Bramley Memories And Me

I lived next door to Mr Dales newsagents on Highfield Road in Bramley. Opposite were rows of terraces in those days with a shop on the end of each terrace. A chip shop on the end of the first row and a newsagents and general store on the end of another - Bowers? I seem to remember. The Barley Mow pub was opposite our house along with the rugby ground and club. I could be wrong but I'm sure I have a memory of trams still running?
In those days the Rossfields and Snowdens were all fields and woods.
I can still remember walking the lenghth of Bramley Town Street with my mum and trying to walk on the raised curbs of the old pavements before the tarmac replaced them! Boy they were high!
Being served in the shops before the supermarkets came.
I remember a piece of land at the far end of Highfield Road - we kids called it the Potato Shed, I loved playing on there and having bonfires!
Raynville Primary School was run by Mr Sargent, he was so lovely.
I used to play in Bramley Fall Woods through the summer - in fact it's where I received my first kiss as a ten year old, thanks to Philip Morley!
We sledged down the hill to the bottom of the Raynvilles in those days as not too many cars and it is a steep hill, bogies in the summer!
Kick can and hop, it was a favourite game of mine along with British Bulldogs!
Bramley Carnival was in its heyday and from our house we got a brill view of all the floats, my cousin being on a float as a carnival queen runner up one year!
The main Carnival though was held on the fields at Bramley Park. A fantastic day on all the rides and shows.
There used to be a Pram Push once a year through Bramley Town Street too, well attended and crazy costumes, I loved this event even more than the carnival floats! Charities benefitted greatly from this event, it's sadly died out now.
Bramley Baths was a great place to meet your pals and the jammie dodgers for a penny were wolfed down in a second!

I was heart-broken when the lovely old shops and houses were pulled down to make way for a supermarket and shopping centre in the mid seventies, oh how they did not appreciate the travisty of it! The shopping revolution came and nothing would stop its progress. Unfortunately for Bramley it never felt the same again. The new houses built to accomodate the Quarry Hill Flats residents were ugly and boring to look at. They still are today. Bramley was a beautiful village back then. Shame.