Cherished Memories

I was born 1937 in the big house at the bottom of Leggs Hill. My earliest memories relate to living in Kings Street and starting school at Leggs Hill, I did not like school, it was a far cry from my loving home life. I remember looking through the wooden railings for my mom, waiting for her to wave to tell me to come back home as I was crying and so upset. Mrs Pardoe was the head and was very strict. We were often marched up the top of the hill and into the air raid shelter which was underground and had a dank smell. During the Second World War I once remember a group of us kids running over to Benthall when a plane crashed into the hill by Percy Parr's (the coal man) house, the pilot was killed or so we were told although no one ever said if it was ours or a German. Broseley was a wonderful place, children had freedom without fear. As boys we spent time playing in Benthall Edge, carving a sword out of a piece of hazel stick and making bows and arrows, there was Jimmy and Billy Perks (twins), Malcomb Miles, Derek Lloyd, Charlie Jones ('Chicken'). Our favourite shop was Bowens, who seemed to stock everything from sweets to ladies stockings, you had to have your coupons for your sweets of course and Alice Jones who did not eat sweets would swop them with different people for other items of need. Local employment was the button factory and Maws tiles, not that I remember a lot about employment at that age. The public houses that I remember were the Kings Head and the Cumberland, the Cumberland was on the corner of King Street and what I think was Queen Street opposite the painters and Roberies, not where it is today, or maybe it was, as I think once more memories are trying to be erased. In later years we kids were moved from Legges Hill school to the larger main Broseley school down near the square. My first teacher was Mrs Briscoe, a wonderful teacher who took us walks over the fiery fields and even bought us each an ice cream from Mrs Cruxton's, the shop in the square, a Lyons ice cream in a little cardboard wrapper,I have never tasted ice cream like it, it was absolutely beautiful.