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This is a really old pic showing
Horse and carts outside Sagars Tannery which used to be in Cottontree. Now
a park, thankfully, as it used to smell pretty disgusting, especially in
summer when I used to walk alongside it to school. |
| I went to Colne Christ Church Primary School
between 1966/67 & 1973 and the photo's brought back a lot of memories. We
emigrated to Australia in 1974 when I was 11. |
Maxine |
| This copy of a postcard kindly sent to me
by Pauline Wainwright. She adds some useful background to my knowledge of
Cottontree. Pauline says:
'It was sent to my
grandmother Lucy Garnar nee Waddington from her friend in Colne and was
dated 4 August 1937. The postbox has an arrow above it pointing to a
Post Office across the road. I can't quite read the sign above the door, it
looks a bit like J Gott..... So it may not been the same shop that my
great-aunt used to have, all I really know is that she had a chip shop in
Cottontree and then moved to London'
'It looks just the same today - I was there a
couple of years ago - except that it is now Lee Garden, Chinese Take
Away. The mill at the end of the terrace (which I understand was Joseph
Eccles' mill) has long since gone. |
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| A lot of my family's homes in
Cottontree and Winewall are still there, I remember being taken to visit
various great-aunts and uncles there back in the 1950's and going back there
after a period of 40+ years really was like a blast from the past.
If anyone visiting your site is researching the
Waddington or Garnar families of Cottontree and Winewall, I would love to
hear from them.'
Pauline can be contacted on:
paulinewainwright@hotmail.com.
In the postcard above, you can just see some
buildings beyond the 'new' post office which, I believe, were seriously
damaged by flooding (in the 1940's?) by a storm swollen beck. They were
subsequently taken down. |
| This was the fish and chip shop
where I spent the formative (!) years of my life! Well, until I was
eighteen, anyway. I think this picture would have been taken around 1960.
Note the letter box has gone (across the road to the 'new'
post office which clearly was there in 1937) |
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At the end of the street (see above) there was
Fenners: re located from Hull during the war so that V belt production could
be continued without threat of enemy bombs. My Uncle Sydney worked there
during the war and then returned to Hull with his two sons (my cousins)
until he retired about 15 years ago. My two cousins are now in Chester and
Spain respectively. |
| This is the same shop
forty years on in 2000. Opposite is the (new) Post Office run by my
primary school friend,
Martin Lee. I don't think there is any connection with the Lee in 'Lee Garden'.
I have been told that the Post office has now closed
(summer 2004) I guess Martin has taken retirement. All the best to him. |
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This
was (and is) Christ Church Primary School attended by myself between 1948
and 1955.
The teachers were: Miss White, Miss
Armistead, Mrs Hartley (I think) and Miss Keighley. No one could forget
Miss Keighley! She and Miss Armistead used to be keen walkers |
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The school yard with views of
Winewall beyond. |
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The side of the school with the
windows of what used to be Miss Keighley's classroom. |
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| This was the view from my bedroom towards the
bridge over the River Colne. Ben Birtwhistle used to
run a butchers shop at the far edge of the near building. There was a Co-op
in the far building and I remember the brass band used to practice in a room
over the Co-op on Thursday evenings when I was trying to get to sleep! |
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This was all the news in 1960 when the 'pop'
lorry crashed into the 'beck' at the bottom of Heifer Lane. Scoop Baker
was there to get the pictures! |
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...and this is the drivers eye view before he
let rip down t'hill into beck. |
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|
Fed Cottontree into Google and found tour site which brought back so many
memories for me. My grandparents lived in Bright Street and I first
visited in October 1940 when just a few weeks old !! Dad was in the Army
so as we lived in Coventry Mum went to Cottontree to stay for a few
months.
Over the years played with Keith whose father ran the pub. Visited Bright
Street sometime in the sixties to find the mill had been demolished.
Polly Pilling was still living on the street at that time. My grandfather
- Ernest Maxwell - worked at the tannery.
I remember the shop on the corner of Bright Street and its wonderful
aromas. I could go on - such good memories.
|
Thank you -
David Bloodworth |
| Read (and see) more about this little corner
of North East Lancs in the pages below. |
