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Barnsley
Barnsley maps
Historic maps of Barnsley and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Barnsley maps
Barnsley area books
Displaying 1 of 28 books about Barnsley and the local area. View all books for this area
You can read extracts and browse photos from these books.
Memories of Barnsley
Displaying a selection of personal
memories of Barnsley.
There are 13 shared memories to read.
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A Back Hander
I was a chain lad when the M 1 was being constructed. I was working for Amy's the asphalt company. Amongst other things I was to make cups of tea and also collect thousands of pounds in wages for the work force. My boss who's name I canot recall told me of some special people coming and that I had to get the china tea set out and simply make tea and pour it out. When they arrived, some twenty management, I was somewhat courteous in every detail with much politness. Ive always known how to make a good cup of tea and never use tea bags; anyway the big boss was so pleased in me being so polite and as he said having the best cup of tea made for him, he simply looked over to my boss and asked him how much my wages were, and on telling him that I was earning around £27 a week, he told my boss to up my wages to £60 per... Read more
Paper Trail
Lundhill is a steep hill that leads into Royston, where the Monkton coking plant lies. Just at the side of Lundhill was Monkton Row, it was to be demolished in the 1980s. But before then a big flat bed lorry failed to take the corner of the hill and ploughed into the wall - there was hardly any give in the wall because there was a raised field behind the wall. The noise of the crash could be heard some half a mile away where many a folk ran either out of their homes or up the street. The lorry was carrying Sheets of A4 printing paper. the impact of the Lorry hitting the wall sent forty or fifty parcels shooting off the lorry into the field. The lorry driver was somewhat shook up but not badly hurt. People from Monkton Row descended upon the lorry and began to pull off the paper and run off with it and by the time the police had come, the Lorry was half... Read more
Oatfields Caravan
As a young child mother would always take me to Barnsley where she'd do most of the shopping. Barnsley may have been something of a rundown town but one could always have a bargain. There in the old market was Oatfields caravan which would have been a three berth, but it was gutted on the inside with forms to sit on. Nearest to the door was a small cramped kitchen and bar. Oatfields would serve home-made mince meat pies and mushy peas. People would queue up outside waiting to get sat down to eat. When I look back at it all I cherish that memory more than anything. To me, I'd rather have had a pie and peas rather than a meal in a cafe. Finally when Barnsley was to have its multi-car park and its indoor market, Oatfields had to move indoors to some cafe. The quality of food went down the hill and the tea was unbearable to drink. Barnsley was just not the same. I recall there... Read more
The Wire Trellis
I was something of a naughty boy back in those years: there were four of us young lads who were to bus it to Barnsley from Royston where we were barely old enough to go sampling Barnsley Bitter. If we were sixteen let alone eighteen we went into the pub which was where the In-door Market stands. although the Landlord asked us of our ages where we were to tell him Porkies, he was to simply frown upon us and poured out the beer. There within this pub were old codgers where I noticed some of these men having a Ten shilling note pinned onto their top pocket. At first I never knew what this signified until many years later, shall we say that there were young women of misrepute where a woman would tap one of the men on their shoulder, where then they'd disappear through the door way. On reflection I was but four years of age when my mother ordered my dad out of the house until... Read more
Poggy Post Office
Poggy post office, Dicky Molloy, does anybody remember?
Raynors Cafe.
Raynors Cafe was a favourite place to eat, besides being reasonably priced the pork pies and sloppy peas were the best in town.
Memories of Childhood
I also queued in the shop for bread with my gran. Can anyone remember going in the public hall for dinner and Raynors cafe? Ooh, those pies...
Barnsley Town Hall - 1955 The Year I Started to Work There.
I was two weeks short of my 16th birthday, when I started work in the motor tax office which was situated in Barnsley Town Hall. Although we were employed by the Borough Treasurer's Deptment, we were an agency for the Ministry of Transport we reimburse our wages to Barnsley CBC. I loved the job, it brought me into contact with so many people, issuing driving licences, road fund licences, registering new vehicles amongst many other things. When I started work the licence plate number started with JHE, the motoring boom in Barnsley was starting. My bosses were Joe Burton and Arthur Walker.
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