Posting from JI-BH

This page last updated 25 Oct 05

We got this posted from JI-BH, regarding local history...

I well remember going to the Moorview baths in the 1950's,my memory of them is the highly chlorinated water,which gave you a headache and got up your nose,the frightening "deep end", the half wooden doors to the changing cubicles,am I right there?.

I wondered what that cast iron metal plaque/cover was for on the back wall of our terraced house ;I thought it was for coal deliveries, stupid me!. Am I right in thinking that it had Varley foundry plus some other words and figures on it (maybe a date) on it.I think ours was painted green,some may have been black.I know for a fact that our neighbours one had been replaced with a wooden door with big metal hinges,because I have a photo of me in about 1949 with it in the background. When I was young(1946 to 60) it wasn't used for rubbish (as far as I can remember),we then had a corrugated metal bin outside the back door, supplied by the council.There was often a scramble to get your own bin back,so people started painting their house numbers on them.How we take the ubiquitous black plastic (and other) bin bags for granted today eh!. We were more environmentally conscious then, and we didn't even know it.

By the way ,having seen some of the photos on the website of flooding on Limehouse lane leading to Carleton, I used to play in these fields, and I can't remember the water ever being so high,but then again my memory may be playing tricks on me.So it's not a reliable indication of global warming;in those days we were happy to have any sort of warming. Is Limehouse Lane a posh name for what I knew as Ramper??.Sometimes we would raid the tip for old pram wheels to use to make Bogies,the forerunners of Go Carts without the motors;anyone got any pictures of their efforts at bogie making?. Remember the staples and big 4 and 6 inch nails?.

Can anyone remember the locamotive turntable on engine shed lane? I would be interested to know if anyone has any photos of it in action. I came across an interesting variant on this in Basel Switzerland. At the end of a dead end street, instead of reversing all the way back up the street, a car simply has to drive into a turntable,and is automatically turned 180 degrees to drive out forwards again.That's Swiss perfection for you.

Your WW1 veteran Mr Hyde (Hookie) lived near us in the 50's,and I could tell you more stories about him.

That's your lot for now, see ya Anon.

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