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New Brancepeth memories

Here are memories of New Brancepeth and the local area. You can start now: Add your own Memory of New Brancepeth or a New Brancepeth photo.

Walking With my Grandad

in 1961 i would be 5yrs old,and my grandad Sam Gibson would walk with me my sister susan and my brother raymond,along from where they lived round to the wreck,,the name the gave for the local swing park.they lived in doric road,across from their house was a small shop called walter wilsons,he did this walk with us to get us out of the house while my mum and grandma prepared a meal there was a roundabout,and a witches hat,swings and a rocking horse,,we lived in ushaw moor,but we walked up to doric road frequently,,my aunty and uncle lived on cooperative terrace and cousins marion amd margery simpson,we would call on them allso.when we were older we used to walkup a long road outof brancepeth up to wide open spaces above the vilage,as he walked along he told us of his mmories of his time in the coliery,the pit ponies,the clogs.his bait box,all men then wore a flat cap and a jacketand went to the pub in the afternoon and sit... Read more

Memories of County Durham

As I Look at These Pictures

i was born in ushaw moor, at 5 maple park,,i am the third of six children,,i remember walking around with my family,as my mums family lives in new brancepeth we used to walk up to see gran and grandma gibson,we used to go plodging in the beck on the way back from chappel(once loosing my socks)when i look at the picture of the crossroads i take myself back to being a child and going to my gran and grandad jolly they lived on oakridge road oposite the garages and the swings,since i dont have contact with the jollys (since we moved to nottinghamshire when i was five )i dont really know them,i do remember that you had to go out of the back door then over the pavement then into the back garden via a gate,my dad used to keep rabits,he didnt do much in the way of gardening but some one allways wanted a rabbit for the pot,,and would swap vegetables,,you did what you could for a growing family,,and... Read more

Eric Burn

My grandad and grandma were Thomas and Margaret Burn, who had 3 childen, Jack (my dad), Jean and Marion. .Jack married Mary, Jean married Benny and Marion married Ralph. We lived in Grant Street and grandad and grandma lived in East Street. My grandad was a miner and my grandma was a county council councillor. There were 2 shops, a post office and a fish and chips shop, a school, and a hut which dances would be held in, which are not there now.
My mate was Trever Gobbing. Alan Reed rode over my bike with his milk lorry.
Once a year we would on the buster trip. I would walk into Durham with my grandad when was about 3 years old. We had no hot running water and the toilet outside. My grandad's brother Christopher was killed at pit house.

Esh Winning

I left Esh Winning with my family in 1963 when I was 5 or 6 for a new life in Staffordshire. We initially lived at North Terrace, which is no longer there and later 4 South Terrace. Like Ruth Hill, my father worked at Esh Winning Colliery and had to leave for greener pastures when it closed. I clearly remember the pit ponies and wondered at the time why they were made to work. They did look sad. I remember a pond with a wall around it next to the pit which we used to play in and even then knew we really shouldnt have. My father's brother (Uncle Jim) used to work as a draughtsman in the building on the right as you turned towards the road leading to North Terrace (By the Beck) and once we were let into his inner sanctum to see where he worked. Sometimes my brother and I used to call into the chip shop in the High Street next to Ellas and ask if... Read more

Old Time's Sake

My name is Ken Chapman. I was born in Esh Winning in 1954 and moved away in 1972. I have not been back very much, but do miss people I knew who I worked and went to school with. I went to school at Cornsay colliery and Waterhouses. I didn't have too bad a childhood, although my brother and sister were quite older than me so I was like an only child. I lived on the Hamsteels estate, had mates like the Rewburys, Cricks, McCorts, and out of Esh there was Jewitts, who lived on a farm up at Old Cornsay. I oftern think of all those school mates and think to myself, do they do the same? So if any of them or anyone knows of them and would like to get in touch for old time's sake you can email me at:-  kennethcken@aol.com

Morris Family

I was born in Dryburn Hospital, Durham and was christened in St Paul's church in 1960. We lived in Hamilton Row by the Black Horse pub, my dad played darts in the pub and was a miner in the local colliery. Then we moved to Waterhouses until my family moved down to the West Midlands in 1963. My other half of the family came from Bearpark. I still have a lot of family scattered over County Durham. If you know my Morris or Ward family get in touch, my email address is: sharonwillis59@yahoo.co.uk. It would be nice to hear from people in the area who knew my family, my mam and dad were Keith and Muriel Morris.

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