ran out.  Listening to it again was a real joy, you could imagine Bob was in the room with you.  He was interesting and amusing and, above all, a real gentleman.  I hope you have all enjoyed reading about Bob’s reminiscences as much as I enjoyed transcribing them.

Kath Sellars