Help Needed To Trace My Late Dad's Past.

A Memory of Crook.

Thankyou to you all for sharing your memories, I have really enjoyed reading them. I know this is not a memory, but I would really appreciate some help in tracing my dad's past/relatives and maybe even his place of birth. My dad, Sydney Watson, has just passed away aged 96. He was a typical Geordie collier; he worked down Silverwood pit, Rotherham, South Yorks, from the age of 14 till he retired. Flat cap, corduroy trousers, waistcoat, neckerchief and pocket watch. Oh, and the love of his life was a garden full of greyhounds, yes he bred them, trained and raced them - they were his spoiled babies. Anyway top and bottom of it is, he never really talked about his family or his past. However in his last 18 months of life I'm told he suffered from dementure. Strange though it seems, this made him talk about his childhood which he never did before. Now he didn't say much, but he did mention Crook, Billy Hill, and playing, sliding down Billy Row Hill. Sydney Watson (my dad) was born in the year 1916. At the age of 7 (1923) approx, his family migrated to Sunnyside, Rotherham, Yorkshire, to find work in the pits (Silverwood pit Yorkshire). So what I am hoping is that some of the good folks of Crook, Stanley, and Billy Row, areas may have some recall of my dad's family. Maybe even where they lived and were born. Please could you scratch your heads and maybe ask around on my behalf so I might get some idea where my dad and grandparents came from. Sydney Watson was the youngest of the family. His mum (my gran) was called Rose. His dad (my grandad), I think was called Bill or Jack, I'm not sure about this. Anyway, Sydney Watson was the youngest son; his brothers were called William (Bill), Charlie, Joseph (Joss), And George (Judd). He also had two sisters; youngest was Dorothy (Dolly) and Rosemary (Rose). I would guess they were born between the years 1894 to 1916. So please, does anyone in the Crook, Stanley, Billy Row areas have any recollection of this young family before they moved to Yorkshire in the approx year 1923? I would really appreciate some help/feedback so I may find some history of my family. My mam died when I was aged 10 so I didn't get a chance to learn from her. My poor old mum died at the young age of 47 due to stomach cancer. Thankyou very much for taking time to read my request for any information, I hope this finds you all in good health. Very best regards to you all. B Watson. Son of the above mentioned Sydney Watson. Thankyou all
P.S. Please excuse my poor writing and punctuation. This is due to looking out of the classroom window and day dreaming...good old school days!