Re: Who remembers?
 

Actually Garinda ...that did come to mind ... but have some memory of Leslie Dean (headmaster at some school) .. being involved in the gala's etc.

Remember Mrs. Broadley too Accylass .. black beetles ... aaagh .. don't remember them .. least the chlorine would've killed 'em off ...yuk. Did we go for swimming lessons from the High School ? .. think maybe only the first two years if I recollect ... :confused:

Hey, did you have one of those swimming caps with collage type flowers all over them ? ... LOL.

Re: Who remembers?
 

i went from junior school (St Johns) but not from the tech.:(

Re: Who remembers?
 

Headmaster at the school on hyndburn road....Little plump fellow as I remember?........I think he may have been a labour supporter..........." I know what's best for you"

Re: Who remembers?
 

...and for us chaps there was the Brylcreem machine. Whack your money in and get a blob of the white gooey stuff in yer hand. Then a vigorous rub in your hair and join the scrum in front of the mirror to get your quiff into place before emerging onto St James Street.

Re: Who remembers?
 

He was headmaster at Hyndburn Park for many years, don't know whether he was a labour supporter but more or less sure he was involved with swimming.

Re: Who remembers?
 

We went from St Oswalds when it was near the bottom of Willows Lane, no bus for us, we had to walk two by two in all weathers once a week. From what I remember it was a lady that taught us to swim, we had these white square floats. She never got in the water.
All the girls had to wear swimming caps, never could work out why we had to and not the boys?
Finally learnt to swim in the lodges on the Coppice with my mates. Think we used to swim near Priestly Clough as well?? not sure about that.
I remember once going to the baths after school with a friend and it was so bright in there, was there glass in the roof? and no one else was in the water, it was very strange but lovely.
Wasn't there a bath house as well for people to get a good wash?

Re: Who remembers?
 

Thanks Rindi I remember now, as I said I saw his obit a while ago a well, he was a real nice chap, he actually learnt me to dive as well, an for a guy that was terrified of water at one time, it was a big achievement

Re: Who remembers?
 

Leslie Dean when headmaster at St Andrews used to walk us to the baths for our swimming lesson then on the way back at the bakers near the school we bought penny loafs they resembled a minature hovis what a treat
tony

Re: Who remembers?
 

The diving boards were not the problem katex but the stone steps were. I was diving down to get a penny from the bottom near the deep end steps when a couple of lads ‘bombed’ from the top board. The wash from the ‘bomb’ swept me into the steps and I cracked my head on them. I climbed out with blood pouring from my head and seeing stars and bright lights. The boiler room attendant patched me up and sent me home with the words, “You’ll need stitches lad” ringing in my ears. He was right - five in all.

Ah! Yes! The hair drier and the Brylcreem machine. Never used either. I saved my money for crisps or chips.

I went to St. Oswalds up to 1948 motherhubbard before going to the Accrington Secondary Technical School on Union Road in Ossy. Just across the road from the Palladium cinema.

Some of the miners from the pit used to use the “Slipper Baths” on their way home from work. Scaitcliffe pit didn’t have any showers.

Re: Who remembers?
 

now interesting question maybe jambutty knows? an old mate of mine who worked at scaitcliffe once told me you could walk from scaitcliffe following one particular shaft n come out in huncoat pit, was that the case? always wondered.;)

Re: Who remembers?
 

I remember once standing on top of the Coppice before trees were ever planted, and seeing most of the town covered in what I thought was cloud, it must have been all the muck from the factory chimneys. I stood on the top many years later, and was amazed at how green, and how much countryside there was around the town. It makes you wonder what all that muck did to us, breathing it in all the time when we were young

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think it probably was detrimental to the earlier generations than us, remember those days well, but luckily i am fine, n hopefully you motherhubbard.:) we only had so many years in it, then it began to fade,but the older ones lived all their lives in it. IMHO.:)

Re: Who remembers?
 

It’s possible because as I mentioned the coalface was some five miles from the shaft in the direction of Huncoat and there were old workings that we weren’t allowed to go into.

During training at Bank Hall we were told that many adjacent mines did have roadways leading from one to the other as escape routes in the case of a roof collapse blocking the access to the main shaft in one mine.

Most small mines like Scaitcliffe had two shafts but only one was for getting the men down and back up and also for bringing the coal up. The other shaft was a ventilation shaft that didn’t have any winding gear for it.

Re: Who remembers?
 

Can you answer a query for me? When I was very young, before I went to Paddock House School, I remember miners getting on the Blackburn buses at Church Commercial, which I got to go to West End. This must have been before pithead baths as they always had coal dust on their faces. Where was there a pit near there? I can't remember one.

Re: Who remembers?
 

Hapton Pit? none nearer