Me Da And Ma

A Memory of Newburn.

Me Da and Ma.
This is about 1949. Me Da came from Clara Vale and grew up there in 1 West View (which was a small two bedroom stone cottage) with Granda and his six brothers, Billy, Bobby, Joe, twins Jim and John and Eddy who was the youngest. Me Granda was originally from Crawcrook and his name was Cecil Daniel Burrows, me Da was named after him. Me Grandma Annie, nee Parker, who I never knew, died giving birth to a little girl which they both had longed for, sadly the baby died as well so me Granda brought up seven sons who were all at Clara pit. I remember being the only nephew with six uncles and me Da took me over, usually on a Sunday. Bah! Did I get some pocket money. We used to get a bus to Scotswood Bridge then catch the Adventure bus to Clara, as we got over old Scotswood Bridge I remember passing the dog racing track with a big fence around it, it was a very popular place so I was told, can anyone else remember this?
All the lads were keen cricketers and I remember standing in the pavilion watching me Da who was in batting, he hit this ball and it went straight over the top of the pavilion - eeh! I was dead proud as everybody was clapping him on the back, they didn't do kissing then! The pit canteen was just over the road from the house and I used to get an Eldorado Ice Cream, I can still remember that taste to this day. One day, when I was only about six or seven, an ambulance pulled up in the back lane of 18 Millfield Crescent where we lived and me Da got out, the sight of him is still with me to this day, he had been hit in the face with a cricket ball and it knocked all his teeth out. But it never stopped him, even when he retired he was an umpire for Northumberland, I watched him a few times at Gosforth and Jesmond cricket grounds.
Me Ma was a Millfield lass and grew up with me Granda Heaney and Nanna Lilly, there was sisters Lily, and Jill (the one who did the beauty contests), George and Jim.
I remember me Ma used to work at the rope works, as did most of the local women, this factory is now Harry Pringles scrap yard. Another job she had which she didn't get paid for was to lay thum oot. When someone died she used to go and make them present-full if that's the word. Jill worked at some sweet factory over Byker. Me Granda was a furnace man at the glass works in Lemington and he was well known in the boxing circles, in fact I heard he was the only amateur to fight professional at St James Hall which was where the wrestling also took place, me Da used to take me and it was around Strawberry Place, I don't know if it was called that then. Granda was a bit of a herbalist and me Nanna was always poorly as she had bronchitis, I was always at me Nanna's, you couldn't beat a cup of tea and home-made bread doorstep jam sandwiches.
I remember catching the mumps when I was about seven. I was sleeping there, as I did when Granda was on nights, and I couldn't be moved until it cleared up. It was great because me Nanna looked after me something special, as Nannas do. On one particular day I went in and there was this horrible green liquid in a small glass and Nanna was sipping it. Granda had made it, he had been down the Dene collecting herbs, and when I asked if it was OK she said it tasted horrid but it eased her condition, so there. Me Nanna died in the late 1969-70 but Granda went on till he was ninety four. Big Leon from Lemington told me that he had come across an old Health and Culture book and me Granda was posing in a boxing stance wearing only a pair of shorts, some people came up from the smoke to take the photo and he was in his seventies. Auntie Jill is still looking good for her age, last time she got married I gave her away and she was seventy, aye.