RootsChat.Com

Hi - it's me again, and on the same old mission   

Once again I'm looking for a photo that someone may be kind enough to allow me to use in a blog post. I'm looking for anything to do with coal hoppers (trucks, as we called them).

I'm putting a lot of stuff from my childhood and teens down for posterity, and this particular post is all about illicitly riding on the coal hoppers that ran from Bates' to the Bella in my early teens. It's not something I'm proud of, and I shudder at the thought of the danger I was putting myself into, but it was part of my growing up (and I had plenty of confederates alongside me).

I also detail another trackside activity from that era that I was never responsible for, the tipping of coal trucks (as we called it). This was carried out by adults who needed money for beer at the weekend. They would run alongside the truck and somehow turn the lever that opened the hatch in the floor, allowing tons of coal to spill on the line.

I believe it's important to give a warts and all account of growing up at that time (1970s), and a suitable image would make the piece complete. I have uploaded the post with a free-to-use image of a Gronk diesel shunter with the black and yellow chevrons, that used to give me excited butterflies when I saw them appear under the bridge on Cowpen Road, but I believe that posterity would benefit from something more authentic, particularly a hopper with the grab bars and that handy steel step that helped us aboard - colour or monochrome.

Anyway, thanks for reading, and please get in touch if you can help.

Joe

I've just done a blog post about my mis-spent youth, playing pinball at the Leisure Centre on Regent Street. Does anyone remember it? It was David Gillis prior to being an amusement arcade, and Taplows afterwards (that didn't end well). I recently saw a photo of the centre online - it would be great to post a link to an image of it, and if anyone knows where that image lies, this is the place to ask.

Anyway, here's another slice of Blyth History from my own memory bank

https://upthedownescalator.wordpress.com/2022/01/10/pinball-wizardry-not-quite/?preview_id=1972&preview_nonce=945ac53030&preview=true&_thumbnail_id=1977 

In 1911, Jane Ann Parker born abt 1869, Jarrow

Here is Jane Ann Costello in 1871 with parents, Patrick b Newcastle and Margaret b Ireland.
There is a mother in law, Hannah Manigan  with the family.
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VB8Z-24H

Well, that puts the tin hat on it. My great, great grandmother was born in Ireland. I thought she had come over here later than that. Fascinating stuff - and thank you

I've been coming on here for years, but mainly for local history posts. Now, however, I have a genuine ancestry question that someone may be able to help me with.

I would like to enter a writing competition that commemorates 100 years of irish independence. The competition is open to those who could be classed as Irish diaspora. The rules state that entrants must have a parent, grandparent or great-grandparent who was born in Ireland.

My grandma on my dad's side (me nanna) was of Irish stock, but I need to know if there's one 'great' or two in front of the last grandparent to be born in Ireland. I wouldn't know where to start, but here are the details from that side of my family, taken from my nanna's birth certificate.

Born: 14th April 1910, 19 Barnes Road, South Shields, Catherine (Kitty) Parker
Father: William Parker
Mother: Jane Ann Parker, formerly Costello

Costello is the Irish connection, but how would I go about finding out if my nanna's mother was actually born in Ireland?

I know I could probably wing it for the purposes of that competition, but I would like to find out about this for myself, as I know very little about the Costellos.

Thanks in advance

With regard to the comic shop over by the Travellers Rest, here is a piece I wrote following the death of Stan Lee. I did hang onto those early issues, and I still have eight or so.


 
Way back when I was in my early teens, there used to be a second-hand magazine shop at the Ferry Corner next to the Travellers Rest pub. In the window there were sleazy true crime mags hanging from a line by bulldog clips to tempt those who had a weakness for scantily clad women, but for my friend Stephen and me, the treasure lay inside the shop against the back wall.

This was a large table that was piled high with dozens upon dozens of American comics - and all were available at 2p a pop. Spider-Man quickly became our favourite, and we scooped up as many as we could find. Stephen had issue number nine, but the earliest I could manage was 17. I loved the stories, not only because of the fabulous enemies Spidey would fight (Dr Octopus, Kingpin, The Lizard, The Vulture and The Green Goblin to name but a few), but Peter Parker's home life was also interesting. He went out with Gwen, and later Mary Jane. His friend Harry, whose father is The Green Goblin (spoiler alert), became addicted to prescription drugs, and of course Flash, the boorish jock who bullied 'Puny Parker', but idolised Spider-Man (man that was frustrating - the number of times I wanted Parker to just deck the big-headed get - but he couldn't or he'd give the game away.