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Edmondsley
Edmondsley maps
Historic maps of Edmondsley and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Edmondsley maps
Edmondsley photos
We have no photos of Edmondsley, although we do have photos of these nearby places:
Witton Gilbert| Chester Le Street| Langley Park| Annfield Plain| Lumley Park| Ushaw Moor| Lanchester| Catchgate| Finchale Priory| Durham| Lambton Park| Birtley| Burnopfield| Langley Moor| Washington| Sherburn| Rowlands Gill
Edmondsley area books
Displaying 1 of 3 books about Edmondsley and the local area. View all books for this area
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Memories of Edmondsley
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County Durham memories
The Old Villa
i lived in the villa in the 60s i still remember mr burlinson and his cart emptying the loos in the back lanes we used to play at the hilly or the depo, we had the bonfire next to nobles and the school we were called the squarees and used to fight the wessies (west pelton)people i remember are lewy logan, dicky greathead, john bales, connie scott, eddie armstrong, the swifts, the smiths. dodger, ernie best, jakey laverick, the blewits, and loads more hope more people write things on this site yours rob barrass
Childhood
I lived in Grange Villa until the pit closed at Craghead and we moved to Nottinghamshire. I was 10. I had a great childhood in Grange Villa, we lived in West Street facing Nobels Caravans. I loved to play down the hilly. My friends included Jackie Blueitt and Jacqueline Lund to name just two. I loved the school and hated it when it closed and we all moved up to the new one at West Pelton.
Pelton Fell
My mother lived in Pelton Fell until she left to come to London where I live. Her father was Isaac Redpath. He was a pit deputy at the colliery. My mum is dead now but she said her dad was well known and respected in his community. During the Blitz and the doodlebugs of the Second World War my mum took us kids to stay with her mum and dad at Whitehill Terrace. I don't remember the earlier time but I have recollections of 1944/45. I went to school at Rosemary Primary School. I enjoyed the time in Pelton. My mum's sisters were staying there with their kids. We used to play and "fight" together Does anyone remember Mr Redpath?
Witton Gilbert, The War Memorial From The Woods c1955
The War Memorial stood at the bottom of what was called the "Camels Hump" in "The Dean" - a wild adventure playground for all us kids. The Hump was used for sledging down in winter and rolling down in summer. At the top of the picture behind the trees was the vicarage paddock, this was where as members of the 1st Witton Gilbert Cub and Scout group we us to play football/cricket/make fires etc.
At the bottom of the picture the "brook" - a stream running down through the village from "Barneys' Field" went underground in a culvert to emerge at the start of the Dean (I believe there was the remains of an old house? here).
Not A Very Nice Story
My great-great-grandfather, John Mingins, was a tailor living in Witton Gilbert with his family. Unfortunately, in December 1853 an Irish navvy, Michael O'Brien, picked a fight with John outside the butcher's shop and consequently John was injured and died one week later. Michael O'Brien was found guilty of manslaughter at Durham Assizes and I assume he served the appropriate sentence. I live in East Anglia but intend to make a pilgrimage to Witton and would love to see some early photos of it.
WITTON GILBERT, THE WAR MEMORIAL
I remember this photo well as I was born and brought up in Witton Gilbert. I was born in 1949 in Cheviot House at the bottom of Greens Opening, a very short walk from the Dene. I went to the "Tin School" which was the Infants school and now forms part of the by-pass which desecrated the village. I was told there had been a murder in the house in the dene which is why it was left to go derelict. "Barneys Field" was named after my grandfather Barney King - a farmer in the village who, in the 1950's could be seen daily delivering milk to the folk of the village with his trusty retired pit pony named Toby. We kids played regularly in the dene and swam in the Browney and scrumped many an apple from the vicars orchard.
The Bathing Hole
The stream in front of the war memorial ran down to the Browney river a few hundred yards below the Dean, where half of the Witton school kids learned to swim in deep pools created by dams made by Harry Bell and Davy Reynolds, they were much older than me and both very good swimmers and catapault makers. A lot of local familys picnicked at the bathing holes or the green bridge. Mr John Holmes, farmer, owned the land along the river and never stopped us from crossing his fields or playing in the river. The vicarage above the camel's hump had a fairly good orchard which we often raided in the autumn nights. The school orchard which was behind the labour hall only had pear trees in it and they were so small and hard, not worth raiding. I've just remembered this while writing, there was always great lumps of black tar floating down the river while we were swimming, how the water rats survived I'll never know, but... Read more
